RCTA Rep Council Minutes
November 26, 2018
Convened 3:35
Michelle Washington and Greg Bonnacorsi (both CTA) and Wendy Kelly (HR Director RCSD) were in attendance.
The following is a summary written by Michelle Washington of the information she shared at the Rep Council Meeting on Monday. This includes the information shared by Michelle Washington and Wendy Kelly.
As you all know the RCSD School Board will make a decision tonight at the meeting on which sites will be closed and relocated. The school boundaries will be moved for those sites. Parents will have the option to move to those new sites or transfer to others. Over the last several years, RSCD has had to hire anywhere from 50 to 80 certificated staff. This year 64 new unit members were hired. RCSD plans to offer an early retirement/resignation incentive (which RCTA suggested) so that the District can plan for certificated positions next year. RCSD believes it may not have to do RIF's (Reduction in Force or layoffs) where people are actually laid off. However, the law provides them this option when student enrollment drops. RIF notices would occur near but no later than March 15. As current members retire or resign the number of RIFs/layoffs is mitigated. RCTA does and will work closely with CTA to protect our members rights to make sure the law is followed appropriately. RIF's are based on seniority. All temporary employees have to be released for the following year as they only hold a one year contract before any probationary members can receive a layoff notice. Several years back RCSD had RIF's and no members lost their position. All were called back to work. Right now RCTA does not want to alarm anyone, only provide information. RIFs/Layoffs are only possibilities right now. Until the RCSD School Board passes a resolution in late February early March for a RIF, nothing has happened.
A few years ago, RCTA and RSCD negotiated a MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) when classes were collapsed and members moved to other grade levels or other sites. At your site, each member has site seniority. There the least senior members at the site were involuntarily transferred to another site. RCTA made sure members had a choice based on seniority of selecting a new position. The most senior people on the involuntary transfer list got first choice of the open positions. Once that person selected, then the next person selected, etc. RCTA will demand to bargain the effects of the school closures once it occurs.
Here are just some of the things RCTA will consider in a new MOU: seniority, qualifications, moving time and expenses, time for staffs to meet prior to the new year, community building of the new staffs, etc..
What does a possible Memorandum of Understanding do?
It will give our members a fair process for moving to another site and selecting the same or new grade level.
RCTA understands this is a very stressful time for our members with the uncertainty that is right now. RCTA will continue to communicate with all of you throughout this process. If you have suggestions or questions please ask your Reps who attended the meeting or contact Kevin Sugar or other exec board members. (Meg Grulich, Carol Marque, Steven Murray, and Victoria Defoux.
Meeting Minutes:
Wendy Kelly: Historically there have been approximately 60+ teachers leave. Since we hire between 50 an 75 teachers we generally don’t have to lay off. This will all be explained in the MOU. Historically we have offered $1,500 for retirement notification before January 31.We will stick firm to this date for planning purposes.
Greg B: You have the right to engage your leadership to stay informed.
Kevin:We want to be sure everyone has an amount of time.If we can keep it orderly so everyone can speak.
QUESTIONS and CONCERNS and Answers:
Jan P: Who creates the MOU?
Wendy: HR and RCTA President.
Michelle Washington: In recent years I have worked with the president to make the MOU. The MOU is passed by the Exec Board. The exec board has to approve it.
Jan P.: As an affected teacher we would want to have a voice in that.
Michelle: Regarding MOU. There are some basic tenets. The district has the right to do RIF’s Reduction in Force (layoffs).We can help with the process and see that members rights are protected. We can ask that people stay close to their site or grade levels. When you have a RIF you have more rights than a person who has a position. If you are told that you are going to another site. You are ranked by seniority at that site .You can also ask to go to another site. We tried to make sure that people had a choice.
Ann: If a teacher goes to a new site do they loose their seniority?
Michelle: We are looking at how many years a teacher has at a particular site. How many years have you been teaching this grade level. Credentials also weigh in. When you start at a new school you do start with school site seniority as the most recently arrived.
Cherlyn: We need to define the terms ahead of time like site seniority and involuntary transfer. We need a clear understanding of terms.
Siggi:? If teachers are coming into a new site can they bump someone with less seniority?
Michelle: For example, If teachers at Adelante go to Gill, they can’t bump people with less seniority. Their senioritywill be at zero seniority at the new site.
Eva: If I go to Selby Lane my seniority won’t matter? It’s involuntary for us to be going. It’s possible Adelante teachers won’t have the grade levels they have been teaching.
Wendy: Hard to fill positions (such as BCLAD’s) are included in the MOU. Adelante teachers with a BCLAD would have rights over Selby Lane teachers without a BCLAD.
Cristina:Interns: Do teachers keep their positions if not notified by March?
Wendy: This is the ranking for who goes first in RIF’s Temporary, Probationary, 0, 1, 2, and 3.
Cristina: Requested seniority list.
Lisa: Some people are under RIF. Some are going to merge.That is not an RIF? Some will be involuntarily transferred.
Michelle: There is a gray area. If a school closes all staff will be involuntary transferred unless they apply for an open position at another school.
Lisa:I f you are merging two schools, Hawes and Roosevelt there will be more students. Will we get more classified staff? Office admin etc.
Wendy: There is a formula for classified staff based on how many students are at a site.
Ann: Regarding Orion, when two programs merge who has seniority? Who has it the teachers at the site or the teachers coming into the site?
(Refer to earlier notes on site seniority)
SIggi: When Adelante emerges into Selby shouldn’t there be enough students to keep all the teachers coming from Adelante?
Wendy: The assumption is that Adelante will pick up and move to Selby Lane. All families from Adelnate will go to Selby Lane. We are making assumptions that Adelante families still want to stick with the program. Bilingual teachers are coveted. There is going to be a massive effort to make sure that parents are committed. Right now families have to make a commitment by February 15th.We are going to force their commitment.
Cristina: (A parent of an Adelante student and teacher at Roy Cloud.) If the community at Selby Lane is not the same as at Selby Lane the parents won’t send their kids there.
Wendy: The process has to be developed. Speaking of superintendent’s committee, the charge was to look at it from a global perspective. One of the primary expenses to look at was schools that are under 400 enrollment. Many things were taken into consideration, consolidation of resources. There is a general fear of loss of community. I’m optimistic about what is to come in the future.
Kevin: When will the decision be implemented?
Wendy: As soon as the board votes. The plan will be implemented 2019-2020.
Eva: Need to understood that language has been used that the programs would be merged. It’s not what we want and not what our parents. It’s not an issue of the colleagues working together. We are concerned about the displacement of the English students. It’s very hard to say that some of the teachers may or may not be there. So of the parents won’t stay if the teachers don’t go.
Wendy: Off the top of my head it makes sense to say that the staffs of Adelante and Orion will be picked up and moved.
Eva: This should have been communicated to the community more effectively. Parents don’t understand the whole seniority issue.
Suzanne Dunlap: Are there going to be separate planning days to work together as a staff that is merging?
Michelle Washington: That has to be something in the MOU. There may be changes. Last time it was a smaller scale. This is a larger scale.
Wendy: District has a right to lay off. The union has the right to negotiate the affects of the layoffs. Please, submit your ideas.
Michelle Territo: The ideas are being noted down.We understand that people have to pack and move, meet and greet. All this has to be taken into consideration.
Sandy: Wanted to ask if there were other questions about moving.
Wendy:T he district pays for two days to move.
Dana: When will parents be communicated with about enrollment for next year?
Wendy: Last summer we had 200 pending registrations. We have a decent track record of predicting enrollment. Most of our movement happens over the summer. Last year with Fair Oaks we needed a commitment to register. Antonio Perez sat and registered parents and we did have enough to commitment.
Lisa: A lot of middle school teachers are concerned about what’s been put out about plans to 6-8 and others issues. How can we share the wealth and not have teachers have to move two years in a row?
How do the transfers work? If you tell me I’m leaving and I choose something then it’s not an involuntary transfer? We need to know what is happening to us.T here are 450 middle school and other students who are being displaced from Selby Lane.
Wendy:I understand that this displalcement is very difficult. I feel that for the families at Hawes and Selby Lane.
Lisa: Can we put something in there as a protection for the 6-8 teachers so they are not displaced two years in a row?
Wendy: The whole discussion about k-5 and 6-8 is tabled. The discussion would not start until at least next year. There is research and finances on both sides. It’s a huge conversation. The community may reach out and say it is way too much change.
Lisa: It’s a fairly finite number of people the 9 people in our middle school that are affected. If I choose to go to a K-8 I don’t want to get booted out after a year.
Cary :We are going to be affected. It’s going to have a domino effect. We are all affected by this. I’m a tenured teacher. We are all affected by that. Does SEAL has an effect on this? We have not talked about the charters. What is happening is it all up in the air?
JJ: At Hawes the parents are so unhappy about is the displacement factor.
Wendy: The gist of the board memo is that the Hawes boundary would change. It would be divided between Roosevelt and Henry Ford. There is also a desire to give priority placement for parents who want out they can go to any school of choice.
JJ: I’ve never been this situation of a school closing before. It feels like a family is being broken up and you are supposed to grind it up till June, but you don’t now where you are going to be.
Wendy :Part of the MOU will be to find out sooner where people will be moving. Let’s make sure we give the priority to families to have choices.I see your point of view that moving a whole community will be better. Right now the recommendation is to change the attendance boundary of Hawes.
Mary: As a teacher (and parent of students who went through the district) it sounds like we are coming to end of school of choice. I would think that if I am moving my kid away from their friends why not just leave the district. How is it going to be dealt with if I am told my kid can’t be with his friends?
Rachel: John Gill and Orion. I know the John Gill families care about their children, but they don’t have the time to come and volunteer.Is there talk about changing the requirement for parent participation?
Wendy: I don’t have an answer for that right now.
Suzanne Dunlap: I don’t know which schools are SEAL trained. Parents are not getting a choice because you have to be in a new learning environment. There has to be a big chunk of money dedicated to training new staff on SEAL and PBL. Where is the money going to come from?
Wendy: Every year principals put aside that money for new teachers. There are systems in place. Many schools have SEAL as a focus. The PBL is a unique situation. There is a plan in place for when new staff come.
Suzanne:The Measure U money would the money follow the children?
Wendy: The money follows enrollment.Decisions on some issues would come down to the new site council.
Indra: How are the CDC’s going to be affected in the schools that are going to close? The parents are going to asking. Most of them have signed up for KIP at Hoover.W e are the feeders of the schools.
Wendy: Regarding the Charters: The Charter schools would be picked up and moved to another site .Some sites have between 2 - 3 charter schools. Pros and Cons. Some may not want to leave a location. State Pre-School CDC is a totally separately funded program. It would seem logical to pick up a pre school from a vacated site and move it to another site.
The intention is that we want to keep our families that are enrolled in the pre school. The Charter Schools spend big bucks on marketing.
Indra: Enrollment this year is very low. We are worried. We do have many students that are going to charter schools. We worried because we don’t see the full enrollment as in the past.
Wendy: The TK through Grade 8 staff is feeling this worry. There are free and reduced students and fee based students. By increasing students that go to TK we can impact school enrollment.
Bruce: I was encouraged by the sensitivity to all the communities. I hope that from the top down we can facilitate the development that inclusive community.A couple of years ago we had a program. “I chose RWC.”Maybe we can do more marketing.The Charters have been successful but that doesn’t mean that we have to roll over and play dead. We need to let people know about our product.
Wendy: When you speak to a parent it is so important what you say. Our marketing force in right here in the room. The power that you have to market is just amazing. The Charters hire people to go to laundromats, etc. We don’t do that, but we have you.
——-Wendy Kelly thanked for coming.
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Grievance Chair: Michelle Territo: A date to “Get to Know Your Contract”. last time we had it only 4 or 5 people will come. TBD location and date. Quite a few issues with new principals.I’ve been in meetings with all of them.
Suzanne :What about class size? One part of the day a teacher always has 32.
Michelle T: Look at the homeroom roster. If the class is at 32 a teacher has to refuse or sign a waiver.
Hoover teacher: We have teachers who have over 170.
Michelle Washington: Need to send Michelle Territo the list of classes and how many are in each school. We will get back to you.
Michelle: Please, send info. This needs to be looked into more.
Organizing Committee: Meeting this Thursday at Main and Elm.3:30. Please, join them to plan out other get togethers.
Holiday Social: Friday, December 7th.
Kevin: Please, invite all your teachers.
Sandy: A member survey is still being developed.
Ann: Camp Fire. Talked about family connections and losses in fire. Spoke of the teachers in the fire. There is a Go Fund Me site for Paradise. Perhaps we can adopt a teacher family. I don’t know how this would work with our treasury. The teachers are asking for classes to send cards. The kids up in the fire area need letters. The teachers are going to be paid who are not able to work.
Organizing Committee will discuss what to do to support the fire victims.
Info: Merrily Robinson went up to Paradise to help and feed the fire fighters.
Michelle Washington: There is a very direct need. The Chico Office is collecting money.
Steve: We can send $1,300 to Camp Fire.
Motion: To refer to exec board to make a donation for the Camp Fire pending a recommendation from the Organizing Committee.
Seconded: Passed:
Kevin: Sub Pay: Spoke to proposal to raise the pay.
Ann: Most subs have left our district because of the pay.
Teachers will be compensated proportionally to new sub pay for extra work on their site.
This pay is much more in line with the high school district.
Motion:To increase sub pay.$180/day TK-5, $185/day 6-8, $200 Retired Teachers, $200 long term pay, $200 retro pay to day one. (This has already been agreed to by the district.)
All in favor: Aye: Passed:
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