Every Springfield Student Has A
Basic Right To Great Public Schools
The Contract -Agreement Between Springfield School Committee and the Springfield Education Association - Pilot School Memorandum of Agreement Request for Proposal - Springfield Public School Teacher Evaluation and Development System
Legislative Board (Association Representatives)
(FOCUS on Educational Excellence)
Springfield Education Association
1000 Wilbraham Road
Springfield, MA 01109
phone (413) 782-8300
fax (413) 783-8812
e-mail mailing@seateachers.com
KEYS INITIATIVE.......KEYS is an acronym for Keys to excellence for Your Schools. As a result of research, the National Education Association (NEA), with the help of thousands of teachers and education support professionals, has identified conditions essential to the devlopment and maintenance of a quality education program in a school. From this research sprung a tool and process for NEA members involved in school reform - the KEYS Initiative. The KEYS Initiative includes the use of an extensive web-based survey and suport completed by school staff for school imporvement.
Issues & Actions
"People power must be visible."
Fred Ross Jr.
Strength In Numbers Works!
Push Back 2012 MCAS Testing Dates
The SEA is urging all of our members, as well as everyone who has an interest in quality education for the children in the Springfield Public Schools, to ask the politicians and policy makers to do what is right and just for our students. They deserve the same amount of quality teaching and learning time as the students in districts who have not faced what our students have (tornado, hurricane, and October snowstorm).
Going from January to April without a break, which other communities will have, will also create a negative impact on the quality of teaching and learning time as well as students’ concentration and retention. The only way to do what is right and just for our students is to move the MCAS testing schedule back (from the March through April testing period to an April through May testing period).
Congress is starting to discuss reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), currently known as No Child Left Behind, and we need your help to make sure our elected representatives do it right........Read More
Public Employee Pension System - On January 18, 2011, Governor Patrick filed legislation which proposes changes to the public employee pension system.............November 2011 - House approves pension bill that reduces future employee benefits and passes "evergreen" measure..............Read More.
September 15, 2011 - Senate pension bill passes 24-10............Read More.
Massachusetts is not exempt from the corporate Republican strategy to dismantle democracy and workers rights House Bill 2492 - An Act relative to collective bargaining and management rights of public employees. Status: Refer to Joint Committee on Public Service on 2/25/2011
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.....................Please urge your state senator and representative to recommend an unfavorable report by the Joint Committee on Public Service in regard to the proposed Bill H2492 which proposes stripping workers of their rights by prohibiting employers from engaging in collective bargaining.
Health Insurance - Massachusetts Senate Passes Health Insurance Changes Read More.Follow the issues and get involved!
Rule of Nine.....there are two sources of new federal money (Race to the Top and Title I School Improvement Grant) that have very onerous, draconian, and inequitable conditions.......(read more)
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MTA's Reinventing Educator Evaluation - The MTA released Reinventing Educator Evaluation: Connecting Professional Practice with Student Learning on December 21, 2010, fundamentally changing the terms of the debate about how best to evaluate teachers and administrators in support of improved student learning. The comprehensive proposal advocates revamping the system in dozens of ways. The most controversial section calls for including a review of multiple measures of student achievement, one of which would be three-year trends in student MCAS growth scores, where those are available. Notably, the report says that student achievement data may inform the evaluation, but not determine it. In other words, no high-stakes decisions about educators should be made based on student test scores - or on any other single indicator. If there is a discrepancy between measures of student achievement and what the evaluator found through observation and other means, the evaluator is required to find out why. Ultimately, the final evaluation for educators should rely on professional judgment informed by observation and evidence.
Answers to frequently asked questions about the Reinventing Educator Evaluation proposal.
June 28, 2011 - State board adopts new evaluation regulations.......Read the summary and MTA's position on the key provisions.
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Imagine Working in Your School Without the Union.....That Could Happen!
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The City of Springfield Falls Below the Minimum Contributions to Schools Required By Law In Each of the Last Four Years
There is a funding formula for public education in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The formula requires local communities to make a minimum contribution to the schools. In fiscal year 2009 alone, Springfield made only 65% of its legally required minimum contribution.
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Updated 10/27/11sft
