Today At SFT
Volume XL Issue 6 May, 2010
Scranton School Board of Directors Puts Chief Nurse Position in ICU
By a vote of six (6) to three (3) on Monday, May 10th, the Scranton School Board filled the position of Chief Nurse with the least senior member of the nursing staff. Four (4) SFT members interviewed for the posted position. Three (3) of these highly qualified, certified nurses with District seniority were passed over for a newly hired nurse with less than one (1) year of seniority in the Scranton School District. The Federation acknowledges Directors Robert Lesh, Kathleen McGuigan, and Robert Sheridan for their vote to uphold the collective bargaining agreement. Director McGuigan remarked that board members say they are union supporters, but their vote demonstrated otherwise. Directors voting against the CBA were: Paul O’Malley, Frank Brazill, Christopher Phillips, Patrick O’Malley, Brian Jeffers, and Thomas Gilbride. The Federation reacted by filing an action with the American Arbitration Association to grieve an obvious infraction of the CBA, a flagrant disregard for seniority, and a politically motivated Boss Tweed vote.
Grievances Upheld –King Giveth
Principal Damiano Busy Violating CBA
Three (3) grievances were filed at the Superintendent’s level at the Robert Morris Elementary School. Principal Damiano violated Article 48, Elementary Preparation Periods. Damiano directed the faculty at Morris to attend a special assembly to establish a school-wide mission statement, a personal mission statement, a vision of what the school should become, and to review standards, assessments, and the SAS system. Superintendent King conducted a grievance hearing with the Federation and Principal Damiano on Friday, May 7th. During the grievance proceeding, Damiano apparently was disinterested as she sat with her Blackberry, engrossed in texting. Imagine! This egregious behavior on the part of an administrator attending a grievance hearing at the Superintendent’s level demonstrates a lack of respect for the process and for all in attendance. Superintendent King granted the Federation’s grievance, and all affected members will be compensated at the negotiated hourly rate for their lost preparation period.
The second grievance at Morris involved members being denied work in the after school MAC program. Principal Damiano cancelled the program on Monday, April 5th, resulting in lost wages for the affected teachers. Superintendent King, at the grievance hearing held May 7th, was told by Principal Damiano that this was a “miscommunication” problem that occurred because Damiano was not in the building. During her discourse, Damiano stated that the school secretary mishandled the situation. Superintendent King did not lay any blame on the school secretary. Superintendent King granted the Federation’s grievance, and the day will be made-up making all affected teachers whole for lost wages.
On Monday, May 10th, Principal Damiano again cancelled the after school program at Morris Elementary School. Apparently, Principal Damiano neglected to inform central administration of her decision to cancel the program. After a phone conversation with Superintendent King, the Federation received his assurance that the teachers would make-up the lost time and lost wages.
The Robert Morris faculty deserve better than an absentee principal who is insubordinate to her supervisors and to the Superintendent of Schools, William King. The Federation calls upon Superintendent King to issue “unsatisfactory” evaluations to those administrators whose job performance is rated as “not evident” on the District’s Administrator’s rubric. An evaluative rubric is used for all professional administrators and faculty members; it is time for “quid pro quo.” The SFT is currently developing an instrument for data collection and analysis of individual building principal’s performance.
Grievances Denied –King Taketh Away
Superintendent King denied a grievance (G3-10) at the Robert Morris Elementary School that involved the utilization of paraprofessionals. Principal Damiano assigned paraprofessionals to supervise the children who participate in the after school MAC Program at Morris while the teachers were directed to attend a special assembly on their preparation period (see above). No teacher or supervisor was present with the paraprofessionals during this time and, as was explained, there was no posting for paraprofessionals to work the MAC Program. This grievance has been moved to the Board level.
Grievance (G6-10) was filed under the terms of bargaining unit work and was denied by Superintendent King. The District has contracted to use the services of the Community Care Behavioral Health Organization. In his denial, King states that the Organization
· is a PDE supported, research based, and data driven clinical approach to assist schools in crisis prevention of inappropriate student behaviors,
· is to provide non-teaching services to address disruptive and inappropriate student behaviors,
· does not receive any payment from the Scranton School District, nor does it supplant any duties, which would otherwise be fulfilled by members of the Collective Bargaining Unit.
The information provided by Superintendent King indicates that the Organization does not supplant any duties of SFT members, but rather assists building principals with skills to provide discipline and to handle disruptive students. The SFT will monitor this Organization’s presence in our schools.
Staffing –the Annual Shell Game Begins
Any Central Administration or Principal Reductions under Consideration?
The District’s annual collection of data to determine the staffing needs of schools for the next school term is underway. Teachers have been notified by their building administrators that classes within the building have been collapsed per a directive from central administration, and in some cases, classes are being added. The CBA will be followed throughout this annual process. Teachers are advised to always be aware of their building seniority and their District seniority (see Article 32). In an interview with the Scranton Times on May 14th, the Federation strongly suggested that if the District intends to reduce the professional teaching ranks, then it must follow that the number of administrators needs to be reduced as well. The Board of Directors has, in recent years, added to the number of administrators by creating new administrative positions with salaries commensurate with the new titles. The Board of Directors must begin with the upper echelon tier, those not directly involved with the children in our schools. In this era of high stakes testing, full inclusion, and President Obama’s “Race to the Top,” the Board of Directors is ill-advised to decrease the professional teaching ranks. The children in the District deserve better decision-making from our elected officials.
Congratulations to Our Retirees
The Scranton Federation of Teachers salutes the following teachers, paraprofessional and elementary principal on their retirements from the District, effective at the end of this school year. Scranton is a better community because of your dedicated service to its children over your varied and valued careers. Your personal motivation and steadfast commitment to your students may often have gone unnoticed but be assured that your impact was and will continue to be felt in the successes of each of your students well into the future.
Our Very Best Wishes for a Long and Happy Future!
Teachers
Nancy Baskwell
Jane Blau
James Buckley
Libert Calabro
Martha Gurdin
Barbara Jordan
Patricia Kelly
Mary Jane McGurrin
Paula Murphy
Mary Ann Noto
Jacque Petherick
Lynn Renaldi
Joanne Shuemaker
Thomas Smith
Paraprofessional
Sally Noone
Administration
Larry Miner
May 20th General Membership Meeting
An SFT General Membership Meeting will be held at Scranton High School on Thursday, May 20th, beginning at 3:45 P.M. Agenda items: Secretary’s Report, Treasurer’s Report, President’s Report, and New Business. Please mark your calendars and plan on attending. Thank you.
