Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/72908
Members of Associated Calexico Teachers demonstrate during lengthy negotiations with the district that culminated in a settlement after a marathon 23-hour session. Photo by Bill Guy health care. Potential furlough days can be eliminated if the governor's tax initiative passes in November. "Claiming any vic- tory in these troubled times is difficult, but we did surpass all our internal bargaining goals with this settlement," says ACT bar- gaining chair Chad Cooper. INGLEWOOD: Fighting for smaller class sizes The Inglewood Teachers Association is fighting district efforts to have unrestricted class size maximums and to cut the instructional year by up to 25 days. "Class size matters," says ITA president Peter Somberg. "The students, parents, and teachers of Inglewood have already sacri- ficed far too much because of terrible dis- trict financial decisions. We're not going to see our students and their futures thrown away by a board that seems more con- cerned about holding on to their own posi- tions than in doing what's right for kids." LA QUINTA: Teachers protest furloughs Teachers showed up en masse to the Des- ert Sands Unified school board meeting in La Quinta to oppose the district's pro- posed five furlough days. The Desert Sands Teachers Association will have 15 furlough days if the governor's tax initiative does not pass in November. "Furlough days mean one less instruction day for students," says DSTA President Mona Davidson. MILL VALLEY: Teachers ask voters to do their part Mill Valley School District teachers have done their part. Now, they say, it's up to the citizens of Mill Valley to do theirs. Under a two-year agreement approved recently, some teachers will be taking between $4,000 and $5,000 in pay cuts to help close a $1.4 million budget deficit. "The teachers really stepped up to the plate," says Superintendent Paul Johnson. "We really owe a lot to them. They love the school district, and they've made sacrifices to hold on to what we have." Under a "shared solutions" strategy, the district's teachers and administrators hope their sacrifices persuade Mill Valley voters to do their part and approve a $196 "Save Our Schools" parcel tax on the November ballot. Says Kim Kirley, Mill Valley Teachers Association bargaining chair, "It's impor- tant that all facets of our community come forward to preserve the quality of education that students of Mill Valley deserve." RIO: Teachers bearing too much of the financial burden Rio Education Association members have been teaching without a contract since June 30, 2011. Negotiations are now headed to fact-finding. Major sticking points include salary and benefits. Both sides say a lot depends upon the passage of the governor's tax initative in November. Student enrollment has grown, and the amount spent on administrative positions has increased in recent years, while the money spent on teachers and other employees has dropped, says REA President Rebecca Barbetti. The amount of the deficit the district is facing also is in dispute. "We're willing to take concessions, but the burden of concessions needs to be equitably distributed," Barbetti says. SACRAMENTO: Concessions, furlough days Sacramento City Teachers Association members OK'd a tentative agreement that includes health benefit concessions and two furlough days. That number will increase to 10 if Gov. Jerry Brown's tax ini- tiative fails in November. Sacramento City Unified approved $28 million in cuts earlier this year from its $421 million budget. If the November tax measure doesn't pass, the district antici- pates having to slash another $15 million. The district will continue to pay the full cost of health insurance for SCTA employees and their families. "In light of the way the school district has managed its money, it is as good as we can do," says SCTA Vice President Erik Knud- son. "The district is happy with it enough, and we are happy with it enough. Education — it's grim out there right now." POIN C elebrating 110 years as a respected Christian liberal arts university Teaching Credentials & Graduate Degrees in Education 4 Equipping you to prepare students for a successful future 4 Empowering you to improve education and transform our schools pointloma.edu/grad San Diego/Mission Valley, Bakersfield, Inland Empire June/July 2012 www.cta.org 43