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C.V. Educator

A Publication of the Central Valley Education Association

Newsletter Archive

March 2010

ELECTION RESULTS

Elections for the Executive Board of the Central Valley Education Association were held last month. A special thanks to all who chose to throw their hats in the ring to represent fellow members. It is a big commitment and their willingness to serve is appreciated. CVEA Officers for the 2010-2011 school year are as follows:

ALL STAFF BUDGET HEARING

On Wednesday, March 24, in the Horizon Middle School Commons the CVSD will hold a meeting for all staff to offer their suggestions for prioritizing the upcoming budget cuts. It will take place from 4:00 - 5:45 PM and you are strongly encouraged to attend and offer your input. There will be three additional opportunities if you are not able to attend this meeting. The others are all at 7:00 PM and will be held on the 23rd at U-Hi, the 24th at Horizon and the 25th at CVHS. Come listen to the presentation, see what is on the table and speak up for what you think is best for our students, staff and community.

BARGAINING HAS STARTED

The bargaining team has been meeting since January and has spent many hours reviewing survey results, taking input from members and designing our bargaining plan. The team of 5 has been selected. The following individuals will sit at the table as we begin the process.

They are:

Our plan is to complete negotiations by the first week in June so that a ratification vote can be taken before school is out. If that is not possible, it might be necessary to hold a vote by mail in late August. Stay tuned to the process by talking to your building rep, reading the Bargaining Info newsletter sent out to home emails and by reading updates in your buildings.Please thank your negotiations team members when you see them for their willingness to represent you in this arduous process.

WHY THIS? WHY NOW?

Below you will see a comparison between schools in our size category, schools in our area and CV, when it comes to TRI pay. We currently have 11 TRI days (Professional Responsibility Stipend), 1 day (our orientation day) and our longevity stipends. The values in the second row in parenthesis show that we are below the state average.

It would be wishful thinking to imagine that we could make great improvements in our current situation at this time. Bringing us up to “average” would require an outlay of capital that is in short supply these days. It is important that we remain focused on the reality of our situation.

There is another reality that needs mentioning. There is a move to forget the history of TRI money and to even rewrite the purpose and intent of this program. During the last half of the 90’s while the state was rather flush with money, teachers saw year after year of no pay increases placing our families and us at a distinct financial disadvantage. Local districts, through local support instigated Time, Responsibility and Incentive payments for educators. This was a small token which recognized the TIME teachers already spend outside of the work day living up to the RESPONSIBILITIES to their students in hopes that it would provide some INCENTIVE to continue working for the community.

Today, there are those who would like to ADD time to our days and INCREASE our responsibilities under the concept of TRI. Please remember that we currently are paid for 24 minutes of work outside the workday on Monday through Friday only, to grade papers, prepare lessons and write evaluations. There are always two sides to every issue. If it is wrong to demand more money during these trying times, is it also wrong to demand longer days and more duties during these stressful days?

CALENDAR

CVEA OFFICERS

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