Despite meeting with Gov. Chris Gregoire Wednesday evening, teachers in Tacoma plan to picket again Thursday.

Negotiators had yet to reach an agreement but made progress over several hours of talks that lasted well into the night, Gregoire spokesman Cory Curtis said. He didn't have details about the sticking points but said he was hopeful the issues could soon be settled.

Still, the school district cancelled classes for Thursday.

Gregoire has no direct control over Washington schools, but she has been pressuring both sides for a deal. When negotiators failed to reach an agreement Wednesday afternoon, she called them to her office, where Curtis said she is simply acting as an independent mediator.

"Her primary role is not taking sides in this," Curtis said. "It's just getting both sides to talk through the issues and thinking through issues in different ways."

Thursday will mark the eighth day of classes that have been canceled in the state's third-largest school district. The two sides have been disputing issues including pay and class size, but the major sticking point is how the district handles teacher transfers. The district wants to consider some factors in addition to seniority.

Gregoire said in a statement that she wants district and union negotiators to stay in her office "until their differences are reconciled and the school doors reopen."

The district is the third-largest in the state, after Seattle and Spokane. Tacoma has about 1,900 teachers and 28,000 students.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Chris Sullivan, 97.3 KIRO FM Reporter

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