Our last column [1] announced that Alameda Unified School District (AUSD) and the Alameda Education Association, which represents teachers, nurses, speech and language pathologists, school psychologists, and counselors, reached a tentative agreement on salary, benefits, and other contract considerations.
[2]We’re now happy to announce that AUSD and its two Classified School Employees Association (CSEA) chapters also signed tentative agreements.
Under the terms of the three-year agreement, members of CSEA 27 (which represents office technical workers and paraprofessionals) and CSEA-860 (which represents custodial, maintenance, and food service workers) will receive a 10% salary increase over the next three years, plus a 2% bonus, as well as a 76% increase in the amount AUSD contributes to their health coverage.
The teams also came to agreement on articles relating to hours and overtime, vacation, layoffs, and professional growth.
The next step is for the members of the two unions to ratify their tentative agreements. Once that is complete, the AUSD Board of Education will vote on ratifying the agreement.
More information is available on the AUSD website [3].
Youth events
In other news, this month several of AUSD’s community partners are holding youth events. On Saturday, March 21, Alameda Education Foundation (AEF) will host Poetry Slam 2026 [4] at Books Inc., 1344 Park Street, from 2:30 to 4 p.m. Students are encouraged to write a poem on the theme of “Where I Live,” using local artist Alex D. da Silva’s painting “Warriors and the Meanderings of a Watershed,” an abstract work filled with Alameda history, including the Ohlone people, Neptune Beach and the Navy base during World War II. Students can register online [5] for the third annual event.
On Wednesday, March 25, the Alameda Collaborative for Children, Youth, and their Families (ACCYF) Youth Advisory Committee (YAC) are hosting an Open Mic Night [6] at Webster Park (formerly the Healing Garden), 1435 Webster Street, 4 to 7 p.m., to commemorate the Season for Nonviolence, a 64-day period observed between the anniversaries of the deaths of Gandhi on January 30 and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., on April 4. The goal of the event is to promote peace and nonviolence in the Alameda community. All ages of students are invited to present poetry, spoken word, music, speech, rap, and other performances on the theme of nonviolence. The event is free. Reserve a spot online [6].
On April 1, the City of Alameda and the Alameda Unified School District (AUSD) are hosting the 10th Annual Alameda Youth Career & Job Fair [7] from 1 to 5 p.m. at Encinal Jr. & Sr. High School. The fair is free and open to all Alameda high school students and offers teens a chance to network with employers, have their resumes reviewed, attend industry panels, and even get professional headshots.
We thank all of our partners for helping us to serve our students in so many different ways!
Susan Davis is the Senior Manager of Community Affairs for the Alameda Unified School District. Reach her at [email protected] [8].