Coatesville teachers turned out in mast at last night's regular school board meeting to remind board members that once again teachers are starting a new school year without a new contract.

The present, three-year teacher's contract ran out in August. Since then the district's 600 plus teaching staff has been working without under the terms of the expired contract. That, said Mary Beth Guiseppe, president of CATA (Coatesville Area Teachers' Association), has become too frequent of an occurrence. "We can't continue along that path again," she said.

She was backed up by 184 teachers -- almost a third of all teachers -- who stood brandishing signs saying, "We don't have a contract, but we chose to come to work without one, so we can continue to teach our children."

The public display by the teachers comes after an earlier education meeting where the teaching staff, along with others, was praised for lifting the district out of its educational doldrums. This year was the first year since academic achievement tests were mandated that all the districts schools met Annual Yearly Progress (AYP) goals established by the state Department of Education.

Guiseppe termed negotiations with the school board as "very positive." The two sides have been meeting since February, she said.

Coatesville teachers, according to Guiseppe, remain among the lowest paid in the county.