Posted on 02/16/2010 10:31:24 AM PST by American Dream 246
The situation already looked explosive. A Rhode Island high school had a 50% failure rate in a depressed town with high unemployment and a median wage of $22,000 per family. The union representing the teachers, who averaged over $70,000 per year in income, refused the superintendent’s plans to improve the school by extending the work day by 25 minutes and requiring teachers to provide tutoring on a rotating basis. The superintendent summoned her inner Reagan and fired them all, from the administrators to the last instructor (via Instapundit):
Her plan calls for teachers at a local high school to work 25 minutes longer per day, each lunch with students once in a while, and help with tutoring. The teachers’ union has refused to accept these apparently onerous demands.
The teachers at the high school make $70,000-$78,000, as compared to a median income in the town of $22,000. This exemplifies a nationwide trend in which public sector workers make far more than their private-sector counterparts (with better benefits).
The school superintendent has responded to the union’s stubbornness by firing every teacher and administrator at the school.
Let’s agree on a few things first. The 50% failure rate is certainly abysmal, but considering the poverty in the town, perhaps not completely related to academics. That kind of poverty creates pressure on employment-age teens to find work, although in this economy, the work would be hard to find.
There may also be families escaping from the area to find work elsewhere; that may or may not have an impact on graduation rates. As for the salaries of the teachers, one has to view that in terms of competitive labor, as getting good teachers will necessarily cost more than getting cheap teachers, and probably would have an impact on those graduation rates, with all other things being equal.
However, it’s hard not to draw the conclusion that the teachers and administration at this school are a big part of the problem.
Asking teachers making three times the average of the town’s median income to contribute an extra 25 minutes a day to rescue students in obvious failure does not seem like an outrageous request. The two-week summer training period may have infringed on their vacation plans, but their school faced an existential crisis, and their students were being doomed to a lifetime of competitive handicaps.
One may have thought that teachers and administrators would have a sense of mission, rather than a sense of entitlement, especially considering the failure to which they had all contributed at least in part.
This is a good argument for getting unions out of the public-employee business altogether. Not only does the marriage of unions and the public sector create too much of an impulse to expand bureaucracies, it twists the priorities away from public service and towards entitlement thinking.
To their credit, most educators, law enforcement, and emergency response personnel successfully resist that impulse, but this jaw-dropping standoff in Rhode Island shows that it does exist.
Update: Rhode Island is abbreviated RI, not RH, of course. I’ve corrected the title.
GOOD
When Barney Frank was my State Rep and neighbor, many moons ago, he wrote me a letter saying public employees having civil service and being unionized was not right.
I wonder why the town is not identified. I’m willing to bet they vote around 75% Democrat or more. Since there are not all that many towns in Rhode Island, I’ll bet it wouldn’t be hard to identify which one.
Wow! That is WONDERFUL! ... Take ‘em out 1-by-1 ... If they don’t want to work, Get rid of them!
Sounds like the condoms and cucumbers gig isn’t working out. Barack “H word” Obama! Mmmmm Mmmmm Mmmmm.
While serving as a School Board director for my district, at times I wanted to tell the superintendent to fire all the teachers too. The average income in town is 16K while they all make over 60K per year with benefits but they all refuse to do more. Every year the schools have the same results and their only solution was asking for more money.
” Not only does the marriage of unions and the public sector create too much of an impulse to expand bureaucracies, it twists the priorities away from public service and towards entitlement thinking.
To their credit, most educators, law enforcement, and emergency response personnel successfully resist that impulse, but this jaw-dropping standoff in Rhode Island shows that it does exist.”
Now that is a bunch of BS. Unions are ruining this country. Check out Christie’s speech in New Jersey and what has happened to that state.
Sorry, I disagree immediately. Based upon the above statement that poverty leads to poor scholastic achievements, may I offer the states of South Dakota and North Dakota as evidence. These states are primarily agricultural in nature, and have a low family income - yet the kids DARE to do as well or better relative to other areas of the country with substancially higher income.
The un-PC answer is that it's a CULTURAL issue. Predominately WHITE parents/kids in the Dakotas understand the value of eduacation, while 'minority' parents/kids do not appreciate, comprehend or value their education. One group strives to be self-sufficient, the other strives for as much 'assistance' as they can get.
That is excellent. BZ to that superintendent! I’m sure the unions will rain down fire and brimstone on her. Can they get her fired? Will she be able to hire teachers and administrators she prefers?
That’s a new move right there. Good start.
Bingo.
Sounds like the Sup should run for Congress.
Can't agree with the racial aspect - see the predominantly white Adirondacks nad you'll see an equivalent scholastic achievement.
But, yes it is cultural. The culture of entitlement driven poverty. The welfare culture.
That is great but the union will sue and the school will be out that much more money and the kids will still not get educated.
But, on the bright side, maybe the publicity will get people to start making teachers responsible.
I’m sure this isn’t over. However some may be overlooking something... those kids are now doing what? Who are teaching those kids and what is the contingency plan?
If I was this superintendent the next thing I’d be doing is writing colleges and offering immediate jobs to new graduates. (Not a bad season of time for this) Offer a very competitive wage for brand-new teachers right out of college. Look for places like Cedarville and other colleges that practice values and try to instill valid curriculum. Colleges that mandate community involvement and missions work.
Offer immediate jobs, heck start the position at 28k to 35k, with an agreement to pay bonus based on performance and going above and beyond in delivering kids who want to learn. With the savings offer a pay for evening work etc.
I know many new teachers anxious to get jobs who are relegated to sub work because of the tenure of some teachers.
Demand performance, reward performance and instill a reason to try harder to reach goals.
In a situation like this town I’d take some of the savings from paying these exorbitant salaries and build scholarship programs to also reward the kids who put forth the effort. If I could pay the parents I would as well. I’d pay parents $ a quarter/trimester to foster a policy of learning within their kids because some just don’t have it in them to do so naturally.
We need the name of this superintendent because she/he will need our support this could be the opening salvo into helping turn our failing system around. And money is the last thing we need to just gift our teachers with, incentives to do the work and go above and beyond... it’s a start, giving people more money for the same job is silly, they must earn more pay.
I never thought of Rhode Island as the ‘hood.
Great idea, the students might now have a chance.
Unfortunately, it’ll costs the taxpayers MILLIONS by the time all the lawsuits are done.
Paying GOOD, effective teachers 70k is far different than paying them that simply because their cushy Union says so.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.