Commentary: Meet the LAUSD veteran who leads the principals union

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When the heads of three Los Angeles Unified School District unions stood side by side at City Hall to announce their new contracts after nearly going on strike hours earlier, one of them looked out of place.Max Arias was decked out in a purple letterman’s cardigan emblazoned with “99,” for Service Employees International Union Local 99.United Teachers Los Angeles President Cecily Myart-Cruz wore a tie-dyed T-shirt that read “Solidarity LA.” And then there was Maria Nichols, who looked like the school principal she once was.Shiny black shoes.

Black slacks.Light makeup.

Tight smile.The only flash of color was her green V-neck union T-shirt, the logo peeking out of a black blazer.Arias and Myart-Cruz gave impassioned speeches hailing the last-minute deals, which still need to be approved by union members and the school board.

Nichols, who leads the Associated Administrators of Los Angeles/Teamsters Local 2010, started with a joke about her mere year and 10 months as a union leader.“I’m the new kid on the block,” the 60-year-old said.“But we made a commitment.

It’s not about equality, it’s about equity.… We are all better today for our collective work.” California A planned LAUSD strike is called off after tentative settlements with three unions are reached, prompting widespread relief as schools open on Tuesday.AALA’s tentative contract calls for raises of more than 11% for the LAUSD’s 3,000 principals, assistant principals and middle managers — a lower percentage increase than SEIU’s 24% and UTLA’s 14%.

But the contract also secured a 40-hour week with flex time off for extra hours, addressing long-standing complaints about grueling schedules.On top of all that, Nichols has led her members into a new era.“For a long time, principals have been perceived” as a class apart from other school employees, Arias said at the City Hall news confe...