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Polk County Itemizer-Observer • June 17, 2015 15A Polk County Education Congratulations Class of 2015 Perrydale teachers agree to contract Board, union finally able to hammer out agreement terms By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer PHOTOS BY JOLENE GUZMAN/Itemizer-Observer Above: A Western Oregon University graduate cele- brates as he and more than 900 fellow graduates filed into McArthur Stadium at WOU Saturday morning for commencement. While ab- out 900 students attended gradation, more than 1,300 students earned degrees in 2014-15. Oregon’s Senate President and former WOU employee Peter Courtney gave the commencement address, telling graduates to not be afraid about their future. Right: Morrison Campus Alternative School gradu- ate Paisley Baylis poses for a photo with her daughter, Saylabrialle Baylis, 1, Thursday evening after receiving her diploma at the school’s graduation ceremony in Dallas High School’s gym. Morrison’s Class of 2015 included 37 students. Bill Fischer, the school’s writ- ing, personal finance and social studies teacher, was the featured speaker at the ceremony. PERRYDALE — After more than a year of negoti- a t i o n s , t h e Pe r r y d a l e School Board and the Asso- ciated Perrydale Teachers (APT) have approved a three-year contract. The new contract in- cludes the current (2014- 15) school year and expires June 30, 2 0 1 7 . Both sides were able to ham- mer out an agree- ment dur- ing a five- hour face- Deters to-face meeting earlier this month that included the district’s lawyer, Superintendent Eric Milburn, and a teacher group’s representative. In previous mediation sessions, the two groups were kept in separate rooms, and Milburn didn’t participate in negotiations beyond providing informa- tion. APT President Dean De- ters said he believed those changes were part of the reason the two sides finally came to an agreement. “It was pretty productive and it seemed like every- one was focused on finding something that worked,” Deters said. Milburn agreed. “It helped tremendous- ly,” he said. “The contract is definitely fair to the teach- ers and fair to the district as well, because now we can move forward.” In the agreement, teach- ers will receive a 1 percent cost of living adjustment (COLA) for the 2014-15 school year, a 1.5 percent increase in 2015-16, and a 2 percent increase in the final year of the contract. “We were looking for a little more. We had taken a couple zeros (on COLAs) the last couple years, but I will say it was pretty close,” Deters said. Insurance caps — the amount the district pay to- ward employee insurance plans — increased to $1,079 per month this cur- rent year and will increase another $25 in each of the next two years. In order to agree to the third year of the contract, APT dropped the unfair labor practices complaint it filed against the district in December 2014. After the first day of hearing on the c o m - plaint, Milburn said both sides were ready to forgo fur- ther ac- tion to Milburn come to an agreement. Deters said when negoti- ations begin for the next contract, both sides agreed to take a different approach to prevent the situation from happening again. “We feel like part of the problem was lack of experi- ence on both sides,” Deters said. Milburn added: “I think it was a learning process for the board and teachers as- sociation.” When negotiations begin again, the superintendent will be involved, and the groups will meet before- hand to list the items they would wish to discuss be- fore formal meetings begin, Deters said. “We want to make sure we have some structure in place before we sit down for negotiations,” Deters said.