Breaking News: UTLA’s Injunction Thrown Out by Judge

The header says it all…and I have class in eleven minutes, so this will be brief.

An inside source disclosed yesterday that the TRO (Temporary Restraining Order) sought by UTLA as a motion on it’s lawsuit against the District was thrown out by the judge.  This Case, of course, is over the allegation that State law was violated in Public School Choice 2.0, by the Board, when they decided to give Henry Clay Middle School to Green Dot Charter for operation.

The restraining order would have prevented Green Dot from taking over operations, I believe until the case was resolved.  It certainly would have stopped the next school year from happening.  It was, as my insider said, “the last real obstacle [for Green Dot]”

The case itself could be in litigation for some time, pending a legal ruling.

We End at the Beginning

When I started at Henry Clay twelve years ago, I was a “traveling teacher.”  That means, succinctly, that I was not given a classroom, but instead a cart, and had to take my belongings and lesson materials long with me in the hallway.  No desk, no wall space, and often no blackboard space.

A year later, UTLA decided this was unfair to new teachers, and the contract was changed to prevent first years from “traveling.”  A year after that change would have done me any good.  My problems with UTLA were aborning even then.

However, as I prepare demo lesson for job interviews, I find  myself using the same strategies that I needed to as a “traveling teacher.”  Short works that can be easily brought with me.  Giant sticky notes that have my lecture concepts emblazoned in large letters, easily visible, and additional blank ones for scribbling notes upon.

At the end of things, ironically, I am a travelling teacher again.

Monday Morning at the End of Clay

So, I begin my final week here.  As does everyone else.

It has been a dozen years, and closing the doors is something of a chore.  It is also mildly depressing, although for me, moving always has been.  The week is punctuated by strange leaps into the world to come.  Tomorrow, myself and a team member have an audition for a school that we would sincerely like to teach for, and on Thursday, we both have individual interviews at other schools.  This is stressful, as closing out the school year is normally a rush of paperwork, packing, and security.  In this year, the packing up is more or less for good, and needs to be done by Friday.

I have been at Clay the longest of my team, and contrary to what many may think, the overwhelming trend of thought that I have for this place is positive.  As I pack, I find myself considering the things that I had built here, that as a result of various decisions, will be no more.

I think of the obstacles that will be in Green Dot’s path, as they try to enact the reform that I wanted to.  I don’t envy them their challenges.  There are elements in the nearby community that are vehemently opposed to them…a small but unyieldingly vocal group.  Their road will be a hard one, and I respect Marco Petruzzi and his team for being willing to take up the challenge.

My classroom is increasingly empty.  Because of the way that I have divided my tasks, it is a wave of emptiness that proceeds counterclockwise around the room, heading for my desk.  That in itself will be an Agean Stables-like chore.

I hope that the schools come together for these students.  It is all that my team and I ever wanted, and why we have sacrificed so much.  Even with my vast knowledge of tactics and probability, I can’t say what the future will hold for this place, or my students.

The change, however, must be for the best.  I must have faith in that.  Further, I have hope that the Union, and the more vocal opponents of change will see that at this time, right now, the students of Clay…who are in fact the point…need less infighting, and more direction.

Thank you, Simon and Garfunkel

Anyone that knows me, knows that I categorize my CD collection not alphabetically, not by genre, but autobiographically.  It is an idiosyncratic way of doing things, but it allows me to use the lyrics and tone as a form of organizational expression.

As Team Kuppersmith continues the job search, one of my favorite songs, Simon and Garfunkel’s “The Boxer,” reaches out with lyrics that seem appropriate:

“Asking only workman’s wages
I come looking for a job,
But I get no offers”

Thus far, there have been several interviews with schools that we like, and are very interested in.  However, no offers are yet on the table.  As we look at friends securing positions (congratulations Mr. A, and Donovan), it becomes clear that much like the tenacious character in the Simon and Garfunkel song, we must redouble our efforts.

It’s kind of understandable why in fact, offers are not leaping forth.  We have been in talks with Muir MS, Clinton MS, and a Pilot School at the Robert Kennedy site.  These sites have been at job fairs, where they are suddenly inundated with the huge volume of displaced teachers, and to be frank, the supply of those teachers allows a school to be very “choosy.”

Which in fact, is a very good thing for education, if not for our peace of mind.  The choosier, to make up a word, a school can be about who they employ, the better it is for the overall educational paradigm of that school.  You can seek out those who would work well in your model.  It is part of the reason we chose the Pilot School model for our Western Academy…the autonomy to make staffing decisions.

An equally relevant fact is this:  as hard working, overachieving teachers, it’s pretty hard for us to sit still when there are things to do.  In this case, secure employment for the following year.  Preferably someplace relatively nearby, and well suited to us.

The job fair environment, described elsewhere in this weeks posts, is equally discouraging.  Not unlike “cattle calls” for extras in the film industry, mass numbers of displaced teachers arrive, and put resumes in folders.  And then wait.  Perhaps you get a call…perhaps not.  All the while, more resumes arrive.  The job fair at our school had some 180 teachers present.  That means if every Clay staff member attended, we still would have been outnumbered two to one.

We brought a classy presentation yesterday, I thought.  A unit plan, samples of different kinds of student work, a video slideshow of extracurricular activities, statistical analysis of our successes.  We put together the kind of thing that if we were hiring someone, we’d want to see.  We’ve done that all week, but as established, with the number of displaced teachers, and thus resumes, it’s a sellers market for jobs.

Much like Simon and Garfunkel’s boxer, we are staying tough.  Another round of interviews is upcoming.

Second Wave RIF “Recissions”

As an unrelated point, I hate the word “recission.” I tend to use the word “repeal” instead, and as an active voice verb. However, as has been established, UTLA doesn’t really confer with English teachers on terminology.

Looking at my site diagnostics, a great number of readers have come to the Hammer Lane from all over the internet, attempting to find out information about the Second Wave of RIF recissions.

I really don’t have too much more information than anyone else, at this point. Just a keen eye for detail, and the fact that I have been paying close attention, as it did affect many members of my PSC Team, at least initially. All of our RIF notices (33 percent of the team) were eventually repealed, one way or another.

Still, it has affected many other teachers.

At this point, the “Second Wave” is eagerly awaited. Unfortunately, it won’t be a huge stack of recissions.

Remember, that as part of the Agreement, Schools were asked to re-open their budgets, and hire positions back. Not people, just the position…that a RIF’d teacher could be selected for, based on the “reverse order of seniority” rule.

The big expectation was that some motion on this would start by today, the 16th of June.

However, we have a friend who is merely 8 days away from the first wave RIF recission cutoff…and he has, as yet, gotten no news. Eight days. He is so close to the line, that he would be one of the first.

In short…as news materializes, I will post it. The best of luck to those out there who still bear RIFs.

Looking for a job is stressful enough.

Countdown to Interview

Today is interview day for Team Kuppersmith.

Myself and my partner teacher have an appointment at the Beaudry Building, for a Pilot High School that is very interesting to us.  VERY interesting.  We have trotted out all the stops, bringing a banker’s box full of unit plans, examples of student work, and performance statistics.  We have a slideshow of student activities.  We have a powerpoint presentation about the growth that our team has produced with our student population.

Considering the school site is beautiful, and we wanted to start a pilot school…teaching at one will be an appropriate “second place.”

We have hope, which is a dangerous thing.  I’m more than a bit nervous, because the danger of hope is that it might get dashed.

Another two members of Team Kuppersmith have interviews after school.  One of them, with a school literally walking distance from his home, on the West Side of Los Angeles.  Of course, we have our fingers crossed for the both of them.

Updates as they come, True Believers.

…Can’t Get No Satisfaction

It seems that really…in the search for jobs almost no one can be satisfied in the economy.  Teachers are no different.  Although the RIF’d teachers have been getting the lions share of media attention, Public School Choice, and general downsizing also causes “displaced teachers” to happen.

That’s where the District still employs you, but you don’t have a school to work at anymore.

Local District 8 had a Job Fair for Displaced Teachers at Hnery Clay Middle School yesterday.  Despite being the hosts of the event, Clay teachers noticed quite quickly that they were vastly outnumbered by the sheer volume of displaced teachers from elsewhere in Local 8.  A good deal of ill will followed that, because it was generally thought by the staff that this fair was part of the “personalized, individual attention” from Human Resources that Mike Romero had promised.

I have to admit, it made for a packed, frantic, impersonal environment…not unlike a “cattle call” for movie extras.  By percentage of people present, a decent number of Clay staff were called up for pre-interviews, but only in the rarest cases were final decisions made, or jobs offered.

As stated by Donovan, numerous schools did not even show.

The roughest part of it for Team Kuppersmith was two fold.  Firstly…we actually got a call from a Pilot School that was interested in a significant portion of the Team.  The problem was, that call came while we were in the Job Fair.  Thankfully, we handled it swiftly and well, producing an upcoming interview…but that then produced a “time crunch” to assemble materials for a stellar interview.

The second part…a good number of the staff were pretty hostile to the members of Team Kuppersmith.  I get that, since we didn’t stand with the Official Plan, and it is generally percieved that this resulted in “the door being open for the Charters to come in.”  However, with that said, we had every opportunity to seriously improve the school over the five years of program improvement.  In fact, since we were year five for four years, we had nine years.

Blaming a small group for busting their humps to do right by the kids…you can do that, but it just doesn’t make sense.  Every situation like this needs a scapegoat, and we are easy targets.  Oddly, little is ever said directly to me personally, but yesterday began with Anti-Kuppersmith tagging on the school site.  Perhaps the indirect approach is generally the way.

Regardless…there are seven school days left.

I agree with the staff’s general view on this:  the Job Fair is a poor way of going about interviews, with a low level of return.

Another Day, Another Job Fair

So today is the Job Fair for Local District 8, being held on Henry Clay Campus.

A large number of schools from that Local District are said to be arriving, taking resumes, and interviewing.  It will run from 3PM (our closing time) until about 6PM.  Many of our own staff are attending…although teachers with standing RIF notices are still, as Alanis Morisette says, “uninvited.”

I have to admit that I don’t know what to expect.  Yesterday was educational as to the format of the Job Fairs…but we are still a bit adrift about when offers might be made, or what the probability of an interview would be.  Yesterday, Team Kuppersmith was part of the small number of teachers interviewed.  Today, we’re not so sure.  Even if we do pull interviews…we know less about the schools.

I find myself envious of the teachers that seem to know other schools like the backs of their hands.

Also, today, there was a mild freak out session, as we discovered that Palms Middle School is not only interviewing a friend of the team from Muir, but also two Clay teachers.  Muir is a fabulous school…and I wish the best of luck to those people.  All of those interviews were the result of the teachers being “go getters” and cold calling.

Rendering the “job fair” aspect suspect.  Perhaps we should simply be sending out resumes cold, to “reach schools,” almost like reliving college application.

What is an Education Job Fair like, Mr. K?

Very good question.  I have never been to one before.

This one was “invitation only”, for Displaced Teachers (like Team Kuppersmith:  school being restructured in some way), with the new or restructuring schools only present.  So for instance, John Muir was restructured under PSC 2.0, and they were supposed to be there, hiring.

There were a few schools on the list that we were very interested in, so we RSVP’d, got our confirmation, and attended.

First thing:  it was scheduled from 1-6PM.  However, most school days go until about 3PM.

That’s a bit odd, but it was pointed out that some schools are “off track.”  In that case, those teachers could actually get to the one o’clock time, without having to cut class.

Anyway, we entered to an arcane check in procedure.  This was expected, as the check in at the Beaudry Building is always rather arcane.  The signage was ambiguous, but once deciphered, the process was relatively quick.  Then we proceeded to the 15th floor.

At floor 15, there was a second check in.  Really.  I am still not entirely sure why, but we received official stickers at that point, to put on our resumes.  These said the subject areas that you were qualified to teach by California’s Credentialing Commission.  Mine, predictably, said “English” in big, bold letters.

At that point, there were folders present on the wall…labeled with the name of the schools present.  Or not present, as the case may be.  Several had already left for the day, and John Muir never actually arrived.  A school we are really intereted in, by the way.  What you do, at that point, is put your resume with its sticker in the folders.  You can do this for as many, or as few, as you wish to.

After completing that task, teachers are invited to sit and wait in the “rotunda.”  That’s an outdoor area…the 15th floor has sort of an interior patio (the rotunda) with the walls of the Beaudry Building reaching the remaining floors (about thirty I think) revealing a triangle of sky way above you.  There you wait, until a school is interested in your resume.  Then your name is called, and you meet them.  An interview ensues.

Team Kuppersmith had interviews, and seemed to do well.  One school that we were very interested in showed a reciprocal interest.

Numerous people sat with us until the end, as schools left and so on…and numerous people were never called.  In fact, of the large number of teachers there…only a handful were called.  In many ways, it was pretty discouraging.

My interview was much more interesting, and more like a real interview, than the one that got me my job at Clay, 12 years ago.  I have to admit to being nervous.

I did wear a tie though.  A nice one, according to the Team.

Fingers crossed, people.

For those who have never done a District Job Fair…that’s what to expect.  Bring many resumes, and prodigious patience.

All for now, True Believers.

Dial H for “Hypocrisy.”

Ah…interesting weekend.

For a full forty eight hours, Team Kuppersmith left behind the dramas of PSC 2.0, and had a weekend.  Most of us prepared resumes, or bought new clothes for the job fair.  I considered getting a hair cut.

I for one, expected an e-mail from UTLA regarding the onerous flyer distributed at our school.  I mostly expected the “plausible deniability” route…that since it had no obvious UTLA logos or signage on it, it would not be easily traceable backward to the organization.  That would support the “it’s not a UTLA event, but a community event” line that has been heard a few times, and again, keepthe Union mostly clear of trouble.

However, despite numerous phone calls, and numerous e-mails, we have yet to hear from any UTLA official of any kind.  If a member said that they felt discriminated against, you would think the first thing you would do is call, and make assurances that this was not the case, that there was some huge misunderstanding.  Or send an e-mail.  Perhaps a smoke signal.

Especially when we were recently reassured that we were not in fact on UTLA’s “list of enemies”, and would be treated the same as any Union member.  That assurance came from pretty high up the food chain.

Clearly in this case the political agenda has outweighed the basic mandate.  To simplify…the Union exists to protect teachers…not to conspire against a small number of them.  As a unit, we shudder to think what kind of representation we would even get, if we needed it.

It is also sad that the Charter Organization, Green Dot, reached out to Team Kuppersmith to provide at the very least, comfort in abuse.  We don’t even work for them, and there was a sort of solidarity of taking licks off of UTLA.  It is also depressing that the District Administration, which ostensibly UTLA exists to protect us from the excesses of, has shown more concern for fair play and correct policy than our own Union.

UTLA…we are not letting this matter go.  A Union must represent every member equally.  No more, no less.  If that isn’t the case…then politics have caused the organization to be self interested, and lose sight of the basic mandate for its existence.