SHAMOKIN – Teachers in the Shamokin Area School District will be in the classroom again today. Northumberland County President Judge Charles Saylor made the ruling in court Wednesday that the teachers must return to the classroom, siding with the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
The PDE argued if the strike continued, the district would not meet a state requirement that students complete 180 days in the classroom by June 30. The News Item reports Saylor also ordered three school board members and the Shamokin Area Education Association’s bargaining team to meet twice a week and every other Saturday for at least four hours until a contract is finalized.
A state mediator will oversee the bargaining sessions. The first meeting will take place within seven days. The Shamokin teachers have been on strike since January after the school board did not accept a non-binding arbitrator’s report that the teachers had approved. (Ali Stevens)
