CNTA REPRESENTATIVE COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES

February 16, 2010

CNTA 2nd Floor Training Center, 1189 Mountain Avenue

Minutes taken and prepared by Beverley Rouse, CNTA Executive Secretary

 [Minutes are not official until approved at the next Rep Council.]

 

I.          CALL TO ORDER—President Bill Fisher called the meeting to order at 4:00 P.M.

 

II.                APPROVAL OF MINUTES and AGENDA ADDITION

A.  Vince Flores moved to approve the minutes from January 19, 2010.   Keith Barmann seconded.  The motion passed.

B.  Ann Freeman proposed a member fair to give information to members.  Teri Basso moved, and John Davis seconded, to add the proposed member fair to the agenda.  The motion passed.

 

III.       ENDORSEMENT REQUEST—Stan Skipworth, an incumbent Corona councilman, asked CNTA for its endorsement.  He is endorsed by the Corona police and firefighters.           

 

IV.       REPORTS

A.    Treasurer—Anne Freeman referred members to the financial statement in the packets.

B.     Vice President—Toni Sandell said that the PARS retirement incentive passed because the district got 75 retirees, a little more than the required amount.  They are extending it for one more week to try to get enough people to reach the 90% benefit amount.  Toni is telling people not to listen to rumors because we won’t know a lot for several months.  When a member said she would like to get information before reading it in the newspaper, Bill and Toni pointed out that the newspaper doesn’t always have accurate information and quotes. 

C.    High School Director and Insurance Committee­­—Julie Cooley is getting lots of questions and suggestions, which she is forwarding to the appropriate CNTA committee.  The Insurance Committee is still meeting.  Sherry Mata says the district is moving forward with the audit about insurance dependents, so teachers should have their dependents’ birth certificates and marriage certificates available.  The committee is in the process of an audit to make sure we are getting the best service possible for the money.

D.    State Council Representatives

1.      Kelly Fisher said CTA will have new additions to the website, including a way to check on how legislators vote.  She encouraged members to respond to questions about NCLB on the Harkins website.

2.      Teri Basso said there is an initiative being promoted that will hurt teachers.  It would cap the maximum retirement benefit at 1.6% instead of the current 2.4% and teacher would have to work until social security retirement age.  It would allow the district to determine how much it contributes to CalSTRS.  It would be a two-tier system, affecting newly hired teachers.  She said to tell teachers to tell everyone not to sign this initiative.  In the packet she handed out, she included information about what’s happening in other districts.  She is leaving information about a $5000 grant for classroom funding so that members can post it at their sites. 

3.      Kristi Johnson said the Race to the Top material is in the packet.  She pointed out that parents can vote to make major changes in schools and it gives parents a lot of arbitrary rights.   Our district didn’t endorse it, but it is going forward.  CTA is supporting things that support public education and against things that cut education funding.  More information will be available after the March State Council. 

4.      Mike Testo is on the Budget Committee of the CTA State Council.  CTA is cutting some positions and expenses, but will probably allotting more money for legal expenses for RIFed teachers.  A dues increase may be discussed, partly because the number of teachers is going down and so CTA’s income from dues is going down.  If CTA’s budget isn’t on CTA’s website, CNTA can put it on our website.

E.     President

1.   Bill Fisher said Harold Stryker is on the committee that is going over the district budget to identify ways the district is spending money.  Harold will be conducting budgeting forums at CNTA every week at 4:00 PM to update interested members.  Then the information will be blasted to all members.

2.   Tonight, at the school board, CNTA will “sunshine” the contract articles that CNTA wants to open for bargaining.  (Sunshining is the required notification before negotiations begin.)

3.   CNTA listened to members and is trying to get for teachers some of the things they said they wanted if they choose to take furlough days to limit the number of jobs lost.

4.   Bill reminded members to believe only what Bill had OKed to be sent out, including Harold’s budget information and the minutes, and what Dr. Bechler sends out. 

5.   The school board will vote on the proposed Particular Kinds of Service (PKS) resolution tonight.  If members receive a RIF notice, and they disagree with their first date of paid service, they should make an appointment with Jay Johnson, but the Administrative Law Judge will make the final determination. 

 

V.        OLD BUSINESS

A.    Intermediate Banked Minutes—The MOU for the Intermediate Banked Minutes has been finalized.  Some time ago the minutes for the intermediate days were changed unilaterally.  CNTA and the district came to an agreement to settle the issue by giving the teachers the ability to use ten of their earned sick leave days any ways they want.  Now the intermediate schools have a defined number of instructional minutes per year.  The definition of an elementary day was previously defined as a result of a grievance settlement.  A process has now been set up to deal with grievance timelines in the future. 

B.  Listening Session Discernment Report—Members responded well and the information is being used to decide what is important for CNTA to do.         

C.  Other Old Business—None.

 

VI.       NEW BUSINESS

A.  Endorsement of Stan Skipworth—Mike Testo moved to endorse Stan Skipworth for Corona City Council.  Mike Strickmater seconded.  CNTA endorses city council members because we are part of a coalition with the police and firefighters, in that they endorse our school board candidates and we endorse the council candidates that they want.  CNTA has experienced the benefits of working with the coalition to elect and work with board members and city council members.  The motion passed with two abstentions.

B.  March 4 Statewide Action for Education—Kristi Johnson said CTA wants teachers to demonstrate in some way about how the state funding for education is hurting public education.  They are asking districts and PTA to be involved, too.  Kristi asked teachers for ideas on what we can do as a group to show support for better education funding.   

C.  Online Listening Survey Results--Two-thirds of the 1200 teachers who voted said jobs should be the priority, with wages secondary.  CNTA will be negotiating.  CNTA paid a lot of attention to what teachers said they wanted if the jobs or salaries must be cut.  CNTA will try to get for teachers what teachers want (that don’t cost money) in return for negotiating about furloughs or job cuts.  Bill thanked Dr. Bechler for asking site administrators to allow staff meeting time to work on the surveys.  If CNTA doesn’t have a negotiated agreement by May 15, the RIFed teachers will lose their jobs.  The committee is still categorizing the listening group responses.  About a third were in favor of furloughs, a third were in favor of cutting jobs, and a third had other suggestions.  CNTA will bargain to do the best it can for members, based on members’ comments in the listening sessions and the online survey.  The biggest strength CNTA has is when members work together in unity.  Interest based bargaining (IBB) is when CNTA and the district lay out their needs and they work collaboratively.

D.  MOU for Extending Timelines for Reassignment—The CNTA Executive Board passed the MOU (in the packet) this afternoon with a recommendation that the Rep Council approve it without sending it on to the members.  This serves as a motion coming from the board, which doesn’t need a second.  The dates are the same as have been used in the last two years and can’t be changed without making a new MOU.  The motion passed.  

E.  SLP MOU Clarification Addendum—The addendum in the handout clarified specifics about the Speech and Language Pathologists grievance.

F.   Contract Articles to be Opened for Negotiations—The contract articles that CNTA will “sunshine” to the school board tonight were in the packet.  (Sunshine means to notify the school board what contract articles that CNTA wants to open for negotiations.)  Articles to be sunshined and opened for negotiations include Article 9, Miscellaneous Provisions (which may incorporate Ed Code regulations on progressive discipline into the contract), Article 10, Hours of Employment (which may make changes to the length of the professional day of teachers at the site), Article 13, Leaves (which may make changes to the use of sick leave, “no tell” days, transferring sick days between family members, and the dates to join the Catastrophic Leave Bank), Article 14, Transfer Policy (which may make changes to transfers and involuntary reassignments language, including transparency and objectivity when assignments are made), Article 15, Certificated Unit Member Evaluation Procedures (which may make changes to the evaluation timelines and may lengthen the time between evaluations for certain tenured teachers), and Appendix B (which may make changes for funding for extra duties teachers perform, such as supervision duties, when the funding is available).  This state budget crisis may last several years.  Mike Testo, Negotiations Chair, said that his goal is to put together a document that members will pass.  At the school board tonight, the district will be sunshining the articles they want to change.

G.  Budget Info Sessions—Harold Stryker used a Power Point presentation to give information to Rep Council about budgeting.  He will have weekly meetings here at CNTA at 4:00 PM on Wednesdays to update members about financing and budgeting.  He described the state revenue sources and state expenditures, showing K-12 education as the biggest chunk of the state expenditures.  He also gave a brief description of the money that comes into CNUSD from the state and how the categories are separated into the general fund, categorical, and miscellaneous expenditures.

H.  Member Fair—Anne Freeman described a fair to help CNTA make its services easily available to members.  Booths for the executive board, committees, food, children, and more  would be set up in the parking lot.  The board approved $3500 for this.  She asked for help from reps.  This can be coordinated with Day of the Teacher.

I.    Other New Business—None.

 

VII.     ADJOURNMENT—The meeting adjourned at 6:00 P.M.

 

VIII.    BREAKOUTS—Normally, reps meet for breakouts with the Elementary K-3, Elementary 4-6,  Intermediate, High School, and Support Services directors, but this didn’t happen due to time constraints.