David Quolke at school board.JPG

Cleveland Teachers Union President David Quolke tells the school board earlier this year that district CEO Eric Gordon is not meeting promises to teachers or the public.

(Patrick O'Donnell/The Plain Dealer)

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Cleveland Teachers Union President David Quolke called for a strike today, after negotiations over the summer failed to bring agreement on a new contract with the district.

Quolke said that he planned to ask union leadership at its gathering this evening to issue the 10-day notice of a strike required by law before teachers could hit the picket lines.

He said the union would have no comment about its decision tonight, but would issue a statement in the morning.

District spokesperson Roseann Canfora said tonight, however, that officials have learned that the union will issue its strike notice. She said the district is disappointed by that decision because the sides have made progress toward an agreement.

"It is unfortunate, therefore, that the CTU has chosen to put its efforts toward a strike rather than to resolve the few remaining items," she said.

Teachers were in class today for the first day of school, even though their last contract with the district expired at the start of July. Three days of negotiations last week failed to reach a resolution before the start of school, Quolke said, and no negotiation sessions are scheduled.

"I still believe strongly that we can get this done, but we can't keep kicking it down the road," Quolke said.

He said that even if the union gives notice, he wants the two sides to continue negotiating to reach a deal that will allow a peaceful school year and also allow teachers to help campaign for a key renewal of a giant tax increase that voters passed in 2012.

Until the sides reach a new deal, the terms of the old contract will continue.

Negotiations on this contract are more complicated that in most districts, thanks to the Cleveland Plan for Transforming Schools, the district's improvement plan that the state legislature passed in 2012.

That Plan called for a teacher pay plan "based on performance," instead of the traditional teacher salary schedule other districts use. That made Cleveland the only district in Ohio that no longer gives raises for years of experience and degrees that teachers earn.

But the district and union have failed for four years to create the full pay plan called for in law and in the last teacher contract, reached in 2013.

Though the sides agreed in their last contract that teachers would receive raises for multiple reasons, the district is only awarding them when teachers receive strong ratings on annual evaluations.

Ignored, so far, are contractually-agreed items like teaching in hard-to fill jobs or undesired schools; completing pre-approved courses and training that directly affect teaching; and taking steps to develop as a mentor and leader.

That leaves raises entirely based on ratings, which are greatly affected by student test scores.

"We have an over-reliance on using these standardized tests to evaluate teachers," Quolke said. "Money's really not the issue at the table. It's how we are living up to the promise of the Cleveland Plan."

Teachers in Cleveland were paid $69,133 on average for the 2014-15 school year, according to the Ohio Department of Education. The median teacher pay was $76,652.

Click here for a detailed look at the dispute over the pay plan.

Here's the portion of the 2013 contract that spells out how the pay plan should work: