Chicago Teachers Are Back In Classrooms, But For How Long?
(CBS) – Teachers in the Chicago Public Schools system returned to the classroom Monday, but the question on the minds of educators and parents is: How long will they be there?
As CBS 2's Dorothy Tucker reports, the uncertainty stems from the fact that teachers still have no contract.
On the first day of school for teachers, it's all about the prep.
Students return next Tuesday. On Monday, they joined their parents at back-to-school fairs, where this year's excitement for the new year is mixed with a bit of anxiety.
Union leaders say they talk to CPS brass almost every week. School administrators say: "We are committed to averting a strike by working together at the bargaining table to resolve any outstanding issues".
The grounds for a strike this year are reminiscent of 2012, when teachers went back in September only to walk out in October.
"It's difficult to recover the instructional time that's lost, the break in trust, the break in community," Pershing Magnet School Principal Safurat Giwa says.