The downside to collaborative bargaining is people's infatuation with the process rather than the outcome. Some school board officials claim that successful collaborative bargaining sessions happen only in wealthier districts. The most effective negotiator/facilitators are professionals found within the school district. Extreme positions could…

Argues that negotiated contracts provide sufficient protection to teachers against caprice and political whimsy. (JF)

Tired of contentious negotiations that hobble school systems with strikes and compromise pacts, school leaders are questioning the traditional adversarial approach to bargaining. As the experiences of Boston and Cincinnati show, principled or collaborative negotiation can turn adversaries into allies. A sidebar outlines joint training requirements…

Board members weary of smoke-filled rooms, midnight strike deadlines, and bad-faith bargaining charges might appreciate a South Dakota school district's bargaining formula for positive, productive contract talks.The keys are trust and willingness to listen; guiding principles include philosophical agreement on common goals and school finances,…

During collective bargaining, board members and administrators make common mistakes: allowing the board to negotiate; failing to recognize the beginning of negotiations, authorize the negotiating team, or learn teachers' bargaining language; circumventing the bargaining team; waving red flags; negotiating every union demand; and accepting…

Describes Glenbard Township (Illinois) High School District's win/win solution to negotiating teacher contracts. The district's new cooperative approach succeeded because the negotiating team was expanded (weakening the influence of adversarial-minded negotiators), and the system's best teachers were part of the bargaining team. A standing…

Criticizes the concept of superintendents functioning as chief negotiators in collective bargaining processes (it endangers the relationship with teachers, and puts an extra burden on the demanding job of a superintendent). Lists five recommendations for hiring outside negotiators. (MD)

Reports on a national survey of board members and administrators focusing on teacher collective bargaining. (IRT)

An Illinois district created a collaborative contract agreement that lays a foundation for future multiyear contracts. In the process, participants learned to build a participative district atmosphere benefitting all three leadership parties, seek compromise, avoid unnecessary contract language changes, allow minimal publicity about sessions, and…

Describes a New York State school district program that has been successful for the past 20 years. The school board, administrators, and union leaders meet monthly and discuss items not subject to contract negotiations. A close positive relationship has evolved from the meetings. (MD)

Describes how a New York school district developed a way to successfully settle contracts with teachers using a joint committee of the parties involved rather than professional negotiators. (MD)

If a school board member with teacher union sympathies is leaking critical information to the union during bargaining, changes in negotiations procedures must be made to prevent the spy from being privy to confidential information. (Author/JM)

As teacher unions press for more participation in school management, they will find themselves vulnerable to the same kinds of criticism, grievances, and litigation that have been reserved exclusively for school boards and administrators. (Author)