School Auction

Newton’s teachers and the city’s School Committee reached a deal Friday night to resolve an acrimonious strike that kept children out of their classrooms for more than two weeks in one of Massachusetts’ largest school districts.The tentative agreement resolves negotiations that began in October 2022 and a strike that began on Jan. 19.Union and city officials said they expect classes to resume on Monday. The new, four-year contract will require ratification from both members of the Newton Teachers Association and a majority vote of the School Committee. City officials said the committee plans to meet Saturday morning for the vote and the union is expected to vote within days. “This is a sustainable contract. One that is sustainable for the Newton Public Schools and for our city. There will be no layoffs. The funding came, as I outlined all along, from our operating budget and the use of one-time funds in a judicious manner that doesn’t create fiscal cliffs,” Mayor Ruthanne Fuller told reporters after the deal was announced.Video: Union describes contractOutside the Newton Education Center on Friday night, NTA spokesperson Ryan Normandin read a summary of contract provisions. Neither side has yet released explicit details of the contract.Normandin said the deal “secures the key priorities” of the union, including a 60-day parental leave policy, 15 days of FMLA leave, salary increases for aides and behavioral therapists and protecting teachers’ designated planning or preparation time.Video: Raw feelings remain after deal reached”We fought tooth and nail for the schools that our students, families, and educators deserve,” Normandin said. “I hope that the next time you walk into a voting booth, you remember how much of a difference the people in elected office make. I want you to remember what happens when we have a mayor and a school committee who are not willing to fight for our schools, our students, our families, our educators as hard as we are willing to fight for them.””It’s been a long couple of weeks and probably ones that nobody will look back on fondly. It’s going to take time for the city to heal, for our schools to heal and we ask for patience and leadership from all the adults in our community to show our kids how you respond to challenges,” said School Committee Chair Chris Brezski.Video below: School committee says ‘painful’ strike is overIt is illegal for teachers to strike in Massachusetts, but educators in five communities have hit the picket line for at least one day since May 2022: Brookline, Malden, Haverhill, Woburn and Andover. Newton Public Schools has the largest enrollment of those school districts, with nearly 12,000 students.A judge threatened Friday to impose a new set of fines on the NTA, starting at $100,000 per day, if the strike continued into Monday.Still, the Newton Teachers Association accrued $625,000 in fines already issued by the court. The judge said he expects to require payment on Monday, unless convinced otherwise.The Newton School Committee voted to eliminate four days of vacation during February break to make up days lost during the strike.State law requires public school students to attend 180 days of school, and all school-year attendance requirements must be completed by June 30.