Our Students, Our Schools

Transcription

1 No. 12 My Union brothers and sisters, In this Issue: Our Students Our Schools, Bargaining Update, Best & Brightest Scholarship update, FEA Delegate Assembly self-nomination form, Cenergistic Energy Program, New Brothers & Sisters, Euro Spec, Snap Fitness: Palm Harbor, Sardo s Pizza & Pasta Our Students, Our Schools 8/21/2015 There are those who point to the Tampa Bay Times series of articles on low performing schools in South St. Petersburg as a flawless argument for vouchers and school choice. All seems to be going according to plan for those that want to destroy the cornerstone of American Democracy, the free public education system. This story plays just right for the corporate reformers who seek to privatize education. They claim that for-profit charter schools will be able to make our kids competitive in a global market place and close the achievement gap, but the goal of any profit driven business is money. In order to successfully privatize education, it is necessary to insure that public schools fail. To accomplish this you need the right socio-economic conditions. As more and more of America s decent paying jobs go overseas to increase corporate profits, economic opportunities for working class people become limited. Many are forced to find work in low paying service industry jobs and they now have to work more than one job to make ends meet. This can wreak havoc on family life and today, one out of four children live in poverty and black children are even more likely to live in poverty. The income gap in this country has never been greater. Our state government does not want to pay for public education. The Legislature has shirked their duty to properly fund education. We are far below the national average in per pupil

2 funding. Lawmakers, some of whom have personal financial interests in charter schools, devise ways to take the joy out of teaching and learning by using a smoke screen they like to refer to as accountability. Like the witch hunts of Salem, the search for ineffective teachers blinded many from the fact that we were torturing kids with toxic testing. Some of the students favorite activities were being cut in favor of more test preparation and teacher autonomy was being replaced by a cookie cutter boot camp approach to teaching. Schools in the poorest neighborhoods were especially hard hit by these measures. But that was the intent of the plan. Those who seek to turn education into big business want to point to these disadvantaged schools and fuel the public s anxieties with claims that the School Board, the Superintendent, Administrators and teachers are failing our kids, when it is they who have set the stage for failure. It is up to all of us to take control of this situation and do right by every student. It is our belief that every child has the right to a free quality public education. Those are our kids and our schools that The Times are calling failures. We need to pull together and provide these targeted schools with whatever they need to succeed. Any and all solutions to this challenge must originate from input provided by the professional educators who work in these classrooms every day. These teachers who choose to work the most challenging schools, made more so by state and District mandates, can tell you the personal stories of each of their most disadvantaged students. They will tell you that their children need stability, smaller class sizes, and more attention from their teachers, counselors, and support professionals. They will tell you that a one size fits all approach is not working and that they need the freedom to teach. They need to be respected and listened to when they tell us what training and resources are needed for them to get the job done. Teachers need time to plan collaboratively but also individually. When I listen to the teachers at the five schools, I am inspired by their commitment to their students and their dedication to their profession. I have no doubt that we have the right people in place. Now it is time to listen to the professionals and give them the support they need to succeed. It is hard not to wonder what could have been done with all the money spent on testing for teacher evaluation purposes. Money that could have been used to make our schools become the place students look forward to coming to. School should be the place they learn about teamwork and exercise through physical education class. School should be the place they look forward to socializing with classmates at recess. Students would be better able to pay attention to their core class lessons knowing that they would be able to enjoy music and art classes as well. The joy of teaching and learning would breed success. And Shame on those who want to simply give these students vouchers and hope they all go away.

3 Bargaining Update Salaries: Raises will be negotiated but there are many factors that determine what kind of raise we can get for the bargaining unit. Annual contract teachers will be placed on a pay-forperformance schedule. Any teacher on this schedule with an evaluation of highly effective will receive a raise that is greater than the largest bump on the grandfathered schedule. Currently, and this may change in negotiations, the highest bump on the grandfather schedule is $1650. That means a highly effective teacher on the pay-for-performance schedule would be entitled to at least $1651. An effective teacher on that schedule would be eligible for between 50 and 75% of the highly effective amount. Teachers on the grandfathered schedule are those on continuing contract or professional service contract. Their raises will be bargained in the usual way and may include a step raise, a change in steps and/or a cost of living increase. PCTA does not recommend anyone on the grandfathered schedule switching to the performance schedule because they would be giving up their current contract status for annual contract status. Health Insurance: Health Insurance has become a problem nationally. Premiums for health insurance have increased at an alarming rate. The initial increase this year was 15%. The District was able to bargain Humana down to 9.3%. By making some policy changes, the EWBS committee (Employee Well Being and Satisfaction) was able to get the increase down to 6.45%. The EWBS committee is made up of PCTA, PESPA, PBA, and SEIU Union members representing the employees and Administrators representing the District. The committee has approved the health plans for this year and it is now up to the Bargaining Team to negotiate how the additional premium cost will be paid. The District stance is to pass the additional cost to the employees and our position will be to find a balance so that a salary increase will not be consumed by an increase in health premiums. Planning Time: No headway has been made in this department. It is the position of the PCTA bargaining team to protect individual planning time. The District feels that planning can have multiple meanings and that many of the meetings and coaching sessions should be considered planning. Having not made any progress in this area, it was decided that we need to work on a definition for what exactly is planning. Supplements: Supplements have not been increased in 20 years. Our District lags behind other districts in this regard. The District is willing to discuss plans to raise supplements to competitive levels over a specified period of time. We are currently examining the current supplement amounts and looking at positions that perhaps should be earning a supplement but currently do not.

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5 Florida s Best and Brightest Teacher Scholarship Program Q & A Florida s Best and Brightest Teacher Scholarship Program rewards Classroom Teachers who have been evaluated as Highly Effective and who have earned college entrance scores at or above the 80th percentile. This is a state-funded opportunity. Pinellas County Schools is not responsible for funding or eligibility requirements. Who is eligible? A Classroom Teacher who received a Highly Effective rating on his/her final evaluation as a Classroom Teacher. Classroom Teachers who were in their first year of teaching in or Since first year teachers have no prior rating, a Highly Effective rating is not required for them. AND A score on the SAT (Critical Reading AND Mathematics) or ACT that was at or above the 80th percentile at the time taken. What teachers are eligible to receive the Florida Best and Brightest Teacher Scholarship Program Bonus? Classroom Teachers, as defined in s (2)(a) F.S.: Classroom teachers are staff members assigned the professional activity of instructing students in courses in classroom situations, including basic instruction, exceptional student education, career education, and adult education, including substitute teachers. For what year must I have received a Final Evaluation (Instructional Practice + Student Growth) rating of Highly Effective? What if I am a new Classroom Teacher with no prior evaluation rating? First year teachers are eligible if they submit a qualifying SAT or ACT percentile score on an official document. How much is the scholarship award? Teachers can receive up to $10,000. However, if the number of eligible teachers statewide causes bonuses to exceed the total amount of the legislative appropriation, the DOE will prorate the per-teacher scholarship amount. What must I do? Provide PCS with a Florida s Best and Brightest Teacher Scholarship Application Form along with an official document from the College Board (SAT) or ACT showing your SAT/ACT score. Not all score documents will have the corresponding percentile for the year taken, but the College Board (SAT) or ACT will be providing that information for those years.

6 Florida s Best and Brightest Teacher Scholarship Program Q & A If you worked for the district in and received a Final Evaluation rating from PCS (as a Classroom Teacher) for , then PCS will have your evaluation on file. You do not need to submit any evaluation data. However, if you worked at another School District or Charter School as a Classroom Teacher in , then you must provide PCS with an official evaluation document that shows your final rating as Highly Effective as a Classroom Teacher. What score do I need to qualify? SAT: You need scores that were at or above the 80th percentile in in BOTH Critical Reading and Mathematics in the year you took the exam. You are responsible for retrieving your score and submitting it to the District. To obtain your score, visit ACT: You need a composite score that was at or above the 80th percentile in the year you took the exam. You are responsible for retrieving your score and submitting it to the District. To obtain your score, visit Submission process to PCS: What? Florida s Best and Brightest Teacher Scholarship Application Form and official ACT/SAT document that shows your score was at or above the 80th percentile based on the rank in effect when the assessment was taken. Not all score documents will have the corresponding percentile for the year taken, but the College Board (SAT) or ACT will be providing that information for those years. When? By Oct. 1, 2015 To Whom? By pony: Ron Ciranna, Human Resources, Administration Building Or By U.S. Mail: Ron Ciranna Pinellas County Schools Administration Building Human Resources 301 Fourth Street SW Largo, FL When will this bonus be paid? By April 1, 2016

7 Florida s Best and Brightest Teacher Scholarship Program Q & A Must I be an active employee at PCS at the time of payout? No. However, you must be an active Classroom Teacher with PCS at the time of the submittal deadline (Oct. 1, 2015). I was a Classroom Teacher in and received a Highly Effective rating, but I am now retired. Am I eligible? No. You must be an active Classroom Teacher with PCS at the time of the submittal deadline (Oct. 1, 2015). I was a Classroom Teacher in and received a Highly Effective rating, but I am now in an Administrative position. Am I eligible? No. You must be an active Classroom Teacher with PCS at the time of the submittal deadline (Oct. 1, 2015). I was a Classroom Teacher in and received a Highly Effective rating, but I transferred to a non classroom position. Am I eligible? No. You must be an active Classroom Teacher with PCS at the time of the submittal deadline (Oct. 1, 2015). I was a Classroom Teacher in another county in and , and I am new to PCS. Do I need to submit anything besides an application form and an official document showing my SAT/ACT score? Yes. You must provide PCS with an official evaluation document that shows your final rating as Highly Effective. Will I be taxed on this bonus? All payments to teachers from this program are subject to payroll and income tax withholdings. Questions: If you have additional questions, please contact Ron Ciranna, Assistant Superintendent, Human Resources via Cathy Hunt at huntca@pcsb.org.

8 PCTA OFFICIAL SELF NOMINATION FORM All forms must be received by the PCTA-PESPA Elections Chair or his/her designee at the PCTA-PESPA Office by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, August 28th, Please hand deliver or fax your form as the Pony does not deliver every day to our office. Fax # DATE PLEASE INCLUDE THE APPROPRIATE STATEMENT OFFICE SOUGHT - Please check position(s) sought and fill out this form. Delegate to the FEA Delegate Assembly (50 word statement) (see attached description) The FEA Delegate Assembly will be held on October 15-17, 2015 at the Rosen Centre Hotel, Orlando with delegates elected (if necessary) on September 9, NAME OF NOMINEE Last First Middle Initial HOME MAILING ADDRESS Street City Zip SCHOOL/WORKSITE HOME PHONE WORK PHONE HOME ADDRESS NOMINATED BY *DELEGATE COMMITMENT: * Attend all caucus meetings & Delegate Assembly sessions * Vote in all elections * Read all correspondence * Be aware of AR financial policies as they pertain to reimbursements/stipends * Donate to PAC (Political Action Committee) * Return nomination forms and required statements by deadline * Be enthusiastic * Be responsible. If you cannot attend the Delegate Assembly, please cancel your reservation 72 hours prior to the event with the PCTA-PESPA office. I hereby accept the above nomination and certify that all information is correct. Signature of nominee (Please complete other side) Continued on next page

9 REQUIRED Information. Please complete. SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER - - Native American/Alaska Indian African-American Caucasian Asian/Pacific Islander Chicano/Hispanic Multi-Ethnic CANDIDATES FOR FEA DELEGATE ARE ALLOWED A 50 WORD STATEMENT. ALL FORMS MUST BE RECEIVED BY THE PCTA-PESPA ELECTION CHAIR OR HIS/HER DESIGNEE AT THE PCTA/PESPA OFFICE BY 5:00 P. M. AUGUST 28, 2015 STATEMENT: FEA Convention Delegate - (PESPA) - This person attends the Delegate Assembly (DA). The Delegate Assembly is the primary legislative and policymaking body of the Florida Education Association (FEA). The Delegate Assembly adopts the new business items, the legislative program, and other policies of the FEA. Delegates vote by secret ballot on proposed amendments to the FEA Constitution and Bylaws. Delegates also vote on state officers and NEA Directors. Delegates are allocated by ratio as determined by FEA. The Association assists with room and/or transportation costs. Delegates are expected to make the appropriate PAC contributions. Delegates are expected to sign the commitment on the nomination form.

10 Cenergistic Energy Program As we all complete last minute preparations before the start of school, I wanted to share with you a few thoughts which may help take something off your plate and provide you with a few answers to some rising questions surrounding the Cenergistic energy program. Every school is unique and I thank you for taking the time to share your unique needs with your energy specialist so he or she can better understand your school in order to provide for the comfort of your students and staff. The shutdowns and rollbacks to date have helped us discover that some of our equipment may not be operating properly and have also helped us discover that some of our equipment is in need of upgrade. (By equipment, I am referring to our school based HVAC systems and controls). But even with these challenges we have been comforted by the fact that Cenergistic has been quick to respond, investigate, and collect data to discover the reasons behind these issues. Our maintenance department has also been very quick to respond to and address concerns that have arisen this summer. We hope the questions and answers below will help you prepare for some of the questions which will arise as the school year begins as well as serve as source of information regarding the program and how it operates. Will our night plant operations staff have to work in the heat? There are a multitude of strategies that can be employed to help make sure the evening plant staff works in a comfortable environment. General Managers, HPO s, Principals and the energy specialists should work together to decide which strategies best fit each school. This question cannot be answered with a blanket no since many night plant operators already work outside and in the heat especially in our wing schools. I m confident that we will be able to find common ground regarding the working environment for our plant staff at all of our schools but that common ground will most likely be unique for every school or school type. Will I have to hold my nighttime meetings such as SAC and PTSA in rooms without air conditioning? No, it has been shared from the beginning that air conditioning is available for all events such as these as well as plays, concerts, and athletic contests. HPO s can override the system to provide AC for events, if by chance you have a last minute event or if someone forgets to schedule an override, call your energy specialist and general manager directly to make those type of last minute adjustments in order to get the AC running. I have an after-school program that operates well after the suggested shutdown time, why can t I have the AC turned on for the program? You can have the AC on for these programs and can follow the suggestions above to deal with last minute changes. Also, you must inform your energy specialist of the times of your programs so he or she can set the run times of your school appropriately.

11 I have teachers who want to work well after their contract day ends, will they be able to do this in air conditioning? The answer to this is along the same lines as the question about the plant operations staff. Principals can work with the energy specialist to define when and where someone might need to work late as well as to define a strategy to meets those special needs. AC will run school wide for two hours after the students leave for the first couple of weeks of school, as we all know, once the AC is turned off there is a gradual climb in temperature, some rooms will heat up more quickly than others but the data indicates that most rooms will remain comfortable for at least two more hours. I know I will have staff members who will be concerned that their room is too hot or too cold even though their rooms are within the set points, how can I deal with their concerns? Try to talk to them about the set point which is 74 degree +/- 2 degrees. That means if a room is between 72 and 76 degrees it is operating within the desired range. If someone needs a cooler or warmer setting talk to your energy specialist, he or she will come to school and meet with the staff member, if necessary, to determine an appropriate setting and strategy to achieve that setting. I m worried about air quality if I shut down my HVAC system, what can I do to protect my air quality? Your energy specialists are continually monitoring the air quality, it is important that you alert him or her immediately if you have any concerns. They will conduct further tests and will make the necessary adjustments to ensure your air quality. Of special note, it is important that when carpets are cleaned that your staff ensures they are dry before returning to the shut-down schedules. Therefore, whenever your carpets are cleaned, please double check to make sure the AC is running until they are dried properly.

12 PCTA-PESPA has yet another benefit partner in Mike Cabral of EURO SPEC Automotive. Mike s shop is at 400 Douglas Road East in Oldsmar. Mike is a qualified Master Technician who will get the job done and save our members money. Welcome Mike Cabal and Euro Spec!

13 PCTA is proud to welcome a new benefits partner. Snap Fitness Palm Harbor is giving a corporate rate of $15 a month to PCTA members. Working out can also save you on your health insurance if you participate in the Vitality program. With a rebate on your insurance premium, this gym membership could end up not costing you anything.

14 Best Pizza in Tampa Bay Fast Pizza Delivery Always Hot and Fresh Italian Restaurant Ulmerton Rd Largo Ask for your Teachers Union Discount! Tell them Big Mike sent you. Sardos Pizza Delivery in Largo and Seminole, Florida