SHENANDOAH -- Students from a school district in Schuylkill County may get an early taste of summer vacation next week, as teachers at Shenandoah Valley say they're going on strike.
The Shenandoah Valley School District got word Wednesday night about that possible strike. Those teachers in the district say they've been working without a contract since the 2011-2012 school year.
The superintendent at Shenandoah Valley School District received a letter stating that teachers in the Schuylkill County school district plan to go on strike next week.
The Shenandoah Valley Education Association says the teachers have been working without a contract for four school years.
"I feel sorry for the teachers, but I also feel more sorry for the kids because they don't have anything to do with the financial situations with the school district," said Shenandoah resident Wakita Burke.
The superintendent says a strike will not affect the scheduled graduation date and that classes would still be held for seniors using substitutes.
But parents are concerned about all the other grades, too.
"They're going to be missing out on their education though, that's the biggest thing and the worry, you know?"
Many parents in the district say they don't disagree with the teachers, but they do disagree with the timing, saying a possible strike at the end of the school year isn't a great idea.
"There's only like 17 days left. This is traumatizing. I can't believe they're going to go on strike."
"The timing is bad because of graduation," said Tinamarie Krill. "But the teachers want to be heard, so I guess they did pick a decent time."
But they also say they want the district to work with the teachers for the kid's sake.
"You want to have good teachers, you don't want the good teachers to leave."
Newswatch 16 tried to reach out to Shenandoah Valley district officials and the teachers union.
We were told district officials were in meetings all day and the teachers union did not return our calls.
If both sides don't come to an agreement soon the teachers plan to go on strike starting Tuesday.
