Battle Ground students head back to class as strike comes to close

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After 12 days in limbo, students and teachers in the Battle Ground School District breathed a sigh of relief when the first bell rang Monday. A new school year had finally started.

Although this was a week they don’t want to live through again, educators got their wish when they agreed to a new two-year contract Sunday. This occurred less than 48 hours after a Clark County Superior Court judge ordered them to return to work without a contract.

“The district came out and said we were not going to get paid and they filed the injunction on us, but our members were not going to back down. I was so proud of them,” said Battle Ground Education Association President Linda Peterson. “Educators in Battle Ground have been informed, engaged and empowered. They realized we were not going to give up.”

According to the district’s new salary schedule, teachers starting out with no experience and just a bachelor’s degree make $48,593 a year. Meanwhile, teachers with the most experience and education in the district can earn up to $93,731 a year.

Although Peterson didn’t have the official increases from last year to this year, she said this new contract includes all of the money sent to the district by the Washington State Legislation in March.

“Nobody goes into education without having the endurance and compassion to teach children and have an impact on their lives,” Peterson described. “Teaching is not a volunteer job. This is a skilled profession. That is the biggest takeaway we have seen across all of Washington.”

THE WEEK LEADING UP 

Sept. 10: Citizens address school board, superintendent directly

More than 40 citizens spoke during a school board meeting at the Lewisville Campus. The room was packed to the brim, with lots of people standing, and a crowd of supporters gathered outside. Many of those parents, students and residents of the district expressed their frustrations and their lack of trust in Superintendent Mark Ross and members of the board.

At one point, Karl Lemire, a resident of the district, reached into his pocket, gave Ross $9 and asked if he would put that toward teacher salaries. Ross said he would have to split that amount in half to account for the levy he expects will decrease by 50 percent in the next two years.

Before the public comments, Ross read a statement backing the district’s proposal to increase salaries by 11.6 percent. He believed the Battle Ground Education Association’s request for a 19.6 increase is not sustainable and could lead to more budget deficits and possible staffing cuts in the future.

“Both sides have continued to disagree. Therefore, we have asked for an independent fact finding to look at each side’s proposals and come to an unbiased conclusion on the extent of availability of McCleary funding,” Ross said.

“We apologize to our community members for the delay to the start of school,” he added. “Our biggest desire is to get back to the business of educating our students as soon as possible with a budget that is sustainable and does not add further burden to our tax pay citizens.”

Citizens spent the duration of the three-hour meeting pleading with the board members to settle up with the teachers. They challenged Ross’ statement that all of the McCleary money is in the district’s current offer. They said if Battle Ground teachers accepted that offer, they would still be the lowest paid teachers in Clark County.

Sept. 12: School board votes to stop strike

Hundreds of teachers in Battle Ground stepped out into the pouring rain after an emergency board meeting drenched in anger, doubt and uncertain about their future in the district.

The meeting was brief. Present board members Monty Anderson, Tina Lambert, Troy McCoy and Mavis Nickels voted 4-0 in favor of giving Ross authorization “to take any and all lawful steps necessary to terminate the strike.”



The board’s resolution states that this work stoppage has “disrupted” and “harmed” the lives of students, parents and members of the community. Therefore, “the Superintendent is further authorized through the law firm of Vanderberg Johnson & Gandara, LLC to bring suit against any individual employee participating in a strike or concerted refusal to perform services.” This also goes for “any union, association or corporation” participating in these activities against the Battle Ground school district.

Board members hoped it wouldn’t come down to this vote to terminate the strike. Members of the Battle Ground Education Association say they will continue to fight for a new teaching contract with salary increases they have seen from other schools in Clark County.

“It’s really unfortunate that it has come to this,” said BGEA Vice President Marina Heinz. “The only way we are going to reach a tentative agreement is by bargaining at the table and this is just a distraction that is going to slow down the district and the Battle Ground Education Association from reaching that agreement.

“We are ready to go back to the classroom, but we need a contract before we can do that,” she added. “We are asking for all of the $9.6 million that the state has sent down to go toward teacher salaries and that is why we are still on strike.”

Sept. 14: Judge orders teachers back to class; teachers say no 

Clark County Superior Court Judge Scott Collier ordered Battle Ground Public Schools teachers to return to work Monday.

The district filed an injunction against the Battle Ground Education Association (BGEA) Thursday following a vote by the school board Wednesday.

“Battle Ground Public Schools’ mission is to educate students, and we want to return to that mission,” said Rita Sanders, communications manager for the district. “We are committed to continue bargaining, but the longer this continues, the greater the impact it will have on our students. We need to take care of our students.”

Following the judge’s ruling, hundreds of teachers, parents and students gathered at Lewisville Park in Battle Ground to show their solidarity.

“It shows that the teachers in Battle Ground are united and we are not divided by what happened this morning,” said Heinz. “Taking teachers to court is not a solution. It is a bully tactic and a distraction. The only place for a fair settlement with competitive pay can be negotiated is at the bargaining table.”

The teachers took this a step further by voting to defy the judge’s order and remain on strike. BGEA President Linda Peterson believes this sent a message to the district. It was time for them to focus on bargaining again.

“Battle Ground teachers will be on strike until the superintendent and the board negotiate a fair contract with competitive, professional teacher pay – just like nearby districts have done,” Heinz said. “We appreciate the strong support from the community, including local businesses, parents and our students themselves.”

Sept. 15: Bargaining breakthrough

Battle Ground Public Schools and the Battle Ground Education Association reached a tentative agreement on a new contract for teachers and certified educational professionals in the district, ending a 12-day strike that started Aug. 29.

“We are pleased to reach a tentative agreement that will allow the district to recruit and retain quality teachers,” Ross stated in a press release. “We are looking forward to starting the school year and coming together to focus on our mission of educating students.”

The bargaining teams worked with the support of the state mediator until 4:30 a.m. in the morning and then returned to the table in the afternoon to reach a resolution.