By Frank Caso
The organizing efforts of the San Diego Education Association (SDEA) have paid off with the announcement by the newly elected school board that, after June of this year, the remainder of Superintendent Alan Bersin's contract will be bought out.
Intensive internal organizing combined with a community outreach campaign that included two CTA-sponsored radio ads produced enough pressure to convince the board to reign in the superintendent's power.
Working with community activists, SDEA members gathered more than 40,000 signatures on petitions calling on the school board to take back the power Superintendent Bersin had wielded for the last six years.
Since 1998, San Diego educators have had to contend with the superintendent's "Blueprint for Student Success." The reform plan not only did little to improve student learning, but in fact increased the number of administrators in the district, and lessened teachers' control over curriculum and parents influence over their children's education.
While the district's public relations department touted improving test scores as a measure of the Blueprint's success, parents, teachers and community members knew better.
"The action the board took concerning the superintendent is a positive move that should bring an end to the atmosphere of fear and intimidation that educators in San Diego have had to deal with for the last six years," says SDEA President Terry Pesta.
"When it was clear that Bersin's so-called reforms were not working as well as he claimed, the superintendent accused SDEA of blocking his efforts by not agreeing to contract changes relating to teacher evaluation and transfer."
Ironically, during this time the contract was opened and bargained three different times, adds Pesta, "and the district never attempted to negotiate any changes to these articles."
Instead of working with SDEA, the district launched an effort to silence doubters.
Fifteen administrators were fired, and several SDEA members were involuntarily transferred to other work sites when they challenged the wisdom of the superintendent's actions.
According to Pesta, this atmosphere drove many excellent educators to take early retirement, change school districts or leave the profession altogether.
During the first few years of Bersin's tenure, SDEA made several good faith efforts to work with him in order to ensure that the Blueprint would work in the best interests of students and educators. But when it became clear that Bersin's ideas of reform were to increase the number of administrators and to ignore the teachers and parents, SDEA began its efforts to limit the damage the Blueprint could inflict.
In spite of SDEA efforts, the pro-Bersin majority on the school board allowed the superintendent to continue his failed and flawed plan.
In 2002, the members of SDEA overwhelmingly voted no confidence in the superintendent and the school board.
Again, in 2004, the 10,000 members of SDEA voted to give the superintendent and his Blueprint a grade of F.
Only after the composition of the school board changed in the 2004 election was there a real opportunity to alter the direction of the district.
SDEA leaders and staff worked with CTA to develop and carry out a plan to help the new board members assert their power to set policy in the district.
In just a few months, SDEA leaders and staff visited every worksite in the district, answering questions and collecting signatures on petitions demanding that the school board take back control from the superintendent. At the same time, leaders and staff worked with community groups to circulate similar petitions among the public.
Working with SDEA, CTA produced two radio commercials alerting the community to the superintendent's failed reform efforts and the need for the school board to regain control.
All these efforts paid off at the February school board meeting when the board took action to buy out the superintendent's contract early.
"SDEA wants to be involved in the selection process for the next superintendent," says Pesta.
"We are looking forward to working with the district as part of a team to ensure that we provide the best education for all the students in our schools. That includes helping select the next leader for this district.
"After enduring six years of being locked out of the decision-making process, we have earned that right."
