CSEA will be bringing this to a vote for Chapter members in the near future. 

Thank you for patience and support during these difficult times. 

Sincerely,The District and CSEA Negotiating Teams

SJTA will be holding its election for the offices ofUnit President, Unit Vice-President, Unit Secretary, Unit Treasurer, Unit Membership Chair and Two San Gorgonio representatives. 

The elections will be held May 5-7, 2010. Nominations are open (which means that anyone who is a unit member is eligible to nominate any other unit member, including him/herself for office).The term for each office is from July 1, 2010 toJune 30, 2012.Anyone wishing to run for office should file their declaration of candidacy or nomination so that it is received by Virginia Evans, (vlevans@sanjacinto.k12.ca.us). This can be in written form or e-mail form. Written declarations will be available from your site representative. This should be received no later than April 15, 2010 by 5:00 p.m.  

This was the third year in a row that a group of about 40 San Jacinto students traveled to UC Riverside for two days to learn how subatomic particles are detected, how some of them behave and how to identify several of the particles, in particular, the Z particle.

On Tuesday afternoon, the students spent about two hours in front of computer screens analyzing trails left by the particles spawned in proton collisions. They were asked to estimate the probability of Z particles decaying into other particles.

Wednesday morning, they participated in a teleconference with students from Italy, Poland, France and Portugal. The group that came closest to the accepted probability was supposed to win bragging rights. Unlike last year, when the San Jacinto group came out on top, this year’s results were too close to call.

But Mark Bonnard, 53, the physics instructor at San Jacinto High School, said the most important part of the event is getting youths turned on to science. The annual exercise has been going on in Europe for many years, Bonnard said. He learned about it three years ago. He contacted CERN, the Geneva-based scientific organization that heads the Large Hadron Collider, and was put in touch with Pedro Abreu in Portugal. Abreu is in charge of his country’s participation in the student exercise.

In an effort to get his youths involved, Bonnard made a trip to Portugal, at his own expense, to meet with Abreu “It was a pretty hair-brained idea,” he said. His team has been competing ever since. Elizabeth Aguilar, 16, is a junior at San Jacinto High School. She said the physics students who came to UCR have been meeting once a week after school since the school year began in order to prepare for the exercise.  ‘the real thing’

She was excited about being in a university setting.” This is work a lot of college students are doing,” she said of the analysis she and her fellow students engaged in. “I think it goes a bit deeper than what you would learn in a (high school) class.” That exposure is the point of participating in the exercise, Bonnard said. His students, he said, “get to come here and it’s the real thing. They see that what I’m talking about is real. It gives validity to my whole program.”

It also gives them an idea of the possibilities that are open to them in the sciences, he said. Senior Victor Adame, 17, said he had never considered pursuing a science career before taking Bonnard’s physics class.” Before, it seemed like more science fiction,” Adame said of the things he has been studying. “It opened my eyes. Now I’m trying to think about going more into physics.”

UCR physics professor Bill Gary, who coordinates the exercise, said so far
San Jacinto is the only Inland school involved. “We want to grow it, but principals are reluctant to let their students come for two days,” he said.

Still, with the single school participating, he already has seen a payoff. “Some of Mark’s kids have matriculated here and have been in my class,” he said. He motioned to the group on hand. “In a class of 40, if you can hook one, that’s great.”

By MARK MUCKENFUSS
The Press-Enterprise

Impasse is when both parties (Association and District) have reached a point in negotiations where continued meetings would be futile. Either or both parties can declare impasse and the request is submitted to the Public Employer’s Relations Board (PERB). PERB looks at relevant facts and makes a determination as to whether an Impasse truly exists.

What Happens Next?Ignoring our objection and the information we presented, PERB certified that a Negotiations Impasse exists. However the parties did meet and negotiate, and will continue to work towards an acceptable settlement. If continued negotiations (whether formal or informal) do not yield a settlement, a State Mediator will be assigned to help the parties reach a settlement. The mediator has no authority to impose or implement a settlement, and only makes recommendations.

What If Mediation is Unsuccessful?If the Mediator is unable to facilitate a settlement, the Mediator can certify the parties for Fact Finding. In Fact Finding, the Association and the District each select a “Neutral” fact-finder to hear and examine each party’s position and their arguments and supporting facts. Within 30 days of the fact finding hearing a recommendation is made.

Does the District Have to Abide By the Fact-finders’ RecommendationNo. Once both parties receive the fact-finding report, the district must make the report public within 10 days. The recommendations are advisory and are not binding on either party.

What follows the Fact-finding Report?After fact-finding, the district and the association must consider the report. Once they have done so, the district is free to impose its “last, best, and final offer.”

What Can The Association Do?The Association’s legal recourse is to ask its members to strike. Strikes are legal after the impasse procedures have been exhausted.

Why not just let the district adopt its “last, best, and final offer”?That would mean the end of collective bargaining in the district. The district would have learned that it could simply stonewall until the impasse procedures were exhausted and then get its way. None of our working conditions would be safe if this were to happen.

Mountain View does not only feature academics but has a sports program as well. We have four sports that give students an opportunity to compete against other continuation schools. We feature volleyball, basketball, soccer, and softball. Our programs are competitive with the other schools. Our volleyball team finished second in league, and our basketball was defending league champs , winning again this year (although we were co-champs.) Currently we are in the process of picking a soccer team, and softball will start in the spring. Both teams have historically been league powerhouses. Hopefully this year will be no different, but only time will tell.

Although in the same location, it is an entirely new program, keeping some of the old and incorporating much of the new. Even though it is new, we are currently filled, or close to being filled, to capacity. It seems as though the planners got it right when they expanded the facility. No Virginia, this is not the same old Mountain View.

Article 7.8—In addition to four (4) Fridays for grading and preparation (mid-quarter progress reports will no longer be required for every students), secondary sites will have one (1) additional Friday for preparation time per quarter.

The District proposes to temporarily alleviate the following elementary and secondary teacher responsibilities:

a. Lesson plans shall be available to administration to view.b. No posting of Smart Goals.c. Flexibility in Smart Goal timelines resulting in reduction in number of Smart Goal meetings (from every (4) weeks to six-eight (6-8) weeks).

Taking 10 furlough days amounts to a 5.435% pay cut (This puts each salary essentially back 2 years!)The figures in bold below each yearly salary are the losses to each yearly salary

We Honor Ours “WHO” was celebrated on Friday, May 8th at the San Bernadino Fair Grounds. San Jacinto Teachers Association honored June McCullough of the Pre-School, Doug McCasey from SJHS, and Harry Ebeling from MVHS. We are all so thankful for the hard work they do for our association and particularly the teachers at their school; we are all stronger because of them.
It was especially nice to celebrate after all of the sacrifices we have been forced to make these past two years. Although most of our RIFS will be called back, they will remain on temporary staus. CTA continues to protest this move, as we are united in thinking cuts could have been made elsewhere.

Stay strong and enjoy your summer…

As a result of the unprecedented challenges facing financial institutions in these difficult economic times, NEA and CTA were recently advised by Bank of America (BAC) of the need to modify certain aspects of the NEA/CTA Credit Card Program to ensure the Program remains stable and competitive.   In response, NEA sought and received assurances from BAC that no changes would be made to a) the practices BAC has historically employed to manage account holders’ credit lines or b) the preferential criteria presently used to review and approve NEA/CTA members’ applications for credit. With these assurances in place, NEA MB and BAC worked collaboratively to create the fairest possible scenario for affected NEA/CTA members.  

I’m sure that you have heard reports of other financial institutions that have already implemented significant changes to their credit card and loan programs in response to the economic downturn. The tempered nature of the changes cited in this bulletin assures that the NEA/CTA Programs remain highly competitive and continue to provide true value to NEA and CTA members and their families. The new APRs and fees also continue to compare favorably with rates and fees on similar products in the marketplace. NEA/CTA Credit Card Program Changes  Approximately one quarter of existing NEA/CTA cardholders will be impacted by rate and fee pricing changes that take effect June 1, 2009. BAC will begin notifying these members of the changes in April 2009 by letter and through statement messages and inserts. Members wishing to opt out of these changes will be instructed to call or write Bank of America.  However, any use of a card after opting out will be considered an acceptance of the new terms and conditions.  If you have any questions regarding the information contained in this bulletin, please feel free to contact Member Benefits at 650-552-5200, or Diane Morte, Member Benefits Consultant, at 650-552-5430.