The letter below comes from District 112 School Board President Bruce Hyman. Check back Monday for the full story on the looming teachers' strike.
This morning, board members were disappointed to learn that the teachers' union, the North Shore Education Association, filed a 10-day intent to strike notice with the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board (IELRB).
Under state law, the earliest date that teachers may legally strike is October 12.
Earlier: Teachers Rally Outside of Board Meeting
As you know by now, the school board and the union have been meeting with a federal mediator since July in an effort to successfully negotiate a contract settlement. The next mediation session is scheduled for next Thursday, October 4. The board remains committed to remaining in negotiations as long as it takes to achieve a settlement that is fair to both parties and that will ensure the long-term financial stability of the district.
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While the board is hopeful that union members will continue to work until an agreement is reached, the district would be remiss if it does not plan in advance for the possibility of a strike. Contingency plans are being made and the district has reached out to other units of government and social service agencies that would be willing to provide alternative programming for the district's children in the event of a strike. The district is also making plans to keep the Green Bay Early Childhood Center, Oak Terrace, Northwood and possibly Sherwood open as activity centers to provide a safe and structured environment for children while school is not in session. These schools would be staffed by administrators, support staff and volunteers. These would not count as regular school days, and regular educational programming would not be provided.
The board's objective for the ultimate settlement is to ensure that the district has the necessary resources to provide all of its children, now and in the future, with an outstanding education.
The district's revenues come largely from local property taxes, which by state law are capped at the rate of the Consumer Price Index. In the past three years, the district has reduced millions of dollars from its budget and has made cuts in staff, programs and services in order to avoid depleting its reserve fund and jeopardizing the district's financial future. An agreement that is similar to the most recent contract will lead to further staff reductions and more painful cuts in programs and services, and an increase in class sizes.
While the board respects and values its teachers, it also has ultimate responsibility for ensuring the district's long-term viability and making decisions that are in the best interests of the district's children. This is not about whether or not we value our teachers. They are the heart of our school district. We want to ensure we preserve an educational environment that continues to offer them superb working conditions: reasonable class sizes, adequate support personnel in the classroom and programs that foster innovation and high student achievement.
To meet those goals, the next contract settlement must keep expenses in line with revenues. We cannot repeat the past.
Bruce Hyman, M.D.
President, North Shore School District 112 Board of Education
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I believe that teachers are willing to accept merit incentives IF everyone can agree on an equitable system of metrics.
I sense an incredible amount of frustration on your part ( and probably a lot of other parents). As a parent and a taxpayer I would be very upset if what you say is true at Oak Terrace. My children attended IT and EP so I can't speak about the OT situation. Obviously my observations of the Hispanic (or any other) students at these schools is non-professional but for the most part these kids now seem to be fairly independent in their learning. One of the best things about volunteering at school is seeing how ALL these kids have matured and grown up. I hope you are involved with the school and or the district as you seem to have a good handle on things.
I wish we just dropped the whole damn union and went out and got a new group of very qualified people to teach our children....Tell me there aren't tons of young people with degrees who wouldn't want jobs like this?????? Go strike teachers...you will lose my respect the moment you walk out on my children.
First of all, I do understand the issues faced by the Hispanic community, though I am not Hispanic. I chose to live where I do so that my children would go to school in a diverse environment. It was the right decision for my family. Why the system fails these children is a complex question. Certainly, administrators and teachers bear some responsibility. So do the legislators that mandate thinngs like testing in english only. So do people who only are concerned about their children or who have prejudices that cloud their objectivity. Complex problems require dedication and creativity to solve. There is no magic bullet, no easy answer. Dual Language was an attempt to resolve some of these issues. Maybe it's time for everyone to work together, put their selfish issues aside and do what's best for our children.
Also, I absolutely do not 'hate' minorities. If you knew me at all, you'd realize that organizations which I belong to cherish inclusiveness of all races.
I do think we could give the parents some tools to use - techniques, tips, quick things that they can do w/o having to attend a program that will take them away from work, and which can have a positive impact on their kids. But we can't do it if they don't ask for it - if they're hiding out and keeping their heads down, we'll never know they're there and need help... And that's a true shame.
Alexa: I agree with you. Not to denigrate the Spanish language at all, but bilingual education doesn't work. The sooner the kids start learning English, the better.
Certainly that could be said in any situation. It may be that the administration feels disconnected from the teacher's representatives? We are not here to bury either teachers or the administration. We are merely offering our opinions as shareholders in the community and the people who end up paying for whatever decisions are made both financially and with our children's education. Whatever the outcome, we all have the option of deciding if we agree or disagree with our votes in the next election. The same applies if we want to take the administration to task for their actions or compensation by addressing those issues through the same board. Usually these topics are hot items during a flash point and then everyone forgets and goes back to Starbucks:) The lingering issue that I really want to see followed up after the teachers current issue is class size and distribution of student to teacher resources. I would like to see a task force with bright minds such as Dan Jenks involved and as the Park District did with Rosewood commission, vote all in or nothing. That will show us where our leadership is and how much will and desire they have to move us to a better and more equitable education in HP. There is no doubt that as many teachers and teachers reps are reading our comments and have indeed commented themselves, the administration and board is also reading but know better than to comment in a public forum while negotiations are in place.
I read a while back that you do not have children in the schools. Now you do? Can you make up your mind? You claim to know something about education, your posts over the last couple of years clearly confirm that you are lonely, and know very little about educational issues. I agree with your statement, enough of your complaining! You are not helping our community and your ideas are poison.
It's unfortunate that you don't agree with my positions, but I assure you that I only have the community's best interests at heart. Perhaps you could elaborate on why you don't agree instead of trying to engage in personal attacks?
I agree with Richard that it would be of great benefit to the process and the community if you were a part of any task force/commission looking into establishing a better equity/distribution of student/teacher ratio within D112. We already have a minor redistricting (distribution) in place in the form of our dual language program which takes natural students of other schools and places them into Red Oak and Northwood. The merits of that unnatural distribution and financial viability of that program are certainly topics of another discussion. However, it is important that we continue community discussion on student distribution and consider options such as the same grade schools for financial, educational and socialization benefit.
Teachers are not being greedy!!!!
Maternity and Paternity leaves for the following teachers: Mrs.Jacobson, Mrs. Sanders, Mr. Bergman, and Mr. Wagner. Questions were raised about how long the leave will be for each teacher. Principal Schroeder stated it is about 4 weeks and that the subs taking over for the teachers will be be certified and qualified to work with our students. While I am in favor of Paternity leave, I was not aware that it was also offered to the father except in France and Scandinavia. Again, I am not against the policy but wondered if this is a non paid benefit or if it is part of the union contract? I had just never seen this before, although I could suspect it may be part of some cutting edge technology companies package such as Apples early on 1 year sabbatical.