On October 22, 2001, the Naperville School District 203 Board of Education adopted three recommendations of the Education for the 21^st Century Committee. They were:

1. A referendum is warranted;
2. The referendum should be held at the earliest possible date; and
3. An economic agreement be negotiated between the Board of Education and the Naperville Unit Education Association prior to filing for a referendum.

Our first goal was to reach an economic agreement. What we are presenting today, goes beyond that goal, as we not only have an early economic agreement, but a complete contract in place for the next three years.

As the Board of Education began negotiations, our goals were to provide a competitive compensation package in comparison to our benchmark unit school districts, so that District 203 can attract and retain highly-qualified teachers, while maintaining fiscal responsibility. The Board believes this agreement meets those goals.

In a highly-compressed period of one month, an agreement has been reached. This was accomplished in a positive manner between the representatives of the NUEA and the Board. This would not have been accomplished if the negotiations would have taken place in a public forum

On behalf of the entire Board of Education, I wish to thank the teachers of the NUEA team and the Board members--as well as the Administrators who represented the Board--for diligently working under considerable pressure and time constraints to accomplish this fair and equitable agreement. Few school districts attempt this type of negotiation, let alone be able to come to an agreement.

Now that a contract is in place, it is time to move forward. On January 7, 2002, the Board of Education will be prepared to take action on a resolution which will place a referendum on the ballot for March 19, 2002. This meets the second recommendation of the citizens committee to hold the referendum at the earliest possible date. At our first meeting of the new year, the administration will present to the Board of Education, a suggested rate for the referendum (and where those dollars would be spent), as well as any accompanying budget reductions.

As a Board of Education, we have heard the voices of the community loud and clear: maintain the high quality of education within our schools, compensate our teachers competitively, and demonstrate fiscal responsibility. While we may talk about those issues today, it will be through our actions of tomorrow that our commitment will be demonstrated. We pledge to bring our District 203 community together, so that we can continue to meet the needs of our students for the 21^st century and retain the high quality of education our community expects and deserves.