Contract disputes

On the day of the district-wide educators strike, I spent hours interviewing teachers, parents and town leaders to gain a full perspective of the strike and its impact. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and really pushed me to ensure that I was considering all sides of a complicated issue. 

This article gained lots of traction, as many in the community were uncertain about the seriousness of the impending strike. I enjoyed investigating and clarifying this message to the community. 

This article required a deep dive into the Mass. Courts database, as my co-writers and I worked to uncover the financial implications of the strike. We were able to break this news first, even beating the Boston Globe to it!

For this article, I went through and analyzed the statements released by the BEU and the BSC following a very heated mediation session. This helped provide some clarity as to potential responses from both the BEU and BSC. 

It was really interesting to hear from teachers about what drove them to protest at town hall, and how this contract dispute was affecting them and their ability to serve their students. Being at the protest itself was an exciting, new environment for me. This felt, to me,  an important message to convey due to remarks I had been hearing around the school about teachers being less willing to put forth time into their students due to the negotiations. 

My final contract-related article was able to bring good news to the community, and clarify the terms under which the BEU and BSC came to an agreement.