Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

I hope everyone has a nice holiday break...you deserve it.

For help with Weber District insurance questions...call Denise House (Our GBS consultant) at 801-364-7233 and for UHC specific questions...call Heidi Schmit (account rep) at 801-982-4525.

For help with Ogden District insurance questions...call Amy Thissen (Ogden HR office) at 801-737-7325

Rick

Governor Herbert and Conservative Legislators Speak the Same Language

Bob Bernick, Deseret News (Dec. 18), said that the governor and the legislative leadership will have a "love fest" this year in the session. Gov. Herbert has more in common with the conservative leadership than either Huntsman, Leavitt or Walker. We will have to wait and watch what happens. Will this be a good thing (working together and such) or a bad thing (working together and such)? Remember that Gov. Herbert has remained solidly against any tax increases. All ideas should remain on the table until we have a budget that funds education. Shall we expect large increases this year? Probably not, but at least pay for the new 11,000 to 12,000 new students arriving in August, 2010.

Rick

Courtney White Leaves UEA Staff

Courtney White, Utah Education Association Director of Policy and Research, is leaving Utah to become the lobbyist and Government Relations person for University of Oregon in Eugene. We wish him luck in his new position and thank him for his many hours of service to our UEA members and public ed in Utah.

Rick

Proud Grandfather Bores others with Pictures

HI, Here are a few pictures of my new grand baby, Gracie Lane Palmer, (with her older sister Drew Ann) who reside in Goodyear, AZ.

My blog...my choice of subjects...so there.. Rick

SL Tribune: "Is double-dipping done for""

Go to www.sltrib.com to read the article about the concerns lawmakers have over the practice of teachers (and other public employees) returning to work after retiring and receiving their pension plus a 401K contribution (around 15%). The term "double dipping" is offensive, but the public sees it that way. We know that teachers endure low pay and tough conditions with the hope of a good retirement benefit. When teachers were in high demand (that will return) districts saw value in bringing an experienced teacher back into the classroom. The debate will be intensifying January 25th when the legislative session begins. Again, go to www.utea.org and click on the "Under the Dome" logo to fine your legislator. As a constituent, you can make a difference. Rick

Arizona legislature makes sweeping changes to state teacher contracts

The AZ legislature removed seniority, salary and contract guarantees from teacher contracts.

"School districts will be prohibited from using tenure or seniority as a factor in determining which teachers can be laid off. Additonally, school districts no longer have to honor seniority when they rehire." Arizona Republic

"Gone is an April 15 deadline that required school districts to notify teachers of their contract status for the following school year."

"Guv's Budget Oozes Optimism"-Deseret News

Read the article online at www.deseretnews.com.

• Governor's budget paints a rosier picture.
• The shortfall is not going to be as bad.
• No tax or fee increases.
• Budget is announced today.

Rick

Legislators Meet with Chamber of Commerce

Last year our UniServ joined the Weber Chamber of Commerce with the goal of representing our teachers in the discussion of public ed funding. We had our Legislative Breakfast last Tuesday and heard from Rep. Brad Dee (Majority Whip of the House). I was gratified to hear him say that businesses' number one request when thinking of moving to Utah is "Where are the good schools?". He also reported that the budget deficit will come to about $700 million ( a little bit less than the $850 Million we have been hearing). He is in a position of leadership and it is important that he represents our interests here in Weber County. Several other legislators were in attendance: Ryan Wilcox, Dist. 7 representative, Sen. Jenkins, Sen. Christensen, and Sen. Jon Greiner.

Our meetings will continue in January when the session begins. We will also be meeting at the legislature.

Rick

Who is my legislator???

UEA's website, www.utea.org, provides an easy way to identify your State legislators (House and Senate) . Click on the the "Under the Dome" logo at the UEA website, Click on the "Get involved-Take Action! Contact your elected official" logo. Enter your zip code, click and then fill in your address. Your elected officials will appear. It is important to know your legislator, because they will respond (or at least read) your email if you identify yourself as one of their "constituents" (members of their voting district). As the legislative session begins, it will be important to contact our legislators.

Thanks Rick

Utah School Law Update

I sent our building reps the link for the Utah School Law Update (comes from Jean Hill, attorney for the Utah Professional Practices Commission) this week. I think it is interesting and useful for our teachers to read. With all of the bad press some "bad apples" have received in the news this year, it was nice to see Jean write about the reality of the low percentage of teachers who actually have transgressed compared to all of the fine teachers who do not cross the boundaries of acceptable behavior. Read the entire article at www.schools.utah.gov/uppac/

Rick

"Let's Get Down and Physical" Activity

Suzy Davis, Future Educator advisor at Ogden High, and Stephanie Heath, WSU FEA advisor, along with FEA students from OHS, Ben Lomond High, Northridge High, and WSU put together a night of physical activities at the Swenson Gym for children with Downs Syndrome and their families. Brandi Christopher, WSU physical ed student, said, "It's just great to see these kids having so much fun." It also gave the students a chance to work with special needs kids in preparation to starting an education career.

Rick

Link Newsletter Survey

The contest for this month is emailing me with your opinion on the Link Newsletter.... Email or written copy? Our entries are coming in about 2 to 1 for an electronic newsletter. Our survey on survey monkey also came in about 66% to 33%. If you have not entered the contest, send me an email (rick@ogdenweber.org) letting me know your opinion. We will draw for gift cards in the January AR meeting.

Thanks for all you do for kids.

Rick

New UEA Head of Government Relations Hired

Larry Shumway, state supt. of schools, said (in an article in Deseret News a couple of weeks ago) "Comparing poor school funding with children who get a terrible sunburn at a summer pool, the bad effects are often seen later. Down the road, the cumulative effect harms our work force, it's felt in our communities, 10 years and 20 years later."

It will be the goal of UEA's newest lobbyist, Kory Holdaway, to lead the legislative battle when the session starts in January. Kory, a former UEA member from Taylorsville High, is eager to get started. He also has the experience of being a former Republican Legislator in the House. He brings this experience to the job of lobbying the legislator and working to elect educator-friendly candidates.

Please help by being aware of the issues and contacting your legislators.

Thanks Rick

Teachers should be treated with respect and trust

John Florez, in a SL Trib comment from Nov. 23, wrote "People don't mind paying taxes on education but not if it's just to keep it on life support." He goes on to say, "Public education will change when its leaders create a culture where teachers are treated with respect and trust in their professional ablilities." I don't always agree with Mr. Florez on all of his opinions, but I do agree that the culture needs to change in Utah. We, as educators, need to continue to be professionals in all aspects of our jobs.

Rick

Legislators Meet with Association Leadership

All ten of our Weber County legislators met with OEA/WEA leadership last evening to talk about public education funding and retirement changes. Glen Larsen, PAC chair, organized the evening. OEA President Doug Stephens and WEA President Marlene Irons presented information to the legislators and a discussion followed. Brad Dee, House Speaker, said that he has been working with Sen. Liljenquist, Bountiful, on any changes to the retirement program. Actuarials have told the legislators that without changes in contribution rates or benefits, the program will not be able to pay out the defined benefits of those retiring in the next few years. He feels that all of the employees at this time should be "held harmless" and that any changes would affect new employees. It will be a hot topic at the session this year.

Rick

Don't Cut Education

The Salt Lake Tribune editorialized a week ago about not cutting education funding. We are waiting now for Governor Herbert's budget request that is due Dec. 11. The shortfall is predicted at somewhere between $850 Million and $1 Billion. Much of that is from the stimulus money that backfilled the budget last year but is not there this year. Student numbers are predicted to increase by about 12,000 students. Our association leaders will be meeting with local legislators tonight and presenting the concerns that we have with the upcoming legislative session. It will take a combination of tax increases, rainy day fund, and creative budgeting to keep services at their current status.

Go to www.utea.org and click on the "Under the Dome" icon to read more about what is happening at the legislature.

Rick

Association leaders to meet with Legislators Tuesday

Our UniServ leadership will be meeting with our Weber County Legislators Tuesday night to present some ideas on public ed funding and protecting our state retirement system from changes. Stay tuned. rick

Have a nice Turkey Day Break

Hope you enjoy the break to eat and visit with family. We will trekking northward to the cold country of Aberdeen, Idaho for good food and family time. Last week I had an early Thanksgiving Dinner (Shrimp at Red Lobster in St. George) with kids and grandkids. Nothing better than seeing the kids growing up and raising beautiful babies. Rest up, eat a lot, watch a lot of football, and enjoy the family.

Rick

Future Educators Meet at WSU

Over 150 students from as far away as Provo, are meeting today at Weber State University for breakout sessions and competitions with the Future Education Association as the sponsor. Students from Weber Ed 1010 FEA Chapter (Joan Iverson, advisor), OHS FEA Chapter (Suzy Davis, advisor) , and BLHS FEA Chapter (Mindy Knowles and Tammy Johansen-Brown, advisors) are attending. The students will gain some insight into the teaching career, while their advisors receive training also. I helped judge "Impromptu Speeches" in the competitions that were held.

Stephanie Heath, WSU College of Ed, organized the day. WSU also has a FEA chapter on campus.

Rick

Future Educators Meet at

Jordan School District Looks at more Budget Cuts

Jordan District is looking at a possible $29 million shortfall and is announcing possible budget cuts for the 2010-11 budget.

The following ideas are on the table:

• a permanent 2% pay cut for all employees
• a three day furlough
• bumping up class sizes by four students
• the elimination of programs and services

None of the districts will know their funding until after the Legislative sesssion. Lawmakers have told districts to expect anywhere from a 3 to 7 % cut next year.

Rick

Legislature Committee Looks at extending Provisional Years

A legislative committee passed a bill that would extend provisional years from three to five. We oppose this extension because it will cost more in mentoring and administrators will have to extend the evaluations out two more years. Administrators can determine whether a teacher can make it after a couple of years of evaluations.

Blog Contest

For November and December I would like you to email me (rick@ogdenweber.org) and let me know if you like the Link Newsletter sent to you by email and posted on the website (www.ogdenweber.org) or would you rather receive a paper copy. Your email entry will go into our drawing for gift cards at the January AR meetings.

Thanks Rick

Lawmaker warns of budget shortfall-Deseret News

"Things look pretty bleak," says Sen. Lyle Hillyard in today's Bob Bernick article.(http://www.deseretnews.com/)

New tax-revenue numbers will be released, along with Gov. Herbert's budget, in December.
Legislators had planned on a $850 million deficit, but it could be worse.

Districts and State Increase Teacher Codes of Conduct

Read Amy Stewart's front page story, "Are Students Safe from Predators?" at www.deseretnews.com

Both Weber and Ogden Districts are looking at beefing up the "Code of Conduct", while implementing the state's new "self-reporting" rules and background checks and fingerprinting for relicensure.

Don't be surprised if the the legislature also tackles this issue.

One instance of inappropriate behavior with students is too many, but the percentage of cases compared to the thousands of teachers and student relationships that are not inappropriate is small. Teachers are held to a high standard of trust. Any breach of that trust will reach the headlines of the newspapers and lead on the nightly news.

One new story gives the newspapers the opportunity to revisit all other past stories and gives the impression of some sort of trend. It is our hope that all teachers will continue to maintain professional relationships with their students.

Rick

More Retirement Woes...Continued

Today's Deseret News has an article by Lisa Riley Roche detailing the Interim committee on retirement's meeting yesterday. Read it at http://www.deseretnews.com/

The committee offered no recommendations, but heard four hours of testimony. They were told that the retirement system would run out of money in 30 years if the government's contribution did not increase. The good news came from the system's director, Robert Newman, who reported that the fund had earned an extra $1 Billion this year. Our Ogden Senator, Jon Greiner, raised the most concerns about the audit. He countered that it is only "one half of one percent" of employees who retire in place. (receiving their retirement, salary, and 401 K)

Read the entire article.

Rick

Legislative Audit Blasts "double-dipping" of retirees

The legislative audit of the rehiring of retirees has been released and you can read about it at http://www.deseretnews.com/ . Public Education leads with 2,121 rehirees who receive their state retirement, plus a payment to their 401 (k) program instead of payment to the URS. House Speaker Dave Clark said, "There needs to be and should be some changes." Sen. Liljenquist (Davis County), chair of the committee dealing with retirement said, "We knew it was a problem. We didn't know how deep."

Look for the next session to make some changes.

Rick

WEA Winners of the Blog Contest

Congrats to Shanna Campbell at North Ogden Jr. High, Michael Smith at Rocky Mt. Jr. High, and Bryan Hatch at Two Rivers High for winning $25.00 Smith's gift cards...to help with turkey day.
Stay tuned for December's contest. Rick

UEA Awards

Go to www.utea.org to see the nomination forms for the "Golden Apple Award" for volunteers at your school. Also look for the nomination forms for the "Great Public Schools Celebration".

State Supt. Larry Shumway Proposes Budget

Read Amy Stewart's article at www.deseretnews.com "Ed Board calls for holding line on 2010 Budget" in todays edition.
The state board is proposing a 2.5 Billion dollar budget (same as last year) which doesn't pay for the possible 11,000 to 12,000 new students we will be seeing next year. That equates to a 2% decrease. That, of course, "means fewer teachers, larger classes, and lower benefits and salaries", Larry Shumway said.

Rick Have a nice weekend.

The Perfect Storm: More students, less cash

Read two articles in the Salt Lake Tribune today dealing with public ed budgets:

• Lisa Schenker writes about the increase in students and lower budgets www.sltrib.com
• Another article talks about the lack of tax revenues (down 22%)

It is a perfect storm of low revenues, no stimulus, more students, lack of support to raise taxes, lack of leadership in the state legislature to make the tough choices. (oh, they want to make districts, actually teachers's salaries, pay more of their retirement).

Our per pupil expenditure will continue to drop while the expectations for teachers, higher test scores, increase. Debra Roberts, chair of the State Board of Ed, understates the problem, "It is going to be tough year..."

Rick

Mary Jessop and Chris Heslop Winners of Gift Cards

Mary Jessop, Washington High, and Chris Heslop, Ogden High, were winners of the blog contest in Ogden this month.

The Ogden School Board is looking at the possibiltiy of opening one of the closed elementary schools because of overcrowding at the district's elementary schools. Taylor and Lynn are two that could open, causing boundary changes in several other schools. All but one of the elementary schools have portables. Meetings are being held in the areas affected by the possible moves.

Rick

Pete Jahsman-Utah 3-A Swim Coach of the Year

Pete Jahsman, OHS swim coach, was awarded the 3-A Utah Swim Coach of the year award last Wednesday at the Ogden School Board meeting. Pete led the boys team to state championship last year.

Utah Legislative Retirement Committee to meet Nov. 12

Check out the agenda of the Legislative Retirement Committee meeting scheduled on Nov. 12. Go to www.le.state.ut.us and click on Interim Committees. It would be great to email your legislators (Neil Hansen and Jon Greiner) and remind them that our system is solid and we do not need changes made (especially when salaries are shrinking) to our retirement system.

Check the past blog entries for instructions for the Contest. (OEA draws Monday, Nov 2)

Rick

Shawna Blamires-T.O. Smith-Focus on Excellence Award

Shawna Blamires, an exceptional T.O. Smith teacher, was awarded the Tony Divino "Focus on Excellence" award last night at the Ogden School Board meeting. Shawna does a lot for the school including organizing the many clubs at the school. Congratulations to a great teacher.

Professionalism Presentations

Yesterday I presented to Kristin Hadley's Ed 1010 class at WSU on Professionalism and Ethics. I talked to the students about the responsibilities of educators to provide a correct role model and keep their relationships appropriate. We discussed several court cases and talked about the ethical standards teachers are asked to live by.

This morning I gave a similar presentation to the faculty at North Ogden Jr. High. I appreciate the invitation from Principal Butters and I always enjoy visiting with educators about our protections and responsibilities of the negotiated agreement.

You only have a few days to enter the contest: email me with one bad retirement idea that I wrote about in the October Link Article. Uniserv website: www.ogdenweber.org

(rick@ogdenweber.org)

We will draw Monday, Nov. 2 for Ogden's winners and Nov. 9 for Weber's winners.

Thanks Rick

Jill Hislop Gibson: Finalist in Utah Teacher of the Year

Polk Elementary teacher, Jill Hislop Gibson, was chosen as one of four finalists for the Utah State Teacher of the year. Jill is a great teacher and was a fantastic representative of Ogden District educators. We are proud of Jill's contributions to students at Polk.

Contest: Go to www.ogdenweber.org and read the Executive Director's message, then email rick@ogdenweber.org and list one of the many bad ideas to cut retirement.

Thanks Rick

Ethics Initiative Prompts Legislators to Devise Plans

Bob Bernick and Lisa Riley Roche wrote last Thursday in the Deseret News that the legislature is on the "verge of historic ethics actions" because of the citizen initiative petition push. The legislature met in interim meetings last Wednesday and outlined their own reform ideas that would include:

• Creation of an independent ethics commission.
• The commission would review ethics charges.
• Legislative committees could then punish the legislator.
• The House or Senate would vote on any disciplinary action.

Go to http://www.deseretnews.com/ and read the entire article (Thursday, Oct. 22)

Last chance to enter the Contest: Go to the uniserv webpage (http://www.ogdenweber.org/) and read the Executive Director's message and email me one of the bad changes that could be made in our retirement program. (rick@ogdenweber.org)

Thanks. We will pick for winners at the November AR meetings. Rick

"Race to the Top" 4.3 Billion Dollars for Schools

Many of you have heard of President Obama's Education Secretary, Arne Duncan. Some of you have also heard about a program called "Race to the Top" where states can apply for grants of millions of dollars to help public ed. A total of 4.3 billion is available but there are some strings attached. To read more about this program, google David Brooks, NY Times columnist, and read the "Quiet Revolution" in the op ed page today. Many of the reforms that the program requires are controversial. They include using student test scores to evaluate and give pay increases to teachers. Also, states which have limited or capped the number of charter schools would not get the money. Many states are in the process of changing their laws to accomodate these grants. It will be interesting to see what is included in Utah's grant request. I hope we, as professionals, are open to look at certain reforms without giving away our basic principles. I don't think we want our teachers' association to be considered opposed to all reforms, but we must be careful. Keep monitoring this situation. Rick

Have you signed an Ethics Initiative Petition?

We have petitions for the "Ethics Initiative" here at the Ogden/Weber UniServ office (939 25th St). Please stop by and sign the petition and/or pick up a petition to take to your school to help get signatures. Check out the UEG website (www.utahnsforethicalgovernment.org) to read more about the initiative.

Enter the contest by going to the Ogden/Weber UniServ website and email me Brad Dee's voting record from the Political Action site.

We will pick winners at our OEA and WEA AR meetings in November.

Thanks Rick

Teachers Under Scrutiny: SL Tribune Article

In today's SL Trib, Kristen Stewart writes about a group of public school teachers (30-50) who "have come under scutiny for criminal violations severe enough to merit possible reprimand or dismissal." She writes, "that's only one-quarter of 1 percent of Utah's 20,000 licensed educators all of whom recently underwent criminal background checks in an effort to improve systems for vetting school employees."

Go to http://www.sltrib.com/ to read the entire article.

Don't forget the CONTEST: Go the http://www.ogdenweber.org/ and check the Political Action logo and email me (rick@ogdenweber.org) with Brad Dee's voting record.

Thanks Rick

Ogden/Weber UniServ Legislative Dinner

Our Ogden/Weber UniServ Political Action Committee met last week and planned a dinner for our association leaders, district superintendants, and local legislators to meet and discuss the upcoming legislative session. We will meet in December to share our concerns and listen to possible funding sources: Rainy Day Fund, Tax Increases, etc. Budget projections do not paint a pretty picture with no substantial increase in projected tax revenues. We will need pressure placed by you on the legislators to do the right thing. We are starting early to dialog with our county legislators. Talk to your legislator now.

Thanks Rick

Deseret News: "Don't Kill Charter Schools"

Last week the Deseret News editorialized that cuts in state budgets could hurt the growth of charter schools. Today, it was reported that only two of the seven proposed charter schools would be allowed by the state. The state charter board is looking close at the applicants and looking for quality. Budget cuts would naturally allow less money for new schools. The D News said "there is no clear-cut solution to this issue or, for that matter, to the dilemma lawmakers face balancing the 2010-11 budget during a significant revenue shortfall. Dipping into the state's Rainy Day funds is a given. So is raising the state tobacco tax. It remains to be seen if legislators will be willing to raise the state income tax, which is solely earmarked for the support of public schools and colleges, in order to keep class sizes at reasonable levels in K-12 education and tuition affordable for college students."

NEW CONTEST: GO TO TO WWW.OGDENWEBER.ORG CLICK ON THE POLITICAL ACTION LOGO AND GIVE ME THE VOTING RATING (PERCENTAGE) OF BRAD DEE IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

Thanks Rick

Class Size a First Priority

We were glad to see the Standard-Examiner editorial board encourage the Utah State Legislature to fund student growth. Ogden's elementary schools are busting at the seams. Heritage has swelled to 873 students almost as many as Ben Lomond High. All of the elementary schools in Ogden (except the newest Shadow Valley) have portable classrooms. The Ogden School Board is looking at possible solutions which could include opening up one or more of the closed elementary schools. Weber District is also anticipating growth returning. It will be important for the UEA and our members to continue to apply pressure to the legislature for substantial funding. Our Ogden/Weber UniServ Political Action Committee met last night to discuss ways of letting our Weber County legislators know of our needs. It is important that each of you pay attention to the concerns and communicate with your legislator. As the economy recovers, we hope that the tax revenues will increase and the legislature will use the "rainy day funds" to help backfill the deficits.

CONTEST: GO TO THE UNISERV WEBSITE (WWW.OGDENWEBER.ORG) AND EMAIL RICK PALMER THE LIST OF YOUR EXECUTIVE BOARD MEMBERS. RICK@OGDENWEBER.ORG

Have a great weekend. Rick

Doug Stephens-OEA President

OEA has a new president this year. Doug Stephens teaches U.S History and Government at Ben Lomond High School. He is a graduate of Bonneville High, Weber State and Utah State University. He and his wife Julie (Hatch) have four beautiful children. Doug also teaches a class at WSU and loves to spend his free time riding his four-wheelers. He takes students on tours of the Washington, D.C area each year. It has been great to work with Doug this year.

Marlene Irons-President of Weber Education Association

Marlene Irons has been involved with WEA since 1991 (Jr. High Rep) in many different roles. Marlene teaches FACS at South Ogden Jr. High and has been a teacher since 1974 (she beats me by two years). She has served as WEA President since 2003. I have enjoyed working with Marlene because of her strong work ethic and willngness to fight for teachers. Marlene is a huge reason that WEA is as strong an association as it is today. Thanks Marlene for your many years of service to teachers and students in Weber.

Rick (sorry about no blog yesterday, visiting my parents in Aberdeen, Idaho)

If you are interested in entering the contest, please go to the UniServ website at http://www.ogdenweber.org/ and send me a list of the executive board members from your association. Thanks We will draw for gift cards at the Nov. AR meeting.

Glen Larsen-WEA Executive Board Member

Glen Larsen, South Ogden Jr. High social studies and math teacher for 10 years, serves as our Ogden/Weber UniServ Political Action Committee Chair and as a member of the WEA Executive Board. He has a B.S. and a M.ED from Weber State University. His amazing wife teaches at Roy Jr. High and he has three great children. Glen lives in South Willard and is a great leader.

Meet Jo Egelund-WEA Executive Board

Jo Egelund, one of our newest WEA Board members, has taught Agriculture Science at Fremont High for 14 years out of a total of 18 years in the profession. She is a proud graduate of USU for both her B.S. and Masters of Science. We are so lucky to have Jo as a member of our WEA Executive Board. She brings so many talents and energy to our association.

Paul Fawson-WEA Executive Board-UniServ Vice-President

Paul Fawson, auto mechanics instructor at Roy High for 26 years, is doing double duty this year as our Ogden/Weber UniServ Vice-President and a WEA Executive Board member. He is ASE certified in 8 areas of automotive repair and also has a degree in counseling. He has received the "I Love Teaching" award from Weber District and an Award of Merit in the Boy Scouts. He and his lovely wife, Lynette, live in West Haven. Thanks Paul for all you do.

Deseret News and SL Tribune Editorialize Support for Public Education

It was good to see editorials in both the SL Trib and the Des News this week supportive of increased public education. Both editorials commented on the UEA reports of low funding expressed during sessions of the UEA Convention. Public support will be crucial in another tough budget year...maybe even tougher than last year..

Spotlight on Sherrie Dame-OEA Executive Board

Sherrie Dame, Polk Elementary, has taught for 38 years. She has three children, Nathan (an actor in NYC), Shannon, a graduate student, and Tammy a beautician. Beckam is her grandson and a cute kid. ( I still have his cute handprints on my patio door). Sherrie graduated from Weber State College (hmmm) and received her Masters from BYU. She is a great teacher and fantastic member of our negotiations team and is serving on the boundary committee. We value her experience and wisdom. Thanks, Sherrie, for your service to Ogden teachers and students.

Thousands Attend UEA Convention

Teachers from all over the state attended the two-day UEA Convention last week. The New Teacher Workshop was especially well-attended. Terie Maxfield (UEA Board), a teacher at Farr West, said that her sessions were full and they had to send people away. Keynoters, Lily Eskelsen and Harry Wong highlighted the conference. Two Weber teachers, Norm Unck and Pam Searson, received Excellence in Teaching awards at the banquet Thursday night. Ogden's teacher of the year, Jill Hislop Gibson, and Weber's teacher of the year, Matt Patterson, also attended.

Check last week's blog for contest directions. Rick

New Contest: Visit the Website www.ogdenweber.org

Both OEA and WEA are sending out the Link Newsletter electronically this month. Your building reps will be receiving it today and they should forward it to you by email. We are also posting the pages on the UniServ website: http://www.ogdenweber.org/ Our web master, Mike Fazzio at Riverdale Elementary, has done a great job designing our new page. To enter our CONTEST please go to the website and send me an email listing the executive board members from your association (WEA for Weber and OEA for Ogden). My email is rick@ogdenweber.org and we will compile all of the entries and draw for $25 dollar gift cards at our November AR meeting. Bookmark this blog on your favorites and check it each day for updates on education isssues.

Thanks Rick

Ethics Reform petition drive held up by Lt. Gov. Bell

Lt. Governor Greg Bell held up the petitions for the Utahns for Ethical Government initiative until he could be sure it was constitutional. Petitions can not be distributed until they are certified by his office. Seven open hearings (as needed by the law) have been held with an extra hearing to take place at Mound Fort Junior High at 7 pm tonight. You can read more at www.deseretnews.com with Bob Bernick Jr.'s article. You can also go to www.utahnsforethicalgovernment.org to see the petition.

Rick

Open Hearing for Ethics Initiative

Go to the website www.utahnsforethicalgovernment.org
to find out more out about the initiative campaign. An open hearing will be held at Mound Fort Junior High Media Center, Sept. 29, Tuesday, at 7 pm. Representatives from the UEG will be there and questions will be taken.

UEA Convention Oct. 1 and 2

Hope everyone is planning to attend the UEA Convention, Oct. 1 and Oct 2 at the South Town Exposition Center in Sandy. Go to http://www.utea.org/ to see the schedule. New teachers and students are welcome to register online for the New Teachers Workshop on Friday, Oct. 2. Thursday night, two of our fine educators will receive awards at the UEA Superstars Banquet.

Pam Searson, Special Ed teacher at Sand Ridge was nominated by Debbie Green and Norm Unck, Science teacher at Wahlquist was nominated by Warren White. We congratulate these fine educators for their dedication.

Rick

Check out the new NEA Member Benefits Website

To check out savings and membership benefits go to the NEA Member Benefits website at www.neamb.com Register and check out the many savings. Make your membership work for you.

Check out Access Card savings at the www.utea.org website. Register and log on for lots of savings certificates.

Your membership card is good until December. New cards will be sent out before then.

Thanks Rick

Weber Teachers Chosen for "Excellence in Teaching" Awards

Two fine WEA members have been nominated and chosen as recipients of the UEA's "Excellence in Teaching" awards. Norm Unck, Wahlquist Jr. High science teacher, and Pamela Searson, Sand Ridge Jr. High Special Ed teacher, will recieve their awards and a $1500.00 check at the UEA Superstars in Education Banquet, Oct. 1 at the Hilton Garden Inn in Sandy. We are so proud of all of the fine educators in Ogden and Weber districts.

Rick

GOP Will Oppose Citizen Initiatives

Both the Republican legislative leadership and the GOP state committee have come out in opposition to the "ill-advised" legislative ethics and redistricting initiatives. Bob Bernick and Arthur Raymond write in the Deseret News today that "Dave Hansen, state GOP chairman, said it is too early to detail what the majority party in Utah may do in trying to defeat the initiatives."
Ogden will hold a hearing on the Ethics Initiative at Mound Fort Jr. High, Sept. 29, at 7 pm in the media center. Read the entire article at www.deseretnews.com


Rick

UEA New Teacher Workshop, Oct. 2

I visited with several student teachers at WSU last week and invited them to the UEA Convention New Teachers' Workshop, Friday, Oct. 2 at the South Towne Exposition Center. I am visiting with more tomorrow. The new teacher workshop is full of great speakers and break out sessions for new and future teachers. Please make a special invitation to any student teachers or new teachers in your building. They can register online at www.utea.org


Rick

AYP Scores Reported

Check the Standard-Examiner for an article about the Ogden and Weber AYP scores. Scores in both Weber and Ogden have risen.

Deficit of revenues of $150 million

Lisa Riley Roche (www.deseretnews.com) wrote on Sept. 16 that state revenues could fall short this budget year by as much as $150 Million. That could cause more cuts in education and other programs when legislators meet in January, 2010. The next revenue estimates are in December and we can only hope that the economy's slow rebound will speed up.

Rick

Ethics Initiative Hearing - Sept. 29 Mound Fort Media Center

I would like to invite you to an open hearing for the Ethics Initiative, Sept. 29, 7-9 pm, at the Mound Fort media center. Representatives from the group sponsoring the petition drive will be there to explain the initiative. The initiative would limit legislator gifts, campaign contributions, and set up an independent ethics commission.

Rick

New Future Educators Association Chapter in Weber

We are excited to announce a new FEA chapter in Weber District. Joan Iverson's Ed 1010 class is excited to join our Ogden and Davis chapters in exploring the teaching career. One of their first activities will be "Read for the Record" where the students will read "A Very Hungry Caterpillar" to as many children as possible in one day in October. We have ordered books for the students, who will donate the books after the program. Joan does a great job with her Ed 1010 concurrent enrollment class that meets at West Haven Elementary School. They meet for instruction and then work in classrooms for practical experience.

Rick

Dinosaur Park a big success

Around 400 association members and their guest enjoyed a lovely fall evening at the dinosaur park Friday night. It was good to see the families of our educators enjoying themselves.

Rick

Utah Hopes to Cash in on Federal Money for Schools

Lisa Schencker (http://www.sltrib.com/) writes about Utah's chances to access a possible $400 Million dollars of Federal "Race to the Top" stimulus money offered to states who are at the cutting edge of reform. UEA's president, Kim Campbell, stated, "We support any effort for additional money to Utah's underfunded educational system. We hope this grant process doesn't repeat the mistakes of NCLB with a reliance on a single test score." Two of the more controversial issues are teacher evaluations that use test scores as part of the criteria and the encouragment of more charter schools. Read the entire article for more info.

Reminder: Dinosaur Park Party Tonight, 6 pm.

Rick

NEA Foundation offers grants

Go to www.neafoundation.org to see available grants for your teaching. Also contact Kate Bideaux at bideauxk@ogdensd.org for grant writing tips.

Retirees Facing a $6.5 Billion Shortfall

The Utah State Legislature heard testimony yesterday, that discussed the dramatic loss in the retirement system as a result of last year's financial collapse. The legislature might move to increase the amount that employees and employers pay into the fund. Read Lisa Riley Roche's article at www.deseretnews.com

Don't forget the Dinosaur Park Party tomorrow night, Friday, Sept. 11 at 6 pm.

Rick

Dinosaur Park Party Friday, Sept. 11 6-8pm

Don't forget the Dinosaur Park Party Friday for members and families. Starts at 6 pm. Bring your flyer for entrance to the park and dinner. See you there.

Use your membership card to access savings

Log in to www.utea.org with your membership card and discover everything from fast food to fine dining restaurants near you. You can fill up on savings at places like: Papa Johns, Einstein Bros. Bagels, Johnny Rockets and Hot Dog on a stick.

Rick

Invitation to all members and new teachers

Please join us at the Eccles Dinosaur Park, Friday, Sept. 11 at 6 pm for our annual OEA/WEA Membership Appreciation Party. Please bring your families and join us for a night of fun and food. Your flyer with Horace Mann info is your ticket in (we will have extra at the door if your lose or forget your flyer). Hamburgers, chips, drinks and creamies will be served. We appreciate our sponsor, Horace Mann, for their support.

See you there. Rick

Gov. Herbert Chooses Budget Efficiency Commission

Read in the Deseret News (http://www.deseretnews.com/) "New Panel to examine budget cuts", about Governor Herbert's choice for a budget efficiency commission. The commission will be headed by former Gov. Bangerter with help from Nolan Karras, Fraser Bullock and Charlie Johnson. The commission will have about 10 members and will study efficiency in state government.

Rick

UEA Convention

October 1 and 2 are the dates for the UEA Convention held at the South Towne Exposition Center at 9575 South State in Sandy.

Highlights include: NEA VP Lily Eskelsen, KSL Radio Personality Amanda Dickson, IDEA Fair, Author, Harry Wong and the Superstars Banquet.

We invite all new teachers to the New Teachers Workshop, Friday, Oct. 2.

Look for your booklet coming soon to your home.

Rick

Nominate a fellow teacher for "UEA Excellence in Teaching" award

Go to www.utea.org and look for the application for "Excellence in Teaching" award ($1500.00) to be awarded at the UEA convention banquet. It is a simple form and nominations must be in by Sept. 15.

Also look for the "UEA Honor Roll" award given to a person or business (non-educator) who has provided outstanding service to education in your community.

Finally, the "Charles E. Bennett UEA Human and Civil Rights Award" will be given to an educator or non-educator working in the area of human and civil rights.

Rick

Discover the NEA Academy

Log on to www.nea.org/academy to learn more about online courses to meet professional development and continuing education needs. There are currently 22 courses and visiting scholar offerings-and more are being added daily.

Remember "Dinosaur Park Party" Sept. 11 at 6pm. Look for a flyer in your boxes.

Rick

Membership Campaign Begins

With Ogden hiring over 80 new teachers and Weber hiring over 100, OEA and WEA are asking for your help in talking to these new colleagues about the association. In this tough economic times new teachers need the association more than ever. It is tough for some new teachers to see the dues as an investment rather than a bill that comes out of their pay each month. Stress the work we have done to negotiate salary and benefits that they are enjoying. Remind them of the work UEA does at the legislature to increase the supply money that they used to get their classes ready. Let them know that we do help provisional teachers and they have the same protections as all other members. We need to know of any difficulties before a non-renewal letter shows up in the spring. It is not only the legal and liability protection, it is paying your fair share for all we have done to maintain insurance benefits and leave policies. It is paying your fair share to have representation at all levels. We are only as strong as our membership. Help us by talking to the new teachers in your building and encouraging them to join. Thanks Rick

Ogden School Board Meeting

Ogden held their regular public school board meeting last night. Greg Lewis reported that test scores are up and it looks good for AYP. Linda Brown was honored for her "innovation" by the state administrators. The board reported on their goals and the Supt. reported a good start to the school year with an increase in numbers at the elementaries.

Rick

Utah's Budget Deficit-2009-2010

The Utah State Legislature is going to have to fill a $700 Million shortfall in this next budget year. Speaker of the House, David Clark, proposes using $200 million of the $419 Million "rainy day fund", $100 Million from one time surplus in the public and higher education funds, $100 million from "targeted" tax increases (tobacco and alcohol) and $300 Million in more cuts.

Rick

Dinosaur Park Party, Friday, Sept. 11, 6pm

Ogden/Weber UniServ is sponsoring our annual Dinosaur Park Party for all of our OEA/WEA members and familiy. We will be sending out flyers to bring for free entry to the park and dinner. Horace Mann (Chris Guymon) is one of our major partners and we ask that you fill out the information card at the bottom of the flyer and bring it to the party.

We value your membership and the party is a way of saying thanks for your support.

Rick

Dinosaur Park Party, Friday, Sept. 11, 6pm

UEA Transformation Survey: Go to www.utea.org

We would like all UEA members to take the Transformation Survey (I am on the Transformation Team to look at improving UEA). You can go to www.utea.org and click on the Tranformation logo. It only takes a couple of minutes to complete the survey. It runs until Sept. 12.

Thanks Welcome back to school. Rick

Lincoln Receives 100% Membership Award

OEA President Doug Stephens presented Lincoln Elementary with their 100% membership certificate for last year. We congratulated their faculty and AR, Max Ferguson, for the fine work. We spoke to a couple of the new teachers and expect them to join and maintain the fine history at Lincoln. In WEA and OEA we have some strong membership schools. We value the hard work of our leaders and building reps to sign up new members. Weber hired around 100 and Ogden over 80 this year. It is with your help that we can maintain our strong association membership. Thanks Rick

Valley Elementary and North Ogden Elementary Dedications

Valley Elementary held their open house and dedication Wednesday night. It is located in Eden. North Ogden will hold their open house and dedication tonight.

OEA President Doug Stephens welcomed the OEA Building Reps to their first meeting of the year. He introduced himself and his new Vice-President, Lisa Vipperman. Terie Maxfield, our new UEA Board Member (replacing Mary Courney) spoke to the group. Lisa gave the AR's a handbook on working through problems at their schools. We will give short mini-lessons on advocacy each month. I explained the membership materials and gave the reps flyers for our Dinosaur Park Party planned for Friday, Sept. 11 at 6:00 at Eccles Dinosaur Park. We hope to see all of you there. Just fill out the Horace Mann Card at the bottom of the flyer and bring it for entrance to the park for you and your family. Horace Mann is a major sponsor of the event.

See you there. Rick

Double Dippers Getting Heat From State Governments

Tuesday's USA Today offered the debate over "double dipping". In the opinion section the two headlines read, "Public Sector 'retirees' draw a Pension- and a Paycheck" with the opposing viewpoint entitled, "Return-to-work is win-win".

Many states (including Utah, according to yesterday's Trib article) are looking at the ability of public sector workers, police, teachers and others, retiring at an earlier age (50-55) and going back to work, receiving their full state retirement and a full pay check. In Utah we have the restriction of six months before going back full-time. Many of our teacher retirees come back half-time and then move into full-time after the six months is up.

The teacher shortage has influenced the discussion about eliminating the six month restriction. Stay tuned for this debate to light up, especially in these tough economic times.

Rick

Go to www.ogdenweber.org for more information on the Horace Mann WIN$WIN Sweepstakes

Go to www.ogdenweber.org to get more information on the Horace Mann $10,000 WIN$WIN Sweepstakes.

Enter Horace Mann Sweepstakes at www.horacemannwinwin.com

Call Chris Guymon at 801-392-2066 or Nathan Cressall at 801-689-7064 to get your special entry code to enter to win $10,000 in the Horace Mann WIN$WIN Sweepstakes.
Winners will get matching funds for the educational cause of your choosing

Enter today at www.horacemannwinwin.com

Thanks Rick

Chris and Horace Mann are sponsors of our annual Dino Park Party scheduled for Sept. 11.

WEA Leaders Serve Breakfast to New Teachers

This morning the WEA leadership and building reps served breakfast to most of the 98 new teachers starting school in Weber School District. The enthusiasm was contagious and the smiles on the new teachers' faces shown as bright as the hot morning sun. Marlene Irons (WEA President) and Terie Maxfield (WEA VP and UEA Board Member) welcomed the new teachers to the district and gave them information on the association. Later the association reps received membership information and tips on advocacy.

OEA met with their new teachers yesterday and President Doug Stephens gave them reasons for being a member of the OEA. Ogden has hired 79 new teachers this year.

Our membership campaign will continue throughout the year.

Thanks Rick

OEA Members Ratify Tentative Agreement

Doug Stephens, OEA President, presented the items of the tentative agreement to over 50 OEA members and leaders at the UniServ office Wednesday afternoon. After answering the members questions, a vote to ratify was taken.

Later Wednesday evening the OCSD Board voted to ratify the agreement.

To read a summary of the tentative agreement go to www.ogdenweber.org.

Thanks Rick Palmer

Mea Culpa: Means never having to say you are sorry..

If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? If a UniServ Director writes a blog and no one reads it does it really exist? Be careful what you wish for...

Yesterday I ranted on an article in the Standard-Examiner by Rachel Trotter on Back to School Night in Ogden District. One of our finest principals was misquoted "a majority of our teachers are dedicated". I screwed up by writing first and checking later...this principal believes that all of her teachers are dedicated and all of her teachers work above and beyond the regular contract. I apologized to that principal for the "sarcastic" remark in my blog.

I really should be like Joe Friday on Dragnet (I am 58, so if you don't know who that is ask your mom or grandpa) "just the facts"...I will try harder.

Reminder to OEA members: RATIFICATION TODAY at 3:30 pm at the UniServ office, 939 25th ST. Ogden

OEA leaders will be talking to new teachers to the district today and WEA leaders will meet with their new teachers tomorrow.

Thanks...Rick

OEA Tentative Agreement on the Web Page at www.ogdenweber.org

Hooray...hooray...we have the tentative agreement on the web page. Go to http://www.ogdenweber.org/ to look at the proposal.

Wednesday, August 12, at 3:30, we will meet at the UniServ office to present the agreement to the OEA membership for a vote. The OEA Negotiations Team will be there to answer your questions.

Busy week for OEA as we will present to the New Teachers Wednesday. I met many of the 79 (last count) new members of Ogden's staff Saturday at a "get to know you" BBQ held at Ginny Wimmer's farm. I met several teachers from Michigan who look energized to start the year.
Weber has hired over 92 at this time

Principals and Instructional Coaches are receiving training this week at Shadow Valley in preparation for the ARRA days next week.

Word from UEA is that Grand County (Moab) and Cache are at stalemates in negotiation. Other districts where contract steps are frozen are Davis, Jordan, and possibly Provo. Signs that the recession is over are positive. Now, we need to get people back to work in Utah and increasing those income tax revenues that fund our schools.

OEA and WEA's Executive Boards spent some of their summer preparing new teacher packets for the new teachers' workshops this week. WEA will be providing a breakfast Thursday at Orion for new hires.

See you Wednesday. Thanks to Mike Fazzio for getting the summary up on the web page. Rick

Email me for a copy of the negotiations summary

Sorry about the webpage. Our webmaster (directly flown in by owl mail from hogwarts) is working day and night (at least that is what his green sheeted overtime pay sheets say) and yet... you are stuck with me the blog master. (or is blog meister)

The Standard- Examiner seemed to imply that Quality Teaching Days were not optional. If you did not attend you did not get paid. The ARRA days are similar in that they are optional (the OEA encourages you to attend). You must attend an entire day to get paid. Also the idea that teachers only work at school when they are paid is ludicrous (second word I had to look in the dictionary to spell) Okay, all together...count up the days you have been at school, in your classroom, out of contract time...okay...got that number? Now multiply that times by $200.00 and woo la (sic) you are rich. I was glad that a principal was quoted in saying that a "majority" of her teachers are dedicated. Wow...to imply that our teachers can't get ready for "back to school" nights unless they are paid to do so is (checking thesaurus for synonym of ludicrous)_______.

Ok, my rant is over.
At least they announced our ratification meeting. Wed., August 12, 3:30 at the UniServ office

See you there...no...sorry no pay...totally on your time...we do have soda and snacks though.
Rick

Questions on OEA Negotiations

Questions:

• Can I attend only a half-day of the ARRA days? No, you must attend a full day to be paid.
• Are the ARRA days optional? Yes, many of you have received letters from the district explaining the purpose of these days. The OEA supports the goals of these professional development days and encourages you to attend.
• Where can I receive a summary of the contract changes? Email me at rick@ogdenweber.org or attend our ratification meeting Wed., 3:30, at the UniServ office.
• Will I receive my step this year? No, steps are frozen for this year. If the state funding rises back to the 2007 level (we would need an increase of about 3 million) the district will fund the steps retroactively.
• How much will I receive in Dec? That amount is yet to exactly be determined (it is based on the cost of the steps) but should be around 400.00.
• When will I receive the payment for the four ARRA days before school? In September.
• When will I receive the payment for the Nov. and March ARRA days? In the next supplemental payroll after that day.
• Please call with any other questions. 801-390-6365 Rick

OEA Ratification Meeting Wed. August 12, 3:30 PM, UniServ Office, 939 25th St. Ogden

The OEA Bylaws call for a ratification meeting of the membership to vote to ratify the Tentative Negotiations Agreement. If it is ratified by the members and the OCSD Board ratifies it, then it becomes the contract for the 2009-10 school year. Our webmaster is still trying to get the summary up on the page. For a summary of the agreement email me, rick@ogdenweber.org or call 801-390-6365 with questions. Thanks. Rick

OEA Negotiations Update: Continued

Email me at rick@ogdenweber.org for a summary of the OEA negotiations. Our website is still on the fritz...We will vote to ratify the tentative agreement, Wed., August 12 @ 3:30 @ the UniServ office at 939 25th ST. Ogden. Call 399-3746 with questions or email me.



One of the positive memos of understanding that we signed is one to form a committee with the district to study our Ogden Corrective Action (teacher discipline) policy. It will be worthwhile to discuss some of the things we deal with when administrators use corrective action with our teachers.



Many of the other changes in contract language were editorial (his/her) to statutory language necessary to comply with new laws dealing with Family Medical Leave for example.



We will go over the specific language at our meeting Wednesday.



One of the most often asked questions is: Did the administrators and classified employees share in the cuts? Both of those employee groups will not receive step increases this year. They did not receive the "one time" money that teachers will receive in December. All employee groups benefitted from the infusion of money to mitigate the insurance premium increases.



We feel that the mediation process was valuable. At least $420,000 was added to the financial package through the mediation process. We thank Lavonne Ritter, Federal Mediator, for her long hours working with both teams.



Stay tuned. Rick

OEA Negotiations Update Ratification WED AUG 12 3:30 UniServ Office, 939 25th St. Ogden

Looks like the website is still not cooperating. To receive a more detailed summary of the tentative agreement, email me at rick@ogdenweber.org and I will attach the summary in the reply.

The six ARRA professional development days will be paid at 75% of your contract daily rate. That is figured by dividing 181.5 into your salary. The legislature did not fund Quality Teaching Days this year. Some districts lost all or most of their days. (Jordan lost nine days). Our district was able to fund the six days from a combination of Federal stimulus money (Title One funds that our district can use to help us get out of corrective action) and district funds left over from the previous Quality Teaching budget. These days (optional) are to be used for professional development (mornings) and implementation (afternoons) in your classrooms. The OEA and the district will meet throughout the year to monitor and communicate ways for our district to move out of "district improvement".

Doug Stephens (new OEA president) and Lisa Vipperman (new OEA VP) are optimistic that we can work to strengthen the capacity of our members and improve the communication with the district. We will need your help.

They look forward to hearing from you on Wednesday, August 12 @ 3:30 for our ratification meeting. Please call us at 399 3746 or email us with your questions. rick@ogdenweber.org

Rick

OEA Tentative Agreement-Ratification Mtg. August 12 3:30 OW UniServ Office

Our webmaster is having some problems getting my summary up, so I will try and explain a bit more each day here on the blog.

The district paid 1.188 Million dollars into keeping the insurance premium increases down. Last year employees paid 12% of the premium. This year we will pay 14%. That number (without the 1.188 million) could have approached 30%. Jordan teachers, for example, pay almost 50% of the premium. The new monthly premium amounts for medical are: Alitus Peak: Employee-47.55 Employee + 1 dependent -107.46 and Family 154.54. We were able to keep the benefit package without any big changes.

Steps on the salary schedule will be frozen this year. The district has promised to pay those steps retroactively if funding for next year (after the 2010 legislature) reaches the amount we received in 2007-8 (before the reductions of 3 million dollars). Our team fought hard for the steps and we will continue to fight to see that those are paid in the future.

The one time payment in December is based on 75% of the cost of the steps for this year (approx. 418,000 dollars plus ss and retirment costs) That payment will paid out equally
to all teachers in December. The amount should be over 400.00, but we won't know until the Nov. 15 count of teachers.

We hope to get the summary up on the web soon. thanks Rick

TENTATIVE AGREEMENT REACHED WITH DISTRICT

Monday afternoon the OEA Negotiations Team reached tentative agreement with the district. We will present the details to members next Wednesday, August 12, at 3:30 PM at the UniServ office (939 25th St.,Ogden). Here is a summary of the tentative agreement. (A MORE DETAILED ONE SHOULD APPEAR ON OUR WEBSITE http://www.ogdenweber.org/ BY THURSDAY.

1. Payment in lieu of steps at 75% of step costs for 2009-10 paid equally to all licensed employees according to their FTE (Full Time Equivalent). Applies to licensed employees under contract as of November 15, 2009. Paid in a single payment before Christmas.
2. 2009-2010 steps will be paid in 2010 if state funding for 2010-2011 returns to 2007-2008 level. 2010-2011 steps will be subject to negotiations at that time.
3. Payment of all lanes. (educational lanes)
4. Six professional development days (ARRA) paid at 75% of the daily rate.
5. District pays 86% of premium for health insurance.
6. Changes were made in the following sections of the Negotiated Agreement:3-22, 2-10, 2-16, 2-20, 2-35, 3-30, 3-41, 4-10, 4-15 (new), 4-20 renumbered from 4-15, 4-25 renumbered from 4-20, 4-45, 4-60, 4-70,71,72, 4-83, 4-91, 8-30, 8-51, 9-10, Renewed memos 1-4, changes to memo 5 and added a memo 6 (ARRA days) and a memo 7 on correction action.

If you have any questions email me at rick@ogdenweber.org

Thanks for your patience and we will see you Wednesday.

OEA Negotiations to meet today

OEA's negotiations team will meet with the district today. We have not met since our two days of mediation took place two weeks ago. The school board met last Tuesday and we hope to have some news today. With school starting soon, we know that your patience is wearing thin. Principals are in meetings today and Instructional Coaches will be meeting in training sessions this week and next. August 17,18,19, and 20 are professional development days (ARRA) with the mornings for instruction and the afternoons for implementation. These days are optional and we are still talking to the district about how they will be paid. August 21 is your first contract (not optional) day and then students attend August 24. Whenever we reach a tentative agreement we will ask for a membership meeting to explain the details and vote on ratification of the contract.

Doug Stephens is the new OEA President and Lisa Vipperman is the new Vice President. We again want to give a big thanks to Mary Courney for her many years of service to OEA.

Rick

OEA Negotiations to resume Monday, August 3

OEA's Negotiation Team will meet with the District Monday, August 3, to continue negotiations. We hope to arrive at an agreement that is best for our members.

Ogden School District's budget reflects a $3 Million dollar loss in state funding because of the legislative cuts due to the recession. Our state funding comes mainly from State Income Tax Revenue. The revenue (due to job losses) is significantly less this year. The largest cut in state funding was the Quality Teaching Block Grant of about $1.7 million. Another large cut was in the social security and retirement line item of about $1.2 million. Our district is seeing a slight growth of students and even though several secondary teachers were tranferred or non renewed, the number of FTE's (Full Time Equivalents) will increase in the district with most of those added to the elementary schools. The growth we are seeing is mostly at the elementary level.

Our OEA negotiations team has taken all of this information and looked at the budget during this process. We look forward to the district coming back to the table with an acceptable proposal.

Thanks Rick

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

Most of us recognize the term "stimulus package" as the federal money used to help the state backfill the loss in tax revenues because of the recession. The money comes from federal legislation called the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The state legislature was able to mitigate the double digit revenue deficits in the budget with millions of federal dollars. The budget cuts went from double digit to around 5% for this fiscal year. Ogden School District is using some of the funds (about $1.2 million) to help move us out of District corrective action with the state and federal government. Ogden teachers will return back to school August 17-20 for professional development and implementation of our district and school plans of improvement. The mornings will be professional development under the direction of the principal and the afternoons will be used for "implementation" of the plans. Another 2 days are imbedded in the contract year for a total of 6 "ARRA" days. These days are optional and we are still negotiating the rate of pay. August 21 is the first (not optional) contract day. We look forward to the new school year.

The OEA Negotiations Team will resume meeting with the District Team on Monday. More info to come. Today's Deseret News has a short article on Jordan and Ogden Negotiations. Go to www.desnews.com and look for the Amy Stewart article, "Teachers Unions Grow Closer to Resolution. Rick

Computer-adaptive testing gaining favor

Amy Stewart writes in the Monday, July 27 Deseret News about the pilot program Sevier School District tried out with computer-adaptive testing. Go to http://www.desnews.com/ to read that article and yesterday's (July 28) article on...surprise...Utah ranks dead last in per-pupil spending.

Waiting to hear any word from the OCSD Board meeting last night. I remain optimistic.
Rick

Ogden School Board to Meet In Executive Session Tonight

The Ogden School Board has planned a special session tonight, Tuesday, July 28 with the intention of going into an executive session to discuss negotiations. Hopefully we will get some news for you soon. Rick

Deseret News Story on Class size increases

Go to http://www.desnews.com/ to read the AP story on class size increases across the country. Both Ogden and Weber Districts have told us that they don't plan to increase class sizes, but in some secondary schools in Ogden teachers were moved or non renewed that will necessarily cause class sizes to go up. We have been told that in Ogden the growth is in the elementary schools. We will have to monitor growth and make sure that class sizes in both districts doesn't trend up.

Only three weeks to the beginning of school. OEA is waiting for the district to get back to us on negotiations. Our mediation process with the mediator took place last week and she said she could return if needed.

Rick

OEA Negotiation Team Meets in Second Day of Mediation

The OEA Negotiations Team and the District Team met with Lavonne Ritter, Federal Mediator, for the second day continuing the dialog and sharing information. We will know wait for the District to look at the information and decide on possible future meetings. We are optimistic that we will be able to reach an agreement that is best for our members. We will continue to give you updates at this site. Again, thank you for the support of your membership, your support of the efforts of your OEA negotiation team and your patience as we work to come to an agreement.
Have a great Pioneer Day Weekend. Rick Palmer

Second Day of OEA Mediation Begins Today

Yesterday our OEA Negotiations team met with Lavonne Ritter (Federal Mediator) and the District team to start working on mediation. We met together and explained our positions and then separated to caucus as teams. Ms. Ritter shuttled back and forth between the two groups asking questions and collecting information. We met from 10 AM until almost 6 PM with a 30 minute lunch break. We are beginning this morning at 9 AM. We are hopeful that we can come to a tentative agreement and bring that to you in a ratification meeting. We will post our entire agreement on our web page at www.ogdenweber.org.

We hope to have some good news after today. Thanks for patience. Stay cool in this summer heat.

Rick

Mediation Begins Today

Lavonne Ritter, Federal Mediator from Las Vegas, will lead OEA and the OCSD through mediation today and tomorrow at the district office. She finished with Jordan Education Association and the Jordan District yesterday. We look forward to a productful meeting.

Horace Mann, one of our business partners, is offering a great opportunity for teachers to win money for school projects. We will be posting more information on that soon. Rick

OEA Negotiations

The OEA Negotiations team, Mary Courney, Doug Stephens, Sherie Dame, Chris Tea, Jenny Venegas, Bonnie Darlington, and Whit Freund met yesterday for two hours to prepare for the Federal Mediation that begins Wednesday at 10 AM. We discussed the budget and areas that we wanted to present to the mediator tomorrow. We agreed on our proposals and strategies and we will express our desires tomorrow to the mediator. During the process we will meet seperately and together with the district's team. We are optimistic that the next two days will be fruitful and we will be able to get the best results for you our members.
Rick

OEA Negotiations Meeting

The OEA Negotiations Team is meeting today to prepare for our mediation with the District that begins Wednesday. We will be discussing our proposals and looking at the budget. I will report out more later today. Rick

Reporting from Cody, Wyoming

We are enjoying the day in Cody, WY. A little golf and museum stuff and then down through the park tomorrow. Negotiations will start up again next week. Stay tuned for reports. Rick

Mediation Countdown - 6 Days

Our OEA Negotiations Team will be meeting Monday to discuss our positions going into Mediation next Wednesday. We hope to give you a full report next week. Rick

UEA Transformation

Our UEA Transformation Team met yesterday to look at the notes from the small group discussions at UEA Summer Leadership in June at the Zermatt. The following themes appeared from the notes: Communication, Transformation, Engagement, Leadership Training and Capacity Building, External Leadership and Data Collection. Most of these fit into what our team have been discussing for months. We will be presenting recommendations at Local Presidents meeting in August with the final presentation to membership at the UEA Convention in October.

Jordan Education Association is preparing for their mediation next Monday and Tuesday. OEA Negotiations Team will meet Monday to discuss our positions and then begin mediation Wednesday and Thursday.

Rick

School Trust Lands Money to Increase

An article in the SL Trib today by Lisa Schencker (www.sltrib.com) says that school community councils will have about 4 million more dollars than expected this year. Instead of a 24% cut in money, schools will see a 10% cut. The deep recession we are experiencing dropped the trust funds from $974 million in June of 2008 to $863 million as of June 2009. It will be good to see some more money going to those school trust land plans.

Countdown to mediation-11 days.

Rick

NEA Representative Assembly

Go to NEA web page to see a summary of activities at this year's NEA RA.

NEA RA Ends

The NEA Representative Assembly ended and the delegates have returned to their homes after spending a week doing the business of the association in San Diego.

Deseret News reported July 5 on the ongoing negotiations of Jordan and Ogden school districts. You can read the article by going to www.deseretnews.com or googling Jordan and Ogden impasse. Amy Stewart reports that the two unions will be sharing Lavonne Ritter, from the Federal Mediation Concilliation Service in Las Vegas, to provide mediation starting July 20 for JEA and 22 for OEA.

Countdown is 13 days. Rick

Yes I can add...only 14 days until Mediation in Ogden

OEA and WEA leaders should be traveling home from the NEA Representative Assembly where they debated and passed new business and the budget for the over 3 million members of NEA. Lisa Vipperman, new OEA VP, attended the UEA Organizing Conference in June and learned some great ways to help us organize our members around crucial issues. We will continue to give you information on the negotiations impasse and the upcoming mediator. Stay Tuned. Rick

23 Days until Mediation Begins

Countdown to OEA's mediation is 23 days. Have a great 4th weekend. Rick

NEA Representative Assembly Begins

Both OEA and WEA have sent representatives to the NEA Representative Assembly in San Diego. Paul Fawson (newly elected Uniserv VP) traveled to San Diego earlier than the others to attend the National Council of Urban Education Association meetings. Mary Courney, Marlene Smith, and Christine Tea from OEA are traveling today to begin meetings tomorrow. From WEA Glen Larsen, Teri Maxfield, and Jerry Wilkins are also attending the RA. The NEA RA is the representative body of the NEA that will set the agenda for the following year, approve the budget and change the documents according to the 9000 delegates who attend, debate and vote.

Impasse countdown 23 days.

Stay tuned. Rick

Mediation Countdown - 24 days

OEA negotiations will continue under the direction of LaVonne Ritter, Federal Mediator, on July 22. Ms. Ritter will working with Jordan Education Association on July 20 and 21. Our negotiations team is meeting July 20 to discuss the upcoming mediation.

We are saddened to announce the passing of LaVon Grow, mother of Lynette Grow. Services will be at Lindquists Mortuary at 3408 Washington Blvd, Wednesday at 2 pm.

We want Lynette to know that all of her association brothers and sisters are thinking of her at this time.

Rick

Mediation Countdown - 28 days

Only 28 days until Mediation Meetings begin between OCSD and OEA's Negotiation team on July 22. Lavonne Ritter, Federal Mediator from Las Vegas, will serve to mediate the contract impasse called a couple weeks ago. Stay tuned to this station for updates.

"Utah legislative leaders were told last Tuesday that tough financial times are still ahead", writes Bob Bernick in the Des News. Next year could be a worse financial year than this one was for public education. Tax collections are down 11.7% for the first 11 months of the fiscal year.

An Associated Press story last Friday, warned that the Dept of Education will withhold federal stimulus funds if states do not use them correctly.

Both Weber and Ogden School Districts have benefitted from stimulus money.

I will be on vacation until Monday. Rick

Transformation Team Meeting on Advocacy

I met for several hours Friday with the "Products and Services" subcommittee of the UEA Transformation Team and discussed several topics including: Political Action, Legal Services, Bargaining, Message and Visibility. The entire team will meet again July 13 to start preparing for our August presentation to Local Presidents at Council of Local Presidents.

Rick

OEA sets Negotiations mediation meeting

OEA sent out postcards Thursday notifying members of the upcoming mediation process. Both the district's team and the OEA negotiations team will meet with Lavonne Ritter, Federal Mediator, on July 22 at 10 AM at the district office to begin mediation. Ms. Ritter will meet separately with each group to address their concerns and work to find a common resolution. We will continue to update you during this process.

Lisa Vipperman, incoming Vice-President of OEA attended the Organizing Training at UEA Wednesday and Thursday. She reported that she learned a lot about leadership and organizing that will help our association.

Rick

Peanut-Butter Politics: Newsweek June 15, 2009

Jonathan Alter writes about education funding in his June 15th article entitled, "Peanut-Butter Politics". He writes "...teachers can't be evaluated on whether their students actually learned anything between September and June" (referring to restrictions on evaluations in San Francisco). He lays the blame at the feet of the "teachers unions". It is an interesting read, but shows Alter's bias (I actually like his political writing) against the NEA and AFT. He sees us as stumbling blocks to reform. If perception is reality, we have some work to do to show that we aren't here to "protect bad teachers" , but to help improve the profession and protect due process.

OEA will be sending out postcards with info on the scheduled "mediation" in July. Look for a bright pink postcard coming soon.

Rick

Breaking News: OEA Negotiations to start mediation

We received confirmation that the OEA Negotiations Team and the Ogden City School District will enter into mediation starting July 22 with Lavonne Ritter, Commissioner in the Las Vegas office of the Federal Mediation Service. Stay tuned for more updates. Rick

Background Checks for Teachers

Both the Standard-Examiner and the SL Trib weighed in on the benefits of requiring teachers to get a background check every five years when they relicense. Both newspapers had editorials in their opinion sections this week. This decision by the State Board of Education seems to be a reaction to the audit that showed a few employees with marks on their record. UEA will work hard to get the legislature to help subsidize this 65 dollar cost (on top of the regular fee for relicensure). Rick

USA Today: The Permanent Recession

Go to www.usatoday.com to read Laura Vanderkam's scathing indictment of our public ed system. She writes "Despite the roughly half a trillion dollars that governments lavish on education each year, it turns out that America's schools are inflicting on us the equivalent of a permanent recession-though at least one overdue reform might help pull us out." Read the rest of the article.

Rick

UEA Summer Leadership School

Six members of the Ogden/Weber UniServ leadership team is attending the annual UEA Summer Leadership School held in Midway, UT. . Representing OEA, Lisa Vipperman (incoming VP), Whit Freund (Exec Bd), and Stephanie McGaughey (AR at Dee) are attending leadership sessions. Attending from WEA are Mary Margaret Lyon (Exec Bd), Debbie Green (AR at Sand Ridge) and Barbera Wayment (UEA Board of Directors). The leadership school will continue through Tuesday, June 16.

Rick

Deseret News: Ogden teachers, district at Impasse

Go to www.deseretnews.com to read Amy Stewart's story on the OEA declaration of impasse in negotiations. We are the second district (Jordan) to declare impasse. We are working with the district to agree on a mediator. We have suggested Lavonne Ritter, Federal Mediator out of the Las Vegas office. Mary Courney said, " In the past few months, counter proposals have gone back and forth. The OEA believes involving a mediator will help resolve some of the issues identified during negotiations." Keep watching for updates. Rick

OEA Asks for mediation of contract negotiations

State law allows for either the OEA or the OCSD to declare an impasse after negotiating for 90 days. According to the law we notified the school district and the Utah State Board of Education in writing. We will work with the district to agree on a mediator. The OEA has recommended requesting assistance from the Federal Mediation Office in Las Vegas. We have communicated that request to the Federal Commissioner, Supt. Zabriskie and Supt. Patti Harrington. If for some reason we can't agree on someone, the State Supt. would appoint someone. Jordan Education Association is the only other district at impasse that I am aware of. They have already agreed to the Federal Mediator and will begin in late July. If the mediator is unable to resolve the impasse, a Hearing Officer would be appointed to hear the case.

OEA will issue a press release today concerning our request for mediation. We appreciate your support and the OEA Negotiations Team is working hard to preserve salary and benefits that are so important to our teachers.

OEA Negotiations at Impasse

OEA's Negotiation Team notified the OCSD and the State Supt. of Instruction of their intention to ask for a mediator to help resolve the impasse in negotiations. The OEA and the district will choose a mediator to come work with the teams and resolve the impasse. We look forward to beginning the mediation process. Stay tuned.

Jordan Teachers Attend School Board Meeting

Between 75 and 100 Jordan Education Association members jammed the School Board meeting this week to protest the cuts in steps and lanes to their salary schedule. Not only are they losing steps and lanes, but also Quality Teaching salary because of the legislature's cuts to the budget. The JEA has declared impasse in their negotiations and they await mediation to resolve this impasse. Any association or school board can declare impasse after 90 days of bargaining. At that time Supt. Harrington is contacted to find a mediator to resolve the negotation impasse.'
You can read the article at www.deseretnews.com (Amy Stewart: "Jordan Teachers Grim as Board Votes on Cuts")

Deseret News article disputes Graduation Rates

Go to www.deseretnews.com to read Wendy Leonard's article entitled "Graduation Findings Disputed". According to Education Week Magazine Ogden has a 40.3% graduation rate and Weber has a 67.9% rate. Utah ranks (according to this same article) 26th in the nation with a 72.2% rate which is above the national average of 69.2%. Brenda Hales, associate state superintendent disputes the numbers.

Rick

NEA Foundation offers grants

Here are some grants offered by the NEA Foundations:

• Student Acheivement Grants- $5,000 - Promotes classroom innovation
• Learning and Leadership Grants - $2,000 for individuals - $5,000 for groups - Support high-quality professional development opportunities
• Who can apply? Pre K- 12 teachers. When do I apply? Throughout the year.
• Books Across America Library Book Awards - For Librarians, teachers or other school employees - Accepted in November

Go to www.neafoundation.org for application information.

Thanks Rick

OEA Negotiations Summary

OEA signed off on a few proposals today and countered the District's proposal on salary. We will know more after Wednesday's school board meeting.

OEA Negotiations Resumes Today

OEA's Negotiations Team resumes meeting with the District team this morning at 10 am. Check this site later today for a report. Rick

Cassie Cox-Two Rivers Selected for Holocaust Event

Cassie Cox was selected as 1 of 5 teachers selected to be part of the Holocaust Remembrance Project in Chicago. She will leave June 22 for a five day visit with Holocaust Survivors and visits to the new Holocaust Museum and other sites. We congratulate Cassie for this honor.

Discount available for A Cappellastock Concert

Karsten Longhurst has offered the following discount: "As a teacher and member of the a cappella group T Minus 5, I would like to invite you again this year to A Cappellastock August 22nd at the Ogden Amphitheater. Now in it's sixth year, this night of diverse a cappella music from around the world continues to be the largest event of it's kind and has become a tradition for many inside and outside of Utah.

The members of T Minus 5 would like to offer a 10% discount to employees of the Ogden and Weber School Districts. Call the A Cappellastock ticket hotline at 801-452-1481 and us the code "Teacher" to receive the discount.

Enjoy. Karsten Longhurst and T Minus 5

SL Trib writes about pilot performance pay schools

Go to www.sltrib.com to read Lisa Schencker's article on a pilot program approved by the Legislature (evidently $300,000 not needed elsewhere) to pay 5 schools to try performance pay using evaluations and test scores.

Utah to Join tougher Federal Standards

Ledyard King writes in June 2 USA Today that 46 states (I believe Utah is one of those 46) have "agreed in principle to develop a set of rigourous criteria to prepare high school graduates for college and the workplace." "This is a giant first step in the right direction", U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan says. Read the entire article at www.usatoday.com

Rick

Thanks to Negotiation Teams

A big thank you to WEA's negotiation team: Kirk Ottley, Marlene Irons, Shari Combe, Terie Maxfield, Brent Ludlow, and Lee Claycomb. They spent many hours working out this years agreement.

Also, a big thanks to OEA's Negotiation team as they continue to meet to come to an agreement: Mary Courney, Bonnie Darlington, Jenny Venegas, Doug Stephens, Whit Freund, Sherrie Dame, and Christine Tea.

OEA's next meeting with the district is June 8. Rick

OEA Negotiations to meet June 8

OEA Negotiations with the district will resume June 8 at the UniServ office. That will allow the district to prepare the information requested at our last meeting. We look forward to seeing what the district has to present. We were of course happy to see the district's willingness to help with insurance premiums in this tough budget year. Davis is close to settling their negotiations along with Granite and others along the Wasatch front. Weber ratified their contract a week ago. Most districts are working hard to limit the cuts and make sure they are equitable. Rick

Summer Office Hours-Ogden/Weber UniServ

Hi everyone. Hope you have a groovy summer. Our summer office hours will be 9-3. I am always available at 801-390-6365. Thanks Rick

OEA Negotiations Meeting has been rescheduled for June 8. Please check here for updates throughout the summer.

Ogden School Board to help with insurance costs

Our Insurance committee reports that the Ogden City School Board has offered to pay approximately $1.188 million (total annual amount for all employees) towards our insurance premiums. This would be a big help for our employees during this difficult budget time. Our OEA Negotiations Team will meet with the district team Monday to continue negotiations on other salary and non-salary issues. Keep posted for updates daily. Thanks Rick

OEA Insurance Info

The Ogden District Insurance Committee met Tuesday night and agreed to send a proposal to the three employee groups for negotiations. The School Board will help pay for the increases in insurance this year. The district will pay 86% and the employees will pay 14% of the premium. Singles will see an increase of 6.64, Couples- 15.02, and Families - 21.50 (before flexing the premium which gives up to a 20% savings) The committee was able to maintain coverage without changes. This is much different than the possible huge increases that we were facing with 15% increases in premiums. The committee did a great job in keeping increases low and maintaining coverage. The base dental program will increase by .54 per month-single, 1.12 per couple, and 1.94 for family coverage.

The OEA Negotiations team will meet with the district June 1 to continue talks.

Stay tuned to this station for negotiations news. Rick

WEA Ratifies Negotiations Proposal

WEA leaders met to ratify the 2009-2010 contract negotiations Thursday, June 21. Here is a summary:

• Steps and Lanes funded
• Increases of around 3% on Insurance premium participation
• Salary schedule remains the same with only 182 days of work
• Six quality teaching days at daily rate
• Exchange 2 days of sick leave for one day of personal leave (must participate in health assessment or annual physical exam)
• Committee to study technology and reporting student progress.
• Recommended 30 minute (average) duty free lunch
• Seniority starts on day you sign contract.
• Junior High Teachers will work with administrators on track meet assignments
• Prep time committees at each Elementary School.
• CTE teachers able to convert credit hours to semester hours when determining industrial experience.
• Separation papers signed by April 15th to receive early retirement incentives.
• Last day of contract defined at June 30.

WEA ARs Meet to Ratify Negotiations/OEA Negotiations Continue

WEA Building Reps met Thursday afternoon to listen to the proposals and vote to ratify. There were a few questions that the team will resolve. Details to follow.

OEA's Negotiation Team met with the District's team and heard more about salary and benefit issues. We asked for more information and details to be brought to our next meeting June 1. The insurance committee will meet Tuesday to work on finalizing the insurance program for next year.

Rick

Weber Ratification Meeting Today at 4:30

WEA ratification of negotiations will be held today at 4:30 at the UniServ Office, 939 25th St. Ogden. The WEA Negotiations team will be going over the proposal including changes in the insurance coverage. Hope you can make it.

OEA Negotiations resumes meeting today and we hope we have some financial proposals to look at. Eugene Hart, Business Administrator, has been very ill and we are glad to see him back to work.

Rick

Voucher Debate Continues in USA Today

Hi go to www.usatoday.com to read the editorial debate on the validity and success of vouchers in Washington, D.C. schools. Both sides say the data proves their points. The oposition point of view is written by Sen. Dick Durbin, (Illinois). Interesting reading. The editorial even gives a "shout out" to the Utah teachers' union (us) that defeated vouchers here. Yeah us>>> rick

GOP is Wild about Gary

Go to www.deseretnews.com and read the results of a Deseret News/KSL poll that shows that only 33% of those survey though Herbert should run in 2010 while 36% thought someone else should run. Surprisingly 47% thought a Democrat would have a legitimate chance to win in 2010. 43% of Republicans like Herbert right now, even before any other candidates have come forth. At least this will liven up a normally drab off year election year next year.
Rick

Gary Herbert, New Utah Governor

Governor Huntsman was announced as the new ambassador to China. Lt. Governor, Gary Herbert, will replace Huntsman until a special election in November of 2010. The winner of that race will then have to run in the regular election in 2012.

What a perfect time to tell my one Governor Huntsman story:

In 1971-73 I lived near Chevy Chase, MD, (mission) home of Jon Huntsman( he and his wife couldn't be nicer people) . Jon Huntsman was working for President Richard Nixon at the time. They had a nanny from Peru who attended our church in Washington, D.C. We spent time at the house eating dinner and playing with the kids. Governor Huntsman was one of the kids. When Governor Huntsman first ran for office I was on the committee that interviewed him for UEA PAC. After the meeting I asked him if he remembered the nanny. He said, "oh yeah you mean Lucy". Well that is my Huntsman story. Rick

Weber District negotiations proceeding

The WEA Negotiations team met with the district last night to hammer out the final details of our contract for next year. The next step will be notification of a ratification meeting for our side and the district will take the proposal to the board for ratification. The insurance committee will be meeting next week to finalize the insurance part of the contract. Details to follow.
WEA thanks Kirk Ottley, Brent Ludlow, Lee Claycomb, Shari Combe, Teri Maxfield, and Marlene Irons for their tireless work to get the best agreement possible in this tough budget year.
Thanks to all of our WEA members for their support. We could not do it without the help of our members. Rick

Jordan and Canyons School District See Cuts

The newly split Jordan and Canyons School District are facing some budget challenges because of decreased state funding and the cost of the split. The cost of the split was around 8 million dollars on top of the other cuts already coming from the legislature. www.deseretnews.com Wednesday May 13 article "Jordan District won't lay off any Teachers"

The new Canyons School District (Eastside) is considering opting out of social security payments. You can read the entire article at www.sltrib.com May 14

Thanks Rick

Equitable Cuts Across the Districts

As we face budget cuts of historical nature, both Ogden and Weber Districts must make tough decisions of where the cuts will come. Weber School District has proposed (we have not finished negotiations yet) a cut of 1.5 quality teaching days, cuts in district administration (moved an administrator from the district office to a Jr. High), and other classified cuts. In Weber, insurance decisions are close to being finalized that will share the increases (made smaller by decisions of the committee) in premium across all employee groups. Steps and Lanes for teachers in Weber have been preserved. Yes, teachers will fill the pain, but the pain has been lessened by financial decisions the district has made over the past few years (mill levy increases and conservative budgets) . You don't have to look very far to see districts losing many or all of their quality teaching days, freezing steps and lanes, raising class sizes and cuttting staff. Your WEA negotiations team is meeting Thursday to look at policy changes and work to finalize negotiations. Both the legislature and our State Supt. have counseled the districts to make the cuts as equitable as possible. At least in Weber, we have seen the effort to do just that. Rick

Jazz Bear to visit Valley Elementary

Valley Elementary School in Huntsville will have a special treat today as the Jazz Bear will visit as a result of the UEA Celebration award that three of our teachers received.

Again, I hope everyone enjoyed their "Great Harvest Coupon" to show you our appreciation for your hard work and dedication. You can use them at any Great Harvest store. Teri Maxfield even used her in Michigan. Let us know if you have any trouble using them.

Thanks Rick

Walter Williams Column in Deseret News 5/8/09

Walter Williams (not one of my favorite conservative economist writers) makes his case that colleges are inflating grade points. You can read the entire article on http://www.deseret.news.com/ (May 8 Opinion). He quotes data showing that average grades have increased. He also takes a shot at our history teachers with a survey of Americans that showed a lack of historical and government knowledge. His bottom line: "to approach truth in grading parents and employers should lower the average student's grade by one letter, and interpret a C grade as and F." That is an example of the criticism public and higher ed receive on a daily basis. I am not saying that there are shreds of truth in these attacks, but there is an anti public ed sentiment that shines through in Williams's words. Thanks for reading. Rick

Matthew Patterson, Weber Teacher of the Year

Congrats to Matthew Patterson, Earth Science teacher at Orion Jr. High, for his Weber Teacher of the Year award. Matt is an energetic teacher who makes learning fun for his students. Linda Carver, Asst. Supt., even dressed up for his presentation. Matt is representative of the teachers in Weber district.

New Administrative Assignments in Weber District

At Weber School Board last night the Matt Patterson, Orion Jr. High, was honored as Weber's Teacher of the Year. Congrats!!!

The following admin assignments were also made:'

• Bill Grilz Two Rivers
• Don Tanner South Ogden
• Kevin Sederholm Bates
• Lori Rassmussen Pioneer
• Shelly Roberts Midland
• Dave Gerstheimer Hooper
• Marilyn Runolfson Green Acres
• Quinn Karlinsey Uintah
• Darlene Bell Marlon Hills
• Rick Proffer Freedom
• Brent Wayment Intern
• Shirley Passey Intern
• Linda Smith Intern

Congrats to the Ross Moore, Susan England, Elaine Jensen, and Randy Rounds on their retirements.

Rick

USA Today (Yesterday) "To Deal with Sexting"

Tuesday, May 5, USA Today's editorial talked about the growing problem of teenagers using cellphone texting to send explicit photos, often of themselves. To read the entire editorial go to www.usatoday.com . One national survey showed that 22% of teenage girls had sexted their own picture and 29% of teens have received such pictures third-hand. Utah is one of a few states that has legislated a punishment of juvenile-law misdemeanor for the offense rather than a felony conviction. This is just another problem that we face in an every changing world.

Sorry no blog contest this month. Thanks for reading. Rick

Sorry no Blog contest this Month

I am sorry to say that we won't have a blog contest this month as reported in our Link newsletter. That is my fault. We appreciate everyone who has followed our blog and I hope the bits of info have helped keep you somewhat informed.

The Utah Professional Practices Advisory Commission is looking for members. Three positions of three year terms are now open until May 22. Contact jean.hill@school.utah.gov if you are interested. Our own Christine Heslop, OHS teacher, is a member of the commission. This group rules on licensure issues and hears complaints. They recommend to the State School Board revocations or suspensions of teaching licenses.

Thanks for reading. Rick

Big Board Meeting

Members of both OEA and WEA's Executive Board met last Friday to talk about their goals for next year and welcome the newly elected leaders. They spent the time planning and setting meeting schedules for 2009-10. Clay Kirkham was elected as the UniServ President with Paul Fawson serving as the Vice-President for the two year term. Clay went over the budget and commented on the continuing financial report. Lisa Vipperman was also introduced as the new OEA VP to serve with Doug Stephens next year.

The Principal and the Paddle

Find the May 4 edition of Newsweek and read the article "The Principal and the Paddle". A principal in a South Carolina Elementary School uses corporal punishment on kids. I was astonished that anyone in America still paddled kids. I received my one and only paddle as an 8th grader in Aberdeen Jr. High (Idaho). I administered my only paddling in 1976 in Hazelton, Idaho. I felt so bad afterwards that I retired that mean piece of wood. You old timers will remember the paddles with holes in them for swift air resistance proof stinging. Just the sight of the paddle hanging by the teachers desk was enough to deter my misbehaving. Utah did away with corporal punishment in the early 80's. Now, we tell teachers to not touch kids unless they are breaking up a fight or keeping a student from injuring himself or property. If you can't find a print edition go to www.newsweek.com to read this interesting, but disturbing article. Rick

Most Schoolkids Make Gains in Reading, Math

An AP story out of Washington, D.C. printed in the SL Tribune (www.sltrib.com) says that kids are making strides in reading and math. Math seems stalled among high school students according to the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP) data. Reading score for high school kids improved since 2004. In fact every group (9,13,17) made gains. Education Secretary Arne Duncan said, "It's a step in the right direction". Go to the trib site to read the entire article. Thanks for blogging with me this year. Rick

New North Ogden Elementary

I had not stopped by to see North Ogden Elementary for a few months, so today I visited and was rewarded with a guided tour by Principal Aaradema. It is going to be a beautiful school to replace a fine school. The district did a nice job of placing the two-story building on a 3.5 acre parcel of land. They have been very efficient in using the space. The views are magnificent toward the mountain peaks to the north. I am sure the students and staff will greatly appreciate it when it opens next fall. Rick

House of Delegates Report

Several OEA and WEA members traveled to Alta High on Saturday to attend to the business of the Utah Education Association. Hundreds of members from around the state deliberated and voted on new business items, changes to the bylaws, approved the legislative platform and okayed the budget for next fiscal year. The hottest debate came over a bill that Ogden/Weber UniServ brought to freeze UEA dues for next school year. Without the freeze the dues will increase $13 based on a formula of last year's increases in average teacher salaries in Utah. Our leaders spoke to the fact that many teachers will be losing pay and in some cases their jobs because of the economic downturn. The vote was close but the bill to freeze failed by about 30 votes out of over 450 votes. The House of Delegates is an annual event and allows our members the opportunity to debate the issues and see the association up close and personal.
Thanks Rick

Grant Writing Workshop a Success

We would like to thank Kate Bideaux for the great information on writing grants. Twenty teachers from Ogden and Weber enjoyed hearing tips on writing grants and receiving lists of the many grants available. We would also like to thank Lynette Kirkpatrick and Stephanie Smith at the Two Rivers Media Office for setting up the computer lab and accomodating us so well. If you want more information on grant writing please email Kate at bideauxk@ogdensd.org

Thanks Rick

U.S. Supreme Court Debates Strip Search of Student

Tuesday the nine justices of the Supreme Court talked about places middle school students might hide drugs. In 2003 Savana Redding of Safford, Arizona was brought down to the office of her middle school and searched for Ibuprofen. The female nurse and administrative assistant asked her to pull back her undergarments looking for the contraband pills. Attorneys used terms such as the "ick" factor to describe why students would not put pills in certain private places. Justice Breyer thought it was logical to do that. The question the justices will decide is whether the school officials went beyond "reasonable and prudent" behaviorin preforming the search. These type of cases will resonate down to each of our schools as educators work to make sure our schools are safe from weapons and drugs while preserving students constitutional rights. Stay tuned for more. Thanks Rick

Negotiations Update

Both OEA and WEA Negotiation Teams have met with their district counterparts. The first meeting in each case was to trade packages and list of items to be discussed. The next meetings start the process of discussion and receiving information on contract language and programs. As we receive more information on insurance costs we will enter into discussions of salary and benefits. We have tough decisions to make to make up for the cut in funding from the state legislature. Our goal is to make sure the decisions are made in an equitable manner. We do not believe that budgets should balanced on the shoulders of teachers. We must all do our part.
Rick

Transformation Continued

Second day at UEA Transformation Team Meeting will put us to work matching up our theme clusters (don't ask) into our UEA Strategic Goals. Finally, some product from the hours of data analysis and defining terms. Yesterday we worked on clustering the themes and writing summaries of the new clusters for our work today. The UEA's four strategic goals that move the agenda for our organization will be the center of attention today. We will also create some questions for House of Delegates this Saturday. My hope is that our final product will reflect real change (that you can believe in) not just a cursory cosmetic redo of the status quo. Thanks for reading. Rick