GENEVA, Ohio — Teachers in Geneva have voted to go on strike. It comes as members of the Geneva Area Teachers Association (GATA) are striking against the district’s in-school and online learning plan.
They began walking the picket line early Wednesday morning holding signs that declared: "Geneva teachers on strike for quality education."
GATA Spokesperson Cheryl Ramsey says this is not about money. It’s about getting students the learning environment they deserve.
“Bargaining has officially broken off,” Ramsey told 3News in an e-mail late Tuesday night. “We are extremely disappointed in the district's refusal to meaningfully address the remote learning issue in a way that is good for students and teachers. Both parties are at the call of the mediator.”
We streamed live video from the picket line, which you can watch in full below:
While she added that bargaining may resume soon, they “will be on the picket lines” Wednesday morning.
“This was an extremely difficult decision, but we need to take a stand for quality education for all of our students,” Ramsey said. “During the pandemic, synchronous in school and online learning did not work for most of our students, yet our superintendent wants to continue with this option. Ironically, the program for online learning that she has refused to approve has been purchased for use during the strike.”
GATA members voted unanimously to support the strike after Geneva teachers “voted by a clear majority” to strike effective at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday.
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