Providence teachers protest as city lays out timeline for termination plans

[boston bean]

Source: WRNI-NPR

When they rally in front of city hall this afternoon, the Providence teachers will be joined by a national leader in the labor movement: American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten. And this protest is just the beginning.

The union has already filed a complaint with state labor relations board arguing that the city has no right to fire teachers without just cause. Providence officials say they are trying to do everything they can in the face of a financial crisis and a struggling urban school system.

The Providence Teachers Union says it is prepared to fight the terminations all the way to the state supreme court.

Meanwhile, Providence has rolled out a timeline that calls for a list of recommended school closures by next Monday. In a released statement, the city says it will first release detailed information about Providence's finances on Thursday, saying it's crucial to understanding the impact finances are having on the schools.



Read more: http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wrni/news.newsmain/article/0/0/1769741/WRNI.News/Providence.teachers.protest.as.city.lays.out.timeline.for.termination.plans

[1monster]

1. Why are schools and indigent services ALWAYS the first to be cut?

I realize that schools are probably one of the largest budget items, but I'm sure that school budgets have already been cut drastically in Providence, if it is like every other school district I've heard of.

It's time for governments, federal, state, and local, to get creative in solving budget problems and to solve them, rather than creating serious future problems (as per usual) for short term gain.

[boston bean]

2. teachers have been demonized by both parties.

Can't fire the bad ones because of the unions, yadda yadda yadda.

Both parties are spewing the bs.

Makes them an easy target.

[Pacifist Patriot]

4. I'm not a teacher, my kids aren't in school, and it's majorly pissing me off.

Of course the internet comments in which readers demonize our professional educators are riddled with misspellings, typos and egregious grammatical errors. If anyone needs any proof we need better education and not worse....

[boston bean]

6. I have one in school and i don't necessarily like all his teachers, and

all this union busting, demonizing is pissing me off, too.

[fittosurvive]

5. You are correct, schools are one of the most costly state expenditures.

If you have to make cuts, you have to go where the money is.

[boston bean]

7. Our money is with the corporations and rich. Get it from them.

You like corporate welfare?

[fittosurvive]

8. How did they get your money?

No.

[boston bean]

9. tax breaks. bailing them out. loop holes.

[fittosurvive]

11. I don't know much about Rhode Island. Who are the major players?

[boston bean]

14. This mayor is a "progressive democrat"

class warfare knows no party....

[fittosurvive]

19. Or perhaps, just perhaps--there is a real problem with the budget.

[sudopod]

21. Or perhaps, just perhaps

you are the trolliest troll since trolls came to troll town.

Or they could raise taxes like they do in civilized countries.

[hack89]

18. It is hard to imagine a state where unions have more power

they are the most reliable source of money and political foot soldiers in the state. They also have real political power - there are full time union officials who are also elected state office holders.

[fittosurvive]

20. Well, there you go. It appears to me that Providence is being forced to make some tough choices

in the midst of tough times.

Times are tough everywhere; however, some people seem unable (or unwilling) to acknowledge reality.

[1monster]

10. Go where the money is? When my son started school, many of his teachers were on food stamps

because their pay was so low. Now teachers in my school district salaries range from $26,000 per year to a max of $58,750 per year after nineteen years service and a Ph.D. (That is after fourteen years. My son graduated last year.)

Florida is #50 out of 50 on education spending per child. Cuts on education in this county were so drastic that 200 teachers were laid off at end of the year before the Stimulus Package. Obama's Stimulus Package injected enough funds that, with very careful budgeting -- the use of "associate" teachers (having regular teaching degrees) who were paid $12,000 less per year, and classes with 40 to 60 students in for non-core subjects (you know, like construction, medical careers classes)-- that mass lay offs of teachers didn't happen the last two years.

The school district has cut back drastically on school supplies needed for the classrooms, such as copier paper. Teachers' class supply lists for students no longer require students to supply personal items such as pens, pencils, binders, etc.; they also requires students to supply at least one ream of copier paper, rolls of paper towels, tissues, some cleaning supplies, hand sanitizer, and other items.

Rhode Island seems to have ignored the budget problem if they are at the point of closing down schools. Yes, schools are a big budget item, but they are a very necessary item. The Providence School system obviously needs to find better ways of raising money and budgeting it. State legislators need to arrange their priorities so that the most important items (education, infrastructure, and indigent care) are budgeted as close to full as possible.

Cutting the fat is the object, not the muscle and bone, not amputation.

[fittosurvive]

12. I'm not sure I understand--are you in Florida or Rhode Island?

[YvonneCa]

15. Suggestion...

...read at Ed.gov to learn about Obama/Duncan reform plan AND read madfloridian's journal here at DU. And welcome.. :hi:

[1monster]

16. In Florida. But school budgeting is school budgeting, whether in Rhode Island, Florida.

or even Alaska.

Wasn't it in Rhode Island a year ago where a principal fired all the teachers in her district because of low scores, ignoring the real problems of the school, blaming the teachers?

This year, they are firing all the teachers because of budget problems?

Rhode Island has problems with education; their solution seems to be blame the teachers.

[fittosurvive]

13. I'm not sure I understand--are you in Florida or Rhode Island?

In any case, I agree with you that cutting waste should be first and foremost. However, it difficult to make the types of cuts that are evidently necessary without cutting personnel costs.

[hack89]

17. You can't undo the past

the problem in Rhode Island is that in good times they passed budgets and gave benefits as if things would never go bad. Toss in politicians who will promise anything to get elected and you have the current mess. The simple fact is there is not enough revenue and there are no obvious sources of new revenue. It was the short term gains that got us in this mess to start with. The real solution is to make accurate and reasonable long term revenue assessments and start from there. If you can't afford it then you can't have it.

[Pacifist Patriot]

3. Education is over-rated. We're not using our democracy anyway.

:sarcasm: