School Board President: Chicago Teachers To Return to Class Monday

The president of the Chicago School Board says the district and the teachers union have agreed on a "framework" to end the nearly week-long teachers strike.

After days of long negotiations, David Vitale said the “The heavy lifting is over. We’re all feeling pretty good. We are going to have our kids in school Monday morning.”

Vitale would not say where each side compromised, and he stressed that union delegates still must vote to end the strike.

He said the agreement gives children the time they need in the classroom and teachers the respect they deserve.

A City Hall administration source close to the negotiations has said they've reach a tentative three-year deal with an option for a fourth year.

Teachers will receive a "generous raise," the source said.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel's signature longer school day and school year will also remain intact, the source said.

Earlier, an attorney for the Chicago Teachers Union says contract talks are still progressing, but negotiators do not expect to reach a final agreement to end the teachers strike until at least Sunday.

Robert Bloch says the union is still working out details of the deal and hopes to present a full contract proposal to union delegates sometime Sunday. If the 700 delegates vote to approve the package, teachers could return to the classroom Monday.

The walkout is the first by Chicago teachers in 25 years. It has canceled five days of school for more than 350,000 students who had just returned from summer vacation. The deal also maintains CPS principals' leeway to hire whom they want, rather than forcing them to hire from a pool of laid-off teachers, the source said.

Key issues at the bargaining table have been a teacher evaluation system that uses student test scores and job-security measures for laid-off teachers.

The union is still planning a rally for Saturday at noon. Union delegates will have to vote to call off the strike for it to officially come to an end.