Fact-finding report issued to teachers, Mars Area School District
ADAMS TWP — Mars Area School District teachers and officials may have an answer in the coming weeks on whether contract disputes will be resolved.
Members of the negotiation teams for the district and the Mars Area Education Association both confirmed at the school board’s Tuesday, Sept. 1, board meeting they had received a fact-finding report from a neutral third party.
Members from both sides said they agreed not to disclose any details from the fact-finding agreement for a 10-day period.
Tuesday’s board meeting marked the fourth meeting in a row that large crowds of teachers and supporting parents showed up to rally for pay increases and other demands.
The Mars teachers’ union contract ended at the end of June. The union and district’s negotiating teams have reportedly met over 20 times since bargaining began.
“I took a walk through the primary center today before I came to the meeting. I was watching the kids as they were waiting for their buses and I couldn’t help but notice the joy they had in being there and the way the teachers have prepared their classrooms had encouraged learning every single day, even though they feel the crunch of getting ready for the school year,” Hollie Meckler, president of the MAEA, said Tuesday night. “I’m so proud of the Mars educators. We perform consistently, providing more for less. And it’s time to change that.”
Differing stances between the district and the MAEA’s negotiating teams include what annual salary increases, health insurance coverage and the length of the overall contract should look like.
The board has proposed 3.5% wage increases for the 2026-27, 2027-28 and 2028-29 school years. Meanwhile, the teachers are proposing a 6% increase in 2026-27, 5.5% in 2027-28 and 2028-29, 5.25% in 2029-30 and 5% in 2030-31.
Overall, district officials have estimated the district’s proposal would cost $1.8 million over three years, while the union’s proposal would increase district spending by about $5.4 million over five years.
MAEA leadership has cited other districts average salaries when advocating for higher wage increases, saying the board’s current proposal would “leave us falling behind.” It claims that Mars teachers have an average salary of $74,096 for the 2025-26 year. That compares to $95,235 at North Allegheny, $90,636 at Pine-Richland and $97,175 at Seneca Valley.
