The District 196 School Board on Tuesday approved a new, two-year agreement with Dakota County United Educators (DCUE), representing the district’s approximately 2,300 teachers and nurses.

“I am very happy to have a new agreement in place for our teachers and nurses that keeps us competitive,” Superintendent Michael Bolsoni. “I want to thank members of both negotiating teams for the hours of effort and collaboration it took over the summer to reach this interest-based bargaining agreement.”    

The agreement is retroactive to July 1, 2025 and runs through June 30, 2027. It increases the teachers’ and nurses’ salary schedules by 2.1% each year, and increases the district’s contribution to health insurance by an average of 11.8% this year and 7% in year two. 

Under the new agreement, the starting salary in District 196 for a first-year teacher with no previous experience is now $51,322. At the top end of the salary schedule, a teacher at the top step with a master’s degree plus 60 hours of education (MA+60), with longevity pay, earns $109,692 this year under the new agreement.