Stoughton Teachers Association Rallies to Support Contract Negotiating Team

About 130 Stoughton Public Schools teachers came to Tuesday evening to rally for a “fair contract” and to support the Stoughton Teachers Association’s (STA) bargaining team as they made their way up the stairs of the Superintendent’s wing for a 7 p.m. bargaining session with school officials.

The STA contract expired in August, and there have been more than 25 bargaining sessions, but no new contact has been agreed upon.

For the last five School Committee meetings, representatives from the STA have signed by staff in their respective schools across the district, which asked the School Committee to negotiate a contract with the STA that "attracts and retains highly qualified teachers to Stoughton" and reaffirms their "determination to achieve a contract which fairly and equitably acknowledges [their] contributions to the Stoughton Public Schools."

As these petitions were read, dozens of teachers packed the Stoughton High television studio, many wearing black buttons with orange writing that read "Stoughton Teachers United," to show their support.

This time, the teachers literally took to the streets, marching up the access road that connects the O’Donnell Middle School and Stoughton High School, up Pearl Street and then down Adams Street and into the cafeteria side parking lot at SHS. Some former Stoughton teachers and children of teachers joined in the rally as well.

Some teachers were holding signs, which included sayings like “Fair contract now!”; “It pays to pay teachers”; and “Stoughton Teachers UKnighted.” Others were holding bells or noisemakers. Ken Kalen, a fourth grade teacher at the Gibbons, was holding a megaphone, delivering “rally cries” which were repeated by the teachers as they marched.

As the teachers arrived at the parking lot, Superintendent of Public Schools Dr. Marguerite Rizzi, and School Committee members Tom Colburn and Joyce Husseini stood at the entrance of the Superintendent’s wing.

“I think the teachers have the right to express themselves anyway that they would like,” Dr. Rizzi said. “They are our dear teachers and I’m incredibly fond of them.”

“We also look forward to settling a contract,” Colburn added. “We’ve been negotiating for quite a long time and we very much would like to have the contract settled.”

After the School Officials went inside the teachers gathered on the steps and continued their rally.

“Late last night I had a dream; victory for our bargaining team,” Kalen chanted, with the teachers repeating. “They’re the heroes of the STA; we stand behind them everyday.”

The teachers gave the members of the bargaining team superstar treatment as they made their way up the steps and into the school for the bargaining session, cheering loudly and giving them high-fives. In many ways it resembled player introductions at a sporting event, minus the pom poms and chest bumps.

Kalen told reporters that the teachers were there to “support our negotiating team and to support them in their endeavors.”

Members of the STA’s negotiating team, according to the STA website, include Will Kellogg (SHS), Melanie Ingrao (SHS), Karen Bullock (OMS), Bill Gorman (SHS), Merrill King (Gibbons) and Maria Capobianco (Retired Consultant). Sue Cogliano (OMS) is the president of the STA.

When asked if he hoped negotiations could be settled by the end of the school year, Kalen said, “certainly—it’s in everyone’s best hopes.”

At the April 12 School Committee meeting Mary Reese, a second grade teacher at the South School, read a petition signed by the South School teachers, and said she had taught for 38 years and had seen 12 contracts settled and that a negotiation had “never taken this long.”

She said contracts had been settled in good and in bad economic times. “I urge you to settle this contract and let us move forward,” Reese said to the School Committee at that meeting, which drew a loud applause from the teachers in attendance.

View highlights from the rally in the media gallery above.