New Education Secretary Announced

President-elect Obama has selected Arne Duncan, Chicago public school chief, to be his new Secretary of Education. Mr. Duncan has reformed the Chicago School system over the past few years, improving teacher quality and closing down under performing schools. He seems to be a friend of NEA, but also acceptable to the reform movement.

Governor Huntsman is resisting calling another special budget session to address the diminishing revenue projection. Both the Republican House and Senate Caucus called for a session to cut more out of this year's budget.

Christmas Savings

Yes, it is the time to buy those Christmas gifts. Boost the economy through all of your many purchases. As a member of UEA and NEA you have some places to look for savings to stretch those valuable dollars. Visit the www.utea.org site and check out the savings for members only at the access site. Also, check out www.neamb.org and look for the members only savings on the "click and save" site. You just need to use your membership card number and register. Have a great holiday and use all of the value your membership brings you. Rick

Searching for the real meaning of Christmas...

I made the leap into Christmas spirit today...I set my XM Satellite radio on "Traditional Christmas Music"...you know Dean Martin, Frank and the boys...oh you were born after I graduated from college in '76...well never mind then. Oh, by the by...who was the first person to use "xmas" instead of "Christmas"...must have been someone having a really bad day. Christmas to me is seeing my little grandchildren as excited as I was when I was little. Now my wife has to put up the tree and I say "bah humbug" more than in the summer. Sen. Buttars is trying to get us all in the right spirit...go for it Senator...at least you aren't messing up education. Hope you all have a great "holiday" break...Rick

"Reasonable and Prudent"

One of the worries that we all have in teaching young people is knowing what to do if a student shares personal information that leads us to believe that some abuse or molestation has taken place. What do I do? Who should I report it to? Should I try and get more information from the student? At what point am I in trouble if I don't report it? In law enforcement the terms "reasonable and prudent" show up when deciding if we have acted correctly. I looked up "reasonable" and the definition states: "possessing sound judgement". I looked up "prudent" and found: "a": "marked by wisdom or judiciousness". My opinion then, would be to let your supervisor and/or counselor know whenever the "red flags" appear in a conversation with a student. The DCFS (Division of Child and Family Services) needs to be notified at the proper time. You can be in jeopardy of disciplinary or legal action if you fail to report. Listen to your administrators and stay safe. That is a CYA strategy. C=Cover Y=Your A=Behind (I know that makes sense) If you have a question please let me know. It is important to be there for the students.

The "password is" DCFS. Email me rick@ogdenweber.org to enter the contest. (prizes to be drawn for in January AR meetings)

Teacher Performance Pay Put on Hold by State Dept. of Education

Don't count that performance pay yet. The economic downturn has forced the USOE to hold back the $20 Million one time money that was to be paid to districts who made a plan to pay for performance. In most districts the payment would be between $350 and $500 for this year only. "In a perfect world where we had loads of revenue no one would want to cut anything..." Larry Shumway, State Deputy Supt. In some districts teachers have been working hard to accomplish goals and tasks and now will not get paid.

Our "BLOG Contest" this month allows you to enter more than once. To enter today email rick@ogdenweber.org and use the word "performance pay" in the message. LINDA GALLEGO AND JUDY HOSKINS FROM SOUTH OGDEN WON $25 TARGET GIFT CARDS THIS MONTH FROM WEA. Thanks Rick

Our UniServ Secretaries are here to serve you

We have two great secretaries here at the UniServ office. Tina Cordero and Shirley Watanabe are sisters. They were born in Okinawa and we are lucky to have them doing such a great job for us here in the office. They have both been here over 12 years and know everything about the function of a UniServ office. I hope you get a chance to visit on the phone with them or meet them soon.

FEA Conference at Weber State a Huge Success

Nearly 100 students from Davis, Weber, and Ogden School Districts attended the WSU FEA student Conference last Friday, Dec. 5. Dr. Crawford, WSU professor, welcomed the students and advisors and pointed out the importance of teachers who seek knowledge, who are caring and who share their knowledge. The students also heard from Josh Simon on the importance of service learning. There were break out sessions and a tour of the campus. Suzy Davis does a wonderful job at OHS and Jodi Lunt and Lynette Wilkes from Davis have done a lot to get FEA started down there. Stephanie Heath has been amazing as the College of Education Recruiter.