ABCFT - YOUnionews - September 20 , 2019
HOTLINKS! In this edition of YOUnionews
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(ABC Federation of Teachers)
In Unity
ABC Federation of Teachers
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Personal Learning Opportunity was a Success!
“Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.”
This past Tuesday, the first ABCFT sponsored Personal Learning opportunity titled Finding Balance was held in collaboration with Kaiser Permanente.
This was the first in a series of four workshops focusing on the minds of educators. Facilitator Alicia Loncar led educators from across the district through an interactive presentation that involved strategies and activities that had participants laughing and sharing. The workshop helped participants learn practices to help cope with stress which can help increase health, promote well-being and reduce stress.
Discussions included the topics of the types of challenges in your life (in your control vs. out of your control), resiliency, finding more balance and culminated with participants writing out personal stress management action plans. Personal Learning Opportunity Flyer
Participant feedback
“The Finding Balance workshop hosted by ABCFT and Kaiser helped give me the time and support to create a measurable plan to initiate a task that will bring about more work-life balance. I appreciated the opportunity to interact and laugh with other teachers and support staff who have a common goal. Thank you for the opportunity and resources.
Susie Gomez (Fedde)
This workshop was definitely eye-opening and worth the time. The Finding Balance workshop allowed me to differentiate between what stressors I have control over and which stressors are out of my control. By knowing the difference I can focus on decreasing stress my focusing on the things in life I have control over. I also was reminded that I have the right to take care of myself and not feel guilty about doing so.
Thank You for sponsoring this workshop and I’ll look for future ones.
~ Beccie Souza (Ross)
Another Personal Learning Opportunity - Mindfulness
The second in the series of free members only Personal Learning is Mindfulness offered by wellness coach, Donna Valenti. Have you ever wondered what your life could look like if you had more clarity, better focus, reduced stress and a sense of purpose, all while having success in your career, meaningful relationships, and the time in your day to enjoy the things you love? Are you over-stimulated, frenzied, stressed, exhausted, fatigued and desperate as you attempt to cope with the challenges of modern life? The culture of driving and nonstop activity is taking a huge toll on your health, happiness, and overall well-being. Let’s have some fun and learn how to give your body, mind, and spirit a fresh start.
Mindfulness
Personal Learning Opportunity
Tuesday, October 15th
from 3:30-5:00 p.m.
at Fedde Middle School MPR
21409 Elaine Ave, Hawaiian Gardens.
Light refreshments will be provided.
Seats are limited so be sure to sign up today!
Click the link to register for the Mindfulness Personal Learning Opportunity.
ABCFT Teacher Leaders Program by Tanya Golden
The ABCFT Teacher Leaders Program for 2019-20 has been launched with fourteen teachers representing early childhood, district TOSA, elementary, and secondary schools participating. Earlier this week, was the orientation meeting where the expectations and responsibilities the Teacher Leaders will be assuming were shared. The primary task for the TL’s will be their action research project. Each TL will select an education policy to research and ultimately make a recommendation for action. The project includes a research report and presentation. The TL’s will be meeting twice a month during the school year to learn the inner workings of ABCFT, CFT and our national affiliate, AFT, how to advocate for teachers and students, brush up on research and speaking skills, and hear from guest speakers that are in education or help shape education policies. The TL’s will be working diligently all year but will be rewarded with the experiences of stepping outside of their comfort zone to grow both personally and professionally. If you have a Teacher Leader on your campus be sure to thank them for taking on this challenging yet necessary work.
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PICTURE OF THE WEEK
The ABCFT Executive Board during the day-long retreat this Friday at the union hall where they worked on the ABCFT strategic plan.
Urge Governor Newsom to sign AB 500 – Paid maternity leave for teachers and school workers
Please take a moment to send a letter to Governor Newsom today, urging him to sign Assembly Bill 500 (Gonzalez, D-San Diego) and stand with educators and support staff who wish to start families.
Sponsored by CFT, AB 500 would require K-12 school districts and community colleges to provide a minimum of six weeks of paid leave for pregnancy, childbirth, miscarriage, and recovery for both certificated and classified school employees.
Hard-working and dedicated educators and support staff should not be forced to decide between starting a family and keeping their jobs. Too many teachers and school workers are currently forced to “schedule” pregnancies based on the school calendar, or to try to get by without pay.
We salute Governor Newsom and First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom for putting forward their ‘Parents Agenda’, aimed at improving the lives of California's families. Now Governor Newsom has the chance to take a strong stand for our teachers and school workers who wish to start families by signing AB 500.
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ABCFT PRESIDENT’S REPORT - Ray Gaer 
Each week I work with unit members in representations, contract resolutions, email/text/phone call questions, site concerns, site visits, presentations, state/national representations and mediations. Here are some of the highlights of interest. Throughout the year I find articles that are interesting and food for thought;
Last week we posted a picture of ABCFT past president Richard Hathaway who annually gives the ABCFT history walk during our site rep training. For those that are interested, here is a link to the video so you can hear about the history of your local. Click this link here.
The ABC Federation of Teachers prides itself on innovation and it is why ABCFT is an influential AFT Local. When I ran for president 9 years ago, my most important talking point was that I was going to push for greater transparency and greater amounts of information for members about how your YOUnion operates. With new technology tools creating new ways to communicate, I saw no reason why ABCFT would not communicate regularly with the membership. It is my belief that when members are better informed about the facts, the direct result will be thoughtful input that will help the ABCFT leadership make better decisions about how to serve the membership.
This year you will continue to see changes in the information provided to all members. Creating the expectation of having a weekly YOUnion update was an important step to maintaining the flow of information. Over the next couple of months, you will see another example of increased transparency. We will begin sharing the ABCFT Site Representative meeting minutes and all the documents that your site reps get each month. These documents will be provided in a shared google folder for easy access for all members. Gone will be the days when members would have to ask the site rep to see the meeting notes and talking points for the month. Unless you are a site representative, most members do not know that these meeting notes exist and are available for all members to see. ABCFT has never had a good way to distribute these documents to the members but with the use of google drive, we will change that mindset.
One of the reasons that the ABC Federation of Teachers continues in grow capacity is because of our organization strategies. One of the most important mechanisms for moving an organization is when stakeholders work together on a strategic plan for the organization. Since I became President of ABCFT, I have ensured that your YOUnion has a strategic plan that guides this organization. ABCFT creates a new strategic plan every four years and this will be the third strategic plan of my tenure.
Creating a strategic plan is not a top-down procedure that is dictated to the membership. The development of a plan involves input from all levels of the organization. This Friday the ABCFT Executive Board will be working at the Union Hall on the first draft of our next ABCFT Strategic Plan. This initial draft will take into account countless hours of face to face conversations, thousands of emails, budget and negotiation considerations, shifts in policies, and numerous opportunities that members have had to provide feedback and input in this process. Members may not be aware that the ABCFT leadership, site reps, teacher leaders and negotiating team are continuously gathering information on what issues are impacting the members. This Friday, the Executive Board will work to provide a framework structure for the next strategic plan for ABCFT.
Following the creation of the framework, the next step will involve ABCFT Site Representatives who will be given the opportunity to examine the rough draft and to provide their insight and direction on how the strategic plan can be improved. The site representatives you’ve elected are key stakeholders in representing your interests during these discussions. It is your guiding voice that directs the site representatives and I want you to know that your input is heard. It is my expectation that we will have the ABCFT Executive Board approve the final document by mid-November and it will be shared with the membership at that time. I hope that this article has helped to provide more insight into how your YOUnion functions to serve the membership.
Have a good weekend!
In Unity,
Ray Gaer
President, ABCFT
CALIFORNIA FEDERATION OF TEACHERS
We’ve included the Action Alert in the text above because of the importance for ABCFT membership and how members can make a difference by notifying their local legislators about AB500 and the need for paid maternity leave for teachers.
The latest CFT articles and news stories can be found here on the PreK12 news feed on the CFT.org website.
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS
AFT President Randi Weingarten on Census Poverty Data
WASHINGTON—American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten issued the following statement:
“This data makes real the lived experience of far too many people in President Trump’s America. Contrary to his boast about the ‘best-ever’ economy, 3 in 10 adults can’t count on regular income from month to month and more than a quarter can’t afford a $400 emergency. By sabotaging the Affordable Care Act, the Trump administration has left more people uninsured for the first time in nearly a decade, and has used that money to give pharmaceutical companies and other big corporations a $1.9 trillion tax giveaway.
“Despite our best efforts to fight for more investment in programs that help working people, this White House does the opposite, such as cutting Medicaid and taking money out of food assistance programs that help kids get lunch at school. At the same time, Trump furthers the social, ethnic and racial divides that haunt our communities. Our government should make it easier, not harder, for people to get ahead.”
Follow AFT President Randi Weingarten: http://twitter.com/rweingarten
----- NEWS STORY HIGHLIGHT-----
Cokie Roberts, Pioneering Journalist Who Helped Shape NPR, Dies At 75
Veteran journalist Cokie Roberts, who joined an upstart NPR in 1978 and left an indelible imprint on the growing network with her coverage of Washington politics before later going to ABC News, has died. She was 75. Roberts died Tuesday because of complications from breast cancer, according to a family statement.
A bestselling author and Emmy Award winner, Roberts was one of NPR's most recognizable voices and is considered one of a handful of pioneering female journalists — along with Nina Totenberg, Linda Wertheimer and Susan Stamberg — who helped shape the public broadcaster's sound and culture at a time when few women held prominent roles in journalism.
----- NATIONAL NEWS -----
Sandy Hook Promise releases shocking new video
Anti-gun violence nonprofit Sandy Hook Promise released a shocking new video on Wednesday - showing students using school supplies during an active shooter situation. To accompany the ad, the organization distributes a list of potential warning signs for potential school shootings, including obsession with firearms, threatening behavior and disproportionately aggressive responses to minor slights.
Stricter schools worse for kids
Students who attend stricter schools are less likely to go to college and more likely to have criminal records, according to a new study by the National Bureau of Economic Research. Researchers from Harvard University’s Kennedy School and the University of Colorado found that kids who attend one-standard-deviation-
How ESSA could complicate rural turnarounds
As rural districts work to turn around struggling schools identified for improvement under the Every Student Succeeds Act, they face the challenge of finding evidence-backed strategies that actually work in their particular contexts. "There's a lack of rural research in certain areas," said Allen Pratt, the executive director of the National Rural Education Association at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. "Not every school is equipped the same way, and not every community is equipped the same way. It can become an equity issue." For example, an approach that was deemed successful in an urban elementary school with strong effects for black boys may not show the same results in a rural school with a large population of English-language learners.
----- STATE NEWS -----
California could soon mandate full-day kindergarten
Kindergartners across California could from the 2022-23 school year be required to attend for the full day, defined as any program lasting more than four hours - not including recess time, if Gov. Gavin Newsom signs a bill approved by the state Legislature last week. Though schools would be exempt if they don’t have enough kindergarten classrooms to offer a full-day class for all students, they would still have to offer one part-day kindergarten class in the morning and one in the afternoon in the same classroom. In 2017-18, 19% of state school districts only offered part-day kindergarten, according to the Legislative Analyst’s Office, while 71% offered full-day programs in all their schools and 10% offered a combination of part-day and full-day kindergarten programs.
Sac City continues hunt for new teachers
Several hundred Sacramento City USD students are being taught by substitutes as school officials continue to look for teachers to staff classrooms. Math, science and special education positions are the hardest to fill, according to the district, both in Sacramento and statewide. Sac City vacancies include six math teachers and five science teachers. Special Education has 14 vacancies. The district, which employs about 1,800 teachers, says that the school district is nearly fully staffed at 98%. However, the Sacramento City Teachers Association said the number of vacancies is much higher, because the official district numbers don’t include vacancies that haven’t been posted.
Teaching teachers requires greater consideration
Chad Aldeman, a senior associate partner at Bellwether Education Partners, and also editor of TeacherPensions.org, describes how it’s worth reflecting on the value of teacher training more generally. "Rather than trying to jam all the latest fads into teacher training programs and ensure that all teachers are ready on day one, we should put more emphasis on what happens to teachers once they enter schools and the systems in which they operate," he asserts.
----- DISTRICTS -----
Capistrano Unified hosts gaming and social media debate
The Capistrano Unified School District has held the first of a series of debates entitled “Helping Teens and Families Navigate Mental Health and Wellness,” to help parents and stakeholders tackle teens' excessive use of social media and gaming technology. A discussion at Capistrano Valley High School in Mission Viejo heard from district staff and mental health clinicians advising parents about the consequences of overuse of technology by teens and adolescents.
Two arrested following Moreno Valley fight
Two male students have been arrested for a fight Monday at a middle school in Moreno Valley which left a third student in critical condition. The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department Tuesday reported that he remained hospitalized in critical condition. In a statement, Moreno Valley USD said: “In regards to the school, we are gathering the staff together to address any questions or concerns before school starts. The situation is still under investigation, but we would like to be prepared to support the staff in any way that we can. We will also be communicating with parents once we have more information.”
Dublin High School unveils new Wellness Center for students
A new Wellness Center that opened at Dublin High School last week will give students a place that they can turn to on campus when life becomes overwhelming. The first of its kind in Dublin USD, the Wellness Center offers students an array of services and programs that cater to their mental, emotional and social needs. On-call, individual, and group counseling, “adulting 101” classes, and tobacco use prevention education are some of the amenities that can be found at the center. Renovations on the building that now houses the Wellness Center started in May 2019, according to DUSD spokesman Chip Dehnert. Fremont Bank donated $10,000 towards the project, which was mostly paid for using district funds.
----- CLASSROOM -----
Finding ways to better support ethnically and culturally diverse students in the classroom can be challenging for science teachers, but the practice is as important as ever in education today. In her white paper, Dr. Felicia Moore Mensah of the Columbia University Teachers College discusses both culturally relevant and culturally responsive practices that science teachers can use to nurture diversity in their classrooms. From surveying students at the beginning of the year to determine science topics of interest to having students interview community and family members about scientific issues occurring close to home, there are ample ways for teachers to engage and encourage students of diverse backgrounds in the science classroom. Find Dr. Mensah's white paper here.
----- LEGAL -----
California’s new vaccine law examined
Elizabeth Aguilera outlines California's new vaccine law and its potential impact on schools. Children will be required to be vaccinated, or have a medical exemption, to attend school and reasons for medical exemptions must follow strict guidelines. As part of measures to crack down on the inappropriate use of medical exemptions that allow kids to skip some or all vaccines and still enter school, doctors will also be barred from charging any fees for exams or forms related to such dispensation.
----- CHILD DEVELOPMENT ----
New Teacher Center helps school leaders support learning for four-year-olds
The New Teacher Center has established an Early Learning Leadership Program that covers topics ranging from why it’s important to buy blocks and Play-Doh for early-childhood classrooms to deeper issues, such as discipline practices. The goal of the nine-month program, NTC senior director of early learning partnerships Betsy Fox said, is to give principals and other instructional leaders, such as coaches, a safe place to share what they don’t know about child development, classroom practices and executive function. It includes six three-hour seminars, which focus on brain development, growth milestones and teaching practices that encourage language development and emerging math skills.
----- TECHNOLOGY -----
Teachers' edtech knowledge is key, survey asserts
Overwhelming majorities of teachers, principals and school administrators (94%) say teachers are the sources they trust most when selecting digital learning tools, according to a new survey by the NewSchools Venture Fund and Gallup, confirming that word-of-mouth recommendations are crucial for ed-tech companies products’ chances of success in the K-12 market. “It says a lot about the way teachers have come together, and see each other. Educators see their peers not just as valued colleagues, but as sources of real professional wisdom, including around digital learning tools,” commented NewSchools Venture Fund CEO Stacey Childress.
----- SOCIAL & COMMUNITY -----
Seniors vaping almost daily, survey warns
One in nine U.S. high school seniors are vaping nicotine almost daily, according to the latest annual government-funded survey, highlighting the continuing rise in teens using e-cigarettes. The proportion of teens vaping nicotine in the preceding 30 days more than doubled for each age group surveyed, and about a quarter of 12th-graders said they had vaped the substance within the previous month, up from closer to 1 in 5 the previous year.
----- HIGHER EDUCATION -----
Two-thirds of California college students struggle with costs and work-school balance
Nearly two-thirds of California students say their biggest obstacle to succeeding in college are costs, including tuition and living expenses, and juggling work with school, according to a survey released by the California Student Aid Commission. “Far too many students do not have the financial means to cover the real costs of college, nor do they have access to sufficient aid,” Marlene Garcia, commission executive director, said in a statement. “In many cases, they are skipping meals, sleeping in cars, or otherwise going deeper into poverty with crushing loan debt. This is unacceptable, and we must address these direct needs immediately.” Students in rural areas expressed the greatest hardship: 41% of Central Valley residents reported housing insecurity while 47% of those in the North Inland — the area of Shasta, Butte, Lassen, Plumas and Siskiyou counties — said they did not have regular access to sufficient nutritious food. African American students faced the greatest struggles. More than half reported they lacked regular access to nutritious food and 40% said they did not have stable housing, the survey found. About 4 in 10 Latino students faced similar hardships, with about 3 in 10 Asian Americans and whites reporting such difficulties.
----- OTHER -----
Academic tentative over 'innovative partnerships'
Sean Gill, a research analyst at the Center on Reinventing Public Education at the University of Washington Bothell, profiles NBA star LeBron James' I Promise Academy, created in partnership with Akron Public Schools, as part of a wider appraisal of "innovative partnerships" in education. Many features of James' model, he notes, a longer school year, wraparound services, family engagement and a focus on STEM and social-emotional learning, are to be commended, however Gill asserts that districts "don’t necessarily need" a 15-time All-Star and could easily use their own initiative to try new systems. "For now, partnership schools offer an intriguing way for districts to join forces with other organizations to make more resources available to students and families, and to empower educators to create schools with coherent identities," he concludes.
NTA Life Insurance - An ABCFT Sponsor
About three years ago ABCFT stated a working relationship with National Teachers Associates Life Insurance Company. Throughout our partnership, NTA has been supportive of ABCFT activities by sponsorship and prizes for our various events. This organization specializes in providing insurance for educators across the nation. We have been provided both data and member testimonials about how pleased they have been with the NTA products and the opportunity to look at alternatives to the district insurance choice.
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