BEA SETTLES ELEMENTARY STAFF MEETING GRIEVANCE

The grievance filed on behalf of the elementary staff regarding the starting time for before school faculty meetings has been settled. The issue should be referred to each elementary building FAC for review and consultation with the building administration. The district has agreed to rescind its previously mandated 7:45am start time. The BEA strongly recommends that each building FAC survey the membership in their building to obtain their input in formulating the resolution. The contract still limits the total number of faculty meeting to 20 hours per year. These include any building wide or department meetings that are not part of the four late start days

BEA REACHES MIXED AGREEMENT REGARDING $200/SUMMER PD RATE

The BEA has been engaged in an ongoing conversation, for the last several months, with the administration as to whether the Summer Learning Conference will be included in professional development eligible for the $200/day summer PD rate. While the BEA proved successfully that the conference meets the criteria for the $200 rate, we have been unable to convince the district that this rate should be paid. It does appear that non-BPS presenters will be compensated. For BPS presenters and participants, the district will waive the $185 registration fee, but member attendance, either as a participant or a presenter, will not be compensated.

However we did succeed in clarifying the other aspects of the contract for the $200/day summer PD in our favor. Under the terms of the agreement reached with the district, “…every staff member will be given at least one such opportunity to participate” for the $200 rate for each summer. Further, the district must provide “…a list of pre-approved professional development.” And finally, BEA members may propose “…other professional development opportunities aligned with the district strategic plan…” for the $200/day rate but must receive pre-approval from the administration to be compensated.

PAY TO PLUG DISPUTE WITH DISTRICT STILL ONGOING

The BEA is still investigating the “Pay to Plug” program operated by the BPS district. It appears the district enjoys a healthy profit, nearly $10,000 from the about 55 staff members who participate in the program. It also appears that the district over charges staff members, often more than three times the electrical operational costs for the appliance. For example, research on the DTE website confirmed that while it costs just over $3 a year to run a microwave when school is in session, BPS charges it employees $30 annually. When asked about the rationale for such excessive fees, a district representative responded that “administrative costs,” such as check deposits, comprise a significant expense, beyond the fee charge to employees. The BEA believes that if this is case, then cancelling the “pay to plug” program may actually be a cost savings for Birmingham. Moreover, the district does not seem to understand that the teachers who bring in appliances do so to accommodate students during lunch and longer work hours before and after school in order to make BPS a successful. We will be updating this issue as events unfold.

ENSURE THAT EVERY CHILD IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ACCESS TO AN EFFECTIVE SCHOOL LIBRARY PROGRAM

Sue Lay, Derby media specialist, asks us to please sign a White House petition to support adequate school libraries staffed with qualified school librarians.  If you support a strong and well-functioning media center, please go to the link below, create an account and sign the petition.  We have until February 5th to get it done! http://wh.gov/Wgd. Thanking you in advance for supporting our students!

BEA MEDIA TEAM TO WRITE IN PATCH ABOUT “HIGHLY EFFECTIVE” TEACHERS

BEA Media Chair, Ben Harwood, requests names of teachers who deserve to be part of on-going series of articles in the Birmingham Patch about outstanding teaching in our district.  Even though the BPS administration won’t recognize us as “Highly Effective,” the union will.  Just nominate a friend or colleague by sending an email to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

SIGN UP FOR THE BEA WEBSITE

If you have not done so already, sign up for the “Members Only” section of the BEA Website at http://birminghamea.org to get access to the BEA contract, the new evaluation document summary, teacher pay scales, MESSA information, retirement forms, probationary teacher rights, and much more.  You must use a non-school email address to register.

TAKE BACK LANSING BY HELPING SUPPORT PRO-PUBLIC EDUCATION   CANDIDATE IN A SPECIAL ELECTION

Volunteers are needed to make phone calls to MEA members living in House District 29 (Auburn Hills and Pontiac) on behalf of our recommended candidate, Tim Greimel. This is a special election on Feb. 28 to fill the seat vacated by Tim Melton. We have set aside the following dates for calls:

Monday, January 30, 5-8 pm

Tuesday, January 31, 5-8 pm

Thursday, February 16, 5-8 pm

Saturday, February 18, 1-5 pm

Calls will be made from the Bloomfield Hills MEA office, 43252 Woodward Ave. Suite 200 (north of Square Lake Rd. on the east side). You will be provided with a script to use in making the calls. If you can volunteer a couple of hours on any of those dates, please respond to this email. This special election kicks off our efforts to "Take Back the House" in 2012. Electing Tim Greimel, a proven friend of public education, is critical to the futures of all MEA members, not just those living in District 29.

SNYDER SIGNS UNLIMITED CHARTER SCHOOLS BILL

Gov. Snyder signed SB 618 into law, lifting a 150- limit cap on sponsored charter schools. MEA opposed the bill on the grounds that lifting the cap robs traditional public schools of needed resources. The bill also lacked strict accountability standards for newly created charter schools.

But your calls, emails and conversations with legislators did make a difference in the final version Snyder signed. Portions of the bill allowing for the privatization of teachers were removed, and the new law puts more accountability and transparency standards in place for charter schools.

But, at beginning of 2012 the legislative will move to pass SB 619. This legislation to expand cyber schools is worse than SB 618 since there is even less research and evidence that virtual schools are true education reform.

Make sure you listen to MEA President Cook's latest video message for a recap on the impact of these bills.

2011 PUBLIC EDUCATION FACTS

The State of Michigan cut $1 billion from the School Aid Fund in 2011, even though projections showed a $450 million dollar surplus.  The current budget surplus ended up being about $550 million, though Snyder and the State legislators do not plan to increase public school funding.

Senate and Houst Fiscal Agency

In 2011, the Michigan Legislature passed 11 laws targeted at public school funding, unions and employees. There are currently almost 60 bills that have been introduced aimed at the same targets.                     http://www.legislature.mi.gov

A recently study of teacher salaries and found that they have been stagnant over the last three decades, while salaries for similarly skilled workers in other professions have increased. In the 1970s, teachers made about 7% less than non-teachers with similar education, experience and other characteristics.  Over the last decade, that pay gap has increased to about 19%. Today's teachers make about $11,000 less in annual earnings than other professionals with similar backgrounds.

Michael Greenstone, Director, The Hamilton Project

HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM THE 1 PERCENT

Holiday greetings are filling up our mailboxes so check out the holiday note from "the 1%" expressing their thanks to you for their $1.8 billion tax break paid for by cuts to education funding and the middle class. Share their message with your friends and family. And don’t forget to visit www.KidsNotCEOs.com to share your story.

ELECTION MULTIPLE CHOICE

In the 2010 election, what percentage of MEA members voted for the present group of Republican legislators who have supported bills attacking teachers and public education?

A. 10%    B. 25%    C. 35%    D. 50%

HELP ELECT A PRO-EDUCATION CANDIDATE IN SPECIAL ELECTION

There is a special election on February 28 to fill the vacant 29th district state representative seat, which includes Auburn Hills and Pontiac. The MEA's recommended candidate is Tim Greimel (D), a former county commissioner and Rochester Community Schools board member. Greimel is a strong supporter of public schools and teachers.

This special election is part of the MEA plan to take back the Michigan House of Representatives in 2012.  Therefore, the MEA needs your help. Volunteers are needed on the following dates to distribute absentee voter applications:

Saturday, January 7, between 11 am - 4 pm

Saturday, January 14, between 11 am - 4 pm

Meet at the Bloomfield Hills MEA office, 43252 Woodward Ave., Suite 200, Bloomfield Hills.  If you're available, please respond to this email. Electing Tim Greimel is critical to the future of public education all across our state.

Some in Lansing Support Public Education

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=-28BQyzcNYg

(election multiple choice answer: D)

BIRMINGHAM TEACHERS DONATE $200 TO HELP WITH SCHOOL SUPPLIES FOR BUDGET STRAPPED BENTON HARBOR

When Republican lawmakers pushed through more than 1 billion dollars in cuts to public education earlier this year, bad financial situations were made even worse in school districts across the state.  A prime example of this is in Benton Harbor, where the cuts have caused an unsustainable lack of basic school supplies across the district.  Since the state has failed to step up and fix the problem, MEA members took it upon themselves to do so.   The BEA Representative Assembly voted to send $200 to Benton Harbor teachers to help pay for school supplies.   Last week a truckload of supplies and more than $13,000 in financial contributions – collected from MEA members across the state-- were delivered to help the students and school employees of Benton Harbor.

EDUCATORS SPEAK OUT AGAINST PROPOSAL TO STRIP TEACHERS OF CERTIFICATION

Over 75 teachers and MEA members from Oakland and Macomb counties presented comments criticizing the MDE’s proposed changes, which would terminate teaching certificates of those teachers who show significant improvement in teaching but start out with a minimally effective rating in year one. Under the new rules, if a teacher receives a minimally effective evaluation on one final evaluation over a three year period, the MDE will not renew her/his certificate.  The new code would mandate a double standard to the evaluation process. While one standard exists for students, which recognizes the importance student growth and achievement, a completely contradictory standard would be applied to teachers, which punishes growth and achievement.  Hopefully, the MDE will hear our strong message and end this “illegal” change to certification.

JOIN BEA “WALK IN MY SHOES” CAMPAIGN

Are you frustrated with the constant attacks on education and school employees from the governor and state representatives? It’s time to show them what really happens in your classroom by giving them the opportunity to “Walk In My Shoes.” The governor and congress say they have generated decisions based on research and data.  To hold them to their words, we will invite Governor Snyder and other state representatives to visit us in our classrooms before they further undermine public education. Attached is a letter, which you can use to invite the governor and your state representative to your classroom. Just change the red/italicized notations in the letter to fit your class and school information, print the letter on school or personal stationery, and mail it along with a pair of your worn shoes.  Or you can give the shoes and letter to your BEA Rep, who will bring them to the next meeting on December 14^th.  We will drive them up to Lansing and deliver them for you. Imagine if all 583 BEA Members did this!

MEA PRESIDENT SAYS PARTISAN BICKERING IN EDUCATION MUST END

Steven Cook

The Michigan Education Association has stood for supporting friends of public education, regardless of party. There are Republicans we've been honored to support because they've shared our values — local control, strong neighborhood schools, and adequate, equitable, stable funding for public education.  The bitter partisan fights of the past few months don't have to continue — if we can all return to the common ground of those values.

In the meantime, the MEA membership keeps going to work every day with their students at the forefront of their mind. They continue to make sacrifices to ensure that students get the education they deserve. And they want nothing more than for these partisan political battles to end.

School Reform Aims for Profits Not Students

At what point will the citizens of this state realize this GOP-led education reformhas absolutely nothing to do with education? Eliminating property taxes on for profit charter schools, exempting them from following collectively bargained contracts, and opening the door to instructional staffing by multinational corporations don't help students. It's a cash grab, plain and simple.  What this Legislature has very cleverly done is legally pave the way for private companies to gain greater access to the billions of taxpayer dollars earmarked for education.

This isn't about helping students, giving parents greater choice, or improving the quality of teacher instruction; it's about cutting regulations, destroying contracts, privatizing teachers and crippling the base of political adversaries.

Ben Harwood, Seaholm Teacher. Printed in Detroit Free Press

VOTE YES!

For the BPS School Millage

The Birmingham School Millage deserves support for a variety of reasons:

• it is not a tax increase
• a failure to pass will result in lower property values and our schools will look significantly different
• The district has already made $23 million dollars in reductions by receiving shared sacrifices from our staff
• Reductions can no longer be absorbed without affecting the classrooms.
• Failure to pass this Millage would result in an $805.00 per student cut each year for the next ten years

Parents (especially teachers who live in the BPS school district) need to take a moment and let that sink in….that is twice as much as the reduction we were handed down from Lansing last spring. If we do not get out and vote yes to protect our schools, property values, and neighborhoods from further reduction, we can blame no one but ourselves. We will not be able to complain about the larger class sizes, loss of a favorite teacher or why there may be very little music or art in the schools; something has to give, and it just might be your favorite program. Apathy is our worst enemy. We need to care and we need to vote YES and then we need to tell our friends and neighbors to vote YES. All politics are local and it doesn’t get much more local than our neighborhood schools.

Cris Braun
Birmingham PTSA Legislative Chair

August 24, 2011

BACK TO SCHOOL UPDATE

Welcome Back!

We hope you had a wonderful summer! With the start of the 2011-12 school year just around the corner, the BEA is gearing up for another challenging year.  Fortunately, we begin with a new, two-year contract: Thanks to the bargaining team.   For highlights of the new contract, visit the BEA Website at  http://birminghamea.org

The BEA will have a table at the Apple Breakfast on Tuesday August, 30.  Make sure to wear RED to support public ed.  We will be handing out desk calendars, along with other supplies and informational materials.  Please stop by to say hi and pick these items up.  Also, the BEA will be holding a raffle for members who register for the BEA Website before Tuesday.  The grand prize will be four tickets to the Detroit Tigers game on Friday, September 2^nd. If you have already registered, you are automatically entered into the drawing.  We want to use the website as our major means of communicating next year.  Sign up Today!

BEA Helping to Organize Snyder Recall and Emergency Manager Petitions

The BEA is helping to organize a Snyder recall and Financial Manager petitions signing drive at our Southfield SOMEA office. We are having petition circulators available during the following times:

PLEASE COME IN TO SIGN THE FORMS AND SUPPORT PUBLIC EDUCATION! (There will also be a petition table at the Apple Breakfast)

BEA and BPS Working on New State Mandated Evaluation and Merit Pay System

In accordance with the changes in the state law concerning teacher evaluation, we have been meeting with the BPS administration to develop a new evaluation tool that will be used this coming school year.  So far we have had seven meetings and plan on at least one more this week.  Although we can’t provide exact details, we can share the following state requirements of all BEA members:

• Annual formal evaluation of each teacher for at least the next two years
• The evaluation system must rate teachers as highly effective, effective, minimally effective or ineffective
• The formal evaluation must include a minimum of two observations
• Each teacher will need to establish a goal for each school year
• Each evaluation must include a determination of student growth based on student assessments
• Each first year probationary teacher must receive a ‘mid-year’ progress report
• Each teacher previously rated as minimally effective or ineffective must receive a ‘mid-year’ progress report

In addition to these changes, as required by state law, the BEA and BPS agreed on a non-competitive, collaboration centered Individual and Group Based Merit Pay System for all BEA members that reflects student growth, not standardized test scores. While the details of these separate plans are still being determined, the general concept of the group-based system will involve the building administrator and FAC selecting a building goal at the beginning of the year.  The goal must impact student achievement in some measurable way.  The success of this goal and the rewarding of building based merit pay, equally divided amongst all BEA members of the building, will be measured by student assessment data.

We strongly recommend that you begin right away in electing and building your FAC and establishing a goal.  This goal sould be tied directly to the already existing building work plan and the district strategic plan.  Please note that this Group Based Merit Pay System should not add ‘extra’ work for teachers.

We will continue to keep you posted and hope to have a document to present and be voted on by the members in September.

MEA CRISIS UPDATE

Signatures Filed for Representative Scott Recall Vote
Doug Pratt, MEA Director of Public Affairs

With an outpouring of support from MEA leaders, members and staff, the committee to recall Rep. Paul Scott (51st District-Southern Genesee County) filed more than the necessary valid petition signatures, according to the Bureau of Elections, with the Michigan Secretary of State. This is a major victory in our fight back against the attacks on public education and the middle class!  Voters are standing up and calling out lawmakers who ran on a platform of jobs only to gain power and slash public education, tax pensions and strip workers of their rights -- all while dolling out a massive tax break to corporations and their CEOs. The question of Scott's recall will be decided on Nov. 8.

The goals for MEA's crisis plan are still in effect to impact legislation in Lansing, to hold lawmakers accountable, and to elect true friends of public education. And we need to continue our efforts to make those goals reality. Success depends on us because--We Are the People; We Are the MEA.

CMU Faculty Engage in Job Action Due to Administration Refusal to Bargain

The CMU administration refuses to bargain in good faith, as the 600 faculty members are engaging in a work stoppage, which includes not teaching classes or answering emails. Since April, the union and administration have negotiated for a new faculty contract, but were unable to come to an agreement before the fall semester. The union's bargaining team wanted to continue bargaining, but the university refused. Laura Frey, CMU union president said the union filed unfair labor practice charges against the university.

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

State Legislators Return from Vacation to Attack Public Workers

Up until their summer break, the State Legislature was busy attacking school employees.  Public Acts 101-104 were signed into law in July, severely undercutting our bargaining rights and teacher tenure.  The picture doesn’t look much brighter now that they have returned.   

On their third day back, both the House and Senate are voted to approve SB 7. SB 7 requires public employers to pay no more than $5,000 (single), $11,000 (individual and spouse) and $15,000 (family coverage).  A public employer could elect the 80/20 split with employees for health care costs. While local units of government could get out of either cost-sharing plan, school districts must choose either the hard cap or the 80-/20 plan. Implementation is for health plan years beginning on or after Jan. 1, 2012. Current contracts are not affected.

Throughout the debate on SB 7, Democrats charged Republicans with micromanaging local governments—what they criticize the federal government for doing—and destroying the freedom of local control.  This bill does nothing to contain health care costs. It just shifts the burden for health care costs to employees.  BEA members will pay up to $2,000 more a year.  This is another attack on workers, collective bargaining rights, and the middle class.

Detroit Emergency Manager guts school employee contracts

As one of the first victims of Public Act 4, the new emergency manager legislation, Detroit school employees will see a 10 percent pay cut starting Aug. 23 and will begin paying 20 percent of their health care on Sept. 1. More than 10,000 employees are affected.

Under Public Act 4, an emergency manager has the power to modify collective bargaining agreements and last month, Roy Roberts, the school district's governor-appointed emergency manager, warned union workers that he would impose the concessions. State Treasurer Andy Dillon gave Roberts the go-ahead to make the cuts and gut the eight union contracts.

EDUCATION IN THE NEWS (Articles and Podcasts)

Historical Amnesia: Schools don't need that money, do they? Talk of an ever-growing flow of money to schools is, like many such things, wildly exaggerated.
http://www.miparentsforschools.org/node/145

Legislative Update: Tenure Bills’ Solution Worse than the Problem
http://www.miparentsforschools.org/node/137

Value-Added In Teacher Evaluations: Built To Fail.  Why standardized tests and state exams should not be used to measure teacher effectiveness
http://shankerblog.org/?p=2679

New Michigan School Data Dashboard will allow community to examine school district test scores, school report card, teacher salaries, graduation rates, principal effectiveness rating, and many other data measurements to rate schools
http://www.freep.com/article/201108130300/NEWS05/108130362

Unions must stand strong and fight for our rights!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5CtBOSKscU&feature=youtu.be

June 20, 2011

BEA CALENDAR: UPCOMING EVENTS

• June 29: Attend BPS Board Meeting at 7pm
  Board Votes to give Central Administrators give themselves step raises, but seek deeper concessions from the BEA. WEAR your CRISIS- T or RED!


• June 21-30: Lobbying in Lansing: 9am at MEA Head Quarters
  Focus is on the Senate, where anti-teacher tenure legislation is pending


• June-July: Snyder Recall Events in your Area
  http://firericksnyder.org./community/stationary-signing-locations
  Or check the Recall Snyder facebook page.

BEA UPDATE

BEA Bargaining: Check Email for Potential Ratification Vote

Your BEA bargaining team met with the district on three separate occasions during the last week of school. We plan to meet again on June 20 and June 21.  As in the past, bargaining has been very difficult.  Unfortunately, this round encompasses the added burden of contending with State legislation that threatens to erode teacher protections, rights, pay and health insurance if an agreement is not reached very soon.   But be assured, we are doing our best to achieve a fair and equitable contract for all members. We will alert you by email if we have a tentative agreement to present for your review.  Given the haste of the legislative situation, the membership meeting and vote may occur on the same day.

Donations to Abazi Living Trust

The BEA sends its condolences to the Abazi family and the Derby community for the passing of one of our outstanding teachers.  A donation was made on behalf of BEA to "The Abazi Living Trust."  The trust will continue to accept donations through the summer.  Please include a memo entitled "Childrens' College Fund" and mail it to P.O. Box 1956 Birmingham, MI 48012

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

Tenure Bills Threaten to Dismantle Teacher Rights

The four-bill (4625-4628) package to overhaul tenure was approved by the State House on June 9, and is now pending in the Senate.  They will seriously erode the rights of all BEA members.  The legislation would legally dismantle tenure and collective bargaining of most subjects currently decided at the local bargaining table.  The following is a partial list of the of the most damaging so-called “reforms:”

• Change the initial probationary period for teachers from four to five years
• Allow teachers to be suspended without pay for 15 or 30 days
• Remove just cause protections for discharge or demotion of tenured teachers
• Eliminate seniority-based placements when reducing or recalling staff
• Require evaluation ratings of educators as “highly effective,” “effective,” “minimally effective,” and “ineffective”
• Prohibit bargaining over evaluation, merit pay, discipline and discharge procedure, and classroom observation
• Holds that 2 ineffective evaluations in a row is cause to fire a tenured teacher

Under this legislation, it would be permissible for a school district to fire an “unpopular” or outspoken employee disliked by the administration, or release a veteran (more expensive) teacher to be replaced by hiring a cheaper, less experienced alternative.  Moreover, school districts could legally attempt to control the after-school activities of its teachers, who would be subject to dismissal if they engaged in those activities that the school district found inconsistent with being a role model.  Such draconian measures would also negatively impact students. What teacher would make demands on behalf of their students’ best interests if he or she knows the administration disagrees and is looking for a reason to let that teacher go?

State House Hard Cap on Health Insurance Worse than Senate Bill

The hard cap proposed in House Bill 4572 shifts nearly all of the costs of serious and catastrophic illnesses such as heart attacks, strokes, premature births, and cancer to public employees and their families. Even when a health plan is successful at keeping a group’s medical claims down around 5%, the cost of one or two catastrophic illnesses will quickly make the coverage unaffordable for the employees. If the bill becomes law, a BEA member’s financial responsibility for full family health coverage will be nearly $6000 in the first year alone, and go up each year after that.

KEEP INFORMED and keep contacting your legislators!
MEA legislator Link: http://capwiz.com/nea/mi/directory/statedir.tt?state=MI&lvl=state&action=myreps_form

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

Next Steps This Summer

Tom Ferris, MEA Crisis Chair

We continue to lobby legislators.  If you are available to join this effort, please send an email message to Tom Ferris at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. stating when you are available on the following Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays: June 21, 22, 23, 28, 29, 30. We have briefings at 9:00 AM at MEA Headquarters and then head to the capitol.  Members’ stories are important to persuading legislators, so if you can help in this effort, it will be worthwhile.

Phase 2 of the Crisis Plan is to hold elected officials responsible for their actions.  We are working with the labor coalition to canvass the home districts and prepare for recalls.  We will need to gather about 11,000 signatures per petition to be successful in the recall of a House member.  If we file by the first week in August, we can get these on the November ballot.

It is more important than ever to let parents, the business community and other community leaders know that the attack on public education and the middle class will have devastating effects on schools, business and the community at large.  We need to be visible at every summer parade, festival and fair to engage the community and hold legislators responsible.  It’s a long haul, but we can’t afford to let them get away with these attacks.

Remember… We are the People.

EDUCATION ARTICLES AND PODCASTS

How Public Workers Have Become Scapegoats for the Nation’s Economic Ills

Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich explains what went wrong with America's economy and how public workers became a political scapegoat in just 2 minutes and 15 seconds—with illustrations to boot.

Tuition price tag causes controversy for Gov. Snyder

Brian Short, Michigan Radio Newsroom

How much does it cost to educate a child in Michigan? The answer to that question is causing controversy for Gov. Rick Snyder. Greenhills School in Ann Arbor-- where Gov. Snyder's daughter attends -- released a video asking for donations. Officials from Greenhills claim that $20,000 per year per student isn't enough to keep the school running.

At the same time that the school to which Snyder sends his own child can’t make ends meet with funding of $20,000 per pupil, the governor recently pushed through and signed legislation that cuts per pupil public school funding by $370 per student, bringing state funding to $6,846 per student.  Academic and athletic facilities at Greenhills include Smartboard technology in all classrooms, a state-of-the-art theater, an indoor batting cage, a climbing wall, and a weather station. The average class size is 15 students and the school scores 100 percent college entrance rate for graduates.

Detroit News

Letter from Scott Warrow and David Larson on economic sacrifices already made by BPS and the BEA

 http://detnews.com/article/20110610/OPINION01/106100326/

Gov. Snyder, 15 GOP legislators target of recall efforts

http://detnews.com/article/20110609/METRO/106090385

Economists Say Michigan Recession is over.

The major reasons Republicans claimed to cut school funding is no longer true.

 http://www.freep.com/article/20110608/BUSINESS06/106080430/Michigan-s-recession-over-last-economists-say

July 22, 2011

BEA SUMMER UPDATE

THE NEW SCHOOL CODE AND TENURE LAW

Governor Snyder signed the anti-school employee/anti-collective bargaining legislation into earlier this week.  Public Acts 100-104 of 2011 will continue the attacks on the job security and economic security of all teachers. The highlights of the new law include:

• Change the initial probationary period for teachers from four to five years
• Allow teachers to be suspended without pay for 15 or 30 days
• Remove just cause protections for discharge or demotion of tenured teachers and replace it with a much looser “arbitrary and capricious” standard
• Eliminate seniority-based placements when reducing or recalling staff
• Require evaluation ratings of educators as “highly effective,” “effective,” “minimally effective,” and “ineffective”
• Require annual evaluations and observations of all teaching staff
• Mandate that “student growth” reflect a greater percentage of a teacher’s evaluation each year. Up to 49% by 2015-16
• Prohibit bargaining over evaluation, merit pay, discipline and discharge procedure, and classroom observations
• District must notify parents if their student is being taught by an ineffective teacher
• Holds that 3 ineffective evaluations in a row is cause to fire a tenured teacher
•  

STATUS OF BEA NEGOTIATIONS WITH BPS ON NEW EVLAUTION SYSTEM FOR 2011-12

Effective January 4, 2010, the Michigan Legislature enacted 2009 PA 205 (MCL 380.1249 and 380.1250) requiring yearly evaluations of teacher performance. The legislation required school districts to implement a “rigorous, transparent, and fair evaluation system” which focused on “student growth as a significant factor” in the evaluation process measured by “national, state, or local assessments and other objective criteria”. Pursuant to that legislative mandate, the Birmingham Education Association and Birmingham Public Schools established a study team that has worked collaboratively to revise the present evaluation system to conform to the requirements of 2009 PA 205.

The study team was obligated to proceed with its work as a result of the governor’s signing of the new school code, namely Section 1249 and 1250, notwithstanding the ratification of the 2011/2012 and 2012/2013 school years tentative agreement, which became effective June 29, 2011. This was done in the belief that this period would provide both the administrative and teaching staff a two-year transition to the legislatively mandated requirements imposed by the amendments to the school code.

The study team has met four times since May 2011 and will continue to meet several more times in August. We hope to have a document to present to the teaching and administrative staff in September 2011.

MEA CRISIS UPDATE

WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP COMBAT THE ATTACKS

Tom Ferris, MEA Crisis Chair

You may be tempted to give up the fight as this point.  It has been a long hard struggle and we haven’t been able to prevent the bad legislation from passing.  But there is something you can do. Our collective effort will forge ahead and what is right and just will prevail.

MEA’S Phase Two of the Crisis Plan, holding elected officials accountable, is in full operation.  Go to "Get Involved with Recall" on the Members Only MEA Website to see:

• Where you can sign a recall petition
• When you can VOLUNTEER to be involved with these efforts to change the political climate.

With the number of recall campaigns taking place by various labor groups, The MEA is targeting its resources where it believes it can win a recall election. One of those targeted races in our area is the 51^st House District. We will need 10,500 voter signatures by August 5 to place the issue of recalling Representative Paul Scott on the November ballot. He has been one of the primary architects of the legislative assault on public employees.

Beginning this Friday, July 22, the Committee Against Government Overreach will be collecting signatures on petitions calling for the recall of District 51 State Rep. Paul Scott. Petitioning will occur six days a week (Mon-Sat) from 11 am - 2 pm and 5 pm - 8 pm. Training will be provided at 10 am each day at the Flint MEA office at 5095 Exchange Drive http://www.mapquest.com/#f4855149da7a88f7e65e9aec.

If you can help, please contact the Region 7 Crisis Chairperson, Mark Walton, at 248-821-8923 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Every member's job security is threatened and every member's economic security is threatened.  And when the job and economic security of education employees is threatened, the education of our children is threatened.  Teaches can't focus on teaching students, and caring for their needs when worried about having health care, worried about making the mortgage payment, and worried about just having a job.

There is too much at stake for anyone to not be engaged.

KEEP INFORMED and keep contacting your legislators!   MEA legislator Link: http://capwiz.com/nea/mi/directory/statedir.tt?state=MI&lvl=state&action=myreps_form