Dallas School District parents will picket Friday

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DALLAS TWP. &#8212; Dallas School District parents will speak their mind,From 10 a.m. to noon Friday in front of the Dallas School District administration building, a group of parents will meet to stage a peaceful protest as a result of the ongoing teachers&#8217; strike and stalled contract negotiations, according to Joanna Cunningham, parent demonstration organizer.&#8220;I do not intend to bash either side,&#8221; Cunningham said. &#8220;There will be strict guidelines on what our posters can say.&#8221;Tensions between parents, teachers and the school board have increased to a volatile level as students remain out of school due to the Dallas Education Association strike, which started on Friday, Sept. 22.The state Department of Education requires the strike to end Oct. 19.&#8220;It is already a battle of wills,&#8221; Cunningham said. &#8220;We want to create a presence, not a battle.&#8221;The goal of the parent strike is to encourage both the union and the school board to enter binding arbitration, which would require a neutral third party mediator to review both party&#8217;s proposals and create one that both sides are obligated to enact, she said.Recently, the school board wanted to enter into a voluntary non-binding arbitration, but the union refused.Voluntary non-binding arbitration involves both sides agreeing to let a third party mediator review proposals and develop an offer. Both the union and district would have to agree to the new plan to enact it. If either party refuses, the negotiation process starts again.&#8220;We want someone to come in and settle this,&#8221; Cunningham said.In November 2016, teachers went on a 22-day strike, which exceeded the return-to-class date of Tuesday, Dec. 13, set by the state. Teachers and students returned to school Monday, Dec. 19.The 2016-17 school year continued to be plagued by contract negotiations as the union filed multiple intent to strike dates.<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta>By Eileen Godinegodin@www.timesleader.com</bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta>Reach Eileen Godin at 570-991-6387 or on Twitter @TLNews.</shirttailMeta></div>