New teacher contract approved
Oceanport school board
and teachers union settle after nine months
By darlene diebold
Correspondent

They thought they could do it, and they were right. Despite a mediator’s determination that the sides were too far apart, the Board of Education and the teachers union, the Oceanport Education Association, have come to a settlement after nine months of negotiations.

As Mary Bulvanoski, chairwoman of the negotiations committee, said last week, "We are talking. We aren’t waiting for fact-finding. Oceanport is a small school district and there are only so many fact-finders. We would have to wait for someone to be assigned, but that’s just too long. This is too important." Education Association President Peggy Kolasa felt the exact same way, and that was why both parties agreed to meet last Friday.

Terms of the contract have not been disclosed because neither the board nor the union has voted on it yet, but representatives for both sides in the negotiations have said they are happy and expect no problems with ratification. There is a memorandum of agreement in effect for the 62 union members.

Last Friday’s negotiating session lasted five hours. Lucille Chaump, president of the Board of Education, said, "I am very happy. Both sides were able to sit down without a mediator. We did this on our own. Everyone involved made sure that they were available. After the Oct. 2 meeting, I felt that both sides were ready to settle. I was pretty hopeful."

Chaump was not the only one who had been hopeful. Becky Mitlitski, vice president of the union, said, "Every time we went in there, we thought that we were going to settle. Both sides were ready. I am very happy with the settlement. It’s very fair for both parties. I feel very strongly that it was a win-win situation."

Kolasa said, "We didn’t get everything that we wanted. We got what we could live with. Obviously we are still low. We are not going to fix that in one negotiation. If the teachers do ratify, I’m sure that they’ll be grateful that they can get back to just teaching. They won’t have to worry about the negotiations anymore. We have the best teachers now. As we continue shoring up the contract, we can be sure to keep our teachers and keep getting new ones. Oceanport and the children are certainly worth it."

Bulvanoski also is pleased that an agreement has been reached. "Our entire school community — teachers, board members, administrators, staff members, parents and concerned citizens — has demonstrated how important it is for us to work together for our children’s education," she said.

Both sides said they want to get the contracts signed as quickly as possible. The salary guide still needs to be completed, but as Chaump explained, "I think the salary guide will go smoother than last time. We are all committed."

The teachers union will be meeting today to vote, and, if all goes well, ratify the contract. The Board of Education is holding a special public workshop meeting on Monday at the Wolf Hill School administration offices at 7 p.m. to vote. Chaump said that all of the board members are happy and she expects approval to be a formality.