Conference addresses rural issues

Estimates are that California's economy will not turn around for four or five years, said CTA President Wayne Johnson in his keynote speech at CTA's Rural Issues Conference.

He urged local chapters to stay on the lookout for administrators who will try to take advantage of the situation "to weaken

collective bargaining and gain more control. You cannot let that happen. We have fought too hard to get where we are."

As an example, he said the Association of California School Administrators has proposed cutting out class size reduction programs and eliminating teacher layoff notices as ways to deal with the crisis. "They see this as an opportunity to strengthen their hand at the bargaining table."

The Jan. 17-19 conference in Las Vegas gave participants a chance to converse with Johnson, Vice President Barbara E. Kerr and CTA Executive Director Carolyn Doggett about possible outcomes from midyear budget cuts proposed by Gov. Gray Davis as well as the impact of projected cuts for the future.

With the demise of many health care plans in rural parts of the state, the conference offered sessions on getting control of the cost of health care, among other topics.

Saturday's guest speaker, California State Senator Sheila Kuehl, discussed her plans to introduce legislation creating a single-payer health insurance system for California.

One of the major objectives of her bill is "universal coverage through universal eligibility - eligibility for all California residents." It would offer a single financing pool and a comprehensive benefit package that continues to cover individuals even if they lose their jobs or retire. Under the plan, which would be administered by an independent health care agency headed by an elected health care commissioner, consumers would be free to choose among the licensed health care providers in California. In addition, she said, "It would leave clinical decision-making with providers and patients by using global financing rather than an individual provider review to control spending."

The third annual rural conference also offered an array of workshops on such topics as accountability for rural, alternative and small schools; coping with the prolonged stress involved in high-stakes testing; changes in California's teacher induction program; and bargaining fringe benefits in a time of limited funds.