CHICAGO – The city's teachers agreed Tuesday to return to the classroom after more than a week on the picket lines, ending a spiteful stalemate with Mayor Rahm Emanuel that put teacher evaluations and job security at the center of a national debate about the future of public education.

Union delegates voted to formally suspend the strike after discussing details of a proposed contract settlement worked out over the weekend. Classes could resume as early as Wednesday.

Delegates poured out of a South Side union hall singing "solidarity forever."