Minneapolis Public Schools and the union representing the district’s teachers reached a tentative contract agreement in the early morning hours Thursday.

The agreement comes as the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers’ Teacher Chapter was set to begin a vote to authorize a strike over the next two days. The district had been in mediation with the teacher’s union since the end of February.

The district has not yet announced an agreement with the union’s Educational Support Professionals Chapter, which also had set a strike authorization vote.

District and union officials issued statements early Thursday lauding the agreement for teachers.

“As we keep our students at the center, we worked together to reach an agreement that honors the hard work of our licensed staff and recognizes our budgetary constraints. We look forward to continued partnership,” said Superintendent Dr. Lisa Sayles-Adams.

“We worked together collaboratively in service to the students of Minneapolis Public Schools and reached an agreement that we are both proud of. Our time today was incredibly productive, and we believe it is a new day for MPS,” said union President Greta Callahan.

Details of the tentative agreement will be shared publicly once union members vote to ratify the contract.

The district is currently facing a more than $100 million budget deficit and has warned that music teachers, nurses, custodians, content experts, information technology workers, athletics, transportation and special education positions are all facing cuts.

St. Paul teachers in March authorized a strike as negotiations continued on a new contract. That union and the St. Paul school district came to agreement before a walkout happened.

This is a developing story. Check back for more details.

Collected from Minnesota Public Radio News. View original source here.