April 17-18, 2011

Coalition and Signatures Grow for Fair Tax Initiative
 
Signature gathering is in high gear for the Schools and Local Public Safety Protection Act and I want to thank you for all your efforts. When State Council approved the compromise state funding initiative last month, we knew we would need to act quickly to collect the signatures needed to put the measure on the November ballot. The proposal, which is supported by CTA, California Federation of Teachers, Governor Brown and several other labor unions and community groups, asks the richest Californians to pay their fair share of taxes to help fund public education and other essential services. More than 700,000 signatures have been collected already, including more than 12,000 by CTA members. If this initiative effort fails, our schools and colleges are facing an additional $5 billion in budget cuts next year. If you haven't already signed, download a petition atwww.protectschoolsandpublicsafety.com.
It's equally important to keep talking to your colleagues, family and friends about the Corporate Power Grab initiative, which would take union members out of the political process and silence the voice of the middle class. We must take every opportunity to talk about this attack on our rights.  Let your friends and neighbors know that if they take away our ability to advocate for their students, they are taking away the chance at a better tomorrow for all of us. We must use our voices in this campaign season to bring awareness to the issues facing our schools and communities. Campaignresources are available at www.cta.org/campaign2012.

Building a Long-Term Strategic Plan for CTA
For the past year, there have been discussions at all levels of CTA regarding the need to take a hard look at our organization; review goals, structures and current practices; and develop a long-term strategic plan for CTA that builds capacity and positions us for the future. I am pleased to say that we are all getting ready to engage in that work. Building on recommendations from State Council and the CTA Long-Term Strategic Planning Workgroup, the CTA Board voted to hire theLabor Education and Research Center (LERC) at the University of Oregon to assist us in this extensive process. LERC is nationally recognized for its strategic planning expertise and for its work with labor unions across the country.  This will be one of the most important actions our union takes as we assess our challenges, plan for our future and empower our members. I want to assure everyone that the process will be very inclusive. You will be hearing much more very soon.

Speak Out Against Misguided Teacher Dismissal Bills
In what comes down to grandstanding by some lawmakers over a very tragic situation at a Los Angeles elementary school, three bills that would eliminate due process rights for educators and erode the integrity of the teacher dismissal process are currently being debated in the Senate and Assembly Education Committees. All three of these bills - SB 1530, SB 1059 and AB 2028 - are opposed by CTA and I ask you to take action and contact your lawmakers today. These bills would eliminate an educator's right to a hearing before being dismissed, take away an educator's right to respond to the charges against them and allow districts to dismiss educators for almost any type of misconduct, whether it be a minor or major offense. It treats all misconduct the same way, causing the Los Angeles Times to call the bills "troubling." Bottom line, these bills are unnecessary and do nothing to hold school administrators accountable or improve student learning. Current law allows school districts to immediately suspend any teacher who is suspected of immoral conduct. LAUSD administrators failed to do their job and then overreacted by punishing and stigmatizing innocent employees. These bills would only further complicate the dismissal process. SB 1530 by Senator Alex Padilla was voted out of committee. Sen. Padilla has indicated he wants to work with CTA, but as the bill stands, it eliminates our due process rights to hearing and makes it harder to attract educators into the profession.

Educator Excellence Task Force
In an exciting development, I have been appointed - along with Daly Jordan-Koch from the Vallejo Education Association - to serve on the Educator Excellence Task Force, a joint effort being convened by the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the Commission on Teacher Credentialing. The Task Force, called for in Superintendent Torlakson's Blueprint For Great Schools, was announced earlier this year. The group will investigate and make policy recommendations in the following areas: Educator Preparation, Induction, Professional Learning, Educator Evaluation, Leadership, and Career Development. We have already met for the first time and it was encouraging to see the breadth of experience represented in the room, including a number of classroom teachers and education support professionals. The group is co-chaired by two nationally recognized education leaders: Stanford Professor of Education Linda Darling-Hammond and Superintendent Chris Steinhauser of Long Beach USD.

CFA Strike Vote
Please offer your support to members of the California Faculty Association as these educators prepare for a possible strike. CFA members are voting now on whether to authorize a statewide strike at CSU campuses. After nearly two years of talks, the Chancellor's office refuses to address CFA proposals to reduce class sizes, curtail executive pay raises or guarantee academic freedom to faculty. Just as in our K-12 schools, state budget cuts have devastated our college campuses and CFA members deserve a fair and equitable contract.

Celebrate the Work You Do
Whether you are a teacher or an education support professional, it's important to take time next month to celebrate the work you do on behalf of California's students every day. May 9 is California Day of the Teacher. This year's theme is "California Teachers: Building a Better State for Public Education." Materials are being sent to local chapters and are available on cta.org. Education Support Professional Day is set for May 22. This year's celebration has dual meaning for us. In addition to the work each of you do every day to challenge, to educate and to inspire students, we have to challenge, educate and inspire our fellow Californians in the November election. We must lead the way to a better California and a better future for all of us. Use these days to talk to parents and reach out into the community to tell the story of our schools and colleges, and the importance of public education in a free democratic society.