ReporterAn official Publication of the Hillsborough Classroom Teachers AssociationRepresenting Teachers and Educational Support Professionals

Affiliated with FEA, NEA, AFT, AFL-CIOVolume 45, Number 5 May/June 2011

REPORTER

Hillsborough Classroom Teachers Association • 4505 N. Rome Avenue Tampa, Florida 33603 • www.hillscta.org

AFT Leader Visits Hillsborough County

During a visit to Hillsborough County, Dr. Lorretta Johnson participated in a press conference along with the school board members and the local union presidents. “Those of us here today are going to do everything we can to make sure that Florida children get the message that they are a priority,” Dr. Johnson said.

Dr. Lorretta Johnson and HCTA President Jean Clements visited Sulphur Springs Elementary during her visit. The school’s success had recently been featured in a St. Petersburg Times article.

Dr. Lorretta Johnson executive vice president of AFT, visited Hillsborough County schools last month and participated

in events hosted by the Hillsborough Classroom Teachers Association (HCTA) and the Hillsborough School Employees Federation (HSEF).

Dr. Johnson took part in a breakfast meeting with key leaders in the community, including the president of Hillsborough County PTA, an activist with the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), and Executive Board Members of the local NAACP chapter, and former Florida Commissioner of Education, Betty Castor. Johnson also participated in a press conference where school board members and the presidents of both local unions discussed a state budget that would cut $100 million from the Hillsborough school district budget.

The $100 million cut, HCTA president Jean Clements pointed out, comes on top of the $124 million that the school district has had to slash over the last four years. “No one in Tallahassee is acknowledging that these cuts hurt Florida’s children,” said Clements, who explained that the harm caused by these cuts will have a long-term effect on students and public schools.

Recent budget cuts, along with the cuts approved by the governor and state Legislature, have already taken an emotional toll on the school system’s support staff, HSEF president Josephine Gonzalez told the press conference. “Morale is not good among the employees who cook and clean and drive the buses.”

Echoing the concerns of the parents, community and union leaders gathered at the press conference, Johnson said: “Those of us here today are going to do everything we can to make sure that Florida children get the message that they are a priority.”

Though they are confronted with a budget crisis that threatens increased class sizes and a rollback of some of the impressive gains made by schools and students in recent years, community activists and union leaders were decidedly upbeat during the breakfast meeting. Several of them said they saw the crisis as one around which school employees, parents, faith leaders and other key players in the community could rally—and have an impact on both state legislation and elections.

“We know what works in education, and it’s not funding cuts or vouchers,” said Johnson, who noted that AFT affiliates across the country are aggressively reaching out to the community in an effort to beat back attacks on schools and educators—and to advocate for the needs

of children. “We know we can’t do this alone.”

PTA president Melissa Erickson said she welcomed the opportunity to work with HCTA, HSEF and the other organizations represented at the breakfast, and that the time had come to stand up to those divisive leaders who try to pit parents against teachers.

Johnson visited two schools: Howard W. Blake High School and Sulphur Springs Elementary School. Both schools have recently been singled out for their innovative programs and the impressive achievement gains of their students. Sulphur Springs’ success was highlighted in a recent St. Petersburg Times article.

During the meeting at Blake, school board chairwoman and former teacher Doretha Edgecomb said educators and top school district officials have to take the lead in speaking out on behalf of the public schools. “We have to be the

strongest, loudest and most persistent voice,” she asserted.

HCTA looks forward to working with community leaders this summer to put together community education forums.

“We know what works in

education, and it’s not funding cuts

or vouchers.”~ Lorretta Johnson,

AFT executive vice president

InsideThis Issue

Tenure: Is it Gone? Page 2

~Legislative

Review Page 3

~CTA 2nd Annual

Membership PicnicPage 4

~Let Membership

Pay for Itself Page 5

~Mary Gonzalez

Scholarship Page 6

~Teacher Learning

Community Project Update

Page 7~

CTA Works Page 8

Page 2 • CTA Reporter • May/June 2011

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

Jean ClementsCTA President

In 1941, an Act relating only to Hillsborough County Schools, called the Hillsborough County Teacher

Tenure Act, was passed by the Florida Legislature. It was revised by the Legislature in 1975.

Tenure in Florida is not actually called “tenure” except in three counties: Hillsborough, Duval County (Jacksonville area) and Volusia County (Daytona area). These three counties each have their own teacher tenure acts or charters, which codify due process rights for fair dismissal, based on just cause.

Teachers in all other counties in Florida have similar due process protections with just cause and fair dismissal procedures under Florida statute, called continuing contracts or professional services contracts, depending on when they were issued.

Tenure, whatever it’s called, has never meant a job-for-life in Florida. Or that teachers could not be fired. Or even that it was all that difficult to fire someone unfit for the job. It was, truthfully, only as difficult as it should be: due process, just cause, fair dismissal. That’s all.

The Hillsborough Tenure Act calls for written notice of all the causes for discharge or demotion (there are eight causes defined in the law), notice of time and place for a hearing, a hearing before the school board which may be public or private at the option of the teacher, the right to be heard at the hearing, and the right to be represented by counsel. The Act stipulates rules on permissible evidence, the right of both parties to subpoena and cross-examine witnesses, the compilation and filing of a written transcript of all evidence submitted at the hearing, and deliverance of a copy of the board’s findings within five days of the hearing’s completion.

In order for a teacher to be dismissed, the school board must find, with a majority vote, that one or more of the charges is sustained by the evidence. Appeal can be made to the Circuit Court of Hillsborough County.

The CTA contract goes even further in specifying more due process procedures. It requires that whenever corrective action is determined to be needed, assistance shall be given, as well as a reasonable period of time for correction. It also requires that a record of the assistance provided to the teacher shall be entered into evidence at any dismissal hearing, and written summaries shall be provided of all conferences related to unsatisfactory performance after notification of possible dismissal. Our contract gives a teacher the right to include written rebuttals to any content with which they disagree. It gives CTA members the right to representation at any meeting related to conduct or performance.

Senate Bill 736, passed during the 2011 Florida legislative session, and immediately signed into law by Governor Scott, does away with any type of tenure, professional services contract, or continuing contract for teachers hired on or after July 1, 2011. It overrides our Tenure Act.

So, is tenure gone? Not exactly. Is it set for extinction? In the minds

of our current governor and a majority of our legislators, absolutely.

So where do we stand? Teachers in Florida may keep their tenure (whatever it’s called in their district) as long as they: 1) remain in the district that granted the long-term contract, or tenure, 2) receive a “Highly Effective” or “Effective” evaluation, and 3) do not opt into the performance pay schedule. In three years, all counties are required to have a performance pay salary scheduled based on evaluation, not years of experience. If teachers opt into the performance pay schedule, they must give up their tenure status permanently.

Now this is where it gets a little sticky for Hillsborough. There are exemptions in the law that allow Hillsborough to use our own new and emerging evaluation system, and the alternate salary schedule which will be linked to it in the next few years. It appears there was intent to allow us to link the new evaluation system and the new salary structure just as we designed them. That design includes the retention of tenure for any teacher who has tenure and opts in to the new salary schedule (which exists conceptually at this point, with details yet to be negotiated and bargained). But the language is not as clear as we’d like, and we’re not yet sure if it accomplishes what we need.

No need to panic yet; the language may prove to be sufficient. If not, the new salary schedule is not even available for at least two years. We will fight – FIGHT – to ensure that tenure right is retained for teachers who may wish to opt in to the new salary schedule when it is finally in place. And, not to be forgotten, we have two legislative sessions and one election between now and then to get laws changed.

However, if you move to any other county in Florida, you will be placed on

an annual contract for the duration of your career. Unless the law is changed.

Good news? CTA has been working with the district to ensure that every single person who would be eligible for tenure at the completion of this school year WILL BE GRANTED TENURE IN JUNE BEFORE THE LAW GOES INTO EFFECT. We have been pushing for this for months. They have run programs and checked and rechecked lists to ensure that not one person is overlooked, because if tenure is not granted before July 1, the law may not allow for it to be granted.

Ever. Unless the

law is changed. Meaning, we either change the hearts and minds of those in office now, or we replace them with responsible officials whose hearts and minds and priorities are in the right place.

All tenure is, is fairness – not firing people without just cause, or notification, or an opportunity to defend themselves and present evidence.

Tenure, itself, does not turn a blind eye to incompetency. It’s those responsible for evaluating and assisting their staff, who might. Outlawing tenure does NOTHING to improve teaching practice, or improve our schools. You cannot fire your way to success.

More importantly, the belief that there are significant numbers of “bad teachers” in our public school classrooms is just wrong. For the few that may exist, do you really believe that outlawing tenure is the best way to handle that problem? Come on.

Most importantly, focusing on tenure misses the point. It’s the cheap, quick fix that will not fix, but is cheap. It’s real cheap compared to putting in the systems of comprehensive support that help us all improve, no matter where we are in our careers. It’s real cheap compared to funding a salary structure which will attract and retain an adequate number of bright and talented prospects into this very complicated, challenging profession. It’s real cheap compared to providing the materials, tools, technology, and most of all time so that teachers can be as great as they could be if they had those essentials.

So what do we do now? In addition to arming up for the battles yet ahead, there are many practical considerations we are working on right now. You already know that many of the due process protections

Tenure: Is it gone?

All tenure is, is fairness – not firing people

without just cause, or notification,

or an opportunity to defend

themselves and present evidence.

related to our tenure are in our contract, some of which go much further than our actual tenure act. We have been reviewing all the language in our tenure act, and all the related language in our contract, and are committed to putting as much of our tenure provisions into our contract as possible.

CTA has been in conversations with district officials and school board members for months about the impacts of this quickly changing political landscape. Most of the school board members attended rallies and waved signs with us, spoke at rallies and press conferences with us, and lobbied legislators with us throughout this harmful session.

District lobbyists worked closely with our executive director Stephanie, CTA lobbyist Chuck, and me throughout the session to fight harmful legislation and improve laws none of us could stop. Your voice, your participation, your growing strength in membership really, truly helped in all the gains we achieved. It was going to be much worse, till you all weighed in!

In Hillsborough, we have learned much about how to improve learning conditions so that all children can be more successful. This is evident from the great progress we’ve seen with all our students in Hillsborough and across Florida over the past couple of decades, especially the past several years. We have been a serious, learning organization, tenacious in our pursuit of greater success for all our students.

Now, if we will just use that ability to amass a concerted effort and singularity of purpose, and turn that strength and tenacity to influence those whom we elect to positions in state government, who have such sway over our work, our kids, our profession… Think what we could do! Imagine the future we can make!

In the meantime, I pledge to you that we will work to add contract language where legislation fails us, we will use our strength and your voice to limit the harmful effects of new legislation and devastating budget shortfalls in Hillsborough, and we will continue to work with all of you to grow and strengthen our union so that we:

1) never lose our contract and collective bargaining, and

2) fight to undo the harm this legislative session will inflict upon our schools, our children, and Florida’s future.

Currently CTA cannot send e-mails directly to members. However your CTA Rep should be forwarding e-mails to you regularly. If you are not receiving e-mails, see your Rep or call the

CTA office for assistance.* * *

Check out CTA news on the web at www.hillscta.org and keep up-to-date

Get Connected Check out CTA on Facebook.

May/June 2011 • CTA Reporter • Page 3

Motivationand

Momentumby Stephanie Baxter-Jenkins,

Executive Director

As you all prepare for a well-deserved summer break, I realize it may be difficult to think positively about the last few months. Unfortunately, the political climate in Florida this session was not a positive one for our children and our public schools or the employees that serve them. A lot of bad legislation passed and it will take a long-term concerted effort to turn things around. The good news is that I believe we, as a union, have both the motivation and momentum to make change happen and to be a stronger, more vibrant organization because of our efforts.

We accomplished a good deal during difficult times. We’ve shared our story with fellow employees and the larger community in many important ways and doing so created the foundation for changing the context of the education debate in this state. Consider that in a few short months, we have:•Held over 200 school site meetings•Organized more than 20 pro-

education rallies both large and small•Made thousands of contacts with

fellow employees in the district•Worked with union members in

other professions across the county•Forged or continued important

relationships with community partners like the PTA, the NAACP and LULAC•Been covered almost weekly in

the newspaper, as well as radio and television programs•Sent thousands of letters and e-mails

to legislators•Organized teacher leader visits to

Tallahassee to provide testimony and talk with legislators•Added more than 1,500 members to

strengthen our union!None of this would have been

possible without the collective action of CTA members. Teachers and ESPs in Hillsborough County have joined together like never before to make clear that we care about the children and public schools in our county and that having a union to represent our collective voice matters!

We undoubtedly have a tough year ahead. If history teaches us anything, we know that come next session, the legislature will go after those things they were not able to get this session. So we expect that they will squarely target the voice that working people have through their unions, by again proposing legislation designed to decertify unions, stop payroll deduction, and limit our voice in politics. But this year, and hopefully in the years ahead, they will find that we are a stronger and more active union!

We have momentum—each week, hundreds of members are joining with us to make our union stronger. We are motivated–to see positive change for our children and our schools. We need to capitalize on that momentum and motivation by continuing to build our union and make our voice heard through the 2012 election. Standing together, we can help elect leaders who will make education a priority by fully funding our system consistent with the Florida Constitution.

We can elect leaders who will value and honor the teachers and school employees in this state who are succeeding in spite of, not because of, current leadership and their poor policy choices. We can’t undo the damage overnight, but with concerted effort we can and will make change a reality by staying active and working together!

PUBLIC SCHOOL BUDGET NUMBERS

The 2011 budget numbers reduce per pupil spending in Florida to $6,267 per student (a reduction of $542 per student from last year). This reduction amounts to roughly 100 million dollars in Hillsborough County alone. Retirement savings from employee contributions and other benefit changes to FRS are also being touted by the Legislature as a measure to reduce the impact of these cuts. While FRS changes may reduce the impact on the district somewhat, it is a major reduction in salary and future FRS benefits for current and future employees.

~SB 736—THE SO CALLED TEACHER QUALITY BILL

The president’s column covers the impact of SB 736 in great detail with regard to tenure issues and as its passage was an early action in the session, we have covered this bill in detail in several prior communications. In brief, SB 736 eliminates tenure for those teachers who have not earned it before July 1, 2011. The bill also requires school districts to adopt merit pay plans, which base at least 50% of a teacher’s evaluation on student test scores. It is important to note that at this time, Hillsborough County is exempt to some extent from this legislation and we will be able to proceed with our current evaluation system, which uses student test data for 40% of the overall evaluation score. The law also limits the extent to which school districts can compensate teachers for advanced degrees.

~ANTI-UNION BILLS DEFEATEDThe legislature was unable to pass

two major bills designed silence the voice of public employees both on the job and in the larger political spectrum. SB 830/HB 1021 sought to eliminate payroll deduction for union dues and to limit the extent to which dues could be used for political purposes. SB 1720/HB 1025 would have automatically decertified a union as the collective bargaining agent if membership fell below 50% of the bargaining unit.

~FRS PENSION CHANGES

The House and Senate passed SB 2100, the Conference Committee Report that hammered out the changes to the Florida Retirement System. SB 2100, a budget conforming bill, reflects the agreement reached on FRS pension reform. Most of the changes will not impact current FRS enrollees, but please read the information below carefully. While we know these changes were not necessary and are devastating to our members, the changes were not as severe as originally proposed. However, look for future legal challenges to facets of this bill.

Current law is maintained for the following provisions:•Defined benefit (DB) plan continues

as currently offered (new title: “Pension

Legislative Review

Plan”). Please note, the DB plan closes to elected officials and senior management hired on or after July 1. •Defined Contribution (DC) plan

continues as currently offered (new title: “Investment Plan”). •Health Insurance Subsidy (HIS)

continues as in current law. •There is no compulsory enrollment

in the DC (investment) plan – except for elected officials and senior management hired on or after July 1.Current Employees will face the

following changes under the agreement: •All FRS enrolled employees will be

required to pay a 3% contribution – except those in DROP•Calculation of COLA (Cost of Living

Adjustment) for retirement benefit (income): COLA changes will not affect current retirees, including those in DROP. •Effective July 1, the current law

COLA benefit calculation (3% of annual retirement benefit, calculated once a year) is suspended for 5 years until 2016. Our current understanding of this COLA reform provision is that this 5-year suspension applies to current employees (but not current retirees, who will continue to receive a 3% COLA increase in their retirement benefit each year as provided in current law). The Conference Committee agreement anticipates that in 2016, the FRS COLA benefit will return to its current law status of 3% of annual retirement benefit per year (assuming the FRS Trust Fund is funded on a fiscally sound basis, and that funding is available to pay for this). •For current employees, this means

that an employee’s current COLA benefit of 3% will cease for 5 years beginning on July 1, 2011, and that 3% will be prorated across the total number of years of career service.

Example: an employee has 25 years of creditable service on June 30, 2011, and continues to work for another 5 years for a total of 30 years of career service. Upon retirement, that employee’s COLA benefit would be calculated by dividing the number of career service years that include the 3% COLA credit calculation by the total number of years of career service, then multiplying that number times 3%. In this example, dividing 25 years (3%

COLA credit received) by 30 years (total career service years), the COLA benefit to which the employee would be entitled is 25 divided by 30 which equals 0.83, then multiplying 0.83 times 3% which results in a COLA benefit of 2.499% (instead of the current law COLA benefit calculation of 3%). Employees entering FRS employment

on or after July 1, 2011, face the following changes: •For employees who initially enroll

in the pension plan, on or after July 1, vesting increases to 8 years (current law: 6 years). •Although DROP continues intact,

employees entering DROP on or after July 1, 2011, will earn a reduced interest rate of 1.3% (current law: 6.5%).

•Average final compensation will increase to 8 highest years of creditable (current law: 5 highest years).•The retirement eligibility age will

increase to age 65 years (current law: age 62).•The retirement eligibility for years

of creditable service will increase to 33 years (current law: 30 years). •Employees who enroll in the Defined Contribution Plan on or after July 1, 2011 will be 100% vested of employer contributions after 8 years of creditable service.

For additional resources and information that address more specifics regarding these changes to the FRS pension plan and the FRS investment plan, go to: www.myfrs.com or call the toll free MyFRS Financial Guidance Line at 1-866-446-9377, Option #2.

~CLASS SIZE

SB 2120/HB 5101 passed, which changed the definition of core curriculum, thereby reducing the number of courses that must meet class-size caps. Many classes, especially advanced high school level courses, will likely see an increase in class size.

~NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFICATION

There will be a payment to the Teachers holding National Board Certification for the 2010-2011 School year. This year’s bonus is calculated at 3.91% of the 2009-2010 state-wide average teachers’ salary. The total amount, including the 7.65% sent by the state for FICA, will be $1,966.68. Individual districts determine the individual withholding for each NBCT, and pay the bonus minus the appropriate deductions.

~MERIT AWARD PROGRAM (MAP)The Merit Award Program is

funded for the fall 2011 payout, but discontinued beyond that.

~EXPANSION OF CHARTER

SCHOOLS, VIRTUAL SCHOOLS AND VOUCHERS

The legislature passed a variety of measures designed to expand Charter Schools, Virtual Schools and Voucher programs. The legislature also passed SB 1620/HB 7197, which expands online school offerings and requires incoming high school students to take at least one online course before graduating.

Current state voucher programs were expanded in a variety of ways. For instance, SB 1388/HB 965, removes the limitation on tax credits for companies that fund vouchers for low-income students. Additionally, vouchers were expanded under the McKay Scholarship program, which provides vouchers for students with disabilities, by expanding the program to children with 504 plans. Moreover, SB 1822/HB 1331 allows more students to qualify to move to alternate public schools by broadening the definition of a “failing” school.

The 2011 Legislative Session brought many changes that affect school employees.

by Stephanie Baxter-Jenkins and Chuck Kiker

Page 4 • CTA Reporter • May/June 2011

CTA 2nd Annual Membership PicnicAttendees were treated to music, games, and a

buffet catered by Luptons. Members also received a raffle ticket for a chance to win prizes.

May/June 2011 • CTA Reporter • Page 5

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Page 6 • CTA Reporter • May/June 2011

The AFT is inviting its Gen Y teacher members to join a new online community at http://go.aft.org/GenY to discuss the findings of a recent report focusing on what Generation Y teachers need to succeed. The site is also engaging young AFT educators in activities generated through their discussion. This highly interactive community

will offer teachers tools to help them in their profession, invitations to webinars and tele-town hall meetings, and most importantly, a place where they can connect with other Gen Y teachers. Like Facebook, the AFT Generation Y Teachers site enables teachers to set up their own pages and profiles, but the discussions will be focused on professional concerns.The report, which is catalyzing

discussion among Gen Y members, is titled “Workplaces that Support High-Performing Teaching and Learning—Insights from Generation Y Teachers” and concludes that policymakers and leaders of school districts, individual schools and teachers unions must work together to transform the way most schools in the United States now operate. The report was released in April by the AFT and the American Institutes for Research.In the report, young teachers

say they want feedback on their performance and to be evaluated in a fair way; they need time to collaborate with their colleagues; they support differentiated pay for high performance; and they want to use technology to provide engaging and effective lessons, as well as to support collaboration with other teachers through, for instance, videos and conferencing.

Gen Y Teachers

This past fall Sue Creekmore, chairperson of the Hillsborough National Board Certified Teacher Council presented the idea to the Council’s steering committee to raise money for a scholarship to honor Mary Gonzalez, past CTA President and current CTA Member Services Specialist.

Gonzalez has been a diligent cheerleader, fan, supporter,and promoter of National Board Certification for teachers in Hillsborough, and teachers throughout the state. She was part of the original Friends of Florida. Money was raised for the scholarship through the council by the sale of National Board highlighters and pens, as well as donations.

The first recipient of the Mary Gonzalez Scholarship is Clint Cagle, the son of Joni Cagle, a National Board Certified Teacher who works at as an ESE teacher at

Mary Gonzalez Scholarship

Hunter’s Green Elementary. Clint has overcome physical issues that most of us never have to face in our life. Although he had surgery to remove brain tumors, he persevered, participates in sports, and plans to go on to college.

Clint said that receiving the award was really exciting and he is looking forward to the next step in his education. He wants to thank all of the teachers and people that made the scholarship possible.

He is going to be attending Hillsborough Community College in August. He wants to pursue a degree in sports marketing or sports medicine. The scholarship money will be used to cover school expenses and tuition. He is waiting to hear if he will receive an additional scholarship from the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation as well as the Florida Bright Futures Awards.

Teachers Rally Around the CountyDuring the Legislative Session, many participated in numerous rallies all over the Tampa Bay area.

Mary Gonzalez (at right) with scholarship winner Clint Cagle and his family.

May/June 2011 • CTA Reporter • Page 7

The Hillsborough Classroom Teachers Association (HCTA), the Center for Technology and Education (CTechEd) and the

AFT Innovation Fund are sponsoring our Teacher Learning Community (TLC) Project to help teachers with the changes associated with the Empowering Effective Teachers Program.

Our pilot TLC session just concluded an eight week session during April and May. Over 90 teachers collaborated in six online learning communities to share information and develop resources to help them successfully participate in the Empowering Effective Teachers (EET) program. Our TLC pioneers posted threaded discussions, shared documents, wrote wikis, and participated in live webinars with colleagues.

The HCTA and CTechEd are offering a Summer Teacher Learning Community (TLC) session which began June 13, 2011. The Summer TLCs will focus on the new evaluation system and will be hosted by facilitators that are your fellow teachers. As of May 24, 164 teachers have registered for the Summer TLC session. The Summer TLC session:•is offered exclusively online–no face-to-

face meetings required.•ends July 30, 2011 .•offers flexibility of anywhere – any

time participation.•provides opportunity to earn 30

inservice points.•includes live webinars with local EET

experts.If you would like more information

about TLCs and our Center for Technology and Education, please visit us on the Web at www.cteched.org and follow the link to Teacher Learning Communities.

Some participants and facilitators

Evaluation Questions AnsweredThis year, teachers were required to

complete their self-evaluations online for the first time, which prompted a few questions. Joe Cochran, IT Manager, and David Steele, EET Project Manager, provided answers.

When is the portfolio on Domain 4 due for those who are applying for Pay for Performance?

Teachers should check with the principal for a due date. While the evaluation isn’t due until June 30, most teachers want to get their evaluation done before the last teacher day.

How can teachers make corrections if they made an error?

Teachers may make corrections by contacting LTM support at 744-6673. After they have completed a form it is moved to the History Tab. From there it can only be opened and viewed. LTM support can revert it to draft for them, which moves the form back to the Active tab where it can be edited. Then they can save those changes and complete it again so it will move back to the History tab.

How can teachers make rebuttals after the peer or principal completes it?

With the principal appraisal there is an acknowledgement loop built in to the process. Once the principal has completed their evaluation, it is sent to the teacher for acknowledgement.. As a part of this acknowledgement process there is a comment box where teachers can provide a rebuttal if they wish. An alternative method for rebuttal is to make their comments in the Journal. This is the method for rebuttal on a Peer’s evaluation since there is no acknowledgement step in the Peer evaluation process.

There are also very detailed instructions, screen shots, and a tutorial on #3 in the Teachers Toolkit in FirstClass.

What are the timelines for the 40% and final total evaluation in the fall?

We expect to have achievement calculations in September 2011 for the 2010-2011 school year. Final total evaluation calculation follows in September as well.

Which new evaluations will begin in 2011-12?

Headstart/EELP (Pre-K), Guidance, Media Specialists, Adult Education, Tech Specialists, and Hospital/Homebound. Each groups’ evaluation rubric was created by a district level committee comprised of representatives from that group (ie. guidance counselors were on the committee that created their rubric.) These groups met throughout the school year on this.

Some groups started on development this year, and will continue in development next year (SSW and psychologists). Other groups will begin work next year and work throughout the school year to develop evaluations for the 2012-2013 school year.

All instructional staff will be categorized as “new evaluation” or “old evaluation”. Instructional groups remain on old evaluation until each new evaluation is rolled out.

There have been no changes in the timelines for Performance Pay or MAP.

For answers to more questions about completing Evaluations, see the March issue of the Reporter at www.hillscta.org.

Teacher Learning Community Project Update

share their experiences with the TLCs”“My expectations for this PLC

(TLC) were exceeded in every way. I have gained invaluable knowledge and strategies, which I have been able to take back and use with my students in my /our classroom.... This TLC has challenged my planning of the questions I ask my students as well as the discussions I have seen and hope to see them have. It has impacted me as a teacher leader as I have been able to share these resources with coworkers at my school site as well as parents of my students to help my students succeed in all they set out to do.”

~ Georgianna Castellano, participant“The TLC provided a reflective

platform where teachers could present ideas in a risk-free atmosphere. The interactions enabled teachers to share best practices and enrich current practices in a collaborative atmosphere.”

~ Jessica Addington, facilitator“My TLC group was for Questioning

and Discussion. I [learned that] student led questioning and discussion builds courage in the lives of young scholars.”

~ Shavelaney Dorsett, participant“The opportunity to embark on this

Teacher Learning Community endeavor was an invigorating professional experience. The participants of our community brought different perspectives, a varying wealth of knowledge but also a unified love for what we do. Our TLC focused on nurturing best practices, which allowed for thought provoking conversations about our profession, its future, and of course, the Charlotte Danielson framework.

“I think what my co facilitator Seleka Blake and I most valued was the chiseling away of barriers that at times isolate us as educators.

“Our teachers brought ideas, supported the development of new ideas and eagerly shared such new found knowledge with various stakeholders at their schools.

“I look forward to another round of TLC’s. It can only get better from here.”

~ Qiahna Williams, facilitator“This online community successfully

fills a hole in he EET process - access to immediate feedback and resources needed to develop in the Charlotte Danielson domains. It accelerates the sharing of ideas between teachers who are trying to improve in specific domain areas. It also gives us a chance to bounce our lesson ideas off of each other and fine-tune them.

“There has been a surprising amount of similarity in what works well in all grade levels and subject areas. For example, as an upper-classman chemistry teacher I have found some methods used by grades K-2 teachers to be very useful for developing higher-order thinking skills.”

~ Paul Goodland, facilitator“TLC empowers the participants

through online collaboration that promotes acquisition of knowledge through a social exchange which ignites a change-agent for teacher leaders [and] administrators, to make a difference in improving practices, schools, and students.

“There are so many instructors who have found the TLC to be beneficial in improving their practices and increasing their knowledge. More importantly, TLC causes teachers to reflect about themselves and their students which improves academic and professional growth.”

~ Diane Levy, facilitator

The winner of the Netbook giveaway featured in the last issue of the Reporter was Demetri Scott, recent graduate of Hillsborough High School, whose mother is CTA Member Patricia McNair of Robles Elementary. Scott plans to attend Bethune-Cookman University and major in Secondary Education with an emphasis in Law Studies and a minor in Music. He has successfully passed his band audition and is now a member of their Marching Wildcats percussion section. His aspirations are to become a high school teacher and band instructor, and he even wants to come back to teach at Hillsborough High.

“I was extremely surprised he won the Dell! Reading the CTA newspaper I just happened to see the small insert about the drawing and winning the laptop and took a chance to enter. I really didn’t expect to win, but thought it would be such a great opportunity since he doesn’t have his own laptop. This would be one less thing I have to worry about. I want to give my heartfelt thanks to CTA, Jean Clements, the entire staff, and Hillsborough County Schools for making my son’s transition to college a little easier and helping him achieve his goals,” said McNair.

Hillsborough High Senior Wins Laptop

Reporter

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Jean Clem

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Marilyn D

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Vice President

Faye Cook

Secretary/TreasurerStephanie B

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Editor

This Publication is paid for by mem

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CTA WORKS FOR YOU

CTA continues to work tirelessly to support members and to work toward the mission of “Helping You Help Kids.” To that end, listed below are just a few of the things CTA staff members have accomplished for our membership recently.

•Ensured that teachers were notified of their tentative program, schedule, and or grade level assignment before the start of spring transfer period. (2.8.1)

• Stopped a school from docking comp time when employees were late. (12.3.3)

• Represented members in numerous Professional Standards investigations.

• Represented ESPs at meetings concerning their annual evaluation. (11.3.6)

• Attended numerous CTA site meetings, faculty meetings, and EET information meetings.

• Ensured that school sign-in procedures were developed as per contract and were not being used for payroll calculations. (2.4.4)

• Provided attorneys for members when appropriate.

• Secured comp time for teachers who attended meetings that had been cancelled without notification.

• Negotiated to have Humana remove the penalty for maintenance prescriptions purchased at retail stores instead of by mail-order.

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DI authorize and request the School B

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lassroom Teachers A

ssociation dues and assessments

from m

y bi-weekly pay, and to transm

it the deducted amounts to the A

ssociation office. I understand the School Board w

ill discontinue dues deduc-tion upon 30 days’ w

ritten notification to the Association and B

oard. I understand that dues, assessments, contributions or gifts to the H

illsborough C

lassroom Teachers A

ssociation are not tax deductible as charitable contributions for federal income tax purposes although a portion of the dues

may be tax deductible under other provisions of the Internal R

evenue Code. For 2010-2011, teacher dues are $31.58 per pay period, and ESP dues

are $15.82 per pay period.

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S.S. # ____________________ Phone# __________ Teacher Paraprofessional Clerical

Nam

e _____________________________________ Work Location _________________________

Hom

e Address ______________________________ Signature _____________________________

City ___________________________ Zip ______ D

ate ________________________________E-M

ail Address __________________ A

ssociation Representative __________________________

Summer Open Hiring/Transfer Period Tuesday, June 28 – Thursday, July 28

New Teacher Orientation: Freedom High School Monday, July 25 – Thursday, July 28

Back-to-school Member Packet Stuffing: CTA Building Monday, August 1 – Friday, August 5

Teacher Pre-Planning Monday, August 15 – Monday, August 22

Students’ First Day of School Tuesday, August 23

Labor Day Holiday Monday, September 5