Montserrat Garibay, Education Austin Executive Board Member
"I take the time to do 20 home visits the first two weeks of school. It is a lot of work, but I invest the time because I want to build very strong relationships with the parents."
Montserrat Garibay teaches a bilingual pre-kindergarten class at Lucy Read Pre-kindergarten Demonstration School in Austin ISD. She serves on the executive board of Education Austin. Read more about her in the Winter 2011 issue of the Texas State Teacher Association Advocate.
Source: Texas AFT Legislative Hotline Date of Publication: Monday, January 23, 2012
Today’s hearing of the Texas House Public Education Committee showcased a rising tide of discontent in Texas with standardized testing. The message came from parents, teachers, principals, superintendents—all agreed something is badly awry.
Click HERE or on the title to read more of the article.
Deadlines for Applying for Scholarships Fast Approaching for Interested EA Members
EA members and/or their children are entitled to apply for multiple scholarships from various sources by virtue of their membership in Education Austin, and deadlines for submitting applications are fast approaching. Among these scholarships are:
When Austin School District Superintendent Meria Carstarphen rolled out her initiative to convert two East Austin schools to charter campuses run by IDEA Public Schools, we repeatedly asked why the district would outsource elementary education given that Austin schools have had much success in educating low-income minority students in grades kindergarten through fifth.
Click on the HERE to continue reading the editorial.
Point Austin: Cart Arrives ... Horse Expected Soon
On the positive side, the Austin Independent School District's agreement to bring the IDEA Public Schools charter program into the Eastside certainly gave its students an instant education in local politics – of the grimly practical sort not generally available in classrooms. –
Carole Keeton Strayhornhas been a lot of things: Texas comptroller, Austin mayor, Austin Independent School District board president. But at Monday's school district board meeting, she was an Allan Bulldog, watching in disbelief as AISD's board of trustees voted 6-3 to hand over the Eastside Memorial Vertical Team to IDEA Public Schools to run as an in-district charter program starting next fall.
Tell the School Board No IDEA Monday, December 12th
NO COMMUNITY
NO CONTRACTS
NO IDEA
IDEA Charter Schools are not right for East Austin public schools. Join us Monday, December 12 as we tell the AISD Board of Trustees to vote NO on IDEA.
Rally at 6 p.m.
Monday, December 12
CAC School Board Auditorium
1111 W. 6th Street
No need for unaccountable IDEA
Source: www.statesman.com
Date of publication: December 7, 2011
Austin School District Superintendent Meria Carstarphen said this week that contracting with charter schools is not the same as "having other people do our work for us."
The superintendent's assertion, however, is contradicted by the terms of the latest version of the contract the Austin district is poised to sign with IDEA Public Schools in South Texas. The contract states: "Subject to the terms of this agreement, the operation, oversight and decision-making shall be conducted solely by the IDEA Board of Directors. Other than as provided in this agreement, IDEA shall not be subject to any AISD policy or procedure."
Join Parents & Community Members Saturday at 11 AM for Anti-IDEA March & Rally
On Saturday, December 10, at Allan Elementary there will be a rally/ march to show AISD Superintendent Carstarphen that the families of East Austin will not passively stand by and witness the corporate takeover of our schools by the Gates-funded IDEA charter.
Tensions Develop Between Austin ISD and its Teachers Association
Source: www.kutnews.org
Date: December 8, 2011
Education Austin has been the lone organization representing AISD staff for the past twelve years, but now Superintendent Meria Carstarphen is opening the door to changing that, and the teacher’s association is not happy about it.
Source: www.austinchronicle.com
Date of publication: December 9, 2011
Data, facts, research.
Data, facts, research.
The mantra of the Austin Independent School District under Superintendent Meria Carstarphen has been simple: Look at the data, examine the facts, study the available research, then let the results drive policy. It is supposedly the data that Carstarphen has collected that has driven her push for two radical new proposals. First, she recommends turning the Eastside Memorial Vertical Team over to IDEA Public Schools – a South Texas-based charter group – beginning in 2012. Second, at some future date, she wants to turn Pearce and Garcia middle schools into single-sex academies. Click here to read the article and its entirety.
Austin education labor group wants to keep its exclusive status
Source: www.statesman.com
Date of publication: December 7, 2011
Officials with labor group Education Austin have accused Superintendent Meria Carstarphen of threatening to dilute their role in salary negotiations and other matters in response to the group publicly criticizing her plans to establish district-supported charter schools in East Austin. Click here to read the whole story
Full picture on charters needed
Source: www.statesman.com
Date of publication: November 19, 2011
We would hope that Austin school board members, as trustees of what essentially is a billion-dollar enterprise, would welcome all information that could help shed light on whether IDEA Public Schools is a good fit for the East Austin community.
So it is curious that some trustees and Superintendent Meria Carstarphen are taking the approach that data highlighting the negatives of hiring IDEA is skewed because they believe the messenger, Penn State University researcher Ed Fuller, is biased. Fuller, a former researcher for the University of Texas, has, over the years, produced research critical of both charter schools and traditional public schools. Click here to read more of the article.
Study challenges IDEA charters' success claims
Source: www.statesman.com
Date of publication: November 15, 2011
IDEA Public Schools, which has basked in accolades for its highly ranked schools and has set its sights on revamping and running some of the Austin school district's most academically troubled campuses, might have an overrated reputation for teaching challenging populations, new research has found. Click here to read the rest of the article.
'More Inclusive' at the Exclusion of Teachers?
Source: www.austinchronicle.com
Date of publication: December 2, 2011
In recent years, Austin Independent School District staff have seen their workload soar, their wages and benefits stagnate, and their contract lengths slashed. Now teachers are wondering why the district is engaging in what looks like union busting.... Click here to read the full article.
RE-FUND EDUCATION! Rally
Thursday, November 17
Gather at 6 PM on thesouthside of theTexasCapitol
TheTexasLegislature cut public education by $6.6 billion. Students, parents, workers, and teachers have been hit hard by this crisis and cannot afford to pay for austerity while big business in Texas gets away with a 0% corporate tax rate and billions in tax loopholes.
OnN17, the two-month anniversary of the OccupyWall Streetaction which resulted in a national movement, we will demand that the state ReFund Public Education.
Meet at the Capitol where we will join with OccupyAustin, theTexas StateEmployees Union/CWA, and the Texas AFL-CIO, among others.
Hudson: With incessant testing, our students are falling behind
Elizabeth Hudson, Local Contributor
To life's absolutes, death and taxes, can now be added one more certainty: testing. Even as thousands of teachers are laid off, programs and academics are slashed and school buildings are shuttered, theState of Texascan come up with nearly $500 million over the next five years to roll out the new STAAR test for all public school students... Click on blue header to read more.
Join the Occupy Austin Labor March Sunday
Dear Education Austin Member,
The Austin AFL-CIO Central Labor Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to have a labor union march and rally in solidarity with Occupy Austin this Sunday. Here are the details:
Austin Labor Unions March in Solidarity with Occupy Austin
Meet at AFL-CIO Headquarters, 1106 Lavaca Street (11th and Lavaca)
Sunday, October 23rd, at 12 Noon
12:20 PM March to City Hall, 301 West 2nd Street
1 PM - 2 PM Rally at City Hall
Wear your Education Austin t-shirt. Also, invite others to spread the word.
In solidarity,
Rae Nwosu Ken Zarifis
Education Austin Co-Presidents
Occupy Austin Protest Thursday at City Hall in Solidarity with Occupy Wall Street
Members of Education Austin will be joining the Occupy Austin protest Thursday, October 6, at Austin City Hall, 301 West 2nd Street. Just as our 200,000-member sister local in New York City, the United Federation of Teachers, is supporting Occupy Wall Street, labor unions are joining local versions of the demonstration across the country to insist that WE ARE THE 99%. The financiers who caused the current deep recession are reaping record profits and bonuses while thousands of teachers and school employees have been laid off statewide due to the financiers’ greed and the consequences it has caused. As billionaire Warren Buffett recently noted, many corporate managers are paying a smaller percentage of their incomes in taxes than the secretaries who work for them.
The event begins at 10 AM, but the protest is expected to continue through the evening hours, at a minimum. Come when you can, look for the Education Austin banner, and stand with your colleagues for a fair tax system and against corporate corruption of politics in our country.
AFT Executive Vice-President Lorretta Johnson's Visit on September 7, 2011 to Education Austin. A great look at how teachers and support employees make a difference every day.
TexasAFL-CIO OpensBastropOffice to Help Members of Affiliated Unions, Including EducationAustin
The Texas AFL-CIO openedan office in Bastropon September 19to provide assistance to members of affiliated unions (including, of course, Education Austin) who suffered losses during the recent wildfires in Bastrop and nearby areas. The office is located at 1602 Hill Street , and although there is no phone number for the office yet, the program coordinators can be reached on their cell phones in the meantime:
Katherine Thompson-Garcia 210/422-8682
Terri Ramos 210/290-4494
Wildfire Victims Include Education Austin Members; Let’s Give Them a Helping Hand Via Secure Online Donations
Texas AFT’s Disaster Relief Fund will provide direct assistance to those impacted by the recent Texas fires. Make your donation securely online at:http://bit.ly/oxEyNu.
Remember, anydonationis gratefully accepted, large or small, but:
$200 can help defray the cost of hotels or other housing arrangements for those who have lost homes or who were evacuated.
$100 can ensure school employees have a jump start for replacing immediate needs like clothing.
Smaller donations add up as well, so contribute whatever you are comfortable with!
Donate online at: http://bit.ly/oxEyNu
If you are an Education Austin member affected by the wildfires who is seeking assistance, contact Education Austin at 472-1124 for referral to Texas AFT for access to the Disaster Relief Fund.
Education Austin Joins AISD in Support
Education Austin joins AISD in extending support to AISD employees suffering the effects of the recent wildfires in our area. If you or another AISD employee you know needs assistance because of the wildfires, please call or have him or her call the AISD Police at 414-1703 to be connected with the district’s resources. Dispatchers are always available to help.
Because of the strength of the members in our Union, Education Austin has been able to win many improvements for AISD employees. Click here to view a list of a few of our certified employee victories.
Because of the strength of the members in our Union, Education Austin has been able to win many improvements for AISD employees. Click here to view some of the things we have won for Classified Employees:
Open enrollment for the Austin ISD Sick Leave Bank is now underway. Don't miss this opportunity to enroll in a very beneficial program! The days you provide may be the days you yourself use…Let’s look after each other! More.
Ahorita mismo está abierta la matriculación para el Banco Reserva de Enfermedad del distrito escolar de Austin. ¡No te pierdas esta oportunidad de inscribirte en este tan beneficioso programa! Los Dias que Usted Provee Pueden Ser Dias que Usted mismo(a) Pueda Usar... ¡Ayudemosnos unos a Otros! Mas.
Education Austin and AISD signed off in Consultation the agreement regarding the Classified Employee Termination Appeal Process. No longer can a classified employee be just let go.
Click here for an abbreviated version of the new AISD Policy, DCD-R LOCAL on Employment Practices for At-Will Employees.
This presentation is current as of February 19. Due to the fact that the situation changes on an almost daily basis, it is important that you contact Education Austin before acting on the information in this presentation.
Many studies over the years have documented the need for smoother transitions from prekindergarten to the elementary level. A new AFT report reinforces that conclusion—and does it in a manner that puts frontline voices at the heart of the dialogue.
In her latest "What Matters Most" column, which appears in the New York Times, AFT president Randi Weingarten discusses the importance of the Ohio vote, as well as results in other states that showed voters are fed up with politicians who thought they could exploit a tough economy to advance extremist agendas. Those results are sending a message that legislators need to heed.
The citizens of Ohio took back their state with a historic vote on Nov. 8 to repeal Senate Bill 5. The vote, which marks the first time that the collective bargaining rights of public employees have been upheld on a statewide ballot, sends a clear signal that Ohioans will not sit idly by while politicians scapegoat hard-working public employees for an economic crisis they did not create.
President Obama's bold plan—the American Jobs Act—is the right antidote to help solve our persistent economic problems, AFT president Randi Weingarten says.
