Strengthening chapters to withstand adversity is Region 3's agenda

Community outreach is changing the focus of at least a few CTA chapters around the state, and the trend appears to be catching on.

At CTA's Region 3 Fall Leadership Conference in Costa Mesa Oct. 10-12, chapter leaders talked about ways they're "Using Tough Times To Build Tough Locals."

Associated Pomona Teachers is trying to move the association from a service model to a relationship model, said President Tim Kinney. "We've spent a great deal of time organizing internally, having conversations, identifying issues and surfacing new leaders." The efforts have paid off with a stronger, more visible association and more rapid contract settlements.

In an afternoon panel discussion, Kinney and APT Vice President Morgan Brown described how their chapter's internal successes led them to join the Los Angeles Metro-Industrial Areas Foundation project, in which a coalition of churches, nonprofits, unions and schools has made a commitment to improving their communities.

Education and health care have been identified as key issues for the Pomona community. APT's efforts to help address community needs has generated strong community support for such priorities as passing last year's statewide school bond initiative and winning a parcel tax designed to keep Los Angeles County hospitals and trauma centers open. Those successes have encouraged APT to work with area groups to find schools to participate in CTA's Schools of Greatest Need Initiative, a community-based school improvement effort.

"We want to engage our members and not just put fliers in their mailboxes," said Brown. "If we didn't do this outreach work to make schools better, I'd feel hopeless. This gives me hope."

Another panelist who discussed his chapter's success in bringing the community on board to support education issues was Santa Monica-Malibu Classroom Teachers Association President Harry Keiley. His chapter supported Santa Monica hotel workers in their labor struggles, and the favor was returned when the hotel workers helped teachers pass a parcel tax that won by less than 100 votes.

"There is no doubt in my mind that if we had not been there for the hotel employees, that parcel tax would have lost," said Keiley.

More than 425 conference participants attended other sessions dealing with a wide range of issues that continue to make teaching a challenging profession, including ongoing state budget cuts, the adverse impact of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), and the growth of charter schools.

In facilitated dialogue sessions, a hot topic was the growing impact of the charter school movement, both in California and nationwide. With 496 charter schools serving more than 150,000 California students and a call for further expansion by proponents, the proliferation is a source of both concern and cautious enthusiasm for many CTA members.

"I don't have objections to charter schools if the teachers are actively involved from the beginning and their rights are protected," says Martine Korach, a Teachers Association of Long Beach member. "I do have concerns when charter schools are pushed by ladder-climbing administrators for political reasons, or created for corporate profit rather than the best interests of students. Then teachers and students end up losing."

Mihal Spiegel, a CTA member from Animo Leadership High School in Los Angeles, talked about the new charter school's CTA-negotiated contract. She spoke highly of the close-knit staff and the positive experience she has had so far: "There seems to be much less bureaucracy, and much better ability for us to focus on the kids."

Still, others expressed concern about teacher rights and the impact the creation of a charter can have on a school district budget when students leave to attend the new school.

Addressing conference participants at the Saturday luncheon, NEA Secretary-Treasurer Lily Eskelsen described the many difficulties schools are facing across the nation, and placed much of the blame on the impact of the ESEA. Highly critical of its lack of funding and the "one-size-fits-all" testing model it contains, Eskelsen said, "My sixth-graders would fall on the floor if anyone ever suggested that I'm opposed to tests. But I guess I'm a radical. I believe that you ought to test students on the things they have actually been taught."

CTA President Barbara E. Kerr closed the conference with a brief recap of the recall election and a warning of impending political battles. She praised CTA members for their efforts in defeating Propositions 53 and 54, and affirmed CTA's willingness to work with the governor-elect as someone who has previously supported children and public education.

"We are teachers and we are more than happy to educate him about the needs of kids and public schools in this state," said Kerr. "During the campaign Mr. Schwarzenegger said that kids should come first in the budget process. We are going to hold him to that promise."