A new letter

From Support CA Kids:

Dear (Contact First Name),

This past Monday, March 15, layoff notices were mailed to approximately 22,000 California teachers and support staff. In the Elk Grove Unified School District alone, this translates into about 16 teachers per elementary campus, or between 1/3 and 1/2 of the campus staff. Layoffs at the secondary level not only include teaching staff, but also all secondary counseling positions, librarians and library techs, and office personnel. Unless the Legislature takes prompt action to make education a priority in the July 1 budget, these layoffs will "stand". Turning in a late budget last year forced schools to wait until the first day of classes to try to reinstate teachers and class schedules.

Understandably, March 15 was called Black Monday. However, on that same day, incoming State Assembly Speaker John Perez approved pay increases totaling $132,000 per year to his staff. On the previous Friday, outgoing Speaker Karen Bass "rewarded" 20 of her ex-staff members with 10% pay increases as she left. While some legislators have turned down pay increases or asked staff to take pay cuts, none of the legislative staff have been furloughed. See the article at http://www.sacbee.com/2010/03/16/2609675/california-assembly-speaker-oks.html. The timing of Perez' announcement indicates a lack of awareness of voter priorities in this state, and begs the question - do they even know or care about the current crisis in education funding?

To add insult to injury, also on Monday the Governor's Senior Advisor Herb Schultz wrote a cover letter to the U.S. Department of Education to "express disappointment" over California's failure to receive a federal Race to the Top (RTTT) education grant and to resubmit California's application for the grant in the second round. He sharply criticizes the education community and parent advocacy groups for "standing in the way" of securing this grant by making allegations that question the state's commitments to education under the Quality of Education Investment Act (QEIA), or Proposition 98 implementation. Indeed, the education community has been crying foul about the ways in which the state has been "redefining" its commitments under Proposition 98: the difference between saying "total state revenues" vs. "total revenues available to the state" can affect the basis on which the state pays schools by millions. However, to blame that education community for calling attention to the fact that there is a crisis in California is like blaming a drowning man for crying for help.



What can we do?
Call Speaker Perez at (916) 319-2046 and express your profound disappointment. As Speaker, Perez now theoretically represents all Californians. Speaker Perez gave and announced these raises on a date where 22,000 of his California constituents found out that, as of July 1, they would be unemployed.

Identify yourself as a concerned parent, caregiver, or educator;

Ask his staff member to pass a message on to him:

* Demand that he take steps to bring the salaries and benefits of all legislative staff, starting with his own, into proportion with the rest of the California economy.
* Express your strong disappointment that, on his first day in office, he has indicated a disregard for the fiscal realities of the state that seems cruelly ironic in light of the drastic budget reductions impacting students and educators statewide.
* Assure him that you will be watching the actions of the Legislature, and that, as a voter and taxpayer, you want to see them set aside the interests of those who would profit from education and instead act for the real benefit of the majority of the students.


Background:

The salary increase being given to Perez' top staffer reflects a pay raise of $65,000/year plus benefits, or more money than most teachers make in a year. The compensation package legislative staff receive includes generous benefits and a typical monthly pension for retirement at age 55 in excess of $5000 a month for anyone currently earning over $125K. Perez will argue that ex-Speaker Bass paid her assistant $190K, and that he is merely giving his assistant a comparable salary. However, many highly qualified and hard-working Californians have been laid off and replaced by new workers hired at a much lower incoming salary.

104 legislative staff earn in excess of $125,000 per year (excluding benefits) or more than the legislators they work for. (http://www.sacbee.com/2010/03/07/2589925/highest-paid-california-legislative.html)

Letter to Gov. Schwarzenegger and the CA Legislature: Draft 1

Since learning that my school district would be pink slipping 1,000 employees, I've been pretty ticked off. And since learning that the number was jumping to some 1,100 employees INCLUDING ME!!!, I've been livid! I've been working on a letter in my head to the boneheads running this once great state of California, but all I can come up with is the following.

Dear Governor Schwarzenegger & Legislature of California,

You suck! Fix it!

Angrily yours,
Corinne S.
6-year teacher

I know it's not the most tactful letter, but I can't come up with anything else at the moment. I'm too angry. I'll continue to work on drafts. I encourage you (all 2 of my readers) to do the same.

No one's looking!

I feel like a blinked a while back, and when my eyes opened everything had changed. When did we become so irresponsible? I have a really hard time struggling with the all too frequently accepted notion that if I don't get caught, then I didn't do anything wrong. I see it in my students, I see it at the store, on the road, and even in some friends and family. When will we realize that rules are there for a reason and that by not following them, someone is inevitably going to get hurt?

As Kindergarten as it sounds, rules are there to protect us. Laws, if followed, protect us. Yet while everyone knows this basic fact, people still take things that don't belong to them, speed, blow through red lights, and so much more. I guess if no one catches me doing these things, then I am off the hook. Or am I?

Eventually our deeds catch up to us. Eventually we do get caught. Some of us are lucky enough to be caught and given the consequence of a ticket, or a stern reprimand, or another consequence as the case permits, but others aren't so lucky. Other times people do get hurt, physically or emotionally, or worse. If everyone was ott looking out for Number 1 and started looking out for 2, 3, 4, and 5, we would not have to look out for Number 1 anymore. There would be a larger team doing that for us.

Doing the right thing, whether someone is looking or not is our responsibility. It's called integrity. And unfortunately, it's extremely lacking in our society. When will people start caring about others beyond themselves again? What is it going to take for all of us to be more caring and kind to one another? When will we realize the bigger picture and that we are not individually at the center of it? We're all in this together, as the saying goes. We need to look out for each other even if no one is looking at us.

Take care of each other this holiday season and try for beyond that.

So Thankful!

This Thanksgiving, I have A LOT to be thankful for. Here's my list in no particular order:

1. The most supportive, unfailingly loving parents anyone could ever wish to have

2. The most caring, giving, kind-hearted, loyal sister

3. The most understanding, loving, considerate, handsomest boyfriend who lets me be me and loves me unconditionally

4. A wonderful extended family.

5. The cutest dog ever

6. Not only having a job, but having a job I LOVE.

7. I am still here!

8. Holidays spent with family

9. The best set of colleagues whom I can call friends

10. I still have 3 out of 4 grandparents.

11. Second chances and new beginnings

12. A roof over my head

13. The internet

14. Reconnecting with long lost best friends

15. Money in the bank

16. Glee and Grey's

17. Eager and willing students

18. Newfound faith and God's grace

19. The Twilight Series

20. iPod and iPhone

21. Music and musical theatre

22. A happy childhood and a bright future

What are you thankful for? Whatever it is, I hope you reflect on and recognize all of the blessings in your life.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Spare change

As I was finishing up at the gas station this morning a small woman in a motorized wheel chair, maybe early 40's, rolled up and very politely asked if I could spare any change. She said she had a very sick child with cancer and even a penny would be very much appreciated. Normally, I don't give money to people who approach me as I know many of them are living better off than I am, but sometimes there's something about a person that just let's you know that times are really hard and they really need some help.

I don't know if this woman was telling the truth. I gave her a dollar - it was all I had in my wallet. I know that for the person who really needs the money, it's got to be so very difficult to approach strangers for help. And for those that don't need it and are looking to scam others for an easy life, well that's on their heads. I can only do what I feel is right and show compassion. I have had my struggles and will continue to have challenges in my life as everyone does, but there are definitely people out there who are way worse off than I am.

Have you ever...

written a blog, then decided it's not for public consumption and just erased it?

To flu shot? Or not to flu shot?

That is the question. Typically, I come down with a major cold or the flu every other year. Three years ago, I went in to get a flu shot. The line for the shot was so long, (and I'm a big needle chicken) that I opted for the nasal flu "shot". The nasal vaccine is actually made of the live flu virus, so chances of flu-like symptoms are much greater than if one gets the injection. Needless to say I got the flu, or rather the flu-like symptoms which were just as bad as the flu minus the fever. As a result, I haven't gotten a flu vaccine since.

This year, I am faced with a dilemma. Because of my car wreck late this summer, I have not been able to work and so have used up all of my sick days and then some. The other guy's insurance company has assured me that my sick days will be "paid back" and I will be compensated for lost wages, but the question is - When? I imagine a settlement is not going to happen in the immediate future since I am still seeing doctors and recovering so that leaves me with a huge problem. I am out of sick days. What happens if I get the flu and who pays for that time off? After all, I would have sick days if they hadn't been drained by someone else's careless actions. I try to be a proactive person whenever possible. Do I take my chances with the flu, with this being the "on" year where I usually get sick? Or do I get a flu vaccine? AND if I get vaccinated, which vaccine do I get? The regular flu vaccine? Or the Swine Flu vaccine? Both? TWO SHOTS??? That thought makes me want to jump out of my skin.

As a teacher, I am surrounded by grubby (and I use that term lovingly) adolescents all day long. They have grubby siblings with grubby friends and are germ incubators. Hand sanitizer can only do so much and though I know it's important to stay clean, I don't like rubbing chemicals all over my hands all day long. I already made a personal rule last year of no high fives or fist bumps with my students, which is too bad, because those are great ways to connect with kids. So, do I even have a choice?

It's pretty evident that I need to get a flu shot, so which do I get? Your thoughts? Do I get both? I can't afford to take any more time off, monetarily or at the expense of my students (though I have been very blessed to have amazing guest teachers).