Pawtucket teachers get a new three-year contract with smaller class sizes and longer instructional time. The district faces a September 15 state deadline to apply for school construction aid, with the fate of repairs to the aging middle school still undecided.
The Pawtucket School Committee approved a new three-year contract with the Pawtucket Teachers’ Alliance on Wednesday, August 26, then spent much of the night trying to pin down how much money is actually sitting in the district’s capital reserve account.
According to the Pawtucket School Committee’s published meeting recording, the contract vote passed by roll call with every member present voting yes. A representative of the Pawtucket Teachers’ Alliance told the committee during public comment that the union’s executive board and membership had unanimously approved the tentative agreement, and asked the committee to “follow the lead of those who do the work of the Pawtucket School Department.”
The teachers’ contract
Committee members described the agreement, without releasing its full financial terms in open session, as extending instructional time for students and lowering class sizes. James T. Chellel Jr., who made the motion, called it “one of the best contracts that I’ve seen since I’ve been on this committee” and said negotiations ran through the summer. Omar Reyes said the deal shows the district is “taking care of” teachers even as it asks the city for more money. Another member noted the two sides met over roughly 13 weeks…