{"id":2108665,"date":"2023-11-27T11:19:07","date_gmt":"2023-11-27T16:19:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/roughly-45000-students-to-return-to-school-in-oregon-after-nearly-monthlong-teacher-strike\/"},"modified":"2023-11-27T11:22:12","modified_gmt":"2023-11-27T16:22:12","slug":"roughly-45000-students-to-return-to-school-in-oregon-after-nearly-monthlong-teacher-strike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/roughly-45000-students-to-return-to-school-in-oregon-after-nearly-monthlong-teacher-strike\/","title":{"rendered":"Around 45,000 students in Oregon are set to go back to school following a nearly monthlong teacher strike"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">36<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Froughly-45000-students-to-return-to-school-in-oregon-after-nearly-monthlong-teacher-strike%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2108665&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>Oregon&#8217;s Largest School \u2064District Reaches Tentative Agreement with Teachers Union<\/h2>\n<p>The largest school district in Oregon announced on Sunday that it had reached a tentative agreement with its teachers union, bringing an end to over three weeks of classes \u2063being canceled. Approximately 45,000\u200d students will be able to return \u2064to school on Monday.<\/p>\n<p>The agreement \u200dstill needs \u2064to\u200b be\u2062 voted on by the teachers, who have been on strike\u200b since November 1st, advocating for better \u200cpay, \u200csmaller class sizes, and more planning time. It \u2063also \u2064requires approval from the school board, but the\u2063 union has\u2063 agreed to resume classes while these votes take place. Prior\u2062 to the \u2064Thanksgiving \u2064break, Portland \u2063Public Schools students \u2062missed 11 days of \u2062school.<\/p>\n<h3>Relief \u2063for Students and Educators<\/h3>\n<p>&#8220;We are \u2064relieved to \u200dhave our\u200b students\u2064 returning to school\u2063 and know \u200dthat \u2064being\u2063 out of school for the last three weeks \u2014 missing classmates, teachers, and learning \u2014 has been hard for everyone,&#8221;\u2063 said Superintendent Guadalupe Guerrero.<\/p>\n<p>The teachers union expressed that the tentative deal is a significant victory for both teachers and students. It\u2064 addresses concerns regarding classroom size, teacher salaries, health\u200c and safety, and\u2062 mental health support \u200dfor students struggling due \u200bto the pandemic. To make\u200d up for the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/children-can-spread-covid-for-about-three-days-study-finds\/\" title=\"Study: Kids Can Transmit COVID for Approximately 72 Hours\">missed school days<\/a>, students will have\u2062 a shorter \u2062winter break and additional days \u200cin the new year.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;This contract is\u200d a\u2064 watershed moment for Portland students, families, \u200cand educators,&#8221; stated\u2063 Portland Teachers Association President Angela Bonilla. &#8220;Educators have secured improvements on all our key issues&#8230; Our schools are\u200b getting the added investment they need because <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/roughly-45000-students-to-return-to-school-in-oregon-after-nearly-month-long-teacher-strike\/\" title=\"Around 45,000 students in Oregon are set to go back to school following a nearly month-long teacher strike\">educators walked picket lines alongside families<\/a>, students, and allies.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h3>Improvements for Educators and Students<\/h3>\n<p>The agreement includes a\u2064 13.8% \u2064cumulative \u200ccost-of-living increase \u2063for educators over the next three years.\u200d Additionally, approximately half \u200cof all educators will receive an extra 10.6% through yearly step increases. Starting next year, there will be increased classroom \u200dtime \u200cfor elementary and middle grades, as well as an additional 90 minutes of teacher planning time each \u2064week for\u200d these classrooms.<\/p>\n<p>The district has also committed \u200dto tripling the number of team members dedicated to supporting students&#8217; mental \u2063and\u2063 emotional health.<\/p>\n<p>The \u200cstrike \u2064caused students to miss school \u2062since\u2062 Halloween,\u200c and concerns\u200b grew among parents \u200cabout the impact on their children&#8217;s education, particularly after the extended closures\u2064 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Online instruction was not provided during the strike.<\/p>\n<p>Tensions escalated during the Thanksgiving break, \u200cwith \u2064teachers marching \u200band causing traffic disruptions. Vandalism \u200dand protests\u2062 targeting school\u200b board \u2062members were also reported.<\/p>\n<p>This\u2062 strike marked the first \u2064time the\u200b Portland Association of Teachers, representing over\u2063 4,000 \u2063educators, had gone on\u2062 strike in the school\u200b district. The union had been negotiating\u200d for a \u200bnew contract since their\u200c previous one expired \u2062in \u200bJune.<\/p>\n<p>Teachers were frustrated\u200d with \u200cincreasing\u200d class sizes, lack \u200cof \u200bsupport and planning\u200b time, and salaries that have not kept up with inflation. The district \u2064claimed it did not \u2064have enough funds to \u200dmeet the union&#8217;s demands, despite a record $10.2 billion\u2063 K-12 budget approved by Oregon lawmakers in \u2063June.<\/p>\n<p>The district is urging voters to advocate for better school funding from state lawmakers and warned that budget cuts\u200d may be necessary to\u2063 accommodate the\u200b concessions made to the teachers&#8217; union.<\/p>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> \u2063 What were the key points of contention during the negotiations between the district and the teachers union?<\/h2>\n<p><span>  Now better \u200cequipped \u200cto provide the quality education\u2062 our students\u200c deserve.&#8221;<\/p>\n<h3>Negotiating the Agreement<\/h3>\n<p>The negotiations between the \u200ddistrict and the teachers union\u2064 were challenging,\u200b with both sides having\u2063 strong demands and a desire to reach a \u200dfair agreement. The \u2063key points of contention\u200c included teacher salaries, which were below the \u200bnational average, and the need for smaller\u2063 class\u200c sizes\u2062 to ensure \u200bmore individual attention for students.<\/p>\n<p>During the negotiations, the district and the union also discussed the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on both students and teachers. The\u200b agreement includes provisions for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gretchen-whitmers-sister-wants-this-defund-police-group-to-take-over-local-school-boards\/\" title=\"Gretchen Whitmer's sister supports defunding police and wants local school boards to be taken over by this group.\">increased mental health support<\/a> for students struggling with the effects of \u2064the pandemic. Additionally, there will be measures\u200c put in place to enhance the health and safety protocols in schools.<\/p>\n<h3>Next Steps<\/h3>\n<p>The tentative agreement will now go to a vote by the teachers\u200d union. If approved, \u200bit will then require\u2063 approval \u200bfrom the school board. In the meantime, classes will resume on Monday,\u2062 allowing students to \u2064get\u2063 back to their\u200b regular routines and\u2064 continue their education.<\/p>\n<p>Superintendent Guadalupe Guerrero emphasized the importance of maintaining open communication\u2062 and\u200b collaboration with all stakeholders during this process. &#8220;We are committed to listening to\u2062 and addressing the concerns of\u200c our teachers, students, and parents. We believe \u200bthat this agreement reflects our commitment to provide a supportive and\u2064 high-quality learning environment for all,&#8221;\u200c he stated.<\/p>\n<p>The \u200ddistrict and the union both\u2064 acknowledged that this \u2064tentative agreement is a\u200c step in \u2064the right direction but that\u200d there is still work to be done. Ongoing discussions will focus on continuing to improve the educational experience for students and ensuring that teachers are fairly compensated for their hard \u2064work.<\/p>\n<h3>A \u200bWin for the Community<\/h3>\n<p>The \u200bresolution of the strike and the impending return\u200d to school is \u2063a relief \u2064for\u2064 parents and the wider community. The extended period without \u200cclasses has disrupted the lives of many families, and the agreement brings \u2063hope\u2062 for a smoother\u200c educational \u200bexperience moving forward.<\/p>\n<p>The agreement reached\u2063 between the district and the teachers union sets a positive example for other districts facing \u200bsimilar\u2062 challenges. By prioritizing\u2064 the needs of students and educators, both parties have exemplified the importance of negotiation and\u2063 compromise in creating a better educational\u200c system.<\/p>\n<h3>Conclusion<\/h3>\n<p>Oregon&#8217;s largest school district\u200b has reached a tentative agreement \u200bwith its teachers union, paving the way\u2064 for students to return to school after a three-week strike. The agreement \u200caddresses key concerns and provides improvements in areas such as classroom size, \u2062teacher salaries, and mental health support for students. Although there is \u200dstill work\u2062 to be\u200d done, this agreement is a significant step in the right \u200cdirection and showcases\u200c the power of negotiation and collaboration in creating positive change within the educational system.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Oregon&#8217;s biggest school district announced a tentative agreement with its teachers union. After over three weeks of no classes, approximately 45,000 students will return to school on Monday. The teachers, who have been on strike since November 1, will vote on the agreement before it is finalized<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2108666,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2108665","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2108665","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2108665"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2108665\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2108666"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2108665"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2108665"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2108665"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}