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 About 200 frustrated Sun Prairie teachers and their supporters rally for a fair contract Monday night before a school board meeting. |
| UPDATE: On February 21, the Sun Prairie Education Association reached a tentative contract agreement with the school board. It calls for a total salary and benefit increase of 4.4% the first year and 4.5% the second. |
About 200 frustrated Sun Prairie teachers and their supporters braved frigid temperatures Monday (January 14, 2008) to let the Sun Prairie Area School Board know that it’s time to treat staff with the respect they deserve and settle a fair and equitable contract.
In fact, during the ensuing school board meeting, Sun Prairie Education Association (SPEA) President Brad Lutes handed the board resignations from most of the 531 SPEA members who have agreed to resign from all voluntary activities.
“We don’t know how else to get your attention,” Lutes told the board, adding “I live in this community, I have children in our great schools and I am committed to the students in our district.”
 SPEA members gathered at the school board meeting following their rally. During the meeting, SPEA President Brad Lutes handed the board resignations from most of the 531 SPEA members who have agreed to resign from all voluntary activities. |
SPEA members have been without a contract since June and the district has been unwilling to make bargaining a contract a priority, he said.
“They left the bargaining table on October 10 and have resisted attempts by the SPEA to draw them back to the table,” Lutes said.
“One of the major sticking points in negotiations is the lack of a fair salary structure for new teachers,” he said. “With new teacher salaries lagging behind area schools, the district is in grave jeopardy of losing really wonderful young teachers.”
Other issues left on the table include salary, insurance, retirement, and district abuse of the just cause guarantees in the master contract, Lutes said.
WEAC Vice President Guy Costello and WEAC Secretary-Treasurer Betsy Kippers, who attended the rally, said the number of members who showed up Monday night illustrates the strong solidarity among SPEA members and the need for a settlement.
“If the community wants to maintain the high quality of education they have in Sun Prairie they need to get the school board back to the bargaining table as soon as possible,” Kippers said.“The district is not making bargaining a priority.”
 Sun Prairie elementary school teacher Renee Bieri, center, marches along with members and supporters of the SPEA. |
Costello agreed, saying, “Here is a district that is one of the strongest in the state and they have a great community. One of the reasons for that is because of their schools. The schools are great because of the people working in them.”
“It's time to get back to the bargaining table, sit down and talk in an honest and open negotiation with the SPEA to settle a just contract,” he continued. “That’s what’s best for our members, the students and the community.”
Posted January 16, 2008