Several people showed up to Wednesday’s South Butler County School Board meeting to talk about the ongoing contract dispute between the teachers’ union and the district.
Tracy O’Roark is a parent.
“There is no compromise and there needs to be,” she said. “This is not fair to the teachers, to the board, to the community or the children that attend our school district.”
Troy McCurdy is a teacher in a neighboring district. He encouraged South Butler’s new superintendent to get involved in the negotiations.
“It takes two- the school board and the union to come together,” McCurdy said. “The only way I see this issue getting solved is for the new superintendent to take control and get it resolved.”
Dr. David Foley took over as superintendent on Jan. 15, replacing interim Superintendent Dr. Frank Prazenica, who returned to the district in August after previous superintendent Dr. David Zupsic resigned to accept another position.
South Butler teachers have been working without a contract for nearly four years. The major sticking points continue to be wages, healthcare, tuition reimbursement, early retirement incentive and the addition of time onto in-service days.
The union has voted to authorize its leaders to call for a strike.
