|
|
• YOUR REWARD •
2011
theme park discount tickets now available online
Only movie tickets are available at DSEA offices.
Log
in and then check it all out here.
Join
us for a day of fun at the annual DSEA Future Teacher Benefit Golf
Tournament June 24 at Maple Dale Country Club, Dover.
Reminder:
You can now complete Defensive Driving online through the state of
Delaware.
Reminder to Membership Chairs and Local Presidents to RSVP to Tammy Wagner by e-mail or at
1-866-734-5834 asap about the Appreciation Dinners June 7 5pm at
the Georgia House in Milford; and June
8 at the Brio Tuscan Grille at the Christiana Mall in
Newark.
|
|
|
• YOUR VOICE •
|
|
Contact JFC members today!
Everyone
seems to be telling the Joint Finance Committee how to use the additional
state revenue. They need to hear from us, too. The JFC begins finalizing
the state’s budget for FY11-12 next Monday, May 16. Time is of the
essence. Please contact them today (see below). Thank you!
Given the newly-projected increases in state revenue, please call, visit,
or e-mail the members of the Joint Finance Committee to urge them to
use extra state revenues for our DSEA priorities:
1. Restore
stipends for National Board Certified candidates and teachers who
successfully complete Skills and Knowledge clusters
Cost:
Approx. $1 million
Rationale:
If we are serious about achieving our Race to the Top goals, which
include improving Teacher Effectiveness, then rewarding teachers for
improving their practice makes sense. These stipends were suspended by
Gov. Markell in his budget proposal three years ago, during the fiscal
crisis.
2. Provide
step increases for all school employees, not just teachers and
paraprofessionals
Cost:
Only $900,000 more to include all public school employees
Rationale: All school
employees impact student learning. They all are part of the school team
and provide services necessary for a successful educational
operation. We need a united staff as we move forward with education
reform.
3. Implement
Phase II of the General Assembly’s three-part plan to bring
paraprofessional salaries up to the federal poverty level
Cost:
$3.3 million
Rationale: The General
Assembly made a commitment a few years ago to improve the low wages of
paraprofessionals by bringing their salaries to the federal poverty level
for a family of four. This salary improvement was to take place in 3
phases. The State only achieved Phase I before tough budget times
stopped progress.
Today, a Step 1 para-professional earns only $17,500 per year. Meanwhile,
the federal poverty level for a family of four is $22,350 per year.
By implementing Phase II of the pay plan, we put an additional $2,500 a
year into the hands of some or our hardest working educators. Meanwhile,
we also stimulate the Delaware economy as that money, some $3.3 million,
is spent at local grocery stores, paid to landlords, or on other needs of
working families in our community.
For
complete contact information of JFC members, click here.
Rep. Dennis P. Williams (chair) Dennis.Williams@state.de.us
Rep. Melanie L. George Melanie.Marshall@state.de.us
Rep. James Johnson JJ.Johnson@state.de.us
Rep. Ruth Briggs King ruth.briggsking@state.de.us
Rep. Joseph E. Miro repmiro@aol.com
Rep. John L. Mitchell, Jr. john.l.mitchell@state.de.us
Sen.
Harris B. McDowell (co-chair) harris.mcdowell@state.de.us
Sen. Brian J. Bushweller brian.bushweller@state.de.us
Sen. Bruce Ennis bruce.ennis@state.de.us
Sen. David B. McBride david.mcbride@state.de.us
Sen.Catherine Cloutier ccloutier@aol.com
Sen.Dorinda Connor dorinda.connor@state.de.us
Thank
you!
|
|
•
YOUR FUTURE •
|
|
DSEA calls
Race to the Top teams and local association leaders to Dover next Friday,
May 20
For the third in a series of Race to the Top trainings for Scope of Work
groups, plus SIG school and Partnership Zone school teams, DSEA is
holding training at the Dover Downs Conference Center next Friday.
All local presidents, leadership teams, candidates for leadership
positions, and DSEA Exec. Board members are invited to attend. This essential
training will be an opportunity to make specific plans for informing and
engaging members about state and local plans for Race to the Top, as well
as member input into changes being formulated to DPASII-revised.
Questions?
Contact Sandy Dearman asap by
e-mail, or at 1-866-734-5834.
|
|
•
YOUR ASSOCIATION •
|
|
President Obama for a second term?
NEA's Political Action Committee
Council will recommend Pres. Obama for relection to the NEA Rep Assembly
this summer.
Controversial move? Why now, 18 months out? Why before there is a
Republican candidate? Why Obama?
Log in at www.dsea.org/PoliticalAction/FederalElections.html.
|
|
|
|
• YOUR PROFESSION
|
|
Attention: ESP
members
|
|
DSEA is planning its
annual ESP Conference for the fall. This conference will be for all
Educational Support Professional (ESP) members of DSEA: secretaries, paras, aides,
food service workers, custodians and bus drivers.
We hope you will save the date: Saturday,
October 22, 2011, Dover Downs Conference Center.
The Planning Committee would like to make it the best conference ever,
one that is fun, interesting and helpful for you.
The first step is asking you. So – please take a few minutes to answer just
three questions at
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ESP2011.
As an added incentive, we’ll be drawing the names of two people who have
completed the survey and will award them $100 gift cards.
Please do this
by May 27, the date that the survey comes down. We look
at it every week, by the way. So far, there are only 12 responses. (Thank
you!)
If you have any particular questions, please feel free to let DSEA Vice
President Mike Hoffmann
know. Thank you!
|
|
unsubscribe
forward
to a friend
|
|
