Pasadena Unified, Teachers Reach Agreement On Reopening District Schools

Hours after the Pasadena teachers union announced it had issued a cease and desist order to Pasadena Unified School District objecting to the District’s plan to reopen grades TK-5 for in-person instruction later this month, the two sides agreed that schools will not open until April. 

The deal was announced by the district shortly after 7 p.m. on Tuesday. Under the new agreement, preschools and elementary schools will begin a hybrid simultaneous learning model after spring break. 

Student cohorts in PreKindergarten, Transitional Kindergarten, first, and second grades will return to campus on April 13 immediately after spring break. Grades 3-5 return on April 20.  Early Childhood Education programs will open at the same time as PreK-2nd grade, the District said.

“I truly want to give a great thank you to our bargaining team,” said UTP President Allison Steppes in a video to union members explaining details of the agreement.

 “We’ve worked extremely hard over this last year, and today was a very challenging day, but we were able to get through it.” 

PreK-5th grade teachers and UTP members will have up to five days to organize classrooms and the school environment and get ready to welcome students:

March 17, 18, and 19, as previously scheduled

• Two additional days: March 29 and 30 
• Students will be in asynchronous learning on these days, according to the district.  

“We’re excited to reach an agreement with UTP that returns PreKindergarten-5th grade student cohorts to in-person learning in a hybrid simultaneous model,” said Superintendent Brian McDonald, Ed.D. “Adjusting our start date and reaching this agreement means that we can welcome our students as a united team.”

The District’s statement pointed out there is no school Wednesday, March 31 because of the Cesar Chavez holiday.  Students will be in distance learning on April 1 and 2. April 2 is a shortened day. PUSD is on spring recess April 5-9.

“This agreement with our teachers’ union further strengthens our District’s plan to safely return to in-person instruction,” said Scott Phelps, Board President. “After working collaboratively with our labor partners during the COVID-19 pandemic, we are pleased to reach an agreement for PreK-5th grade that keeps our students and employees safe and reflects the thoughtful care that has characterized our District’s response to this crisis.” 

Phelps said claims that the district wanted to open schools in March so it could get a bigger chunk of the money Gov. Gavin Newsom promised school districts that reopened by the end of the month were untrue. 

“It wasn’t really about the money, but about getting kids back in classrooms,” Phelps said. “We are still eligible for nearly all of the amount so it was not a big financial loss, but again that wasn’t really ever a consideration.” 

Agreement has not yet been reached on middle and high school dates for preparation days for teachers, the District said. Both parties agreed to return to the table on March 26 to continue conversations regarding the effects of reopening.

Students in grades 6-12 should check their Canvas account for directions from their teachers on March 17-19, the statement said.