Rowdy teachers’ meeting canceled
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Teacher Meeting
Hundreds of teachers show up in support of East Providence teachers.
Teachers were angry over the move by the school committee in the cash strapped city to rollback teachers salaries to 2007 levels.
EAST PROVIDENCE, R.I.—Hundreds of teachers turned in support of colleagues from East Providence. The East Providence teachers were ordered to take a five-percent pay cut and ordered to chip in for health insurance premiums.
School committee members had to shut down a public meeting Tuesday night at East Providence High School because they couldn’t control the crowd of hundreds of teachers who came out to protest mid-year pay cuts.
The battle over the city’s teacher contracts has exploded as municipal budgets shrivel statewide in the face of a deepening recession and reductions in state aide.
Teachers say the school committee should not have rejected an independent arbitrator’s decision and is illegally trying to force pay cuts and increased health care contributions.
School committee chair Anthony Carcieri says the district is broke and has nothing else to cut.
The teachers’ union has sued the school committee over the move. A judge could rule by the end of the week.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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The Big Idea-
Hey, maybe gym teachers are smarter than you, if they’re doing what they’re doing- you should have been smarter like them when choosing a major freshmen year@!!!
What concerns me is the persistent focus on elements of this issue that will not fix the problem. Not so strangely, the issues of focus (salary, benefits etc) no matter how they massaged are not capable of solving anything because they are NOT the root cause. They are, however, the most likely to incite public ire and make no mistake about it, the EPSC and associates are fully cognizant of this fact. Folks, you could drop the teachers’ salary to near zero and it still won’t fix the problem. My sense is that the teachers understand the need for, and are willing to make, reasonable concessions. They have said this all along. They understand that some healthcare co-pay is reasonable, some pension reform is required there will probably be s a temporary pay freeze etc. I view the larger issues to be as follows;
School committees – how can any reasonable person argue that a state the size of RI requires ~31 school districts and school committees??? All it does is promote fiefdoms for small time wanna-be politicians with the potential (and often the reality) of creating turmoil each school year. Check my numbers (and I’m sure someone will) but I think that the state of NY only has 2 to 3 districts. Reducing to 2 or 3 districts would a) aid the collective bargaining process through consolidation etc … b) improve the quality of school committees c) cut cost dramatically.
Superintendent – how can anyone justify that move? Salary, past reputation I don’t know where to start with the problems in that decision making process.
Special education – numbers on a previous entry are consistent with numbers that I’ve seen .. a jump from $1.5MUSD to around $8.5MUSD. This staggering increase is unfortunately a sign of the times. It would take pages of this blog to skim the surface of why this is the case but I assure you it IS the reality.
EPSC legal council – somewhere in the neighborhood of $300K, hired by the current committee. Yes, this is the same committee that Tony Carcieri stated in public that he understood that the mismanagement had taken place, but not on his watch. Well Tony, you were dead center in the decision making process on that one.
Building maintenance – there is significant deterioration to a large number of school department buildings … where is the money going to come from to correct bring them up to par?
And there are so many more examples
I am not a teacher but I know a few and I can tell you that there are many misconceptions spread throughout this bolg, re; their work ethic and dedication. Are there a few bad apples that are just “phoning it in on the glide path to retirement” – of course there are, just like every company in the private sector. Thank God that the vast majority are hard working dedicated people. They do NOT limit their work day to 8 hours or their work year to 180 days. They did NOT enter this profession “to get summers off” (I laughed so hard at that previous blog entry that I nearly fell off my chair). Every one of them takes money out of their pocket to supplement non-existent supply budgets etc. And everyone that I know is dedicated to improving children’s lives without exception. It is unfortunate that the very personality traits that draw people to the teaching profession makes them so ill equipped to fight this type of trench warfare.
If we stipulate that school committee mismanagement, clearly resulting in this problem, took place over a long period of time (as publicly and repeatedly stated by Carcieri) then why can we not also accept that the problem can not and should not be corrected overnight on the backs of the people who have chosen this profession … the teachers?
I know that people are angry but I suggest that we look beyond superficial issues that we all know will be addressed anyway and have a discussion centered on the real issues. If not we’ll be having this discussion next year and the year after and the year after that. All of which will continue to divert precious energy away from our future, the children.
This is so rediculous. What a sick world we live in where everybody is out to get everybody. We should all be working together to get everybody these incredible benefits that you claim teachers have. I’m a teacher and I can tell you that I pay a large amount of money every year into the state pension system and towards my health care. I heard another statement that the average teacher in East Providence makes $90K per year. No way. I don’t know where people are getting their facts, but their just not true. Teachers are on the front line of the attack because the school system is where most of your tax dollars go. The police, fire, public works, and city government do not have to deal with as much of the population of a city or town on a daily basis as the school department does. It’s just the nature of the business that most of your taxes go toward education - they HAVE to. It’s a law that your children be educated and therefore we need schools and teachers to run the schools. To all of you that are complaining about teachers - you should want these ‘perks’ for yourself. if you’re so upset, use your energy to work toward change that allows every citizen the right to what should be basic expectations of a career. If reform isn’t your bag, then go back to school and get your teaching degree and live the life you’re angry at us about. Of course when you see how much more money you could be making with a bachelors degree in another concentration, you probably won’t chose education.
teacherforlife…..
I do have a job, If you bothered to look at my posts, I wrote 2 on my lunch break, between 2:00-2:30, than again after 5:00, while I was still in my office finishing things up, on my own time and yes, blogging while I am doing that. So what? I put my time in and my company got far more than 8 hours (my choice). I am back at work again, posting, (yes, I am on the clock at 8:00) but snuck one in as I did put in allot of time yesterday, sure they would not mind. By the way jealous of what?? The ignorance that was displayed at that meeting? I think not, it made me even more grateful to work with the professional that I do.
First thing first. I am not a teacher, and feel that teachers work just as hard as the next person. This argument has centered around whether teachers work hard or not. They do.
As far as their work year goes, get over it. Their work year is their work year. Their is no need to talk about how many days they work.
I am personally proud of my kid’s teachers in the South Kingstown School system. And many of you should remember how hard these people work to better the kids future.
Having said that, I do believe that the teachers should contribute to their health benefits. However, the town should be looking looking at other cost cutting measures to prevent reducing teachers salaries.
Once all cost cutting measures have been exhausted, then the EPSC should negotiate a temporary contract to get through this crisis.
On to the meeting that started this comment thread. I am not a union person, nor will I ever be one. The tactics used in the meeting are counterproductive. If you want to sway the people of EP and the people of Rhode Island to your cause, then you need to do so in a more meaningful manner. Their are plenty of outlets available to the teachers union.
If both parties cannot come to a common ground now, then I fear the next level will require much deeper cuts. Possibly layoffs. I don’t think any of the teachers in the EP school system want to see their fellow teachers laid off. Or worse, deeper pay cut proposals.
just my two cents
Forgive me for the double post but I missed thermo’s response and just wanted to say that in one of my earlier posts that I do understand that the system has failed us a long time ago, and I was calling for wide spread reform of a failed system. I understand what you are saying, and you are right about the failures of the present system. Again,my concern is just a productive solution so real problems can be solved, as well as trying to remove some of the misconceptions people have. I understand exactly what you’re saying now and I could not agree more.
Perhaps what I was trying to say got lost in translation. Big idea: “Everyone is cut from the same piece of pie so when things get tough and some extra things become required… take it like an adult. Your pay and benefits are much better then you think.“
My pay and benefits don’t exist, and I’m not an adult, and they don’t pay me. Nor am I asking for it.
To be honest, I don’t care about pay, or who pays what, I mentioned that before. I want people to start thinking for solutions, whining back and forth is frustrating and my peers (my fellow students)are the ones who lose out. What bothers me is the idea people have of teachers which I feel is exaggerated. The school committees have also acted in a manner most unsatisfactory. I don’t intend to give off an insulting air, or the idea that I have all the answers. I just want something productive to be done, to find a common ground. I know that people may disagree with what I say, but I only want to facilitate productive thought, by interjecting ideas that come from a new perspective. Seeing that news report made it clear neither side is getting much done. Its for the good of everyone that us regular people come up with something, because no one else will. Nothing is going to happen when these foolish notions about teachers and everyone still float about. Some misconceptions I feel are just foolish, and are detrimental to progress. Perhaps I have been to rash in my arguments, I just want to find a solution. As a student, the better my education, and the better the system runs the more I can do to help these hard times. I know my responsibilities are: I do my school work, kept within the top of my class because I know what I do is going impact these hard times. I’m just trying to find the answers, and do my best to fulfill my obligations to society.
Lets not get personal.
You missed the Big Idea here…
ITS NOT SO BAD.
There were more hand held signs in the above video clip than at the latest showing of WWF. 
kc12 -NEWSFLASH-
1:Everyone who works a full time job spends more time with co-workers then their own family. Your not alone.
2:I have had this account for nearly an hour
3:I just finished reading “The Critique of Judgement” by Immanuel Kant - It investigates aesthetics.
rihjp3 -Everyone has busy days. Most people have more responsibilities throughout a work day then they can handle. It’s stressfull, but those who are strong can work through it.
Everyone is cut from the same piece of pie so when things get tough and some extra things become required… take it like an adult. Your pay and benefits are much better then you think.
@rihjp3 No one want teachers to suffer and no one wants students to suffer. The fact is that we can’t afford the current budgets right now. The students are and have been suffering for years under the current system. The public school system has been failing students has not been providing them with the education they deserve. Money is not the answer. Throwing more money at a failed system will not provide a better education. On average private schools have smaller class sizes, provide a better education and costs LESS per student. If a private school can provide a superior education for less money, there is no excuse for public school system to be short of money and lacking in educational quality. You would have been better off if the state gave the money they spent on your education to a private school and sent you there. This is where the outrage should be. You should be upset that you were shortchanged on getting a better education with smaller class sizes and spending more money at the same time.
@ Thermo I am not a teacher, I am a High School student and my district is going through a similar problem. What I am attempting to do is to bring in a different view point. I also type too quickly for my own good, so thank you for graciously pointing that to me, I won’t make such a foolish mistake again. Next time, I will be sure to make sure my spelling is proper before submitting a casual post. I understand times are tough, I know people are frustrated, but what my concern is; is that we may lose sight of who may actually have to suffer for all this. My senior year has been wrecked beyond repair already, I owe it to the underclassmen to make sure they aren’t forgotten. It is in fact a senior’s duty to make sure the next in line are ready before we take our leave
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