PORTLAND, Ore. — Nearly four full weeks into a teachers strike that shuttered Portland Public Schools (PPS), the district and the teachers union tentatively agreed to a deal that will put staff and students back in school.
Classes will resume after a two-hour-delay Monday.
Educators from across the district's 81 schools began their strike on Nov. 1, citing a laundry list of demands that went unresolved in contract negotiations beginning early this year — chief among them teacher salaries, class sizes and planning time. This was the first teacher strike in the history of PPS.
Agreement details
In the agreement, teachers will receive a 13.8% cumulative cost of living increase over the next three years. Around half of teachers district-wide will also earn an additional 10.6% wage increase through yearly step increases.
Some class-size thresholds will also be created. Large class sizes was one of the biggest sticking points in negotiations. PPS said the new class-size thresholds will help resolve concerns over large classes.
KGW has heard from parents and teachers of students at all grade levels, that it is not uncommon to see classes of more than 30 students. Portland Public Schools has said in elementary school, the vast majority of classrooms have fewer than 25 students.
Another one of the biggest concerns in bargaining was over planning time. The contract increases minimum planning time for elementary and middle school teachers, from 320 minutes a week to 410. Planning and grading days will also be added at all levels.
PPS said the contract will cost around $175 million over the next three years. In a statement, officials said the state is underfunding quality education. PPS said it will have to make significant cuts for the upcoming school year.
Makeup days
Parents and students have expressed concern that students will be unprepared for final exams after missing close to a month of school. There will be 11 make up days for lost learning. Five will take place in December, cutting into the start of winter break. Three more will be added throughout January, February and April. The final three make up instructional days will take place at the end of the school year, in June.
Students in AP courses told KGW they were worried they would be unprepared for AP exams in May. All but three make up days will take place before those exams.
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