The contract under which Kaneland teachers work expired on June 30th and the district and teachers are headed to mediation to negotiate a new contract.

According to the president of Kaneland Education Association, “We have been negotiating for over seven months in hopes of achieving an agreement well before the new school year would begin. Because we are coming up to the end of this contract without a new agreement, on May 22, KEA requested to begin mediation with the district.”

Union representatives spoke out at a rally stating teachers needed a fair agreement that recognized their value. They asked that the district not “devalue their earnings over time” and brought attention to the fact that the programs and initiatives they are currently a part of.

The president further elaborated, “Over the last few years, more and more demands have been placed on our teachers as new programs and initiatives are being approved and implemented throughout the district. While the district is embracing these new ideas and initiatives, teachers are managing their new workload while still working to plan quality lessons and experiences for students in their classrooms every day to best meet their learning goals.”

One of the concerns the union has expressed is the speed at which the changes are being implemented. The new initiatives have increased the workload on teachers and they are doing their best to learn new systems to meet the district’s demands. They want their pay to reflect on their efforts and they are hoping the rally draws attention to their issues before they head into mediation.