The Princeton Board of Education and the district’s teachers, represented by the Princeton Regional Education Association (PREA), have reached a tentative three-year agreement. Last week’s successful four-hour Thursday evening session came in the wake of a less fruitful all-night discussion the week before.

“After over a year of long and difficult negotiations and an additional four hours tonight, a tentative agreement was reached between the PRS (Princeton Regional Schools) Board and PREA,” said PREA President Joanne Ryan. “The tentative agreement is subject to ratification by both parties. No details can be released until after ratification is complete,” she added.

“The Board and PREA have signed a Memorandum of Agreement on a three-year contract, retroactive to July 1, 2011 and ending June 30, 2014,” reported Superintendent Judy Wilson. “We are prepared to move through the ratification process in the next two weeks and are ready for everyone to move forward together in our collective service to our students and to the community.”

The ratification process will consist of approval of the contract by the 371-member teachers union, followed by a majority vote from Board of Education members.

PREA will hold a meeting (after press time) on January 25th to present the proposed contract to the membership. A ratification vote is anticipated to take place at the end of the following week. Again, noted Ms. Ryan, “the details of the proposed contract will not be disclosed prior to ratification by both parties.”