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| Good morning, Two significant meetings are taking place this week. January 3, from 11-2, a meeting will be held at the BTU for Middle School and K-8 guidance personnel to learn about the variety of program offerings that are found in our high schools, both traditional and pilot. The meeting is a joint undertaking by the BTU and the School Department and is designed to provide guidance counselors with information on the scope and particulars of the system's multitude of school offerings. Why are we promoting this meeting? Simply, the school system loses students each year to charter schools, and many of those students leave because they and their parents are unaware of the system's wide variety of terrific programs. This meeting is an attempt to help bridge the information gap. Lunch will be served. ***
January 4--4-5:30 PM, at the BTU, a meeting will be held for those interested in getting information about the Pilot School RFP. The RFP was sent out by the school department last week. Refreshments will be served. A Discovery School RFP will, too, be sent out shortly, probably in January. A Discovery School is a school that opts for autonomy in two areas only-- budgetary and academic--and allows no relaxation of collectively-bargained working conditions.Superintendent Carol R. Johnson has sent out a memo to all principals that announces the January 4 meeting. The memo also provides a link to the pilot RFP. An excerpt from Dr. Johnson's cover memo follows: "...As you are aware, the Boston Public Schools offers an array of school choices and a portfolio of programs to serve the diverse needs of our students. Among these choices are pilot schools - schools that are part of the Boston Public Schools but operate with autonomy from many district and union regulations, similar to charter schools... We also recognize that we have excellent schools throughout the district that are not pilot schools. "You also may remember that we negotiated another model of schools with the BTU called "Discovery Schools." Similar in some ways to pilot schools, these schools have some autonomy in budget and curriculum. We are collaborating with the BTU on an RFP for these schools to clarify the specific and unique autonomy and flexibility available. We will share it with you when it is completed." The Boston Globe two weeks ago ran an op-ed piece by Richard Stutman, BTU President. The piece detailed a slice of the union's view of school reform. WGBH is running, too, a mini-debate and blog on the pilot school/discovery school issue. The mini-debate between Paul Grogan, CEO of the Boston Foundation, and BTU President Richard Stutman lays out the issue of one aspect of school reform quite clearly. Mr. Grogan sees pilot schools--with their elimination of a "very prescriptive teacher union contract"--as the only way to improve our schools. The BTU sees pilot schools as only part of the solution. More importantly, we do not see our contract as an impediment to school improvement. The BTU and its 9000 members support discovery schools and other collectively-bargained reforms--such as more resources, smaller class size, and mentoring for new teachers--in our effort to improve our schools, our students' learning conditions, and our working conditions. Calling discovery schools "a very insincere effort by the union leadership...and "really, a very cynical proposal," Mr. Grogan takes a narrow-minded, simplistic view of what it will take to improve our schools. In his view, school improvement and collectively-bargained working conditions are mutually exclusive. (The Boston Foundation, by the way, has offered a one-time bonus of $120,000 should a school vote to convert to pilot status.) We do not see this as an either/or choice. School improvement and collective bargaining work hand in hand, and work best together. We decry any attempt to slot the issue of school reform into a single one size fits all box. We support many models of reform, and feel that our schools will benefit from a variety of approaches--pilot schools, discovery schools, and additional resources being just a few. |
| BTU Kids Holiday Party |
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Hundreds of children and grandchildren of BTU members enjoyed a Holiday Party at the BTU on Thursday, 12/27. |
A great time was had. Hot dogs, pizza, ice cream, cookies, and cotton candy, and games--what more could you ask for? Thanks to the BTU's social committee for organizing and volunteering at this event. The social committee does a great job, and we are very thankful for their continuing support. Thanks, too, to Mary Glynn for the photo. |
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| BTU Building Rep. Info.--We Need Your Building Surveys |
The BTU Office has sent out copies of the facility survey once again to all BTU Building Reps. (Those who have already submitted the form please disregard.) Many schools have yet to complete the survey. We need your responses to detail the facility issues many of our schools face--from problematic heating systems to broken door knobs. We will be compiling a list of fix-it items and presenting the list to the appropriate authorities. And by the way, all schools that submit are eligible to win a pair of Celtics tickets. Thank you for your assistance--this is a project we want to complete. |
| Early Retirement Incentive Details |
69 members signed up for the early retirement notification incentive. The $1500 will appear in the January 25th paycheck. |
| Tuition Reimbursement--How it Affects Teachers Made Permanent Mid-Year |
Reminders: On February 1 principals and headmasters have to make nominations for those teachers they wish to make permanent. By Feb. 15, the superintendent will notify principals and headmasters whether or not their recommendations are accepted. Permanent status, if granted, takes effect immediately. If you are made permanent in mid-year you are eligible for $500 in tuition reimbursement for the current school year, as well as for each school year prospectively until you are eligible for your first career award. All permanent teachers and paras with five or more years of service at are eligible for the tuition reimbursement. This is an underused benefit. It shouldn't be. The application is straightforward and relatively simple, and the reimbursement is untaxed. If you are eligible, investigate and take advantage. If you have any questions please call either Mike, Caren, or Jenna at the union office. |
| Health and Welfare Announces Increase in Dental Benefits |
Over the break you should have received a letter from the BTU Health and Welfare office detailing an 18% increase in dental benefits for Type II and Type III procedures. The increase in benefits took effect on 1/1/08. A benefit increase for paraprofessionals was previously announced. Typical Type II procedures include, fillings, and root canals. Typical Type III procedures include crowns, bridges, and dentures. See the BTU H&W page for more information. To our advantage, procedures in progress but not completed will be reimbursed at the higher rate.
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| BTU Web Page Adds Search Engine |
The BTU web page and its cache of previous e-bulletins now has a search engine. Try it, you'll like it. It is a work in progress, but works pretty well. Any problems or flaws, please let us know. Thanks. |
| Evaluation Logs--Advice is to Keep |
Teachers should keep a notebook or log of any visitors who may come to their classroom. Note the date and time, length of visit and document what was occurring at the time. Write a brief comment as to how you thought the class went. This will assist you in case of evaluation issues down the road. |
| Homework Helper Program Available at all Boston Public Libraries |
The Boston Teachers Union, the superintendent, the mayor, and the Tremont Credit Union jointly sponsor a Homework Helper program at all of the libraries in the city, neighborhood and central. Each night the library is open from 4 to 6, a teacher is present as a homework helper for any child who requests help. Now in its fourth year, the program services hundreds of children each month. This is a great program, and we thank all of our co-sponsors. Click here to see when and where the homework helper program is available.
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| Upcoming Events |
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| OIIT PD: Much to choose from! |
The following courses will continue to be available via the OIIT Online Registration Tool link: 1. Computer Teacher Institute Learn how to meet technology competencies and support curriculum objectives. Upgrade your technology skills and expand your repertoire of technologies to integrate into subject area curriculum. For a complete list of topics and dates, see the posting on the Instructional Technology Unit page of MyBPS. 2. Intel: Essentials Course Online @Excel Keep your eye on the link for the rescheduled dates to this course. ***
In addition to these courses, OIIT has begun to populate MyLearningPlan with new courses. Below are new courses now available for registration within MyLearningPlan:· TEC2001: Learning and Teaching with Web 2.0 Tools This six-week predominantly online course (4 hours face-to-face and 26 online hours) is for teachers working towards proficient technology skills as indicated in the TSAT. The course will teach educators how to better understand and use the "new" Internet. · TEC3001: Using Excel to Support Math K-12 This 15-hour face to face course will expand participants knowledge of the power of using spreadsheets to collect, organize, display and analyze data for instruction. This course assumes prior experience using an Excel spreadsheet and is open to participants working at the Proficient or Advanced Technology skill level. If you need assistance accessing MyLearningPlan, contact your school's Technology Support Teacher. |
Sincerely,
Richard Stutman
BTU President
richardstutman@comcast.net (home)rstutman@btu.org (work)
617-288-2000
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Back Issues
| #1 | 08/16/07 |
| #2 | 08/23/07 |
| #3 | 08/31/07 |
| #4 | 09/09/07 |
| #5 | 09/16/07 |
| #6 | 09/21/07 |
| #7 | 09/30/07 |
| #8 | 10/5/07 |
| #9 | 10/11/07 |
| #10 | 10/18/07 |
| #11 | 10/26/07 |
| #12 | 11/02/07 |
| #13 | 11/09/07 |
| #14 | 11/16/07 |
| #15 | 11/20/07 |
| #16 | 11/29/07 |
| #17 | 12/06/07 |
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| #19 | 12/19/07 |
| #20 | 01/02/08 |