AKRON, Ohio — The clock is ticking as a possible teachers' strike looms within the Akron Public School District.
As of Friday morning, no deal has been made with negotiations expected to continue into the weekend.
"Negotiations resume tomorrow morning at 9," APS spokesperson Mark Williamson told 3News' Neil Fischer on Friday. "Could go on Sunday if the mediator deems it necessary."
Last month, the Akron Education Association announced their intent to strike starting on Monday, Jan. 9, citing safety and security concerns among the reasons.
"Our one and only strike, one and only in the history of Akron Public Schools, was in 1989, and that strike occurred over student behavior and assaults on teachers. We find ourselves back in that very same situation," AEA President Pat Shipe told 3News in a previous interview.
Shipe had said their goal is to solve the dispute without a strike.
"Our hope for mediation is and continues to be that the players who make the decisions continue to be at the table, that people who are vested in Akron Public Schools and know the importance of that are at the table.”
Community leaders, including Akron Deputy Mayor Marco Sommerville, met Friday to discuss the consequences of a strike. "Parents got jobs, they have to go to work. Now they have to find somebody to keep their children. So it (a strike) causes so many problems. We got to try to hopefully get this thing worked out," Sommerville said during the meeting.
Ward 5 Councilwoman Tara Mosley released the following statement on Friday afternoon:
"The City of Akron’s future is dependent on a thriving public school system that educates and prepares all of our children for that future. We cannot have a successful school system, though, unless our educators have fair pay and a safe working environment and our children have a safe and nurturing learning environment. As a mother and grandmother, I understand the strain of working and, at the same time, caring for and educating children when school is not in session. Working families rely on a working public school system. I encourage both the administrators and teachers at the Akron Public School system to work together cooperatively to find solutions to the challenges they, our children, and their families face. Teachers must be fairly compensated and we must ensure the safety of students, teachers and staff to meet our community’s educational needs."
On Friday evening, Akron Public Schools released a "fact check" on its website to answer some of the claims made against the district as the negotiations have dragged on. "At times of heightened anxiety, we must all do our part to stop the spread of rumors and misinformation that create fear and confusion," APS wrote in its post.
A representative from Akron Public Schools told Fischer that they will let the mediation process go forward until they release a statement. But the union is prepared to strike Monday morning if there's no deal in place.
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR STUDENTS
So what happens for students if a strike takes place? School officials say learning will continue.
“There will be an instructional plan and recommended daily schedule that will allow students to pivot to online learning,” APS officials noted in an FAQ about the situation. “This will include opportunities for students to meet online with an APS administrator with teaching experience and opportunities to complete online lessons independently at their own pace. This approach aligns with our approved district blended learning plan. While in-person learning is obviously preferred, our educational community has developed extensive experience in helping students learn virtually.”
The district says families will be notified “as quickly as possible” regarding online learning instructions, support and schedules in the event of a strike.
While the district’s buildings would also be closed during a strike “to ensure safety,” APS says meals will still be provided from 11 a.m. until noon with pick up available at nine locations.
“Each bag will contain lunch items for that day and breakfast for the next morning," according tot he district.
Sports and after-school activities, however, will be suspended if a strike occurs.
As teachers move closer to a strike, some students told 3News on Friday that they understand why.
"I mean we're scared the student body is scared and I can only imagine how these teachers have to feel," Cove Ferguson, a sophomore in the district at Firestone CLC, said.
Ferguson added that safety has been a huge concern for them and their classmates, with fights on a regular basis and weapons being brought to school.
"We're afraid that the school is going to be shot up, or somebody is going to get stabbed again," said Ferguson.
In November, two students were stabbed in APS buildings just weeks apart. Then in December, guns were found on two students within the same week.
"These are things that happen consistently, and we really shouldn't be afraid of that. We should be able to go to school without fearing that. But all of us are afraid that there's going to be a weapon or some hard drugs at school," Ferguson said.
Shipe said safety is the biggest issue holding up current negotiations.
"We cannot have learning environments, we cannot continue instruction when we have the chaos that we have been experiencing this year and the past number of years," Shipe said.
Last month, the Akron Public Schools Board of Education approved nearly $3 million for enhanced safety measures including new cameras, metal detectors, bag scanners and more alarm systems on doors.
Those upgrades will still take weeks to install. Until then, students like Ferguson said more needs to be done to address their classmates behavior, especially the repeat offenders.
"They're willing to fight each other, how long is it before they're willing to start fighting the teachers?"
READ THE AEA'S STRIKE NOTICE
Here is the full strike notice as issued by the Akron Education Association back on Dec. 29, 2022:
After attempts at resolving outstanding issues through federal mediation failed, Akron teachers will strike on January 9, 2023, with picketing beginning that morning. Patricia Shipe, President of the Akron Education Association stated, “The Akron community’s outpouring of concerns regarding school safety and security are being ignored by Akron Public Schools. Weeks of unparalleled fighting are now daily occurrence within Akron school buildings, yet the Superintendent and the Board continue to want to water down the definition of assault and force students, teachers, parents and families to endure more violence, disorder, and disruption to the education of the majority of Akron students.
On December 12, 2022, the APS Board of Education announced it was spending approximately $3.5 million to upgrade school safety equipment. The State announced in November 2022 that during the third-round awards of the Governor’s K-12 Safe Schools grant, 708 Ohio schools in 57 counties would receive $57.8 million of funding to enhance student and staff safety. Yet, the Akron Education Association was shocked to learn that Akron Public Schools received zero funds during this round of funding. AEA is outraged that Akron Public Schools is spending $3.5 million which could have been used to attract and retain high quality teachers when Governor DeWine’s safe schools grant would have covered 100% of the $3.5 million which Akron Public Schools is now spending. The Association has questioned the Board repeatedly through public records requests and during mediation sessions about this issue. The Board refused to be held accountable or answer these questions.
Educator resignations continue at a record setting pace within APS because of the ongoing failure of this administration to protect its students and staff from internal student aggression. This violence has left over 20% of teaching positions unfilled or filled with unqualified staff. AEA will continue to demand transparency and accountability. While the Board claims they cannot use federal stimulus dollars (ESSER funds) to retain educators and stop the flow of resignations, they admitted during fact-finding that they used $44 million of those very funds on administrative salaries and fringe benefits.
Akron Public Schools used ESSER funds to pay for extravagant travel and housing for attendance at seminars at resorts in Florida and Colorado and treated administrators to holiday dinners and alcohol at Akron’s Lock 15 Brewery, yet claim they cannot afford to pay a fair wage to their educators. They have also committed funds to additional travel to these resorts in 2023. Again, when questioned the Board refuses to answer or be held accountable for their decisions.
Akron Public Schools cannot fill 20% of teaching positions because of unaddressed concerns regarding school safety, security, and wages which do not retain qualified teachers, while the superintendent continues to refuse to move within the Akron Public Schools district and reportedly maintains a suite at the Blue-Tique Hotel within walking distance of her office at 10 N. Main Street. Who is footing the bill for these living accommodations? Again, the Board has refused to answer and the Superintendent has not been held accountable to fulfill the requirements of the contract she signed.
These and more concerns remain unanswered, even as the Board’s negotiating team unanimously confirmed during mediation that Akron Public Schools has never been in a better financial position than they are currently experiencing. They are instead choosing to advance the false narrative that any fair settlement would be unsustainable, even as AEA uses the Board’s own numbers to clearly refute that position.
The Akron Education Association will remain steadfast in its advocacy for Akron’s students, teachers, parents, and community. We will represent their concerns about school safety and security and the need to attract and retain qualified educators to deliver rigorous, supportive, and safe instruction to our students. Akron educators appreciate the overwhelming outpouring of support from the community and will continue to hold this Superintendent and the Akron School Board accountable for unsafe schools and reckless spending.