The Negotiating Subcommittee and senior DPS administrators met with the DEA’s negotiation team four times between October and December 2024 (October 22, November 13, November 20, and December 9). Over the course of the first meetings the negotiation teams established ground rules to guide the process, scheduled meetings through March 2025,  and exchanged three rounds of proposals detailing the changes in working conditions and wages that each party hopes to achieve through this round of negotiations. December 9th was the final date for exchange of proposals.

Broadly speaking, the Committee aims to settle a contract for educators that (1) optimizes teacher working conditions to best support student learning, (2) maintains the existing highly competitive compensation system for Unit A educators, and (3) achieves goals one and two in a fiscally responsible manner that can be sustained by the School Department's existing budget.

To achieve these goals, the Committee prepared four groups of proposals that: 

• Simplify and clarify complex contract language to ensure that language is clear and accessible to all. 
• Adds flexibility to the start date of the school year. 
• Move department chairs from Unit A to Unit B to ensure that employees belong to the bargaining unit most closely aligned with roles and responsibilities. 
• Provide greater clarity on and better parameters around the use of paid time off to ensure continuity of learning for students. 
• Change the elementary report card and conference structure to ensure that parents and caregivers have more direct time with educators to discuss their child/children. 

The DEA also formulated and presented approximately forty proposals that:

• Aim to reduce the number of  after school meetings educators must attend,
• Add early release days to the school year calendar,
• Seek to improve facilities and conditions for teaching and learning,
• Maintain class sizes and caseloads that support student learning,
• Increase paid time off and parental leave benefits,
• Restore positions that have been cut to balance the budget,
• Articulate direct wage adjustments through cost of living adjustments, additions to longevity stipends, and increases to specific steps on the salary schedule. 

The focus of the process ahead will work towards finding mutual agreements on working conditions and wages for the term of the 2025-2028 contract with the DEA. The next phase of the negotiations process will commence at the January 14th meeting of the negotiations teams.