There are days when I truly wonder if anyone is reading. Once that "post" button is pressed, do my posts go anywhere? Does anyone read them?
Then one of you go and remind me that, yes, there is someone out there. Thanks, Mother Bear. Thank you for the thoughtful and reflective essay. You have truly made my day. Please make sure that you put in your application for the school board. You would be a worthy successor to Ed Frankenfield.
Parents: Your last opportunity to make a difference in YOUR child's education is here. Remain silent, and Morrisville High School closes its doors for good. The high schoolers are farmed out and we become a K-8 district. Is that what you want?
I've noticed we've all been a bit quiet lately - stunned perhaps? I wrote the following opinion/long rant if you are interested in posting it. I'd prefer to remain anonymous at least for now.
Opinion:
There has been much buzz about what lies in the future for Morrisville students. Parents are worried, young teens working toward future goals are anxious, not knowing what lies ahead, where they will be attending school next year or the year after. The board majority has been nothing but grossly disrespectful of the population it was elected to serve -- the students. [NOTE: This is where the root of the problem lies. The Emperor believes his constituency is the taxpayers, not the students. All of you who voted for the Stop the School people: Do you believe the same thing? The correct answer is that his constituency is MORRISVILLE: Child, Student, Taxpayer, and Seniors. Even if you do not have a child or grandchild in this school system directly, you probably have nieces or nephews or grandchildren in other districts. Would you be comfortable trusting their education to William Hellman, CPA, Emperor of Education? LOL--I didn't think so. So why is it OK for the Morrisville students? Stop concentrating entirely on your wallet and consider the long term effects of what this plan will do.]
Board President Bill Hellmann revealed his "plan" at the latest school board meeting, confirming rumors that high school students will be bused to some other school. Despite this revelation, there has yet to be any real public discussion by the current Morrisville board on the issue of tuitioning out the high school and moving K-8 to that building, so we can't be certain of the board majority's intentions. We can, however, make some educated guesses based on the little drops of information that have been squeezed out.
Research into this scenario might offer board members some insight into how it would actually play out. But the board majority appears to be poised to move forward with a plan, without studied contemplation and in spite of the plain facts and expert advice that is available to them. The educational progress, time and money potentially wasted, without obtaining factual information or even looking to that which has already been provided through past studies, could be devastating to this community and our students.
If Hellmann's scheme is the direction the board chooses -we can be certain of some of the roadblocks. First, that the board will not be able to move the elementary school students to the high school building until a suitable plan is in place for the high school students. What might this be? Didn't the Courier recently reveal that neighboring public schools had been contacted about accepting our students for tuition, but all were either unable or unwilling to do so? And, that two Catholic schools and one alternative school expressed some interest?
To this end, unless the state forces another local school to accept our students, or the board decides to bus them far from home, we might speculate that the board appears to be considering some sort of voucher program. The NEA website has some interesting information about the outcomes of voucher programs in other states http://www.nea.org/vouchers/02voutrack.html. If such a plan is in place the law still requires that districts provide a "Free and Appropriate Education" for all students. This means, those for whom space is not available in another school must still be educated, and that education must be appropriate to the students needs.
Could all Morrisville high school students be sent to Catholic School? I would imagine that the constitutional separation of church and state would prevent such a plan being legal for all students. If I am of another religion or simply not interested in my child attending a religious school, I think I'd have a pretty sound legal argument for not sending my child to a Catholic School. The district might offer me the same tuition in a voucher to opt for another school, but if I cannot find another available school at the same tuition, and I cannot afford the difference, the district is still obligated to provide me with a free and appropriate education.
Is my only alternative, then "Alternative School"? Is alternative school appropriate for all students? How will the district provide free and appropriate education for students who are not Catholic or don't require an alternative school program?
Let's say the board somehow overcomes the glitch of actually having to provide education for all our high school students, and we are ready to move the elementary students in. The district will have to get state approval for the plan and the facilities will have to comply with PDE code for elementary school students. Past research has indicated that major renovations are required in order for the building to be acceptable for elementary school use. In addition, there are the problems with air flow (backwards in case of fire -- see past engineering studies), energy inefficiency and outdated systems to overcome. Has the board studied this beyond the brief walk through personally commissioned by our board president but paid for by the public?
There are numerous sound, reasonable ways we can brainstorm to educate all of our students, but we need to work within reality and with absolute accountability to the children. The board majority, or at least the President and one other "we", seem to have forged a plan without public debate, without research, without regard for the educational program or the needs of the students. This so-called plan is really just a numbers-crunching scheme, and does not reflect responsible school directorship. Nor does the budget for this year, where the board is proposing arbitrary cuts to special and alternative school education in defiance of the professional advice of educators. Perhaps the plan is "Hellmann's Plan", and the budget is "Hellmann's Budget", but where then is the deliberation? Where are the answers to our questions?
(Notable exceptions -- Joe Kemp and Robin Reithmeyer have both worked to provide respectful answers, along with the shining example of respectful board service, the late Ed Frankenfield.)
The board has an ethical and legal obligation to the students of this district. Perhaps the President and others did not know what they were getting into, besides their single minded and unresearched mission to stop the new school. However, as elected officials they are, whether they like it or not, accountable to the laws that protect the rights of our children. Their duty involves due diligence in decision making, along with accountability to Sunshine Laws that require public deliberation and protect the public's right to know of and be heard in board policy and decision making. [Note: Bold is mine]
School board service is serious business with the ultimate outcome of helping to shape the future for our students. Our children cannot be guinea pigs to the board president's unstudied plans. They don't have time for trial and error; childhood is short. If board members are not up to serving our children -- all of our children, renters, owners, children with special needs, and children who require alternative education -- through diligent, studied, responsible decision making, then they don't deserve the honor of this position.
Mother Bear
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
I Want My MTV!
Thanks to the contributor who noticed this money for nothing story. Maybe we could apply and use it to climb out of our dire straits.
State Funds Move Classrooms Into The Future
By Peter Ciferri, Advance Editor
Misbehaving students at Council Rock's two high schools won't have to worry about clapping erasers and washing chalkboards as punishment anymore.Today, students say it's "kind of a joke" when teachers use the green, slate fossils of the classroom, as more and more teachers are turning to interactive white boards to deliver their message.
Fueled by over $750, 000 in Pennsylvania Classrooms for the Future (CFF) grant money, 68 classrooms across district high schools are now equipped with technology from laptops and digital cameras to camcorders and Web cams.
But the consensus is that the project's crown jewels are the interactive white boards installed across many core classrooms.
The boards, about four feet tall and mounted overtop existing chalkboards, allow teachers to utilize touch screen technology to draw diagrams, create notes and even make a database of previous lessons. "I embraced it with open arms", Physics teacher Joe Warwick said. "The kids are much more likely to look at the drawings I'm going to make on the board with the different colors, than what I would just draw on a chalkboard."
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Warwick has been using the technology since September. During classes, he navigates through the program - which operates like a PowerPoint and Photoshop hybrid - with ease. "There are times when it makes it much, much easier", Warwick explained. "I can say it but without a simulator, there's nothing like seeing it on the screen." Warwick said he often e-mails students notes or study guides based on the computerized lessons. "It makes it more interactive", student Marissa Custren said. "Instead of just telling us, they can actually show us the notes."
According to a description on state.pa.us, the CFF program "recognizes and embraces the need for high school reform preparing students to enter and successfully compete in the ever-expanding high-tech global marketplace." Council Rock was one of two Bucks County schools (Bensalem) to receive first year project funding in 2006. This year, that number jumped to $742, 000 and the district has applied for a third year grant to equip 41 more classes next year. The state also funds training for teachers not experienced with the technology. "It's really opening up classroom walls", CFF Coach Suzanne Loftus said.
She said the program also allows teachers and students to work together on outside projects, using new digital cameras and camcorders for interactive homework assignments. "These projects teach you how to pace yourself, how to interview people, all those 21st century learning skills you're looking for", Loftus explained. "It's preparing them for the job market that they're going to be exposed to when they're getting through college." Each teacher also has their own Web page, where students can access notes and use blogging tools to hold classroom discussions even when school is out.
One Council Rock South Psychology class even links to a classroom at Council Rock North, where there are no staff members trained in the subject. The South teacher uses a monitor to see and hear the students as they sit in class and students watch their teacher over a projector. They get homework via fax machine and are still under live supervision by a substitute teacher.
"I think [CFF] is going to revolutionize learning", Loftus said. "It's going to be standard eventually." Currently, around 1, 750 students at North an 1, 890 students at South use the CFF equipment in some form every day. Loftus said the students and most teachers took to the technology immediately, and those who were reluctant at first, are now embracing the schools'goal.
"Nobody has said 'I'm sorry I did this.' They all say 'Thank God I'm in the program what are we doing next?'"
State Funds Move Classrooms Into The Future
By Peter Ciferri, Advance Editor
Misbehaving students at Council Rock's two high schools won't have to worry about clapping erasers and washing chalkboards as punishment anymore.Today, students say it's "kind of a joke" when teachers use the green, slate fossils of the classroom, as more and more teachers are turning to interactive white boards to deliver their message.
Fueled by over $750, 000 in Pennsylvania Classrooms for the Future (CFF) grant money, 68 classrooms across district high schools are now equipped with technology from laptops and digital cameras to camcorders and Web cams.
But the consensus is that the project's crown jewels are the interactive white boards installed across many core classrooms.
The boards, about four feet tall and mounted overtop existing chalkboards, allow teachers to utilize touch screen technology to draw diagrams, create notes and even make a database of previous lessons. "I embraced it with open arms", Physics teacher Joe Warwick said. "The kids are much more likely to look at the drawings I'm going to make on the board with the different colors, than what I would just draw on a chalkboard."
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Warwick has been using the technology since September. During classes, he navigates through the program - which operates like a PowerPoint and Photoshop hybrid - with ease. "There are times when it makes it much, much easier", Warwick explained. "I can say it but without a simulator, there's nothing like seeing it on the screen." Warwick said he often e-mails students notes or study guides based on the computerized lessons. "It makes it more interactive", student Marissa Custren said. "Instead of just telling us, they can actually show us the notes."
According to a description on state.pa.us, the CFF program "recognizes and embraces the need for high school reform preparing students to enter and successfully compete in the ever-expanding high-tech global marketplace." Council Rock was one of two Bucks County schools (Bensalem) to receive first year project funding in 2006. This year, that number jumped to $742, 000 and the district has applied for a third year grant to equip 41 more classes next year. The state also funds training for teachers not experienced with the technology. "It's really opening up classroom walls", CFF Coach Suzanne Loftus said.
She said the program also allows teachers and students to work together on outside projects, using new digital cameras and camcorders for interactive homework assignments. "These projects teach you how to pace yourself, how to interview people, all those 21st century learning skills you're looking for", Loftus explained. "It's preparing them for the job market that they're going to be exposed to when they're getting through college." Each teacher also has their own Web page, where students can access notes and use blogging tools to hold classroom discussions even when school is out.
One Council Rock South Psychology class even links to a classroom at Council Rock North, where there are no staff members trained in the subject. The South teacher uses a monitor to see and hear the students as they sit in class and students watch their teacher over a projector. They get homework via fax machine and are still under live supervision by a substitute teacher.
"I think [CFF] is going to revolutionize learning", Loftus said. "It's going to be standard eventually." Currently, around 1, 750 students at North an 1, 890 students at South use the CFF equipment in some form every day. Loftus said the students and most teachers took to the technology immediately, and those who were reluctant at first, are now embracing the schools'goal.
"Nobody has said 'I'm sorry I did this.' They all say 'Thank God I'm in the program what are we doing next?'"
If Only I had Said "Morrisville is GOOD for business"
Remember when the Emperor decreed that he would not recommend business investment in Morrisville? We know the borough council backs up that view (remember Gateway?), but did you know that civilized communities know about and use the Pennsylvania Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program.
Giving back for June 3
Bucks County Courier Times
Click Here!
FirstService Bank donated $8,050 to the Lower Bucks Family YMCA to support the YMCA's full- and half-day preschool programs and several programs for teenagers. FirstService is a division of Boyertown-based National Penn Bank, with branches in Warminster, Bristol, Middletown and Bensalem. The money was donated under the Pennsylvania Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program, which gives businesses tax credits for approved education-related contributions.
Freedom Credit Union of Warminster sponsored A.M. Kulp Elementary School's Reading Day, a community-wide literacy project held last month. Freedom's marketing coordinator, Cyndi Cohen, read to second graders at the Hatfield Township school, which is part of the North Penn School District. Freedom Credit Union, which has branches in Philadelphia, Warminster and Lansdale, has been a major sponsor of the event for three years.
Rita's Water Ice hopes to raise more than $580,000 for pediatric cancer research during its latest paper lemon promotion. All Rita's locations will sell paper lemons for $1 during June. Proceeds will go to the Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation. In two years, the Bensalem-based company has raised more than $1 million for the foundation, which is named after Alex Scott. She died of cancer in 2004.
Giving back for June 3
Bucks County Courier Times
Click Here!
FirstService Bank donated $8,050 to the Lower Bucks Family YMCA to support the YMCA's full- and half-day preschool programs and several programs for teenagers. FirstService is a division of Boyertown-based National Penn Bank, with branches in Warminster, Bristol, Middletown and Bensalem. The money was donated under the Pennsylvania Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program, which gives businesses tax credits for approved education-related contributions.
Freedom Credit Union of Warminster sponsored A.M. Kulp Elementary School's Reading Day, a community-wide literacy project held last month. Freedom's marketing coordinator, Cyndi Cohen, read to second graders at the Hatfield Township school, which is part of the North Penn School District. Freedom Credit Union, which has branches in Philadelphia, Warminster and Lansdale, has been a major sponsor of the event for three years.
Rita's Water Ice hopes to raise more than $580,000 for pediatric cancer research during its latest paper lemon promotion. All Rita's locations will sell paper lemons for $1 during June. Proceeds will go to the Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation. In two years, the Bensalem-based company has raised more than $1 million for the foundation, which is named after Alex Scott. She died of cancer in 2004.
Pennsbury Budget Woes
You hear what I'm saying? The budget is too high! It's my job to cut the taxes. That's what the people of Morrisville voted us in to do, and that's what I'm going to do.
But, Mr. Hellmann...this is the Pennsbury school district.
I'm just practicing. Fitz will make sure it happens. Besides, why aren't you cutting the special education budget?
Budget panel’s suggestions include hiring freeze
The citizens advisory budget committee also recommended cutting expenditures by 2 percent to relieve the tax burden on residents.
By MANASEE WAGH
Pennsbury’s citizens advisory budget committee suggests that the district freeze hirings and trim expenditures by 2 percent to hold the line on taxes.
“We expect them to do more with less,” said Gary Cruzan, a committee member and a Lower Makefield resident.
According to proposed figures, the owner of a $31,160 average assessed property in the district is facing $4,574 in real estate taxes next year — an increase of $231.
The committee wants the district to relieve some of the tax burden by reducing next year’s roughly $174.5 million proposed budget. It’s up about 4 percent more than this year’s.
Cruzan said he hopes next year’s contract negotiations take into account that the taxpayer “bears the burden” of salaries and benefits. The district’s total salaries and benefits are expected to constitute about three-quarters of the budget next year.
Board member Gene Dolnick came up with the idea to form the committee for more citizen participation in the budget process, said Gregory Lucidi, the board president. Last November, administration members appointed seven residents from three of the four municipalities that make up the Pennsbury district. Nobody from Tullytown applied.
The other three people on the committee are part of the administration and include Isabel Miller, the district’s business administrator.
The advisory committee’s goal is to provide recommendations to the school board for reducing costs and generating revenue, so that taxes can be kept as low as possible.
Cruzan wants the public to know that the seven residential members, who worked as a group without a chairman, oppose the tax hike the district unveiled May 8.
“Every year, they ask for a tax increase that exceeds inflation, but the economy is in a very big slowdown and it’s time to get realistic,” he said.
Cruzan stressed that the committee doesn’t want any cutbacks or changes that would adversely affect education in the district.
Instead of cutting programs or funding to educational services, Cruzan said the seven members would like to see the board and administration work on reducing expenses in other areas, such as:
The committee also is looking for a solution to transportation costs, which have been rising as a result of higher fuel prices.
Committee members will present details of these recommendations in a video, which will be posted after June 5 on the Pennsbury School District Web site, www.pennsbury.k12.pa.us.
The school board and administration have said they will continue looking for ways to reduce tax increases next year, including reviewing the advisory committee’s recommendations.
After the administration presented the proposed budget in early May, Lucidi said his goal was to stay below the state’s mandated 4.4. percent tax increase cap.
On Tuesday, Miller said she anticipates a significant reduction to the proposed tax hike by June 12, when the final budget is supposed to be adopted. The advisory committee has been meeting since Dec. 6, considering the administration’s advice and input along the way. The seven residential members want the administration to include them in the process of determining the feasibility of their proposal, according to their report.
“The budget is like any other entity. It has to get real, and the school district has to share the sacrifices that private citizens have to make,” said Cruzan. “We don’t necessarily expect the district to follow our recommendations, but we feel the recommendations should carry weight and be considered, because we’re a cross-section of the community.”
But, Mr. Hellmann...this is the Pennsbury school district.
I'm just practicing. Fitz will make sure it happens. Besides, why aren't you cutting the special education budget?
Budget panel’s suggestions include hiring freeze
The citizens advisory budget committee also recommended cutting expenditures by 2 percent to relieve the tax burden on residents.
By MANASEE WAGH
Pennsbury’s citizens advisory budget committee suggests that the district freeze hirings and trim expenditures by 2 percent to hold the line on taxes.
“We expect them to do more with less,” said Gary Cruzan, a committee member and a Lower Makefield resident.
According to proposed figures, the owner of a $31,160 average assessed property in the district is facing $4,574 in real estate taxes next year — an increase of $231.
The committee wants the district to relieve some of the tax burden by reducing next year’s roughly $174.5 million proposed budget. It’s up about 4 percent more than this year’s.
Cruzan said he hopes next year’s contract negotiations take into account that the taxpayer “bears the burden” of salaries and benefits. The district’s total salaries and benefits are expected to constitute about three-quarters of the budget next year.
Board member Gene Dolnick came up with the idea to form the committee for more citizen participation in the budget process, said Gregory Lucidi, the board president. Last November, administration members appointed seven residents from three of the four municipalities that make up the Pennsbury district. Nobody from Tullytown applied.
The other three people on the committee are part of the administration and include Isabel Miller, the district’s business administrator.
The advisory committee’s goal is to provide recommendations to the school board for reducing costs and generating revenue, so that taxes can be kept as low as possible.
Cruzan wants the public to know that the seven residential members, who worked as a group without a chairman, oppose the tax hike the district unveiled May 8.
“Every year, they ask for a tax increase that exceeds inflation, but the economy is in a very big slowdown and it’s time to get realistic,” he said.
Cruzan stressed that the committee doesn’t want any cutbacks or changes that would adversely affect education in the district.
Instead of cutting programs or funding to educational services, Cruzan said the seven members would like to see the board and administration work on reducing expenses in other areas, such as:
- Impose an immediate hiring freeze for all positions not mandated by law for 2008-09.
- Identify capital expenses, purchases and operational and maintenance expenses that can be deferred until the following budget year.
- Provide incentives for district budget managers to find ways to save.
- Ask all district employees to generate ideas for cost savings based on their familiarity with district operations.
- Track down violators of the district’s residency requirements to avoid paying for students who belong in another district.
- Start a comprehensive review of building usage to see if the district is making efficient use of space.
- Review printing and mailing costs.
- Find ways to extract small savings from sources like various employee benefits, district insurance policies, telephone costs and other sundry expenses.
The committee also is looking for a solution to transportation costs, which have been rising as a result of higher fuel prices.
Committee members will present details of these recommendations in a video, which will be posted after June 5 on the Pennsbury School District Web site, www.pennsbury.k12.pa.us.
The school board and administration have said they will continue looking for ways to reduce tax increases next year, including reviewing the advisory committee’s recommendations.
After the administration presented the proposed budget in early May, Lucidi said his goal was to stay below the state’s mandated 4.4. percent tax increase cap.
On Tuesday, Miller said she anticipates a significant reduction to the proposed tax hike by June 12, when the final budget is supposed to be adopted. The advisory committee has been meeting since Dec. 6, considering the administration’s advice and input along the way. The seven residential members want the administration to include them in the process of determining the feasibility of their proposal, according to their report.
“The budget is like any other entity. It has to get real, and the school district has to share the sacrifices that private citizens have to make,” said Cruzan. “We don’t necessarily expect the district to follow our recommendations, but we feel the recommendations should carry weight and be considered, because we’re a cross-section of the community.”
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Neshaminy Teacher Negotiations Update
Here's some more information from the BCCT regarding the Neshaminy teachers negotiations.
Be sure to check out the comments to the news story as well.
Get the details
To view the fact-finder's report, visit www.dli.state.pa.us/landi/cwp/view.asp?a=136&Q=248097. The Neshaminy school board has also created a Web site to keep residents informed about negotiations with the NFT: http://docs.google.com/view?docid=dd9qgb9z_9hk929bhg.
How the sides compare
NESHAMINY SCHOOL BOARD
* Increase salaries 1 percent annually
* Union to pay 10, 11 and 12 percent toward healthcare premiums over next three years
* Increase K-5 class size ranges from 22-29 students to 27-33 students
* Eliminate $27,500 cash payment on retirement, plus full benefits coverage until 65
* Increase step schedule from 11 to 15 steps by 2010-2011
* Eliminate longevity pay
* Eliminate long-term sub pool
* Increase work days from 188.5 to 190.5
* Increase work hours from 7 to 7.5
* Eliminate recognition of master's degree equivalency
* Change six excused absences to three personal days
* Institute mandatory drug-testing for staff
NESHAMINY FEDERATION OF TEACHERS
* Increase salaries 4 percent annually
* No change in health insurance; currently no payment for premiums
* Reduce class sizes from 29 to 27 students in fourth grade, 29 to 28 students in fifth grade, and 35 to 30 students in the middle and high schools
* Increase retirement incentive from $27,500 to $30,000
* Assign no more than three consecutive teaching periods
* Eliminate sister-schooling at the elementary level
* Increase prep periods from five to seven per week
* Allow 12 days per year, or 15 periods per marking period, for individual education plans for special ed teachers
* Cap special ed students at one to every three “regular” students in regular education classes
* Implement required technology education at elementary level
* Implement full-day kindergarten
* Limit case loads to 250 for guidance counselors, 750 for school nurses, 250 for social workers and 1,000 for psychologists
The demands aren't necessarily comparable by category between the union and the board.
Source: Neshaminy School District.
Be sure to check out the comments to the news story as well.
Get the details
To view the fact-finder's report, visit www.dli.state.pa.us/landi/cwp/view.asp?a=136&Q=248097. The Neshaminy school board has also created a Web site to keep residents informed about negotiations with the NFT: http://docs.google.com/view?docid=dd9qgb9z_9hk929bhg.
How the sides compare
NESHAMINY SCHOOL BOARD
* Increase salaries 1 percent annually
* Union to pay 10, 11 and 12 percent toward healthcare premiums over next three years
* Increase K-5 class size ranges from 22-29 students to 27-33 students
* Eliminate $27,500 cash payment on retirement, plus full benefits coverage until 65
* Increase step schedule from 11 to 15 steps by 2010-2011
* Eliminate longevity pay
* Eliminate long-term sub pool
* Increase work days from 188.5 to 190.5
* Increase work hours from 7 to 7.5
* Eliminate recognition of master's degree equivalency
* Change six excused absences to three personal days
* Institute mandatory drug-testing for staff
NESHAMINY FEDERATION OF TEACHERS
* Increase salaries 4 percent annually
* No change in health insurance; currently no payment for premiums
* Reduce class sizes from 29 to 27 students in fourth grade, 29 to 28 students in fifth grade, and 35 to 30 students in the middle and high schools
* Increase retirement incentive from $27,500 to $30,000
* Assign no more than three consecutive teaching periods
* Eliminate sister-schooling at the elementary level
* Increase prep periods from five to seven per week
* Allow 12 days per year, or 15 periods per marking period, for individual education plans for special ed teachers
* Cap special ed students at one to every three “regular” students in regular education classes
* Implement required technology education at elementary level
* Implement full-day kindergarten
* Limit case loads to 250 for guidance counselors, 750 for school nurses, 250 for social workers and 1,000 for psychologists
The demands aren't necessarily comparable by category between the union and the board.
Source: Neshaminy School District.
Neshaminy Teachers Negotiations
From the BCCT this morning
NESHAMINY
Teachers, school board resume talks
The state fact-finder proposes a 3-percent increase in pay and no charge to the teachers for health care premiums.
By RACHEL CANELLI
Back to the table.
Since neither side has formally accepted a fact-finder’s recommended teacher labor contract, the Neshaminy school board and the Neshaminy Federation of Teachers will resume negotiations. Meanwhile, the report of state-appointed fact-finder John Skonier was made public Monday.
The three-year proposed deal calls for a 3 percent salary increase but no change to the health care package, under which the union does not contribute to its health care premiums, officials said.
Skonier’s report also suggests a 3 percent increase for the co-curricular salary schedule and leaving the excused absence policy and the teachers’ assignment schedules as is.
While the administration has rejected the proposal, the teachers have not accepted or rejected it. That counts as a rejection, according to the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board.
To have a new agreement, both sides would have to accept everything Skonier recommended. They can’t pick and choose pieces of his suggestion.
The newspaper was unsuccessful in reaching school board President Richard Eccles for further comment.
But on a Web site created by the board to keep residents posted on contract talks, members claim they said no to the proposal for the following reasons: health care, and a lack of addressing the step schedule, the retirement incentive package, the length and number of workdays and automatic salary credit for graduate level courses that are not part of a formal master’s degree program. The step schedule is a pay raise process teachers use based on experience and education.
“We look forward to good faith bargaining with the union in order to reach agreement on a contract that is fair and equitable to all, including staff, Neshaminy taxpayers and students,” a note on the site said.
The newspaper was also unsuccessful in reaching NFT President Louise Boyd for comment.
Both sides have another five to 10 days to accept Skonier’s findings, according to the board’s lawyer, Charles Sweet. He also spoke for Pennsbury in 2005 when that district’s teachers struck for 21 days. Tom Jennings is representing the union, administrators said.
The school board and the union are expected to resume talks under the supervision of state-appointed mediator Jill Leeds-Rivera, who was also involved in the Pennsbury bargaining.
If an agreement isn’t reached when the contract expires at the end of this month, the teachers will continue working under the old deal.
Under that pact, the average teacher salary is more than $81,000. But since at least 50 teachers at the higher end of the 11-step pay scale are retiring this year with another 20 leaving in January, that figure is expected to decrease. The average starting teacher salary is $51,976, when combined with experience and education, according to the district’s human resources department.
The top salary, which requires a master’s degree plus 30 credits, is approximately $95,923.
Although the teachers do not pay any percent of their health care premiums, they do pay $15 for co-pays and $5 and $20 for generic and brand-name drugs, respectively, through Personal Choice, as reported by the district’s human resources department.
NESHAMINY
Teachers, school board resume talks
The state fact-finder proposes a 3-percent increase in pay and no charge to the teachers for health care premiums.
By RACHEL CANELLI
Back to the table.
Since neither side has formally accepted a fact-finder’s recommended teacher labor contract, the Neshaminy school board and the Neshaminy Federation of Teachers will resume negotiations. Meanwhile, the report of state-appointed fact-finder John Skonier was made public Monday.
The three-year proposed deal calls for a 3 percent salary increase but no change to the health care package, under which the union does not contribute to its health care premiums, officials said.
Skonier’s report also suggests a 3 percent increase for the co-curricular salary schedule and leaving the excused absence policy and the teachers’ assignment schedules as is.
While the administration has rejected the proposal, the teachers have not accepted or rejected it. That counts as a rejection, according to the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board.
To have a new agreement, both sides would have to accept everything Skonier recommended. They can’t pick and choose pieces of his suggestion.
The newspaper was unsuccessful in reaching school board President Richard Eccles for further comment.
But on a Web site created by the board to keep residents posted on contract talks, members claim they said no to the proposal for the following reasons: health care, and a lack of addressing the step schedule, the retirement incentive package, the length and number of workdays and automatic salary credit for graduate level courses that are not part of a formal master’s degree program. The step schedule is a pay raise process teachers use based on experience and education.
“We look forward to good faith bargaining with the union in order to reach agreement on a contract that is fair and equitable to all, including staff, Neshaminy taxpayers and students,” a note on the site said.
The newspaper was also unsuccessful in reaching NFT President Louise Boyd for comment.
Both sides have another five to 10 days to accept Skonier’s findings, according to the board’s lawyer, Charles Sweet. He also spoke for Pennsbury in 2005 when that district’s teachers struck for 21 days. Tom Jennings is representing the union, administrators said.
The school board and the union are expected to resume talks under the supervision of state-appointed mediator Jill Leeds-Rivera, who was also involved in the Pennsbury bargaining.
If an agreement isn’t reached when the contract expires at the end of this month, the teachers will continue working under the old deal.
Under that pact, the average teacher salary is more than $81,000. But since at least 50 teachers at the higher end of the 11-step pay scale are retiring this year with another 20 leaving in January, that figure is expected to decrease. The average starting teacher salary is $51,976, when combined with experience and education, according to the district’s human resources department.
The top salary, which requires a master’s degree plus 30 credits, is approximately $95,923.
Although the teachers do not pay any percent of their health care premiums, they do pay $15 for co-pays and $5 and $20 for generic and brand-name drugs, respectively, through Personal Choice, as reported by the district’s human resources department.
Monday, June 2, 2008
School Board Vacancy Nominations
Do you have someone you would like to see on the Morrisville Board of Education? Make your non-binding nominations in a comment.
School Board Vacancy
With last week's death of Ed Frankenfield, the board is advertising for candidates to fill the unexpired portion of his term.
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN, THAT THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OF BOROUGH OF MORRISVILLE IS
SEEKING RESIDENT APPLICANTS TO FILL A VACANCY ON THE
MORRISVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD.
APPLICANTS MUST BE AT LEAST 18 YEARS OF AGE AND
MUST HAVE LIVED IN THE DISTRICT FOR AT LEAST ONE YEAR.
DEADLINE FOR APPLICATION IS 9:00 A.M. ON FRIDAY, 6-13-
08. IF INTERESTED, FORWARD RESUME AND LETTER OF
APPLICATION TO: MARLYS MIHOK, BOARD SECRETARY, 550
W. PALMER ST., MORRISVILLE, PA 19067-2195. FAX 215-736-
2413.
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN, THAT THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
OF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OF BOROUGH OF MORRISVILLE IS
SEEKING RESIDENT APPLICANTS TO FILL A VACANCY ON THE
MORRISVILLE SCHOOL DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD.
APPLICANTS MUST BE AT LEAST 18 YEARS OF AGE AND
MUST HAVE LIVED IN THE DISTRICT FOR AT LEAST ONE YEAR.
DEADLINE FOR APPLICATION IS 9:00 A.M. ON FRIDAY, 6-13-
08. IF INTERESTED, FORWARD RESUME AND LETTER OF
APPLICATION TO: MARLYS MIHOK, BOARD SECRETARY, 550
W. PALMER ST., MORRISVILLE, PA 19067-2195. FAX 215-736-
2413.
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Schools News Around the Blogosphere
A special edition of Schools News Around the Blogosphere: Bad Behavior
Also a special shout out to the Long Hill Observer blog. Recent entries include:
What is the problem with open and transparent government?
I Asked The Board; No Response Yet
Apathy This one was a goodie!
How Do We Hold Them Accountable?
Wow...sounds just like home!
Ga. county struggles as school crisis drags on
Fort Mill Times, May 31, 2008
A February report from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools blamed the district's woes on a "fatally flawed" school board and accused it of bickering, acting on behalf of special interests, meddling in the schools and making derogatory comments to school administrators during meetings.
Taxpayers won't have to pay for new Clayton diplomas
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 05/31/08
A national company has offered to waive the charges to print 3,000 new diplomas for Clayton County students, saving taxpayers about $80,000. Clayton's new schools superintendent, John Thompson, had ordered new diplomas printed after he learned the old ones bore the name of former Superintendent Gloria Duncan and the signature of former school board Chairwoman Ericka Davis, who resigned in April.
Palm Beach County teachers found to have questionable content on Facebook profiles
South Florida Sun-Sentinel June 1, 2008
Join Facebook and type in "Palm Beach County School District." Up popped more than 200 names, many of them local teachers sharing personal information. A kindergarten teacher had a page with links to photos of herself drinking and having her bottom spanked by a friend. An elementary school music teacher had a page sprinkled with profanity about his former administrators. A special-education teacher had a page that revealed he is "super horny" and an "A++" in bed.
'Loose at best, criminal at worst'
Toronto Sun, June 1, 2008
Toronto's Catholic School Board trustees still owe taxpayers for thousands of dollars worth of questionable expenses, a Sunday Sun review of board documents dating back to 2003 shows.
Also a special shout out to the Long Hill Observer blog. Recent entries include:
What is the problem with open and transparent government?
I Asked The Board; No Response Yet
Apathy This one was a goodie!
How Do We Hold Them Accountable?
Wow...sounds just like home!
Ga. county struggles as school crisis drags on
Fort Mill Times, May 31, 2008
A February report from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools blamed the district's woes on a "fatally flawed" school board and accused it of bickering, acting on behalf of special interests, meddling in the schools and making derogatory comments to school administrators during meetings.
Taxpayers won't have to pay for new Clayton diplomas
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 05/31/08
A national company has offered to waive the charges to print 3,000 new diplomas for Clayton County students, saving taxpayers about $80,000. Clayton's new schools superintendent, John Thompson, had ordered new diplomas printed after he learned the old ones bore the name of former Superintendent Gloria Duncan and the signature of former school board Chairwoman Ericka Davis, who resigned in April.
Palm Beach County teachers found to have questionable content on Facebook profiles
South Florida Sun-Sentinel June 1, 2008
Join Facebook and type in "Palm Beach County School District." Up popped more than 200 names, many of them local teachers sharing personal information. A kindergarten teacher had a page with links to photos of herself drinking and having her bottom spanked by a friend. An elementary school music teacher had a page sprinkled with profanity about his former administrators. A special-education teacher had a page that revealed he is "super horny" and an "A++" in bed.
'Loose at best, criminal at worst'
Toronto Sun, June 1, 2008
Toronto's Catholic School Board trustees still owe taxpayers for thousands of dollars worth of questionable expenses, a Sunday Sun review of board documents dating back to 2003 shows.
More information on Beaver County merger
Here's a link to the Center Area School District webpage on the merger with Monaca
Fight for your child
From the BCCT this morning. Here's a letter about the Emperor's attempts to illegally obtain special education student information.
Has anyone ever asked the Emperor why he needs to be so confrontational and divisive? Whenever there's an easier way out, he seems to instinctively choose the course of action that requires the most work, the most angst, and the greatest amount of scorched earth. These are not highly prized qualities.
A second article reports on a merger between two Beaver County districts.
The last article is about a one-man campaign to stop teacher strikes. There's one line from the article that is very revealing" "School board President Gregory Lucidi said that Campbell’s approach can be forceful, but effective."
Imagine what could be accomplished in Morrisville if YOU got involved.
Fight for your child
The Morrisville school board wants to cut spending on special education. This
certainly caught my attention.
I have a special needs child in the district. I have been hearing about how the school board president wanted to get the names, addresses and amount of money spent on each child in the district. I heard that he was told at a school board meeting how he cannot take away programs to help our children. This is the law.
Now he wants to cut spending. Exactly where does this put the needs of the child?
I have spoken to many parents from other districts who have horror stories about their children’s education. I have always been proud to say that Morrisville has given my son the resources he needs and because of this he has made amazing progress.
To all parents of special needs children: Get out the booklet that you get at your IEP meetings and this will show you the legal rights of your child. Then if the board tries to take away our children’s rights to be educated, this booklet will give us the information to fight for our children.
Board President Hellmann is a CPA but does he understand anything about educating the special needs child? Obviously not.
Debra Hutchinson Morrisville
------------------------------------------------------------
Ed. secretary: Districts’ merger should be model
MONACA, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania Education Secretary Gerald Zahorchak says he hopes the looming merger of two struggling Beaver County school districts will lead to similar deals between other districts.
The Center Area School Board is scheduled to vote June 12 on a resolution that would seal the district’s merger with the neighboring Monaca School District.
“It’s historic,” Zahorchak said. “School districts all around the state are talking about this. There are probably eight or 10 different pairs in the talking stages.”
Center and Monaca decided to merge because their shrinking student populations had led to concerns about wasted building space and the inability to offer anything more than basic programs. Specialized courses are harder to justify when few students are available to take them.
The districts expect to save $1.5 million annually and have been promised $500,000 from the state to cover one-time costs associated with the merger.
The real benefits, however, may be reaped by other districts that should consider merging for the same reasons, but have been putting it off, said Zahorchak and Tom Gentzel, executive director of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association.
“Parents and taxpayers need real, specific examples and answers as to how things will work,” Gentzel said. “If we get one or two of these that work well, it will certainly make it easier for others.”
Pennsylvania has 501 school districts and 211 have fewer than 2,000 students.
------------------------------------------------------------
Strikebuster
Dad declares war on teachers union
Lower Makefield’s Simon Campbell models himself after Margaret Thatcher and is leading the drive to ban teacher strikes in Pennsylvania.
By MANASEE WAGH
In 1950s England, Simon Campbell’s electrician grandfather publicly ripped up his union card. In the same decade, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher dissolved the power of trade unions in the United Kingdom. Campbell, who grew up in northwest England and is now a resident of Lower Makefield, said his grandfather was making a public statement against strikes. “He wanted to go to work and provide for his family. When the strike happened, he was one of the few to cross the picket line,’’ Campbell said. Now Campbell, 40, is taking a page from his grandfather’s book and going one step further: Over the past three years, he’s raised a grassroots movement to pass legislation making teacher strikes illegal in Pennsylvania. As a father of three elementary school children in Pennsbury, he said he was appalled by the 21-day teacher strike in 2005 and blamed “the power of the union” for disrupting the school year.
Three years after Campbell started protesting union rules and teacher strikes in Pennsbury, he has become a controversial figure in the local community.
In early April, Campbell linked to a list of teacher salaries on StopTeacherStrikes.org, the volunteer organization he started after the 2005 strike. Pennsbury teachers union leaders downplayed the publicity he generated, saying that the information already was publicly available.
Campbell is guardedly optimistic about Senate interest in the future, and as for interest from Gov. Ed Rendell, Campbell thinks it could go either way.
“You never know with Rendell. He’s made some noises on the issue. Of course he’s taken a truckload of money from teachers unions. But you never know.”
While Campbell was not the first to make salaries public or claim that teachers are paid too much, he did stir up the issue.
“We are doing this to galvanize the public,” he said.
He hopes the public will eventually pressure the state Legislature into passing the Strike-Free Education Act, House Bill 1369. It would make Pennsylvania the 38th state to make teacher strikes illegal. Campbell contributed ideas for the bill, which chief sponsor and author state Rep. Todd Rock, R-Franklin, unveiled in early June 2007.
Rep. Dave Steil, R-31, who supports the bill, said Campbell is the only one “on the forefront” of the push for anti-strike legislation.
“He’s had the temerity to follow through. It’s a real uphill battle in this state,” said Steil. “Ultimately legislation passes when there is a massive groundswell of public support.”
In February, Tim Allwein, assistant executive director of the state school boards association, said he thought it would take at least five more years for public pressure to mount high enough to change state law.
The bill is under consideration in the House labor relations committee and has 28 co-sponsors. Still, Campbell doesn’t anticipate a vote anytime soon — he believes that Robert Belfanti, the committee chairman, would be antagonistic to the bill because his campaigns have been funded in part by union money.
CARRYING THE MESSAGE
Campbell travels two to three times a month to connect with others about StopTeacherStrikes.
“I get invited to speak to other groups, and I network with other taxpayer groups. Activity happens through networking and talking to others,” he said.
Juggling his work, his volunteer activities with StopTeacherStrikes.com and being a parent of three young children, doesn’t leave him much time for hobbies, said Campbell.
“Mostly when I get down time, I like to read, travel and spend time with family and friends. I used to play a lot of squash but hurt my back so I can’t anymore.”
In the mornings, he’s an independent futures trader who works out of his simply appointed home office, with its sunny yellow walls, beige curtains and cream and wood furniture. The rest of the day he usually devotes to his cause and taking care of his three daughters, who attend Quarry Hill Elementary. He met his American wife at the University of Hull when she attended a year of college in England. She is an executive search consultant.
When the strike happened, Campbell said his family was “horrified.” Prior to settling in the U.S., the family had lived in Switzerland, where his eldest had attended two years of public school in a system that didn’t allow teachers to strike.
“The contrast was quite stark,” he said. “It is unconscionable and immoral to me that innocent children can be pushed out of school.”
But what pressed Campbell to action was what happened on the final day of the strike.
“As sure as I stand here, the war is not over, but the battle is done,” Nyla Houser, then union president, told about 600 striking teachers that day. At the time, some teachers believed that she was trying to keep up their spirits and stand in solidarity with them.
For Campbell, her words comparing the situation to a “battle” incensed him and were the trigger for rousing public opposition to teacher strikes and union rules, he said. It pushed him over the line from angry parent to activist.
“Had she not said those words, I might not have been inspired to StopTeacherStrikes,” said Campbell.
Whenever Campbell talks about his mission, his speech gets more heightened as he gets wound up. The volume increases, the eyes frown and the nostrils flare in a tidal wave of fervor for his cause. If there is one thing Simon Campbell is not, it is hesitant. And he’s not afraid to voice his opinions, even if it means being politically incorrect.
As an invited speaker at the Pennsylvania Leadership Conference in April, Campbell described unions as “Teletubbies” and the Pennsylvania School Boards Association as “Pretty Silly Blindingly Awful.” Later, Campbell explained the analogy.
“Teletubbies are kids’ characters, strange creatures that jump up and down making incoherent noises. But I’m being flippant. My sense of humor is an acquired taste.”
He went on to say at StopTeacherStrikes, “we don’t care about political correctness; we just cause a lot of trouble for the teachers union.”
Campbell tends to stir up emotions among those who agree and disagree with him. Many community members say they enjoy what he stands for but privately dislike his aggressive style.
House Bill 1369 co-sponsor Steil can appreciate Campbell’s confrontational methods.
“He once said to me confrontation works. We disagreed somewhat and we probably still do,” said Steil. But he added that Campbell’s brand of strong action keeps public attention focused on the issues.
In his children’s own school district, Campbell’s work to keep the public’s attention includes speaking up during the public comment portion of Pennsbury school board meetings.
School board President Gregory Lucidi said that Campbell’s approach can be forceful, but effective.
“He is doing a good job raising public awareness about teacher strikes and is getting a very positive response from members of the public. He has a very aggressive style, maybe too aggressive for some people’s taste, but he is effective,” said Lucidi, who has worked with Campbell to promote House Bill 1369. He believes Campbell’s input on the bill has garnered statewide attention.
‘I’LL DESTROY YOU’
Some local critics say that Campbell goes beyond strongly preaching his views.
Ronald Smith, a Lower Makefield supervisor and criminal defense lawyer, said he dislikes his behavior.
“I’m of the opinion that he’s nothing but a cancer. Although some of his positions may be laudable, he attempts to present his position by confrontation, intimidation and disparaging remarks to all those who may disagree with him,” Smith said. “They’re afraid to say this but I’m not afraid. If you don’t agree with Campbell, you are his archenemy. His position is — if you don’t agree with me, I’ll destroy you.”
Smith has accused Campbell of creating a rift between teachers and the school board. As a result, Smith says he’s worried that Pennsbury teacher contract renegotiations next year will be more difficult.
Campbell is quick to point out that he’s not against teachers.
“We’re anti-strike, not antiteacher. All my kids’ teachers are great.” He blames the unions for a number of ills in the district and state.
What vexes Campbell about unions, he said, is that non-union members have to pay a union fee in Pennsbury.
“There’s a difference between what a union member pays and what a non-union member pays, but why should they be forced to pay anything? It’s coercion. They’re like captive passengers.”
George Miller, president of Pennsbury’s teachers union, countered that the fees contribute to the cost of collective bargaining and contract management.
“No one is forced to join the union under any circumstances,” he said. However, he did not return phone calls and e-mails asking for further explanation.
Campbell also blames unions for contributing dues money toward political action.
“They shouldn’t be collecting money for private organizations to give for political actions. This money can pay for lobbying, political action committees, and be used to directly influence elections.”
Union leaders said that the money is used for more innocuous reasons. It goes toward petitioning for political actions that would benefit students, like paying representatives to petition for reforms on its behalf. Because teachers can’t go to Harrisburg and Washington, D.C., said a union leader, political leaders have to take action for them on concerns like No Child Left Behind.
As far as strikes go, Wythe Keever, spokesman for the state education association, said they evolved out of a feeling of helplessness in the late ’60s. At that time, Keever said, teacher salaries were low and public employees didn’t have collective bargaining rights.
He said growing advocacy at the state level led to the use of strikes as a bargaining chip.
“Striking is the only leverage that teachers have when bargaining fails to produce what they consider to be fair settlement. The general feeling is that strikes should be a last resort, but a legal last resort.”
WHERE DO LEGISLATORS STAND?
Campbell recently put a survey for state representatives on his StopTeacherStrikes Web site.
It asks whether they support strike-free legislation and union practices like taking a fee from all teachers, whether they are part of the union or not.
Campbell said he wants the public to know where legislators stand. He said StopTeacherStrikes is “all about educating the public, trying to get people to look at the big picture.”
He looks to his grandfather’s example when confronted with opposition.
“It wasn’t that he was teaching me to be anti-union but that I should stand up for what I believe in.”
Campbell said his role model is the former prime minister of the United Kingdom,
“In the 1980s, Margaret Thatcher liberated the UK from the stranglehold of corrupting union power and socialism. She was a conviction politician. People either loved her or they hated her. I loved her.”
Has anyone ever asked the Emperor why he needs to be so confrontational and divisive? Whenever there's an easier way out, he seems to instinctively choose the course of action that requires the most work, the most angst, and the greatest amount of scorched earth. These are not highly prized qualities.
A second article reports on a merger between two Beaver County districts.
The last article is about a one-man campaign to stop teacher strikes. There's one line from the article that is very revealing" "School board President Gregory Lucidi said that Campbell’s approach can be forceful, but effective."
Imagine what could be accomplished in Morrisville if YOU got involved.
Fight for your child
The Morrisville school board wants to cut spending on special education. This
certainly caught my attention.
I have a special needs child in the district. I have been hearing about how the school board president wanted to get the names, addresses and amount of money spent on each child in the district. I heard that he was told at a school board meeting how he cannot take away programs to help our children. This is the law.
Now he wants to cut spending. Exactly where does this put the needs of the child?
I have spoken to many parents from other districts who have horror stories about their children’s education. I have always been proud to say that Morrisville has given my son the resources he needs and because of this he has made amazing progress.
To all parents of special needs children: Get out the booklet that you get at your IEP meetings and this will show you the legal rights of your child. Then if the board tries to take away our children’s rights to be educated, this booklet will give us the information to fight for our children.
Board President Hellmann is a CPA but does he understand anything about educating the special needs child? Obviously not.
Debra Hutchinson Morrisville
------------------------------------------------------------
Ed. secretary: Districts’ merger should be model
MONACA, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania Education Secretary Gerald Zahorchak says he hopes the looming merger of two struggling Beaver County school districts will lead to similar deals between other districts.
The Center Area School Board is scheduled to vote June 12 on a resolution that would seal the district’s merger with the neighboring Monaca School District.
“It’s historic,” Zahorchak said. “School districts all around the state are talking about this. There are probably eight or 10 different pairs in the talking stages.”
Center and Monaca decided to merge because their shrinking student populations had led to concerns about wasted building space and the inability to offer anything more than basic programs. Specialized courses are harder to justify when few students are available to take them.
The districts expect to save $1.5 million annually and have been promised $500,000 from the state to cover one-time costs associated with the merger.
The real benefits, however, may be reaped by other districts that should consider merging for the same reasons, but have been putting it off, said Zahorchak and Tom Gentzel, executive director of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association.
“Parents and taxpayers need real, specific examples and answers as to how things will work,” Gentzel said. “If we get one or two of these that work well, it will certainly make it easier for others.”
Pennsylvania has 501 school districts and 211 have fewer than 2,000 students.
------------------------------------------------------------
Strikebuster
Dad declares war on teachers union
Lower Makefield’s Simon Campbell models himself after Margaret Thatcher and is leading the drive to ban teacher strikes in Pennsylvania.
By MANASEE WAGH
In 1950s England, Simon Campbell’s electrician grandfather publicly ripped up his union card. In the same decade, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher dissolved the power of trade unions in the United Kingdom. Campbell, who grew up in northwest England and is now a resident of Lower Makefield, said his grandfather was making a public statement against strikes. “He wanted to go to work and provide for his family. When the strike happened, he was one of the few to cross the picket line,’’ Campbell said. Now Campbell, 40, is taking a page from his grandfather’s book and going one step further: Over the past three years, he’s raised a grassroots movement to pass legislation making teacher strikes illegal in Pennsylvania. As a father of three elementary school children in Pennsbury, he said he was appalled by the 21-day teacher strike in 2005 and blamed “the power of the union” for disrupting the school year.
Three years after Campbell started protesting union rules and teacher strikes in Pennsbury, he has become a controversial figure in the local community.
In early April, Campbell linked to a list of teacher salaries on StopTeacherStrikes.org, the volunteer organization he started after the 2005 strike. Pennsbury teachers union leaders downplayed the publicity he generated, saying that the information already was publicly available.
Campbell is guardedly optimistic about Senate interest in the future, and as for interest from Gov. Ed Rendell, Campbell thinks it could go either way.
“You never know with Rendell. He’s made some noises on the issue. Of course he’s taken a truckload of money from teachers unions. But you never know.”
While Campbell was not the first to make salaries public or claim that teachers are paid too much, he did stir up the issue.
“We are doing this to galvanize the public,” he said.
He hopes the public will eventually pressure the state Legislature into passing the Strike-Free Education Act, House Bill 1369. It would make Pennsylvania the 38th state to make teacher strikes illegal. Campbell contributed ideas for the bill, which chief sponsor and author state Rep. Todd Rock, R-Franklin, unveiled in early June 2007.
Rep. Dave Steil, R-31, who supports the bill, said Campbell is the only one “on the forefront” of the push for anti-strike legislation.
“He’s had the temerity to follow through. It’s a real uphill battle in this state,” said Steil. “Ultimately legislation passes when there is a massive groundswell of public support.”
In February, Tim Allwein, assistant executive director of the state school boards association, said he thought it would take at least five more years for public pressure to mount high enough to change state law.
The bill is under consideration in the House labor relations committee and has 28 co-sponsors. Still, Campbell doesn’t anticipate a vote anytime soon — he believes that Robert Belfanti, the committee chairman, would be antagonistic to the bill because his campaigns have been funded in part by union money.
CARRYING THE MESSAGE
Campbell travels two to three times a month to connect with others about StopTeacherStrikes.
“I get invited to speak to other groups, and I network with other taxpayer groups. Activity happens through networking and talking to others,” he said.
Juggling his work, his volunteer activities with StopTeacherStrikes.com and being a parent of three young children, doesn’t leave him much time for hobbies, said Campbell.
“Mostly when I get down time, I like to read, travel and spend time with family and friends. I used to play a lot of squash but hurt my back so I can’t anymore.”
In the mornings, he’s an independent futures trader who works out of his simply appointed home office, with its sunny yellow walls, beige curtains and cream and wood furniture. The rest of the day he usually devotes to his cause and taking care of his three daughters, who attend Quarry Hill Elementary. He met his American wife at the University of Hull when she attended a year of college in England. She is an executive search consultant.
When the strike happened, Campbell said his family was “horrified.” Prior to settling in the U.S., the family had lived in Switzerland, where his eldest had attended two years of public school in a system that didn’t allow teachers to strike.
“The contrast was quite stark,” he said. “It is unconscionable and immoral to me that innocent children can be pushed out of school.”
But what pressed Campbell to action was what happened on the final day of the strike.
“As sure as I stand here, the war is not over, but the battle is done,” Nyla Houser, then union president, told about 600 striking teachers that day. At the time, some teachers believed that she was trying to keep up their spirits and stand in solidarity with them.
For Campbell, her words comparing the situation to a “battle” incensed him and were the trigger for rousing public opposition to teacher strikes and union rules, he said. It pushed him over the line from angry parent to activist.
“Had she not said those words, I might not have been inspired to StopTeacherStrikes,” said Campbell.
Whenever Campbell talks about his mission, his speech gets more heightened as he gets wound up. The volume increases, the eyes frown and the nostrils flare in a tidal wave of fervor for his cause. If there is one thing Simon Campbell is not, it is hesitant. And he’s not afraid to voice his opinions, even if it means being politically incorrect.
As an invited speaker at the Pennsylvania Leadership Conference in April, Campbell described unions as “Teletubbies” and the Pennsylvania School Boards Association as “Pretty Silly Blindingly Awful.” Later, Campbell explained the analogy.
“Teletubbies are kids’ characters, strange creatures that jump up and down making incoherent noises. But I’m being flippant. My sense of humor is an acquired taste.”
He went on to say at StopTeacherStrikes, “we don’t care about political correctness; we just cause a lot of trouble for the teachers union.”
Campbell tends to stir up emotions among those who agree and disagree with him. Many community members say they enjoy what he stands for but privately dislike his aggressive style.
House Bill 1369 co-sponsor Steil can appreciate Campbell’s confrontational methods.
“He once said to me confrontation works. We disagreed somewhat and we probably still do,” said Steil. But he added that Campbell’s brand of strong action keeps public attention focused on the issues.
In his children’s own school district, Campbell’s work to keep the public’s attention includes speaking up during the public comment portion of Pennsbury school board meetings.
School board President Gregory Lucidi said that Campbell’s approach can be forceful, but effective.
“He is doing a good job raising public awareness about teacher strikes and is getting a very positive response from members of the public. He has a very aggressive style, maybe too aggressive for some people’s taste, but he is effective,” said Lucidi, who has worked with Campbell to promote House Bill 1369. He believes Campbell’s input on the bill has garnered statewide attention.
‘I’LL DESTROY YOU’
Some local critics say that Campbell goes beyond strongly preaching his views.
Ronald Smith, a Lower Makefield supervisor and criminal defense lawyer, said he dislikes his behavior.
“I’m of the opinion that he’s nothing but a cancer. Although some of his positions may be laudable, he attempts to present his position by confrontation, intimidation and disparaging remarks to all those who may disagree with him,” Smith said. “They’re afraid to say this but I’m not afraid. If you don’t agree with Campbell, you are his archenemy. His position is — if you don’t agree with me, I’ll destroy you.”
Smith has accused Campbell of creating a rift between teachers and the school board. As a result, Smith says he’s worried that Pennsbury teacher contract renegotiations next year will be more difficult.
Campbell is quick to point out that he’s not against teachers.
“We’re anti-strike, not antiteacher. All my kids’ teachers are great.” He blames the unions for a number of ills in the district and state.
What vexes Campbell about unions, he said, is that non-union members have to pay a union fee in Pennsbury.
“There’s a difference between what a union member pays and what a non-union member pays, but why should they be forced to pay anything? It’s coercion. They’re like captive passengers.”
George Miller, president of Pennsbury’s teachers union, countered that the fees contribute to the cost of collective bargaining and contract management.
“No one is forced to join the union under any circumstances,” he said. However, he did not return phone calls and e-mails asking for further explanation.
Campbell also blames unions for contributing dues money toward political action.
“They shouldn’t be collecting money for private organizations to give for political actions. This money can pay for lobbying, political action committees, and be used to directly influence elections.”
Union leaders said that the money is used for more innocuous reasons. It goes toward petitioning for political actions that would benefit students, like paying representatives to petition for reforms on its behalf. Because teachers can’t go to Harrisburg and Washington, D.C., said a union leader, political leaders have to take action for them on concerns like No Child Left Behind.
As far as strikes go, Wythe Keever, spokesman for the state education association, said they evolved out of a feeling of helplessness in the late ’60s. At that time, Keever said, teacher salaries were low and public employees didn’t have collective bargaining rights.
He said growing advocacy at the state level led to the use of strikes as a bargaining chip.
“Striking is the only leverage that teachers have when bargaining fails to produce what they consider to be fair settlement. The general feeling is that strikes should be a last resort, but a legal last resort.”
WHERE DO LEGISLATORS STAND?
Campbell recently put a survey for state representatives on his StopTeacherStrikes Web site.
It asks whether they support strike-free legislation and union practices like taking a fee from all teachers, whether they are part of the union or not.
Campbell said he wants the public to know where legislators stand. He said StopTeacherStrikes is “all about educating the public, trying to get people to look at the big picture.”
He looks to his grandfather’s example when confronted with opposition.
“It wasn’t that he was teaching me to be anti-union but that I should stand up for what I believe in.”
Campbell said his role model is the former prime minister of the United Kingdom,
“In the 1980s, Margaret Thatcher liberated the UK from the stranglehold of corrupting union power and socialism. She was a conviction politician. People either loved her or they hated her. I loved her.”
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Tech School Budget Passes and Morrisville is Irrelevant
Chalk up another one for the Emperor. For all his public posturing and eyebrow wiggling about the tech school budget, instead of doing the hard work of talking to the other districts and working collaboratively toward a common goal, the Bensalem school board approved the budget, making Bristol's unanimous veto and Morrisville's delay actions irrelevant. The budget is now law.
BUCKS COUNTY TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL
Tech school budget approved
Expenditures for 2008-09 are up 4.4 percent over this year’s expenses.
By JOAN HELLYER
STAFF WRITER
Bucks County Technical High School will be able to implement its estimated $21.7 million budget for 2008-09, now that enough sending districts have approved the financial plan, the school’s administrative director said.
The budget had been in limbo for about a month by a perceived lack of movement in efforts to revise the school’s funding formula for future budgets, officials said.
It left the comprehensive high school that serves the Bensalem, Bristol, Bristol Township, Morrisville, Neshaminy and Pennsbury school districts just short of the approvals needed to enact the budget. The tech school bylaws require at least four of the six sending districts and at least 28 board members from the districts served by the school, which is in Bristol Township, to approve the budget.
The Bristol, Neshaminy and Pennsbury school boards approved the proposed budget in April, with 26 board members from those districts voting in favor of it.
However, the Bristol Township board unanimously rejected the budget to protest inaction on proposed changes to the funding formula involving special education students. In addition, the Bensalem and Morrisville school boards delayed votes on it.
The logjam ended Wednesday night when the Bensalem board voted unanimously to approve the budget after the tech school’s joint board committee agreed to tackle the funding formula issue this summer.
Morrisville’s board again postponed its vote on the tech budget last week, but that will have no impact now because enough sending districts and board members have already approved it, officials said.
The 2008-09 budget is almost $1 million greater than this year’s budget, administrators said. Each district’s cost share will increase 4.4 percent, they added.
About 1,500 students in ninth through 12th grade attend the school, which offers studies in approximately three dozen trades.
BUCKS COUNTY TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL
Tech school budget approved
Expenditures for 2008-09 are up 4.4 percent over this year’s expenses.
By JOAN HELLYER
STAFF WRITER
Bucks County Technical High School will be able to implement its estimated $21.7 million budget for 2008-09, now that enough sending districts have approved the financial plan, the school’s administrative director said.
The budget had been in limbo for about a month by a perceived lack of movement in efforts to revise the school’s funding formula for future budgets, officials said.
It left the comprehensive high school that serves the Bensalem, Bristol, Bristol Township, Morrisville, Neshaminy and Pennsbury school districts just short of the approvals needed to enact the budget. The tech school bylaws require at least four of the six sending districts and at least 28 board members from the districts served by the school, which is in Bristol Township, to approve the budget.
The Bristol, Neshaminy and Pennsbury school boards approved the proposed budget in April, with 26 board members from those districts voting in favor of it.
However, the Bristol Township board unanimously rejected the budget to protest inaction on proposed changes to the funding formula involving special education students. In addition, the Bensalem and Morrisville school boards delayed votes on it.
The logjam ended Wednesday night when the Bensalem board voted unanimously to approve the budget after the tech school’s joint board committee agreed to tackle the funding formula issue this summer.
Morrisville’s board again postponed its vote on the tech budget last week, but that will have no impact now because enough sending districts and board members have already approved it, officials said.
The 2008-09 budget is almost $1 million greater than this year’s budget, administrators said. Each district’s cost share will increase 4.4 percent, they added.
About 1,500 students in ninth through 12th grade attend the school, which offers studies in approximately three dozen trades.
Schools News Around the Blogosphere
The big "unfunded mandate" is the one the unions demand
Keep the promise to the children - educate them
Providence Journal
Julia Steiny
The big “unfunded mandate” is the one the unions demand, asking to be constantly paid more and more, for the status quo as well as the “extras,” no matter what the academic outcome for the kids.
Fewer Kindergarteners Will Take a Screening Test
Rollback Set in Schooling of the Gifted
New York Sun
Chancellor Joel Klein last year said he wanted to expand screening so that programs often dominated by well-connected and affluent white parents could include a more diverse group of students.
Parents question proposed changes to Pennsylvania's gifted-student regulations
Pennsylvania is taking steps to make gifted education available to more students, but that has done little to quell long-standing tension between parents and school districts over how the state's brightest are educated.
Schools CEO to earn up to $500,000 a year
By Kristen A. Graham
Inquirer Staff Writer
The ink is dry and the details finalized - incoming Philadelphia schools chief Arlene Ackerman will earn a package worth up to $500,000 annually in salary and perks, a review of her contract shows.
Long school holidays 'should end'
British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) (UK)
Long school holidays should be abolished to prevent children falling behind in class, a think-tank says. The Institute for Public Policy Research said studies suggested pupils' reading and maths abilities regressed because the summer break was too long.
Ohio teacher training: What does it take to make the grade?
Cleveland Plain Dealer
Why teacher training matters: A growing body of research argues that education schools - despite some exemplary exceptions - produce inadequately prepared teachers. Students who have three ineffective teachers in a row will score as much as 50 percentage points lower on standardized tests than those who have three effective teachers in a row.
Educations "Wag the Dog": Geniuses Lost
By Dick Kantenberger
It is like someone shouted "FIRE" in a theater, but nobody moved. Is the theater empty? No, it's full of people, but still nobody moved or even cared. We are losing hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of potential geniuses every year in the United States because we are just not finding them before it's too late, which in most cases is about the time they are suppose to start 9th grade.
Algebra I stumping high school freshmen
Detroit Free Press
Thousands of high school freshmen across Michigan are failing Algebra I, the first of four math courses this class of students must take and pass to fulfill what are among the toughest graduation requirements in the nation.
U.S. Experts Bemoan Nation's Loss of Stature in the World of Science
Washington Post
Some of the nation's leading scientists, including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's top science adviser, today sharply criticized the diminished role of science in the United States and the shortage of federal funding for research, even as science becomes increasingly important to combating problems such as climate change and the global food shortage.
Idaho asks the feds for a fresh start on No Child Left Behind
Idaho Statesman
Idaho's State Board of Education wants a fresh start for hundreds of public schools facing sanctions under a tough federal education accountability mandate.
Keep the promise to the children - educate them
Providence Journal
Julia Steiny
The big “unfunded mandate” is the one the unions demand, asking to be constantly paid more and more, for the status quo as well as the “extras,” no matter what the academic outcome for the kids.
Fewer Kindergarteners Will Take a Screening Test
Rollback Set in Schooling of the Gifted
New York Sun
Chancellor Joel Klein last year said he wanted to expand screening so that programs often dominated by well-connected and affluent white parents could include a more diverse group of students.
Parents question proposed changes to Pennsylvania's gifted-student regulations
Pennsylvania is taking steps to make gifted education available to more students, but that has done little to quell long-standing tension between parents and school districts over how the state's brightest are educated.
Schools CEO to earn up to $500,000 a year
By Kristen A. Graham
Inquirer Staff Writer
The ink is dry and the details finalized - incoming Philadelphia schools chief Arlene Ackerman will earn a package worth up to $500,000 annually in salary and perks, a review of her contract shows.
Long school holidays 'should end'
British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) (UK)
Long school holidays should be abolished to prevent children falling behind in class, a think-tank says. The Institute for Public Policy Research said studies suggested pupils' reading and maths abilities regressed because the summer break was too long.
Ohio teacher training: What does it take to make the grade?
Cleveland Plain Dealer
Why teacher training matters: A growing body of research argues that education schools - despite some exemplary exceptions - produce inadequately prepared teachers. Students who have three ineffective teachers in a row will score as much as 50 percentage points lower on standardized tests than those who have three effective teachers in a row.
Educations "Wag the Dog": Geniuses Lost
By Dick Kantenberger
It is like someone shouted "FIRE" in a theater, but nobody moved. Is the theater empty? No, it's full of people, but still nobody moved or even cared. We are losing hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of potential geniuses every year in the United States because we are just not finding them before it's too late, which in most cases is about the time they are suppose to start 9th grade.
Algebra I stumping high school freshmen
Detroit Free Press
Thousands of high school freshmen across Michigan are failing Algebra I, the first of four math courses this class of students must take and pass to fulfill what are among the toughest graduation requirements in the nation.
U.S. Experts Bemoan Nation's Loss of Stature in the World of Science
Washington Post
Some of the nation's leading scientists, including Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's top science adviser, today sharply criticized the diminished role of science in the United States and the shortage of federal funding for research, even as science becomes increasingly important to combating problems such as climate change and the global food shortage.
Idaho asks the feds for a fresh start on No Child Left Behind
Idaho Statesman
Idaho's State Board of Education wants a fresh start for hundreds of public schools facing sanctions under a tough federal education accountability mandate.
Friday, May 30, 2008
More small district woes
School taxes could jump 14 percent
By CHRISTOPHER RUVO
The Intelligencer
Riegelsville taxpayers would pay 14.3 percent more in school property taxes under next year's proposed budget from the Easton Area School District.
The borough at the northeastern tip of Bucks County sends students across the county line to the school district in Northampton County, a situation some in the riverside enclave would like to change because of what they feel are high school taxes.
Under Easton's proposed $121.8 million 2008-09 budget, property owners in Riegelsville, which has 68 students in Easton schools, would pay a millage rate of 159.46 — a nearly 20 mill increase. That would result in a property tax bill of $3,827 for a home assessed at $24,000, up $479.
Homeowners approved to receive a property tax rebate through the state's gambling revenues would have $233 knocked off the 2008-09 bill, bringing the average bill down to $3,594.
A mill is a tax of $1 on every $1,000 of a property's assessed value.
If the same $24,000 Riegelsville home were in Palisades, the Upper Bucks school district that abuts Riegelsville, the owner would pay $2,400 under a proposed 2008-09 budget.
Qualified homeowners here would receive a rebate of $233 thanks to casino monies, knocking down the average bill to $2,167.
That's a big reason why the Riegelsville Tax and Education Coalition is pursuing transferring the borough's students to Palisades, despite two rulings that denied the move and opposition from some borough residents who wish to remain in Easton.
“The tax inequity issue is very critical,” said William Casey, a Doylestown lawyer representing the coalition as it pursues its case for secession from Easton before the Commonwealth Court.
Although a state school spending law, Act 1, caps Easton's allowed tax increase at 5.6 percent, the district has qualified for exceptions that allow the rate to jump well beyond that, said Jeffrey Bader, Easton's business manager.
Bader cautioned that the budget is preliminary and could be whittled down.
“We're always looking at getting down costs,” said Bader, who noted that everything from fixed expenses like salaries and fuel to rising special education costs is driving up spending.
Still, the Riegelsville coalition wants to become Palisades Pirates.
The group has argued that Riegelsville, which is surrounded by country townships, fits in better in the rural 2,100-student Palisades school district than the 9,000-student, urbanized Easton.
The town is contiguous with Palisades, but not with Easton, and has ties to the Upper Bucks communities that make up Palisades through the library, local sports leagues and emergency services.
Easton's final budget will have to be approved before June 30. It could be voted on at a special meeting scheduled for May 29.
High school students from Riegelsville have been attending Easton since 1932, when a school building in Durham became overcrowded. By 1965, the state consolidated school districts and all Riegelsville residents were attending Easton schools.
“It was a good thing for a long time. But now that Palisades is really going, it's time for the kids to go there,” said Casey.
By CHRISTOPHER RUVO
The Intelligencer
Riegelsville taxpayers would pay 14.3 percent more in school property taxes under next year's proposed budget from the Easton Area School District.
The borough at the northeastern tip of Bucks County sends students across the county line to the school district in Northampton County, a situation some in the riverside enclave would like to change because of what they feel are high school taxes.
Under Easton's proposed $121.8 million 2008-09 budget, property owners in Riegelsville, which has 68 students in Easton schools, would pay a millage rate of 159.46 — a nearly 20 mill increase. That would result in a property tax bill of $3,827 for a home assessed at $24,000, up $479.
Homeowners approved to receive a property tax rebate through the state's gambling revenues would have $233 knocked off the 2008-09 bill, bringing the average bill down to $3,594.
A mill is a tax of $1 on every $1,000 of a property's assessed value.
If the same $24,000 Riegelsville home were in Palisades, the Upper Bucks school district that abuts Riegelsville, the owner would pay $2,400 under a proposed 2008-09 budget.
Qualified homeowners here would receive a rebate of $233 thanks to casino monies, knocking down the average bill to $2,167.
That's a big reason why the Riegelsville Tax and Education Coalition is pursuing transferring the borough's students to Palisades, despite two rulings that denied the move and opposition from some borough residents who wish to remain in Easton.
“The tax inequity issue is very critical,” said William Casey, a Doylestown lawyer representing the coalition as it pursues its case for secession from Easton before the Commonwealth Court.
Although a state school spending law, Act 1, caps Easton's allowed tax increase at 5.6 percent, the district has qualified for exceptions that allow the rate to jump well beyond that, said Jeffrey Bader, Easton's business manager.
Bader cautioned that the budget is preliminary and could be whittled down.
“We're always looking at getting down costs,” said Bader, who noted that everything from fixed expenses like salaries and fuel to rising special education costs is driving up spending.
Still, the Riegelsville coalition wants to become Palisades Pirates.
The group has argued that Riegelsville, which is surrounded by country townships, fits in better in the rural 2,100-student Palisades school district than the 9,000-student, urbanized Easton.
The town is contiguous with Palisades, but not with Easton, and has ties to the Upper Bucks communities that make up Palisades through the library, local sports leagues and emergency services.
Easton's final budget will have to be approved before June 30. It could be voted on at a special meeting scheduled for May 29.
High school students from Riegelsville have been attending Easton since 1932, when a school building in Durham became overcrowded. By 1965, the state consolidated school districts and all Riegelsville residents were attending Easton schools.
“It was a good thing for a long time. But now that Palisades is really going, it's time for the kids to go there,” said Casey.
Hellmann Schools Death Plan
Here's the BCCT article on the Hellmann death plan for the schools.
For all of his deficiencies as a human being in general (supreme arrogance being the most glaring) the Emperor is not stupid. He can do this. Yes, I take back what I said yesterday after having some time to think about it. He has three solid puppet accomplices who would vote for anything as long as Hellmann wished it: Al Radosti, Marlys Mihok, and Brenda Worob. (Did you notice that is now the "leadership" on the board?) That's a 4-4 tie vote at best. The the fifth vote comes over the dead body of committed schools champion Ed Frankenfield. A reliable new toady will be appointed and the fait is truly accompli. Forget about (no direct disrespect to any of these four people, but it's the truth) the unsteady waffling of Bill Farrell and Gloria Heater. They are as irrelevant as Joe Kemp and Robin Reithmeyer, and if they happen to support the plan, that's just another vote in favor.
The teachers union negotiations will ultimately result in concessions of one sort or another that will begin to pave the road. Financing will appear. So will the buses to Pennsbury, Bristol, Council Rock, or even DVHS at the deep, deep discount Joe Kemp mentioned earlier.
It's only money. That's the only thing driving this latter day Scrooge-like board. There's no happy ending for Tiny Tim here. His special ed is being cut too. Paging the three ghosts of Christmases past, present, and future: Your table is ready. The Emperor is already seated.
The Emperor's vision for Morrisville was conceived during his long, long period of isolation as a rusting Tin Man longing for a heart. The difference here is that instead of journeying to see the Wizard and obtaining that heart, (or remixing my metaphors, being visited by the ghosts), he realized that rusting away in the field was his highest ambition, and he wants Oz-like Morrisville to rust right alongside him.
Give the Emperor his kudos. He's played his hand well and the public has played their role to perfection: They stayed home and did nothing. It's just about too late and we're watching the end of MHS. We're gathered at the bedside of the dying patient and we're waiting for five votes to pull the plug.
Beep....beep......beep..........beep.........................beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
MORRISVILLE SCHOOLS
Board president presents school consolidation plan
By MANASEE WAGH
The three public schools in the Morrisville School District could shrink to just one in the future.
School board President William Hellmann announced a three-pronged plan of how he would do that at Wednesday’s board meeting:
Grades nine through 12 would be absorbed by other districts
Renovate the existing high school
Transfer remaining grades — kindergarten through eighth now at two elementary schools — to the high school building.
“My overall theme is consolidation,” he said Thursday. “Instead of keeping three buildings, we consolidate into one.”
Hellmann unveiled his plan to much outcry from diehard community members who remained planted in their chairs past midnight.
Hellmann stressed that the idea was just a plan, and that it was up to the entire board to make a decision.
“I know some people don’t like the idea but tough choices have to be made,” he said Thursday. “These are my thoughts. I’m not telling everyone what to do. These are my recommendations.”
The former school board wanted to create a new $30 million consolidated school for the district’s approximately 1,000 students, a plan that would have raised taxes for several years. However, the current board nixed the idea on the promise to keep taxes low. It elected to return most of the remaining bond money the previous board had obtained for its merged schools plan.
Hellmann said his plan would use $7 million from capital reserve funds to renovate the high school.
“I want to center renovations on the high school. But it’s a very solid building. That building will be there after I’m gone. I cannot see knocking that down,” he said.
The new school board has been trying to figure out how to accomplish school renovations since the beginning of the year. There is no fixed plan in place, but the board accepted an engineering firm’s proposal Wednesday to provide bid specifications for electrical safety issues at the high school.
There are 273 students who attend ninth through 12th grade in the high school building this year. That’s not counting those who attend services outside the high school building.
Hellmann did not explain how sending students to other districts would work, adding he’s not sure how to implement all parts of his plan at the moment.
“Our No. 1 problem is teacher contracts. No. 2 is special education costs,” he said.
Teacher contracts are binding and can’t be altered without union approval.
“The only way is to bargain with them, but we’re not at that point yet. The problem is, the prior board approved contracts in February 2007. It was a very expensive contract. Prior board members didn’t anticipate the cost over the next several years. That’s the biggest problem,” Hellmann said.
An average teacher salary in Morrisville is about $70,000, according to the state Department of Education.
Next year’s budget calls for about $10 million in employee salaries and benefits.
Hellmann said rising special education costs are a problem, too, but the state mandates that districts pay for any necessary services. Hellmann didn’t describe his plan to reduce next year’s cost increase by about 30 percent. He said the board would stay within legal territory.
“This board is not going to do anything illegally. That’s guaranteed. That’s why we have a solicitor.”
The department of education said it would not comment on any district’s situation unless the board approves such changes.
On May 21, the board voted to consider a $19.7 million budget that’s about $250,000 short of the budget the administration recommended.
The lower budget would reduce necessary funds for incoming special education students, as well as money for students expected to attend charter and alternative schools.
Based on the number of students anticipated and their educational needs, the district is looking at a $2.1 million bill for special education services next year. The administration doesn’t have a choice in how much to pay for special education, said Superintendent Elizabeth Yonson at Wednesday’s meeting.
“Since December we’ve been looking at ways to cut costs without infringing on the needs of our children,” Yonson said Thursday.
Hellmann’s proposed cuts to the increase in special education expenses are about 30 percent. It would have been 40 percent, but the price for administrative services is lower than earlier thought, Yonson said.
Still, Kimberly Myers, supervisor of pupil personnel services, said she doesn’t see how the reduced budget could cover projected needs for special education requirements.
Hellmann thinks there’s a way to do it.
“My goal from the beginning was to provide an education for children that the town can afford. I’m trying to be reasonable. That’s it,” he said.
According to Yonson and Myers, the only way might be to reduce other expenditures.
“At this point, we’re hoping to convince the board not to do this. We are giving them a barebones budget,” Yonson said.
For all of his deficiencies as a human being in general (supreme arrogance being the most glaring) the Emperor is not stupid. He can do this. Yes, I take back what I said yesterday after having some time to think about it. He has three solid puppet accomplices who would vote for anything as long as Hellmann wished it: Al Radosti, Marlys Mihok, and Brenda Worob. (Did you notice that is now the "leadership" on the board?) That's a 4-4 tie vote at best. The the fifth vote comes over the dead body of committed schools champion Ed Frankenfield. A reliable new toady will be appointed and the fait is truly accompli. Forget about (no direct disrespect to any of these four people, but it's the truth) the unsteady waffling of Bill Farrell and Gloria Heater. They are as irrelevant as Joe Kemp and Robin Reithmeyer, and if they happen to support the plan, that's just another vote in favor.
The teachers union negotiations will ultimately result in concessions of one sort or another that will begin to pave the road. Financing will appear. So will the buses to Pennsbury, Bristol, Council Rock, or even DVHS at the deep, deep discount Joe Kemp mentioned earlier.
It's only money. That's the only thing driving this latter day Scrooge-like board. There's no happy ending for Tiny Tim here. His special ed is being cut too. Paging the three ghosts of Christmases past, present, and future: Your table is ready. The Emperor is already seated.
The Emperor's vision for Morrisville was conceived during his long, long period of isolation as a rusting Tin Man longing for a heart. The difference here is that instead of journeying to see the Wizard and obtaining that heart, (or remixing my metaphors, being visited by the ghosts), he realized that rusting away in the field was his highest ambition, and he wants Oz-like Morrisville to rust right alongside him.
Give the Emperor his kudos. He's played his hand well and the public has played their role to perfection: They stayed home and did nothing. It's just about too late and we're watching the end of MHS. We're gathered at the bedside of the dying patient and we're waiting for five votes to pull the plug.
Beep....beep......beep..........beep.........................beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
MORRISVILLE SCHOOLS
Board president presents school consolidation plan
By MANASEE WAGH
The three public schools in the Morrisville School District could shrink to just one in the future.
School board President William Hellmann announced a three-pronged plan of how he would do that at Wednesday’s board meeting:
Grades nine through 12 would be absorbed by other districts
Renovate the existing high school
Transfer remaining grades — kindergarten through eighth now at two elementary schools — to the high school building.
“My overall theme is consolidation,” he said Thursday. “Instead of keeping three buildings, we consolidate into one.”
Hellmann unveiled his plan to much outcry from diehard community members who remained planted in their chairs past midnight.
Hellmann stressed that the idea was just a plan, and that it was up to the entire board to make a decision.
“I know some people don’t like the idea but tough choices have to be made,” he said Thursday. “These are my thoughts. I’m not telling everyone what to do. These are my recommendations.”
The former school board wanted to create a new $30 million consolidated school for the district’s approximately 1,000 students, a plan that would have raised taxes for several years. However, the current board nixed the idea on the promise to keep taxes low. It elected to return most of the remaining bond money the previous board had obtained for its merged schools plan.
Hellmann said his plan would use $7 million from capital reserve funds to renovate the high school.
“I want to center renovations on the high school. But it’s a very solid building. That building will be there after I’m gone. I cannot see knocking that down,” he said.
The new school board has been trying to figure out how to accomplish school renovations since the beginning of the year. There is no fixed plan in place, but the board accepted an engineering firm’s proposal Wednesday to provide bid specifications for electrical safety issues at the high school.
There are 273 students who attend ninth through 12th grade in the high school building this year. That’s not counting those who attend services outside the high school building.
Hellmann did not explain how sending students to other districts would work, adding he’s not sure how to implement all parts of his plan at the moment.
“Our No. 1 problem is teacher contracts. No. 2 is special education costs,” he said.
Teacher contracts are binding and can’t be altered without union approval.
“The only way is to bargain with them, but we’re not at that point yet. The problem is, the prior board approved contracts in February 2007. It was a very expensive contract. Prior board members didn’t anticipate the cost over the next several years. That’s the biggest problem,” Hellmann said.
An average teacher salary in Morrisville is about $70,000, according to the state Department of Education.
Next year’s budget calls for about $10 million in employee salaries and benefits.
Hellmann said rising special education costs are a problem, too, but the state mandates that districts pay for any necessary services. Hellmann didn’t describe his plan to reduce next year’s cost increase by about 30 percent. He said the board would stay within legal territory.
“This board is not going to do anything illegally. That’s guaranteed. That’s why we have a solicitor.”
The department of education said it would not comment on any district’s situation unless the board approves such changes.
On May 21, the board voted to consider a $19.7 million budget that’s about $250,000 short of the budget the administration recommended.
The lower budget would reduce necessary funds for incoming special education students, as well as money for students expected to attend charter and alternative schools.
Based on the number of students anticipated and their educational needs, the district is looking at a $2.1 million bill for special education services next year. The administration doesn’t have a choice in how much to pay for special education, said Superintendent Elizabeth Yonson at Wednesday’s meeting.
“Since December we’ve been looking at ways to cut costs without infringing on the needs of our children,” Yonson said Thursday.
Hellmann’s proposed cuts to the increase in special education expenses are about 30 percent. It would have been 40 percent, but the price for administrative services is lower than earlier thought, Yonson said.
Still, Kimberly Myers, supervisor of pupil personnel services, said she doesn’t see how the reduced budget could cover projected needs for special education requirements.
Hellmann thinks there’s a way to do it.
“My goal from the beginning was to provide an education for children that the town can afford. I’m trying to be reasonable. That’s it,” he said.
According to Yonson and Myers, the only way might be to reduce other expenditures.
“At this point, we’re hoping to convince the board not to do this. We are giving them a barebones budget,” Yonson said.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
School Funding Battle
The irony here is that the Emperor and his accomplices could follow through on his school death plan only to find out that action on the school funding formulas could have saved the district from the anguish of being used as a biology classrooom dissection frog.
Here's the email I was sent. Please visit the website and register. There is no cost involved and a copy of your email is sent to:
Governor Edward G. Rendell (D-PA)
Senator Chuck McIlhinney (R-PA 10th)
Representative John T. Galloway (D-PA 140th)
I have become increasingly concerned about how unfair Pennsylvania's
system of school finance is and how many children are not able to get a
quality education as a result. The wealthiest districts in the state
spend two and a half times as much per student as the poorest, and their
tax rates are actually much lower because they have much healthier tax
bases. As a result, many children in many communities simply don't
have access to the best teachers, modern books and materials, and
up-to-date programs. We really should do better by all of our children, and
I'm sure you agree with me about that. Nothing else the state does is
more important than guaranteeing that our children and grandchildren, no
matter where they live, have access to the best education possible.
Why am I writing to you now about this? I recently heard about and
became a supporter of the Pennsylvania School Funding Campaign, and I would
like you to join me by clicking the link at the bottom of this e-ma
il. It will just take a minute. It will cost you nothing. Your
e-mail address will not be passed on to others. You will receive one
e-mail a week to keep you posted on the Campaign's progress. The children
of Pennsylvania need our help - and it is so easy to give that help.
Thanks.
Click on this URL to take action now
http://capwiz.com/paschoolfunding/utr/2/?a=11216011&i=87477843&c=&u=capwiz.com%2Fpaschoolfunding%2Fmlm%2Fsignup%2F
If your email program does not recognize the URL as a link,
copy the entire URL and paste it into your Web browser.
Here's the email I was sent. Please visit the website and register. There is no cost involved and a copy of your email is sent to:
Governor Edward G. Rendell (D-PA)
Senator Chuck McIlhinney (R-PA 10th)
Representative John T. Galloway (D-PA 140th)
I have become increasingly concerned about how unfair Pennsylvania's
system of school finance is and how many children are not able to get a
quality education as a result. The wealthiest districts in the state
spend two and a half times as much per student as the poorest, and their
tax rates are actually much lower because they have much healthier tax
bases. As a result, many children in many communities simply don't
have access to the best teachers, modern books and materials, and
up-to-date programs. We really should do better by all of our children, and
I'm sure you agree with me about that. Nothing else the state does is
more important than guaranteeing that our children and grandchildren, no
matter where they live, have access to the best education possible.
Why am I writing to you now about this? I recently heard about and
became a supporter of the Pennsylvania School Funding Campaign, and I would
like you to join me by clicking the link at the bottom of this e-ma
il. It will just take a minute. It will cost you nothing. Your
e-mail address will not be passed on to others. You will receive one
e-mail a week to keep you posted on the Campaign's progress. The children
of Pennsylvania need our help - and it is so easy to give that help.
Thanks.
Click on this URL to take action now
http://capwiz.com/paschoolfunding/utr/2/?a=11216011&i=87477843&c=&u=capwiz.com%2Fpaschoolfunding%2Fmlm%2Fsignup%2F
If your email program does not recognize the URL as a link,
copy the entire URL and paste it into your Web browser.
Behaving Badly in Special Education
New this fall: Reality TV meets Special Education
Mom Considers Suit After Class Voted to Expel Her Autistic Son
Posted May 27, 2008, 01:01 pm CDT
By Debra Cassens Weiss
Updated: A Florida woman is considering a lawsuit after a teacher allowed students to take a vote on whether her misbehaving autistic son should remain in class.
Melissa Barton said the teacher made her 5-year-old son, Alex, stand in the front of her classroom after he returned from the principal’s office, the Sun-Sentinel reports. Each classmate was allowed to say what they disliked about Alex and then the class was told to vote on whether he should remain. The school is in Port St. Lucie.
Alex lost the vote 14 to 2. He is in the process of being diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome, a type of high-functioning autism.
Alex has not been back to school since the incident, and he starts screaming when his mother takes him with her to drop off his siblings at school. The other night, Barton said, he kept repeating "I'm not special" over and over.
A police spokesman said no criminal charges will be filed in the matter.
Since initial reports of the incident, the school district has reassigned the teacher and Barton has received hundreds of supportive e-mails, ABAJournal.com notes in an update on the story. She also received a call from Dr. Phil, who asked her to appear on his show, and from the Florida Attorney General’s Office of Civil Rights, reports TCPalm.
Alex brightened when he received a call from a classmate Tuesday evening who discussed SpongeBob SquarePants and squirrels with him. They are planning a play date this summer.
Barton says she has heard from many parents of special needs kids who have had problems in school for behavior that isn't their fault. “It’s not something you can correct with some sort of demented behavior modification program,” she said.
Barton and her son gave an interview to CBS News, and she is considering the Dr. Phil invitation.
Updated at noon on 5/29/2008 to add information about the aftermath of initial reports of the incident.
Mom Considers Suit After Class Voted to Expel Her Autistic Son
Posted May 27, 2008, 01:01 pm CDT
By Debra Cassens Weiss
Updated: A Florida woman is considering a lawsuit after a teacher allowed students to take a vote on whether her misbehaving autistic son should remain in class.
Melissa Barton said the teacher made her 5-year-old son, Alex, stand in the front of her classroom after he returned from the principal’s office, the Sun-Sentinel reports. Each classmate was allowed to say what they disliked about Alex and then the class was told to vote on whether he should remain. The school is in Port St. Lucie.
Alex lost the vote 14 to 2. He is in the process of being diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome, a type of high-functioning autism.
Alex has not been back to school since the incident, and he starts screaming when his mother takes him with her to drop off his siblings at school. The other night, Barton said, he kept repeating "I'm not special" over and over.
A police spokesman said no criminal charges will be filed in the matter.
Since initial reports of the incident, the school district has reassigned the teacher and Barton has received hundreds of supportive e-mails, ABAJournal.com notes in an update on the story. She also received a call from Dr. Phil, who asked her to appear on his show, and from the Florida Attorney General’s Office of Civil Rights, reports TCPalm.
Alex brightened when he received a call from a classmate Tuesday evening who discussed SpongeBob SquarePants and squirrels with him. They are planning a play date this summer.
Barton says she has heard from many parents of special needs kids who have had problems in school for behavior that isn't their fault. “It’s not something you can correct with some sort of demented behavior modification program,” she said.
Barton and her son gave an interview to CBS News, and she is considering the Dr. Phil invitation.
Updated at noon on 5/29/2008 to add information about the aftermath of initial reports of the incident.
District Restructuring?
Looks like it was a good meeting last night.
It's 12:20 AM Thursday morning and I just came home
from a marathon school board meeting. Among the
protests of whether or not a reduction on the increase
in special education is a cut or not, Bill Hellmann
finally unveiled his death blow to the Morrisville
school system.
Close Reiter and Grandview
Renovate the high school and use to house grades K-8
Tuition out grades 9-12
I really hope everyone who voted for the stop the
school group is happy tonight.
I'm not sure this is a done deal just yet. Seemed like the turnout at the January meeting was overwhelmingly against a tuition plan, and they can't renovate the high school with only seven million in the bank. Besides, there's always the issue of {cue dramatic music} the teachers union and their contract.
The bigger question will be if the people of Morrisville have had enough. Is anyone going to stand up?
It's 12:20 AM Thursday morning and I just came home
from a marathon school board meeting. Among the
protests of whether or not a reduction on the increase
in special education is a cut or not, Bill Hellmann
finally unveiled his death blow to the Morrisville
school system.
Close Reiter and Grandview
Renovate the high school and use to house grades K-8
Tuition out grades 9-12
I really hope everyone who voted for the stop the
school group is happy tonight.
I'm not sure this is a done deal just yet. Seemed like the turnout at the January meeting was overwhelmingly against a tuition plan, and they can't renovate the high school with only seven million in the bank. Besides, there's always the issue of {cue dramatic music} the teachers union and their contract.
The bigger question will be if the people of Morrisville have had enough. Is anyone going to stand up?
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
In Memoriam: Ed Frankenfield
I received this email a short time ago with some very sad news.
Ed died this morning. I don't know much more than that it was a relief to his family as he was in a lot of pain. Pat spoke with Dr. Yonson this morning and sent her thanks to everyone who shared their support. I'll think of a proper eulogy when I can think again.
The floor is open for any comments. We've lost a real leader.
Damn...
From the district website:
SAD NEWS
It is with a very heavy heart that we must inform you that Mr. Edward Frankenfield, member of the Morrisville School Board passed away this morning (5/28/08). Ed was a great friend of education and to our school district in particular. He served our district well in the four years on the school board, from raising money for band uniforms to reading to our children at Reiter Elementary to making sure the children and staff had the resources they needed. Ed was always there. The District's condolences are extended to Ed's family.
Ed died this morning. I don't know much more than that it was a relief to his family as he was in a lot of pain. Pat spoke with Dr. Yonson this morning and sent her thanks to everyone who shared their support. I'll think of a proper eulogy when I can think again.
The floor is open for any comments. We've lost a real leader.
Damn...
From the district website:
SAD NEWS
It is with a very heavy heart that we must inform you that Mr. Edward Frankenfield, member of the Morrisville School Board passed away this morning (5/28/08). Ed was a great friend of education and to our school district in particular. He served our district well in the four years on the school board, from raising money for band uniforms to reading to our children at Reiter Elementary to making sure the children and staff had the resources they needed. Ed was always there. The District's condolences are extended to Ed's family.
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