Bergstrom on Contract Negotiations, Pleasantview Update

SAUK RAPIDS -- With the ongoing teachers' strike in the Minneapolis school district, how are the contract negotiations going in the Sauk Rapids-Rice district?

Superintendent Brad Bergstrom says they are wrapping up the negotiations with their collective bargaining groups.

Our teachers have settled already, we settled with them back in November. So we're good through June of 2023.  With our administrative assistants that group is done and signed.  We're looking for two more to be settled in the coming weeks.

Bergstrom says they are in good shape as a district and they'll start again next year working on contracts that will start on July 1st of 2023.

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Progress continues to be made on the new Pleasantview Elementary in Sauk Rapids.  Bergstrom says the school staff recently had a chance to walk through the new building.

We actually have some rooms that are carpeted, they've got the lockers in them, it's actually what a full room is going to look like.  Progress is moving along really well. We've got sheetrock up in many of the places. We are doing a lot of the custom work in the kitchen area.

Bergstrom says they are now starting to prepare for the move from the current building to the new building this summer.

The new Pleasantview is scheduled to open for the school year this fall.

We told you earlier this week that there is a push at the state capitol to make taking a personal finance course a requirement for high school seniors. Brad Bergstrom says in his district they already offer that course as an elective.

The difference is when you move a course from being an elective to being a required what it does is it creates fewer choices in the elective category for students. That is always a bit concerning for me.

Bergstrom says he will continue to monitor what happens at the capital to see if the course needs to be switched from an elective to a required course.