PATERSON – With the proposed five-year contract with the Paterson Education Association (PEA) soon to be distributed to the association’s members for ratification, Superintendent of Schools Eileen F. Shafer and Paterson Board of Education President Nakima Redmon issued the following statements.

“The district administration, the Board of Education, and the PEA worked hard to come to a tentative agreement that is fair to everyone and puts Paterson Public Schools on solid ground to serve our students and their families for the next five years,” said Shafer. “We look forward to finalizing the agreement and putting the district in a better position to attract the teachers it needs to provide every Paterson child a thorough and efficient education.”

“We look forward to the PEA’s ratification of the pending contract and working with our teachers and other staff during the next five years in doing everything we can for the benefit of our students and their families,” said Redmon. “Once the agreement is finalized, we can all collectively focus on helping our students and their families achieve success.”

Negotiators for the district and the PEA reached a tentative memorandum of agreement on January 26th after a session that ended at 2:30 a.m. PEA members are scheduled to vote on the agreement’s ratification on March 21^st. The Board of Education will hold its ratification vote at a later date.

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