• YOUR VOICE •

Salary increases for some judges poorly-timed, given sacrifices sought by administration from all state workers

News Journal, 2-1-2011.... "Tucked deep in Gov. Jack Markell's $3.4 billion spending plan was a $6,100, or 3.6 percent, raise for 18 associate judges on the bench in Superior Court, to bring their annual salary to $174,950. Superior Court President Judge James T. Vaughn Jr.'s salary would rise $2,100 to $185,750.

"The pay raises for some of the state's highest-paid employees come as Markell is urging the General Assembly to curtail the rising cost of employee health insurance and pension benefits, possibly by taking more out of the checks of existing workers."

http://msg4svc.net/cbxmk/315219/62/13691/399/0/S/0/0/wova.html

Today, DSEA told Delaware reporters that in these times of continuing economic distress and ‘shared sacrifice,’ all state and public education employees are doing their very best to deliver high quality public services. 
While we support the efforts of Superior Court judges to obtain pay equity with their Chancery Court counterparts, we feel the proposal is poorly-timed given the Governor's effort to seek $100 million over the next five years from the cost of current health insurance and pension benefits provided to state and public education employees.  We call upon the Joint Finance Committee and General Assembly to resolve these matters in a fair and equitable manner over the coming weeks as they work to construct the FY12 budget.

Working with the Coalition of State Workers United for a Better Delaware, DSEA leaders and staff are seeking answers to basic questions about the nature of the health care and pension problems as the administration sees them. In December, he agreed to work with us to examine the situation in detail, answering questions we have posed, as we seek to preserve the well-earned benefits of state workers. The Coalition had its first meeting last Friday.

• YOUR ASSOCIATION •

Don't forget to vote in the DSEA elections

Five people are running for President who want your vote!

You have received either an e-mail or correspondence via U.S. mail about voting, and how to vote. A reminder email will be going out shortly. That correspondence has the link to the voting url with the codes you need to vote. If you have misplaced that mailing or deleted that email, please contact Judy Anderson for your information: judy.anderson@dsea.org or by phone at 1-888-734-5834.
Who is running? Why do they want your vote? Go to http://msg4svc.net/cbxmk/315219/45/13691/400/0/S/0/0/wova.html to read about the candidates.
This information will NOT be in the next issue of ACTION! since it publishes after the deadline for voting, which is February 16.

• YOUR PROFESSION •

Measuring student growth with accuracy

http://msg4svc.net/cbxmk/315219/46/13691/401/0/S/0/0/wova.html  

This is a pretty comprehensive update on what we here in Delaware are trying to do to include a fair measure of student growth in the current teacher, specialist and administrator evaluation system (DPASII).
We can add some more information: All of the 35+ groups that have been working on finding fair measures of student growth that can be used across districts, have been turned in to DoE for review save two. These recommendations will then be reviewed: Do they make sense? Are they valid, reliable? Are they affordable? Do they comply with Delaware's regulations regarding how this student growth section of DPASII is to be changed?
This review work is to be done by March.
Then, we all still need to determine how much student growth is sufficent? for regular ed, special ed and gifted ed?
Then, changes may need to be made before implementation next school year. This all goes to the Planning Team, then to Sec. of Education Lowery, then to the State Board.

Changes can still be made in 2011-2012, so the question of how a system that might not be quite right yet can count is still unanswered.
Says DoE's Wayne Barton, "We will remain true to our reocrd of evaluating the system."

And, from the national perspective, we're trying to do it right, make the measures of student progress both as objective as possible as well as fair to all educators. "As challenging as this is, we are still in a better place than in most states," says Diane Donohue, president of DSEA. DSEA staff, leaders and members are involved in various assessment committees and Work Groups.
Several states are stuck at using building and district test scores for everyone, even those in untested areas.

 For more detail, check out the next issue of ACTION!

• YOUR COMMUNITY •

Longtime legislator, Seaford teacher and friend of DSEA Tina Fallon dies at age 92

http://msg4svc.net/cbxmk/315219/47/13691/402/0/S/0/0/wova.html 

Tina Fallon was an ally, a friend, a teachers' teacher, an example of the best of us in the halls of the General Assembly. She passed away last week, which is why we honor her this week with our Delaware flags at half-mast.

 http://msg4svc.net/cbxmk/315219/50/13691/405/0/S/0/0/wova.html

unsubscribe forward to a friend