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Teachers and specialists picket Brandywine School District, seek new contract

Teachers in the Brandywine School District picketing outside of Mount Pleasant Elementary School on Tuesday, December 10, 2024.
Tom Byrne
/
Delaware Public Media
Teachers in the Brandywine School District picketing outside of Mount Pleasant Elementary School on Tuesday, December 10, 2024.

As a contract impasse continues between the Brandywine School District and its teachers, mediation could be the next step.

After school on Tuesday, teachers were picketing outside Mount Pleasant Elementary School as the two sides have not reached a deal.

More than 1,000 Brandywine teachers and specialists have been working under an expired contract since June.

That was after a one-year continuation following the expiration of a three-year contract two years ago.

The BEA says it's fighting to keep working conditions and salaries competitive, not one or the other.

Brandywine Education Association president Steve Rulon says working conditions are a big deal for the teachers.

"Making sure the teachers have the support that they need, making sure that teachers have the time to get everything that they need done, and some of the language changes that the district is asking for is going to impact a teacher's ability to do that, to have some flexibility," said Rulon.

The district in a statement says working conditions wouldn’t change under their proposals, and they would pay teachers the highest among the five New Castle County school districts.

Rulon says mediation is a real option.

"We didn't raise the possibility of mediation, the district raised that at one of the recent meetings,” said Rulon. “Our negotiations chair communicated to them recently that we would concur and agree to mediation. So we're going to give the process a try, if the opportunity arises we'll continue to work at the table, but we've gotten the notification from the PERB (Public Employment Relations Board) that the district has asked for mediation."

In Delaware, teachers cannot strike, but picketing is permissible before or after school.

Joe brings over 20 years of experience in news and radio to Delaware Public Media and the All Things Considered host position. He joined DPM in November 2019 as a reporter and fill-in ATC host after six years as a reporter and anchor at commercial radio stations in New Castle and Sussex Counties.