Alert 07/11/06

Urgent! Contact Lawmakers in District on Bad Transfer Bill

With the legislature in recess until Aug. 7, it's vital to reach Assembly Members now in their local district offices to urge them to defeat CTA-opposed SB 1655 by Senate Education Chair Jack Scott (D-Pasadena).

This bill would harm teachers and students in California's schools of greatest need. SB 1655 cleared Assembly Education on June 29. The bill will be heard next in the Assembly.

Background

SB 1655 would rip out of the collective bargaining law a chapter's right to bargain transfer policies.

• SB 1655, under the disguise of helping low-performing schools, prohibits districts and collective bargaining agreements from giving any preference to priority transfers after April 15.
• School principals in decile 1-3 schools would NOT have to accept any transfer applicant - even if the teacher is fully credentialed and "highly qualified" as defined by NCLB. Under SB 1655, the principal can reject the teacher without giving any reason.
• SB 1655 requires all contracts agreed to after the bill's effective date to include language spelling out those transfer limitations.  This provision would gut local collective bargaining agreements by removing many of our hard-earned transfer rights from the scope of negotiations.

Make These Points to Lawmakers

• SB 1655 is counterproductive.  It will make it harder for highly qualified teachers to move to schools of greatest need.  These schools need to be attractive to teachers, but SB 1655 does nothing to solve this problem.
• SB 1655 will undermine local school districts by forcing state, top-down requirements into local school districts. It will limit the ability of local school districts to make decisions about transferring teachers.  
• The best solution is for local districts and teachers to determine effective strategies to attract highly qualified teachers to these schools of greatest need.  
• More money is needed to make Decile 1-3 schools attractive places to teach. These students deserve clean safe schools with smaller class sizes, adequate instructional materials, and high quality principals who understand teaching.  Micromanaging these schools from Sacramento will hurt their educational program. 
• Please vote NO on SB 1655.

TAKE ACTION NOW!

• Email your lawmaker via the online Action Alert
• Write your Assembly and Senate members:

c/o The State Capitol
Sacramento, CA  95814