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From the BCCT

Board may survey public about schools
The public opinion survey will ask about the quality of the district’s education as well as contract negotiations.
By MANASEE WAGH

In the coming school year, Pennsbury residents’ opinions may shape the district’s future when it comes to teachers’ contracts.

The school board is toying with the idea of doing a public opinion survey about upcoming contract negotiations, said Gregory Lucidi, the school board president.

“We haven’t formulated the questions yet, but we want to get a feel for where the community stands as far as thoughts and ideas. We’re also planning on working with the Pennsbury Education Association in developing this survey,” he said.

What residents think would give the district a direction and an idea of what the community thinks it can afford. It would also inform the district’s goals for contract negotiations, added Lucidi.

According to the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Pennsbury had the fourth highest teacher salaries for 2006-07 among 727 public school districts, charter schools and vocational- districts, charter schools and vocational-technical schools.

The district employs about 800 teachers. At the start of the upcoming school year, their salaries will start at $45,176 for the least experienced teachers and rise to $98,222 for the most experienced teachers with the most education, said Lucidi.

The upcoming negotiation is the first since the volatile 2005 contract negotiation, which initiated a strike that shut down Pennsbury schools for 21 days.

Since then, Lower Makefield resident Simon Campbell, the father of three children in the district, has roused grassroots activity to make teacher strikes illegal in this state. A bill that would make Pennsylvania the 38th state in which teacher strikes are illegal is awaiting action in the Legislature.

Both Campbell and Lucidi said the Seneca Valley School District had a strike in October 2007. To get a better idea of what taxpayers were thinking, the district surveyed them.

“I suggested that Pennsbury consider it [a survey] months ago. I think it’s an outstanding idea and makes residents and taxpayers feel involved. It’s a great way to give taxpayers a voice in the process. Otherwise they’re shut out of the whole thing,” he said.

Preliminary plans for the survey are still being worked out. The board expects to hire a polling company at tonight’s board meeting.

The questionnaire should include other matters besides the teachers’ contract, Lucidi said. For instance, it may ask residents to rate Pennsbury’s educational quality and its teachers. He said the district hopes the survey will be done in October and the results will be ready in November.

“It’s looking at the district as a whole and where we want to go in the future,” he said.

The Pennsbury teachers contract expires June 30, 2009. By state law, the district has to start negotiations in January 2009.

“Having the community chip in is something the board wanted to do in advance of the negotiation. Then we thought we’d take it one step further and look at other things in the district,”