A panel charged with trying to resolve the impasse in Fargo teacher contract talks meets today after adding Bruce Furness, a former mayor for the city, to the group.
"I'm expecting we're going to have to put in a lot of work," said John Strand, the Fargo Education Association's representative on the three-person mediation panel.
The group must have a recommendation in less than two weeks. "The clock is running as we speak," Strand said Tuesday.
Strand, editor of the High Plains Reader, is joined on the panel by Bev Adams, a lawyer for Fargo's Serkland Law Firm who represents the School Board, and Furness, who was chosen as the consensus chairman.
In addition to pay and benefits, Fargo negotiators were unable to agree on whether to discuss some issues, including class sizes, teacher transfers, longevity pay (a lump sum retirement payment for health insurance), and putting pay for coaching, department heads and other posts in the contract.
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Meanwhile, West Fargo mediators take up talks Monday in that district to help end its impasse with teachers.
In West Fargo, agreement seemed near before talks stalled on health insurance costs. Jeffry Volk, a principal partner for West Fargo's Moore Engineering and the consensus pick as the third mediator on the impasse panel, hopes for quick results.
"I'm hoping the mediation process is successful the first night," Volk said.
The other two members of the panel are former School Board President Mike Lavelle of Minnetonka, Minn., representing the board, and Jason Wohlman, director of development for the North Dakota State University alumni foundation, representing the West Fargo Education Association.
Readers can reach Forum reporter Helmut Schmidt at (701) 241-5583
