[Vision2020] Putting Teachers Last in Idaho & in Moscow, as well.

Sun May 22 16:53:32 PDT 2011

How curious that the school district has money to waste on an out of town attorney and then is unwilling to share with patrons what it’s going to cost to pay someone else to think for them.  The long term answer might be to elect board members who are more in tune with supporting teachers and bright enough to figure things out on their own.  The only caveat to that solution is that it would be the dream of the right wing, homeschooling loonies around here to run for the board and really ruin the district.  In the meanwhile, I urge folks to call the board member from their zone and ask why they are so cavalier with our money and their constituency. 

Julia McIlroy               Zone 1             882-2162

Aleisa Barber              Zone 2             882-4434

Kim Campbell                         Zone 3             882-8252

Dawn Fazio                 Zone 4             882-0965

Margaret Dibble         Zone 5             882-4749

If you are unclear about what zone you are in or would like to email your trustee click here: 

 <http://www.msd281.org/msd/home.html?http://www.msd281.org/msd/> http://www.msd281.org/msd/home.html?http://www.msd281.org/msd/

Rose Huskey

From: vision2020-bounces at moscow.com [mailto:vision2020-bounces at moscow.com] On Behalf Of Sue Hovey
Sent: Sunday, May 22, 2011 2:36 PM
To: Joe Campbell; Tom Hansen
Cc: Moscow Vision 2020; Penni Cyr
Subject: Re: [Vision2020] Putting Teachers Last in Idaho & in Moscow, as well.

Thanks,  Three times I turned down job offers in Pullman to stay in Moscow where I loved to teach.  Were I teaching today, I’d be looking out of state—somewhere.  They are still hiring in Hawaii.  That would be very tempting.  The problems there are huge, but the teachers I worked with are dedicated, though not very well paid for the economy; but they don’t have an intransigent school board as does Moscow.  And of course they don’t have Tom Luna—fortunately he’s unique. 

A note for everyone:  The school district has hired a Boise Lawyer to fly to Moscow for every negotiating session.  They pay for her flight, her motel bill and other per diem, then refuse to release what it costs them to do that.  Additionally, teachers have now discovered she was involved in the drafting of the 3 Luna bills.  I guess it pays to get the ones who help create the mess to make sure the teachers get stuck with all of it.  The board could have simply taken the contract on which everyone worked, and transferred the items such as planning for elementary teachers, into policy so those things would continue.  The Troy Board did that, as did Lewiston, bless them.....but our board, on the advice of their imported lawyer, refuses to.  And then Margaret Dibble had the nerve to suggest the teachers agree to a school work day that ended, not at 3:45, but when the “job ended.”  One of the teachers laughed as she told me, “I wonder if they’d pay for moving my bed to my classroom?”   Negotiations sessions are open to the public.  The next negotiations session is in the Multipurpose Room in the Jr. High at 5:30 on Wednesday.  Others are scheduled for June 1, 6, 7.  The law now gives all power to the school board.  Should the board and teachers not agree by the 10th of June the board just sets the contract as they wish.  So there’s really no reason for them to come to any agreement with teachers, well other than respect for their employees.  And there is certainly no reason to pay expenses for a lawyer to come to Moscow and tell them they hold all the cards.  Obviously they already know that. 

Sue H. 

From: Joe Campbell <mailto:philosopher.joe at gmail.com>  

Sent: Friday, May 20, 2011 6:14 AM

To: Tom Hansen <mailto:thansen at moscow.com>  

Cc: Moscow Vision 2020 <mailto:vision2020 at moscow.com>  ; Penni Cyr <mailto:cpenni at gmail.com>  

Subject: Re: [Vision2020] Putting Teachers Last in Idaho

Great letter! Shows the value of a real education: it keeps on giving!

On Fri, May 20, 2011 at 6:11 AM, Tom Hansen <thansen at moscow.com> wrote:

Courtesy of today's (May 20, 2011) Moscow-Pullman Daily News with thanks t
Sue Hovey.

-------------------------

Putting teachers last in Idaho

Let's say you are in eighth grade and I am your teacher. You ask, "Is it
true 700 teachers will lose their jobs so I get a computer next year?" And
I reply, "Yes, according to the law." Then you, an inquisitive kid,
continue, "Will you be one of those 700?" And I reply, truthfully, "I
don't know, possibly." "Well," responds the student, "sounds like a dumb
idea to me!" I reply, "To me, too."

Tom Luna's latest press release says I have just politicized the class,
proselytized students and violated the Teachers' Code of Ethics. I could
be fired for this, he threatens.

Ethics was irrelevant when Luna, with the help of the governor, software
contractors and legislative leaders, drafted those dreadful bills.

A case in point: Ethical leaders should hesitate to write into education
law a new section providing insurance salespeople access to teachers when
school starts, mandating teachers' signatures regarding the insurance,
requiring the district to maintain a file of those signatures and
potentially profitingthe two Idaho legislative leaders whose support was
critical. Rep. Bob Nonini and Sen. John Goedde, chairs of the House and
Senate Education Committees, both insurance salesmen.

Superintendent Luna never taught a class, got an online bachelor's degree
to run for the office and sought no public input as he crafted those
bills.

When we as Idaho voters repeal his laws and recall him, will he have
learned the lesson: You can't put Idaho students first when you put their
teachers last?

Sue Hovey, Moscow

--------------------------

Later, Moscow.

Tom Hansen
Astoria, Oregon

"The Pessimist complains about the wind, the Optimist expects it to
changeand the Realist adjusts his sails."

- Unknown

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