Teachers Back at Schools; Half of Students Still Out

A mood of ebullience and relief swept across the sprawling Los Angeles Unified School District today as teachers returned to their classrooms and campus life resumed its normal routine.

But many teachers found sparse attendance among students, who had apparently decided to begin the Memorial Day weekend early. District officials estimated that about half of the district’s 594,000 students came to school today, slightly fewer than the number who attended school Thursday.

There was no official estimate of how many teachers were in class today.

The nine-day teachers’ strike ended Thursday with United Teachers-Los Angeles and the school board approving a pact that increases teacher pay by 24% over three years, gives teachers shared power with parents and administrators on school decision-making councils, and reduces some outside classroom duties.

Most instructors said they are glad to be back and anxious to make up for lost time.

Darlene Haezaert, a Venice High School Health teacher, said instructors at her school felt victorious.

“Everybody feels real good,” Haezaert said. “I think we won.”

But other teachers said they harbored bitter feelings toward those who crossed the picket lines. “It is grossly unfair that they are going to get the same thing that we fought so hard and struck for. It is like a cold breeze in the middle of this sunshining day, but it is good to be back,” said Ellen Wormser, a Hamilton High School counselor who sported a UTLA T-shirt.