Teachers Contract Now Posted on School District 304 Website

The salary schedule grid and other details of the three-year agreement now can be seen by the general public.

There wasn't any trumpet-blaring fanfare or here-ye-here-ye proclamation, but the School District 304 and Geneva Education Association three-year teachers agreement is now posted on the district's website. It's not easy to find, so bookmark this article for future reference and you can see it by clicking this link. Although an 11th-hour agreement was reached on Nov. 12, it hadn't been posted as of Dec. 3, although a summary of the new three-year contract was for a time prominently displayed on the School District's redesigned homepage. The contract provides some detail that the summary did not. It includes, for example, the exact salary scheduled grid for the next three years and has additional details regarding the makeup of the Salary …

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Dan

5:30 pm on Sunday, March 3, 2013

Hear-ye, Hear-ye. It grinds me when school articles contain spelling errors.   more ›

Still No Teachers Contract Online

Geneva School District 304 is still putting together the ratified three-year teachers contract. In the meantime, the summary of the contract is posted prominently on the district's newly redesigned homepage.

School Board President Mark Grosso said a few weeks ago that he expected the new three-year teachers contract to be published on the School District website by the end of the month of November, but as of Monday, Dec. 3, it's still in the works. "Unfortunately, it is not yet ready to be posted, but our Human Resources Department is working very hard to complete it as soon as possible," School Distirct 304 Communications Coordinator Kelley Munch said in an e-mail Monday. The Geneva Education Association ratified the agreement in a vote on Nov. 14, and the School Board ratified the agreement on Nov. 20. A strike was averted during an 11th-hour negotiation session in the wee hours of Monday, Nov. 12. The summary of the new three-year contract …

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Jeff Ward

I'm Proud of You, Geneva!

Special applause for our School Board members, who volunteer their time and talent to serve the community.

As inexplicably as it all started, it appears to be as inexplicably over. And I say “appears” because, when it comes to the Geneva teachers union, nothing surprises me anymore. Though I’m convinced the teachers will ratify the as-yet-undisclosed contract agreement the day this column runs, it wouldn’t surprise me if the union leaders had one more trick up their sleeve. And I keep repeating the word “surprise” because that’s the only word that adequately describes this dynamic from the day it started until late last Monday night. But let’s move on before we unintentionally court any further Swiftian ironies. Since we’re on the subject of surprises, the one pleasant surprise to come out of all this consternation is you—the citizens of Geneva…

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No Deal Struck Thursday Night in Geneva Teachers Contract Talks, Press Release Coming Later This Morning

School Board President Mark Grosso said Friday morning that no deal had been reached during Thursday night's negotiations between the School Board and the Geneva Education Association.

Geneva School Board President Mark Grosso said at 7:30 a.m. Friday that last night's teachers contract negotiations went past 11 p.m. but no settlement. Grosso said he expected a press release would be distributed later this morning but could make no further comment. "We have not reached a tentative agreement," he said. The Geneva Education Association filed its notice of intent to strike on Oct. 26, and a walkout could take place as soon as today. Information about negotiations and the potential strike will be communicated through emails to families, District 304’s emergency notification system, 304Connects, local media and the School Board’s negotiations webpage. Geneva Patch will update this article as soon as additional information is …

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Report the facts

4:53 pm on Sunday, November 11, 2012

Jeff, Why does anyone coming out of any school owe you an explanation of who they are just because you don't recognize them. They owe you nothing. You stalking like that would make anyone nervous. To all of you ready to send kudos to Jeff about him finding this teacher doing this, you all have no clue. If you knew so much about the schools, you would know that there are custodians in the schools …   more ›

Reports: GEA Members Authorize Strike; Nov. 9 Earliest Possible Strike Date

The Kane County Chronicle reports that Geneva teachers have authorized a strike. Meanwhile, School District 304 issues an e-blast saying the soonest a strike could happen is Nov. 9. Both sides say they hope a strike won't happen.

The Kane County Chronicle reported Wednesday that the Geneva teachers union has voted to authorize a strike, and the Geneva School Board issued a statement Thursday saying the soonest a strike could take place is Nov. 9. Both sides said they're hopeful a strike won't be necessary. In the Chronicle story, Geneva Education Association President Carol Young acknowledged that union members had authorized a strike. The article did not say when the vote was taken or the number of the votes for or against. In its e-blast, the Board of Education said board members the GEA have been negotiating the terms of a new contract since February. On Aug. 6, a federal mediator began meeting with the parties to help in the negotiations process. Following the …

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UPDATE: Geneva School Board Calls Special Meeting to Discuss Teacher Negotiations

The meeting agenda calls for an executive session to consider matters pertaining to collective negotiation.

The Geneva Board of Education has called a special meeting for Wednesday, Oct. 17, for an executive session to discuss the teachers union contract negotiations. The notice includes a time period for public comments and says action is possible after the meeting. However, the primary reason for the meeting appears to be the executive session, which is board discussion that is not open to the public. School officials announced Friday that the union negotiations were declared at an impasse, action that School Superintendent Kent Mutchler described as "disheartening" in an email announcement via 304Connects. "The fact that the teacher’s union has declared impasse suggests that they have concluded that nothing can be gained by future …

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AreWeThereYet

3:29 pm on Thursday, October 18, 2012

Dwight Many of us wrote letters or emails (using real names) to the BOE to make our point. You don't have to show up at a meeting and speak publicly to make a point or to have your voice be heard on important issues. We chose to write an email, rather then going to the board meeting, so that my family could 1) finish work and commute home 2) prepare and eat dinner, 3) help kids with homework 4) …   more ›

Geneva School Board Caught Between Budget Rock, Teachers Contract Hard Place

The Geneva School Board approves a 2012-13 budget that calls for dipping into cash reserves on the same night teachers express further frustration over stalled talks.

On a night when School Board members approved a 2012-13 budget with a $3.9 million shortfall, teachers and tax watchdogs ratcheted their rhetoric over slow-moving contract negotiations and escalating teacher salaries. Speaking during the comments portion of Monday night's School Board meeting, Geneva High School choral instructor Roxanne Curtis said Geneva teachers are "involved in a struggle to be regarded as professionals worthy of respect." "I will not apologize for saying that I feel District 304 teachers have been dealt a slap in the face after all that we accomplish on a daily basis with our most precious resources: our students, your children," she said. Teachers have been working without a contract since Aug. 15, receiving …

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Max

12:03 pm on Monday, October 29, 2012

If you can't see the irony in "Hail to the Chief" being played for both Jefferson Davis and Barack Obama, thank a teacher.   more ›

Jeff Ward

My Advice to Geneva Teachers

It's time to ignore all the shriekers and think long term.

On Monday, we finished discussing the equal and opposite reaction that holds true for everything in this Earthbound existence. To wit, the TaxFACTS people have been pummeling District 304 teachers and their salaries for years, so finally fed up, those educators appeared en masse at last week’s board meeting to make a point. A green “United We Teach” T-shirt—eight bucks. Watching the FACTS folks stunned reaction to 200 teachers wearing ‘em—priceless. But while I loved that measured TaxFACTS smackdown, I’m not quite as enamored of the logic the teachers used in their quest for an new contract with greater compensation. But before we continue, since young purseless women, aldermen, crazy chicken ladies (and all her friends), mayors, bloggers…

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Max

9:23 am on Friday, September 21, 2012

GHS English teacher Brian Burns said: “We need to find a way to come to an equitable solution.... If we fail, there are people in this community looking to exploit our failure and seek to maximize that failure to their own satisfaction.” Let's ignore for the moment the fact that this English teacher's sentence is ungrammatical, and ask who are these "people...looking to exploit", and what IS …   more ›

UPDATE: Teachers Come Out in Force, Wearing Green, to Seek 'Respect and Compensation We All Deserve'

Geneva teachers show their passion for teaching and dissatisfaction with the ongoing contract negotiations.

A score of Geneva teachers packed Monday's School District 304 board meeting to show solidarity and challenge the School Board to come to a quick resolution to ongoing contract negotiations. Four speakers—Barbara Freeman, Susannah Thomas, Jessica Egan and Brian Burns—passionately implored School Board members to "ignore the bullies," give teachers "the respect and compensation that we all deserve" and "put aside any previous rancor and get this done." School officials and members of the Geneva Education Association have been at the bargaining table since February. The existing contact ended Aug. 15. Barbara Freeman spoke first on behalf of teachers and the GEA, noting three points: (1) Geneva schools are performing extremely well by all …

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Julie

7:40 pm on Sunday, November 11, 2012

Oh, Tom, the feeling is mutual! BUT...because I work for a living and have work ethic, I must decline. So sorry. I would be happy to meet you anytime after 5. Let me know...I'll be there! Oh, I bet you're going to take the day off....hmmm. If we do meet, please oh please wear your fancy green shirt. I'd like a picture for my mantle! Now, Tom, put your easy money where your mouth is and pick a …   more ›

Batavia Teachers Get Raises in New Two-Year Contract; Geneva Still Negotiating

The Batavia teachers union and the Batavia School Board held separate votes this week to ratify the contract. Geneva School District 304 negotiations continue.

As Geneva School District 304 continues its teachers union negotiations, Batavia schools have approved a new two-year contract that contains salary increases and some concessions. The Batavia School Board's vote during a public meeting Friday afternoon was the final step to make the agreement official. The union, known as the Batavia Education Association, voted on the contract earlier this week. The contract contains salary increases of 2.35 percent in the first year and 2.8 percent in the second year for teachers in exchange for a 20 percent reduction in the funds committed towards health benefits. The district will also see a decrease in total salary costs from the replacement of the 26 retirees that will leave Batavia Public Schools …

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Ignatius Reilly

7:45 pm on Monday, June 11, 2012

What? A raise? Don't Batavia residents know teachers and their union thugs caused this countrys current economic recession, as well as, all the problems in Greece, Spain, and Ireland.   more ›