State Education News
Hays teachers win against TASB recommendations
After a long and detailed
discussion, the Hays CISD Board of Trustees last night made a bold
decision to reject TASB's recommended policy change regarding the
timeline of contract non-renewal notification for teachers. Hays
Educators Association and our state affiliate, the Texas State Teachers
Association, commend the school board for listening to teachers'
concerns and making the right decision. A sincere thanks goes to all
those who signed our petition or got involved in our campaign by
contacting school board members. Our petition filled up the inboxes of
board members and this was acknowledged in the discussion. As a result
of the decision to retain current policy, teachers now have a written
guarantee that they will be informed of the district's intent to
non-renew their contract no later than 45 days before the last day of
instruction.
The board decision vindicates the HEA/TSTA determination to mobilize around the issue, with a video being sent to all teachers in the district, along with an invitation to sign a petition calling for the continuation of the 45 day policy.
"The power of collective action never ceases to amaze me" said Esperanza Orosco, president of Hays Educators Association. "When educators stand alone, we are taken for granted; standing together, we command respect. I am proud to work in a district that not only makes a commitment to employee morale, but takes the
extra step to make that commitment real by demonstrating a clear respect for its educators. I can
only hope that neighboring districts follow our district's courageous lead."
TSTA has shifted its Members Only area to a protected area of NEA's website. There are two benefits to the new configuration.
The site will now carry a design similar to the rest of the TSTA website, so it should be less confusing.
The login will be different. When you click on "Members Only" in the left column and go to the new site, you will be asked to register to join NEA's online community if you have not already done so. Only one login is now necessary for both NEA and TSTA Members Only content. If you haven't used your Access card to access the the member benefits page of the NEA or TSTA , all members need to do this to access discounts and member's only information.
Several new laws need to be mentioned. The new mandated graduation requirements law has put some districts into a tizzy. FWISD decided not to put the new requirements into effect until next year. Basically the law eliminates some elective requirements in order to give students more choices for their electives.
Another law passed by the Legislature mandates that the grades that teachers give students are the grades that they get. Districts are not allowed to mandate minimum grades. The law is unclear whether or not report card grades are included. FWISD has interpreted the law to mean that they are not, so the old grading system is still in place. The maker of the bill has said that the intent is to apply to ALL grades.
Finally (at least for our purposes), a new cell phone law is now in effect that bans the use of cell phones in school zones. This applies to texting as well as talking on them.
National Education News
The NEA is working hard on several fronts. Foremost of these is the reorganization of NCLB. Last year NEA sued the government over unfunded mandates and won. The fed appealed so how this will all play out is still to be determined.
The Obama administration's domestic priorities have been and still are, health care for all Americans, jobs for all Americans, and better schools for America's children. The President did get health care legislation passed even if it fell short of many people's expectations. Even though a majority of the people support the new health care bill, a Republican controlled House of Representatives has passed a bill for its repeal. The bill will not be voted on in the Senate. A minority movement calling itself "The Tea Party", a bastardization of the what the original Tea Party was all about, has managed to insinuate its radical agenda into the national arena.
In the State of the Union address, President Obama promoted a plan he calls "Winning the Future." He has asked Congress to work together to cut the budget, reduce the deficit, pass legislation creating jobs, bring the balance of trade into America's favor, improve education to help make America more competitive and to redo the "No Child Left Behind" Act, the Elementary and Secondary School Act.
Also still to be determined is the fate of the Bills to repeal the Government Pension Offset and the Windfall Elimination Provision of the Social Security Act. These two provisions prevent public employees who have paid into Social Security from receiving fair benefits, both survivor and individual. The election of President Obama should have resulted in the repeal of both these acts. So far they have not.
The educator tax deduction helps recognize the financial sacrifices made by teachers and paraprofessionals. Studies show that educators spend more of their own funds each year to supply their classrooms, including purchasing essential items such as pencils, glue, scissors, and facial tissues. The deduction will expire at the end of this year unless Congress acts. We are still waiting for Congress to act. We are still waiting on education initiatives from the Obama administration.
FWISD Education News on the "Local Education News" Page