Bargaining Update - December 1st, 2010

NTA met with the district today, Wed. Dec. 1st, to continue negotiations. The meeting was productive, as NTA and the district clarified our respective proposals, particularly in the area of the fed. jobs funds. NTA inquired about the county's Nov. 30th deadline, and the district responded that it assumed the county had gone ahead with filing for state receivership. Indeed, as KCRA has reported today, in an interview with County superintendent Gordon, he indicates that he began that process. He also acknowledged that employee negotiations continue. As such, NTA meets again with the district on Monday, Dec. 6th. To view the current proposals from NTA and the district, and to provide the bargaining team with your input on bargaining, please do attend the NTA Communication Committee's site-level meetings occuring this week and next. We look forward to your participation and input.

Impasse Delayed, by PERB ruling

NTA received the word from PERB that based on our opposition letter, the District has agreed to withdraw its request for appointment of a mediator. Therefore, we (NTA) will meet on December 1 & 6 to continue bargaining.

Natomas in the news - November 2010

Sacramento Bee Articles in the last few weeks:

http://www.sacbee.com/2010/12/03/3229397/infusion-of-school-leadership.html

http://www.sacbee.com/2010/12/02/3226706/sacramentos-natomas-school-district.html

http://www.sacbee.com/2010/12/02/3226702/stimulus-schools.html

http://www.sacbee.com/2010/11/30/3221972/natomas-unified-sets-meeting-with.html

http://www.sacbee.com/2010/11/20/3200285/natomas-school-district-teachers.html

http://www.sacbee.com/2010/11/26/3212347/clock-ticking-in-natomas.html

http://www.sacbee.com/2010/11/19/3197035/facing-takeover-school-district.html

http://www.sacbee.com/2010/11/19/3197353/natomas-unified-wants-mediator.html

Bargaining Update, November 18, 2010

Natomas Teachers’ Association

BARGAINING UPDATE – NOVEMBER 18, 2010

Yesterday, the NTA Bargaining team met with the district from 10:00am until 8:00 pm. NUSD countered our proposals on Safety, Leaves, and Hours with significant movement towards agreement on these articles. The Association countered with the revised proposal outlined below, that includes budget cuts days and other potential savings. At the end of the session, however, the district responded that they are seeking to go to impasse unilaterally. NTA believes that it is premature to declare impasse, and we did not agree to it, because we continued to bargain and made significant progress in this latest bargaining session.

To date, the Natomas teachers have taken 5 budget cut days for 2009-2010 and 6 days for 2010-2011. A county appointed financial consultant has determined the district’s cash flow puts it in jeopardy of state receivership. While the Association does not believe teachers contributed to the financial predicament in which the District finds itself, it recognizes that there are financial difficulties. The Association has made a new proposal to address the district’s cash flow problem for the 2011-2012 school year.

NUSD Demands Concessions
Based on the currently improved state budget outlook, the district has reduced its previous demand for concessions from 10.1% to 7.9% for the 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 school years. The district is seeking:
7.9% = the equivalent of 16 budget cut days (by law, we can only give up to 8.5 days/year total)
2011-2012 7.9% Cut to employee salaries and benefits (16 Days)
2012-2013 7.9% Cut to employee Salaries and Benefits (16 Days)
This is the equivalent of 32 days cut

NTA’s Revised Proposal
Currently, the 6 days lost this year will be restored in 2011-2012. To address the district’s financial situation, the Association has proposed
2011-2012 7 days cut (3.39%)
IF
-The parties reach agreement on the Association’s proposals to improve:
• Article V (Hours), Article VIII (Safety), Article VII (Leaves), Article IV Salaries, Article III (Grievances)
-The Staff Development Days become teacher-directed work days
-The District agrees to enhanced fiscal accountability
+
2011-2012 a half year delay on step movement (saves .8%)
IF
-The parties reach agreement on the Association’s proposals to improve:
• Stricter policies and practices regarding interdistrict student transfers (may save approximately 1 million or the equivalent of 2.87%)
-The District reduces its spending on Services and Other Operating Expenditures by $330K
• the parties reach agreement to resolve their disputes over the Athletic Director positions

TOTAL OFFER would save the district 7.75% (approximately 5% of this coming from NTA concessions and the rest from improved district policies and practices)

These concessions would sunset at the end of the 2011-2012 school year.

Contact your organizing team or bargaining team to see what you can do to support your association.

2010 STAR API (Student Test Scores) are published

To view the Sacramento County schools test scores, access this link:

http://api.cde.ca.gov/AcntRpt2010/2010GrthAPICo.aspx?cYear=2009-10&cSelect=34,SACRAMENTO

September 2010 Negotiations Update

NTA Negotiators had our first meeting of this school year on Monday, Sept. 13th, with NUSD. The district presented counters to NTA proposals from last spring on contract articles IV (salary) and VIII (safety). The district also proposed the equivalent of a 10% salary cut on all employment groups in an attempt to balance their 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 budget scenario to be presented to the County. As the district's unaudited actuals were presented to the public and NTA as recently as last week's school board meeting, NTA, with the assistance of CTA staff, will be reviewing the district's budget documents in the upcoming weeks. Future negotiations sessions have been scheduled for this month and next. For clarification and input, seek out the bargaining team or NTA executive board, and CTA staff.

School Closure Decision Made

The NUSD school board, upon recommendation of NUSD district office staff, voted tonight to close Leroy Greene Middle School starting 2010-2011. Board comments ranged from citing budgetary concerns (puzzling, because closing the school does not save the district money), to concerns about adults getting along (which adults are they referring to?). Despite a two year plan for middle school design, a one and a half year plan for program improvement (guess we didn't wear enough "blue-ribbons"?), and other committees such as a school closure committee that met for six months - this current decision regarding Leroy Greene has spanned approximately three weeks with no regard or collaboration with site staff. NTA questions how anything meaningful and sustainable can be implemented in the eight weeks left of the school year. As one board member noted, this board has been known to make snap decisions they later regretted and/or found to not get the results they expected, such as the claim to save rent on the old NP3 site on which the district is still paying $600,000 (empty building). Yes, the board has made decisions that have not been well thought out or were ill-advised. Well guess what? Apparently, yet another one was made again tonight. Who really loses in this one? The students who lost their school, and all the time they will spend in-transit to Natomas Middle. Finally, as always, their teachers (a combination of LFG and NMS teachers who remain) will be there to welcome them with open arms. And the district staff that can't even correctly identify the curriculum that we are using, will continue to be entrusted to conjure up more new scenarios (greener pastures anyone?) to be implemented at some future date. With this kind of track record, it's no wonder that we once again shake our heads in disbelief at another opportunity lost.

Natomas Teachers’ Association Newsletter March 2010

CTA DAY OF ACTION

Stood Up For Students!
Thanks to everyone who participated in the March 4th Day of Action. Ken MacPherson led the charge with a mock funeral at the traffic island at Inderkum High between 7-8am on Thursday morning. He and students painted a coffin, tombstones and a large sign indicating the death of school programs and personnel. Dana Dillon, CTA Board Member, passed out a California Initiative Petition calling for rescinding corporate tax loopholes. At our other sites, teachers and staff handed out fliers to parents, and wore black to signify mourning or white to signify layoffs. Some teachers incorporated curricular activities to support the event. Thanks again to everyone who helped draw attention to the plight of Education in California today.
_________________________________________________________________________________

IN DISTRICT NEWS……..

New Recommendations include closing LFG
The following recommendations were presented to the School Board as part of what appeared to be a ‘package deal’. It is my interpretation that the Board tabled a decision about which elementary school (and whether or not) to close until March 24th, and also voted to give themselves until March 24th to decide on this ‘package’ recommendation. It was not clear if they will make a decision about each item separately or together. For instance, they might vote to close an elementary and LFG, or neither, or one etc. Recommendations:
1. Not close an elementary school
2. Retain 5th graders at elementary schools for 2010-2011
3. Close Leroy Greene Middle for Program Redesign and Repair/Remodel of Facilities
Again, these are recommendations from the District; the School Board still needs to render their decision regarding approval. Dr Davie emphasized that this new recommendation to close LFG is based on academics, as opposed to financial considerations, and Teri Burns reminded everyone that the original reason for deciding to close a school was financial. If you have an opinion, please send a letter to our school board members. The entire proposal is also on the NUSD Website under Board Agendas for Feb 24th.

What have Teachers in NUSD contributed to the District Budget?
Here’s some math I did recently, and I thank every one of our hardworking and dedicated NTA members for continuing to provide our students with an outstanding educational opportunity despite the hardship of teaching in such a difficult time. Teachers are amazing!
Retired teachers $640,000
RIFed teachers $7,500,000
Furlough Days $2,200,000
Classroom Supplies $450,000
In addition, many teachers have increased their workload by 25-50% without an increase in pay. That’s another $3,450,000!

*A Reason to Celebrate!*
NTA member Christine Lanphere recently received a Commendation to NUSD from State Superintendent Jack O’Connell for her valued participation on the Curriculum Development and Supplemental Materials Commission. As a 2-year member of this commission, she chaired the World Language Subject Matter Committee (SMC), was a member of the Executive Committee, was a member of the History-Social Science SMC and as a member of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Education and the Environment Initiative she facilitated an Instructional Materials Reviewer/Content Review Expert Panel. According to Superintendent O’Connell, this Commission has accomplished important goals in to creating a world-class standards-based education system for California Public schools with a specific focus on closing the achievement gap. Thank you for representing NUSD and NTA in your efforts, Christine. And Congratulations!


March Calendar (Tracks A, B,C on; Track D off)

Board Member Forums:
ü Mon Mar 8th: 4:30pm-5:30pm ( Lisa)
5:00pm-6:00pm (Sue)
ü Tue Mar 9th: 4:00pm-5:30pm (Jules)
5:30pm -7pm (Teri,Bruce)
@ Panera: 2731 Del Paso Rd; 928-8295
Regular Board Meeting
ü Wed Mar 10th: 6:30pm IHS

Special Board Meeting:School Closure/LFG/5th Grade Retention
ü Tue Mar 23th: 6:00pm place TBD

Cynthia’s Site Visit Schedule:
ü 3/8 NPE
ü 3/16 DHS/NHS
ü 3/17 LFG
ü 3/18 IHS
ü 3/22 HAH/NMS
ü 3/25 AL
ü 3/29 BC

School Board Members’ non-District Email: Teri Burns: TeriB@sia-us.com
Sue Heredia: heredias@csus.edu
Lisa Kaplan: kaplan4kids@yahoo.com
Bruce Roberts: bruceroberts4natomas@yahoo.com
Jules Tran: jules.tran@sbcglobal.net

Websites:
- NTA contract on the District WebsiteJ: click on Departments> Human Resources> Bargaining Unit Agreements: http://www.natomas.k12.ca.us
-Board Policy is also on District Website: click on Forms and Documents> Board Policies: http://www.natomas.k12.ca.us
- NTA Blog: http://natomasteachers.blogspot.com
-California Ed Code Index: http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/cacode/EDC
-CTA: http://www.CTA.org
-The Standard: http://www3.standard.com
-Natomas Buzz: http://www.natomasbuzz.com
- Day of Action: www.Standupforschools.org


“AN INJURY TO ONE IS AN INJURY TO ALL”

News from NUSD re: Natomas High School

Sent by the district today:

Good Morning,

We have some important news to share with you today about Natomas High School. We have just been notified by the California Department of Education that Natomas High is eligible to receive a three-year grant of up to $2 million a year as part of a new federal program to help under-performing schools.

Natomas High is one of 200 schools in California that has been named a “persistently lowest-achieving school” based on recent student achievement tests.

While some may see this as a negative reflection on our hard-working staff, administrators and students at Natomas High, this truly is an opportunity to forever change for the better our Natomas High.

In the midst of our state and district fiscal crisis, we have been given a “gift” in a way of potentially millions of dollars in new funds to change course for Natomas High.

More details on this grant will be available in the coming weeks along with the next steps we will be taking with the Natomas High community to draft the grant application. The grants range from $50,000 to $2 million, and we can tell you now that we want to “think big” and ask for the maximum grant.

Dr. General Davie Jr.,
Superintendent

Howard Kornblum,
Assistant Superintendent Educational Services


Heidi Van Zant
Public Information Officer
Natomas Unified School District
916.561.5253

Natomas USD in the News

Natomas Land Deal attorney fees as reported by the Bee:

http://www.sacbee.com/ourregion/story/2537370.html?pageNum=2&mi_pluck_action=page_nav#Comments_Container

Natomas USD in the News, Jan.26, 2010

NUSD approved a budget Jan. 25th. Sac Bee story below.

http://www.sacbee.com/education/story/2489257.html

Sacramento Bee Article on Natomas schools - Dec. 27th

Natomas budget cuts hit classrooms; parents worried

By Diana Lambert dlambert@sacbee.com q{

Published: Sunday, Dec. 27, 2009 - 12:00 am Page 5B
Natomas Unified School District officials have reached deep into classrooms to balance their budget.
They have cut days from the school year, reduced class periods for most juniors and seniors, relaxed graduation requirements and eliminated summer school.
And parents are worried.
"They need to start putting the kids first," said Elena Quintero, president of the Inderkum High School Parent Teacher Student Association.
She is concerned about the district's decision to reduce the number of units required for graduation and to cut counselors.
"Counselors now don't even have the time to go over a schedule with kids, let alone go over graduation requirements and college applications," said Quintero, whose son is a freshman at the school.
Quintero and a handful of other parents were at a meeting last week at Inderkum High School where interim Natomas Unified Superintendent General Davie Jr. and other district staff talked about plans to cut another $20 million over this year and the following two.
Many of the parents in the room that night have already enrolled their children in charter schools.
Chana Wynne has three children in district charter schools.
"I think eventually the charters will be affected too," Wynne said.
This year 400 students migrated from district schools to Natomas Pathways Preparatory School after the charter school added middle grades. This migration will cost the district $2.5 million in state funding by the end of the school year.
The 12,000-student district also has lost 807 students to Natomas Charter, 321 to Westlake Charter and 512 to Natomas Pathways Preparatory School's high school.
Davie said charters offer healthy competition to districts. "They are part of the fabric of educational offerings in the Natomas community," he said.
But district officials are concerned enough about the bleeding charters are causing that they have made retaining and attracting students part of their budget recovery plan.
"We need to attract students that left us," Assistant Superintendent John Christ told the parents.
But that may be a hard sell in a district that has had to make over $11 million in cuts this school year alone. Cuts over a three-year period include closing a school, increasing class sizes, eliminating all elementary and middle school counselors, ending all but special education transportation, reducing library technicians, limiting athletics and postponing the adoption of new textbooks.
District officials have so far identified $15.5 million in potential cuts to help offset the nearly $20 million still needed. The only options left to reduce the budget are to lay off more staff, negotiate more concessions from unions, close a second school, generate new income or make more cuts to schools, according to district staff.
"As desperate as it is, we may have to look at more cuts," Christ said.
All California schools are struggling with state budget cuts. They received $18 billion less than anticipated in state funding a year ago, said state schools chief Jack O'Connell in a previous Bee interview. That was despite an influx of federal dollars from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act.
The Folsom Cordova Unified School District will close two schools at the end of the school year, as will the San Juan Unified School District. The Sacramento City Unified School District closed four schools at the end of the 2008-09 school year.
The Elk Grove Unified School District also is struggling with budget cuts, voting recently to reduce spending on district sports programs, increase K-3 class sizes and eliminate 592 positions.
Like Natomas, Folsom Cordova officials voted to shave a class period off the school day for high school juniors and seniors. But no other Sacramento County school district has taken the drastic measure of cutting the school year.
So how did Natomas Unified get into this situation?
District leaders didn't make timely decisions, Davie told The Bee last week. He said the district's decision in May to postpone layoffs was a mistake. Instead, the district waited until August to lay off 59 teachers and counselors.
The picture could be even more grim next month when Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger presents his proposed budget for next year. Educators are hoping there are no more cuts to school districts.
"We're worried," Davie said. "We hope education has had its turn. We're preparing."

Race to the Top (RTTT) information from CDE

Natomas USD is applying for the RTTT funds. For information on RTTT, below is a link to the Calif. Dept of Educ. website which covers this topic. NTA will be negotiating the terms and limits as to the use of these funds, when and if the grant is received. We are monitoring our neighboring districts' practices, as well as receiving guidance from CTA staff.

http://www.cde.ca.gov/nr/ne/yr09/yr09rel164.asp

Press Release from Lisa Kaplan, NUSD School Board Member

Press Release
Contact: Lisa Kaplan
916/996-1474
kaplan4kids@yahoo.com


Kaplan to Run for Third Term on Natomas School Board

Sacramento - Natomas School Board member Lisa Kaplan has announced her intention to seek re-election to the Natomas School Board in 2010, opting out of the race for Sacramento City Council, District 1.

"When I decided to run for Sacramento City Council, I promised myself that I would stick true to why I first decided to run for School Board. I first ran for school board because I knew I could make a difference and had a passion for changing the lives of the children of Natomas for the better. My passion is for the children of Natomas and I want the opportunity to continue to make a positive difference in their lives. I cannot knowingly vacate my school board seat without setting the District right financially as we weather this economic downturn," said Kaplan. "I wish to thank everyone who has stood with me from the very beginning, especially my friends like the Northern California Carpenters, Griselda Barajas, Dr. George King, Grantland Jonson, Matthew Bunch, John Vigna and Scott Dosick."

In support of Kaplan’s bid for re-election to the Natomas School Board, are several key supporters in her bid for City Council. In a statement from the Northern California Carpenters Local #46, they affirm their support with the following statement. “Northern California Carpenters Local #46, stands solidly behind and in support of Lisa Kaplan in her re-election for a third term to the Natomas School Board.”

Also indicating support is, Scott Dosick, a Westlake Charter Board member and President of the North Natomas Transportation Management Association, who states, “I fully stand behind Lisa, and her decision to run for re-election to the Natomas School Board.” Further indicating support is fellow School Board Member, Bruce Roberts, who declares, “I look forward to working with Lisa on the Natomas School Board and support her in her re-election to the Board in November 2010.”

###
Lisa Kaplan, A New LeaderCandidate, Sacramento City Council - District 1
Trustee, Natomas School Board (2002 - Present)
www.kaplan4council.com
916/996-1474 (cell)