"The board would like to articulate some of the reasons that we developed the approach to negotiations that we took, choosing to settle the teachers' contract in a timely and non-contentious manner.

"First is that we want to maintain our current emphasis on education. We finally find ourselves in the happy position of being able to focus on educational items like the elementary school reading program, transition to middle school and AP courses. This comes after years in which the board experienced a state audit, a superintendent search, months of union negotiations with the teachers and then the support staff and years of administrative turnover. Now that there is some stability in the district, we felt that settling the contract early would allow us to maintain all of our focus on education instead of shifting it to negotiations strategy.

"Second, we felt that if we were able to reach agreement with the teachers early, it would promote a climate of labor peace, which is more conducive to a superior educational experience for our students and teachers. Our last contract negotiations lasted 19 months, during which time we experienced picketing, impasse, fact-finding and a climate of ill will. The end result of that long and unpleasant chapter in our history was a bill for attorneys' and mediators' fees and a settlement, recommended by the fact-finder, which was less advantageous to the district and the teachers than the agreement we are approving tonight.

"Third, we wanted to ensure that, with a large number of teachers who will be eligible to retire during the life of this contract, we would be able to attract top-notch teachers to the district if those teachers chose to exercise their option to retire. The new provision in the contract that calls for notification of retirement by Dec. 31 will give us a significant amount of time in which to find highly qualified replacements for retirees. An atmosphere in which there is a settled contract and no labor strife will be attractive to new teacher candidates.

"Fourth, we wanted to be able to craft a multi-year plan for the district. Since teacher salaries are half of the district's budget, knowing with greater certainty what those costs will be will enable our central administration to forecast and plan financially. Going into this year's budget discussions, we will be able to take a long view of spending and programs, rather than trying to plan without hard numbers.

"Fifth, the board feels that we are in a good place at this time. We have great faith in our administrative team, we have energetic subject area coordinators and principals and the staff are responding enthusiastically to new ideas. The teachers work hard to provide all students with an excellent education. We want to maintain and build on this momentum and continue to progress and grow.

"Lastly, we believe the agreement we reached is a good one for the district. The salary increase is below the current average of 3.5 percent, the employee contribution rate for health care is one of the highest in the county and the district will likely be able to conduct a proper search for retiree replacements. By approaching negotiations with a win-win attitude, we were able to reach agreement congenially and with the overwhelming support of the teaching staff. We think the benefits of this type of approach go beyond the pages of the collective bargaining agreement.

"The board would like to thank Charlie Cardillo and the administration and Ed Vasta and the MEA board for their leadership and the teachers for their willingness to go forward on this basis. We look forward to a bright future of cooperation and educational excellence. Thank you."

(Ed. Note: Please refer to the questions and answers regarding the teachers' contract that appears on Page 5.)