California Educator

MAY 2010

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Keep Our Educators Working Act before Congress C TA and NEA representa- tives are pressing Congress for the approval of a $23 bil- lion measure aimed at protecting students from the devastating effects of massive budget cuts. With California schools having already suffered more than $17 billion in slashes and facing more than $4 billion in additional cuts proposed in Gov. Schwarzeneg- ger’s May Revision, the federal Keep Our Educators Working Act would provide schools in California and across the nation with funds to stave off some of the most draconian cuts. The bill, a targeted state fiscal stabilization plan authored by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), would help prevent massive class size in- creases and a significant reduc- tion in individual attention for students. In California, more than 26,000 teachers have received lay- off notices, with the state facing a $19.1 billion revenue shortfall, ac- cording to the governor’s Depart- ment of Finance. “CTA/NEA Board members lobbied hard in Washington, D.C., in April in support of this legisla- tion by Senator Harkin and in sup- port of efforts by Senator Harkin and U.S. Representatives George Miller [D-Calif.] and David R. Obey [D-Wis.] to have these provi- sions placed in an emergency ap- propriations bill,” says CTA Presi- dent David A. Sa nchez. “ The Obama administration is fully in support of this vital legislation. Ad- ministration representatives under- stand how badly these cuts will harm our students and our schools. They also know these cuts will rip- ple through the rest of the econo- my, making economic recovery harder to achieve for everyone.” According to NEA statistics, as many a s 300,000 e ducators throughout t he United States could lose their jobs without in- clusion of the Harkin amendment in pending emergency funding measures. NEA President Dennis Van Roekel asks, “How can we give our children a world-class education when teachers and other educa- tion personnel are in unemploy- ment lines instead of in classrooms and schools?” LEN FELDMAN lative maneuver but remains stalled in the Senate. SB 955, by Sen. Bob Huff (R-Diamond Bar), which seeks to create an unfair system that takes away due process rights from teachers, should have gone to the Senate Labor Commit- • • • • • SB 955 seeks to eliminate due process rights C TA is battling to defeat an opposed bill that could gain a second life because of a legis- tee — but instead, Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sac- ramento) has routed the bill to the Senate Rules Committee to keep it alive. In the ordinary course of business, SB 955 would have head- ed to the Senate Labor Committee where it would have received a fair hearing. More than 1,600 CTA members have already contacted Reasons to stop SB 955 SB 955 is an outright attack on teachers and ignores real problems facing our schools. It’s outrageous that some lawmakers are scapegoating teachers during these tough economic times and robbing them of due process rights, while at the same time — because of $17 billion in budget cuts the last two years — neighborhood schools are eliminating entire programs and teaching positions, and in some cases closing doors for good. SB 955 won’t save the state one dime or do anything to improve student learning. Instead of blam- ing teachers, the governor and lawmakers should be working with educators to support public schools and provide all students with a quality education. We need to attract and retain the best candidates in teaching. SB 955 will discourage college grad- uates from going into the teaching profession because it creates an unfair system with no due pro- cess rights. The bill also opens the door to arbitrary and discriminatory treatment of teachers. SB 955 is unnecessary. There is already a process to remove ineffective teachers. During their first two years of employment, teachers can be fired for any reason. In their third year, teachers have a right to a hearing before being laid off. This process allows districts to consider student needs when making layoff decisions. California’s parents and teachers want the governor and the Legislature to focus on solving real problems — like soaring class sizes, inadequate resources, and the elimination of music, art, and vocational education programs — to ensure our children have a real chance at a brighter future. their legislators urging them to kill this harmful bill. SB 955 represents an ongoing effort by anti-teacher forces to sim- ply blame teachers for the ills of public schools, without acknowl- edging years of chronic under- funding resulting in larger class sizes, fewer teachers, nurses, coun- selors and education support pro- fessionals, and the elimination of vital programs that keep students engaged in school. In his State of the State speech in January, under the guise of re- sponding to the state’s fiscal crisis, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger re- suscitated his attack on teacher rights as a diversion from the press- ing issue of funding our public schools. In April, the governor re- cruited Sen. Huff to carry his anti- teacher agenda, and Sen. Huff quickly enticed Sen. Gloria Rome- ro (D-Los Angeles) — a candidate for superintendent of public in- struction — to back his bill. With the help of the governor, SB 955 narrowly cleared the Senate Education Committee with votes from Sens. Huff, Romero, Abel Maldonado, Mark Wyland and Elaine Alquist. LEN FELDMAN Call S en. S teinberg a t (916) 651-4006 and tell him to stop blam- ing teachers and start finding real solutions to fund our schools and students. For updated information about SB 955, visit www.cta.org. MAY 2010 | www.cta.org 31

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