10-4 Letter to Parents from Bill Green

A Letter to Minneapolis Parents from the Superintendent

Regarding Contract Negotiations with the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers

Until now, the Board of Education and I have refrained from publicly commenting on the 2007-2009 Teachers’ Contract negotiations because of an agreement made with the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers (MFT) to issue only joint statements about our progress.  Recently, the MFT unilaterally distributed letters detailing opinions and perceptions about the negotiations. Therefore, the Board of Education and I have made the decision to issue this update to the community.

The District and the MFT have been meeting in negotiation sessions since late spring. We have met many times to discuss issues of concern to both sides. These negotiations have been conducted in good faith on both sides with an original goal of signing a contract by September or before.  Throughout the entire process, the Board of Education has closely monitored the progress of negotiations, meeting regularly to receive reports and provide direction to the District’s chief negotiator.

The Board and I strongly believe that the teachers in the Minneapolis Public Schools are some of the best in the nation. We value and respect their service to children – their professionalism, dedication, hard work and expert knowledge of teaching and learning. We know that the quality of teaching and the relationships teachers build with each child are the most critical elements for student achievement. We also know that teachers deserve to work in an environment where there is strong leadership, support and order. We consider teachers to be the most important partners of the District in our goal to successfully educate all children and to raise academic achievement for those most far behind.

Because we believe in and value a partnership with teachers and the MFT, we agreed to conduct the negotiations using a method known as “interest-based bargaining.” This method works to achieve common ground by developing solutions based on a mutual understanding of the interests of each side. Recently the Board came to the conclusion that there has been insufficient progress to continue to use the “interest-based” approach. Therefore, we announced to the union last month our decision to pursue a more traditional bargaining process. The Board and I agreed that there is urgency in moving the negotiations forward and that more progress was needed in order to meet the state-imposed deadline of Mid-January.

The fundamental issue underlying the current negotiations revolves around the process for staffing schools. The District believes there needs to be a redesign of the staffing procedure in order to ensure that the right teacher is assigned to the right position and school. Our proposal for filling vacancies would include the use of collaborative site teams to find the most appropriate person for a particular position. We view staffing redesign as a critical element to stabilize schools and improve academic achievement for students.

The current seniority-based assignment selection process became a part of the contract thirty years ago.  The District has studied other models and believes that now is the time for improvements.  The MFT and the District have already partnered to produce successful pilot efforts using a different system for teacher assignment in some schools. These changes were instituted through Memoranda of Agreement. The results have been positive, and we have been able to better align teachers with specific skills and training with particular programs and schools. It is now time to expand this successful process to all schools.  It should be noted that the issues we currently face in staffing are common with other urban districts. St. Paul already has a teacher assignment system which includes an interviewing and selection process at the school site, while Chicago and New York are in the process of implementing redesigned staffing systems.

During the bargaining sessions, the MFT cited challenges such as school leadership, class size and student behavior as major contributing factors to the achievement gap. These are important issues to the District as well, and we are committed to seeking solutions. At the same time, we believe, and Minneapolis residents have confirmed, that there is a critical need to achieve school-level teacher selection. Moreover, accountability for student achievement is difficult to accurately assess until schools have the opportunity to select and retain their instructional staff.

The Board of Education and I have continuously maintained a position of support for employee unions and the collective bargaining process. That support has not changed. We value our teachers and respect their union. We believe that we can move forward to create changes in the current contract that will significantly improve outcomes for children.

The District looks forward to returning to the bargaining table next week so these issues can be resolved in a timely manner.  We need the collaborative partnerships we have always enjoyed with our teachers in order to move forward our strategic plan, design our district for the future and garner community support for our schools.

Bill Green

Superintendent