Meeting at UEA

Marlene Irons (WEA President) and I are meeting with other UniServs to formulate a message of investing in education and providing a quality education for each student in Utah. We are receiving information from NEA and UEA staff in preparation for our organizing project to engage members in this message. We will be meeting with our legislators in December to kick off our campaign. You can learn more about the message at http://www.utahsfuture.org/ or at the new UEA website http://www.myuea.org/

Happy Turkey day and get home early and safe through the blizzard today.

Rick

Happy Thanksgiving

Be thankful for your health, family and life in this wonderful country. We are thankful for each and every member of OEA and WEA and for your committment to quality public education.

Thanks
Rick

O/W UniServ to host meeting with legislators

Our OEA and WEA Executive Boards and our PAC have invited our legislators and our newest state school board member to a meeting on December 16 to discuss our TEF (Taxation, Economic Development and Education Funding) message and the upcoming legislative session. We hope to discuss the issues of public education funding and the taxation policies of the past years that have left us 51st in per student funding in the U.S. .
You can view the TEF video at the new UEA website www.myuea.org
Rick

Legislature Accepts Fed "jobs bill" Money

After about an hour and a half of what I characterize as "bloviating" (not a word, I checked) by legislators who love the sound of their own voice, the senate and the house approved the 101 million from the "edujobs" bill. From the hyperbolic speech from some legislators you would think the Federal govt was sendin another " Johnson's army" to attach the State of Deseret and take our first born girls back to D.C. Even those (Speaker-elect Becky Lockhart-Utah County sponsored the bill in the house) who supported the strongly worded resolution spoke against the "intrusion" of the federal government on our state. The best speech (can't remember which legislator made it) equated the money to the federal money that flowed into Utah after our fires and floods..other crises...well education is in crisis and this is a little help.

The state office of education will now send application forms to the districts and the money (which has been sitting gaining interest in Utah since Sept) can be disbursed in the monthly payments to the districts.

Both OEA and WEA need to get back to the negotiations table now and talk about how the money will flow to employees. (all employees are eligible except district administrators)

We have had preliminary talks about how the money will be used. Of course, the districts' refusal to pay step increases is the reason we are still in mediation. Hopefully, this new money will help us achieve a settlement.

Rick

Utah GOP to vote to OK funds, slight feds

Read Lisa Riley Roche's entire article about the special session at www.deseretnews.com

I will be attending the interim education committee meetings and the special session also.

Rick

Weber State Hosts Future Educators Conference

Future Educators from Weber, Ogden, Davis and Provo school districts are meeting today at WSU for their Fall FEA Conference. There will be break-out sessions and competitions.

Rick

Negotiations Update

WEA's negotiation team is meeting on Wednesday to discuss some items and learn more about the Special legislative session to be held that day. I will be attending the leg session to hear the discussion and I also want to hear the issues before the Education Interim Committee. Hopefully both OEA's and WEA's negotiation teams will be able to get back to the table to discuss the federal money.

Rick