Published: May 1, 1990

A Living Contract

The teachers and district leaders in Hammond, Ind., are among a growing number of educators who are trying to put this strategy to the test. Earlier this year, the local teachers' union and the city school district agreed to a 12-year "living contract,'' which they hope will foster cooperation and give educators more flexibility in responding to schools' needs.

The long-term contract, which runs through December 2001, is the first of its kind in the nation, according to the American Federation of Teachers. It represents an attempt by the union and the district to break free of conventional collective bargaining and form a "partnership'' to encourage school improvement, says Patrick O'Rourke, president of the Hammond Teachers' Federation, an AFT affiliate.

"Schools are hard to change--that's the bottom line of this,'' he says. "Any time we can do anything that makes them more...