The Newton School Committee announced the approval of a memorandum of agreement (MOA) to increase the amount of preparatory time for elementary school educators in a brief meeting Monday night.

Superintendent Anna Nolin said the agreement was made in collaboration with the Newton Teachers Association (NTA) following more than two years of work.

“This is a triumph for NTA and NPS and school committee collaboration,” she said. “I’m proud of what this does for our elementary [students] and for our educators, who now have preparatory time each day to prep the many classes that elementary teachers are required to teach.”

The NTA echoed Nolin’s sentiment in a statement to the Beacon. 

“The NTA was pleased by the collaborative tenor of the MOA negotiations and looks forward to continuing the work next year of negotiating a new elementary schedule,” the organization stated.

Effective from the 2026-2027 school year, elementary teachers will now have 225 minutes of prep time per week instead of 180. Nolin said the schedule changes will create flexibility for offering health, STEM, media and technology literacy classes to elementary students. She also noted that specialist staffing schedules will be stabilized so that staff in these roles do not find themselves going from a full-time to part-time role based on enrollment changes each year.

The agreement was approved in executive session, with seven in favor, one against and one absent.