CVEA Newsletter

November 2009

TRI Money - A Short History

Time, Responsibility and Incentive is how it started. It was a program that was implemented in some districts not long after we went to a state wide salary schedule which quickly became stuck in place with little or no upward movement. TRI monies are bargained locally and are used to recognize the amount of time teachers spend outside of the normal work day grading papers, planning lessons, preparing for classes and all those other professional responsibilities we do without pay. Communities across the state rose up in support of teachers earning a competitive wage much like they did when they passed the cost of living initiative.

One TRI day is equivalent to 2.48 minutes of paid time when spread out over the 181 contracted days we have. We are fortunate to have 11 of these days, which brings our total paid minutes to 27.3 per day, not including Saturday or Sunday of course. The State of Washington divides all public schools into groups by size. CVSD is a code 2 district along with 18 others. As of September of 2009, we ranked at the bottom of this list when it came to TRI compensation. We are 19th out of 19 comparable sized districts.

The Bargaining Team Has Vacancies

Our current contract will expire August 31, 2010. We will enter into negotiations this spring and we need to fill six vacancies on the team. CVEA bylaws require that we have a team of twelve, six of which will be members of the executive committee. The six remaining positions will be filled from the general membership. Please consider serving. Applications are available from your building rep. If you are interested fill one out and return to the CVEA office via courier by Monday, November 30. As always, if you have any questions don’t hesitate to call the office.

WEA Nominations and Elections

The following WEA governance positions are open for nominations:

UniServe Council Director to the WEA Board
NEA State Delegate to the NEA Representative Assembly
NEA State Director to the NEA Board

If you are interested in being nominated for any of these positions, please contact Bev Schaefer at 326-4046. The deadline is December 14, 2009.

WANT REIMBURSEMENT?

If you want reimbursement for supplies and tuition in our January check the deadline is December 1. Forms were placed in your boxes some time ago. If you have questions, contact Martha Poffenroth @ 228-5465 or Birgit Hodgson @ 228-5464

Lawsuit Against Washington State Wraps Up

As you may know, the Network for Excellence in Washington Schools (NEWS) filed a lawsuit against the state for its failure to fulfill its constitutional mandate to amply fund public schools. NEWS is a coalition of more than 70 community organizations, school districts, and education associations representing thousands of voters, parents, and teachers and other school employees.

The lawsuit finally went to trial in King County Superior Court in late August, and wrapped up last Wednesday after eight weeks of testimony. Judge John Erlick has been hearing the case.

Lead NEWS attorney Tom Ahearne, in closing arguments, cited Article IX, Section 1 of the Washington Constitution (“It is the paramount duty of the state to make ample provision for the education of all children residing within its borders…”) in asking for a four-part remedy:

Declare that three key words – “paramount,” “ample” and “all” – mean precisely what they say, and not merely “important,” “barely enough” and “most.”
Declare that basic education should be defined by three things: the State Supreme Court’s 1978 ruling when the Seattle School District similarly sued the State; by the minimum knowledge and skills set forth in HB 1209; and by Washington’s nine Essential Academic Learning Requirements.
Declare that the State is not currently complying with its constitutional mandate to amply provide for the education of all children.

The lawyer representing Washington State, Assistant Attorney General Bill Clark, closed his arguments by asking the judge to reject the remedies sought by NEWS so that HB 2261 could have a chance to work. HB 2261, you may recall, is the education reform bill passed by the legislature last spring with no funding attached.

Tom Ahearne, the NEWS attorney, emphasized that the state has made a lot of promises over the years and has not always followed through.

During the trial, witnesses for the state testified that more money doesn’t mean student learning will increase.

Washington is 45th in the nation in per pupil spending and 46th in class size. It would take hiring 12,546 more teachers just to bring us up to the national average. State spending on K-12 education has dropped from 50.4% of the budget in 1981 to 40.5% of the budget in 2009. “The time has come for this court to act,” Ahearne concluded. “We’re not talking about numbers. We’re talking about real-world kids.”

Judge Erlick has 90 days to make a decision.

This article compliments of Lake Washington Education Association

CVEA Bargaining Calendar

November:

Complete Survey
Call for Members to Serve on Team of 12

December:

Select Team of 12
Review Survey Results

January:

Team of 12 meets
Survey Results Studied
Additional Surveys Created as Needed

February:

Blueprint for Negotiations Developed
Team of 5 Chosen

Late March/ April:

C.V. Educator

A Publication of the Central Valley Education Association

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