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Professional Development

ATTENTION 2014-2015 RETIREES!!!

February 27, 2015

 

Happy RetirementVEA is pleased to announce that, Pending final approval by the school board, a $5,000. retirement bonus will be offered to the first 20 members who notify the District that they will retire at the end of the 2014-2015 school year.  Notification must be received by the District Office by April 13, 2015.  The incentive is a $5,000. bonus payable at the completion of the school year.  Members who work less than full-time will receive a prorated amount.   

 

FYI:  This will NOT count toward your salary; it is a ONE-TIME bonus payment. 

If you have any questions concerning this bonus, please email Sheila Gradwohl at [email protected] or call 707-552-8487.


Due Process

October 30, 2014

Myths about Due Process

Current misconceptions regarding the law have created several myths about tenure, popularly held, but all false. Paramount among these are:

MYTH #1: “There is a tenure law in California for K-14.”

The truth is, California dismissal law doesn’t refer to tenure. The concept of tenure as it developed in the medieval university has no connection with current practice, which provides only dismissal procedures guaranteeing due process rights and pertinent reasons for dismissal actions. Tenure has become a popular term used as a scapegoat for the real problems, which are ineffective evaluation of instruction, poor administrative practices, and inadequate investment by the public schools in experimentation, research and development, and in-service education.

MYTH #2: “Tenure is a lifetime guarantee of employment.”

The truth is that teachers have permanent status, not tenure. Within permanent status there is a procedure for dismissing teachers which guarantees due process and impartial consideration of the facts when disagreement about the facts exists.

MYTH #3: “You can’t fire a tenured teacher in California.”

The truth is that teachers are fired every year under the dismissal laws in California. In addition, when difficulties in dismissing teachers arise under the law, it is inadequate application of the law by administrators, and not the law itself, that is at fault.

MYTH #4: “Tenure is designed to protect teachers.”

The truth is that due process was developed and exists primarily to protect pupils and schools from political, social and economic interference with pupils’ right to a continuing program of quality education. The major function of due process is to insist that decisions about the quality of instruction in the schools be based on educational reasons, rather than on prejudicial or inappropriate selfish reasons.

MYTH #5: “Tenure protects the incompetent teacher.”

The truth is that California Teachers Association policy for many years has insisted that “Evaluation Is the Key to Excellence.” Where sound evaluation practices exists, it is the teacher whose inadequacies are identified and who is most affected by the need to improve, or in the absence of improvement, will be dismissed under due process provisions. Therefore, due process is a mechanism for evaluation of instruction which exposes rather than protects incompetence.

MYTH #6: “A good teacher doesn’t need tenure.”

The truth is that teachers who perform satisfactorily need the protection of due process and it is the competent teacher who is most needed to maintain and improve the quality of education for pupils. Every educational employee is entitled to due process. The broad spectrum of instructional practices require that differing methodologies require equal protection guaranteed under California laws. The competent teacher needs the due process laws!

From CTA’s “Evaluation: Key to Excellence” (2005)

Good News for Vallejo Schools!

January 10, 2014

Governor’s Budget Would Give Schools $10B in Additional Funding

Gov. Jerry Brown on Thursday unveiled his $106.8 billion general fund budget proposal for the 2014-2015 year, saying it is “very good news.” [Read the governor’s news release   and full budget summary.]

The governor told reporters that the budget would provide an additional “$10 billion for the schools of California after years of drought, cuts, and pink slips for teachers.”

CTA President Dean E. Vogel praised the governor for the new spending plan, saying: “The governor’s proposed budget will help our public schools and colleges continue to heal after years of devastating cuts.”

The governor said his administration is convening meetings of stakeholders to address the issue of maintaining the financial stability of the California State Teachers’ Retirement System. Read more about CalSTRS’s unfunded liability.

The release of the budget proposal is the first step in a long process that ends in the adoption and signing of a state spending plan before the July 1 start of the 2014-15 budget year.

California Falls to 50th in School Funding in Education Week Survey

The newest  Education Week survey of education funding finds that California has hit 50th among the states in per-pupil funding, a key measure of financial commitment to public schools. According to the report, California fell from 49th to 50th in per-student funding in the 2010-11 school year. According to the report, California spends $3,500 less per student than the national average and $11,000 less per child than the top-ranked state of Wyoming.

CTA Supports Proposed Regulations for Local Control Funding Formula: Educators to Testify Next Week

CTA members will be testifying on Thurs., Jan. 16, in Sacramento before the State Board of Education about the proposed regulations for implementing the Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF). The LCFF is boosting appropriations for all schools, with additional allocations to schools with large segments of English learners, children from low-income families, and foster children.

CTA has worked hard to encourage the SBE to adopt regulations that will provide schools, parents, and educators with the flexibility needed to implement the program effectively. These quick points explain how the proposed regulations improve education, help students who need it most, involve parents and the community, strike the right balance between accountability and flexibility, and support continuous transparency.

Read CTA’s letter urging the SBE’s support.

Contact the members of the State Board of Education and urge them to adopt the draft regulations that CTA is supporting.  You can reach all of them by calling the State Board of Education at (916) 319-0827.
 
The members of the Board are:
  • Dr. Michael Kirst, State Board President
  • Dr. Ilene Straus, State Board Vice President
  • Ms. Sue Burr
  • Dr. Carl A. Cohn
  • Mr. Bruce Holaday
  • Dr. Aida Molina
  • Ms. Patricia Ann Rucker
  • Dr. Nicolasa Sandoval
  • Ms. Trish Boyd Williams
  • Jesse Zhang, Student Member 
Learn more about them on the State Board of Education webpage.
Help Defeat These Bad Bills
Education Committees to Hear CTA-opposed Bills
The Assembly Committee on Education on Wed., Jan. 15, is expected to hear CTA-opposed AB 815 by Assembly Member Connie Conway (R-Tulare) that would expand the universe of schools that could implement the parent trigger law. Current implementation of the deeply-flawed law has lacked transparency and led to many parents feeling lied to and deceived. There is growing evidence that parents are not actually the ones behind these parent trigger initiatives, but rather wealthy corporate special interests that want to push their agenda to privatize all schools in California.

Meanwhile, the Senate Education Committee is expected to vote on CTA-opposed SB 559 by Senator Bob Huff, Chair of the Republican Caucus. It would move the preliminary certificated layoff notification date from the current date of March 15 to May 15, and the final layoff notice deadline from May 15 to June 15. The changes create more uncertainty for students and would make it much harder for a laid-off teacher to apply for work in other districts in a timely manner.

Contact Your Lawmaker in Support of This One!
Assembly Member Pushes Bill to Protect Student Safety

The Assembly Committee on Education will also vote on AB 135, a CTA-supported bill by Assembly Education Chair Joan Buchanan (D-Alamo), which would require all school districts to have a board policy about their child abuse and reporting responsibilities and to review it annually with their employees. It aims to help strengthen student safety. CTA believes local school districts and state agencies must take all necessary steps to prevent any type of child abuse and neglect.

Click through to CTA’s Legislative Action Page to get in touch with your lawmakers!

Algebra Success Academy to come to Vallejo!

August 7, 2013

VEA is excited to announce an exciting partnership between VEA and VCUSD (with support from CTA). We will be launching the Algebra Success Academy in the 2013-14 school year. Teachers will be provided with training on the Algebra Success Academy model and then will be able to use what they have learned directly into their classrooms.

The training is open to all teachers working in VCUSD, however, it is generally geared towards those teaching grade 2 through 6th grade. Each teacher attending will be provided with a stipend. Trainings are on Wednesdays from 4 to 8 p.m. and running from August 21st to September 25th. Dinner will be provided by VCUSD.

Please see the attached flyer for more information.

CTA Conferences

November 24, 2012

Looking to get great professional development at no cost to you? CTA’s upcoming conferences are scheduled to begin in early 2013. VEA has made it easier than ever for you to attend. Enhance your teaching, meet colleagues from across the state and learn new strategies!

Register NOW! Go to CTA Conferences.

First come, first served with priority given to those VEA members who have never attended a CTA conference before.

2013 CTA Conferences Flier

Our flawed national policy on education

August 14, 2012

Diane Ravitch posted to a story in Education Week. This is what she had to say about the story she had linked to:

Every once in a while, I read something that rings as true as a perfectly pitched bell or a fine piece of crystal.

Every once in a while, a clear-headed thinker assembles all the pieces of what is happening around us and puts it all together into a sensible and compelling analysis.

Go over and read the article and then, share it with everyone you know. The easy answer to the crisis in education is to blame the teachers. It will take much more hard work and a willingness to examine our society to make a long-lasting impact to the challenges we face in public education.

There is a reason that we lose 50% of teachers in their first five years of teaching and money is very rarely listed as the reason for leaving. Rather, the top reasons for leaving are due to poor working conditions and lack of respect or support from administrators.

Vallejo Teachers back to school this week!

August 12, 2012

School may start back Monday August 20th for Vallejo students, but their teachers have been working hard all summer in order to best serve the students they teach.

Vallejo Teachers will be returning to work this week, starting with optional staff development days beginning tomorrow. However, for many teachers, the summer break meant an opportunity for them to become better at their craft. Teachers took a variety of professional development courses, including learning about the Common Core. While contractually Vallejo teachers only have one paid day of prepping their classrooms, most have been working the past few weeks in getting their classrooms ready for their students.

Katie V., a teacher at Cooper Elementary enjoyed her professional development opportunities which included training in Math as well as taking the “Emerging Leaders” track at CTA’s Summer Institute. Other teachers took part in “Positive Behavior, Interventions and Support” (PBIS) and “Guided Language Acquisition Design” (GLAD) trainings, such as teacher Kevin S. at Highland Elementary. Other teachers took trainings on Board Math, Differentiated Learning, Content Area Language and Literacy, such  as Jen Z. at Mare Island Physical Fitness Academy and Cheryl T at Vallejo High.

Other high school teachers, such as Scott H. and Rob R., participated in trainings that will help the District in its vision for Academy High Schools. Scott H., a teacher at Bethel, did a week long training at UC Davis’ History Project Technology Institute and Rob R., a teacher at VHS, participated in his school sites’ Engineering Academy Project.

As noted on this website, Vallejo teachers also attended several events this past summer in order to strengthen their union, which helps them to become better advocates for their students and their colleagues.

Teachers also worked this past summer developing new lesson plans or tweaking their lesson plans to make them better for the upcoming school year. While there is the misconception that teachers do not work during the summer months, many of Vallejo’s teachers would state that this is unequivocally not true for them.