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The BCEA
Advocate
Volume 3, Number 8
From the President
Headline here
Insert text here
March 2010
Racing to the Top
Tennessee First to the Top Act of
2010: Myth v. Fact
Since the Extraordinary Session of the
General Assembly passed the Tennessee First to
the Top Act of 2010, a host of mistaken
impressions have been spawned about the
content of the legislation. The following Myths
vs. Facts information is intended to dispel a few
of the more persistent rumors and improvised
truths.
Myth #1: The legislation passed during the
recent special session eliminates tenure for
current teachers.
Fact: Nothing passed during the special
session eliminates tenure. The grounds for
dismissal of tenured teachers have not changed.
In fact, teachers who receive dismissal charges
will now have the right to a hearing before an
impartial third party.
Myth #2: New teachers will have to teach for
five years before they can achieve tenure.
Fact: No. Teachers licensed and employed
for the first time after the Act was signed into
law must complete the same 27-month or threeconsecutive-year probationary period as current
tenured teachers.
Myth #3: School systems can now fire
teachers solely because their TVAAS scores are
low.
Fact: No. Nothing in the Act allows or was
intended to allow teachers to be dismissed solely
on the basis of their TVAAS scores being low.
The list of permissible dismissal charges has not
changed.
Myth #4: Teachers in low-performing schools
will automatically lose their tenure and their jobs
if the school goes into an achievement school
district.
Fact: No. Teachers in low-performing
schools are employees of the LEA and cannot
lose their tenure rights (be dismissed) except
under the provisions of the tenure law. Teachers
in schools at Restructuring 2—Alternative
Governance status which are placed in an
achievement school district by the Commissioner
of Education remain employees of the LEA
unless they are non-renewed, their position is
abolished or they are dismissed under provisions
of the tenure law. -- Continued on page 3
Calendar of Events
March 1
Deadline for submitting nominations for Don Sahli-Kathy Woodall Scholarships
(STEA, FTA, Minority and Sons & Daughters)
March 2
Read Across America
March 5-6
TEA Board of Directors, TEA Building
March 9
Deadline for submitting TEA Constitution and Bylaws amendment proposals and
nominations and biographical information for candidates for TEA offices
March 19-20 TEA Symposium, Gatlinburg
March 25-26 FTA Convention, Nashville
March 26-27 Minority Affairs Conference, Franklin
THE ADVOCATE
is published monthly by the Bradley
County Education Association.
If you have questions or comments,
please contact:
Jane Doe, Editor
jdoe@localemail.net
615.615.6156
Bradley County Education
Association
419 East Street
Anywhere, TN 12345
731.516.5165
BCEA is proud affiliate of the
Tennessee Education Association
and the National Education
Association
For additional assistance, contact
UniServ Coordinator Jane Doe,
423.324.2344
[Note to user: The information
above is a guide to the minimum
information that the masthead
should contain. You may choose
to also list officers, ARs, or other
local information.]
Racing to the Top
Myth v. Fact
Continued from page 1
Myth #5: All teachers will now be required to participate in a merit pay plan.
Fact: No. Any change in compensation must be negotiated between the school system and the local
association. The Act also provides that if an alternative salary schedule is negotiated, no teacher may be
paid less on that schedule than they were paid at the time it was negotiated.
Myth #6: Local associations will no longer be able to negotiate salaries.
Fact: Salaries are still a mandatory subject of bargaining. Nothing in the Tennessee First to the Top
Act of 2010 eliminates salary as a mandatory subject of collective bargaining. In bargaining locals, any
changes in local salary schedules must be negotiated between school systems and local associations.
Myth #7: The evaluation of teachers and principals must now be comprised of 50 percent TVAAS
data.
Fact: No. The evaluations of teachers and principals whose students generate TVAAS data must now
consist of 35 percent TVAAS data and 15 percent other student achievement data. The 15 percent other
student achievement data is intended to be mutually determined by the teacher and the evaluator(s) from a
list developed by the “teacher evaluation advisory committee.” If the teacher and the evaluator(s) cannot
agree on the 15 percent measure to be used, the evaluator’s choice will be used.
Myth #8: Teachers in schools with relatively high numbers of students who receive free and reduced
price lunch should try to get transferred to another school to avoid low TVAAS scores.
Fact: TVAAS scores are based on student growth rather than raw scores. A significant number of
schools serving low socioeconomic group students record higher TVAAS scores than their sister schools
that serve large proportions of students from higher socioeconomic groups.
We will hold nine regional meetings across the state during a three week period beginning the week of
February 22nd. The purpose is to explain the legislation, answer questions and begin collecting your ideas
about what should be in the new teacher and principal evaluation systems. Local association presidents,
association representatives and members will be invited. We will see you there.
You count.
Al Mance is executive director of the Tennessee Education Association.
Get Ready for Read Across America
Tennessee’s teachers and the National Education Association are building a nation of readers through
NEA’s signature program, Read Across America. Now in its fourteenth year, this year-round program
focuses on motivating children and teens to read through events, partnerships and reading resources.
The Read Across America Day, NEA’s national reading celebration, takes place each year on or near
March 2, the birthday of Dr. Seuss. Across the country, thousands of schools, libraries, and community
centers participate by bringing together kids, teens, and books, and you can too!
On March 2, the National Education Association calls for every child to be reading in the company of a
caring adult.
Read Across America Classroom Suggestions
Involve all NEA members. For example, bus drivers can set up a reading challenge; cafeteria workers
can prepare recipes from your favorite books; and students and higher-ed members can get their campus
involved in your community. All of them can be guest readers.
1. Look for partners to include in your event. NEA’s Read Across America has more than 50 national
organization partners from the American Library Association to Youth Service America. Check out our
partners list and find out if there’s a local link for you. Don’t forget to contact local businesses and
organizations. They’re great sources of book donations and volunteer readers.
2. Arrange for a proclamation. Have your mayor, school board, or legislators issue a proclamation. See
a sample proclamation at http://www.nea.org/grants/17343.htm
3. Read on the radio. Ask your local radio disc jockey to read or even broadcast from your school.
4. Aim high. Who says high school students won’t get involved? High School students love reader’s
theater and poetry slams, and middle school students can organize book fairs and read to elementary
students.
5. Invite parents and students to don their pajamas and snuggle up and read.
6. Hats off to hometown heroes. Have students write to local heroes and ask them about their favorite
books. Showcase these hometown heroes and their choices in your reading celebration.
7. Put reading on parade or hold a book lovers’ ball. Celebrate your favorite authors, books and
characters in style.
8. Put on your culture cap. Create a culture cafe and put books on the menu. Your reading recipes can
combine food and fiction or nonfiction.
9. Break a record! Guinness records were made to be broken, give one a try.
10. Make your reading event a multilingual, multicultural affair.
11. Team up for reading. Contact your local sports team for reading challenges and guest readers.
Don’t forget to pledge your own event on NEA’s Read Across America web site. You’ll also be able
to sign up for the Read Across America e-newsletter; find out what’s already being planned around the
country; request a Read Across America resource kit; and order T-shirts, Cat in the Hat stovepipe hats,
and more from the Read Across Catalog.
For the list of classroom resources and much more, visit: http://www.nea.org/readacross
Each One Ask One: Membership is Everyone’s Business!
TEA will conduct an Early Enrollment Campaign beginning on April 1, 2010. Teachers who have
never been a member of NEA can join and not pay ANY Dues until next October. These “Early
Enrollees” will receive the benefit of being a member Dues Free for basically six months. Talk to your
UniServ Coordinator about this excellent opportunity to build a stronger local.
Steps for Conducting a Successful SPRING MEMBERSHIP CAMPAIGN
•
Meet with your Membership Committee early and plan.
•
Break down your potential membership by years of teaching experience and sub groups to find
where you are struggling with recruitment. (December 1 report is a good document to provide this
information.)
•
Identify your potential members. Are there subgroups of potential members that you can target,
such as coaches or ESPs?
•
Target subgroups or low membership schools with extra activities, money, and support for the AR.
•
Train your AR’s and recruiters to answer the hard questions ahead of time.
•
Personally ask everyone to join!
•
Fill out the membership form with as much information as possible prior to asking a potential
member to join. Have a pen in hand for them to sign.
•
Have one-on-one or essential conversations to listen to why the non-member doesn’t join.
•
CELEBRATE Your Success!
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