As the new semester starts and you continue towards credentialing, I am putting out the call to all members to take a proactive stand to preserve the educational values that brought us all to the point of pursuing our present career path.

 

The future of public education is under attack by our Governor and his supporters. I ask that you, as members, work on your campus to preserve the educational standards and funding that is so needed.

 

We need to inform our friends and family of the truth about these initiatives and enlist their help to defeat them. The special election is estimated to cost 45-70 million dollars. These dollars can be better spent on educational programs.

 

Increases time required for a teacher to reach permanent status and gain due process rights from 2 to 5 years. Authorizes school board to dismiss a permanent teacher who receives two unsatisfactory performance evaluations without a hearing.

 

Prohibits public employee labor organizations from using dues or fees for political contributions unless the employee provides prior consent each year on a specified written form.

 

Changes state minimum school funding requirements (Prop 98), permits suspension of minimum funding, terminates repayment requirement and eliminates authority to reduce funding when state revenues decrease.

 

For more information on these initiatives you can visit the CTA website, www.cta.org or the California State Secretary website, www.ss.ca.gov/elections/elections_j.htm.

 

For more specific questions, help in motivating your campus or to request help in organizing an informational event, please contact one of your board members. Together we can be a strong and powerful force in dealing with the issues that affect the career paths we have chosen.