I'm not sure what is going on here, but I received this email from two separate sources that I trust. I would suggest monitoring this school board carefully. Their truthfulness and transparency is severely compromised and I would put nothing past these knuckleheads.
I have been told there will be "devastating information" released this evening at the school board budget meeting. I do not know any further details nor do I want to speculate because my mind only goes from bad things to even worse.
Meeting begins at 6:30 in the LGI room at the high school.
Please plan to attend.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Teacher Negotiations and Secrecy
The BCCT opines on teacher negotiations and secrecy. I'm not taking any stance one way or another on this at present except to note that the taxpayers do not have a direct say in this particular scenario, and the board members do.
It also goes on to talk about how secrecy is applied: Tell the people about an hour beforehand and then approve it. What the public says at the microphone is irrelevant to the process.
That may be a surprise to the rest of the world, but it's routinely how business is done in Morrisville. The public can talk all they want, but they are irrelevant to the process. And yet, the only people who can change this are the people themselves.
Teacher contract talks Dealing in the dark
Public oversight would quicken the pace of negotiations and produce more reasonable demands and offers.
So teacher contract talks are “moving slowly” in Neshaminy. That’s what our headline said because that’s what the people involved in the talks told our reporter. And that’s all they’d say.
One of the problems with the way teacher contract negotiations are handled in Pennsylvania is the secrecy in which they’re shrouded. What teachers demand and what school districts offer remains a mystery to the people who have to pay for whatever the two sides ultimately agree to — taxpayers.
And taxpayers don’t find out how much they’ve been obligated to ante up until a deal is done. Oh, they’ll get a peek, as they did in Pennsbury a few years ago when copies of the tentative contract were made available about an hour before the school board voted on the pact.
In other words, it was a done deal. Didn’t matter what the people thought. The opportunity to comment was strictly token and, therefore, meaningless. Message to the people: You don’t count!
Look, we understand why contract negotiations are conducted in secret. And that’s fine in the private sector. But teachers don’t work for a private employer whose bottom line has little impact on the general public. They work for taxpayers. And tax payers ought to be able to monitor the process, if not have a say.
In fact, citizen oversight might quicken the pace of negotiations and foster more thoughtful settlements. Under the glare of a spotlight, neither side would want to appear unreasonable.
And just consider the impact of a teacher contract. Millions of taxpayer dollars are at stake, not to mention the impact on the quality of education.
Think about it this way. Would we want local government officials to go behind closed doors to decide the fate of, say, a development project — only to emerge after a deal is done? Traffic, road, pollution, neighborhood impact and all other issues decided without citizen input or even awareness?
Here you go. Don’t like it? Who cares?
We don’t and wouldn’t tolerate that. And we shouldn’t tolerate secret contract negotiations for teachers.
Local activist Simon Campbell is pushing legislation that among other things would expose teacher contract negotiations to public oversight. It’s a good idea.
Back to Neshaminy. The last secretly negotiated contract in the district produced free benefits for teachers. Except for a co-pay on prescription drugs, Neshaminy teachers contribute nothing toward their health benefits.
We’d bet nobody working in the private sector has such a deal. We’d also bet that Neshaminy’s current contract would not include free benefits had negotiations been open to public scrutiny.
Any takers?
It also goes on to talk about how secrecy is applied: Tell the people about an hour beforehand and then approve it. What the public says at the microphone is irrelevant to the process.
That may be a surprise to the rest of the world, but it's routinely how business is done in Morrisville. The public can talk all they want, but they are irrelevant to the process. And yet, the only people who can change this are the people themselves.
Teacher contract talks Dealing in the dark
Public oversight would quicken the pace of negotiations and produce more reasonable demands and offers.
So teacher contract talks are “moving slowly” in Neshaminy. That’s what our headline said because that’s what the people involved in the talks told our reporter. And that’s all they’d say.
One of the problems with the way teacher contract negotiations are handled in Pennsylvania is the secrecy in which they’re shrouded. What teachers demand and what school districts offer remains a mystery to the people who have to pay for whatever the two sides ultimately agree to — taxpayers.
And taxpayers don’t find out how much they’ve been obligated to ante up until a deal is done. Oh, they’ll get a peek, as they did in Pennsbury a few years ago when copies of the tentative contract were made available about an hour before the school board voted on the pact.
In other words, it was a done deal. Didn’t matter what the people thought. The opportunity to comment was strictly token and, therefore, meaningless. Message to the people: You don’t count!
Look, we understand why contract negotiations are conducted in secret. And that’s fine in the private sector. But teachers don’t work for a private employer whose bottom line has little impact on the general public. They work for taxpayers. And tax payers ought to be able to monitor the process, if not have a say.
In fact, citizen oversight might quicken the pace of negotiations and foster more thoughtful settlements. Under the glare of a spotlight, neither side would want to appear unreasonable.
And just consider the impact of a teacher contract. Millions of taxpayer dollars are at stake, not to mention the impact on the quality of education.
Think about it this way. Would we want local government officials to go behind closed doors to decide the fate of, say, a development project — only to emerge after a deal is done? Traffic, road, pollution, neighborhood impact and all other issues decided without citizen input or even awareness?
Here you go. Don’t like it? Who cares?
We don’t and wouldn’t tolerate that. And we shouldn’t tolerate secret contract negotiations for teachers.
Local activist Simon Campbell is pushing legislation that among other things would expose teacher contract negotiations to public oversight. It’s a good idea.
Back to Neshaminy. The last secretly negotiated contract in the district produced free benefits for teachers. Except for a co-pay on prescription drugs, Neshaminy teachers contribute nothing toward their health benefits.
We’d bet nobody working in the private sector has such a deal. We’d also bet that Neshaminy’s current contract would not include free benefits had negotiations been open to public scrutiny.
Any takers?
Pay Now. Discussion Later
Scott Parks, the executive director of the BCTHS is quoted in the BCCT as saying that Morrisville and Bensalem need to step up and approve this year's budget, and the funding formula for the 2009-2010 year can be discussed later at a joint business managers meeting over the summer.
Why does this sound like something a used car salesman would say?
Anyone know what the Emperor and the Court of Toadies want to do? Either they or the Bensalem board need to approve the budget to make it operational. Sounds like the Prisoner's Dilemma at work.
It also sounds like one of the unanticipated expenses that a bare bones budget has no room to handle.
BUCKS COUNTY TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL
Funding formula to be re-examined
The joint board committee wants to see if actual usage charges could be used to cover mainstream and special education student expenses.
By JOAN HELLYER
Local school officials will meet this summer to see if they can come up with a new way to fund Bucks County Technical High School.
Joint board committee members of the tech school agreed Tuesday to meet with business managers from the six sending districts to look at actual usage costs for all students, not just special education students.
That meeting will likely take place in July, said Scott Parks, administrative director of the comprehensive high school off Wistar Road in Bristol Township.
The committee previously asked business managers to examine expenses for the school that serves the Bensalem, Bristol, Bristol Township, Morrisville, Neshaminy and Pennsbury districts.
The finance officers suggested districts pay for their special education students on a per usage basis, instead of splitting the costs among the districts, as they do now.
Had that system been in place this school year, Bristol Township would have paid about $500,000 less and Neshaminy would have paid about $450,000 more, officials said.
Neshaminy representatives have protested the potential funding formula change. They said before anything is revised, the joint board should consider changing the formula so districts would pay actual usage for both mainstream and special education students.
Joint board members agreed to the summer meeting to discuss that possibility with business managers.
Controversy surrounding the revised funding formula, which would not be put into place until 2009-2010, has slowed approval of next school year’s budget.
At least one more sending school board and two more school board members from the districts served by BCTHS have to vote in favor of the estimated $21.7 million budget before it can be enacted.
Parks urged representatives of the Bensalem and Morrisville boards, which delayed votes on the 2008-2009 financial plan, to encourage their respective governing bodies to vote on it. The boards have until June 30 to act on the proposed tech school budget.
Why does this sound like something a used car salesman would say?
Anyone know what the Emperor and the Court of Toadies want to do? Either they or the Bensalem board need to approve the budget to make it operational. Sounds like the Prisoner's Dilemma at work.
It also sounds like one of the unanticipated expenses that a bare bones budget has no room to handle.
BUCKS COUNTY TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL
Funding formula to be re-examined
The joint board committee wants to see if actual usage charges could be used to cover mainstream and special education student expenses.
By JOAN HELLYER
Local school officials will meet this summer to see if they can come up with a new way to fund Bucks County Technical High School.
Joint board committee members of the tech school agreed Tuesday to meet with business managers from the six sending districts to look at actual usage costs for all students, not just special education students.
That meeting will likely take place in July, said Scott Parks, administrative director of the comprehensive high school off Wistar Road in Bristol Township.
The committee previously asked business managers to examine expenses for the school that serves the Bensalem, Bristol, Bristol Township, Morrisville, Neshaminy and Pennsbury districts.
The finance officers suggested districts pay for their special education students on a per usage basis, instead of splitting the costs among the districts, as they do now.
Had that system been in place this school year, Bristol Township would have paid about $500,000 less and Neshaminy would have paid about $450,000 more, officials said.
Neshaminy representatives have protested the potential funding formula change. They said before anything is revised, the joint board should consider changing the formula so districts would pay actual usage for both mainstream and special education students.
Joint board members agreed to the summer meeting to discuss that possibility with business managers.
Controversy surrounding the revised funding formula, which would not be put into place until 2009-2010, has slowed approval of next school year’s budget.
At least one more sending school board and two more school board members from the districts served by BCTHS have to vote in favor of the estimated $21.7 million budget before it can be enacted.
Parks urged representatives of the Bensalem and Morrisville boards, which delayed votes on the 2008-2009 financial plan, to encourage their respective governing bodies to vote on it. The boards have until June 30 to act on the proposed tech school budget.
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