Denver teacher strike comes to a close

Denver Public Schools and teachers announced an end to the three-day strike with a deal that raises pay by 11 percent, with built-in cost-of-living increases and more opportunities for future raises. The full union membership still needs to ratify the agreement. More than half of the district’s teachers went on strike Monday, but schools remained open, staffed by administrators and the teachers who stayed. The initial talks broke down over a demand that the district rely less on bonuses for educators in high-poverty and high-priority schools, which the district used to boost academic performance among poor and minority students. The union said the question will be studied.

The union has not technically called off the strike, due to negotiations lasting late into the night, The Denver Post reported, but Superintendent Susana Cordova encouraged the teachers to return to the classrooms: “If you want to come in, as soon as you can, come in.” The district’s preschool programs will remain closed one more day.