MLEA Members,
Welcome back! I hope you all had a fulfilling summer and a great first day of school, especially those of you who are new to the district or are taking on new assignments this year. With the construction and the work that's been put in front of us regarding test scores we really are living in some interesting times; here's to best wishes for a successful 2010-2011 campaign!
There are a few things I'd like to make you aware of as we get going:
1) Evaluation Pilot Project: You may have seen the recent article in the Cheney Free Press about the new evaluation system that we'll be working on this year. Medical Lake is part of a consortium along with Reardan, Davenport, Pullman, and a number of other area districts. This year will be spent in conversation talking about what effective teacher and ESA evaluation should look like; next year we'll be piloting a new system. In 2013 Superintendent Dorn makes a recommendation to the legislature regarding the system that should be used on a statewide basis.
I'm excited about the potential here, and you'll be hearing a lot more about the project as the year goes on. Please feel free to call or email if you have any questions!
2) Negotiations: This is the third year of our three-year contract, meaning it's time to go back to the table and review the agreement we have in place and talk about any changes that need to be made. As I write this word is coming through that the Seattle EA has approved their new contract just in time for the beginning of school next week, so it looks like this could be a blessed year of labor peace here in Washington State.
If you have interest in being a part of the bargaining team please let me know; it's a great way to get involved, and there's no better way to get to know your contract than by helping to write it. We'll also be setting up opportunities to talk about what you want out of the MLEA during these negotiations. Please, let us know what you think!
3) Candidate Endorsements: Part of the work that I do with the WEA-Eastern Uniserv Council is to lead the candidate interviews and endorsements process for all the area legislative districts. We met with almost everyone who has declared that they are running, and I really do believe that we are blessed with some strong education advocates representing us in the state legislature. Our official WEA endorsements:
3rd Legislative District (downtown Spokane): Andy Billig and Timm Ormsby (Democrats)
4th Legislative District (Spokane Valley): No endorsements given.
6th Legislative District (Mead, Windsor, and the area east of Airway Heights): Chris Marr and John Driscoll (Democrats); Kevin Parker (Republican)
7th Legislative District (essentially everything north of Highway 2): Shelly Short and Joel Kretz (Republicans)
9th Legislative Distict (Medical Lake, Cheney, south to Pullman): Susan Fagan and Joe Schmick (Republicans)
There are two area politicians who I'd like to point out for special consideration. Senator Marr has been one of the most consistent voices in Olympia regarding education. He was one of the most vocal that changing standards and "overhauling" the system without funding what we have didn't make any sense, and that one of the priorities of the state needed to be to restore the lost COLA for teachers. Similarly, I think that Joel Kretz is one of the best friends public schools have. The House Republicans were instrumental in saving levy equalization in 2009 and getting it expanded in 2010; without his hard work, we'd be far worse off to the tune of almost $1,000,000.
4) That said, this legislative session is going to be rough. The number being bandied around is that the legislature will be looking at a $3 billion dollar shortfall when they go back in January; some expect it to me more like $5 billion, and a few estimate even higher. Congress did pass the teacher jobs bill that should make some difference for the schools, but areas like levy equalization are still critically at risk. I'll update more frequently as the legislative session gets closer; please just know that making effective contacts with your Representatives and Senators is more important than ever.
5) Construction Project: The Cheney Free Press has had some great coverage of the interactions between the MLSD and the City of Medical Lake regarding the hang-up with getting the construction done at Hallett Elementary. The City Council will be taking the issue up soon; I'll let you know when it's set to be before them.
Should you ever have questions or concerns, please feel free to call me on my cell phone or contact me via email. Thank you for taking the time to visit the site, and have a great Labor Day weekend!
--Ryan--
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Sunday, January 10, 2010
The WIAA, 2A, and the MLSD
The WIAA has released their athletic classifications for the next two years, and it's looking like Medical Lake will remain in the 2A ranks. Colville and Riverside are both dropping down to 1A; coming into the AA classification from AAA will be some traditional powers like East Valley of Spokane, West Valley of Yakima, Port Angeles, and North Thurston. You can see the newest breakdowns here.
At the October school board meeting Russ Brown, former principal at MLHS and a current field rep with the WIAA, talked about how the WIAA organizes the leagues around the state. The goal is to have a balanced number of teams in each of the 6 classifications (2B, 1B, 1A, 2A, 3A, and 4A), meaning that you'd expect about 64 schools per division. That's their idea of balance--an equal number of teams.
The practical impact on 2A, where we are, is pretty profound. The smallest 2A schoo, Mount Baker, has 515 kids. We're running at 527 for counting purposes. The largest 2A school is Interlake HS of Bellevue at 1,085 students, a spread of 560 kids from top to bottom. You could combine Medical Lake with Mount Baker and you'd still only have the 7th largest school in 2A.
It gets even worse when you compare it to 3A--there the smallest school is 1,086 students while the largest is 1,303, a difference of only 217 students!
How does this happen? If you look at that chart I linked to above you can see many schools choosing to "opt-up" to a larger classification. Gonzaga Prep is a prime example; their enrollment would put them solidly in the 2A bracket otherwise, but they choose to compete at a 4A level in order to keep their historic rivalries with the other Spokane high schools. Every time a school opts to go up, the lowest school in that bracket is kicked down to the classification below so that the WIAA can keep their numbers balanced.
22 schools opted up into the 3A ranks. That pushes 22 "small" 3A schools down, into the 2A classification, and that's where the imbalance is born.
The Cheney Free Press has more here and here.
--Ryan--
At the October school board meeting Russ Brown, former principal at MLHS and a current field rep with the WIAA, talked about how the WIAA organizes the leagues around the state. The goal is to have a balanced number of teams in each of the 6 classifications (2B, 1B, 1A, 2A, 3A, and 4A), meaning that you'd expect about 64 schools per division. That's their idea of balance--an equal number of teams.
The practical impact on 2A, where we are, is pretty profound. The smallest 2A schoo, Mount Baker, has 515 kids. We're running at 527 for counting purposes. The largest 2A school is Interlake HS of Bellevue at 1,085 students, a spread of 560 kids from top to bottom. You could combine Medical Lake with Mount Baker and you'd still only have the 7th largest school in 2A.
It gets even worse when you compare it to 3A--there the smallest school is 1,086 students while the largest is 1,303, a difference of only 217 students!
How does this happen? If you look at that chart I linked to above you can see many schools choosing to "opt-up" to a larger classification. Gonzaga Prep is a prime example; their enrollment would put them solidly in the 2A bracket otherwise, but they choose to compete at a 4A level in order to keep their historic rivalries with the other Spokane high schools. Every time a school opts to go up, the lowest school in that bracket is kicked down to the classification below so that the WIAA can keep their numbers balanced.
22 schools opted up into the 3A ranks. That pushes 22 "small" 3A schools down, into the 2A classification, and that's where the imbalance is born.
The Cheney Free Press has more here and here.
--Ryan--
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Some Retirement News
Hi MLEA members,
A couple of things to think about this month, both related to retirement:
1) As per Article V Section 11 of the current contract, if you notify the District in advance of your intent to retire at the end of the current school year you'll receive a Notification Stipend to be added on to your base contract amount. Given the fiscal mess that we're faced with it's a real blessing to know what the staffing for the next year will look like as early as possible; to that end, the District has agreed to both raise the amount offered from $1,000 to $1,500, and keep the amount level until March--under the current language, it would step down a couple hundred dollars per month.
If you have any questions about this part of the contract, please give me a call!
2) For those of us on Plan 3, this is the month where you can change your contribution option either up or down. There's a form that you'd have to turn in to Lynn Paul in the payroll office; you can find it, and more information, here:
http://www.icmarc.org/xp/plan3/trs/contributionrateflexibility.xml
Happy New Year!
--Ryan--
A couple of things to think about this month, both related to retirement:
1) As per Article V Section 11 of the current contract, if you notify the District in advance of your intent to retire at the end of the current school year you'll receive a Notification Stipend to be added on to your base contract amount. Given the fiscal mess that we're faced with it's a real blessing to know what the staffing for the next year will look like as early as possible; to that end, the District has agreed to both raise the amount offered from $1,000 to $1,500, and keep the amount level until March--under the current language, it would step down a couple hundred dollars per month.
If you have any questions about this part of the contract, please give me a call!
2) For those of us on Plan 3, this is the month where you can change your contribution option either up or down. There's a form that you'd have to turn in to Lynn Paul in the payroll office; you can find it, and more information, here:
http://www.icmarc.org/xp/plan3/trs/contributionrateflexibility.xml
Happy New Year!
--Ryan--
Friday, January 1, 2010
Where the Jobs Aren't Going To Be
Interesting list in the Spokane Journal of Business' December 23rd edition on the largest employers in Spokane County.
#1 is the State of Washington
#4--Spokane Public Schools
#5--Spokane County
#6--City of Spokane
#7--The US Government
#11--Community Colleges of Spokane
#12--Central Valley School District
#14--Eastern Washington University
#18--State Department of Corrections
#25--Eastern State Hospital
#30--Lakeland Village
#31--East Valley School District
#45--Cheney School District
#50--Washington State DOT
#55--Deer Park School District
#58--West Valley School District
#59--Medical Lake School District
9 of the top 60 employers in the county are school districts, the community colleges, or state universities. If you put them all together, you have 8,565 jobs.
Now think about the cuts that could happen--if you laid off 5% of those people, you'd have 428 more people out on the streets looking for work. This, in a county where unemployment is currently 7.9% and a state where nearly 1-in-10 people can't find a job.
I guess that's why I can't really be sympathetic to the belief expressed by some that the government doesn't create jobs; the underlying bias in that statement is that a government job isnt' a "real" job, and that's a slap in the face. And if we don't save some of these pesky government jobs, you're going to be looking at a lot of unemployed school employees slowing the recovery down even further.
#4--Spokane Public Schools
#5--Spokane County
#6--City of Spokane
#7--The US Government
#11--Community Colleges of Spokane
#12--Central Valley School District
#14--Eastern Washington University
#18--State Department of Corrections
#25--Eastern State Hospital
#30--Lakeland Village
#31--East Valley School District
#45--Cheney School District
#50--Washington State DOT
#55--Deer Park School District
#58--West Valley School District
#59--Medical Lake School District
9 of the top 60 employers in the county are school districts, the community colleges, or state universities. If you put them all together, you have 8,565 jobs.
Now think about the cuts that could happen--if you laid off 5% of those people, you'd have 428 more people out on the streets looking for work. This, in a county where unemployment is currently 7.9% and a state where nearly 1-in-10 people can't find a job.
I guess that's why I can't really be sympathetic to the belief expressed by some that the government doesn't create jobs; the underlying bias in that statement is that a government job isnt' a "real" job, and that's a slap in the face. And if we don't save some of these pesky government jobs, you're going to be looking at a lot of unemployed school employees slowing the recovery down even further.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
The Medical Lake School District is the 59th Largest Employer in Spokane County
This, according to the December 23rd edition of the Spokane Journal of Business.
It sorts of puts in perspective jost how important teachers are to the local economy.
It sorts of puts in perspective jost how important teachers are to the local economy.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
The Governor's Education Budget
MLEA Members,
The big news last week was that the Governor released her supplemental budget for the 2010-2011 fiscal year. I mentioned in October that the picture wasn't very bright, but now we have a guide for how things could be. The cuts to the MLSD in her budget include:
To say that things are going to be tight would be an understatement on a magnitude of 10. The Governor is talking about a "revenue increase" that would allow us to avoid some of the worst cuts, but it remains an open question whether we'll be able to get that done for the 2010-2011 school year or not.
What can you do about it? Quite a bit, actually.
We live in interesting times.
--Ryan--
The big news last week was that the Governor released her supplemental budget for the 2010-2011 fiscal year. I mentioned in October that the picture wasn't very bright, but now we have a guide for how things could be. The cuts to the MLSD in her budget include:
- $1,085,361 in levy equalization funds, which helps to bridge the gap between property-rich and property-poor school districts in Washington.
- $199,137 in I-728 money, which we use for class size reduction.
- $268,799 from what is known as "K-4 Enhancement" funds, provided by the state to allow lower class size in the primary grades.
- $31,667 when the last state-funded Learning Improvement Day goes away.
To say that things are going to be tight would be an understatement on a magnitude of 10. The Governor is talking about a "revenue increase" that would allow us to avoid some of the worst cuts, but it remains an open question whether we'll be able to get that done for the 2010-2011 school year or not.
What can you do about it? Quite a bit, actually.
- Contact your legislator to let them know how much these cuts will hurt. Losing teachers will hurt. Losing funding for gifted education will hurt. Losing the levy equalization that allows a district like ours to stay in the black will hurt. I think they know this, but they also need to hear it loud and clear from us as often as we possibly can.
- If you're not already a member, please consider joining the WEA's Political Action Committee. It's an easy way to make a difference for $2.25 a month.
- Stay together. We're all in this handbasket, wherever it may be taking us.
We live in interesting times.
--Ryan--
Thursday, November 26, 2009
WEA Republican Educators Caucus
Hi MLEA Members,
There's a new group starting up within the WEA called the WEA Republican Educators Caucus. The intent is to give Republican and Conservative educators more of an active voice within the organization and make sure that their viewpoint is heard; it's an effort being put together by Ken Mortland, a retired member and former high school teacher who I've had the pleasure of meeting through my WEAPAC work and some who I think very highly of.
If you're interested in being a part of the effort you can get more information off of the the Facebook page that has been set up, here. You can also email me and I'll happily send you an information packet, or you can email Ken directly at wearec1130@aol.com.
Thanks!
--Ryan--
There's a new group starting up within the WEA called the WEA Republican Educators Caucus. The intent is to give Republican and Conservative educators more of an active voice within the organization and make sure that their viewpoint is heard; it's an effort being put together by Ken Mortland, a retired member and former high school teacher who I've had the pleasure of meeting through my WEAPAC work and some who I think very highly of.
If you're interested in being a part of the effort you can get more information off of the the Facebook page that has been set up, here. You can also email me and I'll happily send you an information packet, or you can email Ken directly at wearec1130@aol.com.
Thanks!
--Ryan--
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