Campbell teachers, school board reach tentative agreement

Agreement could be ratified by board on Tuesday

campbell

A renewed spirit of cooperation after months of contract negotiations resulted in a tentative agreement that Campbell school officials and teachers could approve next week.

The Campbell Board of Education and the Campbell Education Association, the union representing the district’s 93 teachers, reached the tentative pact after their respective bargaining teams, along with the federal mediator, resumed contract negotiations Tuesday.

“It was challenging,” said Tom Robey, schools superintendent, “but we made an agreement for the betterment of the district.”

Union members will learn the details of the proposed two-year contract at a meeting scheduled for 10 a.m. July 30 at St. John’s Orthodox Church, said Colleen Joss, CEA spokeswoman.

Members are expected to vote on the agreement then, Joss said, adding that if it passes, board members could approve the contract during a special meeting later that day at 6 p.m.

The meeting will be in Room 310 of Campbell Memorial High School, according to a district news release.

Robey and Joss declined to offer any specifics about the tentative agreement, explaining that details will be released once both sides have approved it.

Joss said, however, the CEA is “very hopeful” about the pact, which both bargaining teams “spent the better part of [Tuesday] on.” She added the union as a whole is thankful for the time and effort put in by both sides.

Resuming negotiations is what the CEA had wanted all along, Joss said, particularly after the board declared an ultimate impasse and implemented its last-and-best contract offer June 28.

The previous contract expired July 1.

Contract negotiations have been ongoing since mid-March to get a new agreement, and representatives from both sides have indicated that numerous issues came into play in the past few months. Some of them have been financial, including discussions on projected budget deficits at the state and district levels.

Despite the tentative agreement, the union’s 10-day strike notice for Aug. 26, which is the first teacher-report day, will remain, as will the contract offer imposed by the board, Joss said.

“The CEA is pleased that both parties returned to the table,” Joss said. “We’re hoping that come Tuesday, the contract will be ratified by both parties for the good of not just Campbell City Schools, but also for the good of the community.”