Federal Way Public Schools and the Federal Way Education Association recently reached a new contract agreement that will be effective through August 31, 2017.

The new contract provides some slight pay increases for Federal Way teachers, the first in a number of years since the battle over education funding began when the 2008 economic downturn hit.

“We are happy to have reached an agreement that addresses the needs of all parties involved, and we look forward to the start of another great school year in Federal Way,” wrote Sally McLean, interim superintendent, in a press release.

According to district spokeswoman Debra Stenberg, the first year of the contract will see a 2.25 percent pay increase for Federal Way teachers, followed by either a 2 percent increase or “market midpoint” increase in 2016 and 2017.

“In addition to the five paid training days the district already pays over and above what the state provides, in the teachers’ contract we agreed to an additional day of compensation that teachers can use for workload compensation. This brings the pay increase in year one closer to 2.75 percent,” Stenberg noted in an email to the Mirror. “This is paid out of local dollars, not state.”

The starting base salary for a first year teacher will now be $40,188, while a teacher with 10 years of experience can expect a base salary of $51,504. Both of those starting salaries reflect greater than a 2.25 percent increase than the amounts in the previous contract, Stenberg added.

The association currently has 1,582 members. The district is the largest employer in Federal Way, with nearly 2,700 employees total that serve the district’s 22,000 students. To learn more, visit www.fwps.org.