KEEPING YOU INFORMED - Negotiations Update By Ruben Mancillas
ABCFT negotiated an agreement for additional compensation for Short Term Independent Studies (or STIS) contracts that ended in June. We are aware that some sites still have unresolved issues with their payments and are working with the district to get this fixed as soon as possible.
Currently, there is no additional compensation for completing STIS paperwork. Nor do we have specific contract language concerning STIS. The negotiating team is aware of the need for STIS protections for our members. I suggest working with your site rep and your administrators to determine what supports teachers need as well as what supports will be provided if they expect teachers to complete this work. One potential solution, perhaps more appropriate to secondary, would be to refer students to your Google classroom.
Monday is a well-earned holiday that I hope you all enjoy. Labor Day feels more relevant than ever given the unfortunate and unfounded attacks that public educators have endured recently. But it has also been exciting to see workers vote nationally in recent weeks to unionize at businesses like Trader Joe’s and Chipotle. Workers have also made significant inroads at Starbucks and Amazon, despite the well-funded union-busting efforts of these corporations. A recent poll showed that public support of the labor movement is at a 53-year high with 71 percent of Americans approving of unions. Thank you to all of our members who do so much for the ABC community. Your continued professionalism and commitment to our students is one of the many examples where people can see the value of working people coming together to make a positive difference.
In Unity,
ABCFT CELEBRATES 50TH ANNIVERSARY
REGISTRATION NOW OPEN
ABCFT became the bargaining agent for ABC teachers and nurses in 1972. We are recognizing this significant milestone by celebrating the 50th anniversary of the ABC Federation of Teachers. All ABCFT current members and retirees are invited to this special event. The evening will include a delicious selection of hors d'oeuvres. Bring your best dance moves for the D.J. as we boogie the night away! There's also a chance to win a special gift in the raffle drawing and a no-host bar.
WHO: ABCFT members current and retired
WHEN: Friday, September 30, 2022, from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
WHERE: Holiday Inn 7000 Beach Blvd. Buena Park, CA 90620
COST: $20.00 per member/retiree
Space is limited to ABCFT members and retirees. First come, first serve. Register and send payment by September 19th.
Click here to register then Click here for payment
KEEPING YOU INFORMED-TK-1st Grade SurveyBy Tanya Golden
The start of each school year can have its own challenges and the past two weeks have once again shown this to be true. The effects of the pandemic continue to linger as the youngest students start the new school year. Many of these students may be entering a classroom for the first time. Unfortunately, for some students, the transition has been very difficult, and they may lack the skills to communicate their frustrations or need intensive support based on their special needs. Thank you to the site reps and teachers who have advocated for ABC students and teachers by sharing their challenges with ABCFT.
In response to the challenges for some TK, kindergarten, and first-grade teachers, ABCFT shared a TK-1st grade survey with the site reps at our monthly Rep Council meeting yesterday. If they haven’t already done so, your site rep will forward each TK-1st grade teacher a link to the survey. If you do not want to wait, here is the survey link. Thank you to the many TK-1st grade teachers who have already completed it. The information gathered will help ABCFT leadership advocate at the district level for the needs of ABCFT members.
Earlier this week, I met with my PAL partner, Director of School Services Melinda Ortiz to discuss the severe behaviors and undiagnosed special needs of some of the TK-1st grade students. The district is working with site administrators to support teachers and students by pulling together resources to get students assessed. ABCFT member and TOSA, Jessica Boles along with her newly hired team of one full-time and one part-time behavioral specialists, have been assessing many of these students and have begun supporting teachers and students.
The primary intervention program (PIP) will also be returning to many elementary schools this year too. The PIP program provides social and emotional support to primary students with the greatest needs. This play-based curriculum provides early intervention for students as they learn to manage their emotions and how to have friendly interactions with others.
Understandably all of these challenges can be daunting. It will get better. As you know, ABCFT union activism is unique compared to the typical educator union across the state and country. We will continue to work with our district partners to find solutions to support teachers and students.
MEMBER-ONLY RESOURCES
You and your colleagues are invited to join the AFT on Sept. 13 and 20 for a two-part virtual learning series, Identity Affirming Classroom Team (I-ACT) Tasting: Your Recipe for More Equitable Learning Communities.
You’ll hear directly from AFT educators on authentic approaches to disrupting inequitable systems and shaping sustainable learning communities. You’ll walk away from these interactive sessions with a targeted learning plan on how to foster and affirm identity growth, purpose, and agency across classrooms, schools, and communities. Whether you have a team ready or it’s just you, we invite you to expand your palate with I-ACT!
Tasting Menu:
Identity Matters
Mission and Vision
LGBTQIA+ Confronting Barriers
Deficit Language
Shaping Academic Identities
Social Media
Power in Partnerships
ABCFT PRESIDENT’S REPORT - Ray Gaer
Consistent and regular communication is a union’s most important tool for advocating for its members at the bargaining table. Every conversation with members is focused on the end result of negotiating for the future prosperity and well-being of ALL ABCFT members. The goal of this weekly report is to keep members informed about issues that impact their working/learning conditions and their mental well-being. Our work as a Union is a larger conversation, and together we make the YOUnion.
Congratulations, August is behind you, and Labor Day weekend is upon us already. The ABCFT leadership has been working hard both in front and behind the scenes to address issues that are popping up. It’s like playing a giant game of whack-a-mole yet we are managing to stay on top of current issues that are impacting our members. This is a far cry from the previous two years when the list of problems grew faster than we could address. Thank you ABCFT site representatives for tireless work to help address issues at your site before they become larger and broader issues.
Tanya and Ruben did a great job of communicating some of the work we are collectively working on right now. Some of the issues that have surfaced are: the STIS back pay and lack of clarity going forward; EDP teachers who have been thrust into a new program and what support they need; facility issues such as noise, water, or construction concerns; and the ballooning caseload number for special education, and the high number of concerns that are impacting ABC primary grade teachers. This is not a comprehensive list, but ABCFT is on top of all of these items and others. Working with site and district administrators we are working collaboratively to find solutions and provide support as soon as possible. There is a new level of engagement from our district partners, and we are thankful for their readiness to help find solutions. ABCFT will keep you updated with the progress we are making to ensure that ALL stakeholders follow the contract and that we work together to find solutions for the many challenges that lie outside the language of the contract but are just as important for the success of teachers in classrooms.
This Labor Day weekend, take a moment to come to peace with what you did over the last two years and what you are doing to make this year a great one for students. Your Labor carried this community over the last two years and a single holiday weekend is merely a small gesture of thanks that this country gives for its working force. Your sacrifices deserve to be recognized, and I hope that this Labor Day weekend takes on a new meaning for you. This is YOUR holiday! Thank you for all you do every day for your ABC community and thank you for your membership in this great solution-driven Union.
In YOUnity,
Ray Gaer
President, ABCFT
CALIFORNIA FEDERATION OF 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
Follow AFT President Randi Weingarten: http://twitter.com/rweingarten
----- NEWS STORY HIGHLIGHT-----
FACT SHEET: Biden-Harris Administration Announces Public and Private Sector Actions to Strengthen Teaching Profession and Help Schools Fill Vacancies
Our nation’s teachers prepare and inspire the next generation of leaders that are critical to our future. Yet for years, our education system has faced challenges in attracting, recruiting, and retaining qualified teachers – challenges that were made worse by the pandemic. As children across the country start the 2022-2023 school year, too many schools are struggling to fill vacancies for teachers, including with qualified teachers, and other critical school professionals – such as bus drivers, paraprofessionals, nurses, and mental health professionals – positions that are essential to help our students recover academically, access the mental health supports they need, and thrive in and out of the classroom.
Today, the Biden-Harris Administration is announcing new efforts to strengthen the teaching profession and support schools in their effort to address teacher shortages as the new school year begins. This announcement includes new commitments from leading job platforms to make it easier for Americans to find opportunities in the education field, and new initiatives from teachers unions and national and state organizations to expand high-quality pathways into the profession for future teachers.
----- PUBLIC EDUCATION -----
Americans back public schools at highest levels for 50 years
PDK International’s 2022 Public Attitudes Toward Public Schools poll indicates that Americans support their local public schools at the highest ratings in nearly 50 years and express widespread trust in teachers. Over half (54%) of respondents graded their community’s schools “A” or “B,” a 10 percentage point increase from 2019. When asked if they would want their child to be a teacher however, 62% of survey respondents said “no,” representing the highest number of people to say teaching isn’t a good profession for young people in the poll’s history. “There’s a big concern in these numbers about the future of the teaching profession,” comments PDK's Teresa Preston. “We see these narratives of people who support their schools, trust their teachers, but don’t want their children to become teachers.”
----- NATIONAL NEWS -----
Ed. Dept. moves to help schools fill teacher vacancies
The Biden-Harris Administration has announced new efforts to help schools address teacher shortages, including commitments from leading job platforms to make it easier for Americans to find opportunities in the education field and new initiatives from teachers’ unions and other organizations to expand pathways into the profession. ZipRecruiter is launching a new online job portal specifically dedicated to K-12 school jobs, Handshake will host a nationwide free virtual event to help current undergraduate students learn about pathways in the field of education, including teachers, guidance counselors, school mental health specialists, and school psychologists, while Indeed is to facilitate virtual hiring fairs for educators throughout the country. The Department of Education and the Department of Labor have also issued a joint letter to state and local education and workforce leaders encouraging them to take a series of actions to address teacher and school staff shortages and invest in the teaching profession, including: paying teachers a livable and competitive wage, and expanding programs that prepare and support teachers, including registered teacher apprenticeship programs. National organizations representing teachers, state school chiefs, governors, and teacher colleges are also now working together to expand high-quality registered teacher apprenticeship programs, teaching residencies, and Grow Your Own programs. The Pathways Alliance is creating national guidelines for registered teacher apprenticeship programs, while CCSSO, AFT, NEA, and NGA will work together to identify best practices and support their members in pursuing registered apprenticeships and increased pathways into the teaching profession.
Republicans are readying lawsuits to block Biden’s student debt plan
Republican state attorneys general and other leading conservatives are exploring a slew of potential lawsuits targeting President Biden’s plan to cancel some student debt — challenges that could limit or invalidate the policy before it takes full effect.
In recent days, a number of GOP attorneys general from states including Arizona, Missouri and Texas have met privately to discuss a strategy that could see multiple cases filed in different courts around the country, according to a person familiar with their thinking who like others spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the confidential talks.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2022/09/01/republicans-sue-biden-student-debt/
Declining graduation rates 'across the board' last year
At least 31 states saw declining graduation rates for the class of 2021 overall, according to an analysis by the EdWeek Research Center, more than twice as many as in the year prior. Low-income students and those with disabilities have been the hardest hit, with year-to-year declines for low-income students in 33 states and for students with disabilities in 22 states. Across states that provided data, Asian students were the only group for which fewer states saw declines in graduation rates in 2021 than in 2020. In the same time, graduation rates have declined for Native American, Latino, and white students in the majority of states, and for Black students in 24 states. Arizona graduated just 75.7% of its students on time in 2020-21, the biggest decline in the nation, and local experts expect the state to continue graduation-requirement waivers for seat time and credit hours for years to come. “In Arizona, we’ve lost 10 years of attainment; there’s been such a huge slide,” says Stephanie Parra, the executive director of the ALL in Education nonprofit. “We are going into the third school year still navigating a pandemic, and now we do have clear data that schools are struggling and our students are definitely going to need a lot of support to bring them back.”
States' student spending map
The United States on average spent just under $12,000 per pupil in fiscal year 2019, though totals varied broadly both across and within states. According to data from USAFacts and Georgetown University's Edunomics Lab, states in the Northeast tended to spend the most on public education. School funding obviously comes from a variety of sources at different levels, which can vary by region, but the states with the highest median expenditures per student are New York ($25,359), Connecticut ($20,744), New Jersey ($20,247), Alaska ($19,924), New Hampshire ($18,632), Rhode Island ($17,231), Massachusetts ($17,136), Wyoming ($17,018), Hawaii ($16,284) and Delaware ($15,406). On the opposite end of the spectrum in per-pupil spending are Utah ($7,811), Idaho ($8,005), Arizona ($8,557), Mississippi ($9,258) and Oklahoma ($9,446).
----- STATE NEWS -----
Workforce challenges vary significantly across California schools
A new survey by EdSource shows that the impacts of California's teacher shortages vary significantly across the state. Every district surveyed but two, Riverside Unified and Trona Joint Unified near Death Valley, reported a shortage of some kind. Even within the same district, some schools — particularly those in wealthier neighborhoods — experienced less teacher turnover and were more likely to start the school year with a full staff. Many districts that serve large numbers of high-needs students meanwhile report severe teacher shortages as the school year began. “Santa Ana Unified continues to experience the same, if not greater, shortage of applicants for both certificated and classified positions,” district spokesperson Fermin Leal says, noting the tight competition among neighboring districts to recruit and hire teachers quickly. Long Beach Unified, where more than 66% of students are low-income, also reported a severe teacher shortage. Even after hiring 277 teachers over the summer, the district still has 45 vacancies. Oakland Unified, which has about 20,000 fewer students than Long Beach, has 34 vacancies after a hiring binge of 474 teachers. San Francisco Unified managed to fill all but eight of 500 vacancies by the start of the school year, in part by offering bonuses of up to $2,000 for teachers to work in special or bilingual education or in academically low-achieving schools. Los Angeles Unified made headlines last week when it announced it had filled 99% of its teacher vacancies. “The teacher shortage is not a mass exodus story. There’s variation,” says Desiree Carver-Thomas, researcher and policy analyst for the Learning Policy Institute, who’s studied the issue. “But there are very significant shortages in some districts, and that’s having a big impact on students.”
Kindergarten could soon be mandatory for California children
California is one step closer to mandating that children attend kindergarten. A bill approved by the state Senate late Monday night is already headed to the governor’s desk and, if signed, would require children to complete a year of kindergarten before entering first grade, beginning in the 2024-25 school year. Under SB 70 by Sen. Susan Rubio (D-Baldwin Park), California would join 19 states where kindergarten is not an option but a requirement. The bill specifies that other early education programs, such as transitional kindergarten, which serves four-year-olds, does not count toward the requirement. Under the bill, students can choose to attend public or private kindergarten. Although kindergarten is already well attended — about 95% of eligible students enrolled before COVID-19, according to the California Department of Education — proponents of the bill said allowing the grade to be optional misleads parents about its benefits. Like most states, California does not require kindergarten as part of its compulsory education laws. California children who are five years old are eligible for kindergarten, but are not required by law to attend school until they are six years old.
California begins providing free meals for all students
This school year is the first that California, along with Maine, Vermont and a few other states, are promising to provide every child with free breakfast and lunch. In 2021-22, California lawmakers committed to allocating $650m each year to the universal free meal program, as well as $54m in the 2021-22 budget to supplement state meal reimbursements to districts. The 2022-23 budget provided an extra $600m toward a grant program to upgrade schools’ kitchen infrastructure and $100m for a grant program to promote the best food-procurement practices, such as buying California grown-produce and providing options for students with dietary restrictions. West Contra Costa Unified, in the East Bay Area, used the extra funds to purchase a mobile food truck, and through a partnership with nonprofit Conscious Kitchen, the district receives fresh produce for scratch-cooked school meals. New to Fresno Unified this year is an app and interactive website that provides parents and guardians information on school meals for breakfast and lunch each day. The app even shows an image and description of the meals, as well as nutrition and allergen information. “Providing healthy, appealing meals goes a long way to helping our students focus on their learning,” Fresno Unified Superintendent Bob Nelson asserts.
California passes major Children’s Online Safety Bill
Lawmakers in California have passed the first statute in the nation requiring technology apps and sites to install guardrails for users under 18. The new rules would compel many online services to curb the risks that certain popular features, like allowing strangers to message one another, may pose to child users. The bill, the California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act, could herald a shift in the way lawmakers regulate the tech industry. Apps and sites will have to analyze and mitigate the risks that their services may pose to minors, like exposing them to explicit content or using manipulative techniques to prod them to spend hours on end online. The legislation also requires online services to turn on the highest privacy settings by default for minors and it prohibits online platforms from collecting children’s precise locations without “providing an obvious sign to the child” while their whereabouts are being tracked.
----- DISTRICTS -----
L.A. teachers vote to boycott extra learning day
Los Angeles teachers union members have voted to boycott the first of four optional, extra learning days for students. United Teachers Los Angeles has opposed the optional learning days, for which teachers would be paid, as a "poor use of resources" and as a violation of state rules requiring that changes to working conditions must be bargained over in formal labor negotiations. The extra days were intended to “provide additional instruction to students identified as in need of intensive intervention,” the district said in a statement Friday. The first extended learning day is scheduled for October 19, a key time in the middle of the semester when students can improve grades and seek midterm help. The union has filed with state labor regulators to intervene on its behalf.
Will Alberto Carvalho's credentials serve L.A. schools at a challenging time?
Jay Mathews profiles Alberto Carvalho, leader of Los Angeles Public Schools, the nation’s second-largest district. He won several awards in his last job, Mathews notes, as head of the Miami-Dade County public schools, the nation’s fourth-largest district, and his strategic plan this year has five pillars; academic excellence, joy and wellness, engagement and collaboration, operational effectiveness and investing in staff. Carvalho’s plan also predicts the high school graduation rate rising to 93%, the percentage of students who feel safe at school rising to 82%, the percentage of parents who report they feel welcome to participate at their school rising to 94%, and the percentage of new applicants for jobs in the district who are members of “underrepresented groups” reaching at least 50%. Carvalho still faces problems of staffing and improving elementary and middle school instruction, Mathews suggests, but his successes in Miami show he "knows what works."
Santa Barbara Unified bans smartphones in class
Smart watches, cell phones and headphones are no longer welcome in Santa Barbara Unified School District classrooms. ShaKenya Edison, the district's superintendent of student services, has outlined a plan that includes promoting the “Off & Away” campaign first, followed by recommendations from the Technology Use Committee and then eventual full implementation of the plan in January. District officials say the devices are distractions and that “learning zones” should be free of phones. School board member Laura Capps, who supports the new plan, said confiscation is not the policy. “I've heard from many parents and teachers who agree it's a no-brainer. They tell me it's one of a few reasons the new school year has gotten off to a promising start.”
----- CLASSROOM -----
Permanent virtual classes can protect vulnerable children
School districts in Texas, New York and California are amongst those creating permanent, full-time virtual schools for the first time ever this year, in a bid to help protect vulnerable children. A 2021 survey of 291 U.S. school districts by Rand Corp. found a surge in the number that offered virtual schools for students after the height of the pandemic. Roughly 26% of the 291 districts were offering remote lessons as a full-time option last year, the survey revealed, compared with 3% before the pandemic. While less than 6% of students chose virtual classes among the districts that had them in 2021, superintendents feel virtual schools are an important offering for students for whom remote classes make more sense than going to school. Initiatives in Dallas, Texas, and Compton, Los Angeles, are amongst those profiled.
Print-only classroom materials likely to fall away
Many educators (42%) responding to a Bay View Analytics survey said they used a mix of print and digital materials in their classrooms in 2022. The survey found 61% of teachers prefer print materials over digital. Just 5% said they used all digital. The exclusive use of print materials for classes dropped to 1% during pandemic-related school closures and rose to 5% by spring 2022. In the 2018-19 school year however, use of all-print materials was quadruple that, at 22%. The survey included 1,015 pre-K-12 teachers and 454 administrators from 49 states and the District of Columbia. As school systems adjust to more normal routines after years of COVID-19 disruptions, the education community is now evaluating how such experiences should influence future curriculum purchasing and use, including the pros and cons of print and e-books.
Worst reading and math declines 'in decades' for fourth graders
The Education Department’s first look at test-score trends since the pandemic began reveals the worst declines in fourth graders' math and reading scores since 1990 and the first decline in math scores since the test began in 1971. Scores show unprecedented drops on the long-term trends tests that are part of the National Assessment of Educational Progress, known as the “Nation’s Report Card,” that are administered to U.S. students age 9. Average scores in reading for 2022 declined to 215 out of a possible 500, falling five points from 2020. Math scores fell seven points, to 234. The drops in test scores were roughly four times greater among the students who were the least proficient in both math and reading. Gaps in performance in math between Black and white students also grew. Scores among Asian students were the only bright spot: they improved by one point in reading. Regionally, scores took the biggest dive in the Midwest and Northeast, where cumulative reading and math scores fell 16 and 15 points, respectively. Scores were strongest across the West, where they fell five points. In the South they fell by 13 points. Referring to lower-performing students, Dr. Aaron Pallas, professor of Sociology and Education at Teachers College, Columbia University, comments: “I don’t think we can expect to see these 9-year-olds catch up by the time they leave high school. This is not something that is going to disappear quickly.”
New York Times Wall Street Journal
----- WORKFORCE ----
School districts nationwide moving to support teacher stress
School districts are increasingly providing increased mental health training for staff, classroom supports, along with resources and systems aimed at identifying burned out teachers and getting instructors connected to help. A recent survey by the Rand Corporation revealed that twice as many principals and teachers reported frequent job-related stress as other working adults. “It’s all pretty bad,” laments Leigh McLean, the primary investigator at the Teacher Emotions, Characteristics, and Health Lab at the University of Delaware School of Education, who has found levels of depression, anxiety and emotional exhaustion among elementary school teachers that are up to 400% higher than before the pandemic.
----- HEALTH & WELLBEING -----
Increasing mental health needs for students
Students wait months for mental health help. ‘We’re bombarded,’ counselor says
Leo Peñaloza was a freshman at San Bernardino High School when campuses closed as the pandemic hit. His father was hospitalized with COVID-19 for months, fighting for his life. Leo’s mother cared for his father by day and began working nights to keep their family afloat.
An only child, Leo spent months fearing for both of them. “That took a toll,” he said, making it difficult to focus on school. He said he never talked about the stress.
“It’s like, pushing my feelings a little back, which sucks,” he said. “It would have been nice to have someone that I could reach out to.”
Leo, now a senior, has still not met with a mental health counselor — joining the legions of California students who need immediate help, but can’t get it in a state where the ability to deliver school-based mental health counseling and intervention is profoundly lacking. California ranks in the bottom five nationally behind states including Arizona and Minnesota in the number of counselors working in schools
What students returning to campus are craving
Universities are implementing COVID-19 safety plans to maintain safe and healthy environments — through protocols like enhanced cleaning or a focus on ventilation and air quality — for the imminent return of students to in-person learning on campuses.
While these plans include extensive efforts to help students safely return to pre-pandemic learning, focused attention should also be given to “university experience” activities.
We asked thousands of students around the world about what they have missed most from pre-pandemic student life, as part of a broader study on COVID-19 and higher education at the Policy, Elections, & Representation Lab at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Toronto.
Our data suggests students miss in-person learning and activities which encourage socialization. These social opportunities are important for student well-being.
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/education/what-students-returning-to-campus-are-craving
California may act as US refuge for transgender youth
SACRAMENTO — California would present itself as a haven for transgender youth facing discrimination in other states under a bill that advanced Monday, much as it is positioning itself as a sanctuary for those seeking abortions.
The Assembly approved the measure without debate, 48-16, sending it to the Senate for a final vote before lawmakers adjourn at month’s end.
The legislation is designed to provide legal refuge to parents from other states who risk having their transgender children taken away or being criminally prosecuted if they support their children’s access to gender-affirming procedures and other health care.
Democratic Sen. Scott Wiener sought the measure in response to actions in several Republican-dominated states including Arkansas, Tennessee and Texas. He said 19 other states have since introduced similar “trans refuge state” bills.
“Trans kids and their parents are being criminalized and used as political punching bags by right-wing zealots,” he said in a statement. “No one should ever have to worry about being separated from their child simply for allowing that child to be who they are.”
https://www.mercurynews.com/2022/08/30/california-may-act-as-us-refuge-for-transgender-youth/
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