Tucson Unified School District teachers could soon receive salary increases if voters approve Proposition 414 this November, according to district officials.
Dr. Gabriel Trujillo, Tucson Unified School District superintendent, held a briefing explaining that the override would raise teacher salaries to prevent educators from leaving for higher-paying districts. The district proposes a 4% raise for certified teachers.
The override also aims to preserve and expand programs like art, music, and PE while adding more school counselors and placing a licensed social worker in every high school and middle school to boost student well-being.
As it currently stands, the counselor-to-student ratio is 1-to-500 across the district.
"We know that socio-emotional health is such a critical need in our schools, and the traditional school budget has never really been able to fully fund social workers everywhere where they are most needed," Trujilo stated.
Trujillo emphasized that many students enter classrooms carrying trauma, making mental health support a priority for the district.
"It is absolutely just paramount that we bring in more clinical assistants, namely in the form of licensed clinical social workers. If we can get more of them, we can start to offer more during-the-day services for students," Trujillo said.
For homeowners with an average assessed value of $200,000, the override would cost approximately $17 more per month in property taxes.
District officials clarified that this Proposition 414 is specific to the education system, not the city of Tucson's Prop 414.
