While River Forest Education Association co-presidents Cindy Crannell and Lauren Baiocchi are pleased a tentative contract agreement has been struck with River Forest School District 90, there is still a sizable hurdle.
That being ratification of the contract by its members, which requires a majority of those voting. Voting will begin Dec. 1 and will last up to five days, they said. Additionally, the District 90 board of education will have to provide its approval, likely in December.
According to a joint statement from Crannell, Baiocchi and Supt. Ed Condon, “both the negotiations teams agree not to release details of the tentative agreement until final ratification and approval. We are pleased that the parties reached a tentative agreement through a collaborative effort.”
Baiocchi, who said an RFEA membership meeting is being planned to discuss the contract, said the early reactions are positive from teachers who have been working without a contract since August.
“I know at my building there was a sense of gratitude to myself and my colleagues, ‘Thank you for getting us to this point,’” said Baiocchi, a third-grade teacher at Lincoln Elementary School. “This is a big step in the right direction.”
Crannell, a STEAM teacher from pre-kindergarten through fourth grade at Willard Elementary School, agreed.
“A lot of people felt gratitude to the work we put in and really advocating for them,” she said.
With a score of 85.36, Lincoln earned Exemplary status for the third year in a row according to the Illinois Report Card released last month by the Illinois State Board of Education. Willard (86.17) was declared Exemplary for the fourth straight year. Exemplary is the designation for schools that rank in the top 10% of the state. The next 67% are considered Commendable, which is what Roosevelt Middle School earned.
Strong turnout at the public comment portion of school board meetings this fall showed the community support for top-flight education in River Forest, Crannell said.
“Definitely it shows RFEA members (that they) support us and I think some of them did not know the situation we were in, our salaries were not being competitive, people were feeling really pinched and looking elsewhere, at other contracts,” she said. “They really value us, attending board meetings until nine at night on a school night with kids at home.”
Assuming it is ratified by RFEA membership and approved by the school board, the pair said the new contract will make the district better by not only retaining strong teachers, but also attract top graduating talent from colleges and universities, which is in short supply, according to data from the Illinois Education Association.
“Educational programs within universities are shrinking,” Crannell said, “not as many are going into teaching. (There is a) smaller pool of graduates that are entering the workforce.
“The teacher shortage is a real thing. When we have retirements, they will have a better pool of candidates, more of them, and I believe it will put River Forest back on the map as one of the best districts to work for.”
She also said that teachers are leaving the field for a variety of reasons, including lack of schedule flexibility, inability to work from home and generally “a lot of energy expended during the day.”
But there is no other profession for her.
“It’s going to sound cliché, but it’s a very rewarding job,” she said. “I think it’s a really interactive job, and I feel like I have a family with the people I work with. There are never two days the exact same.”
Baiocchi added that good teachers are invaluable for children’s futures.
“I feel very strongly about making connections with kids,” she said. “Nobody gets anywhere without teachers.”