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12.08.11 VTA President's Message
Happy Holidays to all of our VTA members!
I just wanted to take time to wish you all the best for the NEW YEAR and to have a safe and happy holiday. We do not return to work until January 9, 2012. The week we return also includes the second Buy Back Day of the year. It is Friday, January 13, 2012. You should have received your retro pay for the Buy Back Day from last year that VTA won in arbitration. Please look over your paystub and make sure your received the retro pay. If not, contact the payroll department at extension # 2244 and they can help you out.
Health Benefits
Just a reminder that your December paycheck will include the change, or increase for your health benefits based on what you chose during the open enrollment period. If you chose not to voluntarily enroll in the District Health Plan we want to be sure you realize you will be forfeiting your $50,000 life insurance benefit. Health benefits are part of your employee compensation and are a benefit to you and your family. If you have any questions regarding your coverage please contact Jarrod Madrusso at the District office extension # 2380.
Paycheck Deception Initiative
This initiative qualified for next November’s ballot. This is going to be a tough fight, and CTA is mounting a united defense with other labor partners. We will be launching a formal campaign early next year.
Paycheck Deception Initiative 2011
This initiative is misleading, deceptive, and full of unintended consequences that hurt us all. The truth is that Wall Street and other corporate backers of this initiative intentionally limited the voice of middle class workers and small businesses, but wrote in a giant loophole for big corporations. Instead of reforming campaign finance laws, this initiative creates more problems and wastes our tax dollars.
VTA Executive Board Elections
In the New Year we will have elections for our VTA Executive Board. We have several positions open for elections; President, 1st and 2nd Vice-Presidents, Secretary, Treasurer, Elementary Rep, Middle School Rep and High School Rep. More information will be coming out in January with candidate declarations and timelines.
New Superintendent Search
The VUSD Trustees have decided that the January 5th Board meeting is when they will begin discussions on how to conduct the search for our new superintendent. If you would like to speak to this item the meeting will be held at Foothill Oak Elementary at 7PM. This is an important decision and will affect our District for years to come.
CTA Vice-President Eric Heins to visit in January
On January 9th Eric Heins, CTA Vice-President, will be visiting the Vista School District. We are honored to have Eric come and visit some of our schools and talk to teachers. It is not possible in one day for him to visit all schools but we hope to give him a good sample of our educational successes and challenges and ask him questions about how CTA is helping locals like VTA. If you have questions you would like the Executive Board to ask Eric please send them to me at vistateachers@gmail.com
Special Education Committee
Starting in January, VTA will be convening a Special Education Committee to help chart our way through the struggles and changes in Special Education. We will have a special presenter from CTA, Stacy Begin, come and discuss current topics in Special Education. If you would like to be a part of this committee please submit your name to me at vistateachers@gmail.com
Have a wonderful holiday vacation. See you in 2012!
Thank you,
Barbara Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
760-758-2690
I just wanted to take time to wish you all the best for the NEW YEAR and to have a safe and happy holiday. We do not return to work until January 9, 2012. The week we return also includes the second Buy Back Day of the year. It is Friday, January 13, 2012. You should have received your retro pay for the Buy Back Day from last year that VTA won in arbitration. Please look over your paystub and make sure your received the retro pay. If not, contact the payroll department at extension # 2244 and they can help you out.
Health Benefits
Just a reminder that your December paycheck will include the change, or increase for your health benefits based on what you chose during the open enrollment period. If you chose not to voluntarily enroll in the District Health Plan we want to be sure you realize you will be forfeiting your $50,000 life insurance benefit. Health benefits are part of your employee compensation and are a benefit to you and your family. If you have any questions regarding your coverage please contact Jarrod Madrusso at the District office extension # 2380.
Paycheck Deception Initiative
This initiative qualified for next November’s ballot. This is going to be a tough fight, and CTA is mounting a united defense with other labor partners. We will be launching a formal campaign early next year.
Paycheck Deception Initiative 2011
This initiative is misleading, deceptive, and full of unintended consequences that hurt us all. The truth is that Wall Street and other corporate backers of this initiative intentionally limited the voice of middle class workers and small businesses, but wrote in a giant loophole for big corporations. Instead of reforming campaign finance laws, this initiative creates more problems and wastes our tax dollars.
VTA Executive Board Elections
In the New Year we will have elections for our VTA Executive Board. We have several positions open for elections; President, 1st and 2nd Vice-Presidents, Secretary, Treasurer, Elementary Rep, Middle School Rep and High School Rep. More information will be coming out in January with candidate declarations and timelines.
New Superintendent Search
The VUSD Trustees have decided that the January 5th Board meeting is when they will begin discussions on how to conduct the search for our new superintendent. If you would like to speak to this item the meeting will be held at Foothill Oak Elementary at 7PM. This is an important decision and will affect our District for years to come.
CTA Vice-President Eric Heins to visit in January
On January 9th Eric Heins, CTA Vice-President, will be visiting the Vista School District. We are honored to have Eric come and visit some of our schools and talk to teachers. It is not possible in one day for him to visit all schools but we hope to give him a good sample of our educational successes and challenges and ask him questions about how CTA is helping locals like VTA. If you have questions you would like the Executive Board to ask Eric please send them to me at vistateachers@gmail.com
Special Education Committee
Starting in January, VTA will be convening a Special Education Committee to help chart our way through the struggles and changes in Special Education. We will have a special presenter from CTA, Stacy Begin, come and discuss current topics in Special Education. If you would like to be a part of this committee please submit your name to me at vistateachers@gmail.com
Have a wonderful holiday vacation. See you in 2012!
Thank you,
Barbara Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
760-758-2690
President’s Message 5.27.11
Rif Notices
As of this date we still have 76 of our colleagues with final Rif notices. This is devastating to both our members and our profession. When teachers are treated as a disposable commodity we lose the joy and love of our profession. Teaching is truly a profession and not just a job; we all feel that from the moment we walk in our first classroom. On Thursday and Friday of this week we held tie-breaks for teachers with the same hire date. It was very sad to have to be a witness to teachers vying for position on the recall list. My hope is that all the notices will be rescinded but there is no School Board meeting scheduled until June 23rd and unless a special meeting is called they cannot be rescinded. I will inform everyone as soon as I hear any news. We hope to have the new seniority list out by the end of next week.
Crestview Move:
The Crestview students and teachers are preparing to move out of their school. On Friday, June 3rd there will be a celebration after school. If you are available please come out and help them celebrate all the years they had at Crestview. We are also asking members to sponsor a student at Crestview. You should have received the flyer from your Site Rep.
Olive Move:
Along with the Crestview move we have the staff and students of Olive moving onto the Washington Middle School campus. There are many displaced members and we would like to offer our help to our members. If you can help members pack up their personal materials after school please let me know.
District Budget:
The Governor’s revised budget looks better for education but it still requires the tax extensions in order to be funded. Our District is working on the worse case scenario until the actual budget is passed and in California we know from past experience that could be months from now. I will let you know as soon as we hear anything about the budget.
Bargaining Update:
Please visit the Bargaining Notes section of this website.
Thank you,
Barbara Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
760-758-2690
President's Message 4.13.11
Rif Notices
On March 15th 91 of our members received preliminary pink slips. On April 19th at the District office there will be a hearing to determine seniority and credentialing rights for these educators. This is a very stressful time for our members. On May 13th the final notice of pink slips will be given out. With the current State budget the likelihood of permanent pink slips looms in the background. The 91 members have the right to attend the hearing at the District office. It will be starting at 10 but we are asking all rif members to show up at 9AM.
State Council Report
CTA State Council met in Los Angeles April 1-3 for their quarterly meeting. State Council elected Eric Heins as Vice-President and Mikki Cichocki as Secretary-treasurer. They will join Dean E. Vogel as the new Executive Officers of CTA.
CTA State of Emergency
May 9-May 13 California is in “A State of Emergency” over the drastic cuts that are hurting our public schools, colleges and communities. The Legislature’s failure to pass a state budget that protects basic, essential services is destroying our future. That’s why CTA is asking educators, students and parents to participate in a series of bold actions during the week of May 9-13, including a
sit-in at the State Capitol building in Sacramento and several regional rallies in order to pressure lawmakers to pass a budget that includes tax extensions to protect schools, colleges and essential public services from further cuts.
Why?
California schools have been cut by $18 BILLION in the last three years and we now face another $4 billion. We may lose 20,000 teachers this year, on top of the 30,000 we’ve lost in the past two years. Our class sizes are outrageous. Our instruction days are being eliminated. Our counselors are disappearing. Our arts, our music, our PE, our athletic programs are gone or going. Our library books are deteriorating. We’ve given everything, and can’t give any more! It’s not fair to our students or to our communities. It’s time to take a stand. Use the L.E.A.R.N. acronym to plan your activities for the week.
COME STAND WITH US!
BE A PART OF THE MOVEMENT!
L.E.A.R.N. and SHOW YOUR SUPPORT!
WHAT YOU CAN DO?
Share this flier with your colleagues!
Use posters, fliers, buttons and other resources to get everyone informed and on board!
Use e-mail, Facebook, Twitter, etc. to reach as many people as possible!
Find more information and resources at www.castateofemergency.com
Thank you,
Barbara Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
760-758-2690
Rif Notices
On March 15th 91 of our members received preliminary pink slips. On April 19th at the District office there will be a hearing to determine seniority and credentialing rights for these educators. This is a very stressful time for our members. On May 13th the final notice of pink slips will be given out. With the current State budget the likelihood of permanent pink slips looms in the background. The 91 members have the right to attend the hearing at the District office. It will be starting at 10 but we are asking all rif members to show up at 9AM.
State Council Report
CTA State Council met in Los Angeles April 1-3 for their quarterly meeting. State Council elected Eric Heins as Vice-President and Mikki Cichocki as Secretary-treasurer. They will join Dean E. Vogel as the new Executive Officers of CTA.
CTA State of Emergency
May 9-May 13 California is in “A State of Emergency” over the drastic cuts that are hurting our public schools, colleges and communities. The Legislature’s failure to pass a state budget that protects basic, essential services is destroying our future. That’s why CTA is asking educators, students and parents to participate in a series of bold actions during the week of May 9-13, including a
sit-in at the State Capitol building in Sacramento and several regional rallies in order to pressure lawmakers to pass a budget that includes tax extensions to protect schools, colleges and essential public services from further cuts.
Why?
California schools have been cut by $18 BILLION in the last three years and we now face another $4 billion. We may lose 20,000 teachers this year, on top of the 30,000 we’ve lost in the past two years. Our class sizes are outrageous. Our instruction days are being eliminated. Our counselors are disappearing. Our arts, our music, our PE, our athletic programs are gone or going. Our library books are deteriorating. We’ve given everything, and can’t give any more! It’s not fair to our students or to our communities. It’s time to take a stand. Use the L.E.A.R.N. acronym to plan your activities for the week.
COME STAND WITH US!
BE A PART OF THE MOVEMENT!
L.E.A.R.N. and SHOW YOUR SUPPORT!
- 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 educate our members and the community about tax fairness
- Friday, May 13 – It’s NOT BUSINESS AS USUAL. Attend a rally in Sacramento, the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, Fresno, Inland Empire, San Diego and Palm Springs to voice and support tax extensions to prevent deeper cuts.
WHAT YOU CAN DO?
Share this flier with your colleagues!
Use posters, fliers, buttons and other resources to get everyone informed and on board!
Use e-mail, Facebook, Twitter, etc. to reach as many people as possible!
Find more information and resources at www.castateofemergency.com
Thank you,
Barbara Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
760-758-2690
President's Message 2.10.11
School Closures
As I sat at the Board meeting on February 10th I was overwhelmed by the community support for the schools on the list to close. Hundreds of parents, teachers, students and community members came out to speak on behalf of their schools. It is an emotional and tough decision that must be made by the School Board. It is difficult to lose any school and the ties between staff and the families are close. It is like losing a close and dear friend. The fear of the unknown and unfamiliar is difficult for adults but for students it is confusing and disturbing.
For our members, many will be uprooted from their schools where they have taught for 10, 15 or 20 years. How can we embrace our members and help them with their new schools, positions and the transitions that will take place? If you receive teachers from Crestview or Olive please be kind to them, sympathetic and welcoming as they join your staff. I met with the staff at Crestview on Friday morning and we are working with them to help move through the process. I will set up a time and day to also meet with the teachers at Olive. VTA will work with these teachers as they move through the process of transferring. The process discussed with the District is posted below.
Teacher Transfers
Steps for involuntary transferring of teachers:
* Identify staff needing to be put back in previous assignment. (Article 21.3.6)
* Identify teachers who are temporary and will be released.
* Identify teachers who are retiring.
* Identify staff needing to be transferred based on school closures/repurposing
* Determine open positions to greatest extent possible (teachers follow students)
* School sites with opening based on temporary or retiring teachers status
* CV students would most likely go to BH, HA and BE
* OL students will move on to the Washington Middle School campus and the teachers would move with the school.
* Seniority and credential will determine the transfers of teachers
* Staff to be transferred to preferred site (to greatest extent possible)
* Staff to be notified by May 7th. Due to the unusual circumstances and the need to pack and move to a new site teachers need to be notified early to prepare for new assignment.
* District will furnish boxes for teacher materials and arrange transfer of teacher materials to new school site within one week of the end of the school year.
* Once all displaced teachers are assigned a 2011-2012 position, return to Article 21 of the contract to fill open positions.
Green Track/High School Pay
* As many of you know many Green Track/High School teachers have been paid a month behind the fiscal year since K-8 went to year round. VTA leadership and the Bargaining Team have tried to have the District make up this one-month pay period for years. Last week the District sent out an email to the teachers affected by the pay check issue. This email started with “Congratulations” as if the District was graciously offering to pay. The truth is that STRS informed the District that they could not hold back the one month pay and if they continued this practice STRS would begin imposing large fines. We will keep you informed as we continue our investigation into the issue.
* As the District stated, the teachers will receive their months back pay in July. If you are not sure if you are owed this pay there is a form to submit inquiries to payroll. Your office manager can get it for you. We will investigate what this means for individual STRS, insurance and pay issues.
State Council Report
* CTA State Council met in Los Angeles February 4-6 for their quarterly meeting. State Council voted to work with Governor Jerry Brown’s administration to assist in passing the extension of the current taxes. If the legislature puts the issue before the voters in June it will help with the cuts to Public Education.
* A veteran teacher and counselor from Davis will be the new president of the 325,000-member California Teachers Association. Delegates elected Dean E. Vogel in Los Angeles Saturday, as part of the quarterly State Council of Education meetings. He will replace current CTA President David A. Sanchez in July. Vogel's election was unanimous.
* David A. Sanchez, president of the 325,000 member California Teachers Association released the following statement today regarding the findings of a major study by the National Education Policy Center condemning the methodology and conclusions of a Los Angeles Times analysis of individual teacher effectiveness in the Los Angeles Unified School District.
"This study confirms what educators have been saying since the Los Angeles Times first published their deeply flawed and irresponsible ratings of LAUSD teachers. Not only did the Times use their own highly inaccurate "value-added" method of data collection, but they then made bad conclusions from bad data and published it for the world to see. The effectiveness of a teacher cannot be measured by one or two standardized test scores and the Times did a great disservice to all educators by reducing something so multifaceted and complex to something so simplistic. CTA hopes that others who have considered following the Times' example will take this new report and its conclusions seriously, and that the Times will act with much greater caution and concern in the future before it ever again considers needlessly and wrongly besmirching thousands of dedicated education professionals."
* This is important for Vista Teachers Association because many Vista Board members have stated they would like to use the Value Added Method to evaluate teachers. This is a highly flawed system and we need to be vigilant and protect our careers by not allowing the District to use Value added method for teacher evaluations.
Read Across America
Read Across America is a national day celebrating reading. Read Across America is sponsored by the National Education Association and the California Teachers Association along with many of the country’s leading literacy and youth groups to motivate children to read and generate new enthusiasm for reading. VTA will be presenting a Proclamation to the School Board at the February 17th meeting. Please have your site coordinator contact Diane, VTA secretary, to arrange for bookmarks, pencils or other supplies we have available. I will be out visiting school sites as a guest reader and I am arranging for other guest readers.
Evaluations
At this time in the school year all of our teachers are being evaluated or meeting with their administrators to discuss their final goals meeting. If you have any questions about the process or concerns about your evaluation please contact your site rep or the VTA office. All evaluation procedures are outlined in the VTA contract in Article 26. You can find the contract on our website www.vistata.org or on the District website. I have included some of the important sequence below but for the full text please reference your contract.
“26.1.1 The Sequence of Evaluation Events for Permanent Certificated Staff: ….
26.1.1.3 The evaluator's(s') suggested time and date for the first conference.
26.1.1.4 Instructions to the effect that the evaluatee's goals and objectives and any other pertinent material(s) are to be submitted to the evaluator(s) five (5) working days prior to the first conference.
26.1.1.5 Instructions regarding specific constraints and support requirements that affect the achievement of his/her goals should be enumerated by the evaluatee at the time these goals and objectives are established.
26.1.1.6 All sites will furnish a copy of the District evaluation form to the evaluatee to be used for the purpose of stating the goals of the evaluatee and for
enumerating specific constraints and support requirements that would affect achievement.
26.1.1.7 No later than October 10, the employee and evaluator(s) will determine the date of the first conference.
26.1.1.8 The employee will submit goals and other materials deemed pertinent by the employee to evaluator(s) five (5) working days prior to the conference. ….
26.1.1.6 For employees being evaluated, at least one appraisal visit shall be made to monitor progress. An appraisal visit is an observation of the evaluatee's performance of his/her duties including the goals agreed to at the first conference. The evaluatee will receive within five (5) days of the appraisal visit a written copy of the completed form used in the appraisal visit by the evaluator(s). The evaluatee shall have the right to attach his/her written response to the original copy of the completed appraisal visit form.
26.1.1.7 In the event a possible unsatisfactory evaluation is anticipated, such appraisals and evaluation will be completed prior to December 1.
26.1.1.8 A second conference will be held on or before May 1 at which time the Evaluation Summary will be completed. “
Thank you,
Barbara Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
760-758-2690
As I sat at the Board meeting on February 10th I was overwhelmed by the community support for the schools on the list to close. Hundreds of parents, teachers, students and community members came out to speak on behalf of their schools. It is an emotional and tough decision that must be made by the School Board. It is difficult to lose any school and the ties between staff and the families are close. It is like losing a close and dear friend. The fear of the unknown and unfamiliar is difficult for adults but for students it is confusing and disturbing.
For our members, many will be uprooted from their schools where they have taught for 10, 15 or 20 years. How can we embrace our members and help them with their new schools, positions and the transitions that will take place? If you receive teachers from Crestview or Olive please be kind to them, sympathetic and welcoming as they join your staff. I met with the staff at Crestview on Friday morning and we are working with them to help move through the process. I will set up a time and day to also meet with the teachers at Olive. VTA will work with these teachers as they move through the process of transferring. The process discussed with the District is posted below.
Teacher Transfers
Steps for involuntary transferring of teachers:
* Identify staff needing to be put back in previous assignment. (Article 21.3.6)
* Identify teachers who are temporary and will be released.
* Identify teachers who are retiring.
* Identify staff needing to be transferred based on school closures/repurposing
* Determine open positions to greatest extent possible (teachers follow students)
* School sites with opening based on temporary or retiring teachers status
* CV students would most likely go to BH, HA and BE
* OL students will move on to the Washington Middle School campus and the teachers would move with the school.
* Seniority and credential will determine the transfers of teachers
* Staff to be transferred to preferred site (to greatest extent possible)
* Staff to be notified by May 7th. Due to the unusual circumstances and the need to pack and move to a new site teachers need to be notified early to prepare for new assignment.
* District will furnish boxes for teacher materials and arrange transfer of teacher materials to new school site within one week of the end of the school year.
* Once all displaced teachers are assigned a 2011-2012 position, return to Article 21 of the contract to fill open positions.
Green Track/High School Pay
* As many of you know many Green Track/High School teachers have been paid a month behind the fiscal year since K-8 went to year round. VTA leadership and the Bargaining Team have tried to have the District make up this one-month pay period for years. Last week the District sent out an email to the teachers affected by the pay check issue. This email started with “Congratulations” as if the District was graciously offering to pay. The truth is that STRS informed the District that they could not hold back the one month pay and if they continued this practice STRS would begin imposing large fines. We will keep you informed as we continue our investigation into the issue.
* As the District stated, the teachers will receive their months back pay in July. If you are not sure if you are owed this pay there is a form to submit inquiries to payroll. Your office manager can get it for you. We will investigate what this means for individual STRS, insurance and pay issues.
State Council Report
* CTA State Council met in Los Angeles February 4-6 for their quarterly meeting. State Council voted to work with Governor Jerry Brown’s administration to assist in passing the extension of the current taxes. If the legislature puts the issue before the voters in June it will help with the cuts to Public Education.
* A veteran teacher and counselor from Davis will be the new president of the 325,000-member California Teachers Association. Delegates elected Dean E. Vogel in Los Angeles Saturday, as part of the quarterly State Council of Education meetings. He will replace current CTA President David A. Sanchez in July. Vogel's election was unanimous.
* David A. Sanchez, president of the 325,000 member California Teachers Association released the following statement today regarding the findings of a major study by the National Education Policy Center condemning the methodology and conclusions of a Los Angeles Times analysis of individual teacher effectiveness in the Los Angeles Unified School District.
"This study confirms what educators have been saying since the Los Angeles Times first published their deeply flawed and irresponsible ratings of LAUSD teachers. Not only did the Times use their own highly inaccurate "value-added" method of data collection, but they then made bad conclusions from bad data and published it for the world to see. The effectiveness of a teacher cannot be measured by one or two standardized test scores and the Times did a great disservice to all educators by reducing something so multifaceted and complex to something so simplistic. CTA hopes that others who have considered following the Times' example will take this new report and its conclusions seriously, and that the Times will act with much greater caution and concern in the future before it ever again considers needlessly and wrongly besmirching thousands of dedicated education professionals."
* This is important for Vista Teachers Association because many Vista Board members have stated they would like to use the Value Added Method to evaluate teachers. This is a highly flawed system and we need to be vigilant and protect our careers by not allowing the District to use Value added method for teacher evaluations.
Read Across America
Read Across America is a national day celebrating reading. Read Across America is sponsored by the National Education Association and the California Teachers Association along with many of the country’s leading literacy and youth groups to motivate children to read and generate new enthusiasm for reading. VTA will be presenting a Proclamation to the School Board at the February 17th meeting. Please have your site coordinator contact Diane, VTA secretary, to arrange for bookmarks, pencils or other supplies we have available. I will be out visiting school sites as a guest reader and I am arranging for other guest readers.
Evaluations
At this time in the school year all of our teachers are being evaluated or meeting with their administrators to discuss their final goals meeting. If you have any questions about the process or concerns about your evaluation please contact your site rep or the VTA office. All evaluation procedures are outlined in the VTA contract in Article 26. You can find the contract on our website www.vistata.org or on the District website. I have included some of the important sequence below but for the full text please reference your contract.
“26.1.1 The Sequence of Evaluation Events for Permanent Certificated Staff: ….
26.1.1.3 The evaluator's(s') suggested time and date for the first conference.
26.1.1.4 Instructions to the effect that the evaluatee's goals and objectives and any other pertinent material(s) are to be submitted to the evaluator(s) five (5) working days prior to the first conference.
26.1.1.5 Instructions regarding specific constraints and support requirements that affect the achievement of his/her goals should be enumerated by the evaluatee at the time these goals and objectives are established.
26.1.1.6 All sites will furnish a copy of the District evaluation form to the evaluatee to be used for the purpose of stating the goals of the evaluatee and for
enumerating specific constraints and support requirements that would affect achievement.
26.1.1.7 No later than October 10, the employee and evaluator(s) will determine the date of the first conference.
26.1.1.8 The employee will submit goals and other materials deemed pertinent by the employee to evaluator(s) five (5) working days prior to the conference. ….
26.1.1.6 For employees being evaluated, at least one appraisal visit shall be made to monitor progress. An appraisal visit is an observation of the evaluatee's performance of his/her duties including the goals agreed to at the first conference. The evaluatee will receive within five (5) days of the appraisal visit a written copy of the completed form used in the appraisal visit by the evaluator(s). The evaluatee shall have the right to attach his/her written response to the original copy of the completed appraisal visit form.
26.1.1.7 In the event a possible unsatisfactory evaluation is anticipated, such appraisals and evaluation will be completed prior to December 1.
26.1.1.8 A second conference will be held on or before May 1 at which time the Evaluation Summary will be completed. “
Thank you,
Barbara Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
760-758-2690
President's Message 01.10.11
Happy New Year!
Hopefully you were all able to rest, relax and enjoy time with your family and friends. Now that the New Year has begun it seems that everything is moving at a fast pace. The new governor of California has put out his budget proposal for next year. Hopefully his goals will be realized and they will help California Public Schools. Below is a synopsis of Governor Brown’s proposed budget.
Governor Proposes Balanced Solutions to Close the Budget Gap
In a significant departure from his predecessor's approach to solving Budget shortfalls, Governor Jerry Brown unveiled a State Budget plan that relies on both cuts and revenues in roughly equal proportions to achieve a balanced Budget. While former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger was guided by the view that the state had an expenditure problem, not a revenue problem, Governor Brown's Budget proposal calls for $12 billion in revenues and $12.5 billion in cuts, along with an estimated $1.9 billion in "other solutions" to cover a $25.4 billion shortfall and fund a $1 billion reserve. There are more details and information available at the following website: http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/BudgetSummary/BSS/BSS.html
VTA is moving
The VTA office is moving on February 1st to the suites 201 and 202 in the same building. We will be moving to the new offices throughout the month of January. We have found that the space we now occupy is too large and in an effort to streamline our budget during these tough economic times we looked at ways to save money. We will be available for questions and meetings during this time and hope to keep disruptions to a minimum.
Political Action Training March 6-8, 2011
CTA will host a Region IV political academy at the Temecula Creek Inn. This is an opportunity to expand your skills and knowledge in order to win local school board elections. Sessions will include: long term chapter planning and leadership development, communications, candidate recruitment, developing a budget and how to write effective messages. If you are interested in attending please contact Barbara Franklin at vistateachers@gmail.com
Read Across America
Serve Up a Good Book!
March 2, 2011
The theme for Read Across America 2011 is “Serve Up a Good Book!” Gobble up the spicy fun for some tasty reading and join Miss Billie Armadilly, Tex the tarantula, Mackie the bluebird and Taffy the horned toad – characters created by award-winning illustrator Will Terry. Get cookin’ and be a part of the fun celebration! This year's activities include breakfast read-ins, book drives and chili cook-offs.
Middle School credentialing
Many rumors have been circulating about middle school teachers credentialing. There will be information coming to each teacher at the middle schools. If you have specific questions about your credential you may contact Suzanne Shada at the District Office.
Bargaining Issues
All VTA reps should have gone back to their sites and discussed the contract and issues that should be addressed during negotiations. We will be formulating a bargaining survey based on our members concerns. We are allowed to bargain two issues besides salary and benefits this year.
Facilities Committee
The Facilities Committee has been meeting weekly for months and now their findings are being sent to the School Board. On January 27th the School Board will be looking at their data, findings and developing their plan for closing one or more schools. There have been many rumors flying around the District but it is the School Board that will make the final decision. The meeting will take place at Foothill Oak at 7PM.
Thank you,
Barbara Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
760-758-2690
Hopefully you were all able to rest, relax and enjoy time with your family and friends. Now that the New Year has begun it seems that everything is moving at a fast pace. The new governor of California has put out his budget proposal for next year. Hopefully his goals will be realized and they will help California Public Schools. Below is a synopsis of Governor Brown’s proposed budget.
Governor Proposes Balanced Solutions to Close the Budget Gap
In a significant departure from his predecessor's approach to solving Budget shortfalls, Governor Jerry Brown unveiled a State Budget plan that relies on both cuts and revenues in roughly equal proportions to achieve a balanced Budget. While former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger was guided by the view that the state had an expenditure problem, not a revenue problem, Governor Brown's Budget proposal calls for $12 billion in revenues and $12.5 billion in cuts, along with an estimated $1.9 billion in "other solutions" to cover a $25.4 billion shortfall and fund a $1 billion reserve. There are more details and information available at the following website: http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/BudgetSummary/BSS/BSS.html
VTA is moving
The VTA office is moving on February 1st to the suites 201 and 202 in the same building. We will be moving to the new offices throughout the month of January. We have found that the space we now occupy is too large and in an effort to streamline our budget during these tough economic times we looked at ways to save money. We will be available for questions and meetings during this time and hope to keep disruptions to a minimum.
Political Action Training March 6-8, 2011
CTA will host a Region IV political academy at the Temecula Creek Inn. This is an opportunity to expand your skills and knowledge in order to win local school board elections. Sessions will include: long term chapter planning and leadership development, communications, candidate recruitment, developing a budget and how to write effective messages. If you are interested in attending please contact Barbara Franklin at vistateachers@gmail.com
Read Across America
Serve Up a Good Book!
March 2, 2011
The theme for Read Across America 2011 is “Serve Up a Good Book!” Gobble up the spicy fun for some tasty reading and join Miss Billie Armadilly, Tex the tarantula, Mackie the bluebird and Taffy the horned toad – characters created by award-winning illustrator Will Terry. Get cookin’ and be a part of the fun celebration! This year's activities include breakfast read-ins, book drives and chili cook-offs.
Middle School credentialing
Many rumors have been circulating about middle school teachers credentialing. There will be information coming to each teacher at the middle schools. If you have specific questions about your credential you may contact Suzanne Shada at the District Office.
Bargaining Issues
All VTA reps should have gone back to their sites and discussed the contract and issues that should be addressed during negotiations. We will be formulating a bargaining survey based on our members concerns. We are allowed to bargain two issues besides salary and benefits this year.
Facilities Committee
The Facilities Committee has been meeting weekly for months and now their findings are being sent to the School Board. On January 27th the School Board will be looking at their data, findings and developing their plan for closing one or more schools. There have been many rumors flying around the District but it is the School Board that will make the final decision. The meeting will take place at Foothill Oak at 7PM.
Thank you,
Barbara Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
760-758-2690
President's Message 11.30.10
Movie: Race to Nowhere
Read about a new movie that challenges the current movie “Waiting for Superman.”
Director Vicki Abeles turns the personal political, igniting a national conversation in her new documentary about the pressures faced by American schoolchildren and their teachers in a system and culture obsessed with the illusion of achievement, competition and the pressure to perform. Featuring the heartbreaking stories of young people across the country who have been pushed to the brink, educators who are burned out and worried that students aren’t developing the skills they need, and parents who are trying to do what’s best for their kids, Race to Nowhere points to the silent epidemic in our schools: cheating has become commonplace, students have become disengaged, stress-related illness, depression and burnout are rampant, and young people arrive at college and the workplace unprepared and uninspired.
Race to Nowhere is a call to mobilize families, educators, and policy makers to challenge current assumptions on how to best prepare the youth of America to become healthy, bright, contributing and leading citizens.
http://www.racetonowhere.com/
Temporary Teachers
Myrna Vallely and I will be meeting this week to discuss the move of temporary teachers to permanent status. There are very few positions available for movement to permanent status. This is an on-going frustration for our temporary teachers and I will continue to work to move teachers to permanent status.
CTA State Council Meeting
Kindergarten legislation/ Kindergarten Readiness act of 2010-important legislation that passed/ please take a moment to read about how the plan will work.
Kindergarten Readiness Act of 2010 (Transitional Kindergarten) - SB 1381 (Simitian)
Transitional kindergarten will become the first year of a two-year kindergarten program and will use a modified kindergarten curriculum. Serving 4-year-olds whom are currently eligible to attend kindergarten. These students will turn five-years old on or before December 2nd of each school year.
All eligible four-year olds that would be phased into an earlier start date must either be served through transitional kindergarten or must continue to be served in a traditional kindergarten program until a transitional kindergarten program is established within their school district.
Transitional kindergarten students will generate ADA, as will current kindergarten students. Students that attend both transitional and traditional kindergarten will be able to generate no more than two years of ADA.
School districts are required to offer transitional kindergarten which will be phased in over a three year period for children that will turn five years old by the following dates:
* December 2 of the 2011-12 school year;
* November 1 of the 2012-13 school year;
* October 1 of the 2013-14 school year, and;
* September 1 of the 2014 school year and each year thereafter.
Local school boards will be able to continue admitting five year old students on a case-by-case basis to traditional kindergarten program at any time during the school year.
While this bill does require local districts to offer transitional kindergarten after the phase-in period, it does not mandate that children participate in either transitional or traditional kindergarten.
Health Care & Benefits Issues- Beginning in your December pay check you will notice the difference in the deduction for your health premium. Please check it over to make sure you are enrolled in the correct program.
Check your pay stub
Many of you are to receive stipends for department chairs or masters’ degrees or sports stipends make sure you check over your pay stubs occasionally. I recently found out I was being paid the correct step and column but was not receiving my masters’ stipend. We all need to be pro-active and double check the work of the District.
Bargaining
The VTA bargaining team will be meeting in January to design a survey for members and plan our sessions with the District team. There are many issues to discuss and we want and need your input.
Vote of No Confidence in Joyce Bales
The VTA Executive Board and Rep Council voted to continue our action for the Vote of No Confidence in our Superintendent. At the November School Board meeting I spoke about the lack of educational leadership in our District and another teacher spoke. We will continue actions throughout the school year. The speech I delivered is included on our website and I will include it in a separate email to every member of VTA.
Program Improvement School Status
As many of you know Vista has seven schools in year 5 Program Improvement. These schools have been directed to form DSLT (District/School Liaison Teams) to follow the protocols developed by the California Department of Education to come up with corrective action recommendations. These recommendations will then go to the VUSD Executive Team which in turn will submit their recommendations to the School Board. The VTA Executive Board is involved on the teams at each school site and we will follow the process closely. Any corrective action developed or recommended must include the Association and must be bargained. If you have any questions or concerns please don’t hesitate to email or call at 760-758-2690 or vistateachers@gmail.com .
Miscellaneous:
Art Festival: Thank you to Nickie Rail and all the teachers and students who helped at the Art Festival. The VTA booth was a great success.
Wishing all of you and your families a happy and restful Holiday break. The school year is moving along quickly and it is easy to forget to take time for ourselves and our loved ones. The pressure of doing more and more with less can overwhelm each of us at times. During your holiday break take the time to connect with loved ones, old friends or new, pamper yourself and enjoy your well deserved break.
Happy New Year!
Read about a new movie that challenges the current movie “Waiting for Superman.”
Director Vicki Abeles turns the personal political, igniting a national conversation in her new documentary about the pressures faced by American schoolchildren and their teachers in a system and culture obsessed with the illusion of achievement, competition and the pressure to perform. Featuring the heartbreaking stories of young people across the country who have been pushed to the brink, educators who are burned out and worried that students aren’t developing the skills they need, and parents who are trying to do what’s best for their kids, Race to Nowhere points to the silent epidemic in our schools: cheating has become commonplace, students have become disengaged, stress-related illness, depression and burnout are rampant, and young people arrive at college and the workplace unprepared and uninspired.
Race to Nowhere is a call to mobilize families, educators, and policy makers to challenge current assumptions on how to best prepare the youth of America to become healthy, bright, contributing and leading citizens.
http://www.racetonowhere.com/
Temporary Teachers
Myrna Vallely and I will be meeting this week to discuss the move of temporary teachers to permanent status. There are very few positions available for movement to permanent status. This is an on-going frustration for our temporary teachers and I will continue to work to move teachers to permanent status.
CTA State Council Meeting
Kindergarten legislation/ Kindergarten Readiness act of 2010-important legislation that passed/ please take a moment to read about how the plan will work.
Kindergarten Readiness Act of 2010 (Transitional Kindergarten) - SB 1381 (Simitian)
Transitional kindergarten will become the first year of a two-year kindergarten program and will use a modified kindergarten curriculum. Serving 4-year-olds whom are currently eligible to attend kindergarten. These students will turn five-years old on or before December 2nd of each school year.
All eligible four-year olds that would be phased into an earlier start date must either be served through transitional kindergarten or must continue to be served in a traditional kindergarten program until a transitional kindergarten program is established within their school district.
Transitional kindergarten students will generate ADA, as will current kindergarten students. Students that attend both transitional and traditional kindergarten will be able to generate no more than two years of ADA.
School districts are required to offer transitional kindergarten which will be phased in over a three year period for children that will turn five years old by the following dates:
* December 2 of the 2011-12 school year;
* November 1 of the 2012-13 school year;
* October 1 of the 2013-14 school year, and;
* September 1 of the 2014 school year and each year thereafter.
Local school boards will be able to continue admitting five year old students on a case-by-case basis to traditional kindergarten program at any time during the school year.
While this bill does require local districts to offer transitional kindergarten after the phase-in period, it does not mandate that children participate in either transitional or traditional kindergarten.
Health Care & Benefits Issues- Beginning in your December pay check you will notice the difference in the deduction for your health premium. Please check it over to make sure you are enrolled in the correct program.
Check your pay stub
Many of you are to receive stipends for department chairs or masters’ degrees or sports stipends make sure you check over your pay stubs occasionally. I recently found out I was being paid the correct step and column but was not receiving my masters’ stipend. We all need to be pro-active and double check the work of the District.
Bargaining
The VTA bargaining team will be meeting in January to design a survey for members and plan our sessions with the District team. There are many issues to discuss and we want and need your input.
Vote of No Confidence in Joyce Bales
The VTA Executive Board and Rep Council voted to continue our action for the Vote of No Confidence in our Superintendent. At the November School Board meeting I spoke about the lack of educational leadership in our District and another teacher spoke. We will continue actions throughout the school year. The speech I delivered is included on our website and I will include it in a separate email to every member of VTA.
Program Improvement School Status
As many of you know Vista has seven schools in year 5 Program Improvement. These schools have been directed to form DSLT (District/School Liaison Teams) to follow the protocols developed by the California Department of Education to come up with corrective action recommendations. These recommendations will then go to the VUSD Executive Team which in turn will submit their recommendations to the School Board. The VTA Executive Board is involved on the teams at each school site and we will follow the process closely. Any corrective action developed or recommended must include the Association and must be bargained. If you have any questions or concerns please don’t hesitate to email or call at 760-758-2690 or vistateachers@gmail.com .
Miscellaneous:
Art Festival: Thank you to Nickie Rail and all the teachers and students who helped at the Art Festival. The VTA booth was a great success.
Wishing all of you and your families a happy and restful Holiday break. The school year is moving along quickly and it is easy to forget to take time for ourselves and our loved ones. The pressure of doing more and more with less can overwhelm each of us at times. During your holiday break take the time to connect with loved ones, old friends or new, pamper yourself and enjoy your well deserved break.
Happy New Year!
President's Message 10.15.10
As we’ve settled into our eighth week of school…..learning our student’s names, dealing with larger class sizes, early release Wednesdays, administering our first common assessments, formerly benchmark exams, we realize that the challenges we face as educators and union members make our jobs more daunting and difficult. As we enter our classrooms though, the amazing learning and instruction going on is phenomenal. I have been to every school site and met personally with each Principal. I am now in the process of returning to each school site to have VTA meetings with all staff members. I have witnessed firsthand the hard work going on at each of our school sites. Keep up the good work!
Vistans Roc
VTA sponsored a house on Saturday, October 9th for the Vistans ROC community clean-up program. Thanks to our house captain, Erin Dayus, it was a big success.
Bargaining Update
The bargaining team will be meeting with the District on October 19th to discuss the Education Jobs Reform bill and the monies our District will receive. We will send out an update as soon as possible. American Fidelity will be coming to each school site to conduct an audit of members and their dependents. There will be a sub provided at each school site to make sure each teacher has an opportunity to meet with the representative. You should have already received a flyer explaining what you need to bring to verify your dependents. If you have any questions or concerns please contact Jarrod Madrusso at jarrodmadrusson@vusd.k12.ca.us He will be able to answer your questions.
PLC and Collaboration
There has been some confusion about the requirements for agendas and minutes during K-12 collaboration times. The Leadership teams should be writing the agendas together. Department members, grade level leaders or teaching partners can then write up minutes stating what they worked on or accomplished. These do not need to be laborious just short notes can be sufficient. These minutes should be submitted to your site administrator. If you have any questions or concerns please contact your site rep.
State Council Election
The results for State Council are completed and Rosemary Smithfield is the new representative to the CTA State Council.
K-5 class size issues
According to our contract we have class size limits for all grade levels. There are many sites where students are being pushed in or pulled out for intervention or for ELD instruction. When these events occur it puts classes over the cap. This is not acceptable! Please have your site rep file a “Class size notification form” with your principal. We are trying to work with the District so that teachers are not expected to instruct 36-40 students. If you have any questions please contact your site rep or email VTA at vistateachers@gmail.com
Miscellaneous
VUSD Art Festival: October 24th, 10-4 at the Vista Village Center/Krikorian Center. The Vista Teachers Association will have a table at the festival to engage students in art projects. If you would like to participate for an hour or two contact Nickie Rail, VTA secretary, at nicoletterail@vusd.k12.ca.us . If you can’t help out please try to attend the festival to witness the artistic and musical talent of our students.
Thank you,
Barbara Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
760-758-2690
Vistans Roc
VTA sponsored a house on Saturday, October 9th for the Vistans ROC community clean-up program. Thanks to our house captain, Erin Dayus, it was a big success.
Bargaining Update
The bargaining team will be meeting with the District on October 19th to discuss the Education Jobs Reform bill and the monies our District will receive. We will send out an update as soon as possible. American Fidelity will be coming to each school site to conduct an audit of members and their dependents. There will be a sub provided at each school site to make sure each teacher has an opportunity to meet with the representative. You should have already received a flyer explaining what you need to bring to verify your dependents. If you have any questions or concerns please contact Jarrod Madrusso at jarrodmadrusson@vusd.k12.ca.us He will be able to answer your questions.
PLC and Collaboration
There has been some confusion about the requirements for agendas and minutes during K-12 collaboration times. The Leadership teams should be writing the agendas together. Department members, grade level leaders or teaching partners can then write up minutes stating what they worked on or accomplished. These do not need to be laborious just short notes can be sufficient. These minutes should be submitted to your site administrator. If you have any questions or concerns please contact your site rep.
State Council Election
The results for State Council are completed and Rosemary Smithfield is the new representative to the CTA State Council.
K-5 class size issues
According to our contract we have class size limits for all grade levels. There are many sites where students are being pushed in or pulled out for intervention or for ELD instruction. When these events occur it puts classes over the cap. This is not acceptable! Please have your site rep file a “Class size notification form” with your principal. We are trying to work with the District so that teachers are not expected to instruct 36-40 students. If you have any questions please contact your site rep or email VTA at vistateachers@gmail.com
Miscellaneous
VUSD Art Festival: October 24th, 10-4 at the Vista Village Center/Krikorian Center. The Vista Teachers Association will have a table at the festival to engage students in art projects. If you would like to participate for an hour or two contact Nickie Rail, VTA secretary, at nicoletterail@vusd.k12.ca.us . If you can’t help out please try to attend the festival to witness the artistic and musical talent of our students.
Thank you,
Barbara Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
760-758-2690
President's Message 08.31.10
Dear Colleagues,
The beginning of the new school year has begun and I hope that each of you are enjoying getting to know your new students, settling into routines and making connections with your fellow teachers. Each new school year is like a fresh start and the excitement of the first few weeks is palpable. I have been on many of the campuses and have enjoyed going into classrooms, talking with principals and students. I am especially impressed with our Kindergarten teachers. They take these very young children and within the first week they teach them the basics of school; how to walk quietly in a straight line, sit on their spot, listen and order their lunch. It is amazing how well they work with these students.
Along with the excitement of the new school year there are always some problems that occur early in the school year. The main concern is the classes that are over contract. We have good news and bad news, we have more students than projected this year but the bad news is that more classes are over caseload. School Site VTA Reps should have submitted “Class size notification forms” to their principals last week. If you need more forms we can get them for you. This notification begins the timeline for solving the problem. The following information is the section of the contract that explains the process and timeline. I wanted all teachers to have it as a reference.
Article 20.1.6 In the event that any individual class size exceeds the appropriate class size maximum for a period of two (2) consecutive days, the classroom teacher or VTA Representative shall notify the site administrator on the negotiated District form.
20.1.7 The principal shall propose a resolution in the class size problem within five (5) days or notify the teacher and the District administration that a resolution on site is not feasible. In the event the District is notified, the District administration will meet with the school principal and affected staff within ten (10) days to discuss options and resolve the problem. These options shall include but not be limited to those listed below.
a. Reassignment or rescheduling of students.
b. Hiring of additional staff.
c. Initiating action to provide additional classroom space.
d. Reassignment of staff.
20.1.8 In the event that a resolution has not been achieved within the time lines specified herein, Articles 20.1.6 and 20.1.7 take the place of Levels I and II of the grievance process and the Association may file a grievance at Level III.
Your VTA reps and Executive Board are working to try to resolve the class size problems quickly and efficiently. We know it is disruptive for students as well as teachers. We all want to help with the situations that occur at our sites but it is important that we protect the rights of all teachers and students. No one teacher should agree to take on additional students to solve a problem for the school. We are professionals who often take on more than we can because it is our nature. We have a contract to protect your rights and we will work within its language. Please be patient as we work through the timeline and let me know if you have any additional concerns.
For teachers in grades 1-3 the class size maximum is 24 not 25 as you may have been told. If you have 25 students in your class please submit a class size notification form to your principal. Let me know if you would your rep to submit the form for you.
As we move through the next few weeks I would like to take the time to visit every school site and meet with all of our members. My goal is to visit each site within the next three months. I wish you all a very productive, happy and calm school year.
Thank you,
Barbara Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
769-758-2690
The beginning of the new school year has begun and I hope that each of you are enjoying getting to know your new students, settling into routines and making connections with your fellow teachers. Each new school year is like a fresh start and the excitement of the first few weeks is palpable. I have been on many of the campuses and have enjoyed going into classrooms, talking with principals and students. I am especially impressed with our Kindergarten teachers. They take these very young children and within the first week they teach them the basics of school; how to walk quietly in a straight line, sit on their spot, listen and order their lunch. It is amazing how well they work with these students.
Along with the excitement of the new school year there are always some problems that occur early in the school year. The main concern is the classes that are over contract. We have good news and bad news, we have more students than projected this year but the bad news is that more classes are over caseload. School Site VTA Reps should have submitted “Class size notification forms” to their principals last week. If you need more forms we can get them for you. This notification begins the timeline for solving the problem. The following information is the section of the contract that explains the process and timeline. I wanted all teachers to have it as a reference.
Article 20.1.6 In the event that any individual class size exceeds the appropriate class size maximum for a period of two (2) consecutive days, the classroom teacher or VTA Representative shall notify the site administrator on the negotiated District form.
20.1.7 The principal shall propose a resolution in the class size problem within five (5) days or notify the teacher and the District administration that a resolution on site is not feasible. In the event the District is notified, the District administration will meet with the school principal and affected staff within ten (10) days to discuss options and resolve the problem. These options shall include but not be limited to those listed below.
a. Reassignment or rescheduling of students.
b. Hiring of additional staff.
c. Initiating action to provide additional classroom space.
d. Reassignment of staff.
20.1.8 In the event that a resolution has not been achieved within the time lines specified herein, Articles 20.1.6 and 20.1.7 take the place of Levels I and II of the grievance process and the Association may file a grievance at Level III.
Your VTA reps and Executive Board are working to try to resolve the class size problems quickly and efficiently. We know it is disruptive for students as well as teachers. We all want to help with the situations that occur at our sites but it is important that we protect the rights of all teachers and students. No one teacher should agree to take on additional students to solve a problem for the school. We are professionals who often take on more than we can because it is our nature. We have a contract to protect your rights and we will work within its language. Please be patient as we work through the timeline and let me know if you have any additional concerns.
For teachers in grades 1-3 the class size maximum is 24 not 25 as you may have been told. If you have 25 students in your class please submit a class size notification form to your principal. Let me know if you would your rep to submit the form for you.
As we move through the next few weeks I would like to take the time to visit every school site and meet with all of our members. My goal is to visit each site within the next three months. I wish you all a very productive, happy and calm school year.
Thank you,
Barbara Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
769-758-2690
President's Message 08.17.10
Dear Colleagues,
Welcome Back!
Hopefully you have all been resting, relaxing and reconnecting with family and friends this summer. My name is Barbara Franklin and I am your new VTA President. I have been a teacher in Vista for 14 years and I was most recently the technology teacher at Vista Magnet Middle School.
I began my work as your new VTA President by attending a variety of training conferences this summer. I am working hard at continuing to develop all the skills needed to be the best president for VTA. I would like to begin making connections with all school sites by visiting every school within the first three months of school. I am interested in what you have to say and your vision for the union as well as the role you see yourself playing in that vision. What do you believe we should be focusing on together during these tough economic times? Hopefully these site visitations will be the first step in answering this question.
I believe we are the most important factor in the lives of our students in each and every school. We fought hard together to get a contract after three long years and it was not an easy task, but together we helped the community and VUSD Board recognize our commitment to one another, our profession and our students. We teach the children, we work with parents and the community to make a difference. We teach because we care but we deserve to be treated with respect and I look forward to continuing to work with our Board to make those positive differences in the lives of students. I want to thank all of you again for your demonstration of unity, strength and dedication to quality education in our district.
Some things to consider as the new school year begins:
* Thursday, August 19, 2010 is a Buy Back Day
* Friday, August 20, 2010 is a staff Development day and your administrator is allowed to have a 90 minute meeting and the rest of the day is for your classroom preparation
* Make sure you are an active member of VTA. If you are not sure contact the VTA secretary, Diane Phillips, at 760-758-2690. * Check the VTA website www.vistata.org for updates and information throughout the year. We are also interested in putting your activities, events and happenings at your site on the website.
* For issues and concerns at your site please contact your site rep.
* If you have any issues or concerns that are urgent please call the VTA office or email vistateachers@gmail.com or barbara49@gmail.com. I check my email throughout the day and will get back to you within 24 hours.
Let us continue to work together so that we can once again say with pride: “Vista, no better place to learn.” Together we can accomplish amazing things. Please let me know what I can do for you, your school and your students to make VTA your association.
Here’s to a great school year for all of us!
Sincerely,
Barbara J. Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
760-758-2690 barbara49@gmail.com
Welcome Back!
Hopefully you have all been resting, relaxing and reconnecting with family and friends this summer. My name is Barbara Franklin and I am your new VTA President. I have been a teacher in Vista for 14 years and I was most recently the technology teacher at Vista Magnet Middle School.
I began my work as your new VTA President by attending a variety of training conferences this summer. I am working hard at continuing to develop all the skills needed to be the best president for VTA. I would like to begin making connections with all school sites by visiting every school within the first three months of school. I am interested in what you have to say and your vision for the union as well as the role you see yourself playing in that vision. What do you believe we should be focusing on together during these tough economic times? Hopefully these site visitations will be the first step in answering this question.
I believe we are the most important factor in the lives of our students in each and every school. We fought hard together to get a contract after three long years and it was not an easy task, but together we helped the community and VUSD Board recognize our commitment to one another, our profession and our students. We teach the children, we work with parents and the community to make a difference. We teach because we care but we deserve to be treated with respect and I look forward to continuing to work with our Board to make those positive differences in the lives of students. I want to thank all of you again for your demonstration of unity, strength and dedication to quality education in our district.
Some things to consider as the new school year begins:
* Thursday, August 19, 2010 is a Buy Back Day
* Friday, August 20, 2010 is a staff Development day and your administrator is allowed to have a 90 minute meeting and the rest of the day is for your classroom preparation
* Make sure you are an active member of VTA. If you are not sure contact the VTA secretary, Diane Phillips, at 760-758-2690. * Check the VTA website www.vistata.org for updates and information throughout the year. We are also interested in putting your activities, events and happenings at your site on the website.
* For issues and concerns at your site please contact your site rep.
* If you have any issues or concerns that are urgent please call the VTA office or email vistateachers@gmail.com or barbara49@gmail.com. I check my email throughout the day and will get back to you within 24 hours.
Let us continue to work together so that we can once again say with pride: “Vista, no better place to learn.” Together we can accomplish amazing things. Please let me know what I can do for you, your school and your students to make VTA your association.
Here’s to a great school year for all of us!
Sincerely,
Barbara J. Franklin
President
Vista Teachers Association
760-758-2690 barbara49@gmail.com
VTA President's Message 06.15.10
Dear Colleagues,
The 'Contract Ratification' votes have been counted. Of the 813 ballots cast 81% voted to ratify the contract. Pending approval by the School Board, the contract will take effect July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2013.
Thank you for supporting your Bargaining Team. Enjoy your summer break!
Respectfully,
Jan O' Reilly
VTA President
The 'Contract Ratification' votes have been counted. Of the 813 ballots cast 81% voted to ratify the contract. Pending approval by the School Board, the contract will take effect July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2013.
Thank you for supporting your Bargaining Team. Enjoy your summer break!
Respectfully,
Jan O' Reilly
VTA President
VTA President's Message 02.12.10
Dear Colleagues,
Be sure to visit the Crisis Update section of our website for current information that is pertinent to our members and community.
Please read this speech written by our Barbara Benavidez. It clearly expresses the thoughts and feelings of many VTA members and inspires our call to action.
Sincerely,
Jan O'Reilly
VTA President
Sitting On the Sidelines
Until 3 weeks ago, I had a phobia of public speaking. I would much prefer getting a root canal without Novocain than to speak in front of my peers, let alone the Board and our Superintendent. But I have been pushed to a breaking point and it is no longer an option for me to allow my weaknesses to prevail.
I wanted to speak to you today because I want to apologize to you. I want to say I am sorry for many of the problems we are facing today. I am part of the reason we are facing them. I take 100% responsibility for the part I played in teaching our district office that teachers don’t matter. I have never been interested in getting involved in the union or political matters of the district. I teach. That is my passion and that is all I cared about. We have union reps to do the bargaining for us. That’s what I pay my union dues for. They would time after time ask for the help of the teachers, but I was always too busy. I work full time and have 3 kids at home. I didn’t have time to involve myself.
Our district has never feared the strength of the mass teacher group because there has never been a mass teacher group. In the end of most every negotiation, the teachers would come up short. And what did we do about it in mass? Not a darn thing. We’d go about our individual business and do what we do best.
When I started in the district 30 years ago, Vista had a great reputation. We were a top ranking district and our teachers were well paid. If you taught in Vista, you were lucky.
Today, I hear comments like “The best thing that ever happened to me was to get fired by Vista. I was hired in another district and got a $4,400.00 raise.”
At the last board meeting, Donna Caperton presented charts that implied that Vista was right up there with the rest of the districts with teacher salaries; not at the top, not at the bottom.
I printed out 11 local school district salary schedules. In doing a comparison of the salary for a first year teacher, the difference between the top paying district and Vista is $11, 484. Vista ranks dead last. In the BA + 60 column, the difference between the top salary and Vista is $20, 093. Not even looking at the top salary, if we just go across the road to San Marcos, the difference in salary between San Marcos and Vista is $7,395 and Oceanside $15, 594. And, in the column of the highest pay possible, we are second to last with a difference of $670.
The point is, we weren’t always on the bottom. We are at the bottom because of choices and decisions made by the DO and our Board. This is about priorities (of which we clearly are not.) This isn’t about our district not getting enough money, but how the money has been spent.
Randy Weins eloquently told the board that the exorbitant cost of the LMB program would prevent teachers from getting a raise. They obviously did not care. They also thought it was more important to redecorate the district office and invest in furniture. And our board saw more value in hiring a superintendent for over a quarter of a million dollars with a car allowance and a very nice benefit package. I don’t know about you, but I don’t see the superintendent teaching Johnny how to read!
I’ve said this before, but it is worth repeating for those of you who don’t know this. A few years ago, the DO Administrators decided that their salary was not up to par with our neighboring districts. They decided they needed a raise and gave themselves an unprecedented raise never before seen in this district, the lowest being 14 % and the highest, depending on who I talk with, varies between 24 – 26%. The highest doesn’t matter; they lost me at 14%. The board approved the raises.
There is something systemically very wrong when the DO places such a high value on themselves and such a low value on teachers, and for the board to go along with this type of thinking.
Over the last 30 years, I think the highest raise we have ever received is 5%, but usually either 1-2%, or no raise at all. Or, if we do get a raise, they take it away with the other hand by raising the cost of benefits. There was one year that the state gave a special allotment of money to school districts for pay raises in which teachers received a raise of 10% or higher. When all other districts received their raise, our district made us work 3 extra days for this money (hence, the Buy Back Days) to earn our 10 %. So in essence, we did not get at 10% raise.
If we are insignificant to the very people we entrust our livelihood to, then it is up to us to show them we matter.
With very few exceptions, along with parents, the teacher is the vehicle that drives students towards their goals in life. Every educated person, every doctor, every judge, every president, has become who they are through the nurturing, wisdom and lessons provided by teachers. Their livelihood made possible due to the planning and dedication of teachers.
We are the backbone of society. We are important and we do matter. The time has come for us to take a stand.
At the last board meeting, Christina Cross, the head counselor at RBV, presented her case as to why they should not cut a counselor from each high school. When it was time to discuss that item, the two counselors were cut. All of the RBV counselors stood together in unison and walked out in front of the board. Before the evening was over, they decided to revisit this issue before making their final decision.
At the board meeting before that, teachers, parents and students from Mission Vista High school also spoke out in great numbers to keep the 4 x 4 schedule. The district is proposing this cut. To date, the board has not cut the 4 x 4 schedule. The collective voices were heard.
Last week, I begged the board to keep the cuts away from the classroom. Today I beg you to get involved and stand united. On February 15th, we must all be at the district office before the mediator shows up and walks through those doors. She needs to see. She needs to know. And that job belongs to all of you. Bring your families, bring your friends, tell your student’s parents. If every one of us brings one person, we will double in size.
If you look around this room, you will see that many of your colleagues are missing. We need you to convince each teacher to stand united with us. Let them know if we continue doing what we’ve always done, we will continue getting what we’ve always been given. Little to nothing! We need to change our level of involvement.
This is a Unified District. Let’s show them what that means. What letter does unified begin with? That’s right, “U” and it will take each and every one of you to stand together to show our district we matter.
Be sure to visit the Crisis Update section of our website for current information that is pertinent to our members and community.
Please read this speech written by our Barbara Benavidez. It clearly expresses the thoughts and feelings of many VTA members and inspires our call to action.
Sincerely,
Jan O'Reilly
VTA President
Sitting On the Sidelines
Until 3 weeks ago, I had a phobia of public speaking. I would much prefer getting a root canal without Novocain than to speak in front of my peers, let alone the Board and our Superintendent. But I have been pushed to a breaking point and it is no longer an option for me to allow my weaknesses to prevail.
I wanted to speak to you today because I want to apologize to you. I want to say I am sorry for many of the problems we are facing today. I am part of the reason we are facing them. I take 100% responsibility for the part I played in teaching our district office that teachers don’t matter. I have never been interested in getting involved in the union or political matters of the district. I teach. That is my passion and that is all I cared about. We have union reps to do the bargaining for us. That’s what I pay my union dues for. They would time after time ask for the help of the teachers, but I was always too busy. I work full time and have 3 kids at home. I didn’t have time to involve myself.
Our district has never feared the strength of the mass teacher group because there has never been a mass teacher group. In the end of most every negotiation, the teachers would come up short. And what did we do about it in mass? Not a darn thing. We’d go about our individual business and do what we do best.
When I started in the district 30 years ago, Vista had a great reputation. We were a top ranking district and our teachers were well paid. If you taught in Vista, you were lucky.
Today, I hear comments like “The best thing that ever happened to me was to get fired by Vista. I was hired in another district and got a $4,400.00 raise.”
At the last board meeting, Donna Caperton presented charts that implied that Vista was right up there with the rest of the districts with teacher salaries; not at the top, not at the bottom.
I printed out 11 local school district salary schedules. In doing a comparison of the salary for a first year teacher, the difference between the top paying district and Vista is $11, 484. Vista ranks dead last. In the BA + 60 column, the difference between the top salary and Vista is $20, 093. Not even looking at the top salary, if we just go across the road to San Marcos, the difference in salary between San Marcos and Vista is $7,395 and Oceanside $15, 594. And, in the column of the highest pay possible, we are second to last with a difference of $670.
The point is, we weren’t always on the bottom. We are at the bottom because of choices and decisions made by the DO and our Board. This is about priorities (of which we clearly are not.) This isn’t about our district not getting enough money, but how the money has been spent.
Randy Weins eloquently told the board that the exorbitant cost of the LMB program would prevent teachers from getting a raise. They obviously did not care. They also thought it was more important to redecorate the district office and invest in furniture. And our board saw more value in hiring a superintendent for over a quarter of a million dollars with a car allowance and a very nice benefit package. I don’t know about you, but I don’t see the superintendent teaching Johnny how to read!
I’ve said this before, but it is worth repeating for those of you who don’t know this. A few years ago, the DO Administrators decided that their salary was not up to par with our neighboring districts. They decided they needed a raise and gave themselves an unprecedented raise never before seen in this district, the lowest being 14 % and the highest, depending on who I talk with, varies between 24 – 26%. The highest doesn’t matter; they lost me at 14%. The board approved the raises.
There is something systemically very wrong when the DO places such a high value on themselves and such a low value on teachers, and for the board to go along with this type of thinking.
Over the last 30 years, I think the highest raise we have ever received is 5%, but usually either 1-2%, or no raise at all. Or, if we do get a raise, they take it away with the other hand by raising the cost of benefits. There was one year that the state gave a special allotment of money to school districts for pay raises in which teachers received a raise of 10% or higher. When all other districts received their raise, our district made us work 3 extra days for this money (hence, the Buy Back Days) to earn our 10 %. So in essence, we did not get at 10% raise.
If we are insignificant to the very people we entrust our livelihood to, then it is up to us to show them we matter.
With very few exceptions, along with parents, the teacher is the vehicle that drives students towards their goals in life. Every educated person, every doctor, every judge, every president, has become who they are through the nurturing, wisdom and lessons provided by teachers. Their livelihood made possible due to the planning and dedication of teachers.
We are the backbone of society. We are important and we do matter. The time has come for us to take a stand.
At the last board meeting, Christina Cross, the head counselor at RBV, presented her case as to why they should not cut a counselor from each high school. When it was time to discuss that item, the two counselors were cut. All of the RBV counselors stood together in unison and walked out in front of the board. Before the evening was over, they decided to revisit this issue before making their final decision.
At the board meeting before that, teachers, parents and students from Mission Vista High school also spoke out in great numbers to keep the 4 x 4 schedule. The district is proposing this cut. To date, the board has not cut the 4 x 4 schedule. The collective voices were heard.
Last week, I begged the board to keep the cuts away from the classroom. Today I beg you to get involved and stand united. On February 15th, we must all be at the district office before the mediator shows up and walks through those doors. She needs to see. She needs to know. And that job belongs to all of you. Bring your families, bring your friends, tell your student’s parents. If every one of us brings one person, we will double in size.
If you look around this room, you will see that many of your colleagues are missing. We need you to convince each teacher to stand united with us. Let them know if we continue doing what we’ve always done, we will continue getting what we’ve always been given. Little to nothing! We need to change our level of involvement.
This is a Unified District. Let’s show them what that means. What letter does unified begin with? That’s right, “U” and it will take each and every one of you to stand together to show our district we matter.
VTA President's Message 01.20.10
Dear Colleagues,
The following message was written by JB Barton and I believe it expresses the sentiments of all teachers who participated in last Thursday’s Board meeting.
To all of our colleagues who were able to attend Thursday's school board meeting, "YOU WERE AWESOME!!!”
Watching the gestures and eye movements of each school board member, it was obvious that they had never anticipated this level of teachers supporting one another.
I do not think these school board members or "their" superintendent ever expected this level of outrage! It is my belief that the District Office Administration had convinced the Board members that "we" would be more complacent. THEY WERE WRONG!!! Collectively, your voices rang strong, consistent and resolved to no longer accept whatever "they" might decide as "a reasonable" reduction to your salary.
There must have been in the neighborhood of 300 +teachers at this meeting! The seats and walls of Foothill Oak Elementary had no voids and allowed for no hiding places for either School Board Members or Administration.
Every speaking member from each of our schools: elementary, middle, continuation and high school demonstrated the unity of interest and concern for each other’s well being!
The speakers were eloquent, passionate and powerful in telling each of their stories as well as those stories of our teacher communities. They let the Board know the value of the teacher not as a dollar figure but as a value to students, their sites and even to our district. These speakers made it clear that the unseen and unreported value of each teacher is really that teachers' ongoing commitment to student needs. Teachers are personally contributing both their time and talents over and above their "regular" teaching time.
Make sure that you say thank you to all of those teachers who attended this school board meeting and to those other teachers and staff that contributed to getting our concerns to the school board members!
Our challenge is now who will attend the School Boards' Work Study Session at 5:00 PM January 28th at Roosevelt Middle School. We will need new and additional faces to show that this type of activity will be ongoing for the long haul and not just a momentary blip on the radar screen. We would especially like to have parents come and speak to the Board and show their support for teachers. If you haven't spoken to your PTA or parents make it a point to do so soon. We need someone to videotape and take photos at this meeting. Please contact Rosemary Smithfield at1rickrose@msn.com to volunteer.
This meeting will determine the Board Members priorities since they must determine and finalize the 2010-11 Budget. Will teachers be a priority? Please have as many teachers attend this meeting as possible! Please check your personal e-mail accounts and www.vistata.orgfor more information concerning activities at the Board meeting.
Again, thank you all for the support and persistence in staying to support each other and your families!
JB Barton and your VTA Crisis Team
Impasse Update:
The State Mediator has scheduled Monday, February 15th for our first mediation session. The meeting will commence at 9:00 AM at the School District Office. A rally will be planned. Stay tuned for more information but plan on attending…your bargaining team needs your support.
SB 472 Training:
I have received several calls regarding teacher attendance at SB 472 trainings. Trainings are being offered over the course of several Saturdays and the first week of Spring break. Teachers are not required to attend these trainings. The only time a teacher is required to attend is when the District hires a substitute teacher to release a teacher during their contract day. Do not feel pressured to attend. If asked by your administrator to participate, a simple no thank you should suffice. If you feel pressured contact your VTA Rep.
Merit Pay….Does It Have Merit?
NEA President Dennis Van Roekel will appear on a taped segment this Friday morning on CBS News’ The Early Show. Reporter Kelly Wallace talked to Dennis about merit pay. The piece profiles a school that offers a merit pay program for teachers, but also explores the effectiveness of such incentive programs.
The story will air nationally, Friday, January 22. The Early Show is a television morning news talk show broadcast by CBS from New York City, 7:00 to 9:00 a.m. Monday through Saturday. The Early Show features celebrity interviews, light entertainment and news pieces. The show reaches 500,000 viewers a week, airing on 200 local CBS stations and in several international markets. For more on this news outlet:
http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/earlyshow/main500202.shtml
Health Net Cards are Here!
By now you should have received your new Health Net Card. Contact Jarrod Madrusso atjarrodmadrusso@vusd.k12.ca.us with any questions.
Sincerely,
Jan O'Reilly
VTA President
The following message was written by JB Barton and I believe it expresses the sentiments of all teachers who participated in last Thursday’s Board meeting.
To all of our colleagues who were able to attend Thursday's school board meeting, "YOU WERE AWESOME!!!”
Watching the gestures and eye movements of each school board member, it was obvious that they had never anticipated this level of teachers supporting one another.
I do not think these school board members or "their" superintendent ever expected this level of outrage! It is my belief that the District Office Administration had convinced the Board members that "we" would be more complacent. THEY WERE WRONG!!! Collectively, your voices rang strong, consistent and resolved to no longer accept whatever "they" might decide as "a reasonable" reduction to your salary.
There must have been in the neighborhood of 300 +teachers at this meeting! The seats and walls of Foothill Oak Elementary had no voids and allowed for no hiding places for either School Board Members or Administration.
Every speaking member from each of our schools: elementary, middle, continuation and high school demonstrated the unity of interest and concern for each other’s well being!
The speakers were eloquent, passionate and powerful in telling each of their stories as well as those stories of our teacher communities. They let the Board know the value of the teacher not as a dollar figure but as a value to students, their sites and even to our district. These speakers made it clear that the unseen and unreported value of each teacher is really that teachers' ongoing commitment to student needs. Teachers are personally contributing both their time and talents over and above their "regular" teaching time.
Make sure that you say thank you to all of those teachers who attended this school board meeting and to those other teachers and staff that contributed to getting our concerns to the school board members!
Our challenge is now who will attend the School Boards' Work Study Session at 5:00 PM January 28th at Roosevelt Middle School. We will need new and additional faces to show that this type of activity will be ongoing for the long haul and not just a momentary blip on the radar screen. We would especially like to have parents come and speak to the Board and show their support for teachers. If you haven't spoken to your PTA or parents make it a point to do so soon. We need someone to videotape and take photos at this meeting. Please contact Rosemary Smithfield at1rickrose@msn.com to volunteer.
This meeting will determine the Board Members priorities since they must determine and finalize the 2010-11 Budget. Will teachers be a priority? Please have as many teachers attend this meeting as possible! Please check your personal e-mail accounts and www.vistata.orgfor more information concerning activities at the Board meeting.
Again, thank you all for the support and persistence in staying to support each other and your families!
JB Barton and your VTA Crisis Team
Impasse Update:
The State Mediator has scheduled Monday, February 15th for our first mediation session. The meeting will commence at 9:00 AM at the School District Office. A rally will be planned. Stay tuned for more information but plan on attending…your bargaining team needs your support.
SB 472 Training:
I have received several calls regarding teacher attendance at SB 472 trainings. Trainings are being offered over the course of several Saturdays and the first week of Spring break. Teachers are not required to attend these trainings. The only time a teacher is required to attend is when the District hires a substitute teacher to release a teacher during their contract day. Do not feel pressured to attend. If asked by your administrator to participate, a simple no thank you should suffice. If you feel pressured contact your VTA Rep.
Merit Pay….Does It Have Merit?
NEA President Dennis Van Roekel will appear on a taped segment this Friday morning on CBS News’ The Early Show. Reporter Kelly Wallace talked to Dennis about merit pay. The piece profiles a school that offers a merit pay program for teachers, but also explores the effectiveness of such incentive programs.
The story will air nationally, Friday, January 22. The Early Show is a television morning news talk show broadcast by CBS from New York City, 7:00 to 9:00 a.m. Monday through Saturday. The Early Show features celebrity interviews, light entertainment and news pieces. The show reaches 500,000 viewers a week, airing on 200 local CBS stations and in several international markets. For more on this news outlet:
http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/earlyshow/main500202.shtml
Health Net Cards are Here!
By now you should have received your new Health Net Card. Contact Jarrod Madrusso atjarrodmadrusso@vusd.k12.ca.us with any questions.
Sincerely,
Jan O'Reilly
VTA President
VTA President's Message 01.04.10
Dear Colleagues,
Happy New Year! I trust your holiday was restful, providing you with a bit of time to enjoy family, friends and time to reflect on your new year resolutions.
As we head into the second half of this school year we find ourselves in a crisis situation in our negotiations. We are currently establishing days in which to meet with a state appointed mediator, most likely sometime in February.
Your VTA Crisis Team met over the holiday and created an action plan. Today, January 4th, we held an emergency Rep Council meeting to share this plan. What does this mean to you and what can you do to help?
· Plan to attend a site 20 minute emergency meeting this week. Your Site Rep should announce date, time & place tomorrow
· If you haven’t already, submit your private email address to your Site Rep or go to the contact us link above to submit it electronically to the VTA office
· Beginning this Thursday, January 7th, and every Thursday during this crisis wear black to school as a sign of our disapproval of the Board’s action of declaring impasse
· Do not use District email to discuss negotiations….use your private email account
Your Crisis Team members are:
Rosemary Smithfield, GV 1rickrose@msn.com
Matt Lattuada, AVHS rule_number_62@sbcglobal.net
Randy Wiens, RBVHS vonwiener@gmail.com
Brenda Del Maestro, GV brendel1@cox.net
Doug Beanan, MMS dbeanan@aol.com
JB Barton, RBVHS jbmbbbsbab@aol.com
Barbara Franklin, VMMS bf1120@cox.net
Chris Grainger, VHS legrainge@cox.net
Debbie Morton debmort@sbcglobal.net
Georgine Tomasi, CTA gtsmrrc@aol.com
Contact them with questions, concerns and ideas.
For a look back on the negotiation process and the steps explaining impasse, please visit the President's Message Archive section of this website.
Stay tuned....and informed!
Sincerely,
Jan O'Reilly
VTA President
Happy New Year! I trust your holiday was restful, providing you with a bit of time to enjoy family, friends and time to reflect on your new year resolutions.
As we head into the second half of this school year we find ourselves in a crisis situation in our negotiations. We are currently establishing days in which to meet with a state appointed mediator, most likely sometime in February.
Your VTA Crisis Team met over the holiday and created an action plan. Today, January 4th, we held an emergency Rep Council meeting to share this plan. What does this mean to you and what can you do to help?
· Plan to attend a site 20 minute emergency meeting this week. Your Site Rep should announce date, time & place tomorrow
· If you haven’t already, submit your private email address to your Site Rep or go to the contact us link above to submit it electronically to the VTA office
· Beginning this Thursday, January 7th, and every Thursday during this crisis wear black to school as a sign of our disapproval of the Board’s action of declaring impasse
· Do not use District email to discuss negotiations….use your private email account
Your Crisis Team members are:
Rosemary Smithfield, GV 1rickrose@msn.com
Matt Lattuada, AVHS rule_number_62@sbcglobal.net
Randy Wiens, RBVHS vonwiener@gmail.com
Brenda Del Maestro, GV brendel1@cox.net
Doug Beanan, MMS dbeanan@aol.com
JB Barton, RBVHS jbmbbbsbab@aol.com
Barbara Franklin, VMMS bf1120@cox.net
Chris Grainger, VHS legrainge@cox.net
Debbie Morton debmort@sbcglobal.net
Georgine Tomasi, CTA gtsmrrc@aol.com
Contact them with questions, concerns and ideas.
For a look back on the negotiation process and the steps explaining impasse, please visit the President's Message Archive section of this website.
Stay tuned....and informed!
Sincerely,
Jan O'Reilly
VTA President
President's Message 12.17.09
Dear Colleagues,
Holiday time is fast approaching and we are all looking forward to precious time to spend with family and friends. The negotiation impasse is a serious crisis for our members. Impasse was not the Association’s choice but we are gearing up for the challenge and ready to face management. We know impasse may cause stress and worry for you and your families but we believe together we will prevail. Enjoy your well earned winter break and know that come January VTA will be calling on you to participate in planned events at your site and at Board meetings.
Retirement Incentive -
One bit of good news! For those certificated employees (non-management) VTA has negotiated a retirement incentive. Employees with at least 10 years of service to VUSD who will be at least 55 by June 30, 2010 are eligible for the incentive. These employees will receive a packet of information (meeting dates, times, specifics of the offerings, etc) in their home mail. The District office will be mailing the packets Thursday, December 17, 2009. Additionally, the information will be emailed from VTA via the District email system late Thursday afternoon. Should you have any questions please contact Myrna Vallely, extension 2269.
Impasse, Mediation, Fact Finding…what does it all mean?
Friday, December 11, 2009 the District unilaterally declared impasse. What does this mean? The following is a delineation and explanation of the process.
Impasse—The District must inform PERB (Public Employees Relation Board) that they declared impasse. In their declaration they must explain the articles still not meeting agreement, their rationale and how they have negotiated in good faith.
PERB will then ask for VTA’s positions and our rationale for deadlock (if we agree) and how we have negotiated in good faith.
Mediation-When PERB determines that we are indeed at impasse they will assign a state mediator to induce agreement between VTA and VUSD. The mediator will set up at least three sessions for negotiations. If the two parties cannot reach agreement at these sessions the mediator will certify the dispute to Factfinding.
Factfinding-A neutral party is assigned (by the state) to the assessment of the parties’ bargaining dispute. Two additional members are assigned to the panel, one from each of the parties. The panel hears arguments and then makes a non-binding recommendation for settling the dispute. If the parties do not agree to the recommendation then they are at true impasse.
Suspension of Bargaining- If all sections of EERA (Educational Employment Relations Act) procedures are exhausted then this holds drastic legal consequences for both parties.
VUSD-Suspension of duty to bargain in good faith, unilaterally impose its “Last, Best, and Final Offer.”
VTA- Members may refuse to perform mandatory job duties (i.e. strike).
Timeline-
1. VTA and VUSD contract proposals comparison chart
2. Salary schedule comparison of current salaries and what a 4.7% pay cut would look like (this is the District’s current proposals)
To all members, please e-mail your personal (home) e-mail address to your site rep immediately. This will allow VTA to set up e-mail distribution lists for contacting members regarding action items such as rallies, Board meeting activities and other concerted events.
Sincerely,
Jan O'Reilly
VTA President
Holiday time is fast approaching and we are all looking forward to precious time to spend with family and friends. The negotiation impasse is a serious crisis for our members. Impasse was not the Association’s choice but we are gearing up for the challenge and ready to face management. We know impasse may cause stress and worry for you and your families but we believe together we will prevail. Enjoy your well earned winter break and know that come January VTA will be calling on you to participate in planned events at your site and at Board meetings.
Retirement Incentive -
One bit of good news! For those certificated employees (non-management) VTA has negotiated a retirement incentive. Employees with at least 10 years of service to VUSD who will be at least 55 by June 30, 2010 are eligible for the incentive. These employees will receive a packet of information (meeting dates, times, specifics of the offerings, etc) in their home mail. The District office will be mailing the packets Thursday, December 17, 2009. Additionally, the information will be emailed from VTA via the District email system late Thursday afternoon. Should you have any questions please contact Myrna Vallely, extension 2269.
Impasse, Mediation, Fact Finding…what does it all mean?
Friday, December 11, 2009 the District unilaterally declared impasse. What does this mean? The following is a delineation and explanation of the process.
Impasse—The District must inform PERB (Public Employees Relation Board) that they declared impasse. In their declaration they must explain the articles still not meeting agreement, their rationale and how they have negotiated in good faith.
PERB will then ask for VTA’s positions and our rationale for deadlock (if we agree) and how we have negotiated in good faith.
Mediation-When PERB determines that we are indeed at impasse they will assign a state mediator to induce agreement between VTA and VUSD. The mediator will set up at least three sessions for negotiations. If the two parties cannot reach agreement at these sessions the mediator will certify the dispute to Factfinding.
Factfinding-A neutral party is assigned (by the state) to the assessment of the parties’ bargaining dispute. Two additional members are assigned to the panel, one from each of the parties. The panel hears arguments and then makes a non-binding recommendation for settling the dispute. If the parties do not agree to the recommendation then they are at true impasse.
Suspension of Bargaining- If all sections of EERA (Educational Employment Relations Act) procedures are exhausted then this holds drastic legal consequences for both parties.
VUSD-Suspension of duty to bargain in good faith, unilaterally impose its “Last, Best, and Final Offer.”
VTA- Members may refuse to perform mandatory job duties (i.e. strike).
Timeline-
- PERB assignment of a mediator can take a few weeks to a month to set up sessions. These are based on the workload of the mediator and their schedule. Sessions can take place over three days or the course of a few weeks. This has no hard and fast timelines but is based on availability of the mediator.
- Factfinding has a timeline set up for when the information from both parties must be submitted. Both parties must present a report within 10-30 days of declaration of Factfinding. The panel has time to study the information before submitting their written report.
1. VTA and VUSD contract proposals comparison chart
2. Salary schedule comparison of current salaries and what a 4.7% pay cut would look like (this is the District’s current proposals)
To all members, please e-mail your personal (home) e-mail address to your site rep immediately. This will allow VTA to set up e-mail distribution lists for contacting members regarding action items such as rallies, Board meeting activities and other concerted events.
Sincerely,
Jan O'Reilly
VTA President
VTA President's Message 11.04.09
Dear Colleagues,
Insurance Update:
Insurance packets have been delivered to every school site and should be in teacher mail boxes. The packet contains all necessary information for selecting medical insurance, directions for enrolling online and the Section 125 Pre-tax Plan. Enrollment must be completed by Thursday, November 19th.
American Fidelity has already begun visiting school sites to meet with teachers who are interested in participating in the Section 125 Pre-tax Plan. Please see your office manager for your site's scheduled visit.
Remember, insurance premiums will be deducted from your December pay warrant.
Bargaining Update:
Since the last President's Message VTA and VUSD have meet twice to negotiate. The process seems to be working better without the assistance of the District lawyer. Although we are not much closer to an agreement we are making progress. We have tentatively agreed to some smaller items but no agreement yet on salary and class size.
Good news reported from the Budget Advisory Committee.....$13.5 million required cuts instead of $15.1 million! This is still grim news for our district but it helps mitigate the problem.....a little bit.
A retirement incentive is being explored. Currently, three companies are analyzing district provided information to determine the feasibility. The District anticipates receiving information from these companies within the next two weeks. At that time we will work together to bring forth an offer to employees.
Our next bargaining session is Tuesday, December 1st.
Working to Contract:
I hear complaints on a daily basis that teachers feel they are being taken advantage of by being asked to take on additional responsibilities. According to Article 18 in our contract teachers must work 7.5 hours per day which includes preparation activities, before and or after school duties, etc. It is the professional obligation of each bargaining unit member to participate in activities that serve to encourage, support and direct student learning. Such activities include Back-to-School Night, Open House, various meetings such as staff meetings, IEP/SSTs and parent conferences. Teachers may be required to attend and supervise events/activities per school year. Individual events/activities shall not exceed three (3) hours above and beyond the individual's contracted workday. Event supervision may be assigned from extracurricular events, athletic events and/or non-teaching duties and activities.
These activities and duties require a substantial amount of time. Given the current changes going on in the educational field within VUSD such as the implementation of SIOP, EnVision Math, Learning Cycle/Walk, posting of daily goals and objectives, etc., feeling guilty about giving more of your time is not acceptable. Anything over and above these obligations are not required by our members. Don't allow yourself to be pressured, and exercise your option to say no.
Tutoring:
Funds for before and after school tutorials are from a categorical fund that allows the District flexibility in using these funds for other uses. Our District is using the funds to help reduce the budget deficit. Each site administrator was informed that the District would no longer provide the funding to the site and that the site leadership team should reevaluate their own site budget and determine whether they have the funds to continue the tutorials. What does this mean to you? Possibly no more tutorials for your site which means a loss of additional income for you. I am aware that some teachers are choosing to continue with the tutorials without pay. This is a personal choice but keep in mind what one does affects all.
Stay tuned!
Jan O' Reilly
VTA President
www.vistata.org
Insurance Update:
Insurance packets have been delivered to every school site and should be in teacher mail boxes. The packet contains all necessary information for selecting medical insurance, directions for enrolling online and the Section 125 Pre-tax Plan. Enrollment must be completed by Thursday, November 19th.
American Fidelity has already begun visiting school sites to meet with teachers who are interested in participating in the Section 125 Pre-tax Plan. Please see your office manager for your site's scheduled visit.
Remember, insurance premiums will be deducted from your December pay warrant.
Bargaining Update:
Since the last President's Message VTA and VUSD have meet twice to negotiate. The process seems to be working better without the assistance of the District lawyer. Although we are not much closer to an agreement we are making progress. We have tentatively agreed to some smaller items but no agreement yet on salary and class size.
Good news reported from the Budget Advisory Committee.....$13.5 million required cuts instead of $15.1 million! This is still grim news for our district but it helps mitigate the problem.....a little bit.
A retirement incentive is being explored. Currently, three companies are analyzing district provided information to determine the feasibility. The District anticipates receiving information from these companies within the next two weeks. At that time we will work together to bring forth an offer to employees.
Our next bargaining session is Tuesday, December 1st.
Working to Contract:
I hear complaints on a daily basis that teachers feel they are being taken advantage of by being asked to take on additional responsibilities. According to Article 18 in our contract teachers must work 7.5 hours per day which includes preparation activities, before and or after school duties, etc. It is the professional obligation of each bargaining unit member to participate in activities that serve to encourage, support and direct student learning. Such activities include Back-to-School Night, Open House, various meetings such as staff meetings, IEP/SSTs and parent conferences. Teachers may be required to attend and supervise events/activities per school year. Individual events/activities shall not exceed three (3) hours above and beyond the individual's contracted workday. Event supervision may be assigned from extracurricular events, athletic events and/or non-teaching duties and activities.
These activities and duties require a substantial amount of time. Given the current changes going on in the educational field within VUSD such as the implementation of SIOP, EnVision Math, Learning Cycle/Walk, posting of daily goals and objectives, etc., feeling guilty about giving more of your time is not acceptable. Anything over and above these obligations are not required by our members. Don't allow yourself to be pressured, and exercise your option to say no.
Tutoring:
Funds for before and after school tutorials are from a categorical fund that allows the District flexibility in using these funds for other uses. Our District is using the funds to help reduce the budget deficit. Each site administrator was informed that the District would no longer provide the funding to the site and that the site leadership team should reevaluate their own site budget and determine whether they have the funds to continue the tutorials. What does this mean to you? Possibly no more tutorials for your site which means a loss of additional income for you. I am aware that some teachers are choosing to continue with the tutorials without pay. This is a personal choice but keep in mind what one does affects all.
Stay tuned!
Jan O' Reilly
VTA President
www.vistata.org
VTA President's Message 10.19.09
Dear Colleagues,
Insurance Update
Look for your Open Enrollment packet the week of November 2nd. Each person will have the option to enroll online or attend an Open Enrollment meeting to have questions answered by a representative from Health Net or Kaiser. To enroll, employees may use any computer with internet access. For your availability, computer labs at the meeting sites will be open for employees to complete their on-line enrollment during these meetings.Like Open Enrollment meetings of the past dental, vision, and life insurance vendors will be participating to provided the opportunity for Q & A’s. The Standard (CTA disability) and American Fidelity will also be in attendance.
The dates, locations and times are as follow:
Monday 11/9/09 3-6pm
Temple Heights Elementary School MPR
Wednesday 11/18/09 3-6pm
Crestview Elementary School MPR
All current Aetna members must respond during the Open Enrollment period to select a new plan for 2010 since the Aetna medical plan will no longer be offered. If a current Aetna member does not respond they will automatically be enrolled in the Health Net high deductible PPO plan (with their current dental selection). Current Kaiser members will remain on the same plan should they not respond during the Open Enrollment period. Please refer to your Open Enrollment packet for payroll deductions. All enrollment changes made during this enrollment period will take effect 1/1/2010 but the monthly deduction will occur in your December pay warrant.
Bargaining Update
The District and VTA Bargaining Teams will be meeting on Thursday, October 29th. At last week's school board meeting I shared with the Board that our negotiations process is highly ineffective and must be changed. Currently, both sides share proposals, discuss them then part to write counterproposals then meet a couple of weeks later to go through the same process. VTA 's bargaining team has stated repeatedly that we would like to meet and work through the process until we come to agreement on all proposals. The management team often states that they must get direction from the Board. If the District's management team does not have the authority to make decisions then the Board needs to provide the team who can do so. VTA also believes the District lawyer, who leads the district team, is a hindrance to the process. After recent discussions with the Board we anticipate we will see a change in how negotiations are conducted. The VTA members of the District Budget Advisory Committee have reported to the Bargaining Team that the District needs to cut an additional $15 million for the 2010/2011 school year. The Budget Committee has generated two lists; one for nonnegotiable items that include programs and positions and the other for negotiable items. Even if all the nonnegotiable items were cut the budget would still need additional items cut to balance the budget. Ultimately, the Board makes the final decision on the nonnegotiable items and are hoping through negotiations other cuts will be made to meet the $15 million. Given that teachers will soon be paying more out of their pockets for insurance and that we are the lowest paid teachers in North San Diego county, yet our test scores continue to rise, it hardly seems right that the cuts are on our backs.VUSD and VTA are exploring the possibility of offering a one time retirement incentive. The study will exam the number of teachers eligible and the minimum number needed to take the incentive for it to be a cost savings measure for the District. VTA believes there are substantial savings to be made. We will keep you posted as more information becomes available. Our next scheduled bargaining meeting is October 29, 2009. Expect a more detailed report after that meeting.
Grades 1-5 Physical Education
According to California Ed Code 51223 & 51210 it is mandated that all K-5 students receive 200 minutes of physical education every 10 school days. Each school may configure the time and activity to their needs as long as they meet the minimum requirements. Any questions or concerns please contact me.
Miscellaneous Be sure and visit the 6th Annual VUSD Art Festival at the Vista Village Center/Krikorian Center this Saturday, 10 am to 4 pm. Hundreds of VUSD students will have the opportunity to share their art work, perform in their school's choir, band or dance troupe. This is an amazing demonstration of how the visual and performing arts are utilized in our schools. Bring a friend and be an eye witness to the artistic and musical talents of our students. You won't be disappointed!
Stay Tuned!
Jan O' Reilly
VTA President
www.vistata.org
Insurance Update
Look for your Open Enrollment packet the week of November 2nd. Each person will have the option to enroll online or attend an Open Enrollment meeting to have questions answered by a representative from Health Net or Kaiser. To enroll, employees may use any computer with internet access. For your availability, computer labs at the meeting sites will be open for employees to complete their on-line enrollment during these meetings.Like Open Enrollment meetings of the past dental, vision, and life insurance vendors will be participating to provided the opportunity for Q & A’s. The Standard (CTA disability) and American Fidelity will also be in attendance.
The dates, locations and times are as follow:
Monday 11/9/09 3-6pm
Temple Heights Elementary School MPR
Wednesday 11/18/09 3-6pm
Crestview Elementary School MPR
All current Aetna members must respond during the Open Enrollment period to select a new plan for 2010 since the Aetna medical plan will no longer be offered. If a current Aetna member does not respond they will automatically be enrolled in the Health Net high deductible PPO plan (with their current dental selection). Current Kaiser members will remain on the same plan should they not respond during the Open Enrollment period. Please refer to your Open Enrollment packet for payroll deductions. All enrollment changes made during this enrollment period will take effect 1/1/2010 but the monthly deduction will occur in your December pay warrant.
Bargaining Update
The District and VTA Bargaining Teams will be meeting on Thursday, October 29th. At last week's school board meeting I shared with the Board that our negotiations process is highly ineffective and must be changed. Currently, both sides share proposals, discuss them then part to write counterproposals then meet a couple of weeks later to go through the same process. VTA 's bargaining team has stated repeatedly that we would like to meet and work through the process until we come to agreement on all proposals. The management team often states that they must get direction from the Board. If the District's management team does not have the authority to make decisions then the Board needs to provide the team who can do so. VTA also believes the District lawyer, who leads the district team, is a hindrance to the process. After recent discussions with the Board we anticipate we will see a change in how negotiations are conducted. The VTA members of the District Budget Advisory Committee have reported to the Bargaining Team that the District needs to cut an additional $15 million for the 2010/2011 school year. The Budget Committee has generated two lists; one for nonnegotiable items that include programs and positions and the other for negotiable items. Even if all the nonnegotiable items were cut the budget would still need additional items cut to balance the budget. Ultimately, the Board makes the final decision on the nonnegotiable items and are hoping through negotiations other cuts will be made to meet the $15 million. Given that teachers will soon be paying more out of their pockets for insurance and that we are the lowest paid teachers in North San Diego county, yet our test scores continue to rise, it hardly seems right that the cuts are on our backs.VUSD and VTA are exploring the possibility of offering a one time retirement incentive. The study will exam the number of teachers eligible and the minimum number needed to take the incentive for it to be a cost savings measure for the District. VTA believes there are substantial savings to be made. We will keep you posted as more information becomes available. Our next scheduled bargaining meeting is October 29, 2009. Expect a more detailed report after that meeting.
Grades 1-5 Physical Education
According to California Ed Code 51223 & 51210 it is mandated that all K-5 students receive 200 minutes of physical education every 10 school days. Each school may configure the time and activity to their needs as long as they meet the minimum requirements. Any questions or concerns please contact me.
Miscellaneous Be sure and visit the 6th Annual VUSD Art Festival at the Vista Village Center/Krikorian Center this Saturday, 10 am to 4 pm. Hundreds of VUSD students will have the opportunity to share their art work, perform in their school's choir, band or dance troupe. This is an amazing demonstration of how the visual and performing arts are utilized in our schools. Bring a friend and be an eye witness to the artistic and musical talents of our students. You won't be disappointed!
Stay Tuned!
Jan O' Reilly
VTA President
www.vistata.org
President's Message 09.19.09
Dear Colleagues,
As we’ve settled into our eighth week of school…..learning our student’s names, implementing new curriculum, administering our first Benchmark exams, we all realize that the challenges we face as educators and union members seem to fluctuate as much as the state and federal budgets. In order to maintain our contract, build a stronger and more effective union we need to rely on our very dedicated Site Reps. They are the eyes and ears of our Association at our schools. In order to more effectively carry out their duties they attend monthly association meetings where district and state information is shared and discussed. Contract language is reviewed and Reps are to return to their site to hold monthly 10 minute site meetings to share and or gather information. It is at the sites that our union strength resides. Support your Site Reps by attending your 10 minute meeting. If a Site Rep cannot answer your question they know how to access it for you.
Insurance Update
Our insurance carrier for the 2010 coverage year will be Health Net and Kaiser. Each person will receive an Open Enrollment packet prior to the open enrollment period of November 5-19. This year each person will have the option to enroll online or attend an enrollment meeting to have questions answered by a representative from Health Net or Kaiser. Like Open Enrollment meetings of the past dental, vision, and life insurance vendors will be participating to provided the opportunity for Q & A’s. Dates and locations will be forthcoming as soon as they are formally scheduled.
For those members who will be changing plans that will result in a monthly salary deduction American Fidelity will visit every school site to allow each person to register for the flexible spending plan and or the pre taxed deduction of insurance premiums. These site meetings will occur during the month of November. Expect an email from Jarrod Madrusso, Employee Benefits Technician with this information. The information will also be in the Open Enrollment packet.
Please note that insurance deductions will occur in your December pay warrant. This is due to the fact that insurance premiums must be paid a month ahead of the coverage.
More information is to follow.
Bargaining Update
The District and VTA have both submitted their proposals but no bargaining has occurred. The District’s most recent proposals included salary cuts, increased class sizes for all grade levels, and furlough days. VTA’s counter proposals included no salary cuts, no increases in class size and our position on furlough days.
Your bargaining team is well aware that we are the only district in the county that has not settled a contract in three years. We are highly frustrated and concerned about the lack of progress. An example of one stumbling block to progress is the management team’s use of a lawyer who leads the district team. This is costly and prohibitive to working together to finding fair and reasonable agreements. Currently, we are pursuing options to change the process by which bargaining occurs so that our contract is settled by December….2009.
Our next scheduled bargaining meeting is October 29, 2009, where you can expect a more detailed report.
SB 472
For those teachers who attended the SB 472 training this past summer look for your $500 stipend in your October pay warrant.
Miscellaneous
VUSD Art Festival: October 24th, 10-4 at the Vista Village Center/Krikorian Center. Please try to attend the festival to witness the artistic and musical talent of our students.
Congratulations to Vista Magnet Middle School teacher, Jennifer Eckle, who was one of ten finalists in the San Diego County Office of Education and Cox Communication “Salute to Teachers” on October 10, 2009. Kudos to one of our many top notch teachers!
Look for your next VTA President’s message Thursday, October 22nd.
Stay Tuned!
Jan O' Reilly
VTA President
www.vistata.org
As we’ve settled into our eighth week of school…..learning our student’s names, implementing new curriculum, administering our first Benchmark exams, we all realize that the challenges we face as educators and union members seem to fluctuate as much as the state and federal budgets. In order to maintain our contract, build a stronger and more effective union we need to rely on our very dedicated Site Reps. They are the eyes and ears of our Association at our schools. In order to more effectively carry out their duties they attend monthly association meetings where district and state information is shared and discussed. Contract language is reviewed and Reps are to return to their site to hold monthly 10 minute site meetings to share and or gather information. It is at the sites that our union strength resides. Support your Site Reps by attending your 10 minute meeting. If a Site Rep cannot answer your question they know how to access it for you.
Insurance Update
Our insurance carrier for the 2010 coverage year will be Health Net and Kaiser. Each person will receive an Open Enrollment packet prior to the open enrollment period of November 5-19. This year each person will have the option to enroll online or attend an enrollment meeting to have questions answered by a representative from Health Net or Kaiser. Like Open Enrollment meetings of the past dental, vision, and life insurance vendors will be participating to provided the opportunity for Q & A’s. Dates and locations will be forthcoming as soon as they are formally scheduled.
For those members who will be changing plans that will result in a monthly salary deduction American Fidelity will visit every school site to allow each person to register for the flexible spending plan and or the pre taxed deduction of insurance premiums. These site meetings will occur during the month of November. Expect an email from Jarrod Madrusso, Employee Benefits Technician with this information. The information will also be in the Open Enrollment packet.
Please note that insurance deductions will occur in your December pay warrant. This is due to the fact that insurance premiums must be paid a month ahead of the coverage.
More information is to follow.
Bargaining Update
The District and VTA have both submitted their proposals but no bargaining has occurred. The District’s most recent proposals included salary cuts, increased class sizes for all grade levels, and furlough days. VTA’s counter proposals included no salary cuts, no increases in class size and our position on furlough days.
Your bargaining team is well aware that we are the only district in the county that has not settled a contract in three years. We are highly frustrated and concerned about the lack of progress. An example of one stumbling block to progress is the management team’s use of a lawyer who leads the district team. This is costly and prohibitive to working together to finding fair and reasonable agreements. Currently, we are pursuing options to change the process by which bargaining occurs so that our contract is settled by December….2009.
Our next scheduled bargaining meeting is October 29, 2009, where you can expect a more detailed report.
SB 472
For those teachers who attended the SB 472 training this past summer look for your $500 stipend in your October pay warrant.
Miscellaneous
VUSD Art Festival: October 24th, 10-4 at the Vista Village Center/Krikorian Center. Please try to attend the festival to witness the artistic and musical talent of our students.
Congratulations to Vista Magnet Middle School teacher, Jennifer Eckle, who was one of ten finalists in the San Diego County Office of Education and Cox Communication “Salute to Teachers” on October 10, 2009. Kudos to one of our many top notch teachers!
Look for your next VTA President’s message Thursday, October 22nd.
Stay Tuned!
Jan O' Reilly
VTA President
www.vistata.org
President's Message 06.14.09
Dear Colleagues,
The end of the school year is near but the looming budget crisis is on the minds of all of our members. The Executive Board, Bargaining Team and the VTA members of the Budget Committee have written an update for our members. Please read it below. We also asked at the Rep Council meeting for all Reps to gather summer contact information from Prob 1's, Prob 2's and Permanent Status teachers who have ten (10) years or less service to VUSD as a precautionary measure in case of late summer RIF notices. Please send the contact information to the VTA office. As we hear news over the summer we will contact all teachers via email.
VTA Budget and Bargaining Update:
As you know, times are tough in California. The California Budget is the worst in history. Layoffs, program cuts, and reduced services of this magnitude have not been experienced since the Great Depression.
So where are we?
Negotiations-we are near agreements on the following:
· Per contract a Buy Back Day will be cut, most likely in January but we have not worked out the final language.
· K-5 collaboration time.
The district has expressed interest in:
· Cutting calendar days (i.e. furloughs, release days)
· Cutting salary
· Freezing step and column movement
· Eliminating or modifying K-3 CSR
· Increasing class sizes at 6-12
· Expanding District rights for involuntary transfers
Note: If a tentative agreement is reached, even over the summer, then the following steps must occur:
1) Executive Board must approve tentative agreement(s)
2) Rep. Assembly meeting must be scheduled in order to authorize a vote of the general membership to ratify the contract
3) A 10-day posting period and subsequent 14-day voting period are required by VTA by-laws
4) A majority vote would send the agreement to the VUSD School Board for approval
New Round of Layoffs
As a precautionary measure we are requesting summer contact information from Prob 1, Prob 2 and Permanent Status teachers who have ten years or less of service in VUSD. Site Reps have the information sheets and should have held a 10 minute meeting to disseminate this information.
The current economic crisis, by state law, allows school districts to expand the cut-off date for employee layoffs to August 15th. We anticipate the Board to take action on June 18th (at their 5 PM public meeting at Temple Heights) to authorize Human Resources to notify additional employees that they are being RIF’ed.
The VTA Executive Board will do our best to stay on top of the budget crisis and keep you informed. Please ask your Reps if you have any questions and let them know how they can contact you over the summer. We will try to have a Unit Member meeting in August before the first Buy Back Day. Stay tuned!
Jan O' Reilly
VTA President
The end of the school year is near but the looming budget crisis is on the minds of all of our members. The Executive Board, Bargaining Team and the VTA members of the Budget Committee have written an update for our members. Please read it below. We also asked at the Rep Council meeting for all Reps to gather summer contact information from Prob 1's, Prob 2's and Permanent Status teachers who have ten (10) years or less service to VUSD as a precautionary measure in case of late summer RIF notices. Please send the contact information to the VTA office. As we hear news over the summer we will contact all teachers via email.
VTA Budget and Bargaining Update:
As you know, times are tough in California. The California Budget is the worst in history. Layoffs, program cuts, and reduced services of this magnitude have not been experienced since the Great Depression.
So where are we?
Negotiations-we are near agreements on the following:
· Per contract a Buy Back Day will be cut, most likely in January but we have not worked out the final language.
· K-5 collaboration time.
The district has expressed interest in:
· Cutting calendar days (i.e. furloughs, release days)
· Cutting salary
· Freezing step and column movement
· Eliminating or modifying K-3 CSR
· Increasing class sizes at 6-12
· Expanding District rights for involuntary transfers
Note: If a tentative agreement is reached, even over the summer, then the following steps must occur:
1) Executive Board must approve tentative agreement(s)
2) Rep. Assembly meeting must be scheduled in order to authorize a vote of the general membership to ratify the contract
3) A 10-day posting period and subsequent 14-day voting period are required by VTA by-laws
4) A majority vote would send the agreement to the VUSD School Board for approval
New Round of Layoffs
As a precautionary measure we are requesting summer contact information from Prob 1, Prob 2 and Permanent Status teachers who have ten years or less of service in VUSD. Site Reps have the information sheets and should have held a 10 minute meeting to disseminate this information.
The current economic crisis, by state law, allows school districts to expand the cut-off date for employee layoffs to August 15th. We anticipate the Board to take action on June 18th (at their 5 PM public meeting at Temple Heights) to authorize Human Resources to notify additional employees that they are being RIF’ed.
The VTA Executive Board will do our best to stay on top of the budget crisis and keep you informed. Please ask your Reps if you have any questions and let them know how they can contact you over the summer. We will try to have a Unit Member meeting in August before the first Buy Back Day. Stay tuned!
Jan O' Reilly
VTA President
President's Message 05.19.09
Dear Colleagues,
These truly are trying times for Education in the state of California. The unsettling economic situation has left all of us feeling concerned for our profession. On a daily basis we hear horror stories about people losing their jobs after years of employment. We are fortunate to be educators yet we are facing our own set of financial hurdles. Severe cuts to the California education profession in California are just that....severe.
At the state level CTA is working hard to prevent cuts but do know that if
Propositions 1A & 1B do not pass more cuts are imminent. $3.6 billion will be cut in the 09-10 school year. What does $3.6 billion equal? According to the Department of Finance this could result in laying off over 51,000 teachers state-wide, reducing per pupil spending by $600+, closing schools for several days (10-20 days est.), increasing class size by 15%, laying off 85,000 classified employees and eliminating ALL music and art programs.
At our local level VTA is working hard to prevent further cuts. At this point in time the following has been maintained: *Class Size Reduction has been maintained at 20:1 (including those five sites who have CSR at the Kindergarten level).
* Class sizes at all other grades have been maintain also. * Our salaries have not been frozen.
* Step and column is still in place. * Stipends have been maintained. * VTA members on budget committee have worked to keep cuts away from the classroom. Daily state budget woes are reported out from CTA, the Department of Education, California School Board Association, California School Services and the Classified Connection to mention a few all sharing the same dismal news. What can we do? Encourage and educate voters to support the pass of Propositions 1A & 1B. CTA will be hosting phone banks and information meetings up and down our state. For more information about these propositions and how to volunteer see page 2. I know this special election comes at a bad time, falling in the middle of state testing and year-end exams, and I want to thank everyone who has been making phone calls and urging the public to support these propositions. We must keep up the hard work. Proposition 1A stabilizes future state funding, creates a long-term reserve fund to prevent further cuts to schools and works with Prop 1B to repay $9.3 billion owed to public schools. Proposition 1B repays schools more than $9 billion: money that would help rehire teachers and restore vital student programs. I urge you to continue talking to colleagues, family members and friends. Ask them to vote on May 19th and stand up for public schools once again.
Sincerely,
Jan O’Reilly
VTA President
www.vistata.org
These truly are trying times for Education in the state of California. The unsettling economic situation has left all of us feeling concerned for our profession. On a daily basis we hear horror stories about people losing their jobs after years of employment. We are fortunate to be educators yet we are facing our own set of financial hurdles. Severe cuts to the California education profession in California are just that....severe.
At the state level CTA is working hard to prevent cuts but do know that if
Propositions 1A & 1B do not pass more cuts are imminent. $3.6 billion will be cut in the 09-10 school year. What does $3.6 billion equal? According to the Department of Finance this could result in laying off over 51,000 teachers state-wide, reducing per pupil spending by $600+, closing schools for several days (10-20 days est.), increasing class size by 15%, laying off 85,000 classified employees and eliminating ALL music and art programs.
At our local level VTA is working hard to prevent further cuts. At this point in time the following has been maintained: *Class Size Reduction has been maintained at 20:1 (including those five sites who have CSR at the Kindergarten level).
* Class sizes at all other grades have been maintain also. * Our salaries have not been frozen.
* Step and column is still in place. * Stipends have been maintained. * VTA members on budget committee have worked to keep cuts away from the classroom. Daily state budget woes are reported out from CTA, the Department of Education, California School Board Association, California School Services and the Classified Connection to mention a few all sharing the same dismal news. What can we do? Encourage and educate voters to support the pass of Propositions 1A & 1B. CTA will be hosting phone banks and information meetings up and down our state. For more information about these propositions and how to volunteer see page 2. I know this special election comes at a bad time, falling in the middle of state testing and year-end exams, and I want to thank everyone who has been making phone calls and urging the public to support these propositions. We must keep up the hard work. Proposition 1A stabilizes future state funding, creates a long-term reserve fund to prevent further cuts to schools and works with Prop 1B to repay $9.3 billion owed to public schools. Proposition 1B repays schools more than $9 billion: money that would help rehire teachers and restore vital student programs. I urge you to continue talking to colleagues, family members and friends. Ask them to vote on May 19th and stand up for public schools once again.
Sincerely,
Jan O’Reilly
VTA President
www.vistata.org
