At a special meeting at the Squires Education Center, the Cassopolis Board of Education adopted the Cassopolis Education Association contract Aug. 22.

In a 4-0 vote, the school board approved a new contract for the teachers which will run through 2016.

Board member Sue Horstmann was absent and President Scott Ward abstained.

“It was a lot of work on both sides,” Cassopolis Superintendent Tracy Hertsel said. “Not only the teacher’s association, but the entire district has been working really hard to try and get us sustainable and solid. This should go a long way toward that.

“They gave a lot and what I mean by that is we tried to make it fair and equitable if the kids are here, which we base our money on, they will be rewarded for that. If not, we had to stabilize the budget and this should go a long way toward doing that.”

Negotiations have been ongoing more than six months. “After a tough year and an extremely long summer of negotiations, both sides tried their hardest to come up with the best solution that would have the least impact on our students,” co-CEA President Carey May said. “Teachers feel that they gave up a lot this year in comparison to years past.”

“We understand, however, that everyone is making concessions to insure the district stays out of deficit spending,” co-CEA President Lindsay Gorham-Pflug said. “We are striving to keep communication between the teachers and administration open and positive, so that we can continue being one of the best districts in Cass County.”