Sisters and Brothers,
After three days of deliberative and thoughtful negotiations, the Executive Committee and the School Committee, with Superintendent Marotta, have reached a tentative agreement which outlines the remote work expectations for all unit members (Teachers, ESPs, and Clerks) for the duration of this shut down. We believe that these terms reflect the guiding principles we received from Commissioner Riley last week and allow members the flexibility to perform their professional duties to the best that they are able while also tending to their personal responsibilities and dealing with the effects of this global pandemic in their own lives.
All parties agree that there is no “remote learning” model which can ever replace the physical classroom instruction and that educators must have the professional autonomy and flexibility to work with their school communities to decide collectively how best to address the needs of students and their families during these difficult times. In the coming weeks, we will continue to work with the District to reach a fair and equitable answer to the question of educator evaluations and professional status. For now, it is our understanding that those timelines are still suspended until an agreement is reached.
On Friday, April 3, there will be an online vote to accept the proposed MOU. So that all members will have a chance to review and discuss the MOU, it is available here: Covid-19 Memorandum of Understanding Final.pdf. We are still working out the logistics so more information will be forthcoming.
In addition, the Executive Committee is working to schedule live town-hall video conferences for members to ask questions about the MOU prior to the vote. A separate email with a link to access each session will follow with details on how to vote. The town halls will be:
- HHS – Thursday April 2nd, 12:00pm
- Elementary – Friday, April 3rd, 12:00pm
- Middle School – Friday, April 3rd, 2:00 pm
These past few weeks have been very difficult and I can’t say often enough how proud you should all be of all you have accomplished in such a short amount of time. We hope that this MOU will provide all members a sense of clarity and relief to know that whatever happens, you will have the flexibility and autonomy to manage your personal and responsibilities in a fair and equitable way as we make our way through the next few weeks.
As always, if I can be of any assistance to you, do not hesitate to reach out.
In Solidarity,
Anthony