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2/28 FMEA Happy Hour @ Stanley's 3:30-6pm 3/4 FMEA Spelling Bee @ Bridges 6-8pm 4/4 - FMEA Basketball Tournament @ Yerba Buena HS |
May 13, 2020
Hi all, Happy CTA Day Of The Teacher! I made a short video below I hope you will watch. https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=_ZUbWTbPac0&app=desktop Sincerely, Scott Shulimson May 8, 2020 Hi FMEA members, CTA's Day Of The Teacher isn't until this coming Wednesday, but this week has been National Teacher Appreciation Week, and I know FMEA teachers have been appreciated this year like no other, as we have provided an important link to our students and families, making sure they have the food, safety, and resources needed to make it through this challenging time. I sincerely thank you and appreciate you! Yesterday Governor Newsom shared that California now has a budget deficit of $54 billion. He will release the annual May Revision to the budget next week, and we will see how he plans to close that gap. It's safe to say that the increased funding to schools that has been a staple of California budgets for almost a decade is over for now. Just how hard education is hit remains to be seen. The only viable remedy to this fiscal crisis is for Congress to allocate more money to states. Specifically, CTA is calling on Congress to allocate $175 billion to states in the form of an Education Stabilization Fund. CTA has issued a "Call To Action." All you have to do is call your congress person and request they support this Education Stabilization Fund. CTA has set up the following number that will connect you to your congressperson: 1-855-977-1770. All details are attached to this email. Thank you in advance for taking a few minutes to respond to this call to action. Your paycheck last week should have included the raise for this year, and your check at the end of May should include retro pay for the year. Don't forget there is an incentive for people to declare they are resigning or retiring. You need to notify HR by the end of May to qualify for the incentive. This will also help our excess staff get placed. Distance learning is requiring us all to adapt to a totally different landscape than we are used to. If you are having challenges or need questions answered, please get in touch. Thanks for all you do and have a great weekend! Scott Shulimson May 1, 2020 Hi FMEA members, FMEA Elections: FMEA officer elections are coming up this month. Every year FMEA votes on President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer and Director-At-Large. All are one-year terms except for Director, which is a three-year term. If you are interested in running for any of these positions you need to email a short bio, up to 30 words, to FMEA Elections Chair, Sau Vu, at shampoo.6@gmail.com by May 21st. Make sure to indicate which position you are running for. Attached to this email is a complete description of each of these positions. 2020/21 School Year: Governor Newsom caught a lot of school districts off guard when he recently mentioned that schools might return in July. It's unlikely many districts will be doing so, and FMSD will definitely not begin our school year until August. It's possible the State or County will extend the school shutdown, and we could end up coming back later than planned, but we will not be returning to work earlier than August 11th, which is our first day back to work on the board-adopted FMSD calendar. While we can rule out school returning in July, there are many unknowns about next school year. FMSD, like other districts is beginning to look at options if social distancing is still in place. In the coming weeks planning for next year will come into clearer focus, but for now a large range of approaches are being looked at. . Staffing: Currently there are not enough open positions in the district for all excess staff and coaches, who are returning to the classroom. Therefore the district is going to offer a $3,000 incentive to anyone who officially notifies the district, by May 31st, of their plan to resign. This year's large retirement incentive will also be made available to anyone who qualifies but missed the deadline. I do think there will be enough spots for all teachers to have a placement for next year, by the first of week of June. Teachers who need to retrieve materials from your classroom because you are moving to a different classroom or leaving FMSD altogether will probably have access the first week of June. This date could change based on further guidance from the County Department of Public Health. Salary Schedules: Updated salary schedules are now available. I've attached next year's 184 and 194 day salary schedules, and the link to the district's website is below, which has updated 2019-20 salary schedules. The salary schedules for this year are 1% larger than next year because they include this year's 1% bonus. https://www.fmsd.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=1135533&type=d&pREC_ID=986272 Have a great weekend! Scott Shulimson FMEA President April 22, 2020 Hi FMEA members, FMSD delayed last week's board meeting until last night, which means the board approved our Tentative Agreement (TA) last night. We are supposed to see the raise in our paychecks next week, and the retro pay should come at the end of May, but that is a tight timeline so I'll be happy to see it when it arrives. The board voted to give administration the same raise we got (2.5% raise plus a 1% bonus), They also voted to switch Bridges from a dependent charter to a traditional public school next year. Also in last night's board packet it was announced that Karen Allard will be resigning at the end of this school year. For those who were being evaluated this year, the district is going to go ahead and finish evaluations based on whatever observations took place prior to schools closing. If instead, you prefer to be evaluated next year, make sure to let your principal know, so you will be evaluated next year instead of this year. FMEA Rep Council will meet on Zoom this coming Monday, so if you have questions or concerns about distance learning or anything else, make sure to contact your FMEA Site Rep so that they can bring up your concerns to the group. It looks like the district is working towards an unusual mid-year open enrollment, primarily for those who are having trouble with the switch to United Health Care. More details will be available in the coming weeks. Lastly, I'm once again attaching the SPED MOU that was recently approved at the time of our TA. All SPED staff will receive a $500 stipend for the next five years, and all SPED staff hired in the last three years will now be receiving the $3000 stipend for a total of five years. It's challenging to stay in touch, unified and coordinated without any in-person meetings, so do let me know if there are issues you think need to be on the FMEA radar. Take good care and stay healthy and positive, Scott Shulimson FMEA President April 10, 2020 Hi all, I hope this email finds you well. The voting on our Tentative Agreement (TA) has ended and the final result is unanimous! 215 voted "yes" and 0 voted "no." The Board will ratify it at their meeting this Tuesday, and then the TA becomes binding contract language. The salary increase is retroactive to July 1, 2019 so we will get a retro check in the coming months, but the hourly pay and other increases are not retroactive. Thanks again to our bargaining team for getting this done despite the challenging times. Tentative master schedules should be emailed out by the April 15th deadline. Some teachers have already been contacted about being on the excess staff list. Things will be a little different this year since obviously there won't be an excess staff meeting in person, and there are less openings this year than past years, but there will be positions for everyone eventually. During the upcoming spring break there is no expectation that you be available for anything work-related. If you have questions or concerns about distance learning or anything else please let me know. Have a cozy holiday break. Best, Scott Shulimson April 7, 2020 Hi FMEA members, I hope you and your loved ones are doing well and adjusting to this current reality. At 7pm tonight you should receive an email on your district email with a link to vote on the recent Tentative Agreement (TA) between FMEA and the district. I have attached the TA to this email once again. FMEA will be voting on a secure and independent platform called "Simply Voting." The voting is open until Friday at 4pm, but I encourage you to vote earlier. If you do not receive the voting link on your district email tonight definitely let me know. FMEA is using district email to make sure that the link to vote doesn't wind up in your spam folder, and because we don't have 100% of members' email addresses, but I have made corrections to the district list, and I have confirmed that there is no way the district can tell who votes or how they vote. If more than 50% of FMEA votes cast are in support of the TA then the School Board will ratify it at their meeting this coming Tuesday. It usually takes a month or two to get our retro check and for the raise to show up on our paychecks. I do not know how the virus shutdown will impact this timeline, but I know they work hard to complete this all by June at the latest. Below are topics that went out to FMEA Site Reps yesterday. Rep Council April Topics: Master Schedule: April 15 is when the district posts a tentative master schedule. It will be emailed out this year instead of posted. Floating Cap Pay: I have confirmed that teachers will continue to get floating cap pay. Also, in cases where teachers are taking on an extra class instead of there being a sub, that teacher or teachers will be paid just as if a class was split on a normal day due to no sub. Note: in the recent TA we bargained that teachers taking split classes will split $250, so once the Board ratifies our TA the $250 goes into effect. Until then it remains the retired teacher pay rate that is split, which I believe is $200. Spring Break: There will still be a spring break this year. During spring break there is no obligation to do work-related tasks. COVID19 MOU: FMEA is working with the district on coming up with a COVID19 MOU that addresses safety, basic obligations around distance learning, and other components of our contract that have been effected by the school shutdown. The fact that we will not be reopening schools this year is going to create many challenges and unique issues. Let me know if you have questions or concerns that need to be looked at. Take care, stay positive and stay safe. Sincerely, April 2, 2020 Hi all, As you have now probably heard, California schools will not be reopening this school year. Distance learning will be the focus for districts around the state. In recent days the district has sent out a lot of information about the FMSD plan for distance learning, but there are still plenty of unanswered questions. There are also a lot unknowns related to how the district will handle the processes and procedures that normally happen at sites every spring. I do think all of this will get worked out in time, but feel free to contact me if you have questions or concerns you are struggling to get addressed. FMEA will be using an online platform called "Simply Voting" to conduct a secure online vote for our Tentative Agreement (TA). Voting on the TA will take place next week, most likely using your personal email address. I'm attaching the TA to this email once again, and will follow up with more information as we get ready to vote next week. Spring break will still take place as originally scheduled during the week of April 13th. During that time teachers will not be expected to conduct distance learning or be available for work-related demands. I've been asked to remind folks not to reply-to-all unless you feel strongly that your reply to me is pertinent to everyone else in this email group. I am still open to any and all private correspondence. Lastly, for those who didn't see it, Superintendent Cruz clarified when and how to enter your classroom in his email yesterday: "Schools will be open on Friday (4/3) and Monday (4/6) from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm for staff to ONLY pick-up materials and resources that may be needed to support distance learning. Everyone will need to adhere to the social distancing guidelines and use gloves as you enter the building. Please make sure to notify your principal of when you plan to come in". I'm really inspired by how this community of educators has pulled together to support our students and families, and I'm sure we will adapt to this new educational approach. Take good care of yourself and your loved ones. Sincerely, Scott Shulimson March 30, 2020 Hi all, The district is currently gathering and disinfecting devices to go out to families, and distance learning will begin one week from today. I mentioned in Friday's email that you will be allowed to go into your room to retrieve needed instructional materials, but please hold off for a few days until the district has their disinfecting plan/protocol in place. By the second half of this week there should be a plan in place for accessing your rooms. FMEA is currently working with CTA to figure out the best online platform for conducting our TA voting. I'm pretty sure we will vote later this week and will keep you posted. Best, Scott Shulimson March 27, 2020 Hi FMEA members, I hope you are doing well during the quarantine. It's a strange time we are in with lots of unknowns, but California teachers are doing much better than those in other states who don't have a commitment from state government that our paychecks will keep coming. Our pay will not only keep coming, it will increase, but first we have to ratify the Tentative Agreement (TA). Normally we vote by paper ballot, but obviously that would be challenging at this time. Most likely we will use SurveyMonkey to vote, and a vote link will be sent directly to your district email next week. The FMEA Update from last week has a summary of the TA and I am attaching the TA and SPED MOU to this email as well. Note: The SPED MOU has been updated again so that, not only do all SPED teachers receive a $500 annual stipend, but now all teachers currently receiving the $3000 annual signing bonus will get it for five years instead of three. Also note: the TA includes a 2.5% raise with a 1% bonus, and the language used to implement the bonus is confusing, but it's written using that specific language to ensure that this 1% counts towards teacher retirement. The school closure has been extended until at least May 1st. Most likely schools will not reopen this school year, but the situation is changing rapidly so we will have to take it week by week. The district is currently collecting and disinfecting devices to be sent home to students so that FMSD can implement virtual learning. The devices will go out next week and the district will support families who are having connectivity challenges. April 6th will be the first week of instruction. There will be no live video instruction or whole-class voice instruction because of liability issues. The first two weeks the district will have lessons ready to be uploaded, but after the first two weeks teachers or grade levels will be responsible to create and post the assignments. SPED teachers will be responsible to create and/or modify curriculum as needed. This is all still somewhat unclear, but there should be a lot of clarification in the coming week. One thing that is clear is that we will not be directed to go into classrooms. We will be allowed into rooms if teachers want to gather materials, but for those who choose to be strictly quarantined and do not want to visit your room, no one should be directing you to do so. Please let me know if you hear otherwise, because this has been an ongoing issue in some neighboring districts. So far FMSD has respected FMEA members' need for safety and no one I'm aware of has been directed to show up in person. Below is a link to our FMEA General Survey with a focus on student behavior. It originally went out in February, but if you have not yet taken it, now is great time to do so. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/X5R3W6T There is a currently a lot of confusion and many unique challenges posed by the school closures. I am available by phone, text or email to answer questions or support you in any issues that arise. Take good care, and stay healthy. Sincerely, Scott Shulimson March 19, 2020 Hi all, These are unprecedented times, and I hope you are taking the appropriate steps to keep yourself, your family and your community healthy. As you know it's difficult to predict much these days with any certainty. There is a possibility schools won't reopen this school year, but it's also possible we will come back some time in April or May. I think it's likely that the earliest we would be back is April 20th at the end of our spring break. Among the things we can be certain of is that we will be paid our full salary for the rest of this school year, we will not lose our benefits, our CalSTRS credit will not be negatively affected, and we will not have to use our sick leave during the school closure. What's also now certain is that we have settled our contract for the 2019/20 school year! FMEA and the district almost reached a deal a few weeks back, and both sides wanted to bring some good news during this challenging time, so we worked remotely this week to finalize our agreement. I've attached the Tentative Agreement (TA) to this email, along with the Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) for special education. This MOU is primarily a signing bonus for new teachers, and was originally agreed to in December, but now it includes a $500 annual stipend for SPED staff. As is usually the case, there were a number of improvements and protections we were not able to get. These include increased social workers, and inclusion class protection, but the district has agreed to begin a district-level student behavior committee next year, and we were able to make gains in a number of areas. I have summarized these below:
Normally we vote by paper ballot, but this year the tentative plan is to vote next week using district email. If the TA is approved by more than 50% of FMEA membership then the FMSD School Board will approve it at their April 14th meeting. I would hope that our retro check would arrive at the end of May, but things may move slower during the closure. If you have any questions or concerns please don't hesitate to email or call me. Thank you to Bargaining Chair, Alie Victorine, and the rest of the team, Veronica Andrade, Julia Walle, Catherine Baskerville and Kris Clarke! Sincerely, Scott Shulimson March 13, 2020 Hi all, As we now know, all County schools will be closed to students for three weeks beginning Monday. We will continue to be paid, and are not using sick leave, but be aware that we are not technically on any type of leave. That means the district has the right to call us in to work as long as we are not gathering in groups larger than the County permitted number of 35. Other than district office staff, FMEA members do not need to report to work Monday. It is likely we will be called in Tuesday to prepare work packets for students. At this time I have no guess about the rest of next week or the weeks after. A lot of us have concerns about the safety of coming to work after schools have been closed to students, and you can use sick leave if you do not feel comfortable returning to school grounds. There will be a lot of disinfecting going on between now and Tuesday, but completely cleaning all schools is a big job. Some of you have brought up concerns about child care for staff when we are called in, as well as meals for our students while schools are closed. I shared these concerns with our superintendent and I think solutions are being considered. I'm sure there will also be unforeseen issues and concerns as this situation develops. For now we can all breathe a sigh of relief that the County did the right thing for the health of everyone in this region and shut down schools temporarily. I will follow up when I have more information. Sincerely, Scott Shulimson March 12, 2020 Hi all, Things have been changing very quickly. There are still no confirmed Covid-19 cases among FMSD students, but I think it is just a matter of time before our district and all others in the county close down temporarily. The decision to close will come from the County Office Of Education, based on discussions with County Health. The closure could come at any time, but I'd be surprised if we stayed open through next week. For now the district is taking some extra steps to keep our sites clean, but I know it's a losing battle. Many cleaning supplies such as hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes are not available. Some sites have them, but disinfecting wipes can only be accessed after watching the legally-mandated Keenan video (and at the time of sending this I have not received the link for this). The district is increasing sanitizing and disinfecting, including bringing custodians in to work on weekends to clean ipads and other devices. The district is focusing on the cleaning schedule outlined in the email earlier today, but obviously most of us are doing a lot extra cleaning. At this time the district has not agreed to pay for products you buy, but you can work with your principal to see if they will reimburse you. The district office is working on putting together work packets by grade level. Hopefully these will be available by Monday, since some families are already pulling their kids out of school. If/when we do close, these packets would be distributed to students to work on during the closure. I want to once again mention there is no reason to worry that there will be any loss of pay during the time the district closes. But it is quite likely that we will have to come in to schools at times to do some sort of work, since we are being paid during this time. There have been discussions on moving spring break earlier, but the downside is that some who have already made plans during the current spring break would have to cancel them if that became a work week. Many of us and our colleagues are in the groups considered most at risk. I absolutely understand your concerns and frustrations. The district is not allowing you to stay home without it coming out of sick leave, but no doctors notes will be required, and if you run out of sick leave you will still receive differential pay (your full pay minus $160 for a sub). I know this is less than ideal, but if we do end up closing in a matter of days, it will not be a serious hit to your sick leave. In addition to the extra disinfecting, cancelling all field trips, assemblies and open houses, all parent conferences are being cancelled, and IEPs will not be held in person. I think it's also clear that we will be postponing our FMEA April 4th basketball tournament. I will get back in touch when I have any substantial news to share. I know it's a challenging time and I appreciate all you are doing to keep your students, colleagues and yourself healthy. Thank you! Sincerely, Scott Shulimson FMEA President March 11, 2020 Hi all, Covid 19 is the topic that has dominated most conversations lately. I don't have much new to say that wasn't included in my email on Friday. The situation is changing very quickly, and our district will follow any new guidelines issued from the various County departments. But as I said in Friday's email, there is no reason to think that we will lose any salary or sick leave. If you are among those at risk for a more severe response to the virus you can use your sick days to stay home as a precautionary measure, and no doctor's note will be required. Monday's Rep Council was cancelled since it could be handled by email, but today's FMEA SPED meeting will not be cancelled because I think it's crucial we hold this meeting at this time and it cannot be handled by email. Here are the topics we would have discussed at Rep Council on Monday: Old Business: 1. Bargaining: We met last week and are bargaining again today. We are making progress towards a raise but are having more challenges on Hours and Class Size. I'm hopeful we can settle in the next month. 2. Total CTA/NEA/FMEA dues for 2019 tax purposes were $1299 3. SPED Meeting: This open meeting is today, March 11th, in the Shirakawa library, 3:30-5pm. 4. The FMEA basketball tournament was scheduled for April 4th, but it will probably have to be postponed due to the virus. We are looking at a new date later this school year and will decide ASAP. New Business: 1. Measure R: FMSD's school bond passed last week. The bond is to raise $80,000,000 for updating school properties and technology needs. Bonds generally can't be used to pay teacher salaries. 2. Spelling Bee: The winners of the FMEA spelling bee were: 1st place: Alex Nguyen- Santee 2nd place: Christin Duong- Ramblewood 3rd place: Vincent Nguyen- Ramblewood Also, as a reminder for those wanting to transfer to a different school: April 1st is the deadline to request to be put on the transfer list. Those on this list are supposed to be called for an interview for any openings they have stated interest in. However anyone can interview for any open position, whether or not they are on the transfer list. Best, Scott Shulimson FMEA President March 6, 2020 Hi FMEA members, Obviously many of us are concerned about the outbreak of Covid 19, with the recent sharp increase in cases in Santa Clara county. In terms of the impact to us and our district, there are still a many unanswered questions. A lot will depend on how rapidly it spreads. School districts are generally not forming their own plans but are following guidance from the County Office Of Eduction and County Office Of Public Health. There is currently no plan to close down any FMSD schools but it does remain a possibility in the future. If that happens there is absolutely no reason this would influence the pay or sick leave of teachers. Our contract is binding and this crisis does not void anything we have agreed to. Furthermore, because California has declared this a state of emergency, districts can close school for a short period of time without needing to make up the school days. The district is taking small steps like increasing cleaning of communal spaces and cancelling some events. The vast majority of people with this virus do not experience life-threatening illness; nonetheless, if you feel your health could be seriously impacted by this virus because of a pre-existing condition you can use sick leave and stay home, and no doctor's note will be required. Obviously this situation is changing quickly so who knows what next week will bring. I think generally, those calling the shots at a county and local level are trying to avoid creating panic, while still taking steps to keep people informed and safe. Hopefully they succeed. Enjoy your weekend, February 14, 2020 Hi FMEA members and welcome to our first February vacation! Below are highlights from Monday's Rep Council. Also FMEA has a brand new general survey. Please click on this link and make your voice heard on this brief survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/X5R3W6T Rep Council Highlights Bargaining: We are starting to make some progress. We bargained today and inched closer to a deal. Our next bargaining date is March 5th, and I'm hoping we will have another productive day. HR now has new versions of the contract that was bargained last year, so stop by and grab one. Schools And Communities: Thousands more signatures are still needed to get this on the November ballot. If the Schools And Communities initiative passes it will bring millions in increased funding to FMSD. Site Reps have blank petitions if you want to bring them home for your friends and family to sign. All registered voters in the state can sign. FMEA Student Events: The FMEA spelling bee has been postponed until Wednesday, March 4th, to make sure sites have enough time to determine who will represent your school. It will be held at Bridges from 6-8pm. The FMEA basketball tournament is April 4th at Yerba Buena High School. FMEA Happy Hour: Our next FMEA social event is Friday, February 28th, at Stanley's Sports Bar, 3:30-6pm. Flyers are coming soon. FMEA SPED Meeting: This drop in FMEA meeting will be Wednesday, March 11th, at the Shirakawa library from 3:30-5pm. Dues Total: For tax purposes, total union dues for 2019 were $1299. Lastly, it is with great sadness that we received the news that our long-time district nurse, Gwendolyn Kyle passed away this week. Gwendolyn was a nurse here the last twelve years, and her care and smiles will be missed. Sincerely, Scott Shulimson February 5, 2020 Hi FMEA members, Bargaining: Bargaining began last week and we will continue next week. Our district's declining enrollment may make it harder to get a raise this year, but I am confident that we ultimately will reach a deal that includes a raise, retroactive to the beginning of this school year. Student Events: The FMEA spelling bee has been moved to Wednesday, February 26th to give more time to schools to prepare. Please let me know if you will be the coordinator for your site. The FMEA basketball tournament will be April 4th. We still need coordinators for this event as well. SERP: The district retirement incentive has ended with a total of ten teachers signing up for it. My understanding is that the board is likely to approve the incentive for these ten teachers. Scholarships: If you are a new teacher interested in a scholarship to attend either the CTA Good Teaching Conference or New Educator Weekend let me know ASAP. Here are links to both: https://ctago.org/events/2020-new-educator-weekend-north/ https://ctago.org/events/2020-good-teaching-conference-north/ FMEA Social: The next FMEA happy hour will be Friday, February 28th, at Stanley's Sports Bar from 3:30-6pm. Look for invites coming soon. These are always a blast so don't miss it! SPED Meeting: FMEA will be hosting a special ed drop in meeting on Wednesday, March 11th, from 3:30-5pm in the Shirakawa Library. This is open to all SPED teachers who want to voice their concerns and opinions. Schools And Communities First: This CTA-sponsored ballot initiative still needs many more signatures to qualify for the November ballot. It will bring billions of dollars to school districts around the state by closing property tax loopholes for big business. If you are willing to have a few friends and family members sign the petition let me know and I will get some petitions out to you. We need to get this done in the next four weeks. NEA RA: If you are interested in running to be a Local Delegate to the NEA RA let me know by February 28th. If you have any questions, ideas or concerns don't hesitate to get in touch. Best, January 15, 2020 Hi FMEA members, Happy 2020! Winter break already feels like a distant memory, but I hope it was a good one. Below are highlights from Monday's Rep Council. Also, tonight the County Board will vote on the Alpha-Cornerstone appeal. If they uphold our local School Board vote then Cornerstone (charter school located on Kennedy's campus) will shut down in June. Please consider attending and speaking. The County Board will likely be in closed session until 6pm. Anyone showing up by 7pm should be able to speak, and it's anyone's guess what time they will vote. The County Board meets at 1290 Ridder Park Dr. January Rep Council Highlights: Bargaining begins January 28th. FMEA will be seeking another retroactive raise as well as improvements in the Hours article. If you are interested in joining the FMEA Bargaining Team let me know. The FMEA spelling bee will be February 12th. We need to know who each site's coordinating teachers will be ASAP. This is a simple job that involves offering interested students a chance to take a short written test. The FMEA basketball tournament will be April 4th. Once again we need to know who will be coordinating this at your site. Staffing: Unlike previous years, the district is considering all first-year teachers as probationary, not temporary. This means first year teachers will not have to reapply for their job, assuming evaluations are good and the principal chooses to rehire. This also means there is a small chance the district could run a layoff in March, but if there is a layoff it would be very small. SERP: The deadline to participate in the current retirement incentive is January 24th. The more people who sign up for the SERP, the greater chance a layoff can be avoided this year. The NEA Representative Assembly (RA) will be in Atlanta from July 2nd-6th. State Delegate declarations (attached) are due January 31st. 8th Grade Promotions will likely be similar to last year, and there will be an appeals committee. Juan Cruz and our Board will be gathering input and will craft new Board Policy, but that won't go into effect until next year. Attached are the current 8th grade requirements and the template for IPPs (Individual Performance Plans). CTA Scholarships: There are a number of CTA scholarships being offered, including the scholarship for dependent children of CTA members. Here's the link with all needed info: https://www.cta.org/scholarships CTA Events: Lastly, here are several great upcoming CTA events: CTA Special Ed Training: February 7th in San Jose. See first attached flyer. CTA Good Teaching Conference: February 7th-9th https://ctago.org/events/2020-good-teaching-conference-north/ CTA New Educator Weekend https://ctago.org/events/2020-new-educator-weekend-north/ Congratulations on making it to the bottom of this long email! December 13, 2019 Hi all, We made it! It's hard not to feel good about starting a three week vacation. Sometime before we come back please take a look at the Rep Council highlights below, and if you didn't get a chance to read the hardcopy of the latest edition of our newsletter, it is attached. Also attached are two new MOUs (Memorandum Of Understanding). The first of these makes it official that SPED folks doing extra assessments get per diem pay (instead of the hourly pay). The second MOU is an attempt to attract and retain SPED teachers, and changes the SPED signing bonus from three years to five years. December Rep Council Highlights 1. Bargaining will begin in January. Resources are getting tighter in the district due to declining enrollment, but hopefully FMEA can still win another retroactive raise this year. If you haven't taken the FMEA bargaining survey here is the link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/VD3RDJH 2. It's time for participating schools to determine who will coordinate the FMEA spelling bee (February 12th) and basketball tournament (April 4th ). 3. There will likely not be revised Board Policy this year regarding participation in 8th grade promotion activities. The district will be following the same 8th grade expectations as last year. See attached. I'm advocating that there should be no appeals committee, but that if there is one, it needs to hear from someone from the site. Here is a link to current Board Policy on the matter: http://www.gamutonline.net/district/franklinmckinley/DisplayPolicy/142673 4. FMEA will soon be conducting a survey to assess perspectives on district leadership, student behavior and more. 5. The appeal for Cornerstone charter school will be January 15th at the County Board. More details to come in early January. 6. There is an LGBTQ food drive underway. Sites just need someone to coordinate the food collection, and I will be happy to pick up and deliver. 7. The Schools And Communities First November 2020 ballot initiative is a BIG ISSUE. If it passes it will bring much needed resources to districts across the state by closing property tax loopholes on commercial properties. Big business is ready to spend up to $100M on deceptive advertising, so we need to be educated and prepared. 8. Lastly, for those considering taking the district's retirement incentive, don't forget the deadline is January 24th. Have a great vacation and thanks for all you do! November 26, 2019 Hi FMEA members, On December 6th CTA will offer a "Know Your Rights" training at the Mt Hamilton office at 1333 Piedmont Rd. A flyer with all details is attached. On January 15th the County Board will be voting on Cornerstone's appeal to stay open. Cornerstone (independent charter school located on the Kennedy campus) was denied their charter renewal by our FMSD School Board last month. The County Board is likely to overturn this vote. I will provide more details about the meeting as the date gets closer. Below is a new link for an all-expense-paid trip for teachers to the Museum Of Tolerance in L.A. for a "Tools For Tolerance" diversity training. This is a different link than what was included last email and should work. https://forms.gle/r91QxJNDQC3H5ZyH6. There is still time to take the FMEA bargaining survey. The link is below, for those who haven't already taken it. FMEA and the district will release initial "Sunshine" proposals at the December board meeting and proceed with bargaining in January. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/VD3RDJH CTA's New Educator Weekend will be February 21-23 in Santa Clara. Below is a link with all details and registration info. 2020 New Educator Weekend NORTH - CTA Go! Lastly, CTA is holding a food drive for LGBTQ youth in the county. A flyer is attached, and I'll be happy to help coordinate donation drop offs. Thanks for all you do and have a great Thanksgiving holiday!!! November 8, 2019 Hi FMEA members, The latest edition of our FMEA newsletter is attached. Also attached is a flyer with details for an all-expense-paid trip for teachers to the Museum Of Tolerance in L.A. for a "Tools For Tolerance" diversity training. Here's the link to register: https://forms.gle/r91QxJNDQC3H5ZyH6. Our FMEA Bargaining Survey will be open for a little while longer, so take this quick survey if you haven't yet. We will begin bargaining for this year's raise and more in the coming months. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/VD3RDJH The recent district training on suspension created a lot of confusion and frustration. I do want to make sure you are clear that teachers still have the right to suspend. Principals won't be able to send students home for "willful defiance" but there are still plenty of other suspendible offenses that do allow principals to suspend home. These include "Caused...or threatened to cause physical injury...", "Caused...damage to school property or private property" and " Committed an obscene act or engaged in habitual profanity or vulgarity." Suspensions should only be a last resort, but it's important we know our rights. The full list of suspendible offenses can be found here: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?sectionNum=48900.&lawCode=EDC The district held interviews today for a new Director of I.T. to replace Hung, who resigned last month. Also, interviews were held this week for a new Assistant Superintendent of H.R. The Board is expected to announce their selections at the board meeting on Tuesday. Lastly, there is a very important ballot initiative coming up in November 2020. The Schools And Communities First initiative will raise over $11.5B by making large commercial companies pay their fair share in property taxes. This will bring in an additional $4M for FMSD every year! We will be talking a lot more about this crucial initiative as we get closer to next year's election day. Have a great long weekend! October 25, 2019 Hi FMEA members, Tuesday's FMSD School Board meeting had two big surprises. First, on a close vote, board members turned down the five-year renewal for Alpha Cornerstone charter school. Our board has never turned down a charter renewal before. This denial was based on the fact that Alpha Cornerstone has not had a single moderate-to-severe SDC student in its 10 year history! The charter school will definitely be appealing this decision to the County Board. I will let you know when that appeal is scheduled because we will want the County Board to here from district teachers. The board also voted to offer a retirement incentive for the second year in a row! Just like last year, this incentive (known as a SERP) is open to all FMEA folks who are at least 55, with 5 years in the district. Participants in the SERP would receive the equivalent of 65% of your salary if you resign June 30th (deadline to notify HR is January 24th). The SERP will go through if at least 15 certificated folks sign up. All eligible employees should receive notification from the district with all details, but feel free to let me know if you have any questions. Today is the FMSD open enrollment deadline. Anthem/Blue Cross will no longer be an option, Anthem folks will have to choose between Health Care United (HCU) and Kaiser. The list the district sent out this morning seems to be out of date by a day or two. Let me know if you are having any challenges getting your benefits resolved. Here is a link to our 2019 FMEA Bargaining Survey. Please complete it by the end of the month if possible. We will begin bargaining in December or January. FMEA 2019 Bargaining Survey FMEA 2019 Bargaining SurveyWeb survey powered by SurveyMonkey.com. Create your own online survey now with SurveyMonkey's expert certified F... There is a teacher student loan forgiveness workshop on November 4th. The attached flyer has all details. RSVP at: https://tinyurl.com/Nov4StudentDebt. October 17, 2019 Hi all, Tomorrow is our annual FMEA Oktoberfest happy hour. We will be at Stanley's Sports Bar, located above Sharks Ice, from 3:30-6pm, with free food and drinks for the first hour (and free stuff for new teachers the whole time!). It looks like they will have some other events going on so if you don't see us in the front area then walk around to the back. I hope to see you tomorrow because these are always fun! October Rep Council highlights: 1. The FMEA student track meet is a week from Saturday at Sylvandale, from 9:30am-noon. Come by and support our students. We have at least eight schools participating. Big thanks to the those helping coordinate this at sites. 2. FMEA needs a new editor for our newsletter. There is a $500 stipend for this position and the only requirement is that you are familiar with Publisher. Let me know if you are interested. 3. Most CTA cards have been distributed, except for folks who are at multiple sites or are brand new. If you still don't have your CTA card let me know. 4. Our school board is looking into creating clearer policies regarding 8th grade participation in promotion activities. The district will be scheduling meetings soon for the board to listen to teachers, as well as parents and students, about what needs to be included in this policy. I'm hopeful they will be responsive to our requests. 5. Below is a list of upcoming CTA conferences. Issues Conference (Urban And Rural) Location: Tropicana, Las Vegas, NV Conference Date: January 17-19, 2020 Good Teaching Conference - North Location: Fairmont Hotel, San Jose Conference Date: February 7-9, 2020 Equity & Human Rights Conference Location: Marriott, Irvine Conference Date: February 28 - March 1, 2020LGBTQ+ Issues Conference Location Hilton Financial District, San Francisco Conference Date: December 13-15, 2019 New Educator Weekend Location: Marriot, Santa Clara Conference Date: February 21-23, 2020 To apply for an incentive grant visit www.CTAGo.org/grants. To learn more about these conferences visit www.CTAGo.org Best, October 4, 2019 Hi all, I hope your first two months of school are off to a good start. I'm sure we are all ready for this early October break! Yesterday there was great news in Sacramento, as Governor Newsom signed into law two charter school bills, 1505 and 1507, that offer strong new restrictions on charter schools. These bills will not change the fact that FMSD already has numerous charter schools, but it makes it far less likely that we will get new charter schools in the future. Our FMEA Oktoberfest is Friday, October 18th at 3:30pm at Stanley's Sports Bar. It's always fun, with free food and drinks for the first hour. New FMEA members are especially encouraged to attend, and will receive free food and drinks the whole event! The FMEA student track meet is Saturday, October 26th at Sylvandale. We have half of our schools participating and look forward to adding more. Let me know if you want to get involved. Health Benefits: Open enrollment is coming soon. Luckily those with Kaiser will see monthly premiums go down for a second year in a row. Those with Anthem/Blue Cross will actually be shifted to a different HMO, United HealthCare (UHC), but almost everyone should be able to keep their old doctors, and premiums will rise just slightly for a small group of employees. The School Board will be putting together new Board Policy regarding who can participate in 8th grade promotion activities. After break there should be some meetings offered so that staff can give our input on what the new Board Policy should include. As usual, CTA is offering a number of great conferences and events this year. Click the "more info" links for all details, including how to apply for scholarships. LGBTQ+ Issues Conference (more info) Application Deadline: October 7, 2019 Location: Hilton Financial District, San Francisco Conference Date: December 13-15, 2019 Issues Conference (more info) Application Deadline: November 4, 2019 Location: Tropicana, Las Vegas, NV Conference Date: January 17-19, 2020 Good Teaching Conference - North (more info) Application Deadline: November 4, 2019 Location: Fairmont Hotel, San Jose Conference Date: February 7-9, 2020 Equity & Human Rights Conference (more info) Application Deadline: January 6, 2020 Location: Marriott, Irvine Conference Date: February 28 - March 1, 2020 Have a great October break! Best, Scott Shulimson September 13, 2019 Hi FMEA members, Below are the highlights from Monday's FMEA Rep Council meeting. Thank you to all the Site Reps who attended, making this the first time in over a year that every site was represented! FMEA Track Meet The annual FMEA student track meet for grades 4th-8th will take place Saturday October 26th. Each participating site needs a Coordinating Teacher (CT). Please consider helping coordinate this for your site. Let me know if you have any questions or if you want to volunteer. Bargaining There will be an FMEA bargaining survey in the near future, and bargaining will begin in the coming months. We will once again be seeking a retroactive raise for the current school year. The district ending reserve increased by $1M last school year, but due to declining enrollment, many cuts are still slated for this year, including eliminating the HR Director position that was formerly held by Marcela Miranda. FMEA Oktoberfest Our first FMEA gathering of the year will be Friday, October 18th at Stanley's Sports Bar. A flyer is coming soon. FMEA Communication Join FMEA's text blast list: Text “@fmeamember” to 81010 Join the FMEA Group on Facebook. Just send a request to join. Find all important FMEA documents on our website: www.fmea.mobi Two Upcoming Events Teacher Housing Town Hall: September 17th. See attached flyer. Student Loan Forgiveness Workshop: November 4th. See attached flyer. Charter School News Hot off the press: Our state legislature just approved two bills that would give local school boards much more authority when faced with new charter schools attempting to enter a district. If Governor Newsom signs these bills it will be a huge improvement in state law regulating charter schools. Have a great weekend! Best, Scott Shulimson September 3, 2019 Hi FMEA members, I hope your school year is off to a great start! There are a few important topics I want to bring to your attention: 1. For all who are being evaluated this year, don't forget that last year's bargaining agreement reduced the number of written objectives you must provide, from six down to three. Two are chosen by the teacher and one by the principal. 2. CalSTRS recently audited our district and found that the way our off-schedule salary bonuses were written into the contract ran the risk of lowering what retirees receive. For that reason FMEA and the district are working to re-word the language in these past agreements. There is absolutely no change to the amount of compensation we receive, but this change will ensure that CalSTRS pays FMEA retirees as much as possible. I've attached the new language, which is in MOU form (Memorandum Of Understanding), as well as a separate page which goes into detail on why this was necessary. The School Board approved the MOU on Tuesday, and FMEA will be working with the district to fix the problem for other previous years that had off-schedule bonuses. 3. There is a new Personal Necessity (PN) form, and with it has come some confusion. Please note that you do not need to provide or circle a reason for any of your seven annual PN days. 4. Lastly, for any teachers who left a picture up in June of how your classroom should look, all furniture should have been put back in place. If this did not happen in your room let me know. Have a great week! August 16, 2019 Hi FMEA members, Welcome to our new teachers! Returning teachers, I hope you had a rewarding and rejuvenating summer. It sounds like there are going to be some very full classes on Monday, but the district has until Labor Day to balance all classes and get under the contractual class sizes. After Labor Day you start collecting floating cap pay if your class is still over-enrolled. Don't forget, floating cap pay increased to $13 a day and is based on enrollment, not attendance. Paula Boling retired over the summer, and Human Resources Director, Marcela Miranda, will be leaving to take a job at the County Office at the end of the month. The district is still looking for a permanent Assistant Superintendent of H.R. but in the meantime it looks likely that an interim will be brought in to head the department. This will be important because we are starting the year with a lot of openings, especially in SPED, and H.R. is in charge of recruitment and hiring. The beginning of a new school year is always crucial, not just from an educational standpoint but from a union one as well. If something doesn't seem right, please let me know. There are always hiccups as the school year starts, and some problems become a lot harder to fix if they aren't caught right away. I'm excited for another positive and productive year for FMEA. We will once again have a number of student events and other great ways to support the students and staff of Franklin-McKinley. Have a great first day of school and an awesome year! Best, Scott Shulimson FMEA President |
