Trump Has Ed "Reform" Plans While Baker Plans End Run After Charter Loss

 

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eBulletin #17 November 15 2016 Dear BTU Member, Good morning. Last week was a trying one. There was some good news, and there was some bad. First, we thank those who helped out on Question 2. You were amazing.  You were everywhere. From lawn signs to bumper stickers to buttons -- thank you. To those who canvassed, made phone calls, sent postcards, or stood at a rotary -- thank you. To our membership which generously donated $300,000 to the Save Our Public Schools Committee to help out on the last-minute push -- thank you. We also thank the leadership in our schools and at Bayside, and in particular our organizing unit, Shanika Holder, Jonathan Rodriquez, and Director Jessica Tang, for going above and beyond 24/7. We are allowed to rejoice -- for a short minute -- but as we do so, we need to prepare. President-elect Trump has a few things in mind for our schools (see below for more on that), and Governor Baker is not taking his Yes-on-2 defeat lightly. See his plans below as well. As we rejoice and learn from our tremendous victory on Q2, we prepare for another day, many more attempts at privatizing, and who knows what on the federal level. Again, thanks to all for their help. * * * * * Please join us for the New Educators Social this Thursday, November 17 from 4:30-7 PM. Come unwind with fellow early career educators and ask questions of BTU staff. Stop by to share, learn and support each other -- and bring a friend! Appetizers will be served, drinks available for purchase. If you can make it, RSVP with Jonathan at jrodrigues@btu.org. We also want to call your attention to the Open Enrollment period for the Flexible Spending Plan. Please see an expanation below. At a Cleveland campaign stop on September 8, Donald Trump pitched his education plan, which calls for $20 billion in federal funding that he says would allow poor children in low-performing public schools to enroll at charter and private schools. Source: Washington Post What Does a Trump Presidency Mean for Public Education? The Washington Post reports: "Republican President-elect Donald Trump spoke about education only in broad terms on the campaign trail, leaving plenty of uncertainty about how his administration now intends to handle policy questions ranging from standardized testing and school accountability to the treatment of transgender students. "But Trump's stunning election is likely to mean a clear contrast with some key Obama administration policies, including a vigorous push for federally funded private school vouchers and a downsizing of the Education Department, which has arguably exercised more influence under Obama than at any other point..." Continue reading. A follow up piece by Valerie Strauss in yesterday's Washingon Post asked, "Will Donald Trump Destroy Public Education?" See here. Governor Baker has other "reforms" in mind in the wake of the overwhelming defeat of Question 2 And What Does Governor Baker Plan in the Wake of Question 2 Defeat? See this report from the State House News Service: "Rejected by the voters in his bid for an expansion of charter school access, Gov. Charlie Baker said Wednesday he will explore other means of reducing the gap between the achievement levels of white students and students of color. "Speaking to reporters a day after Question 2 went down, with 37.8 percent in favor and 62.2 percent opposed, Baker mulled extensions to the school day or models similar to a Springfield partnership where schools within a public school district have authority over making their own hiring, scheduling, budgeting and curriculum decisions. " 'That achievement gap is something that we need to continue to work on, and my view at this point is that that means we need to pursue what the voters said we need to pursue -- other alternatives,' Baker said Wednesday afternoon. 'I mean charter schools will certainly continue to be part of the mix, as they have been, but maybe this means we need to do more of the empowerment-zone type approaches that have been pursued in Springfield, or maybe we need to do some things to lengthen school days.' "  Continue reading. Follow the BTU on Twitter! Schedule A Schools: Training Workshops for ELT Changes Extended Learning Time meetings for School Site Council members: The School Site Council (SSC) is an integral part of the decisions made on how your school community will utilize the new and longer school day. It is extremely important that SSC members know what to expect and what is expected of them in this process. In preparations for these changes the BTU has partnered with BPS to host ELT meetings for SSCs across the district. These meetings will be used to inform School Site Council and governing board members of their roles in the ELT transitioning process. Please encourage your school's school site council members to register to attend one of the scheduled meetings by visiting www.btu.org/elt4ssc. See the meeting flyer. School Site Council Workshops Throughout the school year the BTU and the BPS will be running a series of workshops famiarizong SSC members with the role of the School Site Council. Whenever possible, please register a week in advance of the session you are attending. BPS employees wishing to register can do so on MyLearningPlan. Any participant can register here or by emailing Caren Carew. Feel free to contact Caren with any questions or concerns as well. Please refer to this SSC 2016 fall and winter flyer for information on attending additional SSC workshops. Upcoming Allston/Brighton Meet and Greet Finding it hard to make it to a regular membership meeting? Worry no more, a BTU Regional Meet and Greet is coming to the Allston-Brighton area! Come and share your thoughts and ideas, ask questions and get answers about the important issues in your classrooms and schools. Please join us on Thursday, December 1 from 4-6 PM at Regina Pizzeria at 353 Cambridge Street in Allston. See the flyer for more information. Election Results and Thank You to All Who Helped After a long election season, thank you to every BTU member who voted, made phone calls, canvassed, talked to neighbors, put a sign on their lawn and participated in the 2016 election. In addition to the defeat of Question 2, many of the BTU endorsed candidates were successful at the ballot box. Read more. Congratulations are extended to every candidate! We remain eager to work with our elected officials and look forward to being part of the conversation at the "education table!" Professional Learning Join the Rollins Griffith Teacher Center of Boston for a Boston-area winter educator celebration! Stay Healthy – Stay Happy with FREE activities for educators to promote health and wellbeing. Join us on Saturday, December 3 from 10 AM until 1 PM at the BTU for: morning refreshments, catered lunch activities to promote health and wellbeing free classroom giveaways a chance to connect with other Boston educators There are limited spots, so sign up early! Please RSVP early online and email here with questions. See the flyer for more information. The Rollins Griffith Teacher Center of Boston is a nonprofit organization run by and for educators and related personnel. Since opening its doors in 1980, it has continuously served teachers, paraprofessionals and administrators in all of Boston’s schools, including private schools and day-care centers. Visit the Rollins Griffith Teacher Centerwebsite to read more. Design Your Own Transformative PD: Fund for Teachers Applications Now Open The BTU is a proud local partner of Fund for Teachers, a national organization dedicated to enriching the personal and professional growth of teachers. Applications are now openfor this year's cycle. Teachers may apply for grants of $5,000 (individuals) or $10,000 (teams) to design a professional learning experiences that inspire and sustain them as people and professionals. Fund for Teachers Information Sessions The BTU will hold an information session this Thursday, November 17 from 4:30-6:30pm for those who'd like to learn more about the process. RSVP here or email Paul Tritterwith questions. Conference Just for New Teachers this Weekend The Massachusetts Teachers Association has generously opened its "Just for New Teachers" one-day conference for early career educators to BTU members! The conference takes place this weekend. Read more and register Assessment Leadership and PD Opportunities: Stipend Opportunities BPS, in collaboration with the BTU and districts and unions across the state in the Massachusetts Consortium for Innovative Educational Assessment seeks school-based teams to develop, implement, and lead learning about high quality performance assessments. There will be three paid tracks for assessment leadership. A committee will work on reviewing district interim assessments, one will work with the MCIEA on developing performance assessments and the last option is to join both committees. This opportunity also includes professional learning for school leaders as well as teachers. If you and/or your colleagues are interested in participating in this work, please learn more here.  Please email Mike Rubino or Paul Tritter with questions. Member-Led PD TOMORROW: Sensory-Motor Learning for Student Success: A Collaborative Approach This session will present a case study of successful collaboration between the teacher of a substantially separate classroom for students with specific learning disabilities and an OT to build supports into classroom structure, routines and specific lessons to accommodate varied student learning needs. This collaboration gave each of these professionals the opportunity to think "outside the box" of their own training to pool their expertise and come up with solutions for students, as well as artifacts for many standards in the teacher performance evaluations. Please join us tomorrow, November 16 from 4-6 PM at the BTU. Sign up on MyLearningPlan. There are many different plans offered in BPS: some good, some terrible. Many Tax Sheltering Plans Offered in BPS: Some Good, Some Not So Good. Learn More on November 29 There are two basic tax-sheltering vehicles offered to BTU members, the Mass Smart Plan and plans that fall under the 403b or Tax Sheltered Annuity umbrella. 403b plans are typically sold by commissioned-based salespeople, who are no longer allowed by BPS to walk through our buildings because of an agreement we reached a few years ago. The BTU endorses no particular plan or vendor -- but we do want to alert you to the perils of certain plans marketed to teachers. The SMART Plan is screened and supervised by the Mass State Treasurer and is also open to all state employees. As such, it is carefully monitored and subject to scrutiny. We give it a thumbs up. It is safeguarded against a host of offending practices often found in the unmonitored 403b plans sold by salespeople, many of whom send unsolicited email come-ons to our members. We give these 403b plans a thumbs down for good reason. They are costly, come with high fees, and are commissioned-based. Learn more about both the 403b offerings and the Mass SMART Plan on Tuesday, November 29 at 4:30 PM at the BTU. In addition to the above, we'll have information on the public pension system presented by Elem. Field Rep Michael McLaughlin, who serves on the Boston Retirement Board. Please read more on the variety of tax-sheltering plans offered in BPS, as well as an excellent article from the New York Times on the same topic. Annual EBONY Winter Gala The 29th annual EBONY Winter Gala will be held on Friday, December 9 at the Boston Convention Center. Please see the flyer for more information. Upcoming Meetings, Science Social Election Committee Meeting this Thursday The next meeting of the Boston Teachers Union Election Committee will be held this Thursday, November 17 at 4:30 PM at the BTU. All members are encouraged to attend. Science Social this Friday Join us this Friday, November 18 from 3-7 PM for a pre-Thanksgiving Science Social! We'll gather at the Yard House (Fenway) at 126 Brookline Avenue in Boston. Appetizers will be generously provided by the UMass Boston COSMIC (Center for Math and Science in Context) office.  We will be in the private bar area in the back. For driving, public transit, and parking directions, please visit the Science Socials website. BTU Holiday Party: Tacky Sweaters Welcome Please join us for a BTU Adult Tacky Holiday Sweater Party on Friday, December 2! There will be food, music and a cash bar. The person wearing the tackiest sweater will win a prize, so get creative! Please see the flyer or the BTU websitefor more information. BTU Nights at the Garden Two BTU Friday Nights with the Celtics Please join us to see the Celtics take on Philly on Friday, January 6 or Orlando on Friday, January 27. See the flyer for all the information you need.  There are only 34 tickets left for the Philly game, 67 for the Orlando. Brighton running back Erick Brown breaks through a hole. Photo Boston Globe Two Boston High Schools Advance to State Semifinals Two Boston teams have made the State Semifinals in Football. Brighton High School, coached by Randolph Abraham, defeated Mystic Valley 52-28 on Friday evening. The Bengals will move on to play Mashpee on Saturday in Lowell. In Division 4A, Boston Latin Academy, coached by Rocco Zizza, defeated the O'Bryant, led by coach Kevin Gadson, in their Sectional Final by a score of 30-12. The Latin Academy Dragons will face Millis on Friday in Brockton for a chance at the Division 4A Super Bowl. Congratulations and good luck to both teams! Find the BTU on Facebook! Boston Teacher to Run Marathon for Rett Syndrome A message from Tracy Freeman, 5th grade teacher at the Sumner: "On April 17, I will be running the Boston Marathon in honor of my son Aidan and all others who struggle with Rett Syndrome. Aidan is a remarkable 3-year-old boy who has beat the odds. Aidan is one of only a handful of boys who is living with Rett Syndrome. He spent the first year of his life fighting for his life. He was intubated thru numerous battles with pneumonia, RSV, and unspecified respiratory decline. He fought as hard as he possibly could to stay with us and he did it with a smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye. "My husband Michael and I have decided one way to fight for Aidan is to raise money for research, with the hope of some day reversing Rett. Please consider supporting our cause as the funds will benefit research for Rett Syndrome. You can donate online or you can mail a check to me @127 Richard Road, Stoughton, MA 02072. Please make your check payable to the Rett Syndrome Association of Massachusetts. Please remember all donations are tax deductible." Editor's note on our policy in this space: We will gladly announce all members' activities in this space. Please email us a Word document the weekend before you want the announcement run. Thank you. Thank You for Reading Please send your comments and questions to Richard Stutman, BTU President, or call the BTU office at 617-288-2000. Have a good week and please check out the BTU website. Richard Stutman 180 Mt. Vernon Street, Dorchester | Tel: (617) 288 -2000 Fax: (617) 288 -0024