“Our union’s executive board voted to set the Feb. 13 strike date,” said Erica Schatzlein, SPFT vice president and a teacher at Nokomis Montessori. “This is not an action we take lightly. As educators, we want to be in the classroom with our students. If leaders in Saint Paul Public Schools are unwilling to prioritize our students’ needs, teachers are going to stand up for our students.”

Schatzlein pointed to the district position on providing adequate services to students who are English Learners (EL) as an example of the SPPS’ unwillingness to address students’ needs. The union has called for more educators to work with EL students to bring the district into compliance with the Minnesota Department of Education.

Other unresolved issues at the bargaining table include wages and union proposals to lower class sizes, add staff to support students enrolled in special education programs and expand restorative practices.

The strike date announcement follows last week’s overwhelming vote by SPFT members to authorize a strike if a settlement has not been reached. Over 85% of SPFT members participating voted to strike. Members of all three of SPFT’s bargaining units will strike if an agreement is not reached.

Bargaining will continue through the end of the week between SPFT and SPPS with a state-appointed mediator. SPFT has also let the district know they are willing to continue meeting over the weekend.

Earlier this week, with the possibility of interruptions in the public school schedule looming, SPFT members began planning Safe Sites to serve students in the event schools are not available. The goal is to make sure that students have safe, warm, and appropriate alternatives if schools are closed.

Plans include identifying locations, arranging food for children at each site, arranging transportation, and assigning SPFT volunteers. In addition, subcommittees are putting together an array of activities for students and looking at how any medical issues will be addressed.

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Saint Paul, MN – A sea of red spread over the Saint Paul School District headquarters Feb. 18 as more than 500 teachers and their supporters rallied at the school board meeting, most wearing the color used by the Saint Paul Federation of Teachers. The group rallied outside the School District building at 360 Colbourne then marched inside to pack the board meeting. Teachers and their supporters overwhelmed the meeting room, spilling out and filling two overflow rooms. Speaker after speaker told the school board and Superintendent Silva that they need to actually negotiate with the teachers if they want to avoid a strike. Teachers have set a strike vote for Feb. 24.

The crowd included teachers and other school workers as well as parents, students, members of other unions, community supporters and some politicians.

The teachers union has been negotiating with the Saint Paul School District for nine months with little progress. The teachers’ proposals have won support from many parents, and include reducing out-of-control class sizes, increasing support staff – such as nurses and librarians – in the schools, reigning in standardized testing in favor of more quality classroom learning, universal pre-K and other measures that cut against the trend of corporate-style education ‘reform.’

While Saint Paul Superintendent Valeria Silva has a long history as a teacher and then administrator in Saint Paul Public Schools, she is also a graduate of the Broad Superintendents Academy. Broad Academy was created in 2002 by billionaire Eli Broad to train school administrators around the country to run schools like corporations. Graduates are now in leadership positions at many of the largest school districts around the country. Critics say that Broad Academy graduates are trained to use corporate-management techniques to consolidate power, weaken teachers’ job protections, cut parents out of decision-making and introduce unproven reform measures.

This week Saint Paul school district officials sent out mass mailings and emails to parents that drew the ire of many teachers and parents, who saw them as an intentional attempt to instill fear and divide parents from teachers. At their Feb. 18 meeting, the school board was set to discuss a resolution that would have amplified the fear campaign, by threatening school closings, the possible extension of the school calendar and layoffs of nonessential employees if teachers strike. In the face of growing criticism from teachers and parents toward these kinds of tactics the school board decided to table the resolution.

The next negotiation day is set for Feb. 20. If no agreement is reached and teachers vote to authorize a strike on Feb. 24, a strike could start as soon as ten days after that. If a strike happens, all Saint Paul schools would close.

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The teachers’ proposals include limiting class sizes and increasing the numbers of counselors, nurses, librarians and art teachers in the schools. These proposals would address universally-acknowledged needs in the schools, but School District officials reject them, saying setting firm limits would be too expensive and would take away “flexibility.”

In light of research that shows that pre-kindergarten education is important to closing the gap between white students and students of color, the teachers also proposed expanding pre-kindergarten access. And in another bold proposal the teachers want the district to agree to opt out of the state's annual math, reading and science tests, since they force teachers to spend enormous amounts of resources and class time teaching to the standardized test rather than engaging in quality classroom interaction.

The watershed strike by Chicago teachers in late 2012 turned on many similar issues. There is a well-funded and nationally orchestrated push for corporate-backed education reform which is playing out in cities across the country. Central to the corporate education reform playbook in their drive for privatization is blaming teachers for every problem large and small in public schools, and then pushing to weaken teachers’ unions as a supposed obstacle to solutions.

For years most teachers’ unions responded timidly in the face of such attacks, and kept their negotiations narrowly focused on teachers’ wages and benefits. But this approach just opened teachers up to attack for allegedly being ‘selfish’ and not caring about students or their communities or the huge problems facing urban public schools across the country. The Chicago teachers’ strike marked a turning point as the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) directly took on the corporate education reform agenda in their negotiations, making common cause with parents and communities.

Teachers around the country watched Chicago closely and appear to have taken the lessons to heart – timidity in the face of attack has led to defeat, while Chicago teachers’ approach of standing up in defense of public education in alliances with students, parents and communities changed the game. This month in Portland, Oregon teachers voted to strike while raising a broad agenda in defense of public education, and now Saint Paul teachers are also moving toward a strike vote with a broad agenda in favor of students, their communities, and public education.

The next negotiation date is set for February 20, just prior to the Feb. 24 strike vote. If the members vote to strike, a strike could begin anytime after a 10-day notice. School District officials said all classes will be canceled if teachers strike. The St. Paul Federation of Teachers is calling on supporters to sign their petition. They are also calling on members and supporters to mobilize for the Feb. 18 School Board meeting, gathering at 5:00 p.m. at the flagpole in front of district headquarters, at 360 Colborne St., Saint Paul. Follow developments on the St. Paul Federation of Teachers facebook page, and the I Stand with SPFT facebook group.

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