ESTA UPDATE

ESTA ASSEMBLY ACTION

I wrote in the recent ESTA Panorama of my hope that the ESTA Assembly would approve a proposal that would, in essence, call the District’s bluff in the face of recent claims regarding the state of District finances. The proposal, if passed by the Assembly, would have asked ESTA members to approve by election our entering into discussions with the District that would have led to an alternate solution to the mid-year termination of some temporary teachers and associated reassignment of both librarians and counselors to classroom duties. At the crux of the proposal was a voluntary pay cut that would produce a savings to the District equal to what the savings of reassigning librarians and counselors would have been (estimated to be $680,000), but which would be restored under certain circumstances.

After much spirited debate, the motion initially passed in the Assembly by a narrow margin. A second motion was then passed which would have required that ESTA members approve the proposal by a vote of at least 70% of those voting, as opposed to a simple majority.

In the wake of the 70% requirement, it was decided to revisit the original proposal. And, after another round of debate, and presumably because of the perceived difficulty in reaching a 70% threshold in a vote by ESTA membership, the original motion was defeated.

Thus, we have no authorization to seek the approval of our general membership to craft some sort of agreement with the district to keep (however temporarily) a little less than 1% of our salaries.

I am disappointed but not devastated by the result, and I readily admit that the proposal called for a radical change from the way we have done things in the past. Some of the arguments against adopting the proposal included:

· worries that each time in the future that the District claimed to be in financial straits, we would be expected to take a pay cut;

· concerns that we would be falling into a feeling that we have to respond to the negative press, however inaccurate, that we’re getting in the local papers;

· unease that the proposed measure could be divisive among ESTA membership;

· anxiety that this year’s retirees would forever pay the price of a half year’s worth of generosity;

· apprehension that the financial “crisis” in which the District claims to find itself is either manufactured or temporary.

Since the proposal ultimately did not pass, there is little to be gained in my opinion by extolling its virtues, which I believe are still compelling. So I won’t.

So now what? If the School Board approves the superintendent’s proposal, about half of the librarians and up to ten counselors may find themselves teaching next month, and some low-time teachers and long term subs will be bumped out onto the street.

ESTA TREASURER ELECTION

All ESTA members will have the opportunity to vote on January 26 in the selection of a permanent choice for the now-vacant ESTA Treasurer position. By the time the deadline for submitting nominations occurred on December 1, two Declarations of Candidacy had been received. Thus, the candidates on the ballots for Treasurer will be Tom Richardson (SC) and Bernadette Salgarino (EV). Bernadette is a math teacher; Tom is a science teacher.

ESTA Bylaws prohibit our sponsorship of one member over another in any local election. However, both candidates have taken advantage of ESTA’s policy of distributing one piece of informational literature at Association expense, and these should be arriving in school mailboxes soon.

Additionally, both candidates are available through the District email (RichardsonT and SalgarinoB) for those members inquisitive enough to address them directly.

STATE DELEGATES TO THE NEA RA

The December issue of the CTA California Educator carries a Declaration of Candidacy form for use by any CTA member who wishes to run for one of the State Delegate positions to next summer’s National Educa-tion Association Representative Assembly. This is one excellent way to become involved in making decisions regarding our profession. The RA will be held in lovely Los Angeles this year, from July 1—6, 2005.

Generally, the CTA Santa Clara County Service Center Council sends some 13 delegates to the RA, about half of whom come from “large chapters” in the County such as ESTA. To become a candidate for one of those 6 positions, one needs to fill out the form in the Educator and see that it is delivered to the SCC (34 So. 2^nd St, Campbell, 95008) by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, February 11.

Our membership size makes it very easy for candidates from our chapter to be elected as State delegates, but you have to file the form to become a candidate. If you want to ask some questions or get help on this, call or email me. I also have some spare Declaration forms if you need one.

The SCC will pay normal costs of transportation, meals, and double-occupancy lodging for state delegates sent to the RA. The election will be held on March 23.

You can easily judge the character of a man by the way he treats those who can do nothing for him. Goethe

Politics is supposed to be the second-oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first. Reagan

STATE BUDGET

Last spring, as the budget struggle between Governor Schwarzenegger, the legislature, and dozens of special interest groups heated up, CTA President Barbara Kerr and other members of what was termed the Education Coalition, reached agreement. Rather than allow a suspension of Prop 98 in the face of a $15b state deficit, CTA and other members of the Coalition agreed not to dispute a nearly $2b shortfall of public education funding, with the understanding that unanticipated increases in state revenue that might occur during this year would be used to pay down that deficit.

In what should be some very good news, it now appears as if state revenues have risen significantly above expectations. CTA calculates that this increase should produce nearly $1.4 billion for schools this year, which translates into about $220 per ADA. At that rate, our district’s share would be around $5.2 million.

However, it now appears as if Arnold has no intention of keeping his word. The first ominous signs of this breach were contained in last week’s State of the State address, which have now been followed by published statements of both Gov. Schwartz-reneger and his chief advisor on public education matters, Richard Riordan. The Gov announced that only a fraction of the increases owed to schools will be included in his budget, and he has suggested some ill-defined plan to include merit pay in teacher compensation legislation. Then, he hinted at proposals for significant changes in public employee pension plans. One savvy political observer stated, “I see Arnold’s mouth move, but I hear Pete Wilson’s words come out.”

The Gov failed to mention potential problems with two huge sources of funding upon which this year’s state budget are based. Both can seemingly be attributed to his Action Hero, maverick outsider, big stick methods that may be backfiring. First, his series of deals with Indian Gaming interests has not produced the revenue stream on which lawmakers were counting. Second, passage of Props 57 and 58, allowing the sale of $15b in state-backed bonds tied to budget-balancing legislation, has gone nowhere. Both matters are tied up in court in action largely brought by groups usually found on the conservative side of the fence.

Meanwhile, Rome burns. A recent report released by the Rand Corporation confirms that California is still in the lowest decile, when compared to other states, for class size, student performance, per-pupil funding and teacher compensation when figures are adjusted for local economic conditions.

No one should suggest that merely addressing the teacher pay issue will solve the state’s education ills. It just may be that a nearly complete rebuilding of the educational system is in order. Perhaps this restructuring might include an examination of the concepts of newcomer schools, parental accountability, high school entrance exams, meaningful class size reduction, and school finance overhaul.

But what will be the event that triggers those changes? And under whose direction will they be carried out? In the wake of Arnold’s reneging on his education funding agreements, made barely half a year ago, it is very difficult to trust him or his administration to initiate that process with any expectation of a fair outcome.

CALENDAR SURVEY

The returns from the three-choice work calendar surveys conducted in November and early December have been collated, and the clear choice was “Draft B”. This is the calendar that would have us return to work on August 22, end an 89-day first semester two weeks into January, include a week off in February and another week off in April, and end a 91-day second semester on June 9, 2006. Of the three choices, this calendar most closely resembles the work year schedule for the current school year, and it won approval by garnering more “first choice” selections than the other two Draft Calendars on the survey combined.

Bargaining Chair Don Dawson reports that the District has tentatively accepted the proposed calendar, so what now needs to happen is that it be approved by the school board.

IDEA SIGNED INTO LAW

Our NEA Board Member, Don Dawson, has provided me with a recap of some of the terms in the recent reauthorization of the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The new law includes several components which affect the broad range of services that we typically refer to as “Special Education”, among which are:

· significantly increased support for professional development;

· a reduction of burdensome paperwork;

· some flexibility in meeting the HQT requirements portion of the so-called NCLB act;

· protection of educator rights to participate in IEPs;

· simplified discipline procedures

· enhanced ability to provide early intervention for struggling students;

· fair ways to reduce litigation between parents and schools;

The law leaves some major hurdles yet to be overcome, which include

· complete the HQT definition as it applies to SpEd teachers

· secure mandatory full funding of federal SpEd mandates

No article regarding Special Education is complete without an explanation its acronyms:

IDEA = Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

NEA = National Education Association

HQT = Highly Qualified Teacher

NCLB = No Child Left Behind

IEP = Individualized Education Plan

SpEd = Special Education

BENEVOLENT ALLIANCE

The Benevolent Alliance of East Side Employees holds annual elections to choose half the members of its nine-person Board of Directors. This year’s BAESE Board will seat Susie Caton, Nancy Schwalen, Pat Accorinti and Tom Gerin as Board members elected from the certificated cadre. Thelma Boac and Mac Cage will serve as Board members from the administrative cadre. Jeannie Atencio, Nubal Vidal, and Christina Rivera will serve as Board members from the classified cadre. Names of those recently elected or reelected to the two-year terms appear in boldface type.