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The Prince William County School Board voted late Wednesday night to extend teacher contract hours an additional half hour per workday, a move made against the wishes of many educators in the county.
In a 4-3 vote, the board approved a change to a School Board regulation to 鈥渆nsure the classroom teaching assignment, planning period, and lunch period of teachers鈥� does not exceed 7.5 hours. The change will begin in the 2026-27 school year.
Justin Wilk of the Potomac District, Lisa Zargarpur of the Coles District and Richard Jessie of the Occoquan District cast the three dissenting votes. Brentsville District board member Erica Tredinnick was absent from the meeting.
Ahead of the Wednesday night meeting, members of the Prince William Education Association gathered outside the Edward Kelly Leadership Center, where the meeting was held, to voice their concerns over the extension.
Chief among their complaints was compensation, or, more specifically, the lack of compensation for the additional 30 minutes a day added to teacher contracts.
鈥淭he School Board is considering adding 30 more minutes to every teacher鈥檚 workday without our input and without additional compensation,鈥� said Carol Bauer, the Virginia Education Association president.
Bauer went on to say the change is a 鈥渧iolation鈥� of the spirit of the collective bargaining process.
鈥淭he contract was negotiated in good faith. We showed up at the table, we honored the process, and although it was shortsighted that the previous PWEA bargaining team did not specifically include contract hours in the CBA, we can all agree that the contract was negotiated with the current hours in mind,鈥� Bauer said.
Princess Moss, the National Education Association vice president, said a decision of 鈥渢his magnitude鈥� should never be considered without consulting union leadership and bringing PWEA to the table.
Moreover, Moss said, the change in teacher hours 鈥渄evalues鈥� teacher compensation by increasing hours without additional pay.
Teachers and community members filled the board room for citizen鈥檚 comment time, nearly all of them imploring the board to either delay the vote or to vote against the additional 30 minutes.
鈥淲e are discussing changes that ask teachers to do more for less without including them in decisions that impact their daily lives and their classrooms,鈥� said Glorya Jordan, a mom in the county. 鈥淎djustments to hours may ultimately be necessary, but making those decisions without consulting educators is unacceptable.鈥�
Emily Cherry, a teacher in the division and one of the co-chairs of PWEA鈥檚 organizing and membership ad hoc committee, urged the board to delay.
鈥淭eachers are already working far beyond our contract hours. We grade papers late at night, we lesson plan on the weekends, we respond to family emails outside of the school day,鈥� Cherry said. 鈥淭hrough this vote, the School Board is sending the message that they do not see that the hours we spend in abundance of our contract hours are enough.鈥�
Cherry continued, 鈥淚 ask you to delay the vote until you engage in meaningful dialogue with PWEA. Doing so honors the hard work teachers already give and ensures any changes are made thoughtfully.”
It is unclear at this time how the additional 30 minutes will be used or where in a teacher workday the time will be added.
Board member comments
Loree Williams, the Woodbridge District board member, spoke at length on the issue.
鈥淭he way that you feel is valid,鈥� Williams said to the teachers in the audience. 鈥淚t does not change the business side of education.鈥�
As Williams spoke, the crowd grew rowdy and physically turned their backs on her. Chairman Dr. Babur Lateef threatened to clear the room at several points due to comments from the public.
Williams went on to say the additional half hour is not an 鈥渦nfunded mandate鈥� and that she views the additional time as 鈥済iving credit to the time already [spent] there.鈥�
The desire to offset the 30-minute increase in time with an increase in teacher pay will eventually be addressed during the 鈥渦pcoming budget process,鈥� said Jennifer Wall, the Gainesville District board member.
鈥淭he details are yet to be worked out, but there is going to be flexibility and there will be continued discussion,鈥� Wall said.
Jessie said he went back and forth on the issue, but he ultimately believed 鈥渢here is a significant financial potential damage鈥� to teachers with the addition of time to teacher contracts.
Moreover, Jessie said, the board often talks about engaging with stakeholders, but in this specific case, the board 鈥渄id not get together鈥� with teachers, whom he said are the stakeholders.
Jessie went on to say the 鈥渕ajor鈥� reason he did not support the half-hour increase was because he did not believe it would improve academic performance. He ultimately offered a motion to table the issue until April, which failed in a 3-4 vote, with Jessie, Zargarpur and Wilk supporting the motion.
鈥淭here is a fundamental difference between a teacher choosing to stay, to work late or come early versus the board dictating how long they must remain in the building,鈥� Wilk said. 鈥淲hen you tell them you must do this number hours, it sends an ominous message.鈥�
The most significant cost of the 30-minute increase, Wilk said, is the impact it will have on the division鈥檚 workforce.
