The Mars Area School Board and Mars Area Education Association announced Wednesday night that they reached a tentative collective bargaining agreement, preventing a teachers strike that was scheduled to start Friday.

On late Wednesday evening, Mars Area Board of School Directors President John Kennedy and Mars Area Education Association (MAEA) President Joe Graff released a statement.

“Both parties will work to finalize the contract language for ratification votes within the next couple of weeks,” the statement read. “This tentative settlement avoids the strike scheduled for Friday.”

On Tuesday, the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board had denied a fact finding request by the school district that had been submitted Feb. 10. MAEA explained the denial was based on Act 88 of 1992 Section 1122-A, which states fact finding can't be implemented between the period of a strike notice and the conclusion of a strike, or during final best-offer arbitration.

The district and teachers met Tuesday night to negotiate in a session that lasted more than five hours, and MAEA at that time noted that there was “no easy resolution in sight.”

The parties met again Wednesday for another negotiation session, and a final session had been planned for Thursday night.

The district had on Wednesday also posted a letter sent to Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA) Region Field Director Brooke Witt regarding non-binding arbitration.

Non-binding arbitration is a private legal process in which disputing parties appear before an arbitrator, whose decision is advisory until both parties accept it.

The letter asked MAEA to voluntarily participate in non-binding arbitration prior to the possible strike in order to avoid carrying it out.

Had the school board and MAEA not reached a tentative agreement by Thursday night, teachers had planned to begin their strike at the start of the workday Friday.

But shortly before 10 p.m. Wednesday, the school board and association released its joint statement announcing the preliminary deal.

“The school board and association appreciate the shared spirit of mutual respect and professionalism during the negotiations process,” the statement said.