ROCKFORD – Rockford Public Schools canceled classes for 28,000 students Thursday as negotiators for the school district and teachers tried to hammer out a new contract.

About 1,500 members of the Rockford Education Association decided to go on strike after negotiators failed to reach a deal Wednesday after meeting for 10 hours. Negotiations were scheduled to resume Thursday, and classes were expected to be canceled today if both sides again failed to agree.

Efforts to agree on a new contract have been under way since last April. Teachers and administrators have been working under terms of an expired contract since July 1.