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State test results: Science scores are Luzerne County high point

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<p>DALLAS TWP. &#8212; Dallas School District students and teachers will head back to class Tuesday, according to an automated call from Superintendent Thomas Duffy.</p><p>The news comes after union leaders submitted a revised health care proposal, signed an agreement to return to class and filed a new intent to strike notice on Nov. 22 with the district on Monday morning.</p><p>Michael Cherinka, the president of the Dallas Education Association, said the union recently received an updated healthcare offer from their broker, Millennium Healthcare Group, based on the district&#8217;s healthcare actual claims instead of the estimates used in a previous proposal that touted a projected savings of nearly $600,000.</p><p>The union did not receive the district&#8217;s healthcare data from Highmark until Sept. 20.</p><p>The information was forwarded to the broker who provided a revised healthcare proposal with over $300,000 savings for the district, Cherinka said.</p><p>&#8220;It is based on very specific information,&#8221; Cherinka said. &#8220;There is still a significant savings.&#8221;</p><p>On Monday, Cherinka would not provide further details on the more than 80-page offer.</p><p>District Solicitor Vito DeLuca said the union&#8217;s revised healthcare proposal would be given to the school board at tonight&#8217;s executive session, which is not open to the public.</p><p>The next public school board meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Oct. 9 in the administration building.</p><p>Cherinka said the union wants to give the board &#8220;time to look it over&#8221; before scheduling a new negotiation meeting.</p><p>The Dallas Educational Association went on strike on Sept. 22 after contract negotiations reached an impasse on issues such as salary, healthcare, pensions and early retirement.</p><p>The state Department of Education required teachers to return to work by Oct. 19, unless an agreement was reached.</p><p>Teachers are allowed to strike twice in one school year, as long as long as the first strike ends in time for the district to complete the state-mandated 180 student-instructional days of school by June 15.</p><p>A second strike must end in time to complete 180 student-instructional days by June 30.</p><p>The Dallas School District teachers have been working without a contract since August 2015. The school board and union started the negotiating process in 2014. </p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Dallas students will return to school on Tuesday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/web1_Dallas-Strike-002-2.jpg</photo0><caption0>Dallas students will return to school on Tuesday. </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Eileen Godin</p><p>egodin@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div>

Classes to resume Tuesday in Dallas School District