MONTGOMERY: School board accepts contract deal

By Stephanie Vaccaro, Staff Writer
   MONTGOMERY — The Board of Education accepted contract concessions in the amount of $860,000 from the Montgomery Township Education Association (MTEA) at the board’s meeting Tuesday.
   Because of the impending storm, the board wanted to acknowledge MTEA President Chris Crow for his leadership before he left.
   ”On our agenda, you will see that we are going to be accepting an agreement with the MTEA, said David Petit, board president. “I know it’s been reported in the papers, but I just wanted to publicly acknowledge the MTEA while Chris is here for the leadership that they’ve shown in working with the district to help us through the difficult financial situation that the district is in right now and the overwhelming support that the membership showed in saying ‘we’re working with the community and we’re willing to sacrifice in order to help the community.’
   ” So, I wanted to thank you, Chris, for the leadership you took in this and for the spirit of partnership and engagement and concern for the community and the schools that the MTEA leadership took and then ultimately the MTEA membership. So, I want to thank you for that and express our thanks to the membership for that as well,” Mr. Petit said.
   ”I would also like to thank the board and district leadership for bringing the MTEA into financial discussions, budget discussions,” said Mr. Crow. “It was because of that information that we received. It was also because of the trust that’s been built up through the years between MTEA leadership, members of the board, district leadership that allowed this to happen. Barring that trust having been developed, we wouldn’t have been able to do that. So, thank you.”
   The concessions will impact every MTEA member, the district said in a statement. Teachers will sacrifice between $600 and $2,000 in pay. Custodians, who had been targeted for possible privatization, will see their salaries reduced an average of $3,000.