School Districts Negotiating for New Deals After McCleary Finally Done

It will be a busy summer for school districts and teachers unions throughout the state as they negotiate new contracts with the increased levels of state funding. President of the Wenatchee Education Association Kris Cameron says with so many districts around the state negotiating, it could be a slower process than it has been in the past.

"Locally, we have worked really hard to create a really positive collaborative relationship and so things are going well. We are in the midst of exchanging proposals on ways to bring up salaries and some other issues to better serve students in the district."

Cameron says it's all about understanding the state's budget.

"The way that the additional funding for salaries has been presented to districts; it's a little bit complicated and so that's been a challenge to try to figure out what the law means, what the limitations are, how do we provide for the most competitive salaries in our district so that we can continue to attract high-quality talent."

Cameron says there is no expectations that this impact next school year.