Teachers, union leaders press Mount Diablo Unified board for fair contract and smaller class sizes

A chorus of teachers, bargaining-team leaders and community members told the Mount Diablo Unified School District Board of Education on Aug. 27 they want a stronger contract that reduces class sizes and increases pay and supports for specialist staff.

Speakers at the public-comment portion — including classroom teachers, long‑time district employees and the co‑chair of the Mount Diablo Education Association (MDEA) bargaining team — described large class sizes (reports in testimony ranged up to 37 students for some secondary classes), growing caseloads for nurses, counselors and speech‑language pathologists (SLPs), and routine unpaid work on special‑education documentation. Several speakers cited a district reserve figure of $213,000,000 when urging the board to allocate more toward classrooms rather than outside contractors or communications firms.

MDEA co‑chair Julia Jamieson said the union asked the district to add contract language guaranteeing “a respectful working…