Published: April 24, 2008 05:48 pm            

LETTERS: April 25, 2008

Perspective on NA-FC contract issues



I am writing this letter to clarify the position of the New Albany-Floyd County Education Association regarding our recent struggles to reach a fair contract with Superintendent Dr. Brooks and his administration.

I will address two points in this letter — the impasse after 80 hours at the bargaining table, and the impact of ceasing voluntary duties.

Our struggle is about the administration’s unwillingness to address the concerns of teachers. Teachers have been and will continue working in good faith to reach a fair contract settlement — a contract that fairly addresses the issues of elementary planning time, reasonable class sizes, and a fair salary settlement.

We had a fourth unsuccessful mediation session on Tuesday, April 15.

I see no progress or movement in the administration’s proposals. The teacher bargaining team did not counter the administration’s last proposal, because we felt that the administration’s offer did not make teachers a priority. It did not address elementary planning time or include a fair salary settlement. Their proposal did not indicate respect for the importance of the job teachers do and did not utilize the money available.

Dr. Brooks’ proposals do not treat teachers as the essential component to student and school success that we know they are.

Dr. Brooks’ original intent was displayed very clearly on October 3, 2008, during our initial exchange of proposals. His administration made some of the most regressive and backward-reaching proposals any of our leaders and Indiana State Teachers Association staff have seen in their entire careers. Those proposals would put New Albany-Floyd County teachers back 30 years, to before 1973 and the very first collective bargaining agreement, by taking away/limiting teacher input on curriculum and making wholesale changes to the established process for these decisions. Additional changes proposed take away/limit rights to bereavement, sick, and personal leave.

All of these regressive changes have an impact on our schools’ future ability to compete for the best and the brightest new teachers joining the profession. His approach will negatively affect the educational future for the students of Floyd County

In response to the impasse at bargaining, the New Albany-Floyd County Education Association has asked teachers to cease voluntary duties. We have done so in order to clearly identify for the administration and the community the many things teachers volunteer to do each day, and to bring attention to our unsettled contract. Naturally, taking such a step is difficult for teachers. We enjoy the voluntary activities we share with students. Teachers volunteer to help because we care and are devoted to our students and the teaching profession. And in making this request, the Association intended that the school corporation would have to handle staffing these events. We simply wanted to highlight all of the activities teachers engage in above their contract day due, not to deny students extra-curricular activities.

In the Tuesday, April 15, 2008, edition of The Tribune a story quoted school board members saying not enough teachers are participating and field trips may be canceled.

It was never our intention to take one experience from students. Teachers are complying with the request to cease voluntary duties. In response, the administration has had to scramble to provide the needed chaperones. I have a long list of individual teacher and collective school actions. Each time administrators must find replacements for teachers who would normally lead or chaperone an event, or parents are reminded just how much time and energy teachers devote to unpaid duties, our efforts are a success.

I hope we can reach a fair contract settlement with the administration in the near future. Until that time, we will continue our crisis activities to encourage Dr. Brooks to make teachers a priority in this school district and address teacher needs at the bargaining table. After all, teachers are the ones in direct contact with the students every day. When teachers are made a priority, students are made a priority.

— Doug Taylor, president, New Albany-Floyd County Education Association





Reader unhappy with Knobs view



Have you driven through Floyds Knobs lately?

You should. It’s a trip.

From the top of the hill at Buffalo Trails to the traffic signal at Scottsville Road, there is one mess after another. The road has been dug up a few times to run sewer lines, water lines and whatever to the other side. These have been so poorly repaired that they are like railroad crossings, especially the one at the west side of Mike’s Tires.

Holes have been dug and not repaired properly resulting in extremely rough places. There is no way you can drive through Floyds Knobs and miss all of them.

When it rains, there are great ponds of water because there are no drains, drains were not installed properly, or a drain is stopped up and no one has bothered to clean it out.

Now there are huge metal plates in a couple of places waiting to gouge a tire.

Someone is responsible for the condition of this stretch of road. “Someone” needs to get off their behind and get it fixed.

Whoever created this mess should clean it up. The Floyd County Highway Department did not do it. Now, whoever did it should stand up and take responsibility for what they have done and get it taken care of.

— Agnes Shirley, Floyds Knobs



Should Americans be bitter, disappointed or upset?



The Hillary Clinton and the John McCain campaigns are again desperate to find a way to stop the Barack Obama surge on the American voters.

They now attack him because he said the people of Ohio and Pennsylvania are bitter. Well, they should be bitter, or should I say upset, at the poor government we have received the past 20 years from the Bush Republican and Clinton Democratic administrations. As so should every other caring American be upset.

If being tired of war, high gas prices, inflation, no jobs, low pay, foreclosures, American debt in the trillions, no health insurance, high medical costs and big business and lobbyists running our government is called bitter, than I guess I am bitter. Or a better word is disappointed in our leadership.

They call Obama an elitist? Wow! Are they out of touch with the American people? The Hillary Clinton campaign and the John McCain campaign is financed by the elite lobbyists and big businesses. I assure you Hillary Clinton and John McCain are closer to being elitists than Barack Obama.

Readers, think about this. Barack Obama was raised by a poor and middle class parent and grandparents. His mother even qualified for food stamps. John McCain and Hillary Clinton were not raised poor.

Barack Obama made the most of his education and hard work serving poor people. This is why he is running for President today. It can't be explained how he could be called an elitist.

As said earlier, McCain and Clinton get their campaign funds from Lobbyists and Big Business. Do you really believe they are going to put the America people before those that are funding their campaigns? Hillary Clinton thinks the Presidency of the United States should be handed to her on a silver platter. That kind of thinking is an elitist.

Please America, wake up and realize this is a personal attack. Why, because the Clinton and McCain campaigns fear the strength of the Obama campaign? Barack Obama is the least elitist of the three.

As bad as things are today, can you imagine four more years of the same poor leadership we have received the past 20 years? Both Clinton and McCain are out of touch with the American people.

I am a disappointed American and so should all other Americans be disappointed every time we visit the gas pumps and go to the grocery store. Oh, I forgot to mention each and every American presently owes an estimated $16,000.00 for our war efforts.

— Ray Beaufait, Charlestown, precinct captain for Clark County Barack Obama campaign

        

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