It had been awhile since the crowd at an Evanston/Skokie District 65 school board meeting had cause for celebration.
But on a night that offered a glimmer of hope for change and progress after months of board meetings marred by disappointment, frustration, anger and sadness over school closures and budget deficits — celebration was just what the doctor ordered.
After 10 hours of negotiations with a federal mediator on Monday, the district and the union representing District 65 teachers (the District 65 Educators’ Council, or DEC) struck a tentative deal on a new contract. When school board member Omar Salem mentioned the agreement, which comes after teachers had worked 65 days so far this year without a contract, educators who had packed the board room at the Joseph E. Hill Early Childhood Center broke into a raucous cheer.
The details of the new contract, which DEC Vice President Emily Castillo-Oh called “fair and competitive,” are still forthcoming, pending ratification by union members. In a joint statement shared with the community just after the end of negotiations and before the start of Monday night’s board meeting, District 65 Superintendent Angel Turner and DEC President Trisha Baker announced the initial agreement, which “will be forwarded to the board for approval” if the union votes to adopt it first…