Port Angeles paraeducators reach agreement with school district

Class is back in session after paraeducators reached a tentative agreement with the Port Angeles School District over the weekend.

PORT ANGELES, Wash. - Class is back in session after paraeducators reached a tentative agreement with the Port Angeles School District over the weekend.

On Sunday, April 14, members of the Port Angeles Paraeducators Association (PAPEA) gathered at Port Angeles High School and voted 96% to ratify a new bargaining agreement.

Paraeducators had been on strike since April 8, which was scheduled to be the first day that students and teachers would return from spring break.

"We’re thrilled to be heading back to school," said PAPEA President Rebecca Winters. "We’ve missed our students so much and we’re so thankful for the support of our community, especially our PAEA colleagues."

School officials and members of PAPEA had been bargaining to reach a new contract since the beginning of the school year. The strike was initiated after an agreement on a 3.7% wage increase was not made. At this point, we do not have specific details on the contract.

Port Angeles Paraeducators Association is made up of 130 paraeducators in the Port Angeles Public Schools. It is affiliated with the statewide Washington Education Association and the National Education Association, both of which represent K-12 teachers, support staff and higher-education employees.