Divide and Conquer?

From the BCCT.

Board offers administrators deal similar to teachers
By RACHEL CANELLI
Bucks County Courier Times

The school board is hoping a deal with the administrators will force the teachers to acquiesce as well.

The Neshaminy school board has offered the district's nearly three dozen administrators a deal identical to the package the teachers union rejected, officials said Wednesday.

Board members said they're hoping that if the proposal's accepted, the educators will follow suit.

That offer includes a 3 percent annual salary increase and a requirement that employees pay 15 percent toward health care premiums the first year of the three-year deal, 16 percent the second year, and 17 percent the third year, board members said in a statement.

Like the teachers, administrators do not contribute to their insurance premiums. This contract would save taxpayers $250,000 next year, officials said.

"If the administrators take it, we'll expect the teachers to take it," said board President Ritchie Webb.

The newspaper was unsuccessful in reaching teacher union President Louise Boyd Wednesday for comment. The board has been holding "meet-and-discuss" dialogues with the administrators' organization since February to negotiate a new agreement to replace the one that expires June 30.

Paul Minotti, director of facilities and president of the administrators' association, confirmed the preliminary proposal. He added that he'll be meeting with the 30-plus members of the group early next week to discuss the offer.

"We're making headway," Minotti said. "We should have something done shortly."

If approved, the contract would change the medical plan from Blue Cross PC15 to a less expensive PC 20/30/70 and the drug plan from Rx 5/20 to a cheaper Rx 5/30. But administrators still would have the option of a Keystone HMO, according to the board's statement.

The agreement would remove the full benefits package and a $27,000 incentive upon retirement, as well as the single source item, which allows employees to pay a $5 generic fee for $20 brand name drugs when generics aren't available, the same as proposed to the teachers union. The proposal also calls for reducing opt-out sharing from 37 percent to 25 percent; that's the amount of the premiums the district pays to employees who use their spouse's insurance, said Webb.

And, finally, the deal would eliminate any future annual, long-term service bonuses, which are $1,750 for employees with 20 to 24 years, $2,150 for 25 to 29 years, $2,550 for 30 to 34 years and $3,000 for 35 years or more, officials said.

The district's 500-plus support staff contract is also scheduled to expire in June. Officials are working out the details for a new proposal, but they said support staff members, who tend to make less than teachers, also will be asked to contribute to their health care premiums.

While the support staff belongs to a union with striking power just like the Neshaminy Federation of Teachers, the administrators' group does not, officials said.

And, although that organization - the Neshaminy School District Administrators Association - meets to discuss bargaining, it excludes cabinet members like the superintendent, business manager and directors of human resources and secondary education, said Webb.

Those administrators can negotiate their own deal, but the highlights often mimic the association's, officials said.

Administrators' salaries, excluding cabinet members, can range from about $100,000 to $124,000. For example, an assistant principal at the high school could earn about $100,000 for a 10.5-month spot, or roughly $108,000 for 12 months, according to acting Superintendent Lou Muenker.

After three years, that same assistant could be making $120,000. An elementary school principal might begin at about $111,000, while a middle school principal could earn $112,000 to start and $124,000 after three years, Muenker said.

The teachers union counter-offered a 6 percent annual salary increase, including steps, and a requirement for no change in the medical insurance package. No further bargaining sessions have been scheduled, administrators said.

Neshaminy, which operates 14 public schools in Middletown, Lower Southampton, Penndel, Langhorne Manor and Hulmeville, is the only district in Bucks County where employees pay nothing toward health insurance premiums. Union members pay $15 for doctor visits and $5 and $20 for generic and brand-name drugs through Personal Choice, the district's human resources department reported.

The district pays at least $22,000 per year to cover a family of four's health care. The average employer contribution for a similar package is roughly $12,700, according to the National Coalition on Health Care.

District educator salaries start at an average of $51,976 and top out at roughly $95,923. The average Neshaminy teacher's salary is $76,000, administrators said. The salary and benefits for the district's staff, which includes more than 700 teachers, accounts for more than 80 percent of Neshaminy's budget, officials said.

District officials are still trying to figure out how to balance a potential $14 million deficit and avoid a possible $500 tax increase. And the teachers have been working without a contract since June, administrators said.

Trashes and Grasses and Snow. Oh my.

From the BCCT.

NOTICE TO BIDDERS
The Morrisville School District is requesting sealed bids for the 2009-2010 school year. Specifications may be obtained from the Morrisville School District, 550 West Palmer Street, Morrisville, PA 19067, to the attention of Paul W. DeAngelo, Business Administrator, 215-736-5933. The individual items and bid opening times are as follows:

Bus Contracted Service 8:30 a.m. on Monday, April 6, 2009
Trash Removal 9:30 a.m. on Monday, April 6, 2009
Grass Cutting and Snow Plowing 10:30 a.m. on Monday, April 6, 2009

Bids must be received before the above listed deadline at which time they will be opened publicly in Conference Room F-10 of the Middle/Senior High School. The owner reserves the right to waive information and to accept or reject any/all bids in its best interest.

Marlys Mihok
Board Secretary

Ballot Challenges

From the BCCT.

No challenges against Morrisville candidates?

Challenges filed against candidates ahead of primary
Bucks County Courier Times

On the final day to object to a candidate on the May 19 primary ballot, a number of challenges were filed in Bucks County court Tuesday.

The filings challenged the candidacy of a number of township and school district office seekers in Lower Bucks.

March 10 was the deadline for filing a petition to run in the primary. The last day to withdraw a nominating petition is March 25.

Board of Elections Director Deena Dean said no hearings on the challenges have been scheduled yet.

council rock

Several Republican Party members and Council Rock residents filed two petitions, asking the court to invalidate the petitions of Marion Leszczynski and John Johnson to run as Republicans for seats on the school board in the primary.

Holland resident Francis W. O'Donnell and Northampton residents Peter and Joan Palestina claim that Leszczynski is a registered Democrat, but circulated a petition to run for school board in Region 4 and executed an Affidavit of Circulator alleging that he's a member of the Republican Party.

For the same reason, Republicans and Northampton residents John and Karen Jim and Bernadette Heenan filed an objection to Johnson's bid to run against incumbent Heenan in Region 3.

Leszczynski responded that he cross-filed, was unaware of the petition and will be consulting an attorney.

"Typical Republican games that they play," he said.

Johnson replied that he needs to talk to the Democratic committee people because he thought he legally filed.

Election code states that a candidate must circulate a petition to run under his or her own party, according to attorney Mike Fitzpatrick, who is representing both sets of petitioners.

"The first test for every candidate for school board + is basic compliance with election code," Fitzpatrick said. "Two Democrat candidates for school board in Council Rock circulated and filed nomination petitions to participate in the Republican primary and they attached false affidavits to those petitions. The court will decide the outcome."

The petitioners are asking a judge to order the Board of Elections to remove the names from the Republican ballot.

Bristol Township

In Bristol Township, Don Mobley asked the court to knock John Monahan off the mayoral ballot for allegedly leaving things off his petition. Two residents filed a similar petition to knock Mobley off the ballot for council.

Mobley, a township councilman, said Monahan failed to list his income as a security guard for the Pennsylvania Legislature in his petition for mayor, calling it a "fatal defect."

All candidates must file a statement of financial interest with their petitions.

Mobley's statement of financial interest also came under scrutiny. In a petition to the court, Bristol Township residents James Sykes and Patricia Koszarek accused Mobley of failing to list his address on a statement of financial interest.

Nominating papers must include a list of people who are members of that candidate's party and who support the petition. Sykes and Koszarek said Mobley's nominating papers didn't specifically list the towns where his supporters live.

Sykes and Koszarek said they believe at least one of those signatures was from a Republican. Mobley is a Democrat.

middletown

Incumbent Republican Charles Benhayon filed a challenge to the nominating petition of Republican constable challenger Todd A. O'Brien. In the petition filed through his attorney, Joseph Cullen, Benhayon claims O'Brien did not file his statement of financial interests with the State Ethics Commission by the March 10 deadline. Benhayon has been a constable for 18 years.

Pennsbury

Lower Makefield resident and registered Democrat Samuel Madeira Jr. filed a challenge to the nominating petition of Democrat Cynthia G. Osofsky, who is running for Pennsbury school board in Region 3.

In the petition filed by attorney Michael Fitzpatrick, Madeira claims that Osofsky, a Lower Makefield resident, filed her statement of financial interest with the school district on March 11, one day past the filing deadline. The statement should have been filed on March 10, the last day for filing a petition to appear on the election ballot, said Fitzpatrick.

"Every candidate has to attach this ethics statement, because you are required to disclose all your direct and indirect sources of income when you run for public office. That deadline is not flexible. We're following the law on this," said Fitzpatrick Tuesday.

Falls

Terry Rooney and Shawn Riley filed a challenge to the nominating petition of Republican constable candidate Jeff Mourey. In the petition, Rooney and Riley claim that Mourey did not file his statement of financial interest with the State Ethics Commission by the deadline.

upper makefield

Thomas Nagle and Karen J. McAllister have challenged the nominating petition of Democratic supervisor candidate Stephen Skip Lane. In the petition, Nagle and McAllister claim Lane was not a registered member of the Democratic Party at the time the petition was signed.

Phila 1% SalesTax Rise

From the Inquirer

Nutter wants to hike sales tax; will save libraries, pools, health centers
By Jennifer Lin, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER Posted on Wed, Mar. 18, 2009

In a bad news-good news press conference today, Mayor Nutter said he wants to impose a temporary one-percent sales tax to raise revenue - but added that he would direct some of the money to keep open libraries, pools, homeless shelters and community health centers.

Nutter said a sales tax for only three years could generate $340 million. He added that the measure would have to be approved by lawmakers in Harrisburg.

Standing on the baseball field at the Marian Anderson Recreation Center in South Philadelphia, Nutter said, "No one likes to propose raising taxes. It's not the most comfortable place to find myself, but the alternatives are worse."

The proposed sales tax comes on the heels of an announcement Monday by the mayor that he also wants to increase property taxes.

The mayor tempered the news of his proposed sales tax by outlining all the services that the money could save, such as:

Keeping open all libraries;

Maintaining the hours of all recreation centers;

Maintaining all eight community health centers;

Retaining 3,390 slots for after-school programs;

Retaining all services for abused and neglected children;

Maintaining funding for homeless shelters.

Previously, his administration had been examining big cuts in each of those areas.

In addition to asking the General Assembly for approval to impose a three-year sales tax, the city also is asking for relief for how it amortizes the unfunded portion of its pension fund. Under the city's proposal, the timeline for that liablity would be stretched over 40 years instead of 20.

Nutter said if those two measures are not approved, the cuts in essential services would be drastic. "It is absolutely a place where none of us wants to go," Nutter said.

The reaction to the Mayor's announcement was mixed.

A coalition of unions, homeless advocates, churches and anti-poverty groups had mixed reactions to today's announcement.

Many were relieved that there would not be cuts to the city's homeless system or community health centers.

But they saw a sales tax as too punitive to the city's poorest residents.

If the city has to raise revenue via higher taxes, the approach should be more "fair and equitable," said the Rev. Jesse Brown, of the Calvary Lutheran Church in West Philadelphia.

The mayor, Brown said, is not seeking to raise the business or wage taxes. "It should not only be individuals of the city who are responsible for closing the budget with higher taxes, but also businesses."

How About the Coffee?

From the Baltimore Sun

Seniors in Mass. town not happy after official suggests cutting doughnuts from senior center

By Associated Press 2:13 PM EDT, March 18, 2009

ASHBURNHAM, Mass. (AP) — Senior citizens in a Massachusetts community told a town official to keep his hands off their doughnuts. Francis "Bill" Johnson, chairman of Ashburnham's advisory board, said at a Council on Aging meeting this week that spending money on doughnuts and pastries for the Senior Center's morning coffee club encourages unhealthy eating habits in a population that already has health issues.

Council on Aging board member Lorna Fields said Johnson "overstepped his boundaries."

She said many seniors won't eat "carrot sticks and stuff" and that healthier items, including grapes and cheese, are available.

Betty Bushee, 67, a Senior Center regular, told The Telegram & Gazette of Worcester that no one has the right to tell seniors what to eat.

Contractor ordinance and coincidences

From the BCCT.

Ordinance could have resulted in lost grants
By DANNY ADLER
STAFF WRITER

It all came down to money and one clause.

Morrisville council voted down a responsible-contractor ordinance after its attorney said a clause in the eight-page proposed law could prevent the borough from receiving some federal money.

The ordinance’s downfall was a provision that would have required all public construction and maintenance contracts worth at least $10,000 be awarded to firms that participate in an apprenticeship program.

The council voted 6-1 against the ordinance Monday night after solicitor James Downey warned the board the borough could lose community development block grants with such a provision. He said he received a letter from the Bucks County Department of Community and Business Development after an article about the proposed ordinance appeared in this newspaper earlier this month. The solicitor said he was told that the Department of Housing and Urban Development determined years ago that another borough’s nearly identical ordinance restricted competition. That borough was then disqualified from receiving the grants.

He also noted that neighboring Falls missed out on some of those funds because it would not waive its ordinance for the block grants. Still, Falls Supervisors Chairman Robert Harvie lauded his borough’s ordinance while talking to Morrisville’s council at the Monday night’s meeting.

“We have had nothing but success with this,” Harvie told Morrisville officials.

Council President Nancy Sherlock and Councilman Dave Rivella wanted the solicitor to tweak the ordinance to make it work. That could happen or the issue could be dropped entirely at next month’s council meeting.

Others, including a handful of audience members who bashed the proposal within the last week, simply disagreed with the requirement.

Rivella, a union worker, cast a “symbolic” vote in favor of the bill. Councilman Edward Albertson, another union man, was absent from the meeting.

The apprenticeship requirement not only limits work to union shops, opponents say, but it would exclude smaller local businesses from bidding on borough work and push up prices. Supporters of the ordinance disagreed, saying it ensures that companies have qualified, welltrained workers and has no impact on project costs.

The rest of the ordinance would require contractors to confirm they hadn’t defaulted on any project or been prohibited from bidding on any federal, state or local government contracts in the last three years. They also would have had to confirm they’re free of “willful violations” of federal or state safety laws; that all employees are U.S. citizens or legal aliens allowed to work in the country; and that they adhere to prevailing wage rates and fringe benefit requirements, among other things.

Councilman Stephen Worob, who said he was a union chairman in New Jersey for several years, said there’re good things about unions. But sometimes, he said, “they go too far. And I think in this case, you’d almost have to be blind not to see the union influence here. It eliminates competition. And if you eliminate competition, you inevitably are going to raise the cost of projects.”

Councilwoman Eileen Dreisbach said she would have considered voting yes if there was no apprenticeship clause, but she didn’t feel that all local contractors should put all their workers through an apprenticeship program.

Councilwoman Kathryn Panzitta didn’t see it the same way. She said apprenticeships create a standard for a qualified worker.

Rivella, who has said that the proposal was not an attempt to promote union work, maintained his support of it.

“I think it’s a good ordinance,” Rivella said. “It has a lot of merit. I would feel even better supporting it if Mr. Downey had the opportunity to tweak it one more time.”

Residents chimed in during public comment, expressing a mixed bag of opinions. Some said the proposal discriminated against contractors and tried to “fix a problem we don’t have.” Others said it ensured that those doing borough work were trained and would prevent flyby-night contractors.

One woman, Morrisville school board member Marlys Mihok, said Sherlock, Rivella and Panzitta should have abstained from voting because the three Democrats were running in the 2007 election when the Morrisville Democratic Club accepted $10,300 in campaign contributions from unions. That was the same year Sherlock introduced the idea in the borough’s ordinance committee.

“There are no coincidences in Morrisville,” she said.

At the end of the meeting, Sherlock said the accusations implied “that these contributions were made by various unions so that the (responsiblecontractor ordinance) would be implemented, which is really further from the truth.”

“Those contributions were made to the party because they believed in the team that was running,” she added.

Sherlock said officials were not approached by union representatives about the ordinance and that some officials became interested in the proposal several years ago when other municipalities were considering a responsible-contractor ordinance.

We don't want your merger

From the Lebanon Daily News

W.Pa. school board rejects offer of merger study
The Associated Press Updated: 03/17/2009 09:27:22 AM EDT

ROCKWOOD, Pa.—A western Pennsylvania school board has rejected an offer by the state to pay for a feasibility study that would assess consolidation options.

Rockwood school board members turned down the offer at a meeting Monday, indicating opposition to Gov. Ed Rendell's efforts to eliminate about 400 of the state's 501 districts.

Rockwood is about 15 miles south of Somerset. Rockwood is a rural district serving about 900 students.

Board member Mark Lucas says the study could put the district "on the road to lose local control" and give Rendell "the ammunition he needs to force a merger."

Turkeyfoot Valley Area School District has approved the study. Rockwood and Turkeyfoot have discussed in the past consolidating or sharing resources.

Show us the money first

From the BCCT.

Pa. lawmakers: Stimulus money must go through us
House GOP leaders want the governor to send a new budget proposal to the Legislature, saying the one unveiled in February is deficient because it was written before Congress passed the stimulus bill.
By MARC LEVY, ASSOCIATED PRESS

HARRISBURG — Republican legislative leaders are urging Gov. Ed Rendell to allow input from legislators on how to spend Pennsylvania’s share of federal economic stimulus money or risk missing a midsummer spending plan deadline.

“It will facilitate our joint goal of starting successful budget deliberations earlier than in the past,” Sens. Joseph Scarnati, Dominic Pileggi and Jake Corman — the top three Republican Senate leaders — wrote in a letter delivered to the Democratic governor Monday.

House GOP leaders said Rendell should send a new budget proposal to the Legislature, saying the $29 billion state budget he unveiled in February is deficient because it was written before Congress passed the stimulus bill.

“It is the responsibility of the General Assembly to appropriate these federal stimulus funds, thus we are anxious to hear your proposals and your goals as they relate to the utilization of this federal aid,” Reps. Sam Smith and Mario Civera wrote in a letter to Rendell released Monday.

Pennsylvania’s new fiscal year begins July 1, the deadline for Rendell and the Legislature to settle on a spending plan for the next 12 months.

The uniqueness and breadth of the federal stimulus package have frustrated administration and legislative officials trying to understand how to handle it. Among the difficulties have been figuring out how much money is coming to Pennsylvania, what strings are attached and how the money is supposed to be distributed.

The administration currently projects that Pennsylvania will get $18 billion — up from its earlier estimate of $16 billion — including $8 billion in tax breaks and other direct benefits for state residents.

Rendell has said little about the Legislature’s role in approval of the billions of dollars that Pennsylvania state and local governments are expected to receive from the stimulus package.

Earlier this month, Rendell did not dispute that he must seek legislative approval to use much of the money. But he sounded no note of urgency, and warned that the federal government has dictated the terms of how the money must be spent, and left even his administration with little decision-making power.

“Probably in July we’re going to have to get appropriation authority for a lot of this money and, again, the Legislature can work with us to help us with the decisions that are made,” Rendell said.

But much of the money simply passes through the state on its way to school districts, housing authorities and other local governments.

For instance, public school boards will decide how to spend the majority of nearly $2.6 billion in education money coming to Pennsylvania, according to the administration.

“We’re working hard with them, we’re giving them advice, but they can thumb their nose at us and use it for anything they want,” Rendell said. “So once I share that information with the Legislature, I think they’ll have a better understanding of where we are.”

Even before July arrives, the Rendell administration plans to spend at least a portion of the money for highways, bridges and water and sewer systems.

Still, lawmakers insisted Tuesday that there is space to negotiate.

Board Agenda and Committee Meetings tonight

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Education Committee
All Committee meetings will be held in the G Hall Conference Room of the Morrisville Middle/Sr. High School.
Site: HS G Hall Conference Room, 6:30PM

Human Resource Committee
All Committee meetings will be held in the G Hall Conference Room of the Morrisville Middle/Sr. High School.
Site: HS G Hall Conference Room, 7:00PM

Board Agenda Meeting
The monthly Board Agenda Meeting will be held at 7:30PM in the LGI Room of the Morrisville Middle Senior High School, 550 W. Palmer Street, Morrisville, PA.
Site: HS G Hall Conference Room, 7:30PM

Neshaminy budget gap

From the BCCT.

Sharing principals is a fine idea. No disrespect to the person, but when the Morrisville high school assistant principal, the principal, and the acting superintendent want to hold a meeting, there's no conference call charges required. Only one chair required too.

Maybe the job of the absent teacher or bus driver has to be done, but like the Emperor says, you gotta learn how to do more with less.

Board searching to trim $14M gap
By RACHEL CANELLI
Bucks County Courier Times

As carefully as families are clipping coupons these days, the Neshaminy school board Monday night continued to comb through the rest of a 70-plus item list with suggestions from staff and residents on cutting spending to balance the budget.

Officials are trying to find ways to fill a $14 million gap and avoid a possible $500 average tax hike. The board asked administrators for more information on ideas ranging from limiting substitutes and going paperless, to increasing advertising at sporting events and sharing principals among schools.

One person recommended limiting substitutes for teacher training, which costs about $1.3 million a year, and improving staff attendance. But business administrator Joseph Paradise pointed out that if an educator or bus driver is absent, their job still needs to be done.

Another suggested that elementary schools share specialist teachers for art, music and gym. Herbert Hoover and Albert Schweitzer elementary schools are already doing so, and administrators are looking at consolidating even further, said Jacqueline Rattigan, director of elementary and secondary education.

Officials will also be finding out more on increasing advertising at sporting events. One item that administrators and board members wanted to push to a back burner was splitting principals among schools.

Acting Superintendent Lou Muenker pointed out that a different level of support is needed at each school level, especially the alternative program. A few board members, including President Ritchie Webb, said that they're sure principal swapping can be done, but they'd rather use that option as a last resort.

The board also discussed reducing the pre-first program, which costs $80,000 per course, and eliminating three safety aides at the high school for almost $140,000 since that facility will have an updated security system.

Answering the suggestion of reducing the work week to four days, Paradise explained that while other districts have done so, Neshaminy hasn't because of the way attendance is kept.

Responding to another concept, administrators said they're already working on going paperless by soliciting e-mail addresses from parents. Officials will also be using Global Connect, an automatic call alert system that costs roughly $2 per child for Neshaminy's almost 9,000 students.

Board members also asked for principals' recommendations on having students either bring supplies to school, or purchase kits from PTOs.

One person suggested that elementary schools share specialist teachers for art, music and gym. However, sharing principals wasn't a popular idea.

Bristol Township elementary redistricting

From the BCCT.

If we're only talking about a hundred students or so, close one of the schools. It will save a TON OF MONEY!

Redistricting meeting set for March 25
By JOAN HELLYER
Bucks County Courier Times

The Bristol Township school board will host a public meeting March 25 to discuss details about a suggested redistricting of some elementary school students.

The proposed redistricting involves about 40 students in an attendance area currently assigned to Lafayette Elementary School, officials said.

Attendance area 44A was moved from Maple Shade Elementary School to Lafayette a few years ago during a realignment of several district attendance zones.

But now the Maple Shade enrollment has declined and Lafayette's has increased, according to district officials.

In an effort to better distribute the student enrollment between the two schools, a district committee suggested the board split attendance area 44A into two parts.

The one part would be made up of the 40 students designated for the transfer to take effect in 2009-10. These students live within walking distance of Maple Shade, district officials said.

Students within that area who currently attend Lafayette would be allowed to continue attending that school if they choose, but newly enrolled students and kindergarten students would have to attend Maple Shade, officials said.

The other 73 students who are in the attendance area would continue to be assigned to Lafayette, according to the proposal.

The committee was charged with examining the issue after district officials promised in June 2008 to review the attendance zones.

Committee members included district administrators and two parents who live within walking distance of Maple Shade.

The board was scheduled to vote on the proposed redistricting Monday night, but held off after some board members said they've heard from residents who have questions about the plan.

The March 25 meeting will be held at 7 p.m. at Lafayette Elementary School off Fayette Drive, school board President Earl Bruck said.

Contractor ordinance fails

From the BCCT.

Now that this is behind us, how about you find ways to bring some commerce back to Morrisville instead of finding more ways to drive it away.

Morrisville's contractor plan falls flat
By STEPHEN ROBB
Bucks County Courier Times

Morrisville's council denied a proposed responsible-contractor ordinance in a 6-1 vote Monday night. Councilman Dave Rivella was the lone vote in favor of the ordinance. Councilman Edward Albertson was absent.

Some council members seemed to outright oppose the ordinance that would've required all public construction and maintenance projects worth at least $10,000 to be awarded to contractors who participate in an apprenticeship program, among numerous other requirements.

Others wanted the borough solicitor to tweak the ordinance after hearing that it may preclude the borough from some federal government funding.

Officials said the council will decide at its meetings next month whether it wants the borough's attorney to refine the ordinance or if the issue is dead.

Borough Council Hot Seat

Reminder that the borough council meets tonight 7:30 P.M. at 35 Union Street.

Kids show they have what it takes

From the BCCT.

Kids show they have what it takes
By CHRIS ENGLISH
Bucks County Courier Times

Two special education students do a good job cleaning bathrooms and also "bring a whole new life into the building," one township employee said.

Two special education students from the Bucks County Intermediate Unit get valuable work experience.

And Middletown gets clean bathrooms in the township municipal center.

So, what's not to like, IU special education teacher Nick Nastasi asked about the cooperative program he said benefits both parties.

"They do great quality work," said Nastasi of the two students, Ken Kalczewski, 21, and Chuks Ahia, 19. Nastasi teaches them at Neshaminy's Tawanka Learning Center.

"I want my kids to be treated like any other employee, no favors, no nothing," Nastasi continued. "They try to be better and more consistent than the average person and, when they make mistakes, they are corrected."

Jamison resident Kalczewski has Down syndrome and Ahia, who lives in Lower Makefield, has autism. Since September, the two students have been coming in Tuesday and Thursday mornings to clean several bathrooms in the administrative side of the municipal center. The police side has its own cleaning arrangement.

Kalczewski and Ahia are paid $25 a week by the township, but their overall contribution is invaluable, said township Community Outreach Officer Terry Field.

"Tuesdays and Thursdays are my favorite day of the week because of them," she said. "They are well behaved and do a fabulous job. They come in and pretty much change the whole environment of the building with their uplifting spirits. I would advise any township or business to hire them because they bring a whole new life into the building."

So far, Middletown is the only Bucks County municipality to employ IU special education students, Nastasi said. However, students are employed at area private businesses, including Nationwide Insurance in Bensalem, General Partition in Bristol Township and Curves in Middletown. Special education students also are employed at the IU's alternative school in Bristol Township, Nastasi said.

The arrangement in Middletown started when the township's full-time custodian on the administrative side of the municipal center left last year.

Township recreation programs coordinator Paul Kopera, who used to work at the IU and had experience with the outside work programs there, suggested hiring special education students for Middletown. The deal was struck and, though the township has since hired a part-time custodian, the arrangement has continued.

"Our goal is to train kids to be able to do these kind of jobs so as they turn 21, with some community support, they will be able to continue doing meaningful work," said IU special education supervisor Jane Strawley. "I think it's been win-win in Middletown, beneficial to both the employer and employees."

To find out how to hire IU special education students or for more information, call 800-770-4822, 215-322-6871 or e-mail nnastasi@bucks.iu.org.

PSSA Hot Seat

From the Inquirer.

PSSAs put kids, schools on hot seat
By Kristen A. Graham, Inquirer Staff Write. Posted on Sun, Mar. 15, 2009

Fourth grader Maurice Daniels knows why tomorrow is a big, big day.

"It's the PSSAs," said Maurice, 9, a fourth grader at John Welsh Elementary in North Philadelphia. "It's really important. We've practiced for a long time, and it shows how many skills you know, how good your school is."

Around the state, thousands of third through eighth graders, plus 11th graders, will spend the next several days taking their Pennsylvania System of School Assessment exams in math and reading. Beginning next month, fourth, eighth, and 11th graders will take state science exams.

The state has given the PSSAs since the 1990s, but the federal No Child Left Behind law of 2002 raised the stakes: Results determine whether a school is deemed passing or failing. Failure means intense oversight and sanctions that could include total staff replacement.

Critics say the law puts too much pressure on schools to drill students and teach only to the state tests. Supporters say it keeps standards high for all children.

In ways large and small, Pennsylvania students have been preparing for the exams for months.

At James Buchanan Elementary School in Levittown, an all-school pep rally last week revved up students for the test. And on the last school day before the exam, Welsh devoted classes to analyzing PSSA reading passages, reviewing math facts, and playing PSSA bingo.

"In math, these types of lines run side by side and never cross or intersect," Welsh teacher Denise McCaig prompted her fourth graders, who held markers poised above bingo sheets.

"Parallel lines!" Maurice shouted, waving his hand excitedly.

Welsh - a school of 620 kindergartners through eighth graders, about 90 percent of whom live in poverty - has passed state tests seven years running. To extend the streak, the staff began exam prep early, said Mike Reardon, the school's testing coordinator.

"We start preparing in September," he said, "but it becomes more intense as the year goes on."

There is teacher training, with videos of veteran teachers modeling effective PSSA prep methods for newer teachers. Struggling students are given extra support in small groups.

"And parents know what the test means," said Jeanette Fernandez, Welsh's principal. "We stress attendance, getting enough sleep . . . the night before the test," and a good breakfast.

Evy Clark, principal of Buchanan, a kindergarten-through-sixth-grade school in the Bristol Township School District, stood on the sideline as the school staged its massive PSSA pep rally. There were cheerleaders, an original PSSA song and dance, karate and gymnastics demonstrations, video testimonials, and younger students waving signs rooting for older ones.

Over the top? You bet. But Buchanan has never failed the state exam, and students know the pressure is on to keep standards up.

"Everyone's working so hard all year toward this goal of achieving proficiency," said Clark, using the state's term for hitting grade level. "Let's have some fun. Let's cheer each other on."

Keeping kids' attention focused on the test in a positive way is important, and the pep rally goes a long way, she said.

Other Buchanan PSSA strategies include extra reading and writing practice, a longer recess on test day, and permission for students to keep typically forbidden water bottles on their desks during the exam.

"We do a lot of positive reinforcement, telling them that they can do this, that they've got lots of strategies to solve problems," Clark said.

It's necessary, she said, because "for the most part, students are stressed out over the test. They take it seriously, and they know it's the same test everyone all over the state is taking."

At Samuel Fels High in Philadelphia, just juniors will take the exam. But PSSA-themed posters line the hallways, and everyone knows the test is looming.

Principal Greg Hailey uses incentives such as discounted prom tickets and Class of 2010 T-shirts to make sure students attend on test days.

"We do snacks for students throughout the day," he said. "We make sure they have water. We want them to be confident and comfortable."

At Welsh, fourth grader Shyann Martinez said she was ready to go. She flipped through a stack of well-worn photocopied test prep papers and nodded gravely.

"I feel a little bit nervous," Shyann said. "There could be something on the test that I need to work on. What if I do bad on the PSSA?"

Tax Delinquents

From the Inquirer.

Let's post a list of Morrisville delinquents.

2d list of firms behind on taxes

Mayor Nutter stepped up his campaign to shame delinquent taxpayers yesterday as his office published a second list of businesses that he claims owe the city money.

"We want our money. You owe it. Pay it," Nutter said at a City Hall news conference where the list was announced. Nutter published an initial list of tax-delinquent businesses in November. Since then, the city has collected $1.4 million in delinquent business-privilege taxes from firms on the list and has repayment agreements totaling another $1.4 million.

On Wednesday, the mayor held a news conference outside the office of a tax-delinquent law firm and got into a sidewalk confrontation with one of the firm's principals alleged to owe money. A list of delinquent taxpayers has been posted on the city Web site at www.phila.gov. - Patrick Kerkstra

Bensalem Paperless

From the BCCT.

Board hopes cutting paper helps cut costs
District officials are tallying up how much the cost-cutting suggestions will reduce expenses.
By JOAN HELLYER

The Bensalem school board is going “high tech” in the district’s continuing effort to trim expenses.

Board members used spare laptop computers Wednesday night to access information about items brought before them for approval.

Gone are the days when board members will plow through voluminous paper packets of information before deciding an issue, officials said.

The board agreed to use the spare Classroom for the Future laptops as part of the school system’s ongoing effort to trim expenses.

The laptops are one tip the district received after Superintendent James Lombardo asked staff and community members in February for cost-cutting suggestions to implement over the next few years.

Lombardo made the plea in anticipation of expected revenue concerns in the coming years because of the recession. Everything except salary and benefits is up for consideration, the superintendent said.

Another submitted costcutting suggestion being implemented includes fewer pages in the printed copies of the board packet handed out to people who attend the meetings.

Previously, each packet would be 30 pages or more, including separate pages to designate when the superintendent’s report, the solicitor’s report and the treasurer’s report came up in the meeting. Now, the three reports are listed in small print on the same page as other items on the board’s agenda. Other areas also are condensed to reduce the average paper packet to 12 pages or less.

In addition to the board’s packet, non-essential travel not already approved by the board and other reductions in staff paper consumption and energy usage have been put in place, Lombardo said.

No word yet on how much the operational changes will save the district.

District officials are reviewing dozens of other suggestions received in the last few weeks, the superintendent said. They’ll present the ideas to school board members during the governing body’s April 7 committee meeting.

Time for lunch

From the BCCT.

NOTICE TO BIDDERS
BOROUGH OF MORRISVILLE
SCHOOL DISTRICT
The School District of Borough of Morrisvile is requesting bids for Food Service Management Service for the 2009-2010 school year. Specifications may be obtained from the Business Office, School District of Borough of Morrisville, 550 West Palmer Street, Morrisville, PA 19067, 215-736-5933. Proposals are to be submitted in a sealed envelope marked with the item being bid to the attention of Paul W. DeAngelo, Business Administrator.

Bids must be received no later than 9:00 Tuesday, April 7, 2009, at which time they will be opened publicly in Conference Room F-10 of the Middle/Senior High School. A mandatory Walk-Thru Meeting is scheduled for Thursday, March 26 at 2:00 p.m. in Conference Room F-10 of the High School.

Marlys Mihok
Board Secretary

"Public education must be a top priority"

From the Inquirer.

Editorial: Obama's Plan
Fixing the schools
Posted on Fri, Mar. 13, 2009

President Obama may have the right lesson plan to finally fix the country's failing schools. In his first major speech on education, Obama fulfilled a campaign pledge to initiate a long-overdue overhaul of the public education system.

The president put all stakeholders on notice that he plans to make sweeping changes at every level, from kindergarten to college.

In his boldest moves, Obama wants to link teachers' pay to student performance and expand the number of charter schools. Those issues go to the heart of what is wrong with the public education system: Too many schools are straddled with bad teachers and too many students with no other choice are stuck in failing schools.

His positions on merit pay and charters put Obama at odds with many in the Democratic Party and with one of its most powerful constituents, the teachers unions, which have cautiously endorsed the plan, for now.

The plan announced Tuesday offered few specifics on what performance pay would mean for teachers. It should mean rewarding the best teachers with more money when they improve student achievement.

Republicans will like Obama's support for more charters but are likely to oppose spending $5 billion to expand early childhood education, even though preschool and kindergarten have yielded proven results.

Obama is on point in calling for states to lift rules that limit the number of charter schools. Philadelphia's experience, with some charters being investigated for mismanagement and misspending, shows oversight is critical. But charters do offer students a viable alternative when regular schools are sorry.

Obama's education speech didn't sit well with critics who say he should focus solely on trying to jump-start the recession economy. But the president is right to not put off an education agenda that is less about politics and more about doing what is best for students.

Public schools will get about $100 billion in new funding under the economic-stimulus package. Obama's education plan stresses accountability and urges states to set more rigorous, uniform academic standards.

The president also suggested longer school days and an extended school year. That would bring the United States in line with Asian countries, where students are performing better academically.

In making his remarks at the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Obama acknowledged the obstacles facing Latino students, who have a 50-percent dropout rate in most cities, including Philadelphia. Black students are leaving school prematurely at a similar alarming rate.

Obama must still deal with the 2002 federal No Child Left Behind law, which was not addressed in his speech. The law should either be reauthorized with some changes, including adequate funding, or replaced with another measure that similarly holds schools accountable and requires states to test students annually in language arts and math.

Even in difficult economic times, public education must be a top priority. It's good to see Obama knows that.

"A strong commitment to save their schools"

From The Morning News of Northwest Arkansas

Greenland Schools Continue To Work Toward Fiscal Stability
New sales tax revenue will help restore long-term year-end balance
Last updated Wednesday, March 11, 2009 7:22 PM CDT in News
By Rose Ann Pearce
THE MORNING NEWS

GREENLAND -- The sales tax revenue earmarked for the Greenland School District will help stabilize the district finances beyond 2010 but probably won't get the school district off the state's fiscal distress list any sooner.

Julie Johnson Thompson, public information director for the Arkansas Department of Education, said voter support of the sales tax issue will have a positive impact when the state education department staff and the State Board of Education receive another quarterly report from Greenland in April.

Greenland Superintendent Roland Smith said it was doubtful the state would remove the district from fiscal distress earlier than the two-year timeframe allowed by state law. The state removed the Greenland School Board and took control of the district in June 2008. Once in fiscal distress, a school district is expected to get its finances in order in two years.

Smith has consistently said he believes Greenland can do that.

While voters wrapped up voting Tuesday, Smith met with about 60 patrons at Greenland High School, telling them he continues to believe the district will end the current fiscal year on June 30 with a balance of $150,000 and projected that could climb to about $400,000 by the end of the next fiscal year on June 30, 2010.

The goal for the district is to get the ending balance back to $800,000, the same level as 10 years ago before the district began sliding financially. The state education department generally recommends a school district have an ending balance between 7 percent and 10 percent of its budget.

"We have no intention to spend the sales tax. It will be put in reserve to build it back," Smith said, noting the sales tax proposal has not been a part of the district's financial planning.

The district is expected to receive about $100,000 a year for two years from the sales tax approved Tuesday. By a margin of 134 to 28, voters extended by two years a sales tax, set to expire in June. The tax was originally used for sewer improvement.

Smith noted voters in the city and the school district have, in the last nine months, approved a sales tax, a millage increase and a bond refinancing for building repairs and new buses.

"That indicates a strong commitment to save their schools," he said.

Fix special ed funding

From the Philadelphia Public Schools Notebook.

35 advocacy groups ask legislators to fix special education funding
by Brett Schaeffer

Pennsylvania last year adopted a landmark funding formula for basic education, putting more dollars into the neediest schools and implementing rigorous accountability measures for school districts.

However, special education students have been left out of the equation.

A coalition of groups is now sending the message that it’s time for the General Assembly to approach special education funding with the same sharp eye its members approached basic education funding in 2008.

The state’s new basic education funding formula was based on a 2007 “costing-out” study, conducted by the private education policy consulting firm Augenblick, Palaich and Associates, Inc. Though the study recommended that special education be funded based on student and district needs, a new funding system for students with disabilities was not part of the 2008 reforms.

Now, using the findings from a new February 2009 Augenblick report, more than 35 disabilities advocacy groups throughout Pennsylvania are rallying support for a bill to reform special education funding.

“In 2008, the General Assembly and the Governor reformed state funding for basic education, based on the 2007 ‘costing-out’ study. Similar improvements are now needed for special education funding if the education finance system is to be whole,” said Janis Risch, executive director of Good Schools Pennsylvania, in the new report.

The report indicates that nearly 400 school districts are inadequately funding special education, averaging an annual shortfall of almost $1 million per district. Statewide, the total gap in annual funding for special education is $380 million. The average per pupil shortfall is $1,947, based on a total of 195,000 students in the districts that have a funding gap.

The report, which was funded by the Education Law Center, the Disability Rights Network, and The Arc of Pennsylvania, identifies fundamental needs that often go underserved, such as proper teacher training, investment in assistive technology devices and materials, and support programs.

The report also underscores the importance of finishing the funding reforms begun last year and outlines the broader benefits special education funding reform would provide to the entire school community, including reduced teacher turnover, improved classroom culture, and stronger overall education programs.

The School District of Philadelphia, which educates the greatest number of special education students in Pennsylvania, had a special education funding gap of more than $17 million in 2006-07, the year analyzed in the report.

While Philadelphia’s per student funding gap – approximately $500 – is certainly not as wide as special education funding shortfalls in other districts, figures from the Pennsylvania State Data Center show that Philadelphia is coming up short in its outcomes for special education students.

Data Center numbers reveal a 30 percent dropout rate for Philadelphia’s special education high school students – more than double the statewide average. And while more than 300 of the state’s 501 districts have met their Adequate Yearly Progress targets for special education students under the No Child Left Behind law, Philadelphia has not.

Put simply, reforming the special education funding formula can help Philadelphia improve its outcomes. All students benefit when special education students receive instruction that prepares them for meaningful employment, higher education, and self-sufficiency.

To see the full February 2009 report and data on Pennsylvania special education funding, including those for the School District of Philadelphia, go to www.reformspecialedfunding.org.

Board members to phone it in

From the BCCT.

Panel to review phone policy again
Posted in News on Thursday, March 12th, 2009 at 9:11 am by Education Reporter Rachel Canelli

A proposed policy that would allow directors to participate in meetings by phone got a busy signal Tuesday night when officials debated the rule’s language.

So, instead of voting on the procedure, Neshaminy school board members agreed to let the policy committee review and revise it again.

As written, the process would let no more than one director per meeting call into a public board meeting and vote via phone. And each board member would be able to make such a request only once a year and at the board president’s discretion.

But board member William O’Connor, who requested the policy so that he wouldn’t have to miss too many board meetings for unexpected business trips, disagreed with the wording. The original draft permitted two people each meeting twice per year, and did not require the president’s permission, administrators said.

“This is to allow a person to participate,” said O’Connor. “It’s not meant as a convenience to phone in from home. And none of us needs permission from the board president to come here. It’s our ability based on the people who elected us.”

Jacqueline Rattigan, director of elementary and secondary education, said the committee made those changes so people wouldn’t abuse the policy.

Board member Irene Boyle said she didn’t understand the big deal.

“When you start something new, you go slow,” she said.

The wording was supposed to mean that directors should request to participate in a meeting via phone, not ask the president’s consent, said board member Susan Cummings.

Board members Kim Koutsouradis and Ritchie Webb said they’re concerned that the rule would encourage people not to come to meetings, or meetings could be moved to the auditorium, where it’s hard to hear on a phone.

“I have no idea why we’re trying to make this so hard,” said board member William Spitz. “What’s the harm in allowing it? If abuse happens, we could change the policy.”

The concept already is used in some districts including Council Rock, where a board member recently participated by phone for more than one meeting after having surgery, officials said. Neshaminy also allowed board member Joseph Blasch to attend an executive session by phone, Blasch said.

After not allowing a councilman who was on military duty overseas to vote from his post, the Tullytown council later agreed to let members on active military duty vote by phone early last year.

But board member Frank Koziol argued that he’s against it because if only five votes out of more than 200 in the past few years failed due to a director’s absence, the procedure’s not necessary.

“When you run for office, you know if you’re elected you’re accepting the responsibility of attending meetings to represent people,” said Koziol. “It’s impossible to feel the passion of a speaker, or the mood of an audience over the telephone. Attendance is not mandatory, it’s expected.”

Pennsbury residents happy with quality of education

From the BCCT.

Residents happy with quality of education
But results of a survey also showed residents thought “teacher salaries and benefits should be frozen.”
By MANASEE WAGH

The verdict is in for Pennsbury.

Residents are very satisfied with the education the district provides. They want teacher salaries to remain competitive but they also want the state to ban teacher strikes.

These are some highlights of a random, scientific poll of 501 Pennsbury residents in Tullytown, Falls, Lower Makefield and Yardley in December. The results were released this week.

The approximately 14-minute telephone survey polled residents about a wide range of topics, including educational programs, funding, teacher salaries, taxes, facilities, class size and classroom technology.

“The results were not unexpected but reaffirmed what we believe to be true,” said board President Gregory Lucidi. “I believe the results will be a very useful tool in shaping policy. People are equally concerned with taxes and education. That means we need to find a balance between providing an appropriate education and being fiscally responsible.”

School board members worked with UNICOM-ARC, a St. Louis, Mo., research and communications company, to develop the 61-question telephone poll. Pennsbury paid the company $23,000 to administer the survey and compile and analyze the results. In part, the outcome indicated that:

Respondents “overwhelmingly” thought educational programs and spending should take priority over facilities and teacher salaries.

Almost 84 percent responded that teachers did an “excellent” or “good” job, and about 62 percent thought teacher salaries should be kept competitive with those of neighboring districts. Pennsbury teacher salaries rank in the top 10 of 727 school districts and educational institutions in the state. Salaries start at $45,000 and peak at $98,222.

About four in 10 thought “teacher salaries and benefits should be frozen at their current level,” and a little more than 43 percent thought “teachers should receive only a costof-living salary increase.”

Almost 70 percent of respondents agreed that it should be illegal for teachers to strike.

Residents gave Pennsbury higher grades for providing a quality education compared to other state public schools. Almost nine in 10 respondents said elementary education is “excellent” or “good.”

Almost nine in 10 respondents said the district keeps students safe and secure.

About seven in 10 perceived the district to be in “healthy” financial condition, though almost 14 percent said the district “needs additional revenue.”

About 51 percent think “the district spends tax dollars cost effectively.” However, almost 63 percent agreed that “people like me can’t afford to pay higher property taxes, no matter how important the cause might be.”

More than 81 percent said the district should not increase its spending in the coming year, due to the current economic climate.

About 49 percent said they were “moderately” informed about the district, and 32 percent said they were “very well” informed. The board will be referring to the survey results while making decisions about finances, education programs and other issues, Lucidi said.

“I keep a copy of the results with me all the time,” he said. “I do look at it a lot. It really lets us know what the public thinks about the kind of job we’re doing, what kind of job our teachers are doing, our safety, buildings, technology.”

The results give him a clear direction on where to go in the next contract negotiation, he added.

“It tells us that we do want to seek more contributions for health care from teachers. It also lets us know that people believe teachers are well compensated, but salaries need to remain competitive,” he said.

Results on other topics also helped him look at where people stand in a variety of areas, Lucidi added.

Prior to the research company’s analysis, the teachers union and school board agreed to extend the current labor contract for another year with no cost of living increases. Taxpayers still will pay more than $1 million so teachers can continue to receive pay increases for longevity and educational attainment next year.

After UNICOM-ARC reported its results in February, the school board voted to forego applying for exceptions that would have allowed the district to raise taxes above the state limit of 4.1 percent. Lucidi said that many factors, especially the economy, influenced his vote for keeping taxes within that limit.

Some residents complained at board meetings that polling 500 people was not enough to get a good idea of what the district’s 700,000 residents think.

However, the poll was fairly representative because a computer program picked residents randomly, said Sharon Gotter, director of research at UNICOM-ARC, which has helped hundreds of school districts conduct resident surveys. The questionnaire also required residents to answer questions about gender, age, education level, salary, number of years living in the district and whether the respondent was a Pennsbury parent. Results included only questionnaires that respondents completed fully, Gotter said.

For a sample of about 500, the margin of error is plus or minus 4.4 percent, according to the company.

The school district also conducts other surveys periodically on specific topics. Recently, parents responded to questions sent home with students about the possibility of school uniforms and making bus transportation more efficient. Another survey was recently mailed to every resident to get more public input on a range of school-related topics.

Lucidi said he would like to see more residents attend board meetings and speak up.

“Honestly, I don’t think we can get enough public input,” he said. “Public opinion is very, very important to the school board.”

Neshaminy taxpayers continue to revolt

From the BCCT.

I don't know all the ins and outs of the Neshaminy issues, but when I read this, there's a stream of consciousness flow of thoughts that occur to me.

* Who's in charge? It's not the parents of the students to be educated.
* Why are the teachers and the teacher's union always automatically evil?
* Why are the taxpayers always automatically good?
* Why wouldn't you want to pay the teachers well when it comes to educating the next generation? (Remember, they educate the same people who will pick and/or staff your nursing home in decades to come.)
* Why would Neshaminy want to follow previous bad examples of class warfare?
* Why would the teachers not bargain in good faith?
* Why would the board not bargain in good faith?

Will teachers stand with us as members of the community?
By LARRY PASTOR JR.
Bucks County Courier Times

I know many of you are pleased that the Neshaminy school board is standing up to the outrageous contract proposal from the teachers. It's a relief for you to read articles, letters to the editor and guest opinions that express shared anger over teachers' avaricious demands.

You've likely been upset for years about the ridiculously high taxes you've been paying for teachers' excessive pay and benefits. And, of course, you know that, by rejecting the most recent board offer, teachers have once again confirmed that they are not in any way concerned about your family's financial stress.

If you've had the opportunity to attend board meetings, you probably have noticed the abundance of teachers present. You can't miss the T-shirts signifying their commitment to digging even deeper into your pockets. You may have also noticed teachers have yet to defend their demands.

Do they continue to stand with the union against their neighbors? Or, do they now step up and support their community? How can they, through this arrogant sense of entitlement, disregard the financial hardships that everyone now faces? How can they ask more of financially strapped retired and elderly, struggling families, many with single parents trying to make ends meet and all those who have lost pay and jobs?

Can they ask their neighbors to pay more so they can continue benefits and raises nearly non-existent in other professions? Are they willing to be the cause of extreme cutbacks in important programs for all of our children, just to get more for their own families?

As the country braces for the days to come, are the teachers not in this with us? After a generation of rebuilding the reputation of the teaching profession, do they really want to flush all of the goodwill away due to their inflexible greed? Will any of them have the courage and moral conviction to stand up against what is so obviously wrong?

Each one, as an individual, not as a union member, will have to answer these questions.

Tax increases over two decades have resulted in our teachers being among the highest paid in the state and enjoying one of the richest contracts in the country. Beyond a point of fair compensation, which our teachers contract exceeded years ago, it is proven that money has diminishing returns on improving teacher quality.

Now that contract negotiations are at a crucial point, taxpayers need to speak in "unison" that teachers have to adapt to our changing world. Unfortunately, the board and district residents are at a significant disadvantage to the union due to the following:

1) By law the district collects union dues through payroll deduction then sends a check to the union.
2) Non-union teachers are required to pay fair share (80 percent) dues as a condition of employment.
3) The union has secured exclusive bargaining rights.
4) Pennsylvania is one of only 13 states still permitting teacher strikes.

Why are these things important? Money from forced dues fuels union power over the board. The well-paid union leadership uses the money to prevent the election of fiscally responsible board members and politicians who will stand up for the taxpayer. Vast amounts of money are used to ensure the laws are written to give them maximum advantage over boards and taxpayers. Finally, dues support strikes when their demands are not met. The union wields a very big club against its own teachers and taxpayers alike. Now through legalized extortion, every few years we allow them to beat the school board and all of us into submission.

In the meantime what can taxpayers do?

* Get mad as hell and tell them you won't take it anymore!
* Organize any size group you can and contact the board
* Come to board meetings, www.neshaminyinfo.blogspot.com.
* Demand the board withdraw the contract offer teachers rejected.
* Support a much reduced counteroffer and dismissal if they strike.
* Tell the board you want district collection of union dues to stop.
* Demand future negotiations are visible to the public and any contract is presented at a public hearing before anybody approves it.
* Vote in the May 19 primary for board candidates who support taxpayers.

If each taxpayer gets engaged, in any small way possible, we can make a difference. With enough of our voices, we will be heard and together we can make a stand.

March 12, 2009 01:10 AM

Contractor ordinance criticized

From the BCCT.

Contractor ordinance criticized
By DANNY ADLER

A half-dozen people Tuesday night blasted Morrisville’s proposed responsible-contractor ordinance for all public construction and maintenance contracts worth at least $10,000, claiming the law favors union work.

They also pointed out alleged conflicts of interest: Two councilmen, David Rivella and Edward Albertson, are union men; also, Rivella and the Morrisville Democratic Club received thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from unions during the 2007 election.

Rivella denied that the ordinance was an attempt to promote union work, once again stressing that “there’s not one word in the ordinance that says union.” He added, “I really wasn’t thrilled when there was a lot of financial figures read that imply that labor paid me off, if you will, to vote for this. This is not a labor issue.”

Supporters of the ordinance say it’s designed to ensure that the contracts are awarded to responsible, qualified firms. One requirement is that the firms participate in an apprenticeship program.

Rivella said borough laws don’t define what a responsible contractor is. This proposal, expected to come to a vote Monday, would change that, he said.

The eight-page ordinance says contractors must confirm they hadn’t defaulted on any project or been prohibited from bidding on any federal, state or local government contracts in the last three years. They also must confirm they’re free of “willful violations” of federal or state safety laws, among many other things.

“It seems that this would be a very exclusionary ordinance to me, and would exclude established, reputable contractors with small businesses that cannot provide an apprenticeship program,” said resident Marlys Mihok, who sits on the Morrisville school board. “I feel that there’s more than a slight appearance of a conflict of interest.”

Jeff Zeh, president of the southeastern Pennsylvania chapter of Associated Builders and Contractors, called it a “discriminatory arrangement.”

“You have many contractors in the area that are not union and don’t participate in apprenticeship programs as defined in your ordinance that have done good work for you,” he said.

Albertson, who was appointed to the council a few months ago, noted that he did not run in the 2007 election when Morrisville Democrats accepted campaign contributions from unions.

“The training that I have received from being in a union shop I believe makes me a safe and educated employee,” Albertson said.

Teacher strike ban to be reintroduced

From the BCCT.

Teacher strike ban to be reintroduced
By MANASEE WAGH
Bucks County Courier Times

Get ready for take two in the struggle to eliminate teacher strikes.

Though Strike-Free Education Act House Bill 1369 failed to see any legislative action after he introduced it about two years ago, state Rep. Todd Rock, R-Franklin, said he'll reintroduce it today.

"The key to it is getting it out of committee. It could sit there for years," said Rock.

If passed, the bill would overhaul the negotiation process between a school district and its teachers union and would impose financial penalties for strikes and school lockouts.

"My bill still aims to provide for mediation, fact-finding and arbitration to resolve most contracts. If both sides still can't come to an agreement after certain dates, it forces them to meet four times a month and to have a public forum to lay out both sides of the case every six weeks. By the nature of all these meetings, you'd want to come to an agreement," said Rock, the bill's chief sponsor and author.

A teacher for a decade and a school board member for three years, Rock said he expects opposition to his bill - again - in the Legislature, though he believes most people are enthusiastic about stopping teacher strikes.

"The union is very big, and they have a lot of money and a lot of influence. I'm up against a lot of different factors. But every time a strike happens, I think it's a bigger negative for the teaching profession. They should have another option," said Rock.

Thirty-seven states prohibit teacher strikes.

Statewide, more than 20 school districts are at risk of a strike, according to information on Rock's Web site. More than 60 percent of all teacher strikes since 2000 have occurred in Pennsylvania, even though its teacher salaries are among the top 10 highest in the country.

"This is one of those issues that Rock is saying he's not going to let go. We're going to keep driving it into public awareness until one day it becomes law," said bill supporter and Lower Makefield resident Simon Campbell.

He became a local proponent of stopping teacher strikes after a 21-day strike in 2005 in his children's district, Pennsbury. Campbell said he plans to speak during Rock's press conference today in Harrisburg.

Rep. Paul Clymer, R-145, is a cosponsor of the bill. The geographic areas he represents are near the Souderton School District, where teachers went on strike during a bitter dispute for 13 days in the fall.

"I'm opposed to strikes by public employees at large, because we provide services that are important to our citizens. When you assume a position in the public arena, you do not go on strike. That doesn't mean I'm anti-union," Clymer said.

Passage of the bill wouldn't eliminate contract disputes, said Rep. Steve Santarsiero, D-31.

"You can outlaw strikes and still have a labor dispute that festers on for years," said the former Bensalem High School teacher and Pennsylvania State Education Association member.

Both sides should be required by state law to negotiate "around the clock" if an impasse occurs, he said. The two sides should have to submit their last, best offers to a Commonwealth Court judge for a final decision, Santarsiero added.

"I think it's necessary to have the threat of a judge to make a binding decision that could go against one of the parties, he said.

Rock disagrees with that.

"He's talking about binding arbitration. We have nine school board officials elected to make that decision for our community. It should not be made by an outsider to the community," he said.

The issue of whether it's best to make teacher strikes illegal is complicated, said Rep. Frank Farry, R-142, whose legislative district includes the Neshaminy School District.

Neshaminy's teachers union recently rejected a school board offer and is still negotiating its contract.

"If a bill had the proper dispute resolution to ensure that education was uninterrupted, then I think it's something we need to consider. But I still need to take a look at the language in this bill," Farry said.

Among local school districts, Pennsbury's union and school board decided to extend its current labor contract for another year with no cost-of-living increases.

Obama Calls for Overhaul of Education System

From the New York Times


Obama Calls for Overhaul of Education System

Article Tools Sponsored By
By DAVID STOUT and JEFF ZELENY
Published: March 10, 2009

WASHINGTON — President Obama called for sweeping changes in American education on Tuesday, urging states to lift limits on charter schools and exhorting teachers, parents and students to embrace a renewed commitment to learning from grade school through adulthood.

The president said it was time to erase limits on the number of charter schools, which his administration refers to as “laboratories of innovation,” while closing those that are not working. Teachers’ unions oppose the schools, saying they take away funding for public schools.

“I call on states to reform their charter rules, and lift caps on the number of allowable charter schools, wherever such caps are in place,” the president said, in his first major speech on education since he took office seven weeks ago. Caps now exist in 26 states and the District of Columbia, he said.

Putting limits on charter schools, even in places where they are performing well, “isn’t good for our children, our economy or our country,” the president said. He said recently in his budget message that he hoped to double financing for charter schools eventually, and that the Department of Education would help create “new, high-quality charter schools” while supporting the closing of those guilty of “chronic underperformance.”

Mr. Obama’s promotion of charter schools was virtually certain to be greeted with skepticism, at best, from teacher unions, as was his call for a system of merit pay for good teachers, which the president said would mean “treating teachers like the professionals they are, while also holding them more accountable.”

“New teachers will be mentored by experienced ones,” the president said, in an address to the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce here. “Good teachers will be rewarded with more money for improved student achievement, and asked to accept more responsibilities for lifting up their schools.”

Teacher union leaders reacted cautiously. Dennis Van Roekel, president of the National Education Association, said his union’s 3.2 million members “welcome the vision” laid out by the president and look forward to working with him and Education Secretary Arne Duncan “to transform public education to prepare students to compete in a global economy.”

Randi Weingarten, president of the 1.4 million-member American Federation of Teachers, said her union embraced “the goals and aspirations” outlined by President Obama. “As with any public policy, the devil is in the details, and it is important that teachers’ voices are heard as we implement the president’s vision,” Ms. Weingarten said.

In his address, the president said the United States’ prosperity, security and even the American dream itself are at risk unless the country reverses years of decline and restores its education system to pre-eminence. “Let there be no doubt,” Mr. Obama said. “The future belongs to the nation that best educates its citizens — and my fellow Americans, we have everything we need to be that nation.”

“It is time to give all Americans a complete and competitive education from the cradle up through a career,” Mr. Obama said. “We have accepted failure for too long — enough. America’s entire education system must once more be the envy of the world.”

In promoting a merit-based system of pay for teachers, which unions generally dislike because they say it could foster favoritism, the president was following through on positions he took during his campaign — and implicitly laying down a challenge to unions, traditionally reliable supporters of Democratic candidates.

The president said too many people in his party have resisted the idea of “rewarding excellence” with extra pay, while too many Republicans have opposed spending money on early education “despite compelling evidence of its importance.”

“The time for finger-pointing is over. The time for holding ourselves accountable is here,” Mr. Obama said. “What’s required is not simply new investments, but new reforms. It is time to expect more from our students.”

While the overwhelming number of teachers are “doing an outstanding job under difficult circumstances,” states and school districts should be able “to move bad teachers out of the classroom,” the president said.

While teacher unions have generally resisted merit-pay programs, there have been some successful experiments with them across the country, especially in districts where unions are involved from the beginning in developing them.

The address on Tuesday was the first step in laying out the president’s agenda to improve American schools, officials said, with more specifics to be outlined to Congress in the coming weeks. The president noted that the recently enacted stimulus package calls for spending some $5 billion on the Early Head Start and Head Start programs — an investment that he said would be rewarded by lower welfare rolls, fewer health care costs and less crime, as well as better classroom performance.

Mr. Obama set a goal of the United States having the highest proportion of college graduates in the world by 2020. Nothing less than that will suffice in the 21st Century, when Americans are competing in a world made ever smaller by the Internet, the president said.

The president said the Education Department “will use only one test when deciding what ideas to support with your precious tax dollars. It’s not whether an idea is liberal or conservative but whether it works.”

Charter school proponents were elated by the president’s speech. “With 365,000 students on charter waiting lists, there is no excuse for state laws that stifle the growth of these schools,” Nelson Smith, the president and chief executive of the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, said in a statement.

The president said new approaches to education should extend to the traditional school day and the school calendar, both of which should be longer. “We can no longer afford an academic calendar designed for when America was a nation of farmers who needed their children at home plowing the land,” he said.

School buses seen as potential terrorist targets

From the BCCT.

Finally...something Morrisville doesn't have that's a good thing.

School buses seen as potential terrorist targets
By AMANDA CREGAN
Bucks County Courier Times

Terrorism experts say homeland security begins at the school bus stop.

It's a school security gap that most parents, police and school officials don't always see, but terrorists do.

School buses can be vulnerable to a potential attacker, but are often overlooked in a school district's security plan.

That's why 75 police officers, detectives, emergency workers and school administrators from across Montgomery, Bucks and the rest of the Philadelphia region spent Monday learning how to shore up the gap in a course on "School Bus Safety in a Post 9/11 Era" held at the North Montco Technical Career Center in Towamencin and hosted by the Southeast Region Terrorism Taskforce.

Bus safety is an issue that presenter Curtis Lavarello says needs be to taken seriously.

"Based on the assumption by the FBI, there will be further terrorist attacks and school buses are soft targets," said the 23-year law enforcement veteran from Florida. "It's been found that children could be the next target for terrorists."

Because school districts are so fragmented in Pennsylvania, districts each decide if they will contract out for transportation or operate their own bus system, which makes it harder to streamline bus security across the state, he said.

Police and school administrators need to better monitor their school bus yards and need to know if the buses are in a secure compound, who has access to the buses, are they monitored by guards and are the lots properly lit.

Recently, a police officer happened to drive by a dark, unsecured school bus lot in Florida and spotted someone cutting the buses' brake lines, said Lavarello.

"It's a very real threat to our children across the country in terms of homeland security," he said.

But the first line of defense in school security can start with parents at the bus stop and the school bus drivers.

Parents need to be observant of individuals they've never seen before or strange vehicles in close proximity to their child's bus stop.

A potential attacker would also notice if parents habitually chat at length with bus drivers, prolonging the bus' stop and opening the site up to attack.

Bus drivers also need to be more aware of the emotional state of students on the bus, if they are crying or seem upset or depressed. Reporting disturbed students to school officials could be a way to stop them if they plan to carry out a violent school act.

"You have to realize that what happens in school, happens on the school bus. Everyone is focusing on the protection of schools, but the bus safety is really lacking," said Sean Burke, president of School Safety Advocacy Council. "I think we're sadly misinformed to think that people who plan to do our children harm don't know this."

Neshaminy: Full-day kindergarten nixed

From the BCCT.

But Morrisville still has it...

Full-day kindergarten nixed
By RACHEL CANELLI

High school administrators also talked about how they're saving money.

The vote's finally in and it's no way for full-day K - at least not next year.

During a strategic action committee meeting attended by more than 60 people that focused on the budget Monday night, the Neshaminy school board voted 6-3 that with a possible $14 million deficit, the district simply cannot afford to implement a full-day kindergarten program.

Board President Ritchie Webb recommended kicking the concept, which could cost several hundred thousand dollars, back to the administration for future reconsideration.

Board members Kim Koutsouradis, Richard Eccles and Frank Koziol, though, voted against the motion and for pursuing a plan.

Eccles said Neshaminy's students need early childhood intervention to help boost standardized test scores, and Koziol said he believes grants could fund the program.

"The conversation (about full-day K) cannot go away," said acting Superintendent Lou Muenker. "It's something our community will value and needs."

Meanwhile, the Neshaminy high school administrators said they're doing their part to help trim the fat.

Principal Alex Menio said faculty members are using electronic versus paper memos, and using white instead of colored paper.

Administrators said moving the ninth grade from the middle schools up to the high school next year could save about $100,000 by condensing athletic teams. That transition will also save the 34 cents per mile Neshaminy pays teachers who need to go to more than one building during the school day.

Officials are also looking at extending the life of uniforms, moving competitions within the district and putting course selection, newsletters, handbooks and policies online.

"We need your help," Webb told the high school staff. "Look at positions. We hope you'll continue to try to help us out."

The board also combed through some of the more than 70 suggestions from the public to cut expenses.

Some residents said they support the board looking at every dollar, and making hard decisions to help families struggling to pay their taxes. While other parents, and board members said the district needs to negotiate a new teacher's contract, or ask the certified staff to come up with concessions, before hurting the kids.

Although the board members said they're working on making a deal, district officials still need to find other ways to decrease costs.

More right to know updates

From the BCCT.

The pendulum swings wildly as the new law gets tested. Who knew that those homemade tapes of school board meetings are now part of the open records law and can be requested by others?

Open records law fuels spats with municipalities
By AMANDA PALLESCHI
The Associated Press

Every community has one: the gadfly, the complainer, the curmudgeon. The concerned citizen with a comment at the ready for the most ordinary of agenda items, pen in pocket for scouring budgets line by line to account for every dollar.

They are there to keep local government honest, with help from the state's new Right to Know Law that took effect in January.

But some municipalities are starting to complain that the law is miring them in paper work and creating logistical and financial headaches.

State and county agencies have set up offices and created positions to deal with requests under the new law. Borough feuds such as the 25-year battle that Jim Kilgore has waged against the Franklintown Borough Council in northern York County are testing how the law is working.

And Kilgore isn't just an interested citizen. He's a member of Borough Council.

"Municipal government touches residents in their everyday lives more than we do," said Joanne Burkhart, the open-records officer for Cumberland County. "They have more requests than we do."

Kilgore has made 16 requests since the law was enacted, and 11 replies were due to him by last week. The law allows five business days for replies, but the borough requested the maximum 30-day extension.

His requests ran the gamut of his gripes in the 25 years he's lived in the borough. How much is the borough secretary making? How much does the borough owe in liability insurance on a public park? What did the letter of complaint about him, read aloud at the last meeting, say?

"Things look and smell funny in this borough. That's all I really want to say," Kilgore said.

Dick Blouch, the Franklintown council president, estimated that Kilgore's requests will cost the borough $1,000 for certified mail and lawyer and administrative fees.

Governments of all sizes, even in small municipalities such as Franklintown, had better get used to it, said Matt Brouillette, the CEO of the Commonwealth Foundation, a Harrisburg-based nonprofit think tank that develops and promotes public policies.

"This is a new day in Pennsylvania where government is going to be more open and transparent. I don't have any sympathy for government," he said. "Go cry to somebody else. Don't cry to taxpayers and citizens."

Kilgore is serving a two-year term on the Borough Council after losing the election for a four-year term in 2007. But his involvement with its agendas and politics goes back years.

It all started with the trees, he said. In 1999, Kilgore collected the signatures of 31 borough residents unhappy with trees that the borough had planted along the sidewalks in front of their houses. The petition requested that the borough replace the sidewalks because the trees' roots were starting to break up the concrete. The borough eventually took care of the trees.

Kilgore also has complained about tax increases, a neighbor burning trash and a council member who Kilgore said made a racist remark at a gas station in town. Kilgore even was accused of lunging at borough secretary Deb Walker and threatening her during a heated discussion of the sanitation budget, and he was cited with disorderly conduct.

Blouch said Kilgore is not a new problem for the 532-resident borough with a $156,000 yearly budget. But he's escalated things recently.

"It paralyzes the function and the operation of the borough," Blouch said, noting that Walker has had to spend much of her day in the borough office on Baltimore Street searching for and collating Kilgore's requests.

"He's always been after records. It could be because he retired, so he has more time," Walker said.

While Kilgore and others like him might have long been filing requests, it is now more difficult for local governments to ignore them, said Barry Fox, the deputy director of open records for the state. His office held seminars to educate local government officials on the law before it went into effect Jan. 1.

Before then, Pennsylvania's Right to Know Law was known as one of the least transparent in the country. Now, Fox said, he sees appeals come into his office frequently from those who have been ignored _ 97 in January and February.

It all comes with the territory of more government transparency, he said. He's also seen municipal officials _ who know they have residents like Kilgore _ begin to squirm.

"These citizens exist in every municipality ... these gadflies ... We get asked a lot if they are going to come out of the woodwork now," Fox said.

Gary Berresford, the borough manager in Wormleysburg, has worried that his borough's longtime agitator will begin inundating the office with requests under the new law. That person has asked for the same documents repeatedly, Berresford said.

"It's not that they want those records _ it's that they want to harass the people to get those records," Berresford said. "They are unhappy with the borough, and they are asking for things they don't even need."

But borough councils can use the open-records law to their advantage, too.

Kilgore taped Franklintown's most recent meeting Feb. 4. The council vice president served an open-records request on behalf of six residents for Kilgore's tape. Such tapes were exempt under the state's previous Right to Know Law, but they recently were ruled fair game for such requests.

Kilgore is still waiting for his five most recent requests. He's also waiting to see whether they will help him keep his municipality on its toes.

"I used to ask about a budget and get served up some sort of legal goodie," he said.

And now?

It took the full 30 days, but Walker mailed Kilgore an itemized list of answers to his first 11 requests, with eight pages of enclosed copies of treasurer's bonds and contact information for the borough's waste management service.

Kilgore's not satisfied, he said. He said he can't read the sanitation budget. Now he's waiting eagerly for replies to his remaining five requests.

If he's still not happy with the responses, there's always the appeals process.

And More Band Fallout

From the BCCT.

Another letter about the poorly phrased opinion piece condemning the band.

Yes, the BCCT has apologized for their lack of foresight and editing skills. It is not a mystery how that appeared in the paper. We know that it's good press policy to get the back and forth going with each side lining up to fire another volley of verbiage and then purchase the newspaper to see the results each day. Another day, another volley. It keeps circulation up.

Maybe, as was pointed out, the original writer did make a real hash of her point, that Pennsbury is the shining city on the hill, a beacon pointing to educational Nirvana, while Morrisville (always said with that slightly condescending twist and tone of voice), just doesn't have what it takes.

I can read the newspapers too. There's lots of people in Pennsbury who see the warts over there, as well as the good. There's good and bad in Morrisville too. Why do so many people persist in the very un-original mantra chant of Pennsbury good, Morrisville bad? Because it's easy and cheap. Aren't you tired of so many people mindlessly bashing Morrisville because it's become part of their daily day: Get up, shower, drink coffee, bash Morrisville, go to work...?

It's because right here at home, perversely, that the negative Morrisvillains dominate the political landscape. School board members who want to close the schools. Council members who want to shut the town.

If you like what you see everyday in the newspapers, then vote for the same old people with the same old ways of running things. If you want a change, then be the change and come out and vote.

And if you want Guy to do a better job of editing next time: gpetroziello@phillyBurbs.com

Misguided argument
By GUY PETROZIELLO
Bucks County Courier Times
Editor’s note: An apology has been offered.

Once again, the students of Morrisville High were the easy target of a misguided argument, when a recent guest opinion compared a live concert to a televised graduation. Though the author's points may resonate to some, she insulted the many hard-working souls of the Morrisville music program.

An apology should be offered to the students of Morrisville High School, who have felt enough negativity over the last few years, despite increasing test scores and an award-winning band.

Ken Kelman

West Philadelphia