Stories by Sherry Posnick-Goodwin
Photos by Mike Myslinski
One of the first lessons teachers share with young children is the importance of keeping their word. For that reason, it came as a complete shock when the governor of California broke his promise to protect funding for public schools.
|
|
|
San Jose area educators and community members demonstrate their passion for public education at a 'Save 98' rally, put on by the California Education Coalition. |
Last year, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger borrowed $2 billion from the education budget, with the assurance that he would pay the money back. He vowed that schools would receive their fair share of any additional state revenue and that more harmful cuts would be avoided in future years. Education funding, he emphasized, would only be cut "over my dead body."
Now, even though state revenues are up, the governor is refusing to pay the money back. Even worse, he wants to destroy Proposition 98's minimum funding guarantees for education, which were put in place by a majority of the state's voters. His proposals would allow multiple rounds of midyear cuts across the board.
The net effect is estimated at $25,000 less for every classroom in the state.
This loss compounds the more than $9.8 billion in cuts California schools have suffered over the past four years, which already places the state at 44th in the nation in per-pupil funding; 50th in the number of guidance counselors, librarians and computers per student; 49th in teacher-student ratio; and 50th in library books per student.
Instead of helping teachers get adequate resources, the governor has labeled them special interests that the state must combat. Meanwhile, he has allied himself with big drug, oil and insurance companies that are raising millions of dollars to help him get voter approval for proposals designed to divert public attention from the real problems facing California schools.
In addition to gutting Prop. 98 guarantees, the governor is proposing other so-called reform measures.
- Instituting merit pay for teachers, which along with other employment decisions would be based on teacher performance as determined by student test scores on state-adopted standardized tests.
- Requiring teachers to teach for five years before gaining permanent status and thus the right to due process protections, and allowing permanent teachers to be dismissed if they receive two unsatisfactory evaluations in a row.
- Prohibiting pensions for teachers and other public employees hired after July 1, 2007, leaving them instead in unpredictable 401(k)-style investment plans.
- Silencing the voices of teachers and other public employees by restricting their unions' political activities and entangling them in unnecessary paperwork that will waste scant resources.
Saying he wants to take his so-called reform measures directly to the people rather than work within the legislative process, Gov. Schwarzenegger is proposing a special election for November that would cost $70 million in taxpayer money.
CTA contends that big corporations are the real "special interests" that stand to benefit from his proposals. Voters are "overwhelmingly opposed" to holding a special election this year, especially when told the price tag, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
Instead of trying to work with elected officials, the governor spends his time appearing at fundraisers and media events and posing with a giant spigot that spouts red ink. Such theatrics only mask the real issues facing California.
What follows is a look at the proposals the governor has made and what their implications are for schools.
The more California residents understand how the governor's proposals endanger public education, the angrier they become.
Even though public anger is reaching a fever pitch, the fight has only just begun and will likely continue until November and possibly longer. "We must remember that teachers are powerful voices in our communities — and we are in every community in the state," says CTA President Barbara E. Kerr. If teachers don't get involved in fighting to beat back the governor's attacks, "our classrooms and our profession will be suffering a year from now in ways that are painful to imagine."
The Governor's Big Fix
|
Budget/Spending Cap |
|
The proposal: The $2 billion sacrificed by public schools during last year's budget crisis would not be repaid. Schools would be denied their fair share — $2.2 billion — of improved state revenues. The voter-approved Prop. 98 requirement that the state repay schools for shortfalls in funding suffered during lean years would be eliminated. Multiple across-the-board cuts in funding would be allowed midyear. Nearly $500 million in teacher retirement costs currently paid by the state would be shifted to local school districts.
The vehicles: Special session legislation — ACAX1 4 (Keene).
An initiative proposal — School Funding. State Spending. Initiative Constitutional Amendment.
CTA's position:
- Would break the governor's promises to repay the money schools sacrified last year, to give schools their share of any increased revenues, and to protect Prop. 98 minimum funding guarantees. Schools stand to lose more than $25,000 per classroom.
- Would avoid dealing with the very real problems public education faces — schools are underfunded, class sizes are too large and teachers are underpaid.
- Would expose schools to midyear cuts in funding, making it difficult, if not impossible, for districts to maintain a quality program.
- Would break faith with the voters who indicate they want more money allocated to schools, not less.
- Would ask schools to suffer even more than they already have. In the last four years, schools have taken $9.8 billion in cuts, translating into school closures, increases in class size, layoffs of staff, discontinuation of support services and shortages of materials.
|
|
Pension Reform |
|
The proposal: The governor proposes to make it illegal to provide traditional pensions to teachers and other public employees hired after July 1, 2007, forcing them instead into risky 401(k)-style plans. Current teachers who transfer between school districts after that date could also fall under the requirement.
The vehicles: Special session legislation — ACAX1 1 (Richman).
An initiative proposal — Prohibition on Defined Benefit Public Pensions. Alternative Plans. Initiative Constitutional Amendment and Statute. (Withdrawn.)
CTA's position:
- Would force teachers and other public employees to enroll in a risky defined contribution plan instead of the secure defined benefit program currently in use.
- Would allow private third parties to manage the plan and charge administrative fees.
- Would force teachers to gamble their retirement on the ups and downs of the stock market.
- Would undermine the stability of the current retirement system by removing future contributions.
- Would make it more difficult to recruit and retain highly qualified professionals the governor claims he wants in schools.
- Would remove teachers' incentive to stay in the classroom despite low wages.
- Would leave teachers without a safety net to take the place of Social Security, which most will not receive.
|
|
Merit Pay/Due Process |
|
The proposal: The governor would base employment decisions on performance and student scores on standardized tests, require five years of satisfactory evaluations before teachers can attain permanent status, and restrict due process rights for teachers.
The vehicles: Special session legislation on merit pay — SCAX1 1 (Runner).
A merit pay initiative — School Employment Decisions. Employee Performance. Initiative Constitutional Amendment.Assembly Member Bonnie Garcia's tenure initiative — Public School Teachers. Waiting Period for Permanent Status. Dismissal. Initiative Statute.CTA's position:
- Would base teachers' pay on student test scores, ignoring the fact that not every child learns at the same pace or in the same way, even those with the same teacher.
- Would turn over employment decisions to local school boards and nullify any conflicting collective bargaining agreements.
- Would lengthen the probationary period to five years, when two years is already longer than for most other professions. Allowing permanent teachers to be dismissed after two unsatisfactory evaluations and not giving them a chance to challenge the decision would open up opportunities for abuse.
- Would make it harder to recruit and retain quality teachers. The merit pay measure would discriminate against teachers who work with low-achieving students. The tenure measure would increase teacher turnover, especially in lower-performing schools.
- Would do nothing to improve student learning, lower class size, or secure the textbooks and materials schools need.
|
|
Union Dues Limitations |
|
The proposal: The governor's business allies are proposing to silence the voice of opposition to his agenda by prohibiting public employee labor unions from using dues for political activity.
The vehicles: A so-called paycheck protection initiative — Public Employees Right to Approve Use of Union Dues for Political Campaign Purposes Act — filed by Lewis K. Uhler.
Another initiative — Prohibition on Government Employee Payroll Deductions for Political Purposes Initiative Statute — bankrolled by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA). (Withdrawn.)
CTA's position:
- Would create unnecessary paperwork and red tape that would add nothing to the rights that working people already have.
- Would silence the collective voice of working people, making it difficult to speak out and be heard in the political process. Almost everything in public schools — from the size of classes to the books that can be used to the standards used to teach — is determined through the political process.
- Would single out public employee unions for restrictions while giving an unfair advantage to big corporations like those that are bankrolling the governor's agenda. Corporate interests presently contribute 12 times what employee organizations like CTA can afford to spend on politics.
- Would meddle in the internal affairs of public employee unions.
|
