The teachers in the Monroe Township school district worked without a contract for an entire school year. That changed last Thursday.
The board of education held a special meeting on June 13 to recommend approval of a memorandum of agreement between the board and the Monroe Township Education Association from July 1, 2018, through June 30, 2021.
Board members Tony Ayres, George Caruso, Barbara Chamberlain, Joseph Rumpf and Frederick Powell were in attendance, while Therese Bonmati, Brian Cummiskey, Jeff Simpler and Frank Torcasio were excused absent.
The memorandum of agreement was unanimously adopted by the five attending board members. The terms of the contract were not disclosed at the meeting.
“It’s nice to feel validated finally by our school board and our district administrators,” negotiations chair person of the MTEA Stacy Zentz said. “It’s been a long time coming, we’ve been working without a contract since July 1, 2018, so I’m glad to see that we were able to get it done.”
Interim Superintendent of Schools Richard Perry acknowledged the process hasn’t been easy but is happy to come to a resolution.
“Hopefully, moving forward, we can have similar resolutions with all the bargaining units,” he said. “I know working collegially with people, having support, it really benefits the school district and ultimately the students. That’s why we’re here. I think if we keep that in mind things tend to work out.”
“A lot of work went into this by the negotiation team and our union supported us immensely. It’s great to see it’s finally been ratified by the board of education,” Zentz said.
“I know that I work with some of the best colleagues in this field and I’m glad that my board recognizes that now too,” union vice president Brian Scott added.
For Perry, he’s happy the contract dispute is in the rearview mirror.
“I’m pleased we came to an agreement between the board of education and the MTEA. We’re looking for great things to come,” he said. “We’re glad this is behind us. We’re hoping future negotiations go very well in which students, community and faculty will ultimately benefit from this type of collegial relationship.”
With a new contract on the table, Zentz is thrilled for the members of her union.
“I think we have quality teachers in our district and they stand by their students. They stand by each other. They work very hard every day. We’re pleased to get this done for them.”
The next board of education meeting is scheduled for June 27 at 7 p.m. at Williamstown High School.
