Teachers, school board still waiting for fact-finder’s report

By Eileen Oldfield Staff Writer
   The school year starts for Manville students today (Thursday), but for Manville teachers, it’s the start of a second year with no new teaching contract — and more waiting for the state appointed fact-finder’s report to be released.
   The report, which would have compiled both the Board of Education’s information about the district and the Manville Education Association’s (MEA) requests, was expected to be released in August. The report, however, has not been released, with the groups blaming each other for the delay.
   ”It’s my understanding that there was a delay from the Board of Education,” Christy Kanaby, the NJEA representative handling the case, said. “We are hopeful that it will be forthcoming by the end of the week.”
   Ms. Kanaby said the board did not deliver its report until recently. However, Board President Andrew Zangara said the board did not file a report because it did not need to add information to its May 21 presentation to the fact finder.
   ”We never filed (a report),” Mr. Zangara said. “We stood on our presentation to the fact finder that evening, and did not submit additional information.”
   Mr. Zangara said he hadn’t been informed as to when the fact finder’s final report would be issued.
   According to Mr. Zangara, the MEA asked for an extension past the report due date, but the board did not request any extensions. Ms. Kanaby cited the MEA’s difficulties in obtaining district documents, including copies of the latest budget and audit statements that were necessary for the organization’s report.
   ”The Manville Education Association had to get a court-ordered subpoena in order for the Board of Education to hand over the documents required to complete their report to the fact finder,” Ms. Kanaby said. “Thus, a week’s extension was not only appropriate, in this case it was necessary.”
   Business Administrator and Board Secretary Richard Reilly said the documents were available to the MEA, however, none of the Open Public Records Act forms necessary for obtaining the documents had been submitted to the Board of Education offices.
   The session with the fact finder is the second step in a year-long set of contract negotiations that landed the board and the MEA in several unsuccessful mediation sessions aimed at creating a new teaching contract. District teachers are working under the district’s old contract, which expired in June 2007.