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Attention Caddo Parish Public School Teachers and Employees
Where is the Money?
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Welcome back Caddo. Let’s get straight to the point. The five year drought on teacher pay has finally ended! Politicians called it austerity—our translation: they cut the funds; we suffer; they benefit. But, at last, we have seen a small reprieve. With much pressure from the legislators who truly value public education, classroom teachers will receive a one-time supplement. Once taxes and retirement are taken out, the check you receive should be somewhere above $500. When, you ask?
The Caddo Parish School Board first said the issue needed to go to a committee for recommendation. When we expressed our concern, they moved it to the next school board agenda on August 20th. This is one of those issues where teachers need to weigh in. By golly, you earned this. We fought for it, and there should be no pussyfooting on allocating your money to you. Pick up the phone, point that mouse, and send a message to the school board saying to them, “Now is the time!”
And while you are at it, there are two other issues you need to address. We don’t do this job alone. When we consider the promise of public education and all those who are essential in providing it, there are those who shouldn’t be forgotten. They too need recognition for their hard work. The money allocated from the state is for certified teachers only, but that doesn’t mean support employees should be left out. The Caddo Parish Finance Director said they were scrubbing the budget to identify local funds for a support employee pay supplement. Let us stand together in calling on the board members to place an item on the agenda for a support employee pay supplement.
Finally, where’s the CEEF? CEEF, or the Caddo Educational Excellence Fund, is money we receive from the riverboats. The district is only allowed to spend the interest off this account each year. A committee meets to make recommendations to the CPSB who then approve the allocation. When we looked at the proposed budget last May, there was $400,000 in that line item. It certainly appeared that since these monies are to be used for classroom enhancements, this would be an excellent way to offset the money cut from the $200 per teacher supply allotment. We immediately inquired, and we were told the committee had not met, but we were assured that the meeting would soon occur. As of Tuesday night, despite all the assurances, the committee still had not met. So once again, the funds are there, and they couldn’t be going to a nobler place than classroom materials and supplies. SHOW UP to the CPSB meeting August 20th. Encourage the board to step up and see that the funds are allocated now. Tell them to vote:
YES to allocation of MFP salary supplement for classroom teachers…
YES to a support employee supplement…
YES to supply money…..
Contact the Board Members:
District 1 Steve Riall
8033 Old Moorningsport Road
Shreveport, LA 71107
Tel: (318) 929-2672
Email: SRiall@caddo.k12.la.us
District 2 Jasmine Green
1433 Audrey Lane
Shreveport, LA 71107
Tel: (318) 703-6251
Email: Jagreen@caddo.k12.la.us
District 3 Carl A. Pierson, Sr.
First Vice President
2106 Wyoming Circle
Shreveport, LA 71101
Tel: (318) 222-0132
Email:capfromallendale1@gmail.com
District 4 Charlotte Crawley
4741 Thornhill
Shreveport, LA 71106
Tel: (318) 470-7851
Email:CMCrawley@aol.com
District 5 Curtis Hooks
3309 Sun Valley Court
Shreveport, LA 71109
Tel: (318) 423-1582
Email: CHooks@caddo.k12.la.us
District 6 Mary Trammel
229 E 75th Street
Shreveport, LA 71106
Tel: (318) 840-7813
Email: MTrammel@caddo.k12.la.us
District 7 Lillian Priest
2613 Parham Drive
Shreveport, LA 71109
Tel: (318) 635 – 8335
Fax: (318) 636 – 2177
Email: LPriest@caddo.k12.la.us
District 8 Bonita Crawford
Second Vice President
295 Patton Ave
Shreveport, LA 71105
Tel: (318) 868 – 3684
Fax: (318) 868 – 5119
Email: BCrawford@caddo.k12.la.us
District 9 Barry F. Rachal
P.O. Box 5545
Shreveport, LA 71135
Tel: (318) 918-1240 or (318) 469-2277
Email: BarryRachal@gmail.com
Email: Brachal@caddo.k12.la.us
District 10 Larry Ramsey
President
9006 Marlow Dr
Shreveport, LA 71118
Tel: (318) 686-7611
Email: LRamsey@caddo.k12.la.us
District 11 Ginger Armstrong
9800 Chase Way
Shreveport, LA 71118
Tel: (318) 688-0676
Email:GArmstrong@caddo.k12.la.us
District 12 Dottie Bell
7881 Jefferson-Paige Road
Shreveport, LA 71119
Tel: (318) 635-4667
Email: DBell@caddo.k12.la.us
Reclaiming the Promise of Public Education
This video features AFT President Randi Weingarten: “Reclaiming the Promise” of Public Education – HIGHLIGHTS
We believe in public education because it is the means by which we help all children dream their dreams and achieve them. And I mean all children—those who have abundant advantages, and those for whom every day is a struggle; those who worry about getting into a good college, and those who worry about their parents getting deported.
Educators like you help students build lives of great purpose and potential by instilling essential knowledge and skills, including critical reasoning, problem-solving and working with others, and by promoting civic participation. We believe in high-quality public education because it is an economic necessity, an anchor of democracy, a moral imperative and a fundamental civil right, without which none of our other rights can be fully realized. And I believe that promise, that hope, that accomplishment, is a direct result of the work you do every day, the most important work in America.
I truly believe we are in a crucial moment when we must reclaim the promise of public education—not as it is today or as it was in the past, but as what public education can be to fulfill our collective obligation to help all children succeed.
People are waking up to the fact that decades of top-down edicts, mass school closures, privatization and test fixation with sanctions instead of support haven’t moved the needle—not in the right direction at least.
And recently, in front of nearly 3,000 educators at our union’s TEACH conference in Washington, D.C., I laid out a vision to reclaim the promise of public education and unite parents and community with us as one unstoppable force.
Stand with us to Reclaim the Promise.
Reclaiming the promise of public education is about fighting for neighborhood public schools that are safe, welcoming places for teaching and learning. Reclaiming the promise is about ensuring that teachers are well-prepared, are supported and have time to collaborate. Reclaiming the promise is about enabling them to teach an engaging curriculum that includes art and music and the sciences. And reclaiming the promise is about ensuring that kids have access to wraparound services to meet their emotional, social and health needs.
Taken together, all these things reflect our prescription for ensuring that all kids have the opportunities they need and deserve. This vision may look different community by community, but it has a few common elements. Reclaiming the promise will bring back the joy of teaching and learning. It’s the way to make every public school a place where parents want to send their kids, teachers want to teach and children are engaged. It makes our public schools the center of the community and fulfills their purpose as an anchor of our democracy and a propeller of our economy.
We know it is not only educators who are for this; parents and community members have our backs. A recent poll found that parents want strong neighborhood public schools as opposed to more charter schools or voucher programs, and overwhelmingly believe public schools should provide a well-rounded education, offer social services for students and reduce the emphasis on testing, among other findings.
This is not a campaign. This is our core. And it must be the focus of our work going forward. Ours is a vision that works. It’s a vision of what parents want for their kids. And it’s a movement that can stop the privatizers, profiteers and austerity hawks in their tracks.
But they’re not going to roll over and go away. We need your help. None of us can be bystanders. We need to reach out to parents, the community and civic leaders. We need to open their eyes to the good things happening in our schools—as well as the challenges we face. We need to open their minds to our vision for great neighborhood public schools. We need to open their hearts to joining with us in the effort to ensure all our children get the great education they need and deserve.
Join us in Reclaiming the Promise.
In unity,
Randi Weingarten
AFT President
By uniting our voices with parents and the community, we can reclaim the promise.
http://go.aft.org/promise
#ReclaimIt
Red River United Fellowship Program
A mentoring program for new and transferred teachers and school employees.
Red River United realizes that the first few months of school can be stressful and that you will likely have LOTS of questions. We are here to help. Sign up for the Red River United Fellowship Program, and we will pair you with a veteran RRU member according to your needs.
Click here to sign up for the program: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/N35SDNH