Brandywine teachers mark the new union contract after months with booths

On February 12, 2025By Littum

One could say that Monday came with a win for another well -known team.

Brandywine School District Teachers and Support Specialists just marked the end of an almost year -long curse in trade union contract negotiations, with a new agreement reached by membership and district leaders and ultimately approved by the school board that night.

“This is a huge victory for teachers and specialists here at Brandywine School District and everyone in Delaware who support public education and union work,” said President of Brandywine Education Association Steve Rulon, a chemistry teacher in the district for more than 20 years.

The board voted to approve a three -year contract, just hours after Union Membership ratified an agreement concluded through negotiations late last month. Members ratified these conditions by approx. 97% support per Union leaders.

The agreement comes after the negotiations had stopped since May 2024.

What happened in Brandywine?

About 1,000 teachers and other teachers of Brandywine School District had worked during an expired contract since the school year started, as previously reported. These contracts – expanded in the summer of 2023, to get past an ultimately successful referendum – expired in June.

Educators went out of several school board meetings dressed in union red shirts in the fall. Teachers picked outside their schools in the early morning hours with signs and singing before December. Brandywine School District had to submit to mediation at no cost to Board Public Employment Relations.

The same board of directors is still considering a formal complaint filed against board president Ralph Ackerman, who required unreasonable work practices after comments on the same poor lines. The long -time board member has since apologized in public, while every consultation has not yet been planned.

Monday night marked a new starting point.

“I’m glad it’s done. I support it 100%,” Ackerman told the board. “But I just want to say: In the future we have to start earlier. And if we have a problem, we have to lift our hands earlier because I do not want to put these people into that situation again.”

The Union leaders said the New Deal will “successfully raise wages and protect working conditions” for Brandywine teachers, according to a press release from the Delaware State Education Association. Brandywine’s union joins about 40 other locals within the state union, representing nearly 14,000 public school teachers.

Stephanie Ingram, DSEA president, welcomes the local union efforts and the evidence that teachers “are willing to get up and fight” to provide strong public education. Although the Board of Directors did not dig into terms and DSEA did not share further details, the contract is now locked in until June 2027.

Finally, unanimous approval was fulfilled with applause.

Do you have a story? Contact Kelly Powers at [email protected] or (231) 622-2191 and follow her on x @kpowers01.