By AP/KWMU
Highland, Ill. – Teachers in the Metro-East town of Highland have accepted a contract proposal after threatening last week to go on strike.
It's a one year deal that will give teachers a 4.4% pay hike.
There are 220 teachers in the 3,000 student district; 180 of them represented by the union.
The school board in the city near St. Louis plans to approve the contract at a meeting Friday.
The deal was hammered out during eight hours of talks between the teachers union and school officials. The session ended with an agreement early Wednesday morning.
Union President Michelle Deets says teachers felt the proposal was the board's final offer and decided to accept it out of concern for the students.