Bellevue teachers, district reach tentative deal

Striking teachers and the Bellevue School District reached a tentative contract agreement Friday evening. If teachers approve the offer in a vote Sunday, they will be back in school Monday morning, union and district officials said.

"We're feeling very good about the terms of the contract," said Eva Collins, assistant superintendent of the school district. "We're expecting it [the vote] will go well."

Bellevue Education Association President Michele Miller called the agreement a huge relief.

Union leaders said terms of the agreement won't be released until members are briefed when they meet at 5 p.m. Sunday at Sammamish High School in Bellevue.

"We just want to let it all be up to the members at this point. It's their contract, it's their decision," said union spokesman Dale Folkerts.

After announcing the agreement, some members of the bargaining committees, though they seemed exhausted, were singing to themselves, smiling and snapping their fingers.

The district's 1,200 teachers went on strike Sept. 2, the first scheduled day of school.

Before the announcement Friday, district spokeswoman Ann Oxrieder said the district had accepted the teachers' proposal on the use of the common curriculum, and that it would allow teachers to change daily lesson plans without prior approval, one of the strike's most contentious issues. The proposal, she said, was posted on the district's Web site, http://www.bsd405.org/.

"The person best equipped to meet the needs of the kids is the one who is with them every day," said Stephen Miller, a middle-school history teacher. He added that he would begin teaching about presidential elections, something not authorized in the common curriculum.

Though the agreed-upon pay increase was not publicized, Oxrieder said the district had increased its salary offer. The district's latest offer was 5 percent over the three-year contract. Teachers had been asking for 5 percent over two years. This year, the teachers will also get a 5.1 percent cost-of-living allowance from the state. Friday afternoon, the district said it had made its final offer.

The school district initially offered teachers 3 percent in wage increases over the three-year contract, but raised the offer to 4.5 percent last week, saying the increase was contingent on voter approval of a levy in the third year of the contract.

As the strike dragged into its second week, the School Board met to consider legal action to order the teachers back to class. About 800 community members attended a special board meeting Wednesday night, and many urged the district to not seek an injunction, saying it would divide the community and disrupt the ongoing negotiations.

Parents and students also urged the two parties to negotiate around the clock and bring the dispute to an end.

Lynn Thompson: 206-464-8305 or lthompson@seattletimes.com. Noelene Clark: 206-464-2321 or nclark@seattletimes.com