The teachers union met until after 1 a.m. Friday to reach an agreement on changes made to the "Race to the Top" application. For more than a week now, the union and Fresno Unified officials have been debating topics like teacher evaluations, which are written into the application.
The union does not want teachers to be rated based on standardized tests alone. The district says this could greatly improve programs like elementary school literacy.
The Fresno Teachers Association has been under public pressure from the mayor's office and a group called the Children's Movement of Fresno.
"I really just want to compliment both the district and the teachers for being willing to work. This is very hard stuff, there are legitimate issues on both sides. You know the community asked these two sides to at least come together and they certainly have done that," said Fresno Mayor Ashley Swearengin.
The district released a statement just before 2:30 a.m. Friday saying an agreement had been reached, but the details of that agreement have not been made public.
The application was originally due last week -- when there was not agreement. But the deadline was pushed back because of Superstorm Sandy.
