ABCFT - Week in Review - March 23, 2018
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In case you’ve missed previous Weeks in Review, you can find all of them here: ABCTeachernews To find previous editions, just click on “Blog Archive” which is the menu on the right and click on the specific week.
(ABC Federation of Teachers)
In Unity
ABC Federation of Teachers
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Raise is Approved by the School Board 7-0
On Tuesday night, the ABCUSD School Board passed to adopt the tentative agreement for 2017-2019 between ABCFT and ABCUSD. ABCFT will get a timetable of when you see the additional compensation next week after we meet with the District. Thank you to all the members who voted, guided, gave constructive criticism, and who came to the board meeting to get this salary agreement. We could not do our job without your voices. It is our mission that the ABCFT will continue to give budget updates and additional information throughout the year.
MEMBERS GET ACTIVE
ABC Teachers Sound Off - An Opportunity to Be Heard
What Do You Wish More People Knew About What It’s Like to Be a Teacher in 2018?
The New York Times is asking teachers across the nation what it’s like to be a teacher in America right now. Follow the link below to read what other teachers across the nation are saying and why not even post a comment to share your experiences in ABC.
If you’re an educator at any level, this is your chance to make your voice heard, and to spotlight details large and small. Your answer could appear in print in a new Times section devoted to education that will be published on Sunday, April 8.
HEALTH BENEFITS COMMITTEE UPDATE by Megan Harding
The Health Benefits Committee is a committee of twelve members comprised of three representatives from each organization of the four organizations (AFSCME, CSEA, ABCFT, ABCMA). Health benefit changes are discussed and decided by this committee over the course of the year. Negotiations for health benefits happen over a the next couple of months and are finalized in June.
On Tuesday March 13, members the Health Benefits Committee met with representatives from both Kaiser and Blue Shield. At that time we were presented with a Utilization Report. Basically, this report shows how much we are using our benefits. As of now the report was favorable, meaning that there shouldn’t be a serious rate increase. There are other factors that come into play and we will not see any numbers until possibly May. This allows the companies to gather as many months of data as possible. (Negotiations over the rates happen between the months of January to June.)
Insurance Background Information on ABC:
There are currently a little less than 1000 people in Blue Shield and over 3000 people enrolled in Kaiser.
We are continually looking at making the Blue Shield Trio plan more appealing to people.
Our next meeting will be April 10
ABCFT TEACHER LEADERS PROGRAM: Tanya Golden TL Facilitator Profile here
Wearing their ORGANIZE. RESIST. shirts, ABCFT Teacher Leaders pose proudly for the cover of CFT’s California Teacher Feb-Mar 2018 edition. They are also featured in the PreK-12 section of the magazine. Connie Nam, Kelley Forsythe, Rachel Jimenez, Tanya Golden, and Ray Gaer were all interviewed for the piece. The Teacher Leaders shared the importance of teachers having a collective union voice which fights for our rights as public employees, funding for education, as well as the opportunity to share their personal stories with legislatures. The Teacher Leaders appreciate the chance to become more involved in the union and as they learn how to use their voice to advocate for their fellow union sisters and brothers. See the online version here ---> ABCFT Teacher Leaders featured on the cover of the CFT California Teacher
ATTENTION TEACHERS AND NURSES - VICARIOUS TRAUMA TRAINING (limited spaces so RSVP soon)
ABCFT has asked the district to find trainings that would support teachers and nurses who work with students of trauma. Teachers and nurses who work with these students are exposed to difficult circumstances, stress, and distressing situations. Educators who work with these types of students and families need psychologic supports to ensure their own mental health. Who should attend: Teachers and Administrators who work with students and families exposed to trauma. This workshop is unpaid but we hope to push for paid trainings in the future if there is a desire for more workshops of this nature.
TUESDAY, MARCH 27, 2018
3:30 – 5:00 PM
DISTRICT OFFICE, CONFERENCE ROOM A
RSVP TO: CHERI CORREIA @ EXT. 21120, CHERYL.CORREIA@ABCUSD.US
Participants will develop an understanding of:
- the basis for social/emotional and mental trauma
- the effects of vicarious trauma
- the impact of trauma on our schools
- the impact of vicarious trauma on our role as teachers
- coping skills for those who are exposed to vicarious trauma
- Self-Care for those exposed to vicarious trauma
Curriculum Link of the Week - Repeated
Everyone needs a planbook that is tech friendly but sophisticated enough to be cutting edge for today’s classroom teacher. Take a look at Planbook.com to help your classroom organization, stay on top of your curriculum pacing, standards, and student lists. Planbook.com offers man helpful tools that can help make a teacher planning easier and more comprehensive. Check it out.
Teacher Planbook
- Supports weekly, two-week, A/B, and cycle schedules
- Plans can be viewed by day, week, month, or class
- Customizable lessons with up-to ten unique sections
- Schedule classes for full year, terms, or defined range
- Standards available for all 50 states, 75 national and international frameworks, 100 districts and dioceses, and growing!
Sharing resources and ideas are what keeps our classrooms innovative, interesting, and organized. Each week, ABCFT will highlight an education resource that we heard was great for teachers. If you have a website, book, or training that you found helpful in your classroom let us know at abcft@abcusd.us so we can share it with everyone.
If you send an idea or link and we use it in the Review, we will send you a Starbucks gift card for the helpful hint.
Attention About Purchase Orders
It has been brought to ABCFT’s attention that we have a small number teachers that are having difficulty getting reimbursed for their purchases for their classrooms. In December, guidelines for purchase orders were sent to school secretaries and principals but seems that not every teacher was made aware of the changes. Here is what led up to this change and what was done in risk management.
“...mail to all our secretaries and Principals regarding following Purchasing Policy on procurement. Our auditors found that during the last audit in August some of the procurement transactions were not approved either by a school administrator, fund administrator or by accounting and purchasing before the transaction. Hence, the transactions were considered a circumvention of fiscal and purchasing oversight.”
It has come to my attention that despite my communications to the schools, there are still some teachers who makes purchases without a purchase order. The problem is now, I am not able to process a purchase order after the fact because that will bring another audit finding report to the Board and to Los Angeles County of Education.
The teacher who made the unauthorized purchase now becomes financially responsible for their purchases. Some have to resorted to returning the purchases but others have either ordered custom made products or used the product so it cannot be returned.
Purchasing is asking for your help with regards to the procurement process. Fiscal auditors are scrutinizing the dates and receiving of purchases. Any non-compliance shall be filed in a report to our Board of Education and LACOE. All purchases require pre-approval by the authorized administrator/s whether it is for imprest or regular requisition. If purchases are made prior to imprest approval date or the issuance of a purchase order, no reimbursement or payment will be made. It is therefore in your best interest to please check with your school secretaries prior to making any purchases.
In Case You Didn’t Know - ABCUSD is the 2018 California Exemplary District Award representing Los Angeles County.
This is the first time this award has been given to a district. Each California County chose an Exemplary District to be recognize at the State level. There are over eighty districts in LA County and ABC will be the first district to be recognized for our exceptional academic progress. Your hard work for ABC students and the ABC community is being recognized at the county level. Below is the announcement this week from Mary Sieu’s Monday Message:
It’s my great pleasure to announce that ABC Unified School District has been selected as the only district in Los Angeles County for the 2018 California Exemplary School District Award. In light of California’s adoption of the new accountability and support system, the California Department of Education has expanded the California Distinguished Schools Program to include the California Exemplary Districts Award. Districts that have made considerable progress in the implementation of state priority areas were nominated for this new award by their County Office of Education. They may select one district in their county.
The Los Angeles County Office of Education plays an integral part in the LCAP process, as they are the body responsible for the review and approval. They reviewed the data from all the districts in Los Angeles County, including suspension rates, graduation rates, absenteeism rates, dropout rates as well as the results on the SBAC tests in English Language Arts and Math. The review panel at LACOE determined that ABC Unified School District met their criteria to receive the 2018 California Exemplary District Award representing Los Angeles County.
Our District will be recognized and honored at the California Distinguished Schools Award Ceremony held at the Disneyland Hotel in May. Congratulations to the Board of Education, our staff, students, families, and community members for contributing to ABC Unified School District and earning this prestigious title as the 2018 California Exemplary District in Los Angeles County!
Congratulations ABC Teachers and Nurses for this important recognition.
One more week to go for Spring Break. Winter Break seems like a year ago as the challenges in our politics and social environment have taken the toll on students, parents, teachers and nurses. I was watching a short report on the stress that firefighters endure and how firefighters over the span of their careers often suffer from mental health issues associated with post traumatic stress syndrome.
Teachers and nurses are also first responders, being calm when there is fear, being proactive when others freeze up, being a counselor when our students and their families are in crisis. If you would like to know more about how to handle the lingering impact of trauma over the course of your career or you’re dealing with a challenging student/parent make sure to take a look at the trauma training being given by the district right now. The district has about forty slots and if those are filled they will have this guest speaker come again for a repeat of the workshop.
If you sign up, it sends a message to ABCUSD that Teachers and nurses need support for their mental health concerns in conjunction with all the work we are doing for students and the community. ABCFT has pressed the district to provide some type of additional support for the mental well-being of the teachers and nurses of ABC.
Over this past week I attended/worked with unit members in representations, contract resolutions, email/text/phone call questions, site concerns, and mediations. Here are a couple of highlights from my week:
On Monday, I met with Dr. Colin Sprigg to discuss technology in the classroom. Dr. Sprigg is excited about adding new tools for “enhance technology” in our district which I agree is exciting, but I pointed out that as we focus on enhancement we also need to give teachers the tools to create technologically safe environments, provide tools for teachers to stop the abuses of technology, and to give teachers the tools they need easier ways to monitor the use technology in their classrooms. Meeting with district administrators is important for a couple of reasons.
When members of ABCFT meet with members of the district cabinet we are able to add teacher voice to the decision making. ABCFT members have a daily reality and daily challenges that the district must know about as they continuously churn out curricular changes. Meeting with the district cabinet positions also helps to slow down this process of change by adding critical and constructive guidance so that the roll out of programs or projects. For example, about six years ago the district was thinking about pushing out one to one devices to all students right as soon as possible. This timetable was unacceptable, as a result, ABCFT advocated for grade level adoption of those willing to utilize technology in their classrooms. The success of ABC’s slower pace or implementing technology has helped in many ways such as: saving money by not wasting resources on outdated or dying technology or software, figuring out what “really” works in the classroom, creating feedback time for teachers to help guide the delivery of additional technology etc.
From Thursday to Sunday I will be at the CFT Annual Convention where I will be representing ABCFT at the State level as a CFT Vice President with the ABCFT delegates. On Friday, I will be presenting on union capacity building, communication, and collaboration as a tool. We will have pictures and reports about what happens at a convention next week.
Thank you for all you do with our students and for supporting each other as a YOUnion.
As always, have a great weekend and we will see you back here next week.
In Unity!
Ray Gaer
ABCFT President
CALIFORNIA FEDERATION OF TEACHERS
MARCH FOR OUR LIVES ON 3/24: The recent Florida school shooting has spurred a number of organizing efforts around ending gun violence/gun control issues. One effort is the 3/24 March for our Lives -- nationwide events in solidarity with a march on Washington, D.C.
March 24 is also the Saturday of our convention. While it will be a challenge, we are going to reorganize our convention schedule so that all of our delegates can fully participate in the Orange County event in support of the March for our Lives.
This is not a CFT only event, it is a community event that we are working to support. A key group of staff, led by Jessica, Frank, and Alayna, has been supporting the organizing over the past few weeks.
If you work with a Southern California area local, especially the Orange County area, please help us to get the work out and mobilize turnout with our members who live and work in the area. While our delegates will be there, we want to have a show of support on this important issue that goes well beyond just our delegates.
Attached please find a flyer with details on the event. Please distribute it far and wide as part of mobilizing for the event.
Click here to get more information
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS
Operation Agua Continues as Lifeline to Bring Access to Safe Drinking Water to Children and Families in Puerto Rico Partnership surpasses 75 percent mark of goal of 100,000 water filters for Puerto Rico families More than 54,000 Kohler Clarity water filters delivered in less than six months, with 23,040 more on their way; filters distributed to thousands of public schools and tens of thousands of homes, churches and community centers across the island WASHINGTON—Launched after Hurricane Maria made landfall six months ago, Operation Agua continues to serve as a lifeline for communities still without access to safe drinking water, and it is now more than 75 percent to its goal of bringing 100,000 water filters to Puerto Rico. Operation Agua has raised $1.75 million through crowdfunded donations and has delivered 54,000 Kohler Clarity water filters across the island, including to more than 1,100 public schools and tens of thousands of homes, churches and community centers. Based on funds on hand, 23,040 more filters will be heading to the island shortly.
AFT Supports Student Non-Discrimination Act
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WASHINGTON— Statement of American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten in support of the Student Non-Discrimination Act:
“The AFT has always advocated proudly for LGBTQ students, and we endorse this bill to prohibit discrimination against them in school programs. No child should fear being barred from a school program or denied the resources to participate simply because of who they are, and all students deserve a safe, supportive educational environment where they are treated equally and fairly.
“Yet we know that a much harsher reality still persists for too many of our LGBTQ students. Our federal government must work with schools to create safe, inclusive and welcoming learning environments, free of bullying and harassment, and the AFT stands behind this bill’s efforts to deny federal funds to schools offering anything less.”
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Follow AFT President Randi Weingarten: http://twitter.com/rweingarten
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----- NATIONAL NEWS -----
House passes school safety bill
On that same day thousands of students walked out of class to demand action on school safety and gun control, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the STOP School Violence Act of 2018, the first school safety-focused measure to pass in the House since the Florida school shooting.The bill reauthorizes a Justice Department program focused on stopping school threats and provides $50m per year to create and operate an anonymous reporting systems for threats of school violence, the implementation of improvements to school security infrastructure and the development of student, teacher and law enforcement training to prevent violence. Absent from the STOP School Violence Act is any mention of gun control, despite student protests for gun control laws and high levels of public support.
Betsy DeVos grilled over budget proposal
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos faced sharp criticism when she went before a House Appropriations subcommittee this week over her proposed budget, which seeks to eliminate money that schools use to support student mental health - a move that has come under scrutiny following the Florida school shooting. “Have you rethought your elimination of the student support and enrichment grants that specifically go to violence in our schools and help students deal with that?” Rep. Katherine M. Clark (D-MA) asked.“Our current scenario suggests that we should revisit this again,” Mrs DeVos replied . Mrs DeVos also faced criticism over her proposal to cut $1m from the department’s Office for Civil Rights, with Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) pressing her on why her department was eliminating money for programs that benefit students of color. “For me, it’s a slap in the face,” Lee said. The Trump administration also faced disapproval that a commission to examine school safety in the aftermath of the Florida school shooting will consist of just four people - all Cabinet secretaries - and no Democrats.
School shooting survivors speak at Harvard
Students who survived last month’s shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida have participated in a panel discussion at Harvard about the social movement they’ve started, and said they’re expecting more than 1m people to participate in marches on Saturday in Washington, and in other parts of the country, calling for tougher firearms regulations.
Congress rejects much of DeVos spending bill
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos’s school choice agenda in a new spending bill has been dealt a blow by Congress which rejected her attempt to cut Education Department funding by $3.6bn, while spending over $1bn to promote charter schools, magnet schools and private school vouchers. Instead, Congress is to increase department funding by $3.9bn, with no funding for the school choice program. “After more than a year on the job, I would have hoped Secretary DeVos would have learned by now that her extreme ideas to privatize our nation’s public schools and dismantle the Department of Education do not have support among parents or in Congress, but unfortunately that does not seem to be the case,” said Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.). However, Mrs DeVos said: “President Trump is committed to reducing the federal footprint in education.”
----- STATE NEWS -----
Districts demand California meets national average for school spending
Dublin USD school board has asked the state legislature to raise state funding for schools to meet the national average by 2020 and the average of the top 10 states by 2025, in a Full and Fair Funding Resolution sponsored by the California School Boards Association. Pleasanton USD recently passed a similar resolution concerning California’s low school funding, with the state ranking 41st for national per-pupil funding and coming near bottom for most other measures of school investment. DUSD board president Amy Miller called it “unconscionable” that the state’s spending is five times higher for prisoners than students and that California “trails” behind in national education when it has the world’s 6th largest economy.
Assembly advances bill for armed school campuses
The State Assembly Education Committee has advanced AB 2067, a measure proposing that armed law enforcement officers be assigned to all school campuses in California. The proposal, introduced by Assemblyman James Gallagher (R-Yuba City), passed out of committee on a 4-0 vote, and faces a fiscal committee before reaching the Assembly floor. “Why not have these individuals at every school in the state to ensure that there will be someone there [to stop shooting incidents]?” Mr Gallagher asked the panel. On the potential costs, he said: “I don’t think you can put a price on it when it comes to peace of mind, when it comes to our kids.” Speaking against the measure, Kathy Sher of the American Civil Liberties Union of California said armed guards on campuses will make students feel like they are in detention centers, not places of learning.
----- DISTRICTS -----
El Rancho fires teacher who disparaged military
El Rancho USD trustees voted unanimously last night to fire Gregory Salcido, the El Rancho High School teacher who was recorded in January making disparaging remarks to his students about U.S. military members. The video featured Mr Salcido, who has 30 days to lodge an appeal, chastising a pupil for wearing a U.S. Marines sweatshirt and calling military members the “lowest of our low.” Board of Education President Aurora Villon said the school board received thousands of emails, including from veterans and relatives of veterans, from all over the world who were offended by Salcido's remarks.
Pajaro teacher negotiations break down
Mediated contract negotiations between Pajaro Valley USD and its teachers’ union stalled Monday after the sides failed to reach an agreement. The Pajaro Valley Federation of Teachers has called for a $4,408 salary increase retroactive to the 2016-2017 school year; rejecting this, the district has instead offered a one-time $3,200 payment, and a 2% salary increase for this year. Teachers would also receive a 2% raise retroactive to January 1st, and an additional 3% raise next year, all contingent on changes in their health benefits. The negotiations now move into the fact-finding phase, during which a three-person panel examines the district’s finances, as well as the teachers’ demands, and looks for potential compromise.
----- ELEMENTARY -----
Battles Elementary comes together following attempted suicide
Parents of Battles Elementary students filled the school's cafeteria last night for a meeting, after a fourth-grade student attempted suicide last week. Representatives from various community agencies, such as crisis-care facility Casa Pacifica, were on hand to provide resources for parents and families who need additional help properly caring for their child's mental health or providing for their well-being.
----- HEALTH & WELLBEING -----
The children aged 5 who worry about their reputation
Children worry about their reputation from the age of 5, altering their behaviour so peers will like them, according to researchers from theUniversity of Pennsylvania and the University of Chicago. The researchers say: “In addition to a robust awareness of their own reputations, young children also display a surprisingly sophisticated tendency to track and evaluate the reputations and reputational behaviours of others.”
----- TECHNOLOGY -----
Apple to hold education technology event
Apple is to hold an education-focused event on March 27 at Lane Tech College Prep High School in Chicago which will highlight "creative new ideas for teachers and students." There are a number of devices that could come out at the event, with rumors suggesting the firm might reveal a new 9.7-inch iPad for a special education price of $259 and an updated MacBook Air which Apple could market as a lower-cost, educational device for high school and college-aged students. Apple will also likely talk about its educational software tools and initiatives in addition to any hardware announcements it makes.
----- HIGHER EDUCATION -----
UC regents approve non-resident student tuition hike
University of California regents voted yesterday in favor of increasing tuition for non-resident students. The 12-3 decision will see a 3.5% increase, boosting the supplemental tuition that non-resident pay by $978, from $28,014 to $28,992 for the 2018-19 school year. UC officials say the $35m they expect to raise from the increase will help reduce class sizes and support more academic support and counseling.
Chinese firms continue to buy up U.S. colleges
Taking advantage of America’s financially struggling higher-education system, Chinese companies are buying up schools, the latest being the purchase of classical music conservatory Westminster Choir College, an affiliate of Rider University, by Beijing Kaiwen Education Technology for $40m. The deal comes after S&P Global Ratings put the sector on a negative outlook in January. Westminster is at least the fourth college site bought by Chinese interests since 2015 - in November, Beijing-based Ambow Education Holding announced the purchase of Bay State Collegein Boston for an undisclosed sum.
UCLA named top Graduate Education School
UCLA has been named as the Best Graduate Education School in the U.S. by U.S. News & World Report, beating Harvard into second place. Stanford University was named in joint fourth place, in a tie with the University of Pennsylvania.
----- FINANCE -----
Soda tax funds pour into San Fran’s coffers
San Francisco’s public schools could receive soda tax revenue next year for healthier meals, dental services and other programs and nonprofits providing services to low-income communities of color would receive about $5million, under recommendations released Friday afternoon by a city advisory committee. Revenue generated by the 1% levy on fizzy drinks will go toward improving participation in dance and movement, sports, yoga, walking groups, and biking, education on how to lead a healthier life, and food services like food pantries or home-delivered meals.
.----- OTHER -----
School choice ‘won’t transform U.S. education’
Ted Dintersmith, a successful venture capitalist, has traveled to every U.S. state to visit schools and see what works and what doesn’t, and has concluded that charter schools are not, on balance, more innovative than public schools, and he says some of the most remarkable innovations he observed were in the very public schools that school choice advocates dismiss. He says America’s teachers are dedicated, passionate and committed but in the U.S. education system, nonexperts tell experts what to do. “Priorities are set by legislators, billionaires, textbook and testing executives, college admissions officers and education bureaucrats. These forces, perhaps unintentionally, impede real change in our schools,” Mr Dintersmith said.
Petition launched to save Seaside teacher
Students at Seaside High School in Monterey USD have launched a petition to save the job of the teacher who accidentally discharged a handgun in a classroom on Tuesday. Dennis Alexander, a Sand City reserve police officer, was pointing his service weapon at the ceiling when it fired; one student suffered moderate injuries from falling debris. He has since been placed on administrative leave. Meanwhile the injured student, who had metal fragments removed from his neck after the incident, has enlisted an attorney and is considering taking legal action.
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