Most of you are aware of California's huge budget deficit.  California has a $26 billion deficit this year.

Governor Davis is proposing a $2.7 billion dollar cut in this year's education budget.

This cut is to take place before June 30, 2003. 

These cuts are going to be devastating.   He wants to double Community College tuition.

CTA is fighting to keep these $2.7 billion in cuts as far away from the classroom as possible.

CTA's position is no cuts in:

• Base revenue limits
• Schools of greatest need
• Special education programs
• Class size reduction

Davis has proposed the worst education cuts in the state's history.

And now the legislature and the administrators are busy shooting the wounded by proposing class size increases.

Senators John Vasconcellos and Dede Alpert are pushing this legislation to increase class size. 

Don't let anyone tell you that class size reduction doesn't work. 

Alex Molnar of Arizona State University found that, "Reducing class size in grades K-3 has been found to have academic benefits in all subject areas, especially for children living in poverty.  Studies published since the mid 1980's show that classroom behavior and test scores improve when students are in small classes.  Further, the improvement persists through the middle school and high school years, even though students return to full size classes.  To reap the full range of benefits it is important that pupils enter small classes in the early years (grades K-1) and continue in small classes for three or more years."

Administrators are working to weaken teacher collective bargaining by proposing elimination of teacher lay-off notices.

Ken Hall who owns school services, along with school boards and administrators are planning to make big cuts in classroom and teacher rights.

I can guarantee you that next year, districts are going to come to the bargaining table with a vengeance.

Every district will try to increase class size, freeze and/or cut teacher salaries, and cut medical benefits.

If you don't believe me, listen to the written advice Ken Hall and School Services gave to the School Boards Association at their conference in San Francisco in 2002.

Hall wrote, "The bargaining table is unequal.  The district has all the marbles."

Translation:  You, the Board have all the power.  You don't have to give teachers anything.

Hall continued, "Don't be afraid of impasse.  Prepare for negotiations as if you are preparing for fact-finding."

Translation:  Drag negotiations out as long as you can.  Stall them, wear them out.

Again from Hall, "Win-win or interested based bargaining still demands a representation of the public.  Never allow non-adversarial methods to become rational for changing a districts bargaining responsibilities."

Translation:  Don't let win-win interest-based bargaining or good relations get in your way of not giving teachers anything at the bargaining table.

Administrators are going to try to make all cuts from the classroom.

School Services are working to weaken teacher union locals and collective bargaining in general.

You cannot let that happen.

In your district, you must fight to keep these cuts as far from the classroom and those who work directly with students as possible.

I have some suggestions for cuts. 

Cut all testing except the federally mandated testing. 

1.6 million non-English speaking kids are forced to take the test in a language they don't understand. 

Another 10% or 200,000 special education learning-disabled kids are forced to take the test and compete with kids who are not disabled.

This is very unfair to these kids.

These state tests do not reflect academic performance, but rather the language and socio-economic status of the kids tested.

The Star9 or the Cat6 or whatever they call it is not fair, invalid, and should be done away with.

In a year with a $26 billion deficit, get rid of it.  This cut alone will save hundreds of millions.

Cut the high school exit exam and save $21 million.

Cut Davis' Secretary of Education, eliminate a worthless bureaucracy and a useless bureaucratic position and save $6 million.

The Center for Educational Statistics reported in 2001 that California had one administrator for every 13.9 teachers. 

Nancy Galt, the Beaumont Teachers Association President told me this week that her district grew by 600 students.  The district hired 9 new teachers and 9 new administrators.

What do you want to bet that they will want to increase class size, lay off the teachers and keep the administrators.

Tustin TA told me that despite the knowledge of this huge deficit the district recently filled two vacant administrative positions.

Cut that bloated California administrative bureaucracy first. 

One administrator for every 27 teachers would still be lower than the student teacher ratio and save a billion dollars.  That savings is a guess, but I know it would sure improve schools.

You teach in the richest state in America.  California has the 5th largest economy in the world.  Goods and services - $1.3 trillion.

Yet California only ranks 38th out of 50 in funding, and it's about to get worse.

• #38 California -- $ 6,200 and many of you get less
• #1 Connecticut -- $11,516
• #2 New York -- $11,128
• #3 New Jersey -- $10,396

As a result of this funding, you will teach in a state that has virtually the largest class size in the nation.  California ranks 49th, and if school administrators, Vasconcellos and Alpert get their way, we will be dead last.
Many of you teach in as UCLA Professor Gary Glasi calls "slum schools":

• No heating
• Inadequate ventilation
• Infestation of cockroaches
• Moldy walls
• Backed up and overflowing toilets

Many new teachers quit for the same reasons that the Chapman University study reported in 2002:

• Increase pressures of standardized testing and teaching standards
• Increased paperwork
• Student attitudes
• Lack of parent support
• Unresponsive and poor administration

An article in USA Today on January 30, 2003 reported some findings of the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future - chaired by James Hunt, former Governor of North Carolina.

They too found 33% of new teachers quit within 3 years, 50% of new teachers quit within 5 years.

They found that low-income students suffer the most from the teacher shortage.

250,000 teachers leave teaching every year.

25% retire and 75% just quit.

50% of urban teachers and 30% of suburban teachers quit because of poor administration.

Linda Darling Hammond, the nationally respected Stanford researcher, reported recently that teacher salaries only account on average 35% of a California school district's budget.

"A small percentage compared to other states," Ms. Hammond reported.

Districts should spend down their reserves.  Reserves are for economic uncertainties - well these are economic uncertain times, spend the reserves.

Davis has proposed a one-cent sales tax, which hurts the poor.

He has proposed a small tax increase for the wealthiest Californians, but no new taxes for California corporations.  They still enjoy the California corporate welfare system.

Doug Smith wrote in the L.A. Times on January 13, 2003, "Davis' reluctance to tamper with business taxes reflects a nationwide shift away from fiscal policies that take more from the wealthy - a trend illustrated in President Bush's proposal to drop the tax on stock dividends."  Davis has opted to leave in place a series of tax breaks and tax reductions put in place since the 1980's."

Davis' philosophy seems to be no new tax on corporate profits.  Just deep cuts and college tuition increases for millions of California students.

Balance the budget on the backs of public school kids.

I hate to be the bearer of more bad news.

California teachers are about to get a second whammy.

Along with the budget deficit, we are about to be hit with the federal law "Leave No Child Behind."

Dr. James Popham, Professor Emeritus at UCLA, an expert in testing and student evaluation, says of the new legislation "This law sets teachers up for certain failure."  "Improvement is set so high that it will be impossible to attain."

As bad as things are with the huge budget deficit in California, the federal legislation "Leave No Child Behind" is going to make things much worse for our public schools.

Gerald Bracey, Professor at George Mason University, hold the same opinion as Dr. Popham on the "Leave No Child Behind" legislation.

Professor Bracey said, "that after the massive defeat in California and Michigan, vouchers were stripped out of the legislation" but not the Bush agenda."

Professor Bracey also believes that the "Leave No Child Behind" law has "a number of provisions impossible to meet." 

He says that the law imposes "new straight jacket requirements on schools, requirements that would bankrupt any business."

The new law requires that all schools must test all children in grades three through eight each year in reading, math, and two years later in science.

Schools must show adequate yearly progress (AYP).  After twelve years, all schools and all students will attain "proficient" levels.  Proficient as defined by NAEP.

The National Association of Educational Progress (NAEP) has come up with a set of educational terms.  Terms such as basic, below basic, advanced, as well as "proficient."

NAEP achievement levels and their definitions have been rejected by everyone that has studied them.  Prestigious groups such as UCLA's Center for Research and Evaluation, Student Standards and Testing, the Government Accounting Office, the National Academy of Sciences, and Lyle Jones of the University of North Carolina.

Jones of North Carolina University pointed out that American fourth graders ranked third in the world in TIMSS science tests.  But only twelve percent were "proficient" in the NAEP science assessment tests.

The "Leave No Child Behind" law requires the NAEP standards for all states.

All states must participate in the NAEP reading and math test to confirm their own state results.

Professor Bracy states, "Most states will never reach "proficiency" levels on NAEP tests.  When they don't, districts will then be subjected to increasing severe and unworkable sanctions.  Teachers can be fired, kids sent to other districts, districts abolished.

If "No Child Left Behind" legislation had been in place for a few years, ninety percent of North Carolina and Texas schools would be labeled "failing."

These two states have been singled out as having made great improvement on test scores.

Professor Bracy also reported that conservative public school critic Denis Doyle wrote, "No Child Left Behind" (legislation) means that the USA is about to be inundated in a sea of bad news and that (public) schools are going to get pole axed."

Anti-public school basher Chester Finn (former Under-Secretary of Education) wrote in the Wall Street Journal, "The school system has proven it is an ossified government monopoly that can't reform itself."

Bracy goes on to say that "When these pre-ordained high failure rates occur, vouchers and privatization will be touted as the only cure."

As Finn went on to say, "It is time to apply American business expertise to education.  And Bracy replied as it did, "with Enron, Tyco, Global Crossing, Imclone, and World Com."

California teachers are getting the double whammy.  A huge budget deficit and cuts to an already under-funded system followed by a federal law designed to make schools look like failures.

We can thank California Congressman George Miller for the "No Child Left Behind" law.  He and Ted Kennedy were big backers of this legislation.  Miller (D-Alcosta) advocated requiring testing veteran teachers in California.  CTA fought to get that provision out of the bill.

 CTA members must organize in your locals and immediately put pressure on your local Assemblyperson and Senator.

Let them know that you and the public are opposed to cuts in the education program.

That you are opposed to increasing class size in K-3.

Already joining CTA in opposing increasing class size is the California State PTA, Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund, Black American Political Action Committee, and People for the American Way.

All of these groups know that it is poor children who will be the real losers when the legislature increases class size.

Unfortunately, the California Federation of Teachers is supporting the increase in class size.  This is a sorry chapter in the history of the CFT.

Recent polling shows the public is angry with Gray Davis and Sacramento for not doing their jobs.  Polling shows the California public does not want education cuts in:

• The classroom - especially class size increases
• In Special Education programs
• In textbook accounts
• In teacher salaries
• In teacher retirement benefits

They also don't want cuts in public health, especially for the elderly and the poor. 

And they don't want cuts in public safety.

Let your legislators know how you feel.

Let John Vasconcellos and DeDe Alpert know how you feel about their Senate legislation to increase class size and balance the budget on the backs of public school kids.

Despite all this bad news - I have to tell you public school teachers are really good.  Let me tell you how good you are.

Despite teaching in a state:

• With educational funding 10% below the national average
• With virtually the largest class size in the nation
  • California ranks 49th in class size - 21 - that's a statewide average
  • National average - 16.1
  • Vermont - 11.8
  • New York - 14.3
  • Massachusetts - 12.5
  • Maine - 12.9
• 25% of our kids are English language learners
• 33% of the kids live in poverty - the highest rate in America

Despite all this, let me tell you what you do.  You do work miracles.

California and the USA have the third highest high school graduation rate in the world.  USDE - age 25-34

1. Japan - 90.6%
2. Germany - 88.9%
3. USA - 87.1%
4. Canada - 86.7%
5. France - 75.3%
6. England - 63.0%

In 2001 California and the U.S. sent 65% of high school graduates to college.  That's number one in the world.

In 1999 - USDE - College graduates age 25-34:

1. USA - 33%
2. Japan - 23.5%
3. Canada - 22.6%
4. England - 17.0%
5. France - 14.7%

We have the most successful education system in the world.  As teachers you are under appreciated, underpaid, and under attack.

Despite our incredible record, they continue to attack public education.

If public education is to survive and prosper, you the CTA teachers must lead the fight.  And you can do it and you can win.

You are the largest, best-educated profession in California.  335,000 - all college graduates.  50% have advanced degrees.

You are all organizing specialists.

You are smart.  You out-think and outwit hundreds of students and overbearing administrators every day.

These attacks and financial problems are not going away.  Estimates are that California's economy will not turn around for four or five years.

CTA must develop a long-range plan to survive during this budget disaster.

And the attacks from administrators who will try to weaken collective bargaining and gain more control - you cannot let that happen.

You must stay organized and fight off the attacks on public education.  Whether it is more testing, vouchers or more scripted curriculum.

California and America need a strong public education system where all children get a good education.

Not a private system like they have in England where they only graduate 63% of kids from high school, and only 17% of their kids from college.  With vouchers we know the wealthy will do well and the poor once again will be betrayed by the empty promises that they will get quality.

Victory will take a long time and it will be difficult.  But we must prevail.

Public schools built the strongest democracy in the history of the world.

Public schools have built the strongest economy in the world. 

Free public schools gave most of us here an education that we could never have afforded in a private system.

I was born to a 16-year-old mother and a 17-year-old father that were both high school dropouts. 

Free public education was my salvation as it has been for millions and millions of Americans and immigrants who built this nation and made us strong. 

We have a responsibility to keep the institution of public education alive and strong for the future generation of Americans and the kids who come here to be Americans.

You must lead that fight and if you do, you will win.

Thank you and God Bless you all.