High Point teachers union near deal

WANTAGE — Following months of negotiations, representatives from both the teachers union at High Point Regional High School and the Board of Education say they’re close to reaching an agreement on a new teachers’ contract. Negotiations between the two groups started at the beginning of 2009 but still haven’t been resolved. Debbie Anderson, president of the teachers’ union, said the group is “hopeful we can work out the few things that are keeping us from resolving” the outstanding issues behind a new contract. Anderson, who spoke to The Advertiser-News following the Dec. 21 Board of Education meeting at the high school, declined to identify what the “stumbling blocks” are but indicated that they were over language issues in the proposed contract and not monetary in nature. She added that both sides have been working hard to iron out a new agreement. Scott Mearkle, president of the Board of Education, said the two groups “are very close” to reaching an agreement, though he said he didn’t expect that to occur until after Jan. 1.