Vol. 4, November 2004

The Professional

A Publication of the Minnetonka Teachers Association

Members of Education Minnesota, NEA, AFT, Minnesota Local #7173

http://www.minnetonkateachers.org

Editor, Mary Tingblad, mary.tingblad@minnetonka.k12.mn.us

MM-West, 6421 Hazeltine Blvd., Excelsior, MN 55331

 

         

2004-2005 Minnetonka Teachers Association Governance Board

~ President Joseph Ricke ~ Vice President Jan Nelson ~

~ Secretary Mary Tingblad ~ Treasurer Melanie Casiday ~

~ DEC Linda Morantez ~ Deephaven Margaret Ruffino~ Groveland Pam Wertjes ~

~ Excelsior Sara Macke ~ Minnewashta Melanie Casiday ~

~ Clear Springs OPEN ~ Scenic Heights Katie Tuthill ~

~ MM-East Sandy Gosen & Rhonda Lundgren ~

~ MM-West Mary Tingblad & Jeri Goodspeed-Gross ~

~ MHS Doug Kennedy, Mike Cutshall, Miles Mortensen & Jean Peebles ~

         

 

~~ From the President ~~

MTA President, Joseph Ricke, joseph.ricke@minnetonka.k12.mn.us

Greetings to my fellow teachers across the district! I know that everyone is ready for the upcoming four-day weekend, and I am sure that our workload is playing a factor in this expectation.

As we look forward to negotiations, I would like us to reflect on our vision and mission statements listed below.

MTA VISION

The Minnetonka Teachers Association is an organization committed to educational excellence. The organization will promote the image and prestige of teachers as professionals to themselves and the community. We will encourage the highest quality of innovative teaching and work for compensation that reflects this quality. While working together, we will strive for the success of all students, and be consistently responsive to social trends.

MTA MISSION

The Minnetonka Teachers Association mission is to provide professional leadership, guidance, and communication for its members, students, and the public.

 

As we start defining and refining our goals and objectives received from membership input, we need to keep these values in perspective. We can expect to hear any one of the following comments: There is no money; We need to save teacher’s jobs; If we do not get money, give us time off; They always say there is no money; We have to look ahead and think of the salaries in the future by stop taking low increases now; no matter what we do, teachers will lose their jobs; etc.  And as you might expect all of these – based on one’s perspective—are right. 

The task of the negotiators will be to move us from polarization to consensus. Everyone’s continued involvement and willingness to openly discuss issues and listen to one another will determine if we will be successful in becoming unified. We have had difficult contractual conditions in the past, but for the most of us, this next contract negotiation process will be the most difficult one yet.

By giving clear, honest and non-judgmental feedback to the Governance Board and to the Settlement Committee, we should be able to move ahead and work as one.  My hope is that no one tries to divide us. 

Let us anticipate that after we have achieved a new contract for 2005-20007, that we will have not strayed away from our mission and vision statements and can continue to make these a reality.

We will continue to do our best to advocate for improvement of your work conditions and adherence to the contract.

 

~~ Teachers’ Rights Review ~~

MTA Teachers’ Rights Co-Chair, Mary Benson, mary.benson@minnetonka.k12.mn.us

The Teachers Rights’ Committee is up and running. Anita Otten and I have had a busy yet inspirational year so far! MTA President Joseph Ricke, Anita Otten and I just attended a very interesting and informative law conference. One of the sessions that really caught our eyes was the session called “Effective Communications in the Era of the Consumer Parent,” given by Paul C. Ratwik, an attorney for the Ratwik, Roszak and Maloney Law Firm. We will be giving you information on this session during the next couple issues of The Professional. Take what you like, read what you like, or just skip on to the next article. Have a very safe and relaxing Thanksgiving holiday!

 

Increasingly, administrators and parents are confronted by parental requests for services or support which are expressed as non-negotiable demands. Moreover, there appears to be a trend of conveying requests and demands in a manner that is demeaning to staff, denies the professionalism of staff and/or threatens litigation unless parental satisfaction is provided.

 

Teachers have not, traditionally, been exposed to such behaviors and are not trained to deal effectively with them. The effects of such behaviors upon the morale of staff can be devastating. The question presented is: How can teachers manage conflict? Reduce the likelihood that inappropriate behavior will occur by establishing and maintaining expectations for appropriate behavior.

·        Displaying a professional attitude and demeanor when addressing parents conveys an expectation of similar behavior in response.

o       Avoid a casual or “coffee klatch” approach to conversations with parents.

o       Try to keep the topic of the discussion focused on the student’s educational needs or issues. Limit casual conversations to casual (i.e. outside of work) situations.

o       Avoid discussing vacation plans, the television program you watched last night or even education issues not directly relevant to the instruction of the parent’s student.

o       Focusing, or redirecting, a conversation to the educational needs or issues of the parent’s student need not be perceived as being unfriendly or distant.

·        Never breach the data privacy rights of another student or student’s family and do not tolerate the inappropriate discussion of educational information about another student or family.

o       Be prepared to explain that you respect the privacy rights of every student, including the student of the parent with whom you are speaking.

o       Sometimes a parent will not seek such information directly but will, instead, ask a teacher to confirm something he or she have heard from another source.

o       Acquiring a reputation for improperly discussing educational information about students can destroy a teacher’s professional reputation. The parent to whom you improperly provide information is likely to identify you as the source of the information in order to enhance his or her credibility.

·        Never engage in conversations in which the performance or reputation of another teaching professional is demeaned.

o       While it is natural for parents who have doubts about the skills of a teacher to seek confirmation of their doubts from another teacher, participating in such a discussion will adversely affect your reputation among both teachers and parents.

o       If a parent expresses a complaint about another teacher, direct the parent to the building principal.

 

Look for the continuation of this article in upcoming issues of the MTA newsletter.

 

~~ Membership Information Reminder ~~

MTA Membership Chair, Mary Kay Burmesch, marykay.burmesch@minnetonka.k12.mn.us

Please contact Mary Kay Burmesch at any time during the year whenever your information changes—name change, address change, phone number change, or contract time change. It’s important to keep your membership information updated. Thank you!

 

            

 

 News From Education Minnesota

 

~~ Apply Today for Foundation Grants ~~

If you want to apply for a classroom grant from the Education Minnesota Foundation for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, don’t wait! The December 15, 2004, deadline is just around the corner! The foundation is starting the 13th year of its classroom grants program, which will award 35 to 50 grants of $500 to $3,000 for innovative, instructor-led projects that improve teaching and learning. Brochures and application forms have been mailed to Local Presidents and have placed in the Foundation section of www.educationminnesota.org under “Our Profession.”

 

~~ Tax Breaks Extended for Classroom Expenses ~~

            Congress has extended the $250 tax deduction for out-of-pocket classroom expenses incurred by teachers and paraprofessionals for the 2004 and 2005 tax years. In 2002, Congress passed legislation giving teachers and paraprofessionals a $250 federal tax deduction for teacher and paraprofessional out-of-pocket expenses for instructional materials and classroom supplies. The legislation represented an acknowledgment—for the first time—that teachers and paraprofessionals are spending their own money to equip their classrooms. This modest tax break expired at the end of 2003.

The deduction is available to educators who work at least 900 hours during a school year as a teacher, instructor, counselor, principal or aide. For more information, call the IRS Tele-Tax system at 800-829-4477 or visit www.irs.gov.

 

~~ Teacher Working Conditions ~~

Many schools consistently struggle to address critical teacher working conditions. Teachers report feeling isolated in their classrooms, needing more basic materials to do their jobs, feeling inundated with work, lacking input into the design and organization of schools, and facing minimal prospects for career advancement and professional growth. To address the issue, the Southeast Center for Teaching Quality (with support from BellSouth) created a new website as part of a working conditions project in North Carolina. But it’s a major find for anyone interested in strategies to address persistent problems in schools that block teacher effectiveness and student achievement. Resources are organized around five key recommendations based on the Center’s extensive research. Check it out at www.teacherworkingconditions.org/index.html.

 

~~ How Many NCLB Dollars Does Minnesota Get? ~~

Frustrated by the vague language of “federal funding” for states? Visit the National Association of Secondary School Principals’ No Child Left Behind webpage for specific information on how much federal funding Minnesota receives for programs like Title I, rural education, comprehensive school reform, teacher quality, advanced placement, dropout prevention and school leadership. To find out more, visit the site at http://nasspcms.principals.org/s_nassp/sec.asp?TRACKID=&CID=31&DID=31#states.

NEA News

 

~~ Register to Win Free Cell Phone ~~

            Register anytime during December in the “Free Giveaways” area of the NEA Member Benefits website, www.neamb.com, to win either a personal reference book collection or one of three cellular telephones with a three-month service agreement. The book collection consists of a bound dictionary, thesaurus and world almanac, along with a zippered leather portfolio. The cell phone giveaways include an LG1010 wireless phone, free accessories, free activation and three months of free service from NEA Cellular. The package also includes 300 anytime monthly minutes, 1,000 night and weekend minutes, free nationwide roaming and long distance, and free voicemail, caller ID and call waiting. The giveaway runs December 1-31, 2004. No purchase is necessary to enter.

 

~~ Explorer Schools ~~

            Schools nationwide are eligible to apply online for an opportunity to partner with NASA in a program designed to bring engaging mathematics, science and technology learning to students. Each spring, a three-year partnership is established between NASA and 50 new NASA Explorer School teams, consisting of teachers and education administrators from communities across the country. NASA invites the selected teams to work with education specialists from NASA Centers on science and mathematics instruction for students in grades 4 through 9. While partnered with NASA, Explorer School teams will acquire new teaching resources and technology tools using NASA’s unique content, experts and other resources. An online application is available at www.explorerschools.nasa.gov. The deadline for submission is January 31, 2005.