At the October 4, 2011 meeting of El Centro Elementary Teachers Association Building Representatives, after a report from the candidate interview committee chair Vice-President Dan Edwards, the Reps voted to recommend the following candidates for the school board.
Actor and philanthropist Matt Damon joined educators and concerned citizens from across the country in Washington, DC on June 30 to urge national leaders to focus on education reform that provides a high-quality education for every student. Mr. Damon gave an inspiring speech to the crowd and later defended teachers to an aggressive reporter, and gave an interview in which he expressed dissatisfaction about current education policy. Later, MSNBC commentator Lawrence O’Donnell highlighted Matt Damon’s words in offering his own impassioned defense of educators. NEA members bused, drove, flew, or took trains from every part of the country to show solidarity with fellow educators and declare their dedication to a fully-funded, world-class education system for all students in the United States. Read more about the March.
TELL "SUPER COMMITTEE" TO FIGHT FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS AND STUDENTS!
In thefinal hours before the August 2 debt ceiling deadline, Congress passed a budget deal. See how your Representative and Senators voted. Read statements by NEA President Dennis Van Roekel during negotiations and on the final deal.
The deal was necessary to avoid default on the nation’s debt and the resulting economic catastrophe. And, while the deal is highly flawed, your help was instrumental in securing several key victories:
No cuts at this point to Social Security, Medicaid, or Food Stamps – a big win given that negotiations started with proposals to slash these core programs.
Funding for two years of Pell Grants – good for students and makes it easier to fight for other types of education funding (such as Title I and IDEA).
No taxation of healthcare benefits. Such taxation was a very real threat and its omission from the deal is a big victory.
These victories would not have been possible without the almost 80,000 e-mails you sent to Members of Congress and President Obama.
Now, we need your help again. Soon, congressional leaders will appoint Democrats and Republicans to a new “super-committee” charged with coming up with over $1 trillion in additional deficit reduction. We need to act immediately to influence this committee. We will have to fight hard against additional cuts to education; for protection of Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid; and for contributions to deficit reduction from those most able to pay their fair share. The next few weeks are critical in making our voices heard.
Take Action: Tell Congress that the super-committee must protect those with the greatest needs and ensure that those most able to do so pay their fair share.
This fall, additional work is expected on ESEA reauthorization around teacher quality. NEA believes that students and teachers deserve high quality evaluation systems that provide the tools teachers need to continuously tailor instruction, enhance practice, and advance student learning. But, the responsibility for crafting teacher evaluation and accountability systems should lie at the state and local level, not with the federal government.
As Congress recesses for the month of August, it is a perfect opportunity for activists concerned about public education to reach out to Members of Congress and share your views and expertise in advance of ESEA reauthorization.
Take Action this Month:
Check your Members of Congress’ websites to see when they are holding town hall meetings. Go to the meetings and make your views heard.
Call the Members’ local offices and set up a meeting for you and some of your fellow educators. A face-to-face meeting is a great way to make sure Members hear your concerns and is also a great way to build an ongoing relationship with congressional Representatives. This visit should be set the state for future meetings and conversations with your Representatives -- critical steps to ensuring your voice is heard. NEA members – log your scheduled August back-home visits on NEA’s Education Votes website. This site also includes materials you can use to help you prepare for your meetings.
Keep e-mailing Congress. Tell Congress how teacher quality issues should and should not be addressed in an ESEA Reauthorization bill.
Actor Matt Damon, who spoke eloquently in defense of educators at the July 30 SOS March, saying in part, “So the next time you’re feeling down, or exhausted, or unappreciated, or at the end of your rope; the next time you turn on the TV and see yourself called “overpaid;” the next time you encounter some simple-minded, punitive policy that’s been driven into your life by some corporate reformer who has literally never taught anyone anything.… Please know that there are millions of us behind you. You have an army of regular people standing right behind you, and our appreciation for what you do is so deeply felt. We love you, we thank you, and we will always have your back.”
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), who in her House floor remarks on the debt ceiling deal stood up for those who seemed forgotten in the recent political posturing, stating in part, “But I am not concerned about the boardroom table. I am more concerned about the kitchen table. Because this delay and uncertainty has a tremendous impact on America’s families as they sit around the table and talk about how they’re going to make ends meet, how they’re going to pay their bills. Is Social Security going to be intact for them? Will their checks arrive this week or next week, whenever they’re due? Is Medicare and Medicaid something that they can count on?”
Representative Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ), who made a courageous and emotional return to the House of Representatives this week, just 7 months after being brutally shot while meeting with constituents in her district.
Jeers to:
Tea Party Conservatives in Congress, who are holding our nation hostage – insisting on balancing the budget on the backs of the middle class, children, and seniors while continuing to protect corporations, oil companies, Wall Street, and the wealthiest individuals.
With less than a week to default on our national debt, negotiations continue between the President and congressional leaders in an attempt to avoid an economic disaster. The President has called for a compromise and a balanced approach that ensures shared sacrifice. But, Tea Party conservatives in the House continue to insist on a deal that includes no revenue increases. The result of such a deal would be to balance the budget on the backs of children, seniors, the middle class, and the poor – without ensuring that corporations, oil companies, and the wealthiest individuals pay their fair share.
Negotiations are continuing throughout the weekend as lawmakers scramble to put together a final deal before financial markets open on Monday. The debt ceiling must be raised by Tuesday, August 2nd to avert a major financial disaster.
We must ratchet up the pressure immediately on Congress to ensure that they protect children, seniors, and the middle class. The political posturing and refusal to compromise has gone on long enough. Reckless political brinksmanship by a small, vocal minority is holding our nation’s financial stability, credibility, and future hostage.
Take Action Today: Tell Congress to compromise on a balanced approach that protects the most vulnerable and ensures those most able to do so pay their fair share.
This week, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce held a hearing on “Education Reforms: Exploring Teacher Quality Initiatives.” The focus of the hearing was teacher evaluation, with many of the witnesses stressing the importance of including teachers and their representing unions in the development and implementation of evaluation systems.
NEA submitted the Association’s newly adopted policy statement on teacher evaluation and accountability to the Committee in advance of the hearing. The recently adopted Policy Statement – approved by a majority vote of more than 8,000 delegates to the Association’s Annual Meeting earlier this month -- puts NEA on the record, for the first time, as calling for a comprehensive overhaul of both teacher evaluation and accountability systems to advance student learning.
This fall, additional work is expected on ESEA reauthorization around teacher quality. NEA believes that students and teachers deserve high quality evaluation systems that provide the tools teachers need to continuously tailor instruction, enhance practice, and advance student learning. But, the responsibility for crafting teacher evaluation and accountability systems should lie at the state and local level, not with the federal government.
Take ActionToday: Tell Congress how teacher quality issues should and should not be addressed in an ESEA Reauthorization bill.
JOIN THE SAVE OUR SCHOOLS RALLY AND MARCH – JULY 30, 2011
The Save our Schools (SOS) rally and march is a grassroots movement to reclaim schools as places of learning, joy, and democracy. The event will take place this weekend – July 30 – in Washington, DC, but there are also ways to participate in or plan actions in your local area!
For more information and updates, to tell us you will be marching, or to let us know about events in your area, visit the SOS March page on NEA’s Education Votes website.
Educators across the country have been through so much this year. In Wisconsin, Governor Scott Walker and his allies have worked relentlessly to undermine public education, and our efforts to fight back have reached a critical point this week. The recall elections on August 9th are the best chance NEA members in Wisconsin will ever have to fight back – removing from office politicians who have used their power to jeopardize our schools, our students, and our future. But now, with less than two weeks before the voting, deep-pocketed opponents of public education are pouring millions of dollars into an all-out effort to hold on to power.
You can make sure they don’t drown out the voices of your fellow educators working in Wisconsin. Help us get the message out to undecided voters in Wisconsin this week by making a donation that will help pay for advertisements and get-out-the-vote efforts.
Donate $10 right now to ensure the defeat of candidates who have done everything in their power to undermine public education.
Imagine what it’s like to be an educator in Wisconsin right now, knowing that in a few weeks you could have a stronger voice. And imagine how much it will mean to know that their NEA colleagues from around the country are standing strong by their side to make that happen.
By acting together, we can end these relentless attacks and put power in the hands of strong, pro-public education candidates. What happens in these recall elections will affect educators nationwide.
Representatives Danny Davis (D-IL), Towns (D-NY), McDermott (D-WA), Rush (D-IL), Jackson, Jr. (D-IL), Stark (D-CA), Gwen Moore (D-WI), Payne (D-NJ), Filner (D-CA), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Grijalva (D-AZ), Fudge (D-OH), Fattah (D-PA), Christensen (D-VI), Clarke (D-NY), Robert Brady (D-PA), Frederica Wilson (D-FL), Woolsey (D-CA), George Miller (D-CA), Waters (D-CA), Ellison (D-MN), Jackson-Lee (D-TX), Carson (D-IN), Hank Johnson (D-GA), Chu (D-CA), Hinchey (D-NY), McGovern (D-MA), Cummings (D-MD), Gutierrez (D-IL), DeLauro (D-CT), Roybal-Allard (D-CA), McCollum (D-MN), Conyers (D-MI), Reyes (D-TX), Butterfield (D-NC), Bennie Thompson (D-MS), Brown (D-FL), Cohen (D-TN), Olver (D-MA), and Alcee Hastings (D-FL), all of whom signed a letter to President Obama and congressional leaders urging them to protect children in any deficit reduction deal. The letter stated in part, “As August 2nd quickly approaches, and we debate raising the debt ceiling and the economic future of our nation, we must not forget about those who will be called on to create our future prosperity. If children are a national priority, we need to understand whether our spending and revenue choices disproportionately harm or protect them.”
Representative George Miller (D-CA), who at the House Education and the Workforce hearing on teacher quality gave an eloquent opening statement in support of teachers, stating, “It’s a productive exercise to talk about how we can improve and modernize the teaching profession because these conversations will hopefully lead to better policies and improve student success. What is not productive are the attacks we’ve seen on teachers across the country from Republican governors. In trying to strip teachers of all collective bargaining rights except for negotiations over pay, these governors are showing how out of touch they are with today's teaching profession, school reform in America, and, frankly, the American workplace.” Representative Miller also stated, “Any efforts to help teachers must be done WITH teachers not to them. It’s time we treated the teaching profession like any other modern workplace, with support, resources, real professional development, and real rewards.”
Jeers to:
Tea Party Conservatives in Congress, who are holding our nation hostage – insisting on balancing the budget on the backs of the middle class, children, and seniors while continuing to protect corporations, oil companies, Wall Street, and the wealthiest individuals.
July 22, 2011
Save Our Schools March Update
Dear local leaders,
I hope you have had some time to recharge this summer. The school year ahead will be full of challenges and opportunities. I know that many of you are frustrated with the way education “reform” has been barreling down the track, out of control like a runaway train. And most times, without educators’ input. But we don’t have to stand for it. In May, we took a stand and declared a State of Emergency for our schools, which shined a spotlight on the inadequate funding our schools receive, but that isn’t enough. We need to keep the pressure on lawmakers; we need to raise awareness in our local communities; and we need to demand that our country realign its priorities with its values!
That’s why CTA has endorsed the national Save Our Schools March. The march started as just one event in DC, with notables like Diane Ravitch and even Matt Damon signing on, but interest has grown so much that they are now organizing an event at the State Capitol for next Saturday, July 30. I hope you and everyone you know will plan to attend, and if you can’t make it to the Capitol, we hope you’ll find a way to speak out locally.
We need a permanent solution to the funding crisis, and we have to stand together against those that seek to leave us out of the education reform discussion. Together, we can make a difference. Our students and our schools are depending on us.
Dean E. Vogel
CTA President
July 22, 2011
Save Our Schools March Update
Dear local leaders,
I hope you have had some time to recharge this summer. The school year ahead will be full of challenges and opportunities. I know that many of you are frustrated with the way education “reform” has been barreling down the track, out of control like a runaway train. And most times, without educators’ input. But we don’t have to stand for it. In May, we took a stand and declared a State of Emergency for our schools, which shined a spotlight on the inadequate funding our schools receive, but that isn’t enough. We need to keep the pressure on lawmakers; we need to raise awareness in our local communities; and we need to demand that our country realign its priorities with its values!
That’s why CTA has endorsed the national Save Our Schools March. The march started as just one event in DC, with notables like Diane Ravitch and even Matt Damon signing on, but interest has grown so much that they are now organizing an event at the State Capitol for next Saturday, July 30. I hope you and everyone you know will plan to attend, and if you can’t make it to the Capitol, we hope you’ll find a way to speak out locally.
We need a permanent solution to the funding crisis, and we have to stand together against those that seek to leave us out of the education reform discussion. Together, we can make a difference. Our students and our schools are depending on us.
The August deadline looms for Congress to raise the nation’s debt ceiling and avoid catastrophic economic fallout. This week, the House passed the NEA-opposed Cut, Cap, and Balance Act (H.R. 2560), which would write spending caps into law and hold the debt limit increase hostage unless two-thirds of the House and the Senate agree to a constitutional balanced budget amendment. Read NEA’s letter opposing the bill and see how your Representative voted.
Like other proposed spending caps and balanced budget amendments, this plan – which should really be called the “Dodge, Duck, and Dismantle Act” – would result in the largest cuts in federal spending in modern history – slashing education, Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and other programs that meet crucial national needs. The proposal does not exempt core basic assistance programs for the poorest Americans from across-the-board cuts, yet seeks to safeguard tax cuts and tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans. President Obama has threatened to veto the bill should it come to his desk for signature.
Instead of balancing the budget on the backs of the poor and middle class, policymakers should ensure that any deal includes revenue raised by making the wealthiest in our nation pay their fair share. Elected officials should work together on a bipartisan basis to help Main Street hang on, not help Wall Street get more.
Take ActionToday: Tell Congress that the budget should not be balanced on the backs of the middle class and our most vulnerable populations!
This week, Senator Harkin (D-IA) introduced the IDEA Full Funding Act. The bill would make funding for special education mandatory and gradually increase funding to reach the federal government’s promised level (40 percent of the national average per pupil expenditure of every child in special education) by FY 2021.
For too long, Congress has failed to live up to its commitment to fund special education. This continued underfunding – in combination with current state fiscal crises – forces school districts to either raise taxes or dip into general education budgets to make up for the shortfall, thereby cutting other critical services.
Take Action Today:Urge your Senators to cosponsor and support the IDEA Full Funding Act.
JOIN THE SAVE OUR SCHOOLS RALLY AND MARCH -- JULY 30, 2011
The Save our Schools (SOS) rally and march is a grassroots movement to reclaim schools as places of learning, joy, and democracy. The event will take place on July 30, in Washington, DC, but there are also ways to participate in or plan actions in your local area!
For more information and updates as the date approaches, to tell us you will be marching, or to let us know about events in your area, visit the SOS March page on NEA’s Education Votes website.
President Obama, who issued a veto threat for the House-passed Cap, Cut, and Balance Act – a bill that seriously jeopardizes our nation’s future strength and hurts those in our nation least able to afford further sacrifice.
Representative Petri(R-WI) – the first Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives to add his name as a cosponsor of the Annual National Classified School Employee of the Year Award Act.The bill would provide long overdue recognition for the outstanding contributions to our nation’s schools and the students served by our Education Support Professionals.
Senators Harkin (D-IA), Durbin (D-IL), Lautenberg (D-NJ), Blumenthal (D-CT), Murray (D-WA), Whitehouse (D-RI) and Leahy (D-VT)– the original sponsors of the IDEA Full Funding Act introduced this week.
Jeers to:
Representatives Boren (D-OK), Cooper (D-TN), Matheson (D-UT), McIntyre (D-NC) and Shuler (D-NC) – the onlyfive Democrats in the House of Representatives who voted in favor of the ill-conceived and very dangerous Cap, Cut, and Balance Act.
July 15, 2011
This offensive cartoon ran yesterday in the Sacramento Bee, San Francisco Chronicle and the Orange County Register. It is an outrageous attack, implying teachers’ only concern is themselves. The intent of the budget bill alluded to in the cartoon - AB 114 -- was to create some stability for our schools.
The bill was not just about saving jobs, but also about making sure students have teachers to teach them. If more teachers are laid off, class sizes increase even more, students receive less individual attention, and their education is compromised.
Talks continue at the highest levels of the federal government on deficit reduction, spending cuts, and the debt ceiling, as the deadline for raising the nation’s debt limit rapidly approaches. At stake in these talks is the very future of our nation. Will leaders craft a deal that hurts those least able to afford further sacrifice, or will they realize that any deal must include ways to raise revenue from those most able to pay?
There is much to be concerned about in the current debate. Proposed cuts to education funding and Medicaid will harm students and our future. Proposals to tax employer-sponsored health care would cause millions of middle class families to lose their benefits. And, now some policy makers are talking about cutting Social Security as well!
Instead of balancing the budget on the backs of the middle class, policymakers should ensure that any deal includes revenue raised by making the wealthiest in our nation pay their fair share. Elected officials should work together on a bipartisan basis to help Main Street hang on, not help Wall Street get more.
Take Action Today: Tell Congress that the budget should not be balanced on the backs of the middle class and our most vulnerable populations!
I am a dedicated teacher working in a school with near 90 percent of our students in the low- income bracket. In our school we have some amazing students! We have students that show up every day with problems in their home lives, the likes of which most students will never know. Their circumstances are not their fault. Their circumstances are not my fault either. Yet we never show up whining about what we don't have in life. We make the best of what we have, which is significantly less than our more affluent neighboring districts. I spend hundreds of dollars every school year buying learning materials to properly differentiate for all the students in my classroom. The one- size-fits-all curriculum purchased by the district does not work when you have a gifted student and a student who doesn't know how to read basic words in the same classroom all day with no additional staff to help. I have purchased an alarm clock for my 7 year old student with no adult at home to make sure she got to school and no breakfast in her stomach. When she goes home there is no one who speaks English for her to read to and help her with homework. Schools are not the reason for societal ills, they are victims of it. Letting school vouchers and school choice shuffle the focus away from inequitable funding is not the solution. Here's the basic kindergarten way to explain this: 1+1=2. You cannot "take away" and still expect to have more. Even a kindergartener knows that. – NEA Cyberlobbyist, Illinois
This week, the House Education and the Workforce Committee “marked-up” the State and Local Funding Flexibility Act (H.R. 2445). While billed as increasing state and local flexibility, in reality, the NEA-opposed bill would compromise the civil rights of low income, English language learners (ELL), and Native American students. Despite its good intentions, the bill could create a loophole allowing the diversion of already scarce resources from vulnerable populations like those described in the story above. Read NEA’s press release on the bill and NEA’s letter submitted to the Committee.
NEA wholeheartedly supports increased flexibility and relief from the one-size-fits all, test-based, overly punitive accountability system under No Child Left Behind. However, we believe that any increased flexibility and local control must still uphold the federal government’s responsibility to guarantee equal educational opportunity for all studentsand mustcontinue to hold school districts accountable for improving results for all students.
Take Action Today:Remind Congress about the core values reflected in the original ESEA. Urge your Members of Congress to reject “flexibility” proposals that undermine the federal government’s role in targeting resources to those most in need.
JOIN THE SAVE OUR SCHOOLS RALLY AND MARCH -- JULY 30, 2011
The Save our Schools (SOS) rally and march is a grassroots movement to reclaim schools as places of learning, joy, and democracy. The event will take place on July 30, in Washington, DC, but there are also ways to participate in or plan actions in your local area!
For more information and updates as the date approaches, to tell us you will be marching, or to let us know about events in your area, visit the SOS March page on NEA’s Education Votes website.
Representative Courtney (D-CT), who continued his strong leadership role in opposing unfair tax treatment of employer provided health benefits, including by authoring a piece in the Huffington Post in which he blasted the idea of repealing the tax exemption for employment-based health benefits, and sponsoring a briefing in conjunction with labor leaders on the health benefits tax exclusion issue.
Senator Murkowski (R-AK), who addressed participants at NEA’s Republican Leaders Conference this week and stressed the importance of educator voices in the debate on ESEA reauthorization
Representative Murphy (D-CT), who wrote an article for the Huffington Post in which he warned of the dangers slash funding for Medicaid -- a program that 60 million Americans rely on for their basic health care needs.
Jeers to:
Representative Foxx (R-NC), who, at the House Education and the Workforce Committee mark-up of the NEA-opposed State and Local Funding Flexibility Act, argued that there is no need to categorize help for specific student groups (like students in poverty or English Language Learners) because all they have to do is work hard and they will succeed. Watch the full mark-up on the Committee website (click “archived webcast”).
July 12, 2011
Action Alert
Stop Them from Turning Educators into Nurses!
July 12, 2011
CTA-opposed SB 161 (Huff), a bill that would allow non-medical personnel to administer Diastat – a form of valium -- rectally to students in the throes of a seizure passed the Assembly Education Committee on July 6 and is headed to the Assembly Appropriations Committee for a hearingon or after August 15.
Members of Appropriations includeAssemblymembers Fuentes, Harkey, Blumenfield, Bradford, Calderon, Campos, Davis, Donnelly, Gatto, Hall, Hill, Lara, Mitchell, Nielsen, Norby, Solorio, and Wagner.
At this time, making constituent contacts into local Assembly district offices is critical. It does not matter if the contacts are from teachers, classified employees, their family members, your family members, staff members, friends, etc. - particularly registered voters. Please share this request for help with as many individuals as possible. To learn more about the bill and to take action against it, click on http://capwiz.com/nea/ca/home/ The site will both provide information and link you to CTA’s contact your lawmakers site, where you will be able to secure contact information about your lawmakers.
The state budget battle continues with the Governor still searching for two Republican votes in the Assembly and two in the Senate to pass the temporary tax extensions. Republicans are still refusing to engage at all. Last week, the Governor vetoed a budget passed on a majority vote by Democrats.
While we need to keep fighting for more revenues and get the four votes needed for tax extensions we must say NO to an “all cuts” budget which would irreparably hurt our schools, colleges and essential public services.
CTA and the Education Coalition are calling on Governor Brown and lawmakers to keep their promise to make public education a priority and to protect students from more cuts.
We are asking members to call the governor and tell him our students deserve better. Tell him to keep his promise to make education funding a priority and to sign a budget that protects schools, colleges and other essential services.
Hit the "CLICK HERE TO CONNECT" button and a call will be patched through to your phone.
It's that easy.
After a brief recording with instructions, you'll be patched through to the Governor's office. The only thing left at that point is to tell the Governor how you feel. If they don't pick up, you can leave a voicemail and CTA will deliver your message.
*Depending on your carrier and plan, text messaging or data rates may apply
June 24, 2011
This Week's News:
DREAM ACT HEARING SCHEDULED: TELL CONGRESS TO HELP STUDENTS ACHIEVE THE AMERICAN DREAM
Gaby wants to be a teacher. She has three education degrees and dreams of opening a music center for autistic children.
Eric loves being in the lab, he has a full scholarship to Harvard University and wants to immerse himself in cancer research.
Felipe wants to be a high school teacher, he dreams of inspiring at risk kids to go to college.
They also dream of a day in which they won’t live in fear of being deported by immigration authorities. All three are undocumented students who were brought to the United States as children.
On June 28, the Senate Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Immigration, will hold a hearing on the DREAM Act (S. 952/H.R. 1842). This important bill, introduced by Senator Durbin (D-IL), will give eligible young people like those described above the opportunity to resolve their immigration status and work towards citizenship. They will have to pass background checks and be of good moral character, graduate from high school, and go on to complete additional requirements related to attending college or completing military service. Leading businesses such as Microsoft have endorsed the DREAM Act because they recognize that our broken immigration system is draining our economy of the talent and resources needed to compete in the global economy.
Take Action Today:Tell your Senators to cosponsor and support the DREAM Act -- a practical, fair solution that upholds the best of our shared American values of fair opportunity, accountability, and strong work ethics.
As the August deadline for raising the nation’s debt ceiling approaches, a bipartisan group led by Vice President Biden continues to negotiate. Failure to raise the debt ceiling would send the national and the world economy into a tailspin. But, some conservatives in Congress are threatening to oppose raising the limit unless it is tied to implementation of budget cuts and spending caps.
The specter of spending caps and/or a balanced budget amendment looms large in these negotiations. Both approaches would be devastating for children, seniors, working families, and our entire nation. They would result in the deepest federal spending cuts in modern history, decimating education funding, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. These proposals are, in reality, attempts to address the nation’s fiscal woes on the backs of those who can least afford to sacrifice – those who have already been struggling to meet even basic needs.
Take Action Today: As educators, NEA members have a unique perspective on the importance of investing in education and protecting the most vulnerable in our nation. The stories you can share with policymakers about the impact of proposed spending cuts on your students, colleagues, and communities can be very powerful. Tell Congress to oppose balanced budget amendments and spending caps!
NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND UPDATE: HOUSE COMMITTEE PASSES SECOND BILL
As a twenty-five year veteran educator in a crime-ridden and at-risk area, I can tell you, first-hand, that students in my district come to school with substantial economic, social, and academic challenges. The students and their parents are living at or below poverty levels, which places them at a distinct disadvantage when tackling the core curricular program and navigating the school system. School is, at times, an unwelcoming place for many of these families; not because teachers and school staff don't care, but because often school is difficult, parents are working 2 and 3 jobs just to survive, and many parents do not speak the "language of school.” Many of these children don't learn in "regular ways" but require differentiated instruction and different modes of acquiring the skills necessary for academic success. Yes, they can learn and make remarkable progress but they start out "behind the eight ball" when compared to students from more affluent means. Many of our students have family members who are incarcerated, regularly witness violence in their neighborhoods, and are learning English as a second language. These are not excuses for their lack of achievement – this is their reality and my reality as their educator. The truth is, simply, that you cannot, in all fairness, compare their standardized test scores with peers who do not live these challenges day after day. Come and spend a day with me and I'll show you what these students deal with and how the ones that graduate and "make it" defy logic and are miracles in their own right. -- NEA Cyberlobbyist, California
Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) continues to move slowly, with no action in the Senate and action on only a few pieces in the House. This week, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce passed an ESEA-related bill on charter schools. The bill includes some positive provisions around protections for English Language Learners and students with disabilities and requirements for publicly reported annual audits of charter schools. However, the bill also falls short in a number of areas, including transparency, accountability, and funding equity. The bill is not likely to move to the House floor anytime soon.
NEA supports high-quality charter schools that: operate in a manner that is transparent and accountable to parents and taxpayers; do not increase segregation by family income, ethnicity, or race; and solicit and benefit from input from parents, school staff, and the communities they serve. Read NEA’s letter to the Committee.
While Congress continues to lag in reauthorizing ESEA, schools and students like those described in the above story need relief now. As we reported last week, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has announced that the Department of Education would provide relief from some No Child Left Behind provisions if Congress does not complete work on a reauthorization bill prior to the August congressional recess. But, the Secretary indicated that such relief would be tied to “reform.”
NEA believes that regulatory relief should focus on the students. Any system that positions some students as winners and losers is unacceptable. Every child in every school has felt the effects of NCLB, so relief shouldn’t be selective or conditional.
Take Action Today:Tell Secretary Duncan not to make relief from No Child Left Behind a competition! All students need relief now!
Representative Tierney (D-MA), who, at a committee mark-up of charter school legislation this week, spoke eloquently about the need for oversight and monitoring of charter schools and their authorizers and more charter school accountability and transparency. Representative Tierney also spoke out against attacks on unions.
Representative Lance (R-NJ), who spoke on the House floor in support of public schools in New Jersey identified as “excellent” by Newsweek and congratulated parents, teachers, students, and property taxpayers for supporting the public education system.
Senators Lautenberg (D-NJ) and Menendez (D-NJ) and Representatives Holt (D-NJ) and Payne (D-NJ), who released statements opposing a very troubling health and pension bill under consideration in the New Jersey legislature that would roll back public employee collective bargaining rights.
Representative Murphy (R-PA), who expressed concerns about the impact of a Republican bill to change Medicaid eligibility rules because of the bill’s negative impact on the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Representative Murphy stated that CHIP is still an important program and that Congress needs to talk to states about strengthening it.
June 7, 2011
To all of our members this arrived on 6/6/11
State Council Representatives, Chapter Presidents, and Service Center Council Chairs:
Thank you for the great work you, your members and staff did during State of Emergency Week, May 9-13. Building our on our very successful SOE week of action, the CTA State Council this weekend approved Phase 2 of State of Emergency. (See attached.) This is a more targeted plan designed to zero in on those Republican legislators needed to help pass the temporary tax extensions. Through your efforts and those of our coalition partners, we definitely changed the conversation in California around the state budget crisis and refocused it on the impact of cuts to schools, colleges, and communities. But much work still needs to be done in a short period of time. We have until next Wednesday, June 15, the deadline to pass a state budget, to persuade two Republican legislators in each house of the Legislature—2 in the Senate and 2 in the Assembly—to pass the governor’s May Budget Revision now.
There are a few things that you can do right now to help influence these lawmakers and help save our schools and our state.
1.To stay engaged and active during the Summer sign up to become a Summer Warrior at cta.org beginning Thursday, June 9
The plan has targeted actions for each day of the week including Mail Postcards Mondays; Toll-free (call your lawmaker) Tuesdays; We are One Wednesdays (Labor targeted phone banks to voters and CTA member-to-member phones); Text/Email a Friend Thursdays; Field Office Fridays (Coalition and member visits/protests at legislative home offices); and Strolling (Labor targeted canvass walks) Saturdays. Continue to work within your local chapter and regional structure to build your local actions. We are doubling our efforts with our coalition partners to pressure lawmakers to pass a budget now. Learn more at Stand Up for California.
There are several ways to stay informed and get helpful materials and resources.
We need all of you to contact your lawmakers and urge your members contact their lawmakers, especially those with Republican lawmakers, now!
David A. Sanchez
CTA President
June 3, 2011
This Week's News:
ESEA REAUTHORIZATION UPDATE: WHAT OUR STUDENTS NEED TO SUCCEED
[My elementary school] is situated in a small rural farming community….Many say that if you blink you might miss our quaint little town. Our community's makeup consists mostly of farmers, educators, small business owners, and migrant workers. Being a lifelong resident, I thrive on the knowledge and feeling that our close knit community works hard at taking care of their own. But unfortunately our struggles and limited resources still carry a heavy burden on our educational setting….Our children walk through our classroom doors with minimal knowledge of the expectations that will be required of them. Precious time is spent on teaching the fundamentals of learning, from holding a pencil correctly to learning basic personal hygiene, yet we still find a way to teach the grade appropriate Standards and Benchmarks. With the restrictions and limitations placed on educators by NCLB and other legislative rulings, our children and educators are being drawn out so thin that it feels as if very little is getting accomplished. Never in my 14 years of teaching has education reform taken on such a negative connotation….I challenge every single [Member of Congress] to walk in my shoes for one day, one hour, to see the challenges, the triumphs and the defeats that our children and we, as educators, face on an everyday basis. My doors are wide open and I plead for you to step through them and experience the joys and heartbreaks that we deal with, with the limited resources we have on hand. Our children, our future, are the most precious resource we have, and it is our duty to prepare them for what is to come. Making more rigorous laws and regulations, instead of aiding educators, will only hamper our progress. I truly understand the intentions of NCLB, but unfortunately it has only caused anguish to those who are affected by it. –NEA Cyber-lobbyist, New Mexico
This story submitted to Congress via NEA’s Legislative Action Center illustrates so vividly what we are fighting for as Congress starts to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), currently known as No Child Left Behind. The one-size-fits-all approach under current law simply does not work in real-world classrooms such as those described above.
This week, the push toward reauthorization continued as the House Education and the Workforce Committee held a hearing on charter schools. Read NEA’s letter and charter school policy briefsubmitted to the committee. The next piece of ESEA-related legislation to be released is expected to focus on “flexibility,” but could include troubling provisions that allow school districts to shift funding among programs, including out of Title I. This would seriously undermine the federal government’s commitment to students with the greatest needs.
Take Action Today:
As Congress moves forward on ESEA reauthorization, we encourage you to share your stories, your ideas, and your dreams for your students with Congress.
Also, remind Congress about the core values reflected in the original ESEA. Urge your Members of Congress to reject “flexibility” proposals that undermine the federal government’s role in targeting resources to those most in need.
Debates in Congress continue on a range of economic issues – including the nation’s debt ceiling, potential spending caps, and funding for the next fiscal year. While much in the media has focused on the political strategies behind these debates, NEA believes that the more important question is the impact on children, working families, the elderly, and others in our nation with the greatest needs. The outcome of these debates will show whether we as a nation are going to make the investments necessary to lift everyone and ensure a strong nation for the 21st century, or whether we are going to continue to use rhetoric and false arguments to prop up Wall Street, oil companies, and the wealthiest individuals.
This week, the House of Representatives held a symbolic but essentially meaningless vote on whether to raise the nation’s debt ceiling. The ceiling must be raised by August in order to avoid default on our debt. Failure to raise the ceiling would send the economy into a tailspin. Many in Congress, however, are threatening to oppose raising the debt ceiling unless Congress passes spending caps or other proposals to cut federal spending dramatically. As expected, the debt ceiling vote failed overwhelmingly, as negotiations continue behind the scenes on an overall deal.
Also this week, the House Judiciary Committee “marked-up” a proposed Constitutional Amendment that would require a balanced budget and severely limit federal spending. Read NEA’s letter opposing this proposal. The proposal would result in the largest cuts in federal spending in modern history. It will not be possible to achieve the spending levels required under balanced budget proposals without massive cuts in education, Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and other programs that meet crucial national needs.
Take Action Today:Tell Congress that slashing programs that serve children, elderly, and working families is not the answer to our nation’s fiscal problems.
This week the Obama Administration released final regulations to enforce the federal requirement that career education programs receiving federal student aid “prepare students for gainful employment in a recognized occupation.” NEA supports these regulations. Numerous investigations have revealed pervasive abuses by some career education programs: deceptive and aggressive recruiting of students; inflated job placement rates and false reporting to authorities; overstatement of a program’s value and understatement of its high cost; and dismal completion rates. Too many of these programs are preying on low-income students, minority students, and veterans seeking to further their education, who take on insurmountable debt to pursue degrees or certificates that don’t help them get jobs.
The new “gainful employment” regulations will ramp up over four years, giving colleges time to reform while protecting students from exploitative programs. However, some in Congress – spurred on by pressure from for-profit schools – have already tried, and will likely continue to try to block implementation of the regulations.
Take Action Today: Tell Congress to protect students by supporting gainful employment regulations.
Senator Kent Conrad (D-ND), who gave an inspiring speech on the nation’s deficit problems, calling out the need to address revenue as well as spending and specifically focusing on the need to invest in education, stating, “Education is No. 1. I was raised by my grandparents. My grandmother was a schoolteacher. She used to say: In our household, No. 1 is education, No. 2 is education, and No. 3 is education. We got the message.”
Representative Judy Biggert (R-IL), who at a hearing on charter schools raised important questions about the agencies responsible for monitoring charter authorizer performance, how they are monitored, and whether technical assistance is provided to improve authorizer performance.
Jeers to:
House leaders, who scheduled a meaningless vote to raise the debt ceiling, which they knew would fail overwhelmingly, as a further step in their efforts to tie raising the ceiling to implementation of dangerous spending caps.
Representative Martha Roby (R-AL) who, during a hearing on charter schools specifically chastised the Alabama Education Association for their stance on charter schools and asked witnesses for information to “debunk” AEA’s arguments
May 27, 2011
This Week's News:
ESEA REAUTHORIZATION UPDATE: WHAT WE ARE FIGHTING FOR
I am a third grade teacher in a low socioeconomic school. The parents of my students struggle every day with many problems economically, socially, and emotionally. My students live in an environment where these struggles at home impact their emotional health, which of course, impacts their motivation, behavior, and academic potential. I am a dedicated teacher who cares about my students. I have a great track record in the eleven years that I have been teaching. I work long hours for little pay, and I am tired of being blamed as the cause that our students are not high performing.
Imagine, dear Senators, for a minute if all your support staff were removed. You alone were left to field all telephone calls, complete all paperwork, and be personally responsible for the actions of your constituents. You get the picture. Now imagine that your salary was reduced to below minimum wage if you divided the hours you worked per week by your salary. And don't forget to take away your pension, as I fear our new governor is planning. Okay, now we are on even playing field.
How can you help teachers and students perform better? Stop blaming us and telling us we need more training. Stop telling us if we just do it differently, then students will succeed. Instead, give schools that have struggling students more money and staff to help them. Give those schools more support for their families. Stop thinking that rewarding the high socioeconomic schools and penalizing those that have the most challenges is the answer. Teachers are part of the solution, not the problem. Are you part of the solution? – NEA Cyber-lobbyist, Connecticut
The picture painted by this story submitted to Congress via NEA’s Legislative Action Center is repeated every day in classrooms across the nation. It demonstrates what we are fighting for as Congress starts to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), currently known as No Child Left Behind. And, it shows how powerful your voice can be in influencing the debate. Your stories are critical to showing Members of Congress how their decisions impact real students and educators.
Now is the time to act. This week, the House Education and the Workforce Committee “marked-up” legislation to eliminate a number of ESEA programs. Read NEA’s letter opposing this bill. The next piece of legislation is expected to focus on “flexibility,” but could include troubling provisions that allow school districts to shift funding among programs, including out of Title I. This would seriously undermine the federal government’s commitment to students with the greatest needs.
Take Action Today:
As Congress moves forward on ESEA reauthorization, we encourage you to share your stories, your ideas, and your dreams for your students with Congress.
Also, remind Congress about the core values reflected in the original ESEA. Urge your Members of Congress to reject “flexibility” proposals that undermine the federal government’s role in targeting resources to those most in need.
This week, your efforts led to two significant victories for public education – defeat of the Ryan budget in the Senate and defeat of a private school voucher proposal in the House. We could not have achieved these victories without your help. This year, cyberlobbyists have sent over 150,000 e-mails to Congress on education funding and over 25,000 e-mails to Congress opposing vouchers. Your words have a real impact on Members of Congress – they let your policy makers know you are watching how they vote and whether they are standing up for children and public education.
Both the funding vote and the voucher vote were tests of the fundamental values of our nation. How Members of Congress voted reflects whether they want to continue to funnel taxpayer dollars to private schools and continue to provide tax breaks for corporations and the wealthiest individuals. Or, whether they agree with us that targeting our resources to help those with the greatest needs will help strengthen our nation.
Funding vote: On May 25, the Senate defeated the House-passed Ryan budget for fiscal year 2012 by a vote of 40-57. Five Republicans – Senators Snowe (ME), Collins (ME), Murkowski (AK), Brown (MA), and Paul (KY) – joined Democrats in opposing the budget, although Senator Paul’s opposition vote was due to his belief that the cuts were not deep enough. The Ryan budget would result in more joblessness for the middle class and more tax breaks for the wealthiest in our country. The middle class continues to struggle to find work, pay more for health care, and worry about their children’s education and future. Seniors continue to worry about their retirement security. Yet, the Ryan budget provides rhetoric rather than solutions.
Voucher vote:Also on May 25, the House of Representatives defeated a proposal to provide private school vouchers for students with disabilities in military families. The 203-213 vote came only two weeks after the same proposal had been resoundingly defeated in committee. On the House floor, 35 Republicans joined most Democrats in opposing this unnecessary voucher scheme.
Representative Todd Platts (R-PA), who, during committee mark-up of the ESEA program elimination bill offered, fought for, and successfully secured passage of an amendment to restore funding for Parent Information Resource Centers (PIRCs). PIRCs are the only federal program dedicated to increasing family engagement. The program annually serves 16.4 million parents, primarily within low income and Title I communities where the achievement gap is the greatest. Without this funding stream, parent education and parent outreach programs for these communities could be lost.
Representative Susan Davis (D-CA), who offered an amendment at committee mark-up to restore funding for advanced credentialing, which provides support for teachers working toward certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. Representative Davis argued, “If we’re serious about eliminating the achievement gap and graduating more students who are prepared for college and careers, then we need an education system that is serious about getting an effective teacher in every classroom….By cutting master teacher programs, as this legislation does, we’re punishing the most dedicated teachers who want nothing more than to become the best possible instructors for their students. What message does this send?”
Senators Snowe (R-ME), Collins (R-ME), Brown (R-MA), and Murkowski (R-AK) who held firm to their principles and stood up for children, working families and the elderly by voting against the Ryan FY 2012 budget proposal.
Representative Steve LaTourette (R-OH), who during House Appropriations Committee mark-up of the Military Construction–VA funding bill offered, fought for, and successfully secured passage of an amendment to preserve “Davis-Bacon” protections that require payment of prevailing wages on public works projects.
Jeers to:
The four House Democrats – Representatives Ruppersberger (MD), Clay (MO), Richardson (CA), and Richmond (LA) – who voted in favor of private school vouchers for military families, even when 35 Republicans joined the rest of the Democratic Caucus in helping defeat the proposal.
The 40 United States Senatorswho voted for the Ryan budget – a budget that runs completely counter to our values as a nation, by failing to take care of those most in need while sparing those at higher income levels.
May 23, 2011
Congratulations!!!!!
E.C.E.T.A. election results are in and the newly elected officers for the 2011-2013 term are:
President: Shealyn Smith-Barker
Vice President: Daniel K. Edwards
Secretary:Holly Barkalow
Treasurer:Berta Delgado
A big “Thank you” to all of the candidates who ran for office.
The House of Representatives was in recess this week, but will return the week of May 23. The House Education and the Workforce Committee is expected to “mark-up” the first piece of ESEA reauthorization – a bill to eliminate a number of ESEA programs – in the next few weeks.
In addition, Chairman Kline (R-MN) is expected to introduce next week a bill focusing on “flexibility” that could include troubling provisions that allow school districts to shift funding among programs, including moving funds out of Title I. This would seriously undermine the federal government’s commitment to students with the greatest needs. NEA wholeheartedly supports increased flexibility and relief from the one-size-fits all, test-based, overly punitive accountability system under No Child Left Behind. However, we believe that any increased flexibility and local control must still uphold the federal government’s responsibility to guarantee equal educational opportunity for all studentsand mustcontinue to hold school districts accountable for improving results for all students.
Other bills on charter schools, accountability, and teachers/leaders are not expected until later in the year.
Take Action Today:Remind Congress about the core values reflected in the original ESEA. Urge your Members of Congress to reject “flexibility” proposals that undermine the federal government’s role in targeting resources to those most in need.
In the wake of House passage of an ill-advised and dangerous budget proposal for fiscal year 2012, talks continue on a range of funding issues. The outcome of these talks will have significant impact on our nation’s children and working families, as they will indicate whether we, as a nation, will stand up for the most vulnerable or continue to sacrifice our nation’s future to protect Wall Street and our most wealthy.
On the budget end, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) is contemplating bringing the House budget up for a vote in the Senate the week of May 23 in order to put the chamber on record against the proposal. At the same time, a bipartisan group led by Vice President Biden continues to negotiate on broader funding and debt issues.
In addition, proposals are still on the table to implement federal spending caps, the impact of which would be devastating for children, the elderly, and working families. As we have reported in recent weeks, the proposed caps are reminiscent of state-level fights a decade ago over the “Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR), under which state-wide referenda established state-wide budget ceilings. In Colorado, TABOR resulted in a drop in per pupil K-12 education funding from $200 less than the national average in 1992 to $1000 less than the national average in 2006. The federal caps under consideration would force the largest cuts in federal spending in modern history – for education, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and other critical programs. Future Congresses would be unable to provide needed funding in case of emerging needs or changing priorities.
We need your help to keep the pressure on in support of children, the elderly, and working families.
Take Action Today:Tell Congress that slashing programs that serve children, elderly, and working families is not the answer to our nation’s fiscal problems.
As we reported a few weeks ago, Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and Representative Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) have introduced the National Classified School Employee of the Year Award Act (S. 547/H.R. 1704) This important legislation would provide long overdue recognition for education support professionals – including paraeducators, clerical assistants, school bus drivers, custodians, food service workers, technicians, custodians, school nurses, and security professionals — for their outstanding contributions to our nation’s schools and the students they serve. As an integral part of the public education system, classified school employees promote student achievement, ensure student safety, and contribute to the establishment and promotion of a positive instructional environment.
In the face of escalating attacks on public education, now is the time to stand strong. As you read this, anti-worker politicians and the corporate interests that back them are doing everything they can to undermine educators’ rights. In response, we have to make it clear that we are standing strong for our students, our schools, and our future.
Standing strong for public education means:
Fighting to defeat Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker’s drive to undermine collective bargaining, weaken support for working families, and strengthen the grip of powerful corporate interests.
Standing shoulder-to-shoulder with educators and public schools under attack in Ohio, Florida, Idaho, and across the country.
Pressing to ensure reform of No Child Left Behind includes the voices of educators.
And it means electing pro-public education candidates at the local, state and national level in 2012 is absolutely essential to our future.
Make it clear to those waging this assault on public education that we’re ready to fight for our future and we won’t back down. Join with teachers and school support personnel all across the nation in standing strong for our public schools. Sign the “I’m Standing Strong for Public Education” Petition right now. When you sign the petition, you will get a special “Standing Strong” Facebook badge.
The nine Senators and ten Members of the House who have added their names as cosponsors of the National Classified School Employee of the Year Act, including Senator Grassley (R-IA) and Representative Herrera Beutler (R-WA) – the first Republicans to cosponsor the bill.
Jeers to:
House leaders, who have announced possible plans to bring a proposal for private school vouchers to the full House next week for a vote, even after the proposal was resoundingly defeated in committee last week.
This is NOT a test. This is a State of Emergency.
For the past three years, Californians have endured devastating cuts coming from Sacramento -- including $20 billion stripped from education!
This state, its finances and its schools are in a State of Emergency.
That's why CTA and our allies are calling on you to join in a week of action at the Capitol in Sacramento and in cities and towns near you.
Join us May 9-13 to demand that lawmakers pass the tax extensions to prevent deeper, more painful cuts. We'll be making calls, holding rallies and taking the Capitol by storm.
There are ways all week long -- and in every corner of California -- for you to demonstate how serious you are about stopping further cuts that harm our schools, hold back our children and hinder our future in the world. The word to remember is LEARN:
Focus on LEGISLATIVE activities
Reach out to EVERY PARENT
Use Day of the Teacher to APPRECIATE educators and ALLIES activities
Promote the need for REVENUE for schools and other essential public services
Good evening! Tomorrow begins our State of EmergencyWeek of Action! To keep you up to date and in the know, we’ll be sending an email every day from the CTA Insider with highlights from the day and scheduled happenings for the next day. Thank you for all the work and planning you’ve already done and thank you for what you’ll be doing during the week. Together, partnered with other education and labor groups, we will show everyone our commitment to California’s children and our state’s future as we advocate for temporary tax extension.
TOMORROW’S HAPPENINGS
·Sacramento – State of Emergency Kick-off news conference followed by a march to the Capitol to drop off materials that highlight school districts in each legislator’s district. 12 Noon
·San Francisco – UESF members gather at State Public Utilities Commission building for a march to school district office where superintendent and UESF President will speak before loading the bus. 7 AM
Your help is urgently needed to defeat three CTA-opposed bills that attack teachers directly. The bills will hurt students, as well. The three measures are set in the Senate Education Committee on Wednesday, May 11. It’s vital that all members of the committee are contacted and urged to vote against these measures.
All three bills avoid the real issue facing schools: more than $18 billion in cuts have undermined public education and harmed students. It is vital that the cuts are stopped and schools receive the vital resources they need. Reducing teacher protections in the guise of “cutting costs” will make things even worse. The situation is already so desperate that CTA has declared a State of Emergency. More than 300 CTA members are heading to the Capitol to urge lawmakers to extend the temporary taxes that will help fund our schools. An all-cuts budget would cost schools another $4.1 billion.
Background:
·SB 266, by Sen. Bob Dutton (R-31), proposes paying pink-slipped teachers at the lower substitute rate even when they fill positions for over 20 days. Currently, these teachers receive their standard pay rate when working in a long-term substitute capacity. The change will discourage laid-off teachers from remaining in the profession, and it will cost our students a generation of skilled and dedicated teachers.
·SB 355, by Sen. Bob Huff (R-39), proposes to virtually eliminate seniority as a consideration when layoffs are required and institute a test-driven system the author calls “performance-based” layoffs. It would allow administrators to practice favoritism under the guise of “keeping the best.” It would gut one of the most important protections that helps ensure academic freedom and allows students to learn from experienced teachers.
·SB 871, by Sen. Sharon Runner (R-17), prohibits compensation increases in a school district if the school year is shortened. The bill is a full-on attack on collective bargaining and local control.
·These proposals would move California in the opposite direction of proven reforms that are helping our students and schools. They would make it more difficult for districts to attract and retain quality teachers.
Key Points:
·The real problem in our schools is not seniority protections or teacher pay. It’s the chronic underfunding that has provoked a fiscal crisis and is threatening our students’ education.
·These bills would foster discrimination and favoritism.They would undermine districts’ ability to find and keep quality educators.
·Research overwhelmingly shows that teacher quality improves over time and that students benefit.
Here’s what you can do to help!
Call all members of the Senate Education Committee at their district and Capitol offices. Ask them to vote NO on SB 266, SB 355, and SB 871 that attempt to eliminate teacher due process, cut teacher pay, and eliminate local control.
After you have made your two calls, close the loop by e-mailing lfeldman@cta.org to let us know:
1) Who did you meet or reach by phone or e-mail?
2) What was the response?Will the lawmaker commit to voting against the bill?
For more information, contact Legislative Advocate Seth Bramble or GR Communications Consultant Len Feldman at 916.325.1500.
Dangerous Spending Caps Proposed: Déjà Vu All Over Again!
Proposed “global spending caps” that would severely limit federal spending for decades are reminiscent of state-level fights a decade ago over the “Taxpayer Bill of Rights? (TABOR).”
Under TABOR, state-wide referenda established state-wide budget ceilings and very high thresholds for exceeding the limits. They effectively nullified election results by tying the hands of state elected officials and reducing services across the board. As a result, voters and elected officials were held hostage by simplistic formulas perpetrated by their predecessors – when new, unanticipated need emerged, they couldn’t respond!
Today, this pattern threatens to repeat at the federal level. Some in Congress are proposing overall caps on federal spending that would tie Congress’ hands for decades. These caps would force the largest cuts in federal spending in modern history – for education, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and other critical programs. Future Congresses would be unable to provide needed funding in case of emerging needs or changing priorities.
Take Action Today:Tell Congress that slashing programs that serve children, elderly, and working families is not the answer to our nation’s fiscal problems. Urge them to oppose global spending caps.
ESEA Reauthorization On The Horizon: Tell Policymakers To Listen To The Experts – Educators!
Congress could take up reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act in the next few months. In fact, a House bill on at least part of an overall reauthorization is very likely to move by summer. And, Senate Education Committee Chair Tom Harkin (D-IA) has indicated that he would like to move a bill through the Senate by this summer. With so many new Members serving in the 112th Congress, it is essential that the experts – educators working every day in public schools across the nation – are front and center in the debate. Members of Congress need to be educated about the flaws in the No Child Left Behind Act and what is really needed to ensure great public schools for every student.
Take Action Today:Tell Congress that every child deserves a great public school, and that legislators need listen to educators if they want to learn how to make that happen.
Cheers to: President Obama, who said in a radio interview this week,“Let’s certainly not blame public employees for a financial crisis they had nothing to do with. And let’s not use this as an excuse to erode their bargaining rights.So whether it’s Wisconsin, the state of Ohio, I strongly disapprove.”
April 14, 2011
California is in a State of Emergency
Join and LEARN
California is in a State of Emergency and we all need to sound the warning. Following the vote by CTA’s State Council of Education, plans are underway for a special week of action, May 9-13, to draw attention to the drastic state budget cuts destroying our public schools, colleges and communities, and calling on the Legislature to pass the temporary tax extensions.
Lawmakers have already cut more than $12 billion from the state budget, but have not extended the revenue portion of Governor Brown’s proposal. Legislators need to finish their jobs and pass the revenue extensions. It’s time to say enough is enough and mean it. We are asking educators to participate in a sit-in at the State Capitol during that week. To help focus local activities each day, we are using the acronym LEARN.
Monday, May 9: Focus on LEGISLATIVE activities Tuesday, May 10: Reach out to EVERY PARENT Wednesday, May 11: Use Day of the Teacher to APPRECIATE Educators and ALLIES Thursday, May 12: Promote the need for REVENUE for schools and other essential services Friday, May 13: It’s NOT BUSINESS AS USUAL. Attend a regional rally.
We are reaching out to other education, labor and community groups to join us. The Association of California School Administrators is already on board. So please work within your local chapter to make this week a success and then join others on Friday for a regional rally near you. Rallies are being planned in Sacramento, San Francisco Bay Area, Fresno, Los Angeles, San Bernardino and San Diego. And while we are focusing on this week, the actions and outreach need to start long before then and continue long past the week of May 9-13. CTA will be holding its annual Chapter President’s Lobby Day on May 18.
The time is now to make our voices heard and speak up for our students, our schools, and the future we all want for California. WE ARE ONE!
Honoring Teachers and ESP
“Great Teaching Lasts a Lifetime” is CTA’s theme this year for California Day of the Teacher, which falls in the middle of our week of action. Be sure and use that day to honor the great work of educators. A number of materials will be available on the CTA website. And then the following week, take time to honor Education Support Professionals on California ESP Day on May 17.
Get the Facts on Educator Retirement
Whether it is Wisconsin or Sacramento, some politicians are trying to use the state budget crisis and the collapse of Wall Street to scapegoat teachers, public employees and their secure retirement benefits. The misinformation campaign is rampant and you need to arm yourself with the facts. The new Truth about Teachers’ Retirement section on www.CTA.org gives you all the information you need. There is a great new brochure, and lots of resources and research. Be sure to click on all four tabs to get all the information.
Do you have a great teaching idea for your classroom or school, but lack the funds to make it happen? The CTA Institute for Teaching is offering grants to members and local chapters to support strength-based, teacher-driven reforms for students and public schools. The IFT grants are designed for CTA members and teacher teams who want to take a leadership role in school improvement. Grant amounts may vary. The application deadline is April 30. Award winners will be announced in June.
April 8, 2011
This Week's News:
STUDENTS, EDUCATORS, RETIREES: NO ONE IS SAFE FROM DAMAGING HOUSE BUDGET!
A budget proposal for fiscal year 2012 released by House Budget Committee Chair Paul Ryan (R-WI) would attempt to balance the budget on the backs of the middle class and our most vulnerable populations. The House proposal would, among other things:
Make deep cuts to non-security “discretionary” spending – which would cause dramatic reductions in education services to students and ballooning class sizes;
Dismantle health care for the poor, disabled, and elderly by turning Medicaid into a block grant program. Fifty percent of Medicaid enrollees are children and one-third of all children receive their health care through Medicaid;
Cut the maximum Pell Grant award, dashing the dreams of higher education for millions of students;
Extend the District of Columbia Voucher Program, funneling scarce taxpayer dollars to private schools while slashing funding for programs serving public school students;
Convert Medicare into a voucher system in which recipients would purchase insurance. Under such a system, insurance companies could reject the sickest patients or charge higher premiums to the oldest.
The proposal passed out of committee on April 6 and the full House is expected to vote on it the week of April 11.
Take Action TODAY: Tell your Representative to vote NO on a proposal to balance the budget on the backs of the middle class and the poor. Read NEA’s letter opposing the budget proposal.
At the same time, discussions continue on a continuing resolution for the current fiscal year (FY2011). To avoid a government shutdown, Members of Congress must reach an agreement this weekend. With many in Congress pushing for deep cuts in education and other programs, congressional supporters of public education must hold firm and stand up against such cuts. At stake is funding for critical education programs like Title I, IDEA special education, and Pell Grants – programs that are critical to ensuring every student the opportunity to succeed in the 21st century. Your voice is critical to keep up the pressure for investments in education.
Take Action TODAY: Tell Congress to craft a full-year continuing resolution that invests in education for our nation’s future.
Discussions around the continuing resolution have included proposals to eliminate all “earmarks,” including funding for the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS). We need your help to save this important funding! The NBPTS improves teaching and student learning. National Board Certified Teachers are highly accomplished educators who meet high and rigorous standards. Elimination of this funding would decrease the ability of over 20,000 teachers and other educators annually in all 50 states and D.C. to seek National Board Certification, and impede the participation of Board Certified Teachers in school improvement efforts.
Take Action TODAY:Tell Congress to protect funding for the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.
BILL TO REPEAL UNFAIR SOCIAL SECURITY OFFSETS INTRODUCED!
The Social Security Fairness Act, (H.R. 1332) which would repeal the Government Pension Offset and Windfall Elimination Provision, was reintroduced this week with 49 original cosponsors . The GPO and WEP unfairly cut or eliminate Social Security benefits that public employees or their spouses have earned. Learn more about these unfair offsets
Take Action TODAY:Tell your Representative to cosponsor and support passage of the Social Security Fairness Act.
As we reported last week, the House has passed legislation to renew and expand the District of Columbia private school voucher program. NEA strongly opposed the bill, which diverts millions of scarce taxpayer dollars to private schools through a program already proven ineffective. Senator Lieberman (I-CT) is expected to try to move the voucher bill in the Senate by trying to attach it to multiple pieces of legislation coming to the Senate floor.
Representative Mike Honda (D-CA), who sponsored and fought for an amendment in the budget committee to protect our students’ and our nation’s future by blocking proposed deep cuts to education and Head Start. The amendment, which failed on a 16-22 party line vote, was an important attempt to correct the backward priorities espoused in the Chairman’s proposal.
Representative Tim Ryan (D-OH), who spoke eloquently in the budget committee in opposition to a budget that does nothing but ask the poor and middle class to sacrifice. Representative Ryan cited studies backing wise cost-effective investment in early childhood education and argued that we should be investing more in education. Representatives Buck McKeon (R-CA) and Howard Berman (D-CA), who stood up for educators and other public employees by reintroducing the Social Security Fairness Act -- to repeal the Government Pension Offset and Windfall Elimination Provision.
Jeers to:
House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI), who proposed a budget that runs completely counter to our values as a nation, by asking our children, working families, elderly, and disabled populations to make greater sacrifices than others. A particular jeer to Chairman Ryan’s characterization of safety net programs for the disabled and elderly as “hammocks” that allow people to become comfortable rather than helping themselves.
Representative Reid Ribble (R-WI), who, in speaking against Representative Honda’s budget committee amendment to protect education funding, argued that money isn’t what matters in education, what matters is holding schools and teachers accountable.
Chapter Presidents:
There’s no debating that our schools, colleges and communities are suffering because of continued state budget cuts. California has the 8th largest economy in the world, but continues to shortchange our students of the education they need and deserve. What’s worse, some Republican California lawmakers hijacked state budget negotiations in order to block a June ballot public vote to extend tax revenues, which were part of Governor Brown’s balanced budget plan. Enough is enough.We must take bold action designed to force legislators to do their job and pass the tax extension outright. That will take a 2/3rds vote of the legislature and a lot of pressure from us and other supporters.
State Council today approved a State of Emergency statewide week of action for May 9-13, 2011 (The plan is attached and below). This week is designed to put pressure on legislators to finish their work on the state budget and pass the temporary tax extensions outright. Please work with your members to begin immediately preparing for this week. More information will be coming as materials are developed and organizing is planned in your regions.
David A. Sanchez
CTA President
State of Emergency
A recommendation for statewide action the week of May 9-13, 2011
OVERALL GOAL: Protecting public education and essential public services.
SHORT TERM GOAL FOR THIS WEEK OF ACTION MAY 9-13:
Force legislature to pass tax extensions to prevent deeper cuts to schools, colleges and other essential public services.
OBJECTIVES:
·Short-term: Convince the Legislature to pass the state budget with tax extensions.
·Long-term: Educate and convince communities to change tax structure and achieve tax fairness in order to achieve adequate, stable and ongoing funding for public education and essential public services.
In order to achieve our immediate objective and, at the same time, build support for our long-term goal, the joint leadership and staff workgroup proposes the following:
Between now and May we need to educate, energize and organize members; educate and outreach to community; and coalition building.
May 9-13, 2001, will be a week of escalating action ending in a bold statewide unifying activity. The entire week of action will involve a broad coalition of the Education Coalition (this includes PTA, California School Boards Association, School Administrators, School Employees, SEIU, County Offices and County Administrators, School Business Officials and Superintendent of Public Instruction), parents, all other labor unions, faith and community groups. The week begins and ends with a group of educators (with others invited to join) taking over the State Capitol.
To guide our internal organizing through this week of action, we are using the acronym L.E.A.R.N.
L.E.A.R.N.
LegislativeEvery ParentAppreciation and Allies RevenueNot Business as Usual
MONDAY, MAY 9
Focus on LEGISLATIVE activities
·Calls, visits, emails, target Republicans in critical areas
Use Day of the Teacher to APPRECIATE educators and ALLIES
·Partner with PTA to thank educators, fieldtrips to fire stations, and other ally activities.
THURSDAY, MAY 12
Promote the need for REVENUE for schools and other essential public services
·Educate members and community about TAX FAIRNESS. “Refrain from Shopping” day.
FRIDAY, MAY 13
It’s NOT BUSINESS AS USUAL. Declare a STATE OF EMERGENCY.
·300 volunteers needed to sit-in/occupy the state capitol (beginning Monday, May 9) and regional rallies calling on legislators to “free the occupants by passing the tax extensions and protecting public education and other essential public services. Regional rallies are in Sacramento, San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, Fresno, Inland Empire, San Diego and Palm Springs.
There were many great ideas for activities and community outreach that can be incorporated into this week of action. CTA will compile a list and share it in the coming days.
The Committee recognizes that this is just the start of a long-term, cohesive plan, and the committee will be convening again to complete that process.
On April 4, 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated in Memphis as he labored to bring economic justice and respect for 1,300 city sanitation workers.
On Monday -- the anniversary of Dr. King’s death – the National Education Association and other labor unions, civil rights organizations, and religious leaders will stand together across this country for the same human rights and human dignity for working men and women. Find suggested activities and information about what’s happening in your area at http://www.educationvotes.nea.org/weareone/
On Monday, we will remind our elected officials that workers’ rights are human rights. These groups will host a range of community and workplace-focused actions across the country starting this weekend.
On Monday, remembering the courage and determination of Dr. King and those Memphis sanitation workers who endured assault and arrest as they walked a picket line for two months, we will stand together with public workers across this country whose bargaining rights are under attack, with private workers who can’t get bargaining rights, and against those politicians and their allies who want to silence our political voice.
On Monday, we will fight back against those who are trying to silence the voices of workers and the middle class in Wisconsin, Ohio, Idaho, Florida, Tennessee and countless other states. How will you stand up for workers on April 4?
No matter where you are, there is an April 4th We Are One event near you!
On April 3, 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. traveled to Memphis to support AFSCME union sanitation workers. The next day, he was assassinated.
Carrying forward in the indomitable spirit demonstrated by Dr. King, working women and men across this nation will rally in their cities and towns to continue that march toward economic fairness, justice and equality.
Please show that spirit this Monday. Join your fellow educators in We Are One mobilizations across California.
19,000 pink slips have already hit teachers, counselors, librarians and school nurses and the budget breakdown in Sacramento means it could get much, much worse.
But it's about more than that. It always is.
It's about the future of public education. It’s about making our colleges and universities affordable. It's about the future Dr. King dreamed of...and that we're still working toward.
Our state's very future is at stake. Our families, our communities and our students can't afford for any of us to sit this day out.
Bakersfield March 5:30pm from the Plaza at Rabobank Arena to the Liberty Bell
In addition to the list above, there are also events in Eureka, Contra Costa/Napa/Solano/North Bay, Redwood City, Santa Cruz, Salinas, Stockton, Merced, Modesto, Visalia, Orange and San Bernardino...just to name a few!
*Depending on your carrier and plan, text messaging and data rates may apply.
This Week's News:
We Are One, We Are Everywhere: Stand Up For Workers’ Rights On April 4
On April 4, 1968, 43 years ago in Memphis, a long struggle for human rights and human dignity ended in the tragic assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., but it brought economic justice and the respect that all people deserve to 1,300 city sanitation workers. On April 4 this year, the anniversary of Dr. King’s death, labor unions, civil rights organizations, and religious leaders will stand together across this country for the same human rights and human dignity for working men and women.
We have stood together as one with public workers across this country whose bargaining rights are under attack, with private workers who can’t get bargaining rights, and against those politicians and their allies who want to silence our political voice. On April 4, 2011, on the job, in our schools and in our communities, we will remind our elected officials that workers rights are human rights, and that those rights will not be destroyed.
Tell Supporters Of Public Education To Stand Firm On Education Funding
The current short-term continuing resolution (CR) funding government programs will expire on April 8. To avoid a government shutdown, Members of Congress must reach an agreement on a funding bill to cover the rest of this fiscal year (through September 30). While reports earlier this week indicated that the Administration and congressional negotiators had reached a broad deal, later reports were that no deal had been reached and negotiations were continuing.
With many in Congress pushing for deep cuts in education and other programs, congressional supporters of public education must hold firm and stand up against such cuts. At stake is funding for critical education programs like Title I, IDEA special education, and Pell Grants – programs that are critical to ensuring every student the opportunity to succeed in the 21st century. Your voice is critical to keep up the pressure for investments in education.
Take Action TODAY: Tell Congress to craft a full-year continuing resolution that invests in education for our nation’s future.
House Passes Voucher Bill: Tell The Senate To Stand Up For Public Education
It is no April Fools’ joke -- the House of Representatives this week passed legislation to renew and expand the District of Columbia private school voucher program by a vote of 225-195. NEA strongly opposed the bill, which diverts millions of scarce taxpayer dollars to private schools through a program already proven ineffective.
Thanks to the tremendous efforts of NEA cyberlobbyists, we were able to keep the vote close and secure the votes of eight Republicans, who bucked their Party leadership tooppose the voucher bill –Representatives Biggert (IL), Dold (IL), Graves (MO), Griffith (VA), Johnson (IL), LoBiondo (NJ), Paul (TX), and Reichert (WA). Representative Platts(R-PA), who voted against the bill in committee, missed the vote due to an important conflict, but inserted in the official House record a statement that he would have voted against the bill had he been present. Only one Democrat – Representative Lipinski (IL) – voted in favor of the voucher bill. See how your Representative voted.
Action now shifts to the Senate, where Senator Lieberman (I-CT) is expected to try to move the voucher bill either as a stand-alone bill or as an amendment to other bills under consideration. Senator Lieberman may try to attach the voucher bill to multiple pieces of legislation as they come to the Senate floor.
Tell your Senators to VOTE NO on renewal and expansion of the DC voucher program, when it comes up for a vote in that chamber. Remind them that, instead of taking taxpayer money out of public schools for private schools, Congress should be investing in strategies to improve student achievement, such as increasing parental involvement, strengthening teacher training, and reducing class size.
All the Members of Congress who stood up for public education and spoke eloquently on the House floor against the DC voucher bill. Read the full debate and see if your Representative spoke up.
Representative Charlie Bass (R-NH), who in testimony to the House Budget Committee,called for fully funding the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) at the federal government’s promised 40 percent of the cost to educate students with disabilities. Representative Bass stated, “the federal government’s failure to live up to its promise and fully fund its share only diverts local education resources that either have to be made up through cuts to other programs or by raising local taxes. We all agree that students with special needs deserve these extra services, but insufficient federal IDEA funding continues a broken promise that has a direct impact on each and every school district across the country.”
Senator Susan Collins (R-ME)and Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), who introduced legislation in support of the National Women's History Museum, the organization working to secure support and permission for a privately-financed museum near the National Mall dedicated to celebrating and teaching about the lives, achievements, and contributions of American women.
Jeers to:
Representative Joe Walsh (R-IL), who during debate on the DC voucher program accused teachers unions of being “scared to death” of the voucher program because “they don't want kids to be able to escape.”
Representative Phil Roe (R-TN), Chair of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions, who during his subcommittee hearing on “The Future of Union Transparency and Accountability” derided the “culture of union favoritism that dominates the workforce policies of the current administration.”
Instead of taking money out of public schools for private schools, Congress should be investing in strategies to improve student achievement, such as increasing parental involvement, strengthening teacher training, and reducing class size. We need to be focusing on getting all students ready for the jobs of the future, not allowing a few students and parents to choose a private school at taxpayer expense. When public schools are struggling and teachers are being laid off, the last thing we need is to spend money on private schools. As Congress is proposing drastic reductions in federal spending, including a House-passed bill slashing billions from core education programs, there is no reason to divert millions of dollars to vouchers.
Take Action TODAY: Tell your Representative to oppose renewal and expansion of the DC voucher program.
From Pre-K to Post-Graduate—Students are Counting on Congress for Support!
This week, Congress agreed to another short-term continuing resolution (CR) through April 8 to avoid a government shutdown. But, the new three-week CR is expected to be the last short-term solution, as many Members of Congress have stated opposition to any additional short-term CRs. This means Congress will have come to agreement on a spending bill for the remainder of the fiscal year (through September 30) or risk a shutdown.
Compromise will be necessary to get any bill passed. But, conservative Members will be pushing for deep cuts in education and other programs. Your voice is critical to keep up the pressure for investments in education.
Take Action TODAY: Tell Congress to craft a continuing resolution that invests in education for our nation’s future.
Forty years ago, educators and students stood together and fought to give young adults the right to vote. In doing so, they amended the Constitution and empowered millions of American citizens to have a say in our democracy.
To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the 26th Amendment, Rock the Vote, in partnership with the National Education Association, brings you the first annual Democracy Day.We are kicking off Democracy Day on March 23, 2011, asking educators, principals, school support staff and community organizations nationwide to commit to teaching Rock the Vote’s Democracy Class lesson to students before the end of the school year. Sign up to receive the Democracy Class lesson plan, a video on the history of voting and how elections connect to young people, and additional materials to make Democracy Day a day that your students never forget.
Attacks in States Continue –Stand Strong and Join the Fight!
As attacks against dedicated public employees continue in statehouses across the nation, educators are speaking up and standing up for the students we serve:
In Michigan this week, thousands gathered at the statehouse to protest state takeovers of schools and municipalities and a push to outsource education jobs.
In Maryland, 15,000 people rallied in Annapolis to support educators and public workers opposing budget cuts that would threaten the quality of the Maryland public school system and other vital public services.
And, in Wisconsin, roughly 100,000 converged yet again on the state’s capitol to protest the overreach by the governor and state legislators. Elsewhere throughout the state, thousands converged at a number of locations.
Take Action Today! Keep up the drumbeat! Remind America that teachers, school support staff, firefighters, and other workers play a vital role in protecting and strengthening our communities. Let’s take a united stand against politicians who seek to vilify unions and take away our rights.
Senators Conrad (D-ND) and Collins (R-ME), who introducedlegislation that would more closely target federal funding to rural schools – to provide them with the necessary resources to support technology upgrades, teacher training, and other activities. The REAP Reauthorization Act of 2011 would allow the nation’s poorest, smallest, and most geographically isolated rural schools to receive additional funding and flexibility to undertake significant reform.
Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Representative Ron Kind (D-WI) who introduced the Fitness Integrated with Teaching Kids Act (FIT Kids Act) tocombat childhood obesity by strengthening physical education programs in schools throughout the country.
Senator Ben Nelson (D-NE) and Representative Steny Hoyer (D-MD), who introduced the Full Service Community School Act. The bill aims to improve student achievement by helping schools use resources more efficiently and improving the coordination of health, dental and nutrition services for children and their families, career counseling for parents, and early childhood education programs.
Jeers to:
Representative Darrell Issa (R-CA), Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, who this week announced that Republicans will not cooperate in moving forward on reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act if the President refuses to sign legislation to renew and expand the District of Columbia voucher program.
March 18, 2011
March 17, 2011
We Are One!
“We Are One” has become the slogan uniting teachers, nurses, firefighters and other workers across the state and country. The battle over teachers and other public employees having a say in their workplace took center stage as Republican lawmakers in Wisconsin passed legislation eliminating collective bargaining rights for some public employees. Thousands of California workers joined in rallies of support sponsored by CTA and the California Labor Federation on February 22. A candlelight vigil at the State Capitol highlighted actions. Some lawmakers are using the state budget deficits as an excuse to wage war against union workers and the middle class. Similar battles are being fought in Ohio, Michigan and Idaho. We must all stand together and stand strong against these attacks. Do not lose faith and do not lose hope. Together we can make a difference. Sign the NEA national petition to protect worker rights. Donate to the NEA’s 51 Fund to help defeat these attacks. Join CTA, NEA and labor unions across the country and take a Stand for Solidarity on April 4. April 4 is the anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination in Memphis as he marched in support of sanitation workers demanding their right unionize. We’re asking everyone to wear a “We Are One” sticker to school that day, participate in local labor rallies, or use that day to teach about labor history in your classroom.
Contact Your Lawmakers on the State Budget
Both the Assembly and Senate are voting on the Governor’s proposed state budget and revenue extensions. Contact your lawmakers today and urge them to support the budget package in order to prevent even deeper cuts to our schools and colleges. More than 19,000 layoff notices were issued to educators by the March 15 deadline. CTA led actions with Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson and the statewide Education Coalition. If the current taxes are not temporarily extended, our schools and colleges are facing another $4 billion in cuts. The governor has called for a June special election to let voters decide, but so far Republican lawmakers are holding the budget plan hostage, despite public opinion in support of an election. Use any of these resources to reach out to your colleagues and parents.
State Board of Education to Consider New Statewide Tests
Following the adoption of the Common Core State Standards, the State Board of Education will soon be considering a new statewide testing system for California. Two groups developing assessments pitched their proposals to the State Board this month. The Partnership for the Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers and SMARTER Balanced Assessment Consortium were awarded federal grants last year to develop tests that adhere to the common core standards. California is currently a member of PARCC, but the State Board has until May to reconsider an agreement signed by the former administration. California faces large financial struggles implementing either of the proposed testing systems as they rely on computer-based testing and must be ready by 2014. CTA’s Testing and Assessment Committee will review the proposals at the next State Council meeting.
Help Improve Teacher Evaluation
CTA is collecting information from members about methods of evaluating teacher effectiveness in order to improve the teacher evaluation process. The CTA Teacher Evaluation Workgroup has been working to develop a new state framework for evaluating teachers and wants to hear from you. Please take few minutes to fill out this survey on the CTA website. Also be sure and read CTA’s article on teacher effectiveness in the San Francisco Chronicle.
Honoring Our Labor History
With the rights of workers under attack, CTA is proud to join the entire labor community in commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire that led to a national social justice movement to protect workers. March 25 marks the centennial of the fire in a New York factory. Please join any of the commemoration ceremonies taking place this month. For list of events in Northern California visit www.laborfest.net. For events in Southern California visit www.lalaborfest.org. March is also Women’s History Month. Please also take a moment to honor the work of women and their struggle for equal rights.
Join the California State PTA
For more than a century, the PTA has focused on connecting homes and schools to help all children succeed. It also helps connect parents to teachers. I’m encouraging you to recommit to joining your local PTA or to joining the Golden State PTA directly. As all of us in the education community gear up for a critical fight to protect education funding from deeper cuts, the voice of the PTA will be crucial — and that voice is stronger with teachers involved.
This week, the attacks continued in an ideological war to silence public employees:
In Wisconsin, using what’s being called “the nuclear option,” Governor Scott Walker and the state’s Senate Republicans stripped out the financial components of the governor’s unpopular budget repair bill. That allowed them to vote on provisions to eliminate collective bargaining without the presence of the 14 Senate Democrats who had fled to Illinois to prevent its passage.
In Idaho, the state legislature passed several bills to overhaul education, including a bill to strip teachers’ rights and end decades of positive collaboration between teachers and their districts.
Similar attacks are underway in states across the country.
Despite these setbacks, we will not be silenced.
Educators continue to stand up for their rights. This week, Ohio teacher and NEA member Courtney Johnson testifiedbefore a House panel about how attacks on workers’ rights and cuts to education will affect her students.
In a statement released immediately following the Wisconsin vote, NEA President Dennis Van Roekel said, This is an affront to teachers, nurses, students, firefighters, construction workers and other everyday people who stood up, spoke out, and learned how much their voice mattered to their elected leaders. The response will be unified and the collective voice of millions of working Americans from all across this nation will only grow louder.”
Outrage over the Wisconsin vote went out in shockwaves from Madison Wednesday night and reverberated across the country. Statements of support for public employees’ rights poured in from Members of Congress as well as other lawmakers and allies.
Take Action Today!: It's time to remind America that teachers, school support staff, firefighters, and other workers play a vital role in protecting and strengthening our communities. And it's time to take a united stand against politicians who seek to vilify unions and take away our rights.
Tune in to MSNBC on Saturday, March 12 for news coverage of the "We Are Wisconsin" rally, which is slated to be the biggest day of protesting in Madison since the stand-off between Governor Walker and Wisconsin's middle class began.
On March 17, the House of Representatives will vote on legislation (H.R. 471) to renew and expand the District of Columbia private school voucher program. As Congress looks for ways to reduce federal spending, including a House-passed bill cutting billions from core education programs, there is no reason to divert $60 million in scarce resources to a pilot program that has been proven ineffective by numerous studies.
Take Action TODAY: Tell your Representative to oppose renewal and expansion of the DC voucher program.
This week, the Senate rejected a House-passed “continuing resolution” (CR) that contained draconian cuts to education and other priorities. The Senate also rejected a Democratic alternative that included significantly fewer cuts and would have increased funding for education. Both measures fell short of the 60 votes needed for passage.
All Democrats voted against the House-passed measure. However, three Republicans – Senators Jim DeMint of South Carolina, Mike Lee of Utah, and Rand Paul of Kentucky – also opposed the measure as a signal of their support for even deeper cuts. The Democratic alternative failed as all Republicans, 10 Democrats, and Vermont Independent Bernard Sanders voted in opposition. While some Democrats opposed even the smaller budget cuts in the Democratic alternative, others voted against it because they favor deeper funding cuts. See how your Senators voted on the House bill and the Democratic alternative.
As lawmakers continue to look for a compromise, the Senate will likely agree to another short-term CR to avoid a government shutdown when the current CR expired on March 18.
Your voice is critical to keep up the drumbeat for investments in education.
Take Action TODAY: Tell Congress to craft a continuing resolution that invests in education for our nation’s future.
Representatives Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Gwen Moore (D-WI), Ron Kind (D-WI), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), George Miller (D-CA), Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), Keith Ellison (D-MN), Senator Harry Reid (D-NV), and other lawmakers and allies, who released statements supporting public employees and decrying the vote in Wisconsin to strip educators’ and others’ rights. Read all the statements of support.
Representative Todd Platts (R-PA), who stood up for his principles and went against his Party, by joining with Democrats on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee in voting against legislation to expand the District of Columbia private school voucher program.
Wisconsin State Senator Dale Schultz (R), who was the only Republican to vote against the bill to strip public employees of collective bargaining rights.
Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), who reintroduced this week legislation to create a National Classified School Employee of the Year Award, honoring the contributions of education support professionals to their students, schools, and communities.
Jeers to:
Representative Darrell Issa (R-CA), Chair of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, who held a mark-up and passed out of Committee a bill to renew and expand the District of Columbia private school voucher program. Chairman Issa supports funneling $60 million to private schools through ineffective vouchers while at the same time supporting deep cuts to proven programs like Title I and Head Start that serve students with the greatest needs.
Representative Virginia Foxx (R-NC), who at a hearing in the House Education and Workforce Committee this week asserted that federal education programs have “achieved nothing” and questioned the necessity for a federal Department of Education.
March 11, 2011
Contact State Senate Education!
Urge Panel to Kill Two CTA-opposed Bills that Would Hurt Students, Teachers
Your help is needed now to kill two bills that are either slated for a hearing next Wednesday in the state Senate Education Committee or likely to come up in the committee within weeks. The first bill, SB 161 (Huff), would have non-medical personnel – including teachers – administer a rectal injection to students during class time.The second bill, SB 266 (Dutton), would reduce the pay of pink-slipped teachers who are recalled to work as substitute teachers.
Background: The CTA-opposed Huff bill is slated to be heard on Wednesday, March 16, in Senate Education.
SB 161 would allow non-medical school personnel to administer Diastat by injecting the medicine into the rectal cavity of a student. The drug is designed to treat epileptic seizures, and the bill could result in teachers and other non-medical school personnel administering Diastat in their classrooms during instructional hours.
CTA and organizations representing school and registered nurses believe Diastat should be administered only by medical personnel.
Passing this bill is no substitute for the real solution: to provide funding to ensure that students have access to school nurses.
Key Points on SB 161 – Diastat bill:
·SB 161 would create problems instead of alleviating dangers to students.
·SB 161 could harm students and put non-medical personnel at liability risk if Diastat is not administered correctly.
·SB 161 specifies training for these non-medical personnel, but it does not identify the source of the funds.
Heads Up: SB 266 Could Come Up Soon
SB 266 was originally expected to be heard on March 16, but it could come up in the next several weeks.
SB 266 aims to reduce the pay of teachers who are laid-off and then recalled to serve as substitute teachers. Current law provides that after 20 days of substitute service, these laid-off teachers are to be paid at their scheduled salary.
Sen. Dutton’s bill would deprive students of experienced teachers, penalize veteran teachers, and undermine efforts to recruit and retain quality teachers in our classrooms.
Here’s what you can do to help! Contact members of Senate Education by phone at their local offices and use our CTA legislative portal to contact them electronically, too. Find it at: http://www.capwiz.com/nea/ca/issues/alert/?alertid=34970501
Urge your legislators to kill SB 161;Be Prepared to Act Quickly Against SB 266
Contact Senate Education right now in opposition to SB 161 (Huff).(Contact nos. are listed below.) Be prepared to act on short notice to contact these same lawmakers on SB 266 (Dutton) once that bill is scheduled.Then close the loop by e-mailing lfeldman@cta.org to let us know what response you received from the lawmaker or her/his legislative staffFor more information, contact Legislative Advocates Toni Trigueiro (SB 161) and Seth Bramble (SB 266) or GR Communications Consultant Len Feldman at 916.325.1500.
Senate Education Committee Contact Information
Lowenthal, Alan (D), chair (562) 495-4766 or (916) 651-4027
Runner, Sharon (R), vice chair (661) 729-6232 or (916) 651-4017
Alquist, Elaine (D) (408) 286-8318 or (916) 651-4013
Blakeslee, Sam (R) (408) 277-9461 or (916) 651-4015
Hancock, Loni (D) (510) 286-1333 or (916) 651-4009
Huff, Bob (R) (909) 598-3981 or (916) 651-4029
Liu, Carol (D)(626) 683-0282 or (916) 651-4021
Price, Curren D., Jr. (D)(213)745-6656 or (916) 651-4026 Simitian, S. Joseph (D)(650) 688-6384 or (916) 651-4011 Vargas, Juan (D)(619) 409-7690 or (916) 651-4040
March 7, 2011
Next Tuesday, March 15, is the deadline for teacher layoff notices and, as in the past two years, thousands of our members will be faced with pink slips that place their jobs and the instructional program for millions of students at risk. I am encouraging you and your chapter to join us and participate in a day of action to raise awareness in your community and to begin building support for the governor’s proposed tax extensions. There is a lot you can do, and you can find lots of resources in the CTA State Budget Resource Center and on the March 15 Day of Action Page to help. Don’t miss the customizable Member Flyer and the Parent Flyer (in Spanish too).
Among the suggested activities that will help raise awareness:
Wear Red for Ed—every Tuesday from tomorrow until the election (and especially March 15).
Distribute flyers to members, parents and community members.
Share your local budget cut stories and publicize your local budget awareness activities through the CTA Facebook Page. Use your own Facebook page to link to ours and spread the word among your friends.
On March 15, the CTA Board and I will hold a media event in the Bay Area with our Education Coalition partners. We hope that you will join our efforts with a local action of your own. Passage of these tax extensions is critical to protecting important instructional programs and thousands of jobs.
Your efforts--starting now--can help make that happen.
David A. Sanchez
CTA President
Note: Updated Link! You can reach lawmakers via cta.org or via our CapWiz center. Click on the link below to take you directly to the on-line edition of this LegAlert and connections to your legislators. Your help is needed now to stave off additional devastating cuts to public education and other public services. Get in touch with your state Senator and state Assembly Member at their district offices and urge them to support Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposed budget that would protect public education from more cuts.
Also urge your lawmakers to extend the temporary taxes or put the issue before the voters during a June special election. Lawmakers have a choice between extending the temporary taxes or authorizing billions of dollars more in devastating cuts to public schools and other public services.
Background: To prevent a potential cut of $2 billion or more to our schools, the Legislature must agree to extend the temporary taxes or to place a measure on the June ballot to allow voters to extend them. Either option takes a 2/3 vote of the Legislature to achieve the goal, and it will require at least three Republicans in the state Senate and two in the state Assembly to join with all Democrats to extend the taxes or put the measure on a June special election ballot.
Your efforts can help convince both Democratic and Republican lawmakers to pass the governor’s proposed budget and extend the temporary taxes. The governor’s proposal will help erase the state’s $25 billion budget deficit while protecting schools and other essential services from further cuts.
Key Points:
·K-12 schools and colleges have already been cut over $20 billion over the last three years--$1,900 per K-12 student. ·Class sizes are soaring, programs are disappearing and entire school years are shrinking in many school districts. ·More than 30,000 California educators and 10,000 other public school employees have been laid off over the past three years. ·The governor’s plan to extend temporary taxes for five years will help prevent further cuts to schools, public safety, health and other vital state programs. ·Without an extension of current revenues, public schools and colleges will lose more than $2.3 billion. ·The governor’s balanced budget approach will help protect students and essential services, create jobs, and stabilize the economy.
Here’s what you can do to help!
Contact your legislators in their local offices by phone and use our CTA legislative portal to contact them, too. Urge your legislators to support the governor’s budget plan and extend the temporary taxes. If they are unwilling to do so, ask them to let the voters decide by putting the issue before the electorate as a June 2011 ballot measure.
Then close the loop by e-mailing lfeldman@cta.org to let us know:1) Who did you meet with or reach by phone or e-mail?
2) What was the response?Will the lawmaker support the governor’s budget?
For more information, contact Legislative Advocate Estelle Lemieux or GR Communications Consultant Len Feldman at 916.325.1500.
What you can do:
Your help is needed now to stave off additional devastating cuts to public education and other public services. Get in touch with your state Senator and state Assembly Member at their district offices and urge them to support Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposed budget that would protect public education from more cuts.
Also urge your lawmakers to extend the temporary taxes or put the issue before the voters during a June special election. Lawmakers have a choice between extending the temporary taxes or authorizing billions of dollars more in devastating cuts to public schools and other public services.
Background: To prevent a potential cut of $2 billion or more to our schools, the Legislature must agree to extend the temporary taxes or to place a measure on the June ballot to allow voters to extend them. Either option takes a 2/3 vote of the Legislature to achieve the goal, and it will require at least three Republicans in the state Senate and two in the state Assembly to join with all Democrats to extend the taxes or put the measure on a June special election ballot.Your efforts can help convince both Democratic and Republican lawmakers to pass the governor’s proposed budget and extend the temporary taxes. The governor’s proposal will help erase the state’s $25 billion budget deficit while protecting schools and other essential services from further cuts.
Key Points:
·K-12 schools and colleges have already been cut over $20 billion over the last three years--$1,900 per K-12 student. ·Class sizes are soaring, programs are disappearing and entire school years are shrinking in many school districts. ·More than 30,000 California educators and 10,000 other public school employees have been laid off over the past three years. ·The governor’s plan to extend temporary taxes for five years will help prevent further cuts to schools, public safety, health and other vital state programs. ·Without an extension of current revenues, public schools and colleges will lose more than $2.3 billion. ·The governor’s balanced budget approach will help protect students and essential services, create jobs, and stabilize the economy.
Here’s what you can do to help!
Contact your legislators in their local offices by phone and use our CTA legislative portal to contact them, too. Find it at htttp://www.capwiz.com/nea/ca/issues/alert. Urge your legislators to support the governor’s budget plan and extend the temporary taxes. If they are unwilling to do so, ask them to let the voters decide by putting the issue before the electorate as a June 2011 ballot measure.
Then close the loop by e-mailing lfeldman@cta.org to let us know:1) Who did you meet with or reach by phone or e-mail?
2) What was the response?Will the lawmaker support the governor’s budget?
For more information, contact Legislative Advocate Estelle Lemieux or GR Communications Consultant Len Feldman at 916.325.1500
Message from CTA President David Sanchez February 25, 2011
It’s no secret that our profession is under attack and state budget cuts are taking their toll on our public schools and colleges. It’s come to a head this week for our colleagues in Wisconsin - and others in Ohio, Indiana and Idaho are bracing for similar attacks. For those of you that joined me at the vigil in Sacramento, attended others across the state, or showed your support on Facebook, I want to say thank you. We must all stick together during these times. We must educate ourselves about the issues, and we must be willing to take a public stand and to lead. And that is what I’m asking you to do about the funding crisis California public schools and colleges are facing.
This economic crisis has been building for some time and will take several solutions to turn around. We must address the immediate funding issues while planning for a long-term, fair and stable tax solution. First, we must spend the next month educating our members, parents and communities about Governor Brown’s budget proposal. This is a balanced plan of $12.5 billion in spending cuts and $12.5 billion in revenue that relies on voters to approve a 5-year extension of existing taxes. No one will pay more taxes than they are now, but given the current economic climate, passing the proposal is no small task. Voters support public education and don’t want to see further cuts—especially when they understand how the past three years of more than $20 billion in cuts have affected neighborhood schools and community colleges. That’s where we need your help—getting the word out.
We’ve created a State Budget Resource Center (3rd tab) full of materials to help you educate your members and communities about the CTA-supported state budget proposal by Governor Brown. Those materials include:
Please take a look at the Local Event Ideas and plan something for this year’s March 15, pink slip notice deadline. (I will be joined by the CTA Board as we hold a media event in the San Francisco Bay area.) Share the flyers with members and parents. We will be adding to these materials—including the Parent Flyer in a number of languages—so check the State Budget Resource Center often. And work with your local CTA staff to design the best local approach for sharing this information.
Thank you for taking the lead in educating our members and your community about the state budget and the need to approve Gov. Brown’s balanced plan.
David A. Sanchez
CTA President
This Week's News:
Workers are Under Attack: Stand with Educators Fighting for Their Rights!
Wisconsin Governor Walker continues to push his anti-worker agenda as he refuses to negotiate. Educators in Wisconsin have repeatedly stated that this fight is not about pay and benefits – it is about the right to be heard.
This week, Governor Walker showed his true colors – an ideological agenda to silence workers. In a taped conversationwith someone posing as his supporter, billionaire David Koch, the Governor bragged about using layoff threats to bully and intimidate working families into submission.
While the nation seems to have its eyes and ears on Wisconsin, attacks are happening all across the country. Teachers, school support staff, nurses, firefighters, and middle class workers and families are under relentless attack in state after state by an unprecedented, well-funded, and coordinated national campaign. But, as the fight continues, workers and their supporters are standing up and demanding to be heard. Rallies with unprecedented turnout have been held in states across the nation. Read about rallies around the nation.
The labor movement in this country has been responsible for safety standards, the minimum wage, fair employment practices, and more. For educators, our collective bargaining rights allow us to raise concerns about class size, school safety, and other important teaching and learning conditions. To express your support for workers’ rights across the country, please sign our national petition and follow the latest news about the attacks on our rights.
Tell the Senate to Stand Strong against House-Passed Education Cuts
The House of Representatives has passed a “continuing resolution” (CR) for the rest of the current fiscal year (FY 2011). The draconian education cuts contained in the House CR would dash the dreams of countless American students, put additional strain on state budgets already cut to the bone, and stall the engine that drives our economy. Thousands of students would lose Title I services and Head Start slots; local tax burdens would increase as education costs are shifted to state and local levels; millions of students would lose Pell Grant assistance; and thousands of education jobs would be lost. See how much your state would lose. See how your representative voted.
But, the fight is not over! Congress returns on February 28 with a looming deadline, as the current CR is set to expire on March 4. The House will have to negotiate with the Senate and the President in order to craft a CR that can be enacted into law. Your voice is critical as negotiations continue – particularly to tell the Senate to stand firm against the cuts.
Take Action TODAY: Tell the Senate to reject the House-passed education funding cuts and to invest in education for our nation’s future.
The American public, who, according to a new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll strongly oppose laws to take away collective bargaining and silence workers’ voices and rights.
Jeers to:
The 235 Members of the U.S. House of Representatives who voted against the interests of children, educators, and our nation when they passed the full-year continuing resolution (CR) for the rest of this fiscal year. The CR contains draconian cuts to programs like Title I, IDEA, Pell Grants, and Head Start that will crush the dreams of millions of students and take our nation backward.
Educators are under attack like never before and we must fight back. While Wisconsin has national media attention, it’s important to know colleagues in Idaho, Indiana and Ohio are facing similar immediate threats.
Join CTA and other unions in the California Labor Federation at the state Capitol Tuesday evening to show that We Are One with educators and public employees who are under attack in Wisconsin and across the country. The event at 5:30 p.m. is part of a national day of support for our Wisconsin colleagues whose collective bargaining rights are being threatened by Gov. Scott Walker.
What you should know about Wisconsin
·This protest is about public sector employees retaining a voice in their profession and Wisconsin's future. The proposed legislation strips away worker rights and destroys the collaborative partnerships that have been established between labor and management in Wisconsin. It's not about pay and benefits, pensions and health care.
·What is happening right now in Wisconsin is historic. Tens of thousands of citizens -- unprecedented numbers -- are gathering and speaking out to show their support for the state's public servants. They want to voice support for the third grade teacher who stays late to help a student with math -- for the nurses who work every day to care for patients -- for the firefighters who keep us safe -- and for the snow plow drivers who plow streets through the night so their neighbors can get to work in the morning. These public workers are on the front-lines everyday to support us -- and they should have a say in their profession.
·The people of Wisconsin are asking the Governor and legislature to hear them out -- and work with them to find bipartisan solutions that will address Wisconsin's challenges. Silencing the voices of public sector employees by busting up their unions is not going to help Wisconsin move forward -- and it will only divide the people of this state.
What you can do to help
1.RSVP to the vigil in Sacramento tomorrow night. Can’t attend in person? Virtually attend by posting a message on CTA’s Facebook Page. You can also follow the action on our Twitter feed.
2.Wear red tomorrow and every Tuesday this spring in support of working families.
6.Talk to family and friends. Tell them why this is important. Ask them to join the fight.
Teachers and workers across America have been watching Wisconsin.
Tomorrow -- Tuesday, February 22nd at 5:30 pm -- we act.
CTA will join with other workers and families who care about fairness and Democracy for a Candlelight Vigil at the state Capitol in Sacramento Tuesday evening.
"We Are One" with educators and all public employees who are under attack in Wisconsin. The event at 5:30 p.m. is part of a national day of support for our Wisconsin brothers and sisters whose collective bargaining rights are being threatened by Gov. Scott Walker.
To join us for this important display of solidarity -- and to spread the word to your friends -- TEXT "ONE" TO 69866.
If you cannot attend the vigil in person, you can “virtually attend” by posting on our Facebook page, sending a message on Twitter, and sharing information far and wide about this attack on workers and our united stand.
You can spread the word even more quickly by texting "ONE" to 69866 and using the forward feature to tell a friend. Just enter their phone number when asked, and they'll get the message.
So, don't wait until tomorrow.
Here are three things you can do RIGHT NOW to stay informed, spread the word and stand with Wisconsin's teachers, workers and famiies:
Be a part of the event online and help spread the word via Facebook.
If you're a Twitter user, click here to tweet out a message about Tuesday's vigil.
Sign up for text messages about this campaign by texting 'ONE' to 69866.
Please plan to stand with us and our colleagues in Wisconsin on Tuesday evening. Their struggle is truly our struggle
This Week's News:
Workers are Under Attack: Stand with Educators Fighting for Their Rights!
Workers across the nation are under attack as governors and state legislatures seek to decimate collective bargaining rights and slash pensions and health care benefits. Wisconsin Governor Walker wants to silence educator voices. He has refused to negotiate with educators, who have repeatedly, publicly stated their willingness to sacrifice for the good of the state and the future of their students. For educators, this fight is not about pay and benefits – it is about the right to be heard.
At the statehouse and online, public school supporters are sending a message that cannot be ignored. As tens of thousands march in solidarity in Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio, and Idaho, countless others prepare to fight in other states.
Read the latest news and learn how you can add your support for educators and other workers across the nation.
Cyberlobbyists – thank you for your incredible response to our calls to action. Together, you have sent over 40,000 e-mailsto Members of Congress in the past few weeks urging investment in education.
The good news: This week, President Obama released his budget proposal for the next fiscal year (FY 2012). K-12 education receives one of the only significant funding increases in the President’s budget. Read NEA’s response to the President’s Budget Proposal.
The bad news: The House of Representatives is expected to pass shortly a “continuing resolution” (CR) for the rest of the current fiscal year (FY 2011). The draconian education cuts contained in the House CR would dash the dreams of countless American students, put additional strain on state budgets already cut to the bone, and stall the engine that drives our economy. Thousands of students would lose Title I services and Head Start slots; local tax burdens would increase as education costs are shifted to state and local levels; millions of students would lose Pell Grant assistance; and thousands of education jobs would be lost. See how much your state would lose.
But, the fight is not over! The Senate and the President will not support the House-passed CR. In fact, the President has already issued a veto threat should the bill come to his desk for signature. The House will have to negotiate with the Senate and the President in the coming weeks in order to craft a CR that can be enacted into law. Your voice is critical as negotiations continue – particularly to tell the Senate to stand firm against the cuts. Congress will be back at home next week for the congressional recess. Make sure they hear your voice.
Take Action TODAY: Tell Congress to reject education funding cuts and to invest in education for our nation’s future.
Representatives Gwen Moore (D-WI), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and Ron Kind (D-WI) for standing up for Wisconsin workers. All three issued strong public statements of support for public employees fighting the governor’s outrageous attacks and have been active in helping support and organize workers’ efforts.
Representative Baldwin: “In Wisconsin, Governor Walker and Republicans in the legislature have launched an economic assault on those who teach our children, care for the sick and elderly, and maintain our roads. They seek not only to impose financial hardship, but also to silence these workers and to deny them the opportunity to negotiate fair contracts….My team is working hard to help organize efforts to fight these unprecedented attacks on working families. I am proud to stand with those speaking out in support of Wisconsin workers.”
Representative Moore: “The Governor is cavalierly trying to eliminate rights that Wisconsin workers have historically fought and died for. Public workers are not the enemy. They are skilled and trained workers. They are taxpayers, volunteers, neighbors, and friends. They should be invited to the table and treated with respect – just like they have been historically by Republican and Democratic governors alike. Just like we do in Washington, leaders in Wisconsin need to make some tough budget decisions. But eliminating the rights of our public workers is an attack on Wisconsin’s middle class. It’s an attack on our state’s rich history. And it’s a crushing blow to our working families who are struggling to climb out of this recession.”
Representative Kind: Collective bargaining -- the chance for employees to negotiate for fair wages with management – is key to our state’s success. It is a time-tested, reasonable process. And let’s be clear, public employees are not the reason state budgets are in trouble. We need to address the budget, but we can’t just fix it by cutting the salaries and robbing the retirement funds of our nurses, teachers, and public safety professionals.”
Representative George Miller (D-CA) who spoke out strongly against proposed House cuts to programs that serve our most vulnerable populations. Representative Miller said on the House floor, “You want to do something tough? Take away tax breaks from the hedge fund managers that don’t’ deserve it…Make the oil companies pay the royalties that the taxpayers of this country are owed. That’s tough. You know why? Because they can fight back. Head Start parents don’t get to fight back very much....Poor children don’t get to fight back very much."
Representatives Hirono (D-HI), Bishop (D-GA), and Andrews (D-NJ) for standing up with educators at a press conference this week highlighting the devastating impacts that proposed education cuts will have on educators and the students they serve.
Jeers to:
Governors Walker (R-WI) and Kasich (R-OH), lawmakers in Indiana, and Idaho School State Superintendent Luna. They have attacked public education and workers and put forward ill-conceived proposals that will take education and our nation backward and stall economic recovery. These lawmakers want to take away educators’ voices so you won’t be able to speak up about school safety, class size, school conditions, the need for more counselors and nurses to serve students, and all the other areas where you have a right to be heard.
February 18, 2011
To CTA Chapter Presidents and Staff,
CTA will join unions within the California Labor Federation for a Candlelight Vigil at the state Capitol Tuesday evening to show that We Are One with educators and public employees who are under attack in Wisconsin. This will be a show of force and I strongly urge you and your members to attend. The event at 5:30 p.m. is part of a national day of support for our Wisconsin colleagues whose collective bargaining rights are being threatened by Gov. Scott Walker. (Download Flyer)
If you cannot attend the vigil in person, I encourage you to “virtually attend” by posting messages on our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/californiateachersassociation as well as sharing information far and wide about this attack on workers and our united stand. You can follow the action on Twitter as well. Follow www.twitter.com/cateachersassoc.
Governor Walker's proposal is nothing more than a cynical attempt to undermine the rights of teachers and public sector workers to have a say in their profession, and it affects all of us. We know the ability of teachers to collectively bargain their contracts has not only resulted in improved working conditions, but in improved learning conditions for students as well. We’ve seen the impact in terms of class sizes, safety, and school environment. Even further, the governor’s proposals directly attack working families and will diminish America’s middle class, I am certain of that.
Please plan to stand with us and our colleagues in Wisconsin on Tuesday evening. Their struggle is truly our struggle.
Friends ~ I traveled to Wisconsin on Thursday to join members of the Wisconsin Education Association Council in rallying against attacks on the state's working families.
All eyes are now on Wisconsin, but we know all too well that there are battles raging across the country.
In Idaho, educators and parents are helping to put the brakes on one of the most destructive and ill-conceived education proposals in the country. In Ohio, thousands of teachers, state employees, small business leaders, and community members filled the Statehouse to show their opposition to Senate Bill 5 and Gov. Kasich's anti-worker agenda. In Indiana, supporters of public education rallied against potentially damaging legislation currently facing the General Assembly.
Teachers, school support staff, nurses, firefighters, and middle class workers and families are under relentless attack in state after state by an unprecedented, well-funded, and coordinated national campaign.
Support our NEA family and working people across the country who are in the fight of their lives to preserve the rights of working Americans and the stability of middle class families. Together, we will not be silent or denied!
--Dennis
February 17, 2011
Governor’s Balanced Budget Plan Prevents Deeper Cuts to Public Education, Public Safety and Other Essential Services
Upon approval of State Council, CTA is working with lawmakers to approve Governor Brown’s proposed state budget plan that mixes $12.5 billion in budget cuts with a five year extension of four temporary taxes to stop even deeper cuts to public education and other services. CTA is working with the Education Coalition and labor partners to support the budget plan and revenue extensions. Brown has called for a special election in June.
According to the state’s Legislative Analyst, if the temporary taxes are not extended, K-12 schools and community colleges would face another $5.2 billion in cuts; CSU and UC schools would be cut an additional $2 billion. The Legislative Analyst also outlined a few examples of those deeper cuts: eliminate the state’s Class Size Reduction program, eliminate all home-to-school busing, double community college fees and eliminate all sports in community colleges, increase CSU tuition 10% and UC tuition 7%, reduce CSU enrollment by 5%, and reduce the number of CalGrants available to low-income students.
Various state budget resources are available on the CTA website. CTA encourages local chapters to work with their Education Coalition partners to host local events and to encourage lawmakers to support the governor’s budget plan. A Special Election Campaign Committee has also been formed.
RIF Support
The state budget disaster is also causing local school districts to issue Reduction in Force notices before the March 15 deadline. Many school districts are submitting two budget plans: one that assumes the state revenues are extended and another that details potential cuts should the revenue extensions fail. The CTA Legal Department is again assisting chapters and all members who receive a RIF notice.
Tax Fairness
While the tax extensions proposed by Governor Brown are desperately needed to avoid additional cuts to students and schools, California also needs to look for long-term budget solutions. To give members real information about how taxes work in California, CTA has created a Tax Fairness presentation and a resource section at www.CTA.org/taxfairness. The presentation outlines education funding, who pays and who doesn’t pay taxes, and how the current tax system has shifted the tax burden onto working Californians and away from big corporations and the wealthy. Please review the information and share it with your colleagues.
New SPI and State Board of Education Move into Place
Myself, along with several other educators, community members and business leaders are serving on the transition team for Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson. The group, which is chaired by Stanford University Education Professor Linda Darling-Hammond, outlined a collaborative process to drive education reform discussions in the state.
Meanwhile, the State Board of Education put the brakes on the confusing temporary regulations regarding the new “Parent Trigger” law. Condemning the faulty rules that were rushed into place before Gov. Brown took office, the State Board called for a comprehensive review and clarifying legislation. So far, only one parent group in Compton has tried to use the law and the process has generated intense criticism both from advocates of the program as well as local district officials, educators and parents.
Federal Budget, ESEA Reauthorization and Education Attacks
President Obama announced his federal education budget this week. While it calls for a small increase in funding, much of the additional dollars are targeted for Title 1, early childhood programs, Special Education and a new Race to the Top competition for local schools. Congress and NEA are gearing up for the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. The Obama administration continues to stand by its Blueprint for Reform released last year. Committee hearings could start as early as this Spring.
NEA is also putting together a plan to support state affiliates as the November elections brought new attacks across the country on public education, public employees and union rights. Legislation is pending in four states – Wisconsin, Tennessee, Idaho and Indiana – that would end or curtail collective bargaining for public school educators. The vote could come soon in Wisconsin. Please send your support for Wisconsin educators. In addition, nearly every state, including California, is facing attacks on secure retirement systems for public employees.
Get Ready to Read!
Designated as a national day to celebrate reading, NEA-CTA’s Read Across America is scheduled for March 2. This year’s theme is “Serve Up a Good Book!” and again comes from the book Aramadilly Chili. Food Network stars Tom Pizzica and Doreen Fang are serving as California honorary co-chairs. This year's activities include breakfast read-ins, book drives and chili cook-offs. Bookmarks, bookplates, reading certificates, brochures and other resources in multiple languages are available for download. Enjoy the day and have fun reading.
February 11, 2011
This Week's News:
Keep up the Drumbeat: Education Cuts Hurt Students and the Country!
Cyberlobbyists – you have been doing an amazing job reminding Congress about the importance of investing in education. You have sentthousands of e-mailsto Members of Congress in the past few weeks, but we still need your help.
The week of February 14 will be critical. President Obama will release his budget proposal for the next fiscal year (FY 2012). At the same time, the House of Representatives will consider funding levels for the current fiscal year (FY 2011). This is necessary as the last Congress never completed action on a funding bill for this fiscal year and the current “continuing resolution” – which temporarily continued program funding – is set to expire on March 4.
House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan has already proposed deep cuts, including to education programs. And, some conservative Members are pushing for even deeper cuts. Now is the time to make your voice heard!
Take Action TODAY: Tell Congress to reject education funding cuts and to invest in education for our nation’s future.
Congress is expected to take up reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act this year. Tell Congress to end the obsession with high-stakes, poor-quality tests and insist upon rich, 21st Century skills and better assessments. Tell them that the federal government should be a partner to states, not a micro-manager. And, tell them that students need reliable support from educators, parents, communities, and their policy makers. Struggling students and schools that need help shouldn’t be forced to compete for it—help should be a guarantee.
Take Action Today:Tell Congress that every child deserves a great public school, and that legislators need listen to educators if they want to learn how to make that happen.
Senators Enzi (R-WY) and Alexander (R-TN). The Ranking Members of the Committee and Subcommittee with jurisdiction over ESEA reauthorization released this week a list of key areas of focus for ESEA reauthorization, including revamping prescriptive “Adequate Yearly Progress” requirements, reviewing use of assessments and the addressing the focus on testing, examining how sanctions impact rural schools, revisiting ‘highly qualified” teacher requirements, and involving parents in childhood education.
Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA), who forcefully challenged unsubstantiated assertions about the success of the District of Columbia voucher program at a House Education Committee hearing on Thursday.
Representative Lynn Woolsey (D-CA), who spoke at a Thursday committee hearing in support of comprehensive services, such as nutrition and health programs, as critical to ensuring students are ready to learn.
Jeers to:
Andrew Coulson, Director of the Cato Institute’s Center for Educational Freedom, who testified at the House hearing that no federal education programs other than the District of Columbia voucher program have been shown effective in increasing student achievement. Coulson also testified that supports such as nutrition and health programs are not important to student success and, as evidence of his contention, related an anecdote about a charter school where a student without lunch was advised to wash dishes at a restaurant in exchange for food!
Council Decides
February 4-6, 2011
Electing Brown, Torlakson Are Huge Wins For Our Students, Sanchez says
In the first State Council since the November elections, CTA President David A. Sanchez praised delegates meeting in Los Angeles for their hard work in electing Jerry Brown governor and Tom Torlakson as state superintendent of public instruction.
“You made recommendations, you approved a plan and resources, you showed up to the polls in record numbers – and our students won,” Sanchez said. “All your hard work around the election is paying off.”
He cited the governor’s willingness to meet with CTA and teachers as a good sign. And he praised Brown’s quick appointments to the State Board of Education of real educators as a breakthrough. “This act alone will put an end to the teacher-bashing and blaming that the past State Board participated in.”
He noted that one Brown appointee – Sacramento County educator and CTA legislative advocate Patricia Ann Rucker – will also represent California on the National Common Core Standards Commission.
The governor’s budget proposal is a balanced approach of cuts and revenues to resolve the state’s $25 billion deficit, in part by extending certain taxes, Sanchez said. “We recognize the governor’s attempt to limit cuts to K-12 schools as our students have suffered a majority of the state’s budget cuts in the last few years,” he said. “Extending current revenues is critical to having any hope for maintaining a quality public education system in this state.”
Electing Torlakson means students and educators have a true advocate in Sacramento. “He has already declared a state of financial emergency for California’s schools and urged Californians to come to the aid of schools across the state,” Sanchez said.
He pointed out Torlakson’s public distress over a recent Education Week study that gave California’s education system a C-grade overall – and a D-minus in education spending, ranking the state 43rd in per-pupil spending.
Torlakson, as a legislator in 2006, also authored the landmark, CTA-sponsored Quality Education Investment Act (QEIA). The largest education reform of its kind, QEIA provides $3 billion over eight years for proven reforms in nearly 500 of the state’s lower-performing schools. Thanks to funding for smaller class sizes, more counselors and quality professional development for teachers and administrators, QEIA schools are succeeding, Sanchez said. Council delegates received a 40-page CTA report by an independent researcher that documents the steady preliminary progress at QEIA schools.
Academic Performance Index (API) scores are rising at QEIA schools, but so is collaboration among all stakeholders, Sanchez said. “Learning and working together have taken center stage.”
Vogel was unopposed. His education career spans 37 years. CTA President David A. Sanchez remains president through June 25, when Vogel’s term begins. “President Sanchez and I are more hopeful for the future of public education now that we have a governor who understands that state budgets should not be balanced with more devastating classroom cuts,” Vogel said. “Jerry Brown’s balanced approach of cuts and revenues are what teachers and all Californians need to help resolve the budget crisis and get the state back on track.”
Delegates will elect the new CTA secretary-treasurer and vice president at the April 1-3 State Council meeting.
Read the CTA news release about Vogel’s background and election.
Council Delegates Back Governor’s Proposed Budget Plan
Council delegates endorsed the governor’s budget proposal aimed at resolving the state’s $25 billion deficit.
The CTA endorsement of the governor’s budget plan includes his call for a June election to extend certain temporary taxes. Delegates were alarmed that, without an extension of current revenues, public schools and colleges would lose at least another $2.3 billion on top of the more than $18 billion in devastating cuts they have suffered over the past three years.
“Educators and all school employees are making a stand to protect our students and classrooms,” said CTA President David A. Sanchez. “The governor’s plan to extend temporary taxes for five years is a necessary and viable option to prevent further cuts to schools, public safety, health and other vital state programs. California voters must be allowed to decide whether they want to make our schools a priority and start rebuilding a world-class public education system or whether they want a world-class state budget catastrophe.”
Educators also approved their 2011-12 state budget principles. They oppose any mid-year or additional cuts to schools and colleges; support a balanced approach of cuts and revenues to resolve the budget crisis; support extending current temporary taxes for five years with a June ballot measure; support the governor’s plan to eliminate redevelopment agencies – generating about $1 billion in new funding for schools; and oppose fee hikes for college students that are making a higher education unaffordable.
Read the CTA budget vote news release. Read the complete budget principles in the Financing Public Education Committee section (pg. I) of the full State Council report.
Without permanent, long-term solutions to funding, our public schools and the entire state will continue to suffer from more state budget deficits, Council learned in a special presentation about a new CTA online resource dealing with tax fairness issues.
Offering school funding facts, data about tax loopholes and information about how educators can spread the word about tax reform that will help students and schools, the site will be regularly updated with the latest research. California is a moderate tax state, ranking 15th in taxes and fees compared to other states, even though we have the eighth-largest economy in the world.
The new site includes a revealing PowerPoint about tax fairness and the state budget process. It notes that, with California ranking 43rd in per-pupil spending, education is not the problem: in the last seven years, California K-14 education budget spending has only increased 5.7%, compared to 39.5% for prisons. In California, residents in the 20% bottom income level pay 11.1% of income in taxes. The wealthiest top 1% are paying only 7.8% of their income in taxes.
Loopholes mean that Proposition 13 unfairly “subsidizes” big corporations that can use complicated ownership changes to avoid reassessment – costing the state about $5 billion a year in lost tax revenue. Join the conversation about tax fairness by reading and sharing the research and studies posted at www.cta.org/taxfairness.
Doggett: Beware of the ‘Billionaire Boys Club’ of Education Reformers
Billionaires like Bill Gates and Eli Broad are backing misleading films like Waiting ForSuperman and destructive education “reforms” that threaten our public schools, CTA Executive Director Carolyn Doggett warned in her speech to Council.
“These corporate reformers are not interested in democracy,” she said. “They promote mayoral control and the elimination of local school boards, because it’s easier to dictate reform when no one is there to watch.”
Doggett quoted at length from a revealing investigative article by reporter Barbara Miner that was written for the website www.NOTwaitingforsuperman.org. The reporter asks the question: “Should the American people put their faith in a white billionaire boys club to lead the revolution for our schools and on behalf of poor people of color?”
Doggett declared, “And while their education agenda calls for all sorts of accountability for teachers, the billionaire boys club is accountable to no one.”
The article is titled, “The Ultimate Superpower: Supersized dollars drive Waiting for Superman agenda.” That agenda includes the privatizing of public schools with private charters, scapegoating teachers and their unions, and fanning the flames of standardized testing mania.
Doggett said Miner’s article boldly connects the dots. It shows the relationship of the Gates Foundation and others to the Obama administration and to “so-called grassroots reform organizations” like StudentsFirst, Democrats for Reform, Stand for Children, Education Reform Now, and Teach for America.
The need for CTA members’ vigilance in California is great, she said, because Michelle Rhee’s StudentsFirst is based in Sacramento, and former state Senator Gloria Romero launched a West Coast office of Democrats for Education Reform in our state. Six former Gates Foundation staffers hold high-level positions in the U.S. Department of Education and seven graduates of the Broad Leadership Academy are working in LAUSD, with their salaries paid for by Broad.
Doggett said the revealing news article “shows how these groups and foundations are interlinked with billionaire hedge-fund operators who are investing in and making millions off charter schools, and then turning around and supporting policies to expand private charter schools.”
Teachers and parents are pushing back. Films like the Race to Nowhere documentary – which was shown at State Council one evening -- tell the real story about how “the standardized testing mania is destroying student learning,” said Doggett. (Learn more about the film at www.racetonowhere.com.) She praised educators for standing up for their due process rights in California and rejecting Romero’s support for the flawed Race to the Top concept that students and schools must compete for education resources.
To read Carolyn Doggett’s entire speech, log in to the Members-only section of www.cta.org and go to State Council section.
State Council Takes Action
Other actions taken by Council include:
·State Council recommended the following candidates for the February 15th Special Primary Election: Senate District 17, Darren Parker; Senate District 28, Ted Lieu.
The following other leadership elections occurred at Council:
·Doreen McGuire-Grigg elected NEA Director - District 1
·Sue Cirillo elected NEA Director - District 6/14
·George Sheridan elected NEA Director - District 12
·Gayle Bilek elected NEA Alternate Director - Seat 3
Council was informed about a new section of the CTA website that allows anyone to monitor progress on legislation affecting students and educators. Select the option: “Making the Grade: A Progress Report on Legislative Action.” Council delegates took positions on many pending bills, including these:
·A support position on State Constitutional Amendment 5 by state Senator Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, to lower the threshold for voter approval for a local parcel tax from a two-thirds vote to a 55 percent majority.
·A support position on Assembly Bill 124 by Assembly member Felipe Fuentes, D- Los Angeles, to establish an English Language Development (ELD) Standards Advisory Committee to align ELD standards to the State Board’s English Language Arts common core standards and present their recommendations to the board by August 31, 2012; requires the board to act by September 30, 2012; and the Superintendent of Public Instruction and board to develop and present to the Governor and Legislature an implementation plan to integrate the ELD standards.
February 4, 2011
This Week's News:
Tell Congress: Education Cuts are Bad for Students, Communities, and our Nation
This week, the House Appropriations Committee announced the funding allocations for its subcommittees. Subcommittees will use these allocations to draft funding bills for the rest of this fiscal year (FY 2011). The Labor-HHS-Education Subcommittee – which has jurisdiction over education programs, health programs, and many programs serving vulnerable children and families – will receive $6.5 billion less than last year. As bad as that cut would be, the actual loss could as much as double, since the allocation level does not address a deep shortfall in Pell Grant funding.
These cuts will be devastating to education programs like Title I, IDEA, and Pell Grants; will leave millions of students without the services and resources they need to succeed; and will place additional financial burdens on states and local school districts.
The House will vote on these cuts, and possibly even deeper cuts, the week of February 14. Members of Congress need to hear from you now about how devastating these cuts would be to the students in your school and for millions of students across the country. You are the experts and you know what your students need to succeed. Make sure your voice is heard.
Remind Congress that Investing in education is an investment in our nation’s future. Tell them that students get only one shot at an education and it is not their fault they are in school during a devastating economic crisis.
Take Action TODAY: Tell Congress to reject education funding cuts and to invest in education for our nation’s future.
Congress is expected to take up reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act this year. In fact, Senate Education Committee Chair Tom Harkin (D-IA) has indicated that he would like to move a bill through the Senate by this summer. With so many new Members serving in the 112th Congress, it is essential that the experts – educators working every day in public schools across the nation – are front and center in the debate. Members of Congress need to be educated about the flaws in the No Child Left Behind Act and what is really needed to ensure great public schools for every student.
Take Action Today:Tell Congress that every child deserves a great public school, and that legislators need listen to educators if they want to learn how to make that happen
Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME), who introduced this week the No Child Left Behind Flexibility and Improvements Act (S. 280). The bill would make common-sense changes to the No Child Left Behind Act to give states greater flexibility in measuring student progress, assessing students with special needs, and helping teachers of multiple subjects meet “highly qualified” teacher requirements.
Jeers to:
House Budget Committee “Czar” Paul Ryan (R-WI), who has announced a budget cap that would slash domestic funding immediately, including cutting billions of dollars for education and decimating services for millions of students.
January 28, 2011 from NEA Education Insider
This Week's News:
Tell Congress: Investing in Education is an Investment in Our Nation’s Future
This week, the House of Representatives passed a resolution to slash federal funding. If applied to education, these cuts would result in a loss of over $9 billion for education programs, devastating programs like Title I, IDEA, and Pell Grants and leaving millions of students without the resources they need to succeed.
While the Senate is not expected to act on these cuts, this House vote was the first step in a plan to reduce funding even further, with even more damaging consequences for students, schools and our nation.
Investing in education is an investment in our nation’s future. Research shows an inextricable link between investment in education and economic strength. Investing in education:
Increases productivity and ensures a competitive workforce
Leads to higher earnings for educated workers, thereby generating higher tax payments at the local, state, and federal levels
Reduces dependence on public assistance programs
Raises wages across the board, as all workers, regardless of education level, earn more when there are more college graduates in the labor force.
Students get only one shot at an education. It is not their fault they are in school during a devastating economic crisis.
Take Action TODAY: Tell Congress to invest in education for our nation’s future.
In his January 25 State of the Union Address, President Obama called focused on education, encouraging increased investment in public education with a focus on career and college readiness. The President stressed a number of key education initiatives, including:
Replacing the No Child Left Behind Act with “a law that is more flexible and focused on what’s best for our kids.”
Making permanent the American Opportunity Tax Credit, worth $10,000 for four years of college.
Strengthening America’s public higher education system, with the goal of ensuring that America has the highest proportion of college graduates in the world by the end of the decade. Obama stressed the important role community colleges play in training workers for new careers.
Reforming immigration laws to ensure talented and responsible students can work in the United States after graduation.
The President’s emphasis on education foreshadows a likely focus on ESEA reauthorization early in the new Congress. Many new Members of Congress have little expertise on education issues and all Member of Congress need reminders of how their decisions impact educators and the students we serve.
Take Action Today:Tell Congress that every child deserves a great public school, and that legislators need listen to educators if they want to learn how to make that happen.
Have you ever thought, "If my representatives in Congress spent just one day in my shoes, they would understand better what they can do to help America’s students – and where federal laws and regulations hamper rather than help?”
Here's your chance to tell them what they would see in your classroom or school, and how they can help your students succeed. Congress is getting ready to reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Act, known as NCLB, so your input is timely.
Send your Members of Congress a letter right now. NEA will get copies of your letters and we will share some of your messages through our publications and web sites. Your letter doesn't need to be long, but it should include an experience or experiences you've had in school.
Here's one way to start: "Dear ...., I'd like to tell you about my school [or my students].
..." And here's one way to end: "The best way you can help my students succeed is to..."
You're the education expert! Share your knowledge with Congress.
New Governor Making Changes State Board Overhauled, Budget Announced
It was a quick start to the new year as Governor Jerry Brown took office on January 3. I and the other CTA officers attended the inauguration in Sacramento, where Brown made history as both the youngest and oldest governor to lead California. He talked honestly about the challenges facing the state, the need for everyone to join in the solutions and again recognized the importance of public education in building a better California.
Public School Educators, Including CTA Advocate, Named to State Board
Two days later, Gov. Brown proved his commitment to public schools by returning classroom educators to the State Board of Education, including CTA legislative advocate Patricia Rucker. Rucker is a former Sacramento County Teacher of the Year and a respected expert on pedagogy and education issues. Brown appointed seven new members to the State Board – all of them have ties to public schools and colleges. Stanford Professor Emeritus Michael Kirst will take over as State Board chair. Brown also announced he will not fill the position of Secretary of Education, something CTA has long advocated as the position is unnecessary and wastes taxpayer money on just more administrative bureaucracy.
State Budget Proposal Includes Revenues
Recognizing that the state’s $28 billion deficit cannot be closed by cuts alone, Brown this week announced a balanced approach to solving our state’s budget problems that includes much needed revenues. Brown has proposed a special election in June to simply extend the taxes that were approved in 2008 for five years. Still, the 2011-12 budget proposal includes some very painful cuts. We appreciate the governor’s attempt to maintain current funding for K-12 schools, as he recognized that public education has borne the brunt of budget cuts the last three years with a loss of more than $18 billion. However, there are more than $2 billion in K-12 education funding deferrals and about $1.3 billion in cuts to higher education that will directly impact students. CSU and UC enrollment fees have seen triple-digit increases that are pricing many students out of college. And we all know that investing in education is key to improving our economy and creating jobs.
CTA legislative and financial experts are reviewing all the budget details and the proposed special election will be discussed at the State Council of Education meeting in February. Without the additional revenues, public schools and colleges are looking at another $2.3 billion in cuts.
Torlakson and Other Elected Leaders Take Office
I also had the pleasure of representing CTA members as Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson and other CTA-supported candidates were sworn into office. We met with Torlakson last week to discuss a variety of education issues facing the state and I can tell you that educators will have a voice at the table. He recognizes the hard work teachers are doing every day, plans regular visits to public schools, wants to revisit the state’s testing and assessment system and has many concerns about the so-called education reforms being pushed down by the U.S. Department of Education. While in Sacramento, we also met with legislative leaders, including the new chair of the Senate Education Committee, Alan Lowenthal, who said it was time to end the rhetoric and teacher bashing.
QEIA Symposium Showcases Proven and Teacher-led Reform
More than 200 participants attended CTA’s symposium, QEIA: Initial Successes from the Classroom. The symposium unveiled a new report by Vital Research highlighting the progress of lower-performing schools in the program and showcasing 10 lessons learned. For the 2009-10 school year alone, QEIA schools, on average, experienced nearly 50 percent higher growth on the California Academic Performance Index (API) than similar, non-QEIA schools. The report shows QEIA is helping to close student achievement gaps with African-American and Hispanic students, English Learners, and socioeconomically disadvantaged students. The report also shows that proven reforms like smaller class sizes, quality professional development, including educators in decisions and additional resources make a difference. Higher growth schools engaged in more teacher collaboration time to develop lesson plans and teacher training, create common assessments, and analyze student data. About 500 California schools are currently part of QEIA. CTA’s radio campaign also highlighted the success of these schools.
Conferences and Scholarship Opportunities in the New Year
Open enrollment for the income protection plan that is sponsored by CTA runs through the 31st. of December. This means that if 15 members sign up for the plan no one will be requirred to have a physical in order to obtain the policy. I will have more information concerning this on Monday the 29th. and will be contacting the members that are not currently enrolled. As always new hirees have 120 day from their initial date of hire to apply without a physical.
Holly
It has come to our attention that everyone needs to change their address with STRS and California Credentialing Commission every time they move. If you have not done this please be advised to take care and do so promptly.
You may also need to update your beneficiary with the member benefits department at CTA and NEA if your marital status or dependant status has changed.
To do this go to the CTA web site, log on through the members only section (You will need your CTA member number to sign in the first time) and then click on the member benefits section.Next click on the insurance section “more” choice.Part way down the page is the : CTA Death & Dismemberment Beneficiary Registration.Click on it and pop up window appears.It has the form you need to fill out.
The NEA member benefit section link is also on the CTA site directly under the member benefits link.
November 10, 2010
CTA Lesson Plan for Victory Scores Election Wins for Brown, Torlakson, Boxer and Local School Board Candidates
Overall, it was a good election for students, public schools and educators and CTA members helped make that happen. The election of Jerry Brown as Governor and Tom Torlakson as Superintendent of Public Instruction is certainly a step in the right direction for our public schools and colleges. Their election also sends a strong message to those who want to play the politics of blame, as both of these candidates support proven education reforms that start with including educators in the conversation. Both of them opposed top-down, one-size-fits-all mandates that focus on student test scores and punish teachers and schools. The re-election of Senator Barbara Boxer also sends a strong education supporter back to Washington as Congress gets ready to reauthorize NCLB.
CTA scored victories in hundreds of local school board races, as well as in state legislative and congressional districts. Nearly 200 CTA-supported school board candidates who received assistance from CTA’s Association for Better Citizenship Committee were elected. CTA funding also helped districts pass 18 local school bonds and parcel taxes to support public education. For a full list of election results visit www.cta.org.
Prop. 25 Passed, Prop. 24 Defeated It was a mixed bag on statewide initiatives. California voters approved CTA-supported Proposition 25 to bring some sanity to the state budget process by allowing a simple majority vote to pass the state budget and docking lawmaker pay if they fail to pass the budget on time. Deceived by false claims of a “jobs tax”, voters rejected CTA’s Proposition 24, which would have repealed three tax breaks to the state’s wealthiest corporations and prevented deeper cuts to California schools and colleges. CTA remains committed to looking at ways to reform the state’s tax structures to ensure that during these tough economic times, everyone is paying their fair share.
Turnout was Key: Thank You! I want to thank everyone who turned out at the polls, who made phone calls, who talked to their neighbors, who attended rallies, who displayed window signs – everyone who voted for public education. It was a long campaign season this year, but our schools, colleges and students will come out ahead, thanks to your efforts. Turnout was key in the final weeks, and your hard work and voice made the difference.
Looking Ahead CTA is already preparing for the transition of Brown and Torlakson into their respective offices. With the state facing a $12 billion deficit next year, there will be many challenges and tough decisions to be made. The passage of Propositions 22 and 26 will further complicate the state budget process and will mean another $1 billion in cuts to our schools. But we look forward to working with all of the newly-elected leaders in the hopes of making public education once again a priority in California.
QEIA Symposium to be Held in Sacramento
CTA will host a special symposium, QEIA: Initial Successes from the Classroom, later this month to showcase the initial outcomes of the CTA-led program that is improving student achievement at lower-performing schools. On average the nearly 500 QEIA schools are showing 50 percent higher growth on the state’s Academic Performance Index compared to similar non-QEIA schools. However, the symposium will go beyond test scores and will also share lessons learned from successful QEIA schools. The symposium will be held November 30 in Sacramento.
Bullies Aren’t Welcome
More than 225 CTA members attended the Second Annual GLBT Conference in Palm Springs last month. The recent suicides of four gay youths are the latest tragic examples of the bullying and harassment gay and lesbian students often face in our schools. According to the latest GLSEN survey of middle and high school students; nine out of ten reported being harassed during the last year, while only 18 percent of schools nationwide have comprehensive anti-bullying programs. The CTA conference offered sessions on Bullying, Unconscious Bias, Welcoming GLBT Parents and much more.
Celebrate American Education Week and Special Educators
American Education Week is November 14-20. Take time to celebrate the achievements you have made for our students and public schools. There are many resources available on the NEA website. Use this week to engage in the education reform discussion and to push back on those who champion the “schools suck industry.” And then on December 3, be sure to celebrate Day of the Special Educator and recognize the dedication and hard work of those who teach students with unique challenges and needs.
Dear CTA Leaders:
I decided to hop on to this final Campaign Update to express my sincere appreciation for all your hard work during the 2010 campaign. Take it from me, CTA members made a big difference in this election. And your work to mobilize our members was the key to making that happen. So, thank you for all that you did to help elect a slate of candidates who see educators as part of the solution. Our students and state will surely come out ahead thanks to your efforts.
Sincerely,
David A. Sanchez
CTA President
Nov 3, 2010 – WE did it! CTA leaders, members and staff all contributed to a hard-fought campaign to elect pro-education candidates to public office.
Spotlight
By electing Jerry Brown as governor and Tom Torklakson as the state’s top school official, and re-electing Barbara Boxer to the U.S. Senate, California’s voters showed strong support for California’s public schools and colleges. R
