After almost two years of negotiations and increasingly difficult budget times for the San Diego Unified School District, (SDUSD), members of the San Diego Education Association (SDEA) voted nearly unanimously last week to ratify a three-year contract with district officials. “We’re pleased with the outcome,” said SDEA President Camille Zombro. “This allows us to move on and focus on the kids and what we do best.” The teachers’ previous contract with the district expired in 2008. Since then, both the teachers and SDUSD officials have been working toward a contract that would benefit both sides. “The district had an incentive to settle the contract because they needed something,” Zombro said. “They needed us to take an economic hit so they could balance their budget.” With nearly half of SDEA members voting on the contract, 97 percent voted to approve the agreement. Zombro said the new contract has been a long time coming. “We’ve been ready all along,” Zombro said. “We’ve been wanting to settle this contact for two years.” One of the most significant sacrifices by teachers in the new contract is the implementation of five furlough days for each of the 2010-11 and 2011-12 school years. On the traditional school calendar, the furlough dates for next year will be June 14-17 and June 20 – ending the school year one week early. “It was a hard pill to swallow, but if we could get things that demonstrate to us that the money is going to be used appropriately, that’s why teachers were willing to step up,” Zombro said of the mandatory days off. According to Zombro, the contract’s key element for the teachers was the adjustment of language involving class sizes, nurses and counselors. The new contract states that schools are going to be staffed with nurses and counselors without spending flexibility and keeps the pupil-to-teacher average at 36 students for the next three years. The contract also protects educators who retire within the next two years.