Providence City Council teachers contract hearings, 2/17 and 2/22

Karina Wood, Interim Executive Director of the nonpartisan citizens' initiative BetterProvidence, has passed on information about the hearings that the Providence City Council is holding this week to gather information about the contract between the Providence Teachers Union and the Providence Public Schools. Here's Karina's announcement:

The contract with the Providence Teachers Union has a major effect on the cost of education in Providence and on the policies and practices by which our children learn in the classroom. The contract need to be renewed by August, 2011.

This Thursday, February 17 at 4:30 p.m., at City Hall, the City Council’s Education Subcommittee of the Finance Committee is inviting the lead contract negotiators to present the goals they have for the upcoming negotiations. Superintendent Tom Brady, Providence Teachers Union President Steve Smith, and Providence School Board President Kathy Crain have been invited to make presentations and take questions from the committee. 

The public is invited and welcomed to attend. Please come if you can.

Ed Fitzpatrick wrote about the upcoming teachers contract hearings in today's ProJo, with a focus on City Council member Sam Zurier, who initiated the hearings. The ProJo's Alisha Pina also reported this story last week.

This is a unique opportunity to learn more about the union and district's aims and expectations, which will have a tremendous impact both on the ways Providence spends money not only on salaries but much more, and on the ways teachers can spend their time as professionals working toward the best possible learning outcomes for our kids. It's also a chance, as time permits, for you to offer your perspective as a citizen about the ways resources can and should be used to create the best conditions for teaching and learning in our city's public schools.
 
There will be a second teachers contract hearing on Tuesday, February 22 at 7:00 p.m.