Newman-Crows Landing Unified School District Board of Trustees approved a combined 12% salary schedule increase for five groups in last Monday’s Board of Education meeting.
A 3% increase will be for each of the five groups: District Superintendent Justin Pruett, Newman-Crows Landing Teachers Association, California School Employees Association Chapter 551 classified staff and classified and certificated management.
The salary increase comes at a time where NCLUSD is inheriting a projected $2.6 million deficit in its 2026-27 budget. Despite the deficit, Pruett said the district anticipates revenue coming in to compensate for the increases, referencing Gov. Gavin Newsom’s budget revision.
Earlier this month, the Legislature passed the revised state budget with substantial increases in funding for TK-12 and community colleges. Through Proposition 98, the state will have a general fund of $127.1 billion, a $2 billion increase from the 2025-26 school year. The general fund includes $2.4 billion for special education, $261 million in cost-of-living adjustments and $30 million for grants to support local educational agencies to assist the livelihoods of students experiencing homelessness.
Through his salary schedule, Pruett will earn $214,262 annually and could see an increase up to $256,994. In addition to his increased pay, he will have an annual $1,110 master’s degree stipend.
For NCLTA, a teacher with a Bachelor’s of Arts will now earn $65,011 annually. An educator could see increases in their income based on how many years they’ve been with NCLUSD and the amount of graduate units. A nine-year teacher who has a bachelor's degree and 90 graduates can earn $101,326 annually.
A chef and computer technician assistant were among the CSEA classified positions that could see a significant increase from their base hourly wage to the most they can earn. The computer technician assistant position will start at $26.59 per hour in its first year and possibly $31.93 hourly in year six. The chef position will begin at $28.56 hourly in the first year and a possible increase in the sixth year at $33.75 per hour.
Certificated management positions such as assistant superintendent and middle school principal will have a significant salary boost from the first to sixth year. The assistant superintendent will begin with $166,342 annually with an $26,494 increase by the sixth year. For the middle school principal position, the individual will start with an annual salary of $124,792 and could earn $149,008 by their sixth year.
Chief Business Official (CFO) and Director of Maintenance & Operations are among the highest earners when it comes to hourly increases for classified management. The CFO will begin with an hourly rate of $57.89 in the first year and $75.27 by year six. Director of Maintenance & Operations will begin at $48.77 per hour and $63.42 in the sixth year.
“We want to make sure we stay competitive and be able to hire quality staff in all areas,” Pruett said.
