Striking Gloucester teachers hold vigil to thank parents, students for sacrifices
GLOUCESTER - Teachers in Gloucester held a vigil to thank parents and students for the sacrifices they are making during their strike.
Teachers and school committees in Gloucester, Marblehead, and Beverly have not reached a deal.
Gloucester hold vigil for parents
The Northshore teachers strike has taken a toll on families across the three towns, who have to find last-minute childcare. The communities gathered for a vigil to shine a light on the sacrifice that thousands of students and their families are making.
Students like Gloucester third grader Kaya Graham joined the vigil in front of Gloucester City Hall after missing seven days of school and normalcy.
"I really miss my teachers, my friends and I'm in the middle of a really fun project," said Kaya.
Her mom, Noame Graham, is a Gloucester teacher who organized the rally as a gesture of gratitude to parents.
"I'm a parent as well and so I recognize that last-minute scramble for childcare can be expensive and exhausting," said Graham.
According to the Gloucester School Committee, the finish line was in sight but the deal with teachers fell apart when negotiations hit several roadblocks.
"We feel an agreement is closer than it has ever been," Gloucester School Committee Chair Kathleen Clancy said in a statement.
"The biggest stakeholders here are the families and recognizing the incredible sacrifices that they've been making to make it possible for us to fight for a better educational system for their kids," said Graham.
Striking teachers rally at statehouse
Striking teachers from Marblehead, Gloucester, and Beverly took their fight to the steps of the statehouse, urging lawmakers and Governor Maura Healy to help them reach a resolution.
The Gloucester union said one of the biggest sticking points is raising poverty-level wages for paraprofessionals.
"We have been working with an expired contract for 509 days," said Gloucester paraprofessional Margaret Rudolph.
Considering the frustrations and divisions, Kaya wants to remind the adults why her school is so important to her:
"There's always a place where you can be safe, you can be loved, you can have what you need," said Kaya.
Meanwhile, the teacher unions are racking up thousands of dollars in fines if they don't go back to the classroom.
Schools are considering canceling February or April break, or weekend school as the strikes continue. Schools will be closed in Marblehead, Beverly, and Gloucester on Wednesday.
Beverly teachers strike negotiations
The Beverly school committee said that it had made progress with teachers on a potential proposal. President of the Beverly School Committee Rachel Abell said that they are waiting on a response to their counteroffer from the union.
"The School Committee has stretched the district budget to increase its wage proposals multiple times, including twice this spring without receiving counter proposals from the BTA. We all agree that our educators need and deserve a raise, but we will require the BTA to bring forward proposals that are financially possible for our community," Abell said in a statement.