Caldwell Corner
…Note from the President
Mary Lou Caldwell
Hello to all of you San Jacinto teachers. I hope your year has gotten off to a good start. Unfortunately, there are less of us this year than last; there are also less students, which means that more cuts may have to be made. Keep your fingers crossed that the post Labor Day miracle catches up and we don’t lose another soul!
At the San G. Service Council meeting this weekend, David Sanchez made an appearance to tell all of us that things are even worse than originally anticipated. While we continue to read the daily press for hopes of a budget, he said Sacramento is so grim, that it may be January before we see any movement. What that will mean to the schools at this time is anyone’s guess. Will the doors close? We have not yet sent our negotiating team to the table for 08-09. Without a state budget, there’s really no reason to hurry. It’s of course the same at every other district that we compare ourselves to.
If you would like to voice your displeasure to someone who will listen, call:
Cuts Hurt Hotline
888-268-4334
Our legislators need to realize that we sent them there to do a job.
Since money will more than likely be scarce this year, be thinking about contract language that needs to be updated and strengthened. We will try and survey SJTA membership this year for your suggestions using Survey Monkey.com. For this to happen, we will need to get your home e-mail addresses, so get those to your site rep, so she can send them to our web master.
We can only be strong when we all voice our opinions and stand together.
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My heart goes out to our colleagues who are looking at a RIF. I know I just got by, by the skin of my teeth on our last cut in the beginning of 2001. It saddens me to see AWESOME teachers who work so hard have to be facing this dilemma. I just want to encourage the teachers who are not looking at a RIF to speak up and be heard on our P1 and P2 teachers behalf. Let’s write the legislators who are living ‘high on the hog’ and let them know that cutting is not what we need for the children. Certainly, there are better ways to save money that don’t involve the future of our children and their education.
I have seen it before when all the educators came out and let the board members know that we are not pleased with some of the decisions that are being made and we need to let them know.