2013-2014 School Year

Transcription

Vol. 34 No. 1
THE VOICE OF THE DELAWARE STATE EDUCATION ASSOCIATION
September 2013
INSIDE
Delaware delegates
shine at NEA
convention
Pages 12-13
n n n
Union training? Yes!
Page 14
n n n
Changes coming
to evaluations
Page 5
We thank all of the membership chairs and local officers who devoted a day in August for DSEA’s 2013 membership recruitment workshop. Among them are Pete Trotto, membership chair and Vickie Caprinolo, vice president, both leaders in the
Appoquinimink Education Association. Read more about why Pete is so involved in his local on page 3.
You keep us strong and united
Membership chairs and
their officers meet with
DSEA staff and officers
to get ready to recruit
new employees.
aking advantage of New Hire
Orientations, they’ve already
recruited 380 new members
before schools started.
Membership chairs and local officers met in Dover to learn, share,
and practice membership recruitment.
T
Why join the Association?
Recruiters stress that Association
membership means participating in
their profession, working with
other union members to build a
strong, united movement whose
purpose is to improve their work
life and their ability to be
successful.
Glenda Wilson (right) and Myrna Laws
practice a membership recruitment role
play. Both are Red Clay Secretaries.
How the president sees it
What about
the kids?
hen I started teaching in
1972, it wasn’t for the
money, or the perks, or
just to be gainfully employed. It
was because of my affinity for children. I love kids and I love teaching, so this career always seemed
like a great fit for me. DSEA members take me to task if I fail to
make explicit our commitment to
advocacy for students, alongside
our support for public education
and the education professionals
who work in and around our
schools. It is “all about the kids”—
a phrase that has become clichéd.
The kids are always present— at
New Hire Orientation sessions,
Executive Board meetings, Rep
Councils, during training and professional development. They may
not be visible; they may not be identified. However, they are never far
from the minds of Delaware educators and education union leaders.
ment trips. Thank you for all that
you do for our students, our
schools, and our communities.
TellDel survey results
matter
W
DSEA ACTION! (USPS 010111 ISSN
01995413) is the official publication of
the Delaware State Education
Association.
ACTION! is mailed 7 times a year,
(September, October, combined
Nov/Dec issue, February, March/April,
June and July) at DSEA headquarters
located at 136 E. Water St., Dover, DE
19901. Telephone: 302-734-5834, or
toll-free: 1-866-734-5834. Our
Wilmington office may be reached by
calling 302-366-8440. Subscriptions are
included in membership: $2.32 a year
for teachers and $1.19 a year for ESPs.
Subscriptions are $5 per year to those
ineligible for membership. Periodical
postage paid at Dover, DE 19901.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to
DSEA ACTION!, 136 E. Water St.,
Dover, DE 19901.
President
FREDERIKA JENNER
Vice President
KAREN CROUSE
Treasurer
DOM ZAFFORA
NEA Director
MIKE HOFFMANN
Exec. Director
JEFF TASCHNER
Editor
PAMELA T. NICHOLS
Program Assistant
SUSAN W. KELLER
“It’s up to us,” says President Frederika
Jenner, “to put the available Tell Del
data to good use in our schools. No one
else is going to just fix things for us.”
What you did on your
summer vacation
I trust that everyone found time
this summer for R & R. On the
other hand, I know full well that
members used the time to teach
classes, manage district projects,
extend students’ learning opportunities, and to offer enrichment in
community-based programs.
Others completed course work,
caught up on professional reading,
attended workshops, and expanded
repertoires of skills and strategies.
Plenty of members’ work extends
well into summer: paras continue
assisting students whose progress
depends on their care and expertise; school and district secretaries
close out one year as they ready for
the next; food service workers help
support summer learning programs
with nutritious meals; custodians
get a work-out—moving furniture
out of dirty rooms and back into
clean ones; bus drivers transport
kids for summer school and enrich-
Now may be a good time to
review Tell Delaware results for
your school. Check www.tell
delaware.org. Click on “survey
results” to find your district and
school. [Schools not meeting the
50% participation threshold have
no data listed.] Expanded data is
located in column two. The data
uncovered by clicking on the chart
icon is most revealing. If I were
you, I’d print a copy for my team to
review—it’s five pages.
Now comes the challenging part.
Take a close look at strengths and
weaknesses; positives and negatives.
Prioritize what would be a good
place to start—what’s manageable
and could generate relatively easy,
quick successes. Likewise, everyone
doesn’t have to work on every situation; tasks, projects, and options
can be divvied up among interested
staff. Remember—this is not a
short-term project. It may take a
few years to accomplish important
changes. Anything worth doing is
worth doing right.
The TellDel project will be a bust
if participants do not see real and
meaningful changes. It really is up
to you and your colleagues to work
together to ensure that this data is
put to good use in building on what
seems to work, and adjusting and
fixing what needs attention. In my
experience, no one else is going to
fix things for us.
Confidence in evaluation
system eroding
Overall, we think the results of
the recent DPAS II survey demonstrate an erosion of educators’ confidence in an evaluation system
that was previously pretty highly
regarded.
We certainly disagree with the
principal investigator’s determination that “the majority of teachers,
specialists, and administrators gave
the evaluation process a ‘C.’
Exaggerated reflections like this
may mask genuine and important
concerns about DPAS II-R, including on-going problems with process
and implementation, as well as
training and communications from
DDOE. See pages 4 and 5 for more
details, and page 10 to sign up for a
Component 5 Workshop being put
on by DSEA.
This exaggerated statement fails
to note that 65% of teachers gave
the process a ‘C’ or less, and that
76% of specialists and administrators gave the process the same rating. This seems a far cry from indicating that most Delaware educators gave DPAS what in our schools
would be a “satisfactory”
THERE IS POWER IN THE UNION.
Frederika Jenner
President
[email protected]
Leading the way. . .
his
month
we feature Pete
Trotto, who is
beginning his
15th year in
education. An
elementary teacher for 14 years,
he is moving to 7th grade Social
Studies at Redding Middle
School in Appoquinimink this
year.
He has been an Association
Rep at Olive B. Loss Elementary
T
2 September 2013 DSEA ACTION!
School for the last three years. He is
beginning his second year as the
AEA membership chair.
goal now is to make progress
towards 100% participation in
the AEA across the district.
Why did you become involved?
What do you think is your local
Association’s biggest challenge
this year?
Our building didn’t have representation at AEA rep meetings and I
felt that we were missing out on
important information, as well as
having a voice.
What accomplishments as a
leader are you the most proud
of?
I am most proud of the relationship
I was able to create between our
staff and the administration. My
Working to keep tweaking
Component V and making sure
that it is fair to all involved.
What about our biggest challenge at the state level?
Changing the perception that our
public schools are not preparing
our children for the future and
making them successful citizens.
www.dsea.org
What’s hot
Member Benefits Fairs
Find out how to save $ with your membership.
New Castle County
Thursday, October 17, 3:30 - 6:30 p.m.
White Clay Creek Country Club
777 Delaware Park Blvd., Wilmington
Kent County
Carol Wright remembers 1963
March on Washington and
“I have a dream” speech
Wednesday, October 23, 3:30 - 6:30 p.m.
Dover Downs Conference Center
Dover
Sussex County
Thursday, November 7, 3:30 - 6:30 p.m.
Baywood Greens
32267 Clubhouse Way, Longneck
“
Fifty years ago, on August
28, 1963, I was 16 years old and
a rising Junior at Howard High
School in Wilmington when I
was asked to attend the March
on Washington with the
Wilmington Chapter of the
NAACP.
was well aware of the issues
that were impacting African
Americans who were living
under “Separate but Equal” laws at
that time.
Arriving in Washington, D.C. on
the yellow school bus was exciting.
I had never seen so many people
gathered in one place in my life.
There were crowds and crowds of
people. All I saw were people on the
Mall. I clearly remember that we
were instructed to stay together
and to be careful.
When Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
gave his ‘I Have a Dream’ speech, I
stopped what I was doing and paid
attention. The words that Dr. King
spoke that day have been with me
all of my life.
Over the past 50 years I have had
the opportunity to visit every place
that Dr. King mentioned in that
speech. Just standing at Stone
Mountain in Georgia or at Lookout
Mountain in Tennessee, a feeling of
calmness comes over me.
I
www.dsea.org
We welcome new UniServ director
tephanie
Walters
joins the
DSEA staff in
early September,
working out of the
Walters
Dover office as a
UniServ director.
She’ll be the field staff representative for the Kent and Sussex locals
formerly assigned to Wendy
Cannon – Indian River, Milford,
Sussex Vo-Tech and Woodbridge.
Cannon is working with the
locals formerly assigned to Toby
Paone who has returned home to
the mid-west and now working for
the Iowa State Education
Association.
S
The words that Dr. King spoke 50 years
ago have been with Carol Wright every
day since then.
Throughout my lifetime I have
been actively involved in organizations whose missions are to
improve the quality of life for
everybody. I see Dr. King’s dream
through some of the progress that
has been made in living conditions,
education and voting rights for all
people.
”
Wright is an active member of DSEARetired, representing New Castle County
members on their board. She taught in
the Wilmington and Red Clay School
Districts for 40 years. During that time
she was a member of the DSEA Exec.
Board; Red Clay Teacher of the Year in
1995; and recipient of the DSEA Human
and Civil Rights Award in 2009. She is a
member of Delta Sigma Theta and
returned to DC with them for the 50th
anniversary celebration on August 24.
Walters comes to us with a strong
background in organizing and in
public education. She has been a
paraprofessional, teacher, UniServ
director, activist and organizer in
Milwaukee Public Schools, the
Milwaukee Teachers Education
Association (MTEA) and, most
recently, with the Wisconsin
Education Association Council
(WEAC), the state affiliate of NEA.
Walters holds a bachelor of arts
degree in broadcast journalism
from Marquette University, and a
master of science in curriculum
and instruction from the University
of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Walters will be on board the first
week of September.
Woodbridge middle school teacher joins DSEA
Exec. Board
ay
Sockriter, a
7th grade
social studies
teacher at Phillis
Wheatley Middle
Sockriter
School in
Woodbridge, is the newest member
of the DSEA Exec. Board. He was
elected by the Exec. Board to fill a
Sussex County vacancy created
when Dom Zaffora, also of
R
Woodbridge, became the DSEA
treasurer.
Sockriter, a native of Milton, DE,
holds a masters degree in
Education from Wilmington
University, and has been teaching
in Woodbridge for 12 years. To see
the entire Who’s Who of DSEA and
your local association officers, go to
www.dsea.org/About DSEA/Whos
who.html.
September 2013 DSEA ACTION! 3
What you said about DPAS II
“Evaluation system needs improving”
n late spring the Delaware Dept.
of Education commissioned
Progress Education Corp. of
Chicago, IL to do its annual scientific survey of teachers, specialists
and administrators about DPASII.
This is the sixth year that DoE has
undertaken this survey with the
purpose of making improvements
to our statewide evaluation system.
Presented here are highlights of
their findings, which you can read
in their entirety at www.dsea.org/
Accountability/DPASII.html.
I
Key Findings
60% of teachers/64% specialists
disagree that the criteria used to
evaluate them for student improvement are effective indicators of
their effectiveness.
disagree that the criteria used to
evaluate them for student improvement can be accurately judged by
their evaluator.
disagree that the time it takes to
complete the paperwork requirements is reasonable; 49% of teachers/56% specialists disagree that
the forms are easy to complete; 51%
of teachers/57% specialists disagree that the forms make the
process easy to implement.
disagree that the overall system is
easy to follow.
disagree that they perceive the system to be fair.
disagree that training in the
process is adequate.
disagree that there was enough
training/support.
identified Component 5 where they
need additional training.
DPAS II communications from
DOE was rated very poorly by
teachers, specialists, and administrators.
59% of group 1 educators disagree that the 50% weighting given
Statement
Teachers
Specialists
Administrators
DPAS System needs
improving
86% agree
86% agree
95% agree
System is being implemented appropriately in
my work location
74% agree
68% agree
86% agree
System should be continued in current form
75% disagree
79% disagree
88% disagree
to measures A and B is a fair representation of effectiveness.
trators found Component 5 difficult
to implement.
50% of group 1 educators disagree that the combination of ratings to determine the summative is
fair.
46% of teachers/46% specialists/38% administrators found
Component 5 not fair at all.
55% of group 1 educators disagree that the growth targets set
for measure A are fair.
40% of teachers disagree that the
improvement plan process helped
to direct their professional growth
goals.
50% of teachers disagree that
there are adequate resources to
implement improvement plans.
61% of teachers/66% specialists,
59% administrators disagree that
educators have been adequately
involved in improving the DPAS II
system.
While 88% of teachers, 81% specialists, and 93% administrators
found Component 5 to be very or
somewhat important, 41% of teachers/46% specialists/47% adminis-
data coaches of little or no value.
PLC’s to be very or somewhat valuable.
65% of teachers/76% of specialist and 76% of administrators
gave the overall evaluation process
a grade of “C” or less.
Of the 5 components, professional
responsibilities and student
improvement were ranked the lowest as good indicators of performance for administrators – Prof.
Resp. 61%, student improvement
64%. The other indicators ranked
80% and above.
Of the 5 components, professional
responsibilities and student
improvement were ranked the low-
est as good indicators of performance for teachers – Prof. Resp. 43%,
student improvement 52%. The
other indicators ranked 83% and
above with Instruction ranked at
97%.
38% of administrators disagree
that they could accurately evaluate
teachers using the criteria for the
student achievement component.
36% of teachers and 52% of specialists believe that DPASII has little or no impact on their effectiveness. The amounts are the same for
the effectiveness of Component 5
and Unannounced Observations.
The effectiveness of Announced
Observations was even less: 28% of
teachers and 48% of specialists
believe they have little or no impact
on their effectiveness.
Half of teachers and specialists
(50% and 48%) do not believe that
the requirements for “Highly
Effective” are fair (50% and 48%),
appropriate (48% and 48%), aligned
to their work (44% and 50%) or realistic (51% and 52%).
Value of:
Valuable to
Teachers
Valuable to
Specialists
Valuable to
Administrators
Valuable to
Evaluators
Announced
observations
86%
80%
63%
70%
Unannounced
observations
79%
75%
98%
97%
Announced
walk-throughs
68%
60%
64%
Unannounced
walk-throughs
69%
95%
94%
Peer observations
77%
74%
87%
88%
Use of rubrics
49%
46%
90%
90%
Mentoring
71%
92%
89%
PLC’s
63%
95%
92%
60%
www.dsea.org
DPAS II - Revised Update
Evaluation system changing for 2013-2014
On July 18, the State
Board of Education
approved changes to
the teacher (106A)/specialist(107A) evaluation
system, DPASII-Revised.
ollowing are most of the
changes to the evaluation
system which will be implemented this school year, 2013-2014.
To access both the Teacher and
Specialist Guides, go to http://
www.doe.k12.de.us/csa/dpasii/
default.shtml.
F
“Credentialed Observer”
–does not have to be your
Evaluator
A significant change this year in
the teacher/specialist evaluation
system is the creation of a
“Credentialed Observer.” This definition clarifies that a non-supervisory individual, such as a department chair, may conduct observations as part of the appraisal
process as long as they have successfully completed the DOE DPAS
II credentialing process required of
observers and evaluators.
Credentialed observers may conduct the required observations
within the evaluation cycle. We
believe that your supervisor/evaluator, however, is still responsible for
your final Summative Evaluation.
That is not completely clear in the
new regulations so we are seeking
clarification, as ACTION! was going
to press.
The Summative Evaluation may
now include “additional
Announced or Unannounced observation data beyond the required
observation data provided by a
Credentialed Observer.”
Number of Announced and
Unannounced observations
changing
Highly Effective and Effective
teachers and specialists shall
receive at a minimum either an
Announced or Unannounced observation each year. Previously, this
observation had to be “Announced.”
The number of announced and
unannounced observations for
www.dsea.org
Novice teachers has changed.
They will now receive two
Unannounced and One Announced
instead of the reverse.
Notice specialists will now
receive one Unannounced and one
Announced observation. Previously
two Announced and one
Unannounced observations were
required.
Districts may now waive
one criterion from each of
the first four Appraisal
Components
That’s right. By August 31, districts must notify teachers whether
they will waive one of the criteria
in Planning and Preparation,
Classroom Environment,
Instruction and/or Professional
Responsibilities. It is important to
note that not all of the criteria are
optional.
For teachers, the optional criteria are:
Planning and Preparation Selecting Instructional Goals, and
Demonstrating Knowledge of
Content and Pedagogy
Classroom Environment Creating an Environment to
Support Learning, and Organizing
Physical Space
Instruction - Demonstrating
Flexibility and Responsiveness, and
Communicating Clearly and
Accurately
Professional Responsibilities Communicating with Families, and
Growing and Developing
Professionally
For specialists, the Optional
Criteria are:
Planning and Preparation:
Demonstrating Knowledge of Best
Practice and Models of Delivery,
and Demonstrating Knowledge of
Students or Clients
Professional Practice and
Delivery of Services:
Demonstrating Flexibility and
Responsiveness, and
Communicating Clearly and
Accurately
Professional Collaboration and
Consultation:
Collaborating with Others, and
Serving as a Consultant to the
School Community
Professional Responsibilities:
Recording Student Data in a Record
System, and Growing and
Developing Professionally
If your district has not notified
teachers and specialists of a waiver
of the optional criteria by the time
you read this, then district evaluators must continue to evaluate you
on all criteria. If they have chosen
to waive some criteria, then those
waivers apply to everyone and are
in effect for the entire school year.
All Appraisal Criteria
observed shall be rated on
each observation AND each
shall also be assigned an
overall rating in both a
teacher’s and specialist’s
Summative Rating
Previously, the Summative
Evaluation only indicated ratings
for each of the five Appraisal
Components. It did not include the
ratings of each criterion within the
Components. These new ratings
must also be tied to the rubrics,
based on evidence linked to the
rubrics.
An Improvement Plan MAY
be developed if a teacher’s
or specialist’s overall performance during an
observed lesson is
Unsatisfactory
Previously, an Improvement Plan
was mandatory following an
Unsatisfactory Observation.
This change provides administrators with some flexibility for rating
observations, especially in situations where the observed lesson
may not accurately reflect the
teacher’s/specialist’s true capability. In the end, districts must still
develop a plan and provide help
when needed.
Professional Development
taken because of an
Improvement Plan does not
have to be federally or
state funded or certified by
the Dept. of Education.
It does still, however, have to
relate to your work responsibilities.
According to DSEA’s Debbie
Stevens, dir. of instructional advocacy, “The Dept. has focused on
things that take some of the pressure off the system. We urge everyone to still stay vigilant. The more
you understand the process, the better prepared you are for it to go
well.”
Looking ahead….
The state and districts will be
moving “Common Core
Standards” implementation out
in districts in a big way this fall
since it is due for full implementation in 2014-2015.
The state will be offering some
professional development, and
the state’s Common Core
Implementation Group will continue to meet and make recommendations.
As you probably know, the
understanding and knowledge of
Common Core varies greatly in
Delaware. Check out the national
data on page 6.
DSEA is also offering
Common Core workshops for
members, by county, in both
English Language Arts and
Mathematics in October. See page
10.
For more resources on
Common Core, go to www.dsea.
org and click on Common Core
Standards - Resources under
Quick Links.
Can you still challenge an
Unsatisfactory rating if
there is no Improvement
Plan?
Yes.
Annual Gallup Poll of our schools
PDK/Gallup Poll: Majority of Americans reject testing,
have not heard of the Common Core Standards
- by Tim Walker, NEA Today
As classrooms across
the nation begin the
transition to the
Common Core State
Standards (CCSS), the
potentially game-changing initiative apparently
hasn’t registered with
the American public.
ugust 20, 2013…. According to the new Phi Delta
Kappa/Gallup poll, two out
of three Americans have not heard
of the Common Core. Among the
third who have heard of the standards, a majority said they would
not make U.S. students more competitive globally – although the survey also revealed that these reservations might be attributed in part to
misunderstanding about the standards.
The poll also revealed that most
Americans reject using standardized tests to evaluate teachers.
Phi Delta Kappa International
(PDK), a global association of education professionals, has conducted
the annual Poll of the Public’s
Attitude Toward the Public
Schools in conjunction with Gallup
since 1969. This year’s poll was
based on conversations with 1001
respondents.
One of the more enduring myths
about the CCSS is that individual
states adopted the standards in
response to a federal mandate. The
PDK/Gallup poll confirms this perception. The majority of those who
have heard of the Common Core
believe that Washington is insisting
that all states adopt the standards.
The misinformation around the initiative has been a serious problem
as states begin implementing the
standards – a process, says NEA
President Dennis Van Roekel,
that has to be done right.
“We need to inform Americans of
the impact standards can have,
engage parents and families in
meaningful ways, and highlight the
A
role we all play — educators, students, parents and community
members,” Van Roekel said.
“Together, it is our responsibility to
ensure that implementation is successful for students.”
NEA, one of many teacher
groups that partnered with the
National Governors Association
and Council of Chief State School
Officers as they developed the standards, is working with its affiliates
to ensure that educators are leaders
in the transition to Common Core,
not only in developing relevant creative resources for the classroom,
but also helping shape the new generation of assessments.
Educators across the country can
be heartened by the survey’s finding that an increasing number of
Americans reject standardized
tests. A majority oppose using test
scores to evaluate teachers and less
than a quarter of respondents say
testing has helped student performance. That’s quite the reversal from
last year when a majority expressed
support for the practice.
“Parents know that children
learn in different ways and at different rates. They know that learning can’t be fully measured with a
standardized test,” said Van Roekel.
“As we begin to introduce the new
Common Core State Standards, this
becomes even more important. This
poll demonstrates that parents and
the public have a more sophisticated understanding of what is going
on in our schools, and cuts through
much of the flawed thinking that
has dominated the debate about
public education over the past few
years.”
Other key findings in the
PDK/Gallup poll
• More than 70% of Americans
have “trust and confidence” in public school educators.
• A majority give public schools in
their community an ‘A’ or ‘B’ – the
highest rating ever recorded by the
poll.
• Seventy percent of Americans
oppose private school vouchers —
another high mark for the Gallup
survey.
• Overwhelmingly, Americans do
not worry about their child’s safety
while attending school. Asked
about ways to promote school safe-
You can read the entire poll
report entitled, “Which way
do we go? American policy
makers are forging ahead with
education initiatives, but they
may be leaving Americans
behind and out of the loop,”
at http://pdkintl.org/no
index/2013_ PDK Gallup.pdf.
ty, respondents preferred greater
access to mental health services
over the hiring of more security
guards.
• Americans chose critical thinking skills as the most important
21st Century skill, followed closely
by communications skills.
• According to 77 percent of
Americans surveyed, the increase
in standardized testing over the last
decade has been ineffective and
even harmful to public schools.
• In just one year, Americans
reversed their opinion and now
nearly 60 percent oppose tying
student test scores to teacher
evaluations.
Where NEA stands on the Common Core
Standards: support, but we must get it right
Bringing common sense to the Common Core
he new standards are
a potential gamechanger for our
nation’s public school system,”
said National Education
Association President Dennis
Van Roekel. “Instead of treating
children like widgets, the
Common Core will put 21st century skills into our classrooms.
Creativity and critical thinking
will replace our current emphasis on rote memorization and
teaching to the test. The standards will allow educators to
customize their lessons to their
“T
students’ individual needs and provide high quality instruction for all
students, regardless of their zip
code.”
However, Van Roekel warns, it is
imperative that we get it right. This
includes, he said, “informing
Americans of the impact standards
can have, engaging parents and
families in meaningful ways, and
highlighting the role we all play —
educators, students, parents and
community members. Together, it is
our responsibility to ensure that
implementation is successful for
students.
“If we take the time to get it
right, our students will be able to
think critically, solve problems and
apply what they’ve learned in
school to their lives after school.
Teachers will be able to focus on
doing what they do best—teaching—not what they’re forced to do
with much of their day now, which
is testing,” said Van Roekel.
“Getting it right also means having a good implementation plan so
educators are prepared. That
means professional development,
time for collaboration and adequate resources,” said Van Roekel.
www.dsea.org
Your dues at work
In August the driving public will see 48 of our Back-to-School billboards in all three counties.
Promoting our
great schools in
your communities
he core of our Great Schools
Great Communities campaign is a web site. It’s also
an Action Center where parents
and other members of the public
can go to see news about our public
schools, tips from teachers and
other expert sources, and take
action. They can easily sign a petition in support of great public
schools for every child and laws and
regulations that support public
school employees, families and students; they can email or call their
state legislators; and they can write
a letter to the editor to the News
Journal and/or the Delaware State
News.
They can link to the Great
Schools Facebook page which,
thanks to Google ads and Search
Word ads, has over 10,000 “likes.”
And they can also link to the Great
Schools twitter feed.
To help direct the public to our
Great Schools web page, we promote it extensively on radio for two
weeks at a time, three times a year
on stations up and down the state.
And year-round, you’ll hear
DSEA ads on WDEL 1150AM, WJBR
99.5FM and WDSD 94.7FM.
With those three stations we use
Great Schools dollars for the
“Teacher of the Month” program
on WJBR and an “Educator of the
Month” program for ESP workers
on WDSD. On WDEL, we have a
contract for discounted year-round
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www.dsea.org
advertising. WDEL and WJBR are
Delaware’s top adult radio stations.
The Country Club in
supports
the “Teacher of the Month” award
program by diving each winner a
free dinner for two and a special
banquet for all of them at the end of
the school year.
Here’s how we will also continue
to promote DSEA and Great
Schools:
read a Great School testimonial
from one of our Sussex County
members. In addition, Sharon
Fagan, a 6th grade ELA teacher at
Millsboro Middle School, threw out
the first pitch.
• This past spring we were one of
three sponsors of the Legislative
Update on Delaware’s new NPR
Station, WDDE 91.1FM housed at
Delaware State University.
• Sponsor of the 85,000 bookmarks printed by the Blue Rocks
baseball team and distributed to
about 35 schools by their mascot
Rockie Bluewinkle. The bookmarks
include a reading incentive where
students can win tickets to games.
• TV ad on WBOC-TV, Salisbury,
MD during the Back-to-School time
in August. The current ad features
two Cape Henlopen High School
students whose video tips are on
our Great Schools site. Their class
won a video contest we sponsored
two years ago. The tips deal with
Self-Image and Procrastination.
• We have sponsored Great
Schools ads linking DSEA and our
Great Schools web site in the programs for the play-offs of both the
high school football and basketball
championships, both boys and girls,
sponsored by the Delaware
Interstate Athletic Association.
• This past spring we sponsored
a DSEA night at the Shorebirds, a
minor league team in Salisbury, MD
where we handed out stadium mugs
with the Great Schools logo
imprinted on one side, and the
Shorebirds logo on the other.
During the game, the announcer
choose a winner. The winner will
have a three-minute on-air interview with Mellie Mel, program
director and top air personality, and
a studio tour. The web site will keep
up the information about winners
and other applicants. And DSEA
will be the sponsor of the daily
“MP3 at 3” segment.
Listen for promos to begin in
September!
This partnership is funded
through an Advertising Assistance
Grant from NEA. KISS 101.7FM is
Delaware’s largest urban contemporary station, with a strong young
adult listenership in New Castle
and Kent Counties.
• When we march in the AFLCIO Labor Day parade in
Wilmington, we all wear
DSEA/Great Schools t-shirts, and
pass out apples, Great Schools pencils and Great Schools temporary
tattoos – all featuring the web site
address.
New this year – a partnership with KISS 101.7FM
“Tell us about your great school”
will be promoted on KISS 101.7FM
from October through April. Six
monthly awards will be given to
various schools throughout
Delaware. The station will air 28
promos/week for two weeks during
each month, as well as promote it
on their popular Facebook page.
Students and staff will be urged
to go to the DSEA Great Schools/
KISS website to make their pitch
for what’s great about their school.
Each month the KISS staff will
Your story
A teacher’s influence
Remembering Murray
- by Larry Koch, Ed.d., Frederica, Delaware, [email protected]
n 1967 at the
age of 20, I
began my
career as a
teacher, working
out of a one-room
classroom with a
multi-aged class. In the past half
century plus, I have taught regular
education, remedial, gifted and special education, primary, intermediate middle and secondary students,
private, parochial and public
schools, rural, urban and suburban
communities, adult education,
undergraduate and graduate classes. In addition to being a teacher
and substitute teacher, I have
served as a head teacher, department head, curriculum coordinator,
principal, special education director, assistant superintendent and
occasionally (for a fortunately fleeting time) as a superintendent.
Now in my twilight years, I look
back with pride at the changes I
have made and the people I have
positively affected. How do role
models and heroes influence personal development and the future?
Whom have I influenced, and who
has influenced me? But before I tell
you that, I need to tell you about an
eighteen year-old teenager I knew
named Murray.
I
Murray wanted to be a
cowboy
Murray lived in the South Bronx
in New York City. He was fascinated
by cars and auto repair, going to
New York Giant Games and enjoying the great outdoors, a rare commodity in the South Bronx. He had
a hero, an actor named Steve
McQueen. He caught all of Steve
McQueen’s movies, and loved them,
especially ones’ where the actor had
a chance to ride a motorcycle. He
was especially fond of the TV series
that McQueen starred in “Wanted
Dead or Alive.”
Murray was the son of immigrants, and his step-father was a
holocaust survivor. Education was
valued in their home. One of his
brothers became a chemist, and the
other became an accountant.
Murray was different, and had no
interest in going to college. He
asked his mother if he could move
to Texas, and follow in the footsteps
of his hero, Steve McQueen.
Needless to say, his mother was
not pleased that her son “… wanted
to be a cowboy.” She alternately
pleaded, begged and scolded him to
change his mind, to no avail. Still,
in the back of her mind she knew
he was becoming a man, and that in
the end she could not stop him, and
that he could move where he wanted, when he wanted, with or without her permission. With this in
mind, crafty woman that she was,
Murray’s Mom made “a deal.” If he
could get his reputedly stupid
cousin to successfully learn to read
and stay in school, he could do what
he wanted.
“Teach your cousin to read
and you can go to Texas”
Murray’s mother knew he liked
kids. She secretly thought she had
come up with a “Mission
Impossible,” another show he liked,
because the cousin in question was,
according to the school, virtually
unteachable! In the end, she
thought, Murray would give up,
stay in New York, and get a “real
job”- maybe be a social worker or a
teacher. Not an accountant, but at
least he wouldn’t starve, or end up
fighting Apaches on the Texas frontier!
Murray’s cousin lived far, far away
in a borough called Brooklyn. This
was Dodger territory. It was not a
safe place, especially for a Bronx lad
who rooted for the Giants, and occasionally also supported the hated
New York Yankees. His Brooklyn
cousin’s father was hospitalized and
in poor health, and the boy’s mother
went to work very early in the
morning and came home after he
went to bed. The cousin made his
own breakfast and lunch, and a
nearby corner store was paid weekly to provide his supper.
Murray’s cousin, also a first generation American, was growing up
wild. He didn’t listen to his teachers, hated school and played hooky
whenever he got the chance. In
fourth grade he couldn’t read, and
made little effort to learn. Remedial
teachers, school psychologists and
social workers were unable to connect, and a 600 school - the place in
New York City they would send
incorrigibles- was considered as a
future placement. That is, IF they
could get him to go.
Comics and kickball help do
the trick
Three times a week Murray would
take the subway from the South
Bronx to the far off Flatbush neighborhood in Brooklyn, changing
trains twice, and then take the
same trains back. Murray used
comic books to teach his cousin to
read, starting with Bugs Bunny and
Little Lulu, and eventually working
up to the “Illustrated Classics.”
Tutoring was interspersed with
street games like box ball and stickball, to let both boys have an opportunity to burn off energy and to
bond. To the amazement of all, the
cousin eventually learned to read,
and then learned to love to read!
All this happened a long time ago.
Murray passed, and is buried in his
beloved adopted home State of
Texas. To the surprise of everyone,
he had achieved the goal his mother
had set, and had moved to the Lone
Star State before anyone could set
any additional conditions. Like his
hero, he became a process server,
and did quite well, and also established a successful auto repair business, and raised a family.
Why did Murray succeed?
For one thing, his younger
cousin’s teachers believed he was
unmotivated, unkempt and disorganized, and came from a home
they thought provided little support
or intellectual stimulation. The
word was out about Murray’s
cousin, and everyone in the
teacher’s room knew of his background and deficiencies.
Murray did not care about any of
these factors, and had no presumption that his cousin could not
learn. In addition, Murray personalized the instruction, liked his
cousin and related well to him, and
was committed to succeed in
teaching him to read. Murray had
no interest in pedagogy, but in this
instance, with his one and only
teaching assignment, he demonstrated the highest standards of the
education profession.
After his mother passed, Murray
lost touch with the family, and
never knew that the illiterate
cousin he worked with way back in
the fifties learned to like learning,
and miraculously went off to college. Before recently retiring to
Delaware, Murray’s cousin would
also leave his native New York and
relocate in Maine. There the cousin
would become a teacher and school
administrator, and eventually earn
his doctorate in Education.
I will never forget my Cousin
Murray, a fan of Steve McQueen,
whose desire to become a cowboy
made him the teacher who most
influenced my teaching and my life.
R.E.W.A.R.D.
Retired Educators –
Writers, Artists and
Reviewers of
Delaware
n cooperation with the DSEARetired, I am exploring interest among former educators
in forming a “writers and artists
circle.” Writers and artists would
provide collegial support in
exploring nonfiction and fictional
accounts, memoirs, other writings and art, which may or may
not be on the topic of education.
Dates and location of meetings
are to be arranged, which might
include DSEA headquarters in
Dover.
For further information, please
contact me at 302-335-9344 or by
email at larry.koch.2008@
comcast.net.
I
www.dsea.org
the commitment continues. . .
Is retirement around the corner for you?
- by Rich Phillips, DSEA-Retired President
DSEA-Retired has scheduled
two Pre-Retirement
Workshops for the 20132014 school year. If you’re
thinking of retiring sometime this year, plan to
attend one of the two
workshops - Nov. 9 or
March 22, 2014.
he first of the workshops is
Saturday, November 9th; it
will be held at the Delaware
State Troopers Association located
at 6349 North DuPont Highway in
Cheswold. This is a large meeting
space with plenty of parking.
A registration form is included on
this page. Please make sure you
submit your registration form no
later than Friday, October 25.
Kristen Boehmer, a specialist
from the State Pension Office, will
provide information about retirement in the State of Delaware.
Kristen has presented for DSEARetired before and can answer any
questions that you might have.
In the past, the Pension Office has
provided estimates to those who
registered. Recently, however, they
informed us that they would no
longer provide estimates to attendees. However, Kristen will demonstrate the ease of using the online
calculator on the pension website
so that you can estimate your own
pension.
An added part to the workshop is
Ben Shamburger who has up-todate knowledge of Social Security.
He will cover eligibility requirements for Social Security retirement and important considerations
concerning when to begin collecting benefits. He will also discuss
survivor benefits, disability benefits and Medicare eligibility.
Ben worked for Social Security for
almost 15 years and served as the
public affairs officer for the
Eastern Shore for the last seven
years before his retirement in 2011.
Please keep in mind the various
ways you may qualify for retirement:
• Unreduced service pension
benefit
Ø 30 years of credited service at
any age
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www.dsea.org
Ø Age 60 with at least 15 years of
credited service
credited service
Ø 25 years of credited service at
any age under age 60 (reduced .02%
for each month employee is short of
30 years of credited service)
• Reduced service pension benefit
credited service (reduced .02% for
each month employee is under age
60)
• Vested Pension Benefit
Ø Employee must have 5 consecutive years of service
Ø Pension is effective for the month
following the employee’s 62nd birthday.
Our workshops are FREE to all
active DSEA members. If you are
not a member of DSEA or if you
are a guest of a member, a $5
charge is requested to help offset
the cost of the facility and refreshments.
The second workshop will be held
on Saturday, March 22 at Delaware
Technical & Community College,
Georgetown. More details will follow in a future DSEA ACTION!
DSEA’s Professional Development Series 2013-2014
October 2013
Common Core Implementation - Understanding the
Instructional Shifts: October 8 (NCC), 22 (Dover), 29 (Sussex)
Focus: Understanding the pedagogical shifts and literacy
demands required by the Common Core and their impact on
classroom instruction for ELA and Math teachers as well as other
content area educators.
Smart Board Training: October 5 (New Castle County)
Focus: How to effectively use SMART Board technology in the
classroom.
November 2013
You asked – DSEA listened!
SMART Board Training: November 2 (Dover)
Focus: How to effectively use SMART Board technology in the
classroom.
programs designed to
meet your needs
Educators/School Employees and the Law: November 5
(NCC), 7 (Dover), 12 (Sussex)
Focus: The laws related to discipline in the classroom, the
amount of force that can be used in school, what to do about
libel and slander, your legal responsibility for student performance
on the DCAS, the basics of the DSEA legal program, etc.
Mark your calendars and watch for further details (specific locations and how to register).
All of these sessions are free to DSEA members and many will be
helpful to all members, not only teachers.
For more information, contact Deborah Stevens, DSEA’s director
of Instructional Advocacy, at Deborah.Stevens @dsea.org.
Register now for Component 5 next month. With even
more changes this year, every teacher and specialist needs
to know what they are. How will the new “credentialed
observer” affect you?
September 2013
Understanding Component 5 - Part I - Sign up today!
Focus: Ever since Delaware was awarded the first Race to the
Top Grant in 2010, Delaware’s teacher evaluation system has
undergone dramatic changes, including changes for 2013-2014.
Component 5, the student improvement component, has undergone the most radical transformation. This workshop will help
you develop an in-depth understanding of Component 5, the
Component 5 rating system, and how to effectively navigate this
part of the evaluation process. The focus of this first workshop
will be on roster verification, educator group selection, selecting
appropriate measures, setting SMART goals, and preparing for
the fall professional conference with your evaluator. Part II will be
offered in April 2014.
September 19 - New Castle DSEA office, 4:15-7:30 pm
September 24 - DSEA Dover office, 4:15-7:30 pm
September 26 - The Cheer Center, Georgetown, 4:15-7:30 pm
March 2014
Professional Development Conference – March 29
Possible Sessions:
Bullying
Safety in the Schools
Working with Children with Autism and Other Disabilities
Special Education 101: IEP’s, Collecting Data, and Behavior Plans
Differentiated Instruction
April 2014
Understanding Component 5 – Part II: April 15 (NCC), 17
(Dover), 29 (Sussex)
Focus: Understanding Component 5 with a particular focus on
roster verification, planning for and participating in an effective
spring conference with the building administrator, deriving a
Component 5 rating and overall rating for DPAS II-Revised.
“I Can Do It!” – effective classroom management
Free online training available 24/7 to DSEA/NEA members
An amazing benefit of your membership, “I Can Do It!” offers
classroom management approaches that work. It was developed
for novice as well as veteran educators who are experiencing difficulty with classroom management.
Offered through the NEA Academy, it is accessible at
www.neamb.com. Click on PROFESSIONAL at the top.
While you are there, check out the NEA Academy’s other practical
online courses for today’s busy educators.
To register, contact Gerri Coble at [email protected] or by
phone at 1-866-734-5834.
www.dsea.org
Union Skills Training for You
www.dsea.org
September 2013 DSEA ACTION!
11
Empowering ourselves to create change
The Delaware Community Outreach volunteers spend a day at Atlanta’s Habitat
for Humanity working in their Restore.
From left are Kelli Bradley, Linda Brown
and Dave Bradley. Community Outreach
takes place every year prior to the RA.
NEA RA delegates pledge to “Raise Their Hand” to become leaders in a national movement for public education. All members
can connect and find resources at gpsnetwork.org.
NEA: It is time for us to
transform public education
- by Tim Walker, NEA Today
Delegates to the 2013
Representative
Assembly raise their
hands for
student success
uring the 93rd NEA
Representative Assembly
and Annual Meeting held
July 3 – 6 in Atlanta’s Georgia
World Congress Center, one idea
resonated above the rest: When it
comes to leading a movement for
student success that is real and sustainable, no one is more equipped
than educators.
“We must empower our members
to create change,” NEA President
Dennis Van Roekel told some 9,000
delegates who attended the gathering. “Some [people] don’t like the
Association’s focus on quality in
the classroom and in schools,” Van
Roekel says. “But if we don’t
empower educators to take control
of how to define quality, then who
will? Congress? Governors? State
politicians? Michelle Rhee? Maybe
the Koch Brothers?” asked Van
D
Roekel referring to the billionaire
businessmen whose money has
helped to fund scores of recent antiworker efforts. “No,” he continued.
“It must be us!”
Van Roekel’s words embodied the
energy and spirit of this year’s RA
gathering, which also included
remarks from NEA Executive
Director John Stocks, Teacher of
the Year Jeff Charbonneau, and
ESP of the Year Debbie Schulze,
and focused on providing educators
with new programs, professional
training and support, and collaboration with other educators.
To meet this goal, the Association
has launched “Raise Your Hand for
Public Education”—a campaign
designed to help educators across
the nation become leaders in a
national movement for public education.
Join the Great Public
Schools Network at www.
gpsnetwork.org
An energetic and interactive
kick-off for the campaign was held
July 2, and included a host of
dynamic and respected educators—
from the classroom and from the
research community. They engaged
the standing-room only crowd in a
day of professional rejuvenation
and educator empowerment.
RA delegates displayed their commitment to “Raise Your Hand” by
agreeing to increase annual membership dues by $3 per member—
a move that will generate more
than $6 million in funds specifically
to provide Great Public Schools
Grants (GPS Grants) to NEA state
and local affiliates. Grants will support innovative projects and great
ideas to boost student learning,
such as successful implementation
of Common Core Standards, school
safety/anti-bullying programs
training, and technology. They will
be awarded using criteria from key
elements of the Raise Your Hand
campaign: successful students,
accomplished professionals, dynamic collaboration, and empowered
leaders.
In his July 5 remarks, Teacher of
the Year Jeff Charbonneau urged
delegates to turn away from the
relentless negative portrayals of
public schools in the media and
redefine the message.
“Rather than succumb to the
notion that we are failing, we must
Sherry Abbott (left) and Cora Booth are
two of the Indian River’s five NEA delegates from Delaware.
celebrate the quality education that
we are providing while strengthening our resolve to further improve,”
Charbonneau says. “Despite what
we read in the paper, students and
teachers across the nation are
achieving in countless ways. It is
time for us to recognize that public
education is succeeding.”
ESP of the Year Debbie Schulze
delivered a similar empowering
call-to action. “I think much of the
public has a distorted picture of
teachers, principals, and school
support staff,” Schulze says.
“They’ve seen too many movies,”
the Maryland paraeducator joked,
adding that educators can clear up
common misperceptions about educators’ daily workloads by becoming political activists.
“This is why we need to raise our
hands and our voices and educate
them to the truth,” says Schulze.
“And for this to succeed, we need to
step up and step out of our comfort
zones and get politically active. Get
in the game!”
Delegates also honored two
prominent champions of public
education: Sen. Patty Murray (DWash.), who received the 2013
www.dsea.org
NEA RA Highlights www.nea.org/ra
Friend of Education Award, and
California Gov. Jerry Brown,
recipient of the Greatest Governor
Award.
Using a formula that will serve
low-income and non-native English
speakers, Gov. Brown made sweeping changes—the greatest in the
nation and during this century—to
the way California funds its public
schools. Before that, Gov. Brown
successfully managed a ballot initiative to regenerate funding for
public schools.
“Nothing is more determinative
of our future than how we teach
our children,” says Gov. Brown,
who addressed the RA via satellite
video. “It’s an honor to accept this
award on behalf of the educators
working every day to make our public schools better and our future
brighter.”
Sen. Murray has been a tireless
advocate of more preschool and literacy programs, smaller class sizes,
and better education for homeless
children. And she led the fight that
pushed $25 billion for education
jobs and Medicaid funding over the
finish line in 2010.
In a nod to the importance of digital learning, delegates approved a
new NEA policy that addresses
equity issues related to broadband Internet access and software and technical support. The
new statement also emphasizes the
importance of providing preK–12
teachers, higher education faculty,
education support professionals,
and administrators with access to
high-quality, interactive professional development that will help them
turn digital learning and technology into instruction.
Three Delaware delegates
introduce New Business
Items
Thanks to Mike Matthews of
Red Clay E.A., NEA will write a letter to the National Conference of
State Legislatures urging legislators to take the standardized tests of
the state in which they live, especially where teacher evaluations
are based in part on student test
scores.
Arguing that legislators must find
ways to make college affordable for
lower-income students especially,
NEA will “organize a campaign to
help members advocate for lower
cost loans for students within the
Delaware’s NEA RA
delegates
DSEA NEA Student Group
Renatae Cuffee
Rayshaun Ward*
DSEA Officers
Karen Crouse
Mike Hoffmann
Frederika Jenner
Dom Zaffora
DSEA Retired
David Bradley
Appoquinimink E.A.
David Wright
Susan Mitchell, a rookie delegate from
Christina, makes a donation to the
Atlanta Food Bank - a staple at every
current NEA budget structure.”
This New Business Item 62, proposed by Cape Henlopen’s Diane
Albanese, also passed.
New Business Item 69, introduced
by DSEA Treasurer Dom Zaffora, a
middle school teacher from
Woodbridge, passed the RA. It
states that NEA will only ask state
affiliates to recognize and support
organizations established to recognize excellence in education if the
requesting organization is inclusive
of all educators, or agrees to
change their charter to include all
educators.
Brandywine E.A.
Kelli Bradley
Carolyn Heckenstaller*
David Hogan*
Steve Rulon*
Jeannette Wilt
Caesar Rodney E.A.
Tawanna Prophet*
Cape Henlopen E.A.
Diane Albanese
Capital E.A.
Linda Brown*
Capital Paras
Patti Reid
Christina E.A.
David Davis
Jackie Kook
Paul Kough*
Susan Mitchell*
Susan Norris*
John Woodruff*
Colonial E.A.
Red Clay’s Michael Banks is seen on the
big screen speaking in support of a New
Business Item to create an International
Teacher Advocacy Committee to support
and provide guidance “...to integrate,
sustain and protect our diverse teaching
population.” The NBI passed but without $55,380 which must be budgeted.
For more news, photos
and video from the 2013
NEA Annual Meeting and
Representative Assembly,
visit: www.nea.org/ra.
Photos courtesy of Delegates Dave
Bradley, Jackie Kook and Linda
Brown.
www.dsea.org
“It was an awesome learning
experience. Lots of hard
work. Met and collaborated
with terrific teachers from
different states with
concerns and issues we all
face each day. Some are seriously fighting for their jobs,
collective bargaining, and
their students. Can't wait
until next year.”
- Maureen Keeney
President, New Castle County Vo-Tech E.A.
Reading teacher, Howard High School of
Technology
Elaine Autry
Stephanie Ingram
Michael Renn
Nancy Talmo*
Ashley Williamson
Indian River E.A.
Sherry Abbott
Cora Booth
Amy Johnson
Adele Jones
Patricia Murrell
Lake Forest E.A.
Latoria Banks*
Gwen Scott*
Milford E.A.
Denise Waples
NCCVT E.A.
Neena Burnett*
Maureen Keeney*
Red Clay E.A.
Michael Bank
Jennifer Dalby
Steven Fackenthall*
Denise Foreman
Chris Laws*
Mike Matthews
Vicki Seifred
Dorothy Webber*
*First-time delegates
Healthy Habits Week begins September 23
Celebrate
Healthy
Habits
Week—
sponsored by
the NEA, PTA
and LYSOL
very year, the common cold
results in 22 million lost
days of school for students1,
as a result of the 2.2 million cases
of the common cold that affect
Americans under the age of 17
annually2.
Following the worst cold and flu
season in over a decade, it’s essential to stress the importance of
hand washing, along with other
good hygiene habits, to reduce student absences.
Join us in launching the inaugural Healthy Habits Week on
September 23, 2013 – a collaborative effort to reinforce the importance of practicing healthy habits
among school-age children. We
encourage you to bring the Healthy
Habits Program to life by educating
students on good hygiene habits
that bridge the gap between home
and school.
To join the movement, go to
www.lysol.com/mission-forhealth/healthy-classroms/ to access
Healthy Habits Program resources,
including a downloadable Healthy
Habits Program toolkit with standardized lesson plans, tips for
teaching good health and hygiene
habits in both the classroom and at
home, and a parent activity calendar.
E
1. CDC, Adolescent and School Health.
Available at http://www.cdc.gov/
healthy youth/infectious/index.htm.
Last accessed March 2013
2. SNAP Healthy Schools, Healthy
People. Statistics. Available at:
http://www.itsasnap.org/snap/statistics
.asp. Last accessed Dec 2012
HEALTHY Habits
Presented by LYSOL,® in collaboration with NEA and National PTA
Tips for Teaching Hygiene in the Classroom
Help keep YOUR STUDENTS HEALTHY with these IMPORTANT LESSONS:
s To help keep students from spreading illness-causing germs, the best thing to do is focus on simple, effective measures
that we know work to limit the spread of germs. In the classroom, you can include such simple yet effective measures as
making sure students routinely wash their hands, cover their coughs (with their arms rather than their hands), dispose of
tissues rather than leaving them sitting around and avoid sharing cups or utensils.
s Handwashing is one of the best ways to prevent the spread of germs in a classroom. While a quick rinse may suffice for
washing paint off one’s hands, soap and water is a must when it comes to getting rid of germs. To effectively wash away
germs, be sure to teach your students to use soap and scrub in between fingers, under nails and on both sides of their hands,
and make sure they do so for at least 20 seconds (the time it typically takes to sing “Happy Birthday” twice).
s Focus your classroom handwashing routines on the key times your students’ hands are most likely to spread germs. These
include after going to the bathroom, blowing noses, coughing or sneezing, playing outside, touching used tissues or other
contaminated surfaces, touching a class pet, touching garbage, and before eating or handling food. Consider having your
students wash their hands more frequently when there’s more illness going around.
s When soap and water are not available, however, alcohol-based hand sanitizers with at least 60 percent alcohol can help in
some situations to decrease the number of germs on hands. Just be aware that hand sanitizers may not be as effective
when hands are visibly dirty, and they do not work against all types of germs.
s Cleaning and disinfecting are part of a broad approach to helping prevent infectious diseases in schools, as reinforced by the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). While cleaning is important for physically removing dirt and germs from
objects or surfaces in the classroom, it does not actually kill germs. Disinfecting wipes can be a practical way to target and
kill illness-causing germs in the classroom. For the sake of both safety and effectiveness, always use EPA-registered
disinfectants, including disinfecting wipes, and be sure to use them according to the instructions on the label. Focus on
wiping frequently touched surfaces in the classroom, such as door handles, sink handles and even tables and chairs.
Visit www.lysol.com/healthyhabits and www.cdc.gov for more information on preventing germs in the classroom.
About Community-Associated MRSA. . .
ou have probably heard
about MRSA: Methicillinresistant Staphylococcus
aureus (MRSA). This is a type of
staph bacteria that does not react to
certain antibiotics. Staph will typically cause skin infections, but
MRSA can also cause other infections, including pneumonia.
Staph and MRSA can be spread by
skin-to-skin contact, sharing or
touching a personal item with
someone with infected skin, or
touching a surface or item that has
been in contact with someone with
MRSA.
Traditionally, staph infections,
including MRSA, have occurred
most often among people in hospitals and healthcare facilities (such
as nursing homes and dialysis centers) who have weakened immune
systems.
Y
Community-Associated MRSA
(CA-MRSA), however, can cause illness in those outside of
hospital/healthcare facilities.
Students can contract
MRSA, too
CA-MRSA symptoms include
skin infections like pimples and
boils. The Center for Disease
Control has discovered CAMRSA infections among groups
such as athletes and children.
Factors in the spread of the infection is thought to be close skin-toskin contact, openings in the skin
such as cuts or abrasions, contaminated items and surfaces, crowded
living conditions, and poor hygiene.
For students spending time in
locker rooms, dormitories or other
close conditions, it’s especially
important to practice these basic
yet important hygiene measures:
• Keep hands clean by washing
thoroughly with soap and water or
using an alcohol-based hand sanitizer
• Keep cuts and scrapes clean
and covered with a bandage until
healed.
• Avoid contact with other people’s wounds or bandages.
• Avoid sharing personal items
such as towels or razors.
Source: Healthy Habits Programs at
www.lysol.com.
www.dsea.org
Let’s all stay healthy
www.dsea.org
Look for a free “My Deals” app
THE MY DEALS APP:
SAVINGS THAT FIT IN YOUR PURSE OR YOUR POCKET
If you’re constantly on the go and don’t feel like lugging your computer and printer everywhere,
mobile coupons might just be the answer you’ve been looking for. The Access My Deals mobile
app makes it easy to search, ﬁnd, and redeem savings while you’re out and about.
Access Mobile is America’s largest “show your phone” discount network. It’s a simple way to save
on popular brands at up to 50% off, no matter where you are. All together, the Access mobile
savings network features more than 125,000 locations nationwide and over 300 national brands.
The My Deals mobile app makes it easy to locate the deals nearest you using GPS technology in
your smart phone, a variety of unique search options, and a list that keeps track of your favorite
savings. You’ll also be able to keep tabs on how much you save
with a built in savings tracker. And as if that’s not easy enough,
once you’ve found the mobile coupon you’d like to use, just show
your phone at check out to save—no printed coupon necessary!
Ready to get the My Deals mobile app and start saving on the go?
Download My Deals from the App Store or Google Play, then
register using your member ID and save wherever you may be.
Member shows phone to save
Personalizes each offer for the member
Allows member to track savings
Remembers favorites for fast access
Tracks savings to date
02
www.dsea.org
iPads - share and learn more
iPads
in
Education
Conference
iPads in Education Conference
October
2013
Request
for19,
Proposals
.
Save thetoday!
date!
Register
TheUniversity
first University
of Delaware
The first
of Delaware
iPadsiPads
in in
Education Conference will be held on
Education Conference will be held on Saturday,
Saturday, October 19, 2013.
October 19, 2013.
The conference is a joint effort by The
The conference
is a joint
effort by Resource
The College
College School,
the Education
School,
the Education
Resource
Center, and the
Center,
and the Office
of Educational
OfficeTechnology
of Educational
in the College
in theTechnology
College of Education
of Education
andDevelopment.
Human Development.
and Human
We invite
all educators
to participate.
all educators
to participate.
We invite

Do you
use iPads in y our classroom? Has the
ǫ
iPad changed the way your students learn? Has
ǫ
it changed the way you teach?
ǫ
We invite you to share your experiences and

successes
with other educators! Submit a

to present at the University of
proposal
Ǩ
Delaware’s
first iPads in Education Conference
ǯ
at www.ipadsineducation.udel.edu/proposal/.
iPads in EducationǤ
Registration is now open at www.ipadsin
education.udel.edu/registration.
We
are seeking a broad range of topics

ǡ
for
the iPads in Education conference,
ǣ
including
the following:

• xintroduction
to the iPad
x
• practical applications

• xcurriculum
challenges and successes

• mathematics
o
• science
o
• social studies
o
• language arts
o
• accessibility
x
• xinteractivity
with other devices and

peripherals,
including SMART Boards
ǡ
• iPad
resources

x

ǡǣǣȀȀǤǤǤȀ
May 2013
www.dsea.org
For more information, visit: http://www.ipadsineducation.udel.edu/.
Member-only benefit
Save up to 15% on your car insurance
n the State of Delaware, if you
take a six-hour Basic Defensive
Driving course, you can knock
10% off your car insurance. If you
take an Advanced Defensive
Driving course, you may save up to
15% off your car insurance.
DSEA is pleased to announce
that we are offering these two
courses just for members and their
families, a $35 value, for only $12.
Refreshments will be provided and
Horace Mann Insurance Co. will
also offer a door prize to a lucky
winner.
These courses will be given by
an instructor from Interstate
Training Alliance, LLC. You must
attend the full six hours for the
Basic course OR the full three
hours for the Advanced/Refresher
course to receive your certificate.
The Basic course is required
first and is good for three years
before it is necessary to take the
Advanced/Refresher course. Each
certificate is honored by your
insurance company for three years.
I
Space is limited so sign up
soon.
Basic Defensive Driving
October 5 (9 am-3 pm)
DSEA Dover Office
October 28 & 30 (6-9 pm)
DSEA Newark Office
November 2 (9 am-3 pm)
DSEA Newark Office
November 18 & 20 (6-9 pm)
DSEA Dover Office
Advanced Defensive Driving
October 5 (9 am-12 noon)
DSEA Dover Office
November 2 (9 am-12 noon)
DSEA Newark Office
December 2 (6-9 pm)
DSEA Dover Office
December 5 (6-9 pm)
DSEA Newark Office
Cost: $12 per person
Space is limited so sign up soon.
Questions? Contact Tammy
Wagner at DSEA in Dover at 1-866734-5834 or by email at Tammy.
[email protected].
We thank Horace Mann Insurance Company for its financial sponsorship which allows us to offer these courses for members and
their families at such a steep discount.
www.horacemann.com
#
Yes, sign me up for DSEA’s
Fall 2013 Defensive Driving Courses!
NO PHONE REGISTRATIONS ACCEPTED!
Please check the session(s) you wish to attend. Open to DSEA members and their immediate family.
BASIC
ADVANCED
qOctober 5 (9am-3pm) - (DSEA Dover Office)
qNovember 2 (9am-3pm) - (DSEA Newark Office)
qOctober 28 & 30 (6-9pm) - (DSEA Newark Office)
qNovember 18 & 20 (6-9pm) (DSEA Dover Office)
qOctober 5 (9am-12noon) (DSEA Dover Office)
qDecember 2 (6-9pm) - (DSEA Dover Office)
q November 2 (9am-12noon) (DSEA Newark Office)
q December 5 (6-9pm) - (DSEA Newark Office)
DSEA Member’s Name:______________________________________________________________________Local Assoc._______________________________________
Attendees:_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Address:________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Email address:______________________________________________________________Phone number:______________________________________________________
Email address must be provided to receive confirmation.
Payment enclosed at $12 per person (make check payable to DSEA):_______________________________________(no phone registrations accepted)
Mail this form and your payment to: DSEA Defensive Driving Course, Attn: Tammy Wagner, 136 E. Water St., Dover, DE 19901
There will be no refunds given starting one week prior to training. See www.dsea.org/AboutDSEA/Directions.html for directions to DSEA
offices.
www.dsea.org
Dyslexia: Help for families
Learning Ally launches personalized support services for parents
of children with dyslexia
Parent Ally brings new
resources for parents of
children who struggle
to read because of a
learning disability.
PRINCETON, NJ, August 20, 2013-Learning Ally, a nonprofit organization supporting 300,000 students
across the U.S., is now providing
parents of children who have learning and reading based disabilities
with personalized resources to
manage their educational and personal needs.
Since it was founded in 1948,
Learning Ally has traditionally
served families and schools with the
world’s largest digital library of
accessible, human-narrated audio
textbooks and literature titles. The
new parent support service, called
Parent Ally, was developed after
years of exhaustive studies focusing
on the experiences and urgent needs
of families of students with dyslexia
and learning disabilities.
The new Parent Ally offerings
include:
• Parent Support Specialists:
One-on-one phone consultations
between parents and a team of
highly trained professionals in a
learning disability-related field,
who are themselves parents with
firsthand experience raising children with dyslexia and print disabilities.
Drawing on many backgrounds,
the team of Parent Support
Specialists includes family advocates, attorneys, teachers, and certified tutors. Their diversity provides
a large knowledge base to help parents find resources and tools that
address their particular situation.
• Member-only webinars:
A series of interactive parent training sessions, presented by experts
in the field of dyslexia and learning
disabilities.
These sessions feature small
audience sizes and offer extensive
opportunities for parents to dia-
logue together and pose their own
questions to the experts.
• The Parent Framework:
Providing a pathway of proven
strategies that help parents navigate the long-term challenges of
raising a child with print disabilities.
It includes guidance on how to
both manage a child’s education
and develop her self-esteem and
confidence.
Parent Ally is included as part of
the standard Learning Ally audiobook service membership for free
through October 31. For more information visit the Parent Ally
resource section on Learning Ally’s
website.
Founded in 1948 as Recording for the
Blind, Learning Ally serves over
300,000 K-12, college and graduate
students, as well as veterans and lifelong learners – all of whom cannot
read standard print due to blindness,
visual impairment, dyslexia, or other
learning disabilities.
Learning Ally’s collection of more
than 80,000 digitally recorded
human-read textbooks and literature
titles – featuring a heavy emphasis on
STEM resources – is delivered through
internet downloads, assistive technology devices, and mainstream devices
like iPhone and iPad, and is the
largest of its kind in the world.
Thousands of volunteers across the
U.S. help to record and process the
educational materials, which students
rely on to achieve academic and professional success. Learning Ally, a
501(c)3 nonprofit.
For more information, visit
www.LearningAlly.org.
E
Enhance
nhance y
your
our credentials
credent ial s
radu
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eg re
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with
w itth a g
graduate
degree.
TToday’s
ooday’s teachers
teachers address
address a wide array
array of educational
educational
needs in their classr
classrooms.
ooms. At
At Wilmington
Wilmington University,
University,
you’ll
ways to
to apply
apply the lalatest
test educational
educational
you’ll learn
learn new ways
theory
research to
to individualize
individualize instruction
instruction for
theory and research
your
And yyou’ll
ou’ll do it in a w
way
ay tha
thatt fits
your students.
students. And
your
your life
life,, with fle
flexible
xible schedules
schedules,, multiple classr
classroom
oom
locations,
locations, and online options tha
thatt let you
you learn
learn
whenev
whenever—and
er—and wher
wherever—it’s
ever—it’s most
convenient
convenient for you.
you.
personalized education.
affordable tuition.
P R O G R A M S AV
AVAILABLE
M.A.T
M.A.T.. in SSecondary
econdary EEducation
ducation
M.Ed.
M.Ed. in Applied
Applied TTechnology
eechnology
M.E
d. in CCareer
areer and TTechnical
eechnical EEducation
ducation
M.Ed.
M.E
d. in Elementary
Elementary Studies
Studies
M.Ed.
M.E
M.Ed.
d. in Reading/ESOL Lit
Literacy
eracy
M.E
M.Ed.
d. in SSchool
chool LLeadership
eadership
M.E
M.Ed.
d. in SSpecial
pecial EEducation
ducation
DDoctor
octor of EEducation
ducation (Ed.D.)
(Ed.D.)
((concentrations
conccentr
e rations in EEducational,
dduccationall, OOrganizational,
rganiz
g ationall,
and Higher EEducation
dduccation Leadership)
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CClasses
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very eight w
weeks.
eeks.
Get star
started
ted ttoday
oday aatt
wilmu
wilmu.edu/EducationDegrees
.edu/EducationDegrees
The Standard of Excellence
Exc
in Te
Teacher
Preparation
acher Prepa
reparation
An NCA
NCATE
ATE
TE Accredited
Institu
ution
Institution
Dr. Jessica Hawk-Ippolito Delsea Regional High School Teacher of the Year
Ed.D. in Innovation and Leadership, 2012 | M.Ed. in School Administration, 2003
www.dsea.org
1-877-456-7003 | wilmu
.edu/Educ ationDegrees
Wilmington
Wilmington University
Universit y is a private,
private, nonpr
nonprofit
ofit institution and member
of the DDelaware
elaware Alliance
Alliance for NNonprofit
onprofit AAdvancement
dvancement (D
(DANA).
ANA).
Your pocketbook
Hot deals and
discounts from
NEA Member
Benefits
EA Click & Save, the
online discount buying
service for NEA members,
highlights select retailers and merchants each month. Check out these
featured “Buy-lights” for
September.
N
For NEA Members
$2,000
• Clinique: Free shipping on orders
over $50
Scholarship
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• eMeals.com: Save $10 on orders
over $100
• Irv’s Luggage: Take 15% off
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up to 50% off hotels worldwide
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NEA Member Benefits has teamed up with Sallie Mae, provider of the NEA® Smart Option Student
Loan® Program, to offer NEA members four chances to win $2,000 cash! It’s our way of rewarding
you for your dedication and helping you further your own educational pursuits. From June through
September 2013, enter each month at www.neamb.com. If you’re one of the lucky $2,000 winners, you
could choose to fund professional development courses for yourself, cover some of your expenses
toward National Board Certification, or even help a family member with their college tuition!
• PetFoodDirect.com: Save $10 on
orders over $100
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$300
Join the 300,000 NEA members
already registered for NEA Click &
Save. Go to www.neamb.com/
clickandsave or www.neamb.com/
shopping- discounts/nea-click-andsave-retail- discounts.htm and start
shopping today.
NEA Member Benefits
welcomes National to the
Car Rental Program
National Car Rental just joined
Enterprise, Hertz, and Alamo as a
partner in the NEA Car Rental
Program. As an NEA member, you
get up to 25% off National car
rental rates. Enroll for free in
National’s Emerald Club®, and you
can bypass the counter and choose
your own car!
To make a reservation online, go
to www.neamb.com, click the
“Discounts” tab and find National
under “Car Rental”. You also may
reserve a car by phone by calling
1-800-CAR-RENT. Be sure to mention Contract ID #5030378 to get
your NEA discount!
To enter, visit www.neamb.com
or call the NEA Member Service Center at 1-800-637-4636.
in partnership with
No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited. Visit neamb.com/prize for official rules and eligibility.
NEA, NEA Member Benefits and the NEA Member Benefits logo are registered service marks of NEA’s Member Benefits Corporation.
Use your DSEA membership card and its id
number to access thousands of discounts
www.dsea.org
www.neamb.com
o log in to the DSEA website
and access discounts, go to
www.dsea.org. The very first
time you go to this site, you will
need to register so that you can see
this member-only information.
Click on REGISTER and create a
login and password, using your
DSEA membership number. This
way, we can verify that you are
indeed a member.
After you register the first time,
you may log in subsequent times by
using your email address and password that you set up when you registered.
There are additional discounts
available at the NEA Member
Benefits website.
Register at that site using your
name, date of birth and contact
information. Family members may
also register here. After you register, you may log in by using your
email address and password that
you set up when registering.
Questions? Call either DSEA
office at 866-734-5834 (toll-free to the
Dover office) or 302-366-8440 (the
Newark office).
T
Watch in the mail
for your new DSEA
membership card
coming in
November
ll DSEA members will
receive new membership
cards this fall mailed to
their home address. For the first
time, your card will be good for
as long as you are a member, saving DSEA the cost of producing
12,000+ cards every two years.
A
www.dsea.org
Free newspaper online
Would you like free online access to
The News Journal for your class?
ith The News Journal’s
Electronic-Edition, you
can see all the text and
pictures, move easily through pages
and sections, plus you can save,
print and send articles with a click
of a button.
You can also:
* Modify the screen layout to your
liking
* Search using keywords to find any
topic, person or event
* Read the News Journal anytime,
on your schedule and at home
* Access 83 other Gannett newspapers
* Access over 300 activity guides on
various subjects and grade levels.
As part of their Newspaper in
Education program, The News
Journal provides this service free
to teachers and their students.
Simply send an email to Shirley
Price at sprice@delawareonline.
com or fax her at 302-324-2945.
Please indicate that you would like
access to the E-Edition of the News
Journal and then include the fol-
W
www.dsea.org
lowing information:
Your name, school, school address,
school phone number, the subject(s)
you teach, grade(s) you teach and
your email address. Also please
indicate how many licenses you
would like for your students/teachers. The number of licenses are
equal to the number of students/
educators who can sign onto the EEdition per day.
If you would also like to have
Shirley Price come out to your
school and demonstrate the EEdition, just indicate that in your
email.
You will have access to the EEdition every day except Saturday,
until June 13,l 2014.
If you have any questions at all,
please email Price at sprice@
delawareonline.com, or call her at
302-324-2502, or toll-free at 1-800-2399100, ext. 2502.
Fall in to
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Rate is subject to change. Financing up to the retail value of the vehicle is available. This offer may not be
combined with any other offer. The stated rate is discounted which includes: a requirement of automatic loan
payment transfers, direct deposit of net pay and a checking account for .50% discount, requires Debt Protection
for .25% discount and requires GAP Insurance for .25% discount for a total discount of 1.00%. See Credit Union
for details.
Resources and Opportunities
$1,000 grants available for humane, green
projects
CORE (Creating Opportunities for Reading
Excellence) Conference, November 23
Reading ASSIST® Institute will
present its second CORE (Creating
Opportunities for Reading
Excellence) Conference at Clayton
Hall at the University of Delaware
on Saturday, November 23, from
8:00-3:30.
This one-day conference will
focus on effective, practical,
research-based approaches to reading instruction for teachers of preschool through Grade 5.
Keynote Speaker Dr. Maryanne
Wolf of Tufts University will
address Lessons from the Reading
Brain for Reading Development,
Instruction, and Dyslexia.. She is
the author of Proust and the Squid:
The Story and Science of the
Reading Brain.
Break-out sessions will address
reading instruction for preschool
and elementary school, including
English Language Learners.
Early registration, until
September 23, is $210. After
September 23, registration is $260.
Continental breakfast, lunch and
afternoon break will be provided.
In-service credit is available.
For more information and to register, go to www.readingassist.org.
The Courtyard by Marriott, Newark
is offering conference room rates.
Please book by November 4. Call
(302) 737-0900.
Travel to Beijing,
People’s Republic of
China,
June 20-29, 2014
Teachers at all grade levels,
school administrators, staff and
colleagues are invited to participate
in a nine-day Oral History and
Cultural Tour in Beijing, China,
sponsored by the National
Association of African American
Studies, Native American Studies,
Hispanic and Latino Studies and
Asian Studies.
Experience daily lectures, tours of
major attractions (e.g., Great Wall,
Forbidden City), and exposure to
Chinese culture, both old and new.
Accommodations are in a fourstar hotel and more. Continuing
education credits are available. The
first payment is due November
30, 2013.
For additional information,
including full itinerary and costs,
go to www.NAAAS.org/internationalprograms.html.
NASA’s “Exploration
Design Challenge”
provides science
activities related to
next missions
NASA’s Exploration Design
Challenge (EDC) invites students
from kindergarten through 12th
grade to learn more about one of
the biggest challenges NASA faces
before sending humans beyond lowEarth orbit: space radiation.
Through a series of age-appropriate
activities, participants will learn
about radiation and its effects on
humans and hardware destined for
asteroids, Mars or other deep space
locations.
The nonprofit organization The
Pollination Project (www.thepolli
nationproject.org) is seeking 20 educators who are committed to creating a “just, peaceful, and healthy
world through school-based projects
that directly promote environmental stewardship, social justice,
human rights or animal protection.”
Winning teachers will receive a
$1000 grant to launch or expand a
project, plus paid tuition in
Institute for Humane Education’s
6-week online course Teaching for a
Positive Future (http://humaneedu
cation.org/online-courses/teachingfor-a-positive-future/).
CEUs (Continuing Education
Units) are available as well as peer
support and guidance from seasoned nonprofit leaders and likeminded social justice activists.
The Pollination Project awards
$1000 seed grants to individuals
working in areas such as sustainability, social justice, community
health and wellness, arts and
media. Its “pollination philanthro-
py” model of giving seed money
directly to people, instead of established entities, is intended to help
change-makers launch new ideas.
The organization suggests that
this could be an opportunity for
teachers interested to start or
enhance a club dedicated to human
or animal rights, implementing a
green initiative, creating a relevant
art/theater/music program, or a
technology or media project to
address a social issue.
Applications are being accepted
from any educator, at any level
(preschool through post-graduate),
anywhere in the world, with priority given to educators working in
traditionally underserved communities. The deadline for fall grant
applications is September 22,
2013.
For more information please see
http://thepollinationproject.org/
special-initiative-education/.
For examples of the work education grantees are doing around the
world please see http://thepollina
tion project.org/tag/education/.
Orion is the vehicle for these
space destinations and will make
its maiden test flight in 2014.
Here’s how it works:
The youngest explorers (K-4) will
complete NASA education activities
related to radiation. Upon completion, a teacher or other adult may
submit the students’ names to be
flown on the 2014 Orion flight as
honorary virtual crew members.
Those same opportunities are
open to students in grades 5-8, but
they also will design and develop a
radiation shield
prototype. Instructions, guidebooks
and related content are provided on
the EDC website.
High school participants have
an even greater challenge – and
opportunity! In addition to the
activities listed above, teams of students will design a radiation shield
prototype that meets established
criteria and constraints.
Teams will submit their designs,
and the top five designs selected
will be tested in a virtual radiation
simulator. The winning team will
travel to Florida for Orion’s launch
and have its design flown aboard
the spacecraft!
Children may complete the challenge at any time. For names to be
added to the virtual crew list, children must complete their work by
March 14, 2014.
High school students who wish to
compete in “Phase 2: Build and
Test” must complete their work and
upload their design notebooks
before January 14, 2014.
Items described on this
page are not always
endorsed by the
Association, but are
provided for your
information.
www.dsea.org
Your NEA member benefits
www.dsea.org
Making a difference
Suited
for
Space
Dreams come true is
how Kim Simmons
thinks about touching
down at Space Camp
this summer, and how
she landed in a classroom nine years ago.
im Simmons always wanted to be a teacher but was
persuaded not to. So she
majored in business at the
University of Virginia, worked for
State Farm as a trainer, realized she
was already teaching, went back to
school for her masters degree (her
husband Bob said, 'Sure, go for it.')
and became a teacher after all.
That was nine years ago. Since
then she has taught lucky first
graders at Reily Brown E.S. in
Caesar Rodney. This year she will
teach second grade. Was this the
career she was meant to have? Last
year she was named Caesar
Rodney’s District Teacher of the
Year.
K
Chance or destiny?
But then again, after an Air
Force pilot visited her 7th grade
classroom in Virginia, she decided
she wanted to be a pilot, a jet pilot
no less. Her middle school guidance
counselor – this was in the 70’s –
told her that girls don’t do that.
Period. So she didn't.
Destiny took another turn last
spring, when John Sell, Delaware’s
Teacher of the Year from Sussex
Tech High School, couldn’t go to the
Huntsville, AL Space Camp - an
invitation extended to all of the
nation's State Teachers of the Year.
He asked Delaware's district teachers of the year if anyone wanted to
go in his place. Simmons happened
to be on her computer at the time.
Kim Simmons is now the proud owner of an official NASA space suit. She’s figuring
out how best to share the classroom resources she now has with colleagues, as well
as start some online, statewide network about how teachers can and/or do find success with the NASA activities.
(Bob said, "Sure, go for it.") And she
got her name in first. Fate? “This
was on my bucket list,” she says.
"Being with this group of teachers who have the same passion for
teaching, who are always willing to
share, learning from them and with
them from 7am to 10pm for one
There were lots of teambuilding
activities where they worked collaboratively to build an exterior space
vehicle while experiencing weightlessness, as well as being trained
for and then flying simulated missions. She was a mission specialist
The week-long experience of a lifetime at
Space Camp wasn't because she was with 50
other teachers who love flying.
It was because she was with 50 other teachers
who love teaching.
week -- it has reenergized me. I have
50 brand new friends," she beams.
They met famous astronauts (Bob
"Hoot" Gibson and Don Thomas)
plus Homer Hickman who wrote
Rocket Boys, and Ed Buckbee who
wrote the screen play for the movie
"Space Cowboys."
in one and base comander in another. Her team won the futuristic
Orion mission where she was base
commander. "We had to trust each
other, trust that we would all do our
jobs, our part. Otherwise, the mission would fail."
The parallels to education are
obvious: when school staffs work
together, trust each other, all doing
their jobs well and understanding
how they fit, then schools succeed.
"When I sometimes feel like the
art and the craft of teaching are
being subsumed by standards and
testing demands, plus more and
more non-teaching administrative
requirements, this experience
reminds me that there are exciting
ways to stimulate student curiosity."
Robotics for sequencing and programming, building rockets for
mathematics, physics, engineering "I was totally out of my element,”
she says, “but loved doing it all.
Most of us, in fact, weren't math or
technology teachers. Our morning
reminder to each other was 'Time to
get your Geek on!'"
By the end of the week, they had
received lots of binders full of lesson plans - including a series of lessons, by grade, on Mars and also
one on Basic Engineering. There
are websites for more information,
lessons from the other teachers,
including how to use the floor
robots called Bee-bots to teach control, directional language and programming to young children.
"I'm trying now," she says, "to figure out how to best share this with
other teachers in my building, district and even statewide." She plans
to talk to DoE about other ideas,
such as a blog, a website - somewhere to post the resources, including photos she now has - and continue the sharing.
Though there are currently no
more crewed American space missions, the Huntsville, AL facility is
busy doing space research and also
monitoring certain satellites.
The Alabama facility, in addition
to its space work, continues to offer
both educators and students handson experiences into our history
with space exploration, tapping into
adventure, curiosity, inventions,
achievement through teaming......
the skills that use all of our disciplines. You can check it out at
www.nasa.gov/education.
Simmons holds a bachelors
degree in commerce from the
University of Virginia, a master’s
degree in elementary education
and a certificate for administration,
both from Wilmington University.
She and husband Bob (Thank
you, Bob!) have three grown children and live in Dover.
www.dsea.org
Inside NEA
New Great
Public Schools
fund a ‘gamechanger’
Mike Hoffmann attends
his first National
Education Association
(NEA) Board of Directors
meeting last month as
DSEA's NEA director
he best part of our orientation was when
Judith Snyder, a longtime employee at the Office of
Congressional Research, talked to
us about how Washington works.
It's all about votes. That's what
motivates them; that's what determines everything. Committees.
Seniority. Votes.”
Hoffmann is really glad that when
NEA directors from the state associations gather for Board meetings,
they also go visit their
Congressional delegations. "Snyder
also initiates new Congressional
representatives and senators. She
was great,” adds Hoffmann. “She
urged us to just bring our passion
and tell our stories when we talk
about what we want for public education and our students."
“T
NEA Board of Directors
Meeting Highlights
“Last summer we changed the
world,” said NEA President
Dennis Van Roekel. With those
words, he revved up the NEA Board
of Directors on September 27. He
was referring to the $3 dues
increase passed by the
Representative Assembly that created the Great Public Schools fund.
“This is standing up and making
a statement about who we are,” he
said. “That we’re willing to put our
time and money into making a difference for every student in
America.”
The fund guidelines have been
placed on the NEA website. At least
$6 million will be available from the
fund this year, and state affiliates
and locals can apply for up to
$250,000 per year. The grant
requests will be judged on a number of criteria, including whether
Mike Hoffmann plans to report to DSEA members after each NEA Board of Directors
meeting.
the proposed program will have a
measurable impact on student success.
New Summits emerge from
previous NEA regional
meetings
The NEA will host new East and
West Summits next spring, and
organizers promise great things
from the new conferences.
Although the summits are replacing the former regional trainings,
the focus will shift to leadership,
with the goal of improving student
success.
The West Summit is planned for
January 17-19 in Las Vegas, Nevada,
and the East Summit will follow
February 21-23 in Atlanta, Georgia.
The Summits will be larger than
the former regional conferences,
with over 1,000 expected for the Las
Vegas event, and slightly fewer at
the East.
NEA will fund at least four delegates from each state, but state affiliates and locals can choose to send
many more.
The goal of the annual summits is
to develop individual leadership
skills, and each participant will
work on skills in three areas this
year: governance, Leading the
Professions, and organizing. In
future years, the focus may shift to
advocacy and communication as
leaders develop a full range of
skills.
The Minority Leadership
Summit will take place just prior
to each summit, and the Women’s
8 October 2013 DSEA ACTION!
Leadership Summit will take
place directly after it. States can
each send four members to the MLT
and two to the WLT.
State presidents talk about
challenges
The presidents of five state affiliates addressed the board about
challenges they are facing.
California Teachers
Association President Dean
Vogel said that getting his 320,000
members in touch with each other
and connected has been a challenge,
especially as California has
changed into a state where the
majority of citizens speak Spanish.
“If we’re really trying to build
capacity,” he said, “we really have
to engage members with each
other.”
“Educators want to own their profession and feel like advocates,”
Vogel said. “We must be working to
build and sustain effective learning
environments for students.”
Rita Haecker, president of the
Texas State Teachers
Association, said that her state has
serious race issues, too. They are
tackling them by “focusing on our
greatest resource—our members,”
she said.
Stephanie Winkler, president of
the Kentucky Education
Association, said her state is in the
odd position of not having collective bargaining, but also not having
right to work legislation either. The
result, she said, is that “… we are
stuck in a doughnut hole.” Six or
seven locals do bargain
contracts.Winkler said the solution
is to build partnerships. “It comes
down to, ‘If you can’t build coalitions, you can’t get anywhere,’ ” she
said. As a result, their focus is on
membership and organizing.
Andrew Morrill, president of
the Arizona Education
Association, faces some of the
toughest anti-union legislation and
bad reform ideas in the country and
still manages to keep a positive outlook. His trick? Humor.
He described Arizona as a “Mad
Max version of politics,” with corporate reformers trying out every
bad idea as they run over innocent
children, all the while, cutting education spending to the tune of $1.5
billion over the past five years.
In 2010, Arizona lost payroll
deduction for union dues. His solution? Organizing and the solidarity
of other unions.
Arizona has built labor coalitions
which are taking root. They have
also had the legal support from
NEA to win in court. In fact, a
recent injunction bars the state
from continuing to ban payroll
deduction. “We’ve been knocked
around,” Morrill said, “but we’ve
never been knocked out.”
Finally, the NEA board heard
from Denise Specht, the president
of Education Minnesota. Specht
described Minnesota’s relatively
unique position as a merged state
affiliate. All the members belong to
NEA, the American Federation of
Teachers and the AFL-CIO. This
gives Minnesota the ability to have
“Area Labor Councils” where all
types of union members come
together.
Specht said that being relevant to
members is the biggest challenge.
“Structure, traditions, attitude, and
progress get in the way of where we
need to be,” she said. “Where we
want to go should really guide how
we get there.”
www.
nea.
org
www.dsea.org
Celebrating social justice
Nominate a
Human and Civil
Rights hero
E
Deadline for nominations
and portfolios is March 7,
2014
Our 2014 Human and Civil Rights
Awardees will be honored at our
annual Human and Civil Rights
Awards Banquet on May 20, 2014 at
the Dover Downs Conference
Center. This event is open to all.
This past year we honored
Frederick Duffy, a long-time community leader, teacher and principal in Lake Forest, who mentored
hundreds of young people, helping
them their way to success.
Student contests now
open: Art, Multi-Media and
Writing
“From Human Rights to Civil
Rights” is the theme of this year’s
student HCR contests.
The purpose of these contests is
to remember the legacy of Martin
Luther King, Jr., a legacy of peaceful protest for economic justice for
all and the end of racial segregation. The contest is designed to
increase students’ knowledge of
how diverse groups working together can impact human and civil
rights and enhance the quality of
life for everyone in our diverse society.
Complete entry information is
available online at www.dsea.org.
Winning entries will be displayed
and students honored at the same
banquet, May 20, 2014 at Dover
Downs.
Encourage your students to enter
and be recognized for their work at
the most moving event on the DSEA
calendar.
www.dsea.org
Do you know someone who always goes the extra mile? Someone who always helps out
their community, organization, school, etc? If so, now is the chance to let others know how
valuable that person is to others!
Through DSEA’s Human and Civil Rights Task Force, two Delawareans are honored – one
DSEA member and one individual outside of the organization – for outstanding achievements
in Human and Civil Rights. (Previous HCR Award winners are excluded.)
#
ach year we honor those
who have made outstanding
achievements in Human and
Civil Rights, especially regarding
advancing human and civil rights
for all in Delaware.
Through DSEA’s Human and Civil
Rights Task Force, two
Delawareans are honored – one
DSEA member and/or one individual outside of our organization.
Go to www.dsea.org to print out
the HCR Award nomination form
printed here. Questions? Contact
Carol Zeisler at 1-302-366-8440 or by
email at [email protected].
DSEA Human and Civil Rights Awards 2014
Nomination Form
Any DSEA member, organization or member of the general public is invited to nominate such
a person by filling out the information below and including a portfolio of the nominee’s
achievements. For a list of past honorees, go to www.dsea.org/aboutdsea/DSEA/awards.asp
and click on Human and Civil Rights Award.
Please type or print clearly on the form.
Name of Nominee ________________________________________________
Address of nominee _______________________________________________
City _____________________ State ______ Zip _______ Phone ___________
Place of employment ______________________________________________
DSEA Member? ___ Yes / ___ No
If Yes, name of Local Association ______________________
Nominator’s name: ___________________________________________________
Nominator’s organization, school or address __________________________________
Nominator’s phone number and email address ________________________________
AWARD GUIDELINES
Award: The presentation of a plaque will be made by the President of DSEA at the May 20,
2014 Human and Civil Rights Awards Dinner: From Civil Rights to Human Rights, at the
Dover Downs Hotel, 1131 North DuPont Hwy, Dover 19901.
Eligibility: Any individual may be nominated for this award. There shall be no time limit
placed upon the period within which specific accomplishments were made. The criteria for
selecting the award winner, however, demands that such contributions be of sufficient quality
and importance as to cause the award to be viewed with respect and high esteem. (Previous
HCR Award winners are excluded.)
Portfolio guidelines: A portfolio/notebook should include such items as photographs, letters
of recommendation and testimony, newspaper articles, commendations, etc.
Deadline: March 7, 2014
Please deliver this completed form with the portfolio to either DSEA Office:
136 E. Water St., Dover, DE 19901 (1-866-734-5834) or
4135 Ogletown-Stanton Road, Newark, DE 19713 (302-366-8440)
If you have any questions, please contact Carol Zeisler at the DSEA Newark office,
302-366-8440, or toll-free, 1-866-734-5834 ext. 325 or via e-mail at [email protected] .
October 2013 DSEA ACTION! 9
the commitment continues...
What’s new with DSEA-Retired?
- by Rich Phillips, president
#1: Lifetime membership is
back!
That means that current active
DSEA members can join DSEARetired now instead of waiting
until they retire.
The cost of lifetime membership
is $550 which means you never pay
again as long as you live. Active
members requested this because it’s
easier for them to pay their dues
while they’re still getting their full
salary. If you sign up as an active
member, your retired membership
will not begin until you actually
retire. However, you will receive all
mailings and newsletters.
To receive information about lifetime membership, contact Debbie
Weaver at 866-734-5834 or by email
at [email protected].
#2: Enhanced PreRetirement Workshops:
As you read in the last issue of
DSEA Action!, DSEA-Retired was
able to secure a knowledgeable
retired Social Security expert, Ben
Shamberger, who will be presenting
what you need to know about Social
Security plus answering your questions at our November 9 PreRetirement Workshop.
We will also have someone from
the State Pension Office detailing
what you need to know about your
pension and benefits along with Mr.
Shamberger.
• To register for the Nov. 9 PreRetirement Workshop, please use
the registration form on this page.
• The second workshop will be held
on Saturday, March 22 at the
Delaware Technical & Community
College in Georgetown; registration
forms will be printed in February
DSEA Action!
#3: More Workshops
Thanks to the retired membership, we have scheduled workshops
on topics that they feel are relevant.
Those workshops include the following:
• Social Security Workshops presented by Rosemarie Kosmalski
from the Social Security
Administration in New Castle.
October 9, 2013, 11 a.m. at the DSEA
Newark/branch office
April 9, 2014, 10 a.m. at the DSEA
Dover office
• Medicare Workshop, presented
by the Office of Management &
Budget, Benefits section
This workshop will be a little different than most because the speaker
will tell you about the “Annual
Wellness Visit” with your physician
at little or no cost. Find out what
testing is available through
Medicare:
November 6, 2013, 10 a.m., DSEA
Newark/branch office; and
March 11, 2014, 10 a.m. at the
DSEA Dover office. Stay tuned.
WARNING: DON’T BE CONFUSED!
any retirees are confusing DSEA-Retired with
another retiree group
DRSPA (Delaware Retired School
Personnel Association).
We are NOT the same group!
DSEA-Retired is the ONLY
Delaware retired state-employee
organization affiliated with NEA,
M
DSEA and NEA-Retired. To continue benefitting from our organization’s work, and to continue to
take advantage of member discounts, including any discounted
insurance products you may have,
you must continue with Association membership.
www.dsea.org
2014 big election year for DSEA governance positions
President, Vice-President, Executive
Board members, NEA Rep Assembly
Delegates all up for election
This is a big year for
DSEA elections, the year
when both the presidential and vice presidential positions are
open
nyone (no matter what their
employment position), who
has been a DSEA member
for at least two years, may run for
president or vice president. The
new three-year terms begin on July
15, 2014.
By DSEA policy, these positions
are limited to two three-year terms.
Frederika Jenner is ending her first
three-year term next year, and
Karen Crouse is ending her first
year as vice-president. In other
words, both are eligible to run
again.
Positions are also open, as they
are every year, for seats on the
DSEA Executive Board, as well as
for state delegates to the NEA
Representative Assembly (RA).
Both are two-year positions.
The new Executive Board representatives begin at the first meeting
of the Board after September 1,
2014. The NEA RA delegates serve
at the next two Representative
Assemblies, July 1-July 6 - in
Denver in 2014 and in Orlando in
2015.
You can find job descriptions for
all of these positions at the DSEA
website.
A
How do you submit your
name to run for election?
The process is the same for all
positions.
1. Cut out the nomination application here; or pick one up from
either DSEA office; or print one off
at www.dsea.org.
2. Then secure the required number of member signatures (as indicated on the nomination form),
from DSEA members who attest
that they would like to see your
name on the election ballot.
3. Write up a statement indicating
your qualifications and why you are
running for the particular office.
www.dsea.org
Pay attention to the maximum word
count. It is different depending on
the office you are seeking.
4. Find a head-shot photo of yourself for publication as well as for
the DSEA webpage.
5. Send all of this information and
your photo (by U.S. mail or by
email) to Jeff Taschner, exec. dir.,
DSEA, 136 E. Water St., Dover, DE
19901; [email protected]. The
deadline for submitting applications and nomination signatures to
DSEA is 5:00 p.m., December 2,
2013.
6. If you are seeking more than one
office, you must submit the petition
and statement for each, but just
one photograph.
In next month’s issue of this publication, you will see all of the people who will be running for a DSEA
governance position. This information will also be posted at
www.dsea.org as well as emailed or
mailed to all members.
When does the voting take
place? For just two weeks
In January
On January 6, 2014, members for
whom we have valid email addresses will receive an email with
instructions and links for online
voting. Other members will be
mailed election ballots with the
option of making their selections
and returning them by mail or by
voting online.
The deadline for casting ballots
– whether online or paper - is
January 21, 2014.
Questions? Contact Sandy
Dearman at 1-866-734-5834 or by
Pick up this
nomination form
at either DSEA
office, or print it
from www.dsea.
org.
I NOMINATE THE FOLLOWING NAMED PERSON FOR
THE POSITION OF: _____________________________________
_________________________________________________________
(Please Print) Candidate’s Name
Date of Birth
______________________________________________________________________
Address
City
State
Zip
Local Association_____________________________________________________
Home Phone__________________________________________________________
E-mail Address_______________________________________________________
Please check the appropriate box below for information only:
qCaucasian
qAfrican American
qSpanish Surname
qHispanic
qAsian American
qHawaiian /Pacific Islander
qFirst American
All petitions must be signed by members, with complete addresses,
and submitted to Jeff Taschner, DSEA Executive Director, 136 E. Water
St., Dover, DE 19901, no later than, December 2, 2013.
Petitions must be accompanied by the following items:
(1) Candidates for DSEA PRESIDENT (3-year term) -- a statement
and/or resume totaling 300 words and a color photograph. Must have
been an active member for at least two years and obtain a minimum of
50 signatures.
(2) Candidates for DSEA VICE PRESIDENT (3-year term) -- a statement and/or resume totaling 300 words and a color photograph. Must
have been an active member for at least two years and obtain a minimum of 50 signatures
(3) Candidates for DSEA Executive Board (2-year term) -- a statement and/or resume not exceeding 150 words and a color photograph.
Must have been a member for at least one year and work in the county
in which you are pursuing a seat. (2 Kent County seats vacant; 2
Sussex County seats vacant; 5 New Castle County seats vacant)
Board signatures must be from the County in which you are pursuing a
seat. Must obtain a minimum of 20 signatures.
(3) Candidates for State Delegate to the NEA Representative
Assembly (2-year term) -- a statement and/or resume not exceeding 150
words and a color photograph. (5 two-year term seats vacant) Open to
ALL members. Must obtain a minimum of 20 signatures.
Statements and photographs will be posted on www.dsea.org by
December 11th and will be sent with election ballots to all members on
January 6, 2014. Members seeking more than one office must submit a
petition and statement for each office; however, one photograph is sufficient. Photographs should be in color, mailed with petition(s), or may be
submitted electronically as .jpg files and e-mailed to Tammy Wagner at
[email protected].
To be valid, please write legibly. It is recommended that candidates
secure extra member signatures since the entire petition could be
declared invalid if just one name is illegible or otherwise invalid. Please
have members print name, sign name, and include home address.
►►PLEASE WRITE CLEARLY OR YOUR NAME WILL NOT BE
COUNTED!!◄◄
October 2013 DSEA ACTION!
11
Assoc. Rep I Training builds confident ARs
In
your
words
- by Kelley Cole
Kelley Cole
ixteen
dedicated school employees chose to spend
Saturday, September 14 at the DSEA
Dover office. I, along with my workshop partners, honed our skills at
Part I of an Association
Representative (AR) training session. The second part of the training will be held on October 26.
While it is never easy to give up a
Saturday, the sacrifice is worth it
when training is beneficial. Led by
UniServ Director Val Hoffmann, we
had the opportunity to learn how to
be an effective AR for our respective districts. We all had many questions and many concerns about how
to best serve our colleagues.
Hoffmann and Joe Kirk, also a
UniServ Director, had the answers.
Each of us walked away with a
binder full of information, including our district’s contract.
Elena Brenner, an English
teacher at Delcastle Technical High
School, thought the training was
worth investing a Saturday.
“I was impressed by the professionalism, respect, and organization of the presenters. I found the
presentation informative, humorous, and helpful,” Brenner said. “I
“S
highly recommend all who can
attend to do so – it's totally worth
the investment of time.”
The class, fast-paced and interactive, focused on the role of an AR.
After dissecting the DSEA’s mission
and purpose, we discussed how to
strengthen our unions at the school
level. ARs need to be professional,
credible, and transparent; we are
responsible for showing the school
community that we are their voice.
“I left the training feeling encouraged about my role as an AR in my
building,” said Concord High
School math teacher David Hogan,
Jr. “Now I feel more empowered to
serve my colleagues and my local.”
As the day progressed, we discussed membership recruitment,
the fair share policy, effective communication skills, and how we can
be good advocates for our members
when a grievance takes place.
Every topic was presented in a
clever, student-oriented way that
had us moving all over the room or
drawing pictures to help us remember key points.
It was evident that my colleagues
and I respect our roles as Association Representatives. The training
prepared us to better serve our colleagues so we all can work in a productive, positive environment.
”
Kelly Cole is an English Language Arts
teacher and Assoc. Rep. at
St. Georges Technical High School,
NCC Vo-Tech School District.
Assoc. Reps work in groups of two and four, examining what makes a highly effective local and then a highly effective AR.
Elizabeth Stafford works in the bi-lingual
program at Gauger-Cobbs Middle
School, and is an AR for her colleagues
in the Christina Education Association.
Rosalie Ruane is an AR for her local, the
Appoquinimink Educational Support
Professionals. She is a paraprofessional
at Old State Elementary School in
Townsend.
An English Language Arts teacher at
Caesar Rodney High School, Joe
Hartman is also one of that school’s
ARs.
Jeannette Wilt and Gretchen Boyd both
teach in Brandywine - Wilt, math at
Brandywine High School and Boyd at
Forwood Elementary School.
Jamie Clark says that her math teacher,
Marge Windolph, inspired her to
become a teacher. Clark is now also following in Windolph’s footsteps as an
involved Association member. And, she
teaches math at her alma mater,
Brandywine High School.
Christine Schumacher (left) and Deborah
Johnson Hargrove help each other fill in
the blanks. Schumacher is a social studies teacher at St. Georges Technical High
School, NCC Vo-Tech E.A.; and Hargrove
is a food service worker at Christiana
High School and AR for her local, the
Christina Food Service Workers.
www.dsea.org
Assoc. Rep I Training builds confident ARs
Association Representatives are vital
Just as people in education and social service
make a difference in the
lives of students, ARs
make a difference in the
lives of their members.
vital part of our
Association operations are
the Association
Representatives (ARs). They are the
conduit between you, your local
president, DSEA and NEA.
Their job revolves around two
important areas: membership/organizing and advocacy.
And this is a busy time of year for
these volunteers. They are assisting
your local president or leadership
team with the important work of
confirming membership information where you work, as well as asking potential members to join your
Association.
And this is a great time to share
your thoughts with your AR about
the new year and any concerns you
may have with your work environment, and to ask questions about
your Association. It’s also a great
time to offer to help. There’s bound
to be some task, big or small, that
fits your time and talent.
DSEA’s field staff, the people we
call UniServ directors, are busy
providing training for these ARs so
that they will be more confident
and successful. Pictured here are
photos taken at two Association
Rep. I trainings.
Your AR is your first point of contact if you are having work-related
issues. This can range from concerns in your classroom or work
area, to termination. Keep in mind:
if the situation appears serious, the
AR will contact your local association president who in turn may contact your UniServ director.
We value our ARs and couldn’t
function without them. If you are
interested in becoming an AR,
please talk to your current AR,
your local Association president or
your DSEA UniServ director.
A
www.dsea.org
Association Representatives are the face of the union for most members. Pictured here are Melissa Dimartino (left) and Paulette
Brittingham-Stevens, both ARs for their colleagues in Caesar Rodney E.A. Dimartino teaches English Language Arts at Caesar
Rodney High School and Brittingham-Stevens is a special education teacher at Nellie Stokes Elem. School.
Elena Brenner of New Castle
County Vo-Tech and David
Hogan of Brandywine participate in an activity that tests
their knowledge of the structure of NEA and DSEA.
Brenner teaches various
English classes at Delcastle
High School (see page 2) and
Hogan teaches mathematics
at Concord High School.
Heather Straup of Smyrna and Billy Smith of
Caesar Rodney work on the characteristics of
highly effective unions and highly effective
Association Reps. Straup is a special education
teacher at Clayton Elem. School and Smith is a
paraeducator at the John S. Charlton School, an
ungraded school serving students in Kent
County ages two to twenty-one, challenged by
autism and moderate to severe and profound
cognitive and physical disabilities.
Every participant receives a copy of “Welcome to the Union,” one of the
best quick reads we’ve found that explains why unions exist and how
they operate; members’ union rights and responsibilities; your contract;
what a grievance is; basic labor law; if you get into trouble; and your role
in the union (www.unionist.com). Pictured here is Lacey Brown, a special
education teacher at the Sussex Consortium/ Lewes School in Cape
Henlopen.
Tawanna Prophet, of
Caesar Rodney E.A.
and Ed Dougherty,
president of Sussex
Tech E.A., discuss
recruitment strategies that work.
Our “Great Schools” outreach
Great Schools
Great
Communities
expands to more
radio stations
Members record new DSEA
Great Schools radio spots
Many thanks to Steve Rulon and
Denise Foreman whose voices can
now be heard on WDEL 1150AM,
WJBR 99.5FM and WDSD 94.7FM.
The spot is about how good familyschool communication and relationships can positively affect student
success. Go to www.dsea.org to
hear them both.
DSEA is continuing its sponsorship of two educator
recognition programs with the
public this school year - on
WJBR 99.5FM and WDSD
97.5FM - and has added one
more.
hanks to an Advertising
Assistance Grant from NEA,
we are now sponsoring the
“Delaware School Spotlight” contest on KISS 101.7FM. This station
is an urban, contemporary station
that reaches New Castle and Kent
Counties. We approached the station management with our idea
about encouraging the public to
nominate their schools, and they
loved it.
We then applied to the National
Education Association for an
Advertising Assistance Grant to
fund the necessary advertising.
The program began last month.
Called “DSEA School Spotlight,” it
encourages people to nominate
their school because of community
service, academic accomplish-
T
Katey Hill, left, WJBR’s afternoon personality, surprises Mark Giansanti as WJBR’s
September Teacher of the Month. He was nominated by former student, Courtney
Gross (center).
September Teacher of the Month Mark Giansanti
Congratulations to WJBR's
September Teacher of the Month,
Mark Giansanti, aka Mr. G, a history teacher at the Delaware
Military Academy.
He was nominated by Courtney
Gross, one of his students who
graduated last year. She wrote: "He
isn’t just a teacher... but more of a
father figure and a mentor. If we
ever need to talk, he is never far
away. He helps us with our grades,
finding money for college, and seeing the brighter side of things. Mr.
G is an amazing teacher because he
goes far beyond what is ‘expected’
of history teachers, making a difference in our lives.”
To nominate a great teacher, go to
www.jbr.com and click on the
Contests page. The winning teacher
receives a surprise classroom visit
from a WJBR personality, an
engraved plaque, and a gift certificate for Sunday Brunch for Four at
the Deerfield Country Club in
Newark.
Every Delaware fifth grader to have own copy of
Constitution and Declaration of Independence
ments, in-school activities, etc. A
winner is chosen each month by the
KISS staff, and is invited to the
KISS studios for a studio tour and
three-minute interview with Mellie
Mel, program director and top air
personality.
The station promotes the program
for two weeks, make its school
choice, and then features a daily
recap of the winner for two weeks
following the interview with Mellie
Mel during the popular MP3 at 3
daily segment.
Check it out at www.kiss1017.com.
Click on Contests and then DSEA
School Spotlight.
n partnership with the
Liberty Day organization and
the Delaware Bar
Foundation, DSEA helped fund
the printing and mailing of a
Liberty Day booklet containing
our country’s founding documents: the U.S. Constitution and
the Declaration of Independence.
Sent to fifth grade teachers in
September, the boxes also include
the booklets plus sets of 24 Q&A
flash cards to help students
understand the key provisions of
the Constitution.
As DSEA President Frederika
Jenner and Melissa Flynn,
executive director of the
Delaware Bar Foundation, said
I
in their cover letter: “ In light of
the often horrifying unrest in the
world, as people in other countries
fight for freedoms we often take
for granted, we feel it is more critical than ever to help our students
understand the founding documents of our nation and the benefits of the freedom and liberty
these documents represent.”
Delaware’s U.S. Rep. John Carney
is very supportive of this program
and would like to know how fifth
grade teachers used the material
and what their students learned.
Please copy his education advisor,
Albert Shields, at albert.shields@
mail.house.gov.
Steve Rulon is president of the Brandywine Education Assoc. and teaches
chemistry at Brandywine High School.
Denise Foreman teaches at H.B. duPont
Middle School in Red Clay and serves on
the DSEA Human and Civil Rights Task
Force.
DSEA once again sponsoring high school football
games on WDSD 94.7FM
For the third year we’re using
Great Schools funds to sponsor the
high school football (and basketball
in the spring) games that are broadcast live on WDSD 94.7FM. This
includes sponsorship of a live
weekly interview with a coach or
athletic director.
www.dsea.org
For posting in your high school
STUDENTS: Win a studio tour and an instudio interview with Mellie Mel during the
popular Mp3 at 3 segment.
How?
Go to www.kiss1017.com (Contests, DSEA
School Spotlight) and fill in the form to
nominate our school for something great:
community service, in-school activities,
ĂĐĂĚĞŵŝĐƉƌŽŐƌĞƐƐ͕ĂƐƉĞĐŝĂůĂǁĂƌĚ͙͘
Take pride in
our school!
͙sponsored by the Delaware State Education Association
www.dsea.org
www.dsea.org
Member-only benefit
winner.
These courses will be given by
an instructor from Interstate
Training Alliance, LLC. You must
attend the full six hours for the
Basic course OR the full three
hours for the Advanced/Refresher
course to receive your certificate.
The Basic course is required
first and is good for three years
before it is necessary to take the
I
soon.
October 28 & 30 (6-9 pm)
DSEA Newark Office
November 2 (9 am-3 pm)
DSEA Newark Office
November 18 & 20 (6-9 pm)
DSEA Dover Office
November 2 (9 am-12 noon)
DSEA Newark Office
December 2 (6-9 pm)
DSEA Dover Office
December 5 (6-9 pm)
DSEA Newark Office
[email protected].
No phone reservations
accepted!
www.horacemann.com
#
Yes, sign me up for DSEA’s
Fall 2013 Defensive Driving Courses!
BASIC
ADVANCED
qOctober 28 & 30 (6-9pm) - (DSEA Newark Office)
qNovember 18 & 20 (6-9pm) (DSEA Dover Office)
qNovember 2 (9am-3pm) - (DSEA Newark Office)
q November 2 (9am-12noon) (DSEA Newark Office)
q December 5 (6-9pm) - (DSEA Newark Office)
qDecember 2 (6-9pm) - (DSEA Dover Office)
Attendees:_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Address:________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
offices.
www.dsea.org
BJ’s discounted membership plus 3 free months
Join or
renew
and save
up to
$20*
There are two ways to
save at BJ’s - a lower
membership fee, or a
2% payback reward
J’s is once again offering
DSEA members a discount
on their membership. And,
for signing up for one year at a discounted rate, you will get three
bonus months free.
B
Choose from two ways to
save
Inner Circle membership for
$40, a $10 savings, plus three free
bonus months – a 15-month total.
Or
2% Payback BJ’s Rewards
membership for $80, a $20 savings,
plus three free bonus months – a 15month total.
A representative from BJ’s will be
on hand at each of our Member
Benefits Fairs (see page 3) where
you can ask questions, as well as
turn in your payment and application form.
If you are currently a BJ’s member and you renew now, the free
three months will be tacked on to
the end of your renewed membership.
Deadline for this offer is
November 7
If you mail in the application
printed here and the fee, you will
receive your membership card
within a week to ten days. Mail to
Tammy Wagner, DSEA, 136 E.
Water St., Dover, DE 19901 by
November 7, 2013.
* Inner Circle membership fee is
regularly $50; BJ’s Rewards
Membership fee is regularly $100.
www.dsea.org
This offer may not be combined
with other offers, is not redeemable
for cash or transferable, is not
available online or in-Club, and is
good for new members and current
Members renewing before their
expiration date only. Limit one
offer per household. Photo identification required when applying for
membership, plus state and local
taxes where applicable or required
by law.
More fine print
All BJ’s Memberships are subject
to certain Privileges and
Conditions. For details on Inner
Circle memberships, go to
www.bjs.com/pc, and for details on
BJ’s Rewards memberships, go to
www.bjs.com/rpc, or ask in-Club at
the Member Services Desk.
Paid memberships renewed within two months after expiration will
be extended 12 months from the
expiration date. Paid memberships
renewed more than two months
after expiration will be extended for
12 months from the last day of the
month of renewal.
Questions? Contact DSEA’s
Member Benefits Coordinator
Tammy Wagner at 1-866-734-5834 or
by email at Tammy.Wagner@
dsea.org.
American Education Week Nov. 18-22, 2013
Invite the public
to celebrate
their local public
schools
merican Education Week—
November 18-22, 2013—presents all Americans with an
opportunity to celebrate public education and honor individuals who
are making a difference in ensuring
that every child receives a quality
education. The weeklong celebration features a special observance
each day of the week.
A
Monday, November 18:
Kickoff Day
Nationwide Kickoff. Across the
country, schools will celebrate
excellence in education by hosting
kickoff events and activities.
Tuesday, November 19:
Parents Day
Schools will invite parents into the
classroom for a firsthand look at
what the school day is like for their
children.
Wednesday, November 20:
Education Support Professionals
Day
Education Support Professionals
keep schools running and students
safe, healthy and ready to learn.
Thursday, November 21:
Educator for a Day
Community leaders are invited to
experience the day as educators and
experience the challenges of teaching and the needs of students.
Friday, November 22:
Substitute Educators Day
Substitute educators play a vital
role in the maintenance and continuity of daily education.
Where did American
Education Week come
from?
Distressed that 25 percent of the
country's World War I draftees were
illiterate and nine percent were
physically unfit, representatives of
the NEA and the American Legion
met in 1919 to seek ways to generate
public support for education.
The conventions of both organizations subsequently adopted resolutions of support for a national
effort to raise public awareness of
the importance of education. In
1921, the NEA Representative
Assembly in Des Moines, Iowa,
called for designation of one week
each year to spotlight education.
The first observance of American
Education Week occurred
December 4-10, 1921, with the NEA
and American Legion as the
cosponsors.
American Education Week is
always celebrated the week prior to
the week of Thanksgiving.
For some interesting milestones
in American Education, and an online tool kit (which includes ideas
for celebrating American Education
Week in your school and/or district, camera-ready posters, sample
proclamations), go to www.nea.
org/aew.
www.nea.
org/aew
www.dsea.org
Ag in the Classroom Student Contest
Win $200 for
you and $$ for
winning student
also
n addition to the information in
the poster printed here, contest
guidelines also ask teachers to
select the top three student essays
from each participating class.
Submit essays to Jamie Pruitt, Ag
in the Classroom Essay Contest,
Delaware Farm Bureau, 3457 S.
DuPont Highway, Camden, DE 19934
by November 8, 2013.
The first place winner, parent and
teacher will be invited to the
Delaware Farm Bureau Annual
Banquet on December 5, 2013 at the
Modern Maturity Center in Dover.
And, the winning student may be
asked to read his/her essay at that
time.
If the winning teacher has more
than one of the winning students,
only one $200 Staples gift card will
be awarded.
Questions? Contact Jamie Pruitt
at 302-697-3183 or by email at
[email protected].
I
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Your pocketbook
Where are the best buys?
warehouse clubs, grocers, or
big-box stores?
You can save a lot by
shopping for the right
items at the right store
- by Cameron Huddleston
uying your food, cleaners,
medicine, toiletries and
paper products all in one
place is convenient, but it means
you’re probably spending more
than you have to on many items in
your shopping cart. Savings guru
Andrea Woroch has researched the
prices on various items at supermarkets, warehouse clubs and bigbox retailers. And she has found
that the cost of those items can
vary greatly by store type.
So you can save a lot if you know
where to go to get the best deal on
items you regularly purchase.
These recommendations from
Woroch can help.
B
Grocery stores
Canned vegetables. It’s hard to
beat the price on store-brand
canned goods. And they’re often on
sale, which makes purchasing
canned goods at the supermarket
an even better deal.
Milk and eggs. Woroch says that
grocers keep prices on these everyday staples low so that shoppers
associate the store with the good
price and come back to spend more
on other things. However, the low
prices tend to apply to store brands.
Name-brands tend to be cheaper at
Target, Woroch says.
Paper products. Although a
warehouse club might seem like the
logical choice for a big pack of
paper towels or toilet paper, Woroch
says you’ll actually get a better deal
on paper products the first and
third weeks of the month when
they typically go on sale at the grocery store. She recommends using
manufacturer coupons to get an
even deeper discount.
Produce. The giant box of strawberries for a few dollars at the
warehouse club might be tempting,
but you’ll be wasting your money if
you don’t eat them quickly enough
and half go to waste. Instead, look
for fruits and vegetables on sale –
which they frequently are – at the
grocery store and buy only the
amount you can consume.
Warehouse clubs
Batteries. You’ll save nearly 70%
per unit on batteries if you buy
them in bulk at warehouse clubs
such as BJ's Wholesale and Costco,
rather than in small packs at supermarkets, which have high mark-ups
on this item.
Cereal. You can save more than
50% by purchasing name-brand
cereal in bulk.
Diapers. Spend 25% to 35% less
on diapers by buying in bulk.
Meat. You’ll save money by buying meat, fish and poultry in bulk
at the warehouse club rather than
in smaller quantities at the grocery
store -- as long as you have enough
freezer space to store what you
don’t eat within a few days of purchasing.
Laundry detergent. You can
save 40% to 50% by purchasing
laundry detergent in bulk. But
bleach has a shelf life of six
months, so you’re better off purchasing a smaller bottle at a big-box
store.
Peanut butter. You’ll spend 30%
less on a big jar at the warehouse
club than several smaller jars at the
grocery store. Peanut butter has a
one-year shelf life, so the big jar is
a good purchase if your family eats
a lot of it.
Prescription medicine. You can
save up to 60% on generic and
name-brand prescription drugs at
warehouse club pharmacies. And
Woroch says that you don't need a
membership to access the pharmacy. For over-the-counter medications, you’ll get a better deal with
generic brands at the drug store
than the warehouse club’s giant
bottle of 500 tablets that you probably won’t be able to use up before
the expiration date.
Big-box stores
Cleaning supplies. Woroch says
that big-box retailers, such as
Target, have the best prices on
name-brand cleaning supplies. By
opting for Target’s brand of cleaning items, you’ll save another 20%,
on average.
Store-brand cereal and snacks.
Target-brand cereal and granola
bars tend to be 30% to 40% cheaper
than grocery-store brands.
Toiletries. You’ll find better
prices on shampoo, toothpaste and
other personal items than at the
grocery store.
Brought to you by NEA Member
Benefits.
Content provided by Kiplinger.
© 2013 The Kiplinger Washington
Editors
New member discount:
15% union
discount from
AT&T wireless
f you are an existing AT&T
Wireless customer, go to
www.att.com/wireless/union
plus15 and simply add your account
number to get their new 15% union
member discount. The service discount applies only to the monthly
service charge of qualified plans
and not to any other charges.
If you would like to add new
AT&T wireless phone service, you
will receive the same discount if
you purchase service online by
going to the same AT&T web site.
It’s easy!
To see all of your member-only
DSEA discounts, go to www.dsea.
I
Use your DSEA
membership
number to access
thousands of
discounts
www.dsea.org
o log in to the DSEA website and access discounts,
go to www.dsea.org. The
very first time you go to this site,
you will need to register so that
you can see this member-only
information.
Click on REGISTER and create
a login and password, using your
DSEA membership number. This
way, we can verify that you are
indeed a member.
After you register the first
time, you may log in subsequent
times by using your email
address and password that you
set up when you registered.
T
www.neamb.com
There are additional discounts
available at the NEA Member
Benefits website.
Register at that site using your
name, date of birth and contact
information. Family members
may also register here. After you
register, you may log in by using
your email address and password
that you set up when registering.
Questions? Call either DSEA
office at 866-734-5834 (toll-free to
the Dover office) or 302-366-8440
(the Newark office).
Watch for your new
DSEA membership
card coming in the
mail next month
ll DSEA members will
receive new membership
cards mailed to their
home address in November. For
the first time, your card will be
good for as long as you are a
member, saving DSEA the cost
of producing 12,000+ cards every
two years.
A
www.dsea.org
Cyber Safety for Fourth Graders
Fourth grade teachers: State offering
Fall in to
interactive cyber safety presentation
a New
to your class
Governor Markell has
declared October as Cyber
Security Awareness Month
in Delaware
egister your school or class
for a presentation from
Delaware’s Dept. of
Technology and Information.
The fall Cyber Safety 4th grade
presentation is an interactive presentation, hosted at your school, on
safe computing for kids. The onehour presentation is fast-paced,
using videos, games, and interaction with students. Topics covered
include: Cyber Citizenship, Cyber
Bullying, Cyber Security, and/or
Personal Safety. The program is
free to your school either in multiclass or single class format.
Presentations can be scheduled
for the months of October,
November, or December.
R
www.dsea.org
What does the presentation include?
• Emphasis on online citizenship,
stranger safety, and cyber security
• Addresses components of Career
and TechEd Common Core
Standards
• Video-based PowerPoint presentation
• Compliments existing Internet
Safety Curriculum, including I-safe.
How does this work?
Request a presentation at
https://cyberschool.dti.delaware.
gov/ by providing your preferred
dates/times. You will then receive
confirmation.
Set of
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Did you know….
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38 minutes per day online.
1 in every 7 children have been sexually solicited on the internet.
1 in 4 children ages 12-17 own a
smart phone.
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*Offer valid for a limited time only and loan is subject to credit approval. APR is Annual Percentage Rate. The
Annual Percentage Rate is the advertised rate and can vary based on creditworthiness and terms of the loan.
Rate is subject to change. Financing up to the retail value of the vehicle is available. This offer may not be
combined with any other offer. The stated rate is discounted which includes: a requirement of automatic loan
payment transfers, direct deposit of net pay and a checking account for .50% discount, requires Debt Protection
for .25% discount and requires GAP Insurance for .25% discount for a total discount of 1.00%. See Credit Union
for details.
Resources and Opportunities
New memoir looks
at insider's view of
DSEA in the 1960's
Chet Elder, who worked for
DSEA for four years in the late 60's one of only three professional staff
at the time - has written a memoir
about his time here. Using experience first as a Delaware teacher in
what is now the Colonial School
District, then local association president, then DSEA assistant executive secretary, The Reluctant
Revolution - DSEA in the 60's is an
insider's look at a time before collective bargaining, before UniServ
directors, when administrators
were members, when DSEA presidents rotated through the three
counties, and when there were 30
districts, not the 19 that we have
today.
Although the book was not commissioned by DSEA, nor is it
endorsed by DSEA, it will be a fascinating read for many DSEA members. Elder worked at DSEA from
1964-1970 and then for the Maryland
State Education Assoc. for 30 years,
retiring in 2000.
Elder is offering DSEA members
a 25% discount, $19.60 per copy
Fulbright
Distinguished
Awards in Teaching
Program taking
applications
The 2014-15 Fulbright programs unique international professional
development opportunities for three
to four months - are now open for
application.
By conducting educational
research abroad, U.S. teachers can
gain new skills, learn new instructional methods and assessment
methodologies and share best practices with international colleagues
and students. Teachers also have
Earn up to $200,000
in safety and security equipment for
your school
Here’s how it works.
STEP 1: School principals, teachers
and other school staff can nominate
their schools until October 28th.
Go to http://www.stanleysafer
schools.com/#.gdZ0chclzgcO to
nominate your school!
instead of $24.99, plus $3.50 shipping for a total of $23.10, compared
to the original $34 including shipping.
The book is self-published, so
make your check payable to Chet
Elder and mail your order and
check to him at 400 Black Gum
Drive, Bethany Beach, DE 19930.
For questions, contact Elder at
302-265-8154 or by email at
chetelder@ mchsi.com. For bulk
orders, please call for exact postage
or UPS fee.
the opportunity to expand their
understanding of other cultures
and international education systems that will enrich their schools
and local communities with global
perspectives.
Teachers may travel to Chile,
Finland, India, Israel, Mexico,
Morocco, Palestinian Territories,
Singapore, and the United
Kingdom.
Start your application today at
https://dafulbrightteachers.org/.
The application deadline is
December 15, 2013.
Find eligibility requirements and
application information at www.
fulbrightteacherexchange.org.
This program is sponsored by the
U.S. Department of State, Bureau of
Educational and Cultural Affairs
and is administered by the Institute
of International Education.
Items described on this page are not always
endorsed by the Association, but are provided for
your information.
STEP 2: School administrators,
teachers, students, parents and
local community members will get
the chance to vote for their favorite
school from November 5th to
December 13th.
STEP 3: The school with the most
votes will win $200,000 in STANLEY
Security installed products and
services. Three runners-up will win
$100,000 in STANLEY Security
installed products and services.
Each vote for a school also counts
as an entry for the school to win
daily prizes, so don’t forget to vote
daily!
2014 annual
Delaware
Geo
Education
student contest
Sponsored by Delaware
GeoEducation, the purpose of the
2014 contest, Plan, Respond,
Recover: Exploring Natural
Disasters, is to allow students to
use maps to explore natural disasters. The theme can be interpreted
broadly to fit your existing curriculum.
Entry information can be found at
the Delaware GeoEducation web
site at http://mygeoworld.com.
Questions? Contact Brooke
Santiago (NCC) at 302-576-3085 or
[email protected];
Miriam Pomilio (Kent County) at
302-739-3090 or Miriam.Pomilio@
state. de.us; or Nicole Minni
(Sussex County) at 302-645-4353 or
nminni @udel.edu.
Deadline for entries is Friday,
March 28, 2014.
STEP 4: Winners will be notified in
December and prizes will be awarded in 2014.
Are you a lover of
GIS?
Applications are now open for
T3G2014. T3G stands for Teachers
Teaching Teachers.
Esri (Environmental Systems
Research Institute, Inc.) is seeking
100 educators and influencers of
education, from grade school to
grad school, formal and informal
education, who want to improve
their skills in working with GIS
(Geographic Information Systems),
supporting active learning, and providing effective professional development. T3Gers are a professional
learning community, sharing strategies, ideas, resources, and inspiration across the miles, grades, and
subjects.
Go to the T3G page http://esriurl.
com/t3g and check out the movie
links as well as the application.
The application deadline is
November 25, 2013.
Pet Care Trust’s Pets
in the Classroom:
www.Petsinthe
Classroom.org
Here’s a unique grant. The Pets
in the Classroom program is accepting grant applications for the 201314 school year. Pre-kindergarten
through 8th grade teachers who
want a pet in the classroom, or who
already have one and are searching
for help paying for its care, are
urged to apply.
Teachers can obtain grants for
the purchase of new pets, pet environments or pet food and supplies
for existing classroom pets. There
are seven types of grants available,
including two new ones this year.
For more information go to
www.PetsintheClassroom.org.
www.dsea.org
www.dsea.org
Making a difference
gave oral presentations; some created museum exhibits; one played
civil war music on her flute; and
others made movies.
She also brings both the social
science and hard science subjects
alive thanks to her annual summer
travels. In 2012 she travelled to
VietNam and Mongolia. And this
past summer she visited the
Galapagos Islands. “I hope that my
love for travel – and experiencing
countries and meeting people
myself instead of only reading
about them in books – will catch on
with my students, open their eyes
to see that there is more than one
way to live, to experience many cultures, and also see that we have
much in common.”
Did you hear?
The National
History Teacher
of the Year is
one of our own
- Jill Szymanski of
Brandywine Springs in
Red Clay
”It's been overwhelming, she says, but validates her efforts to
make history a priority.
he History Channel was in
her classroom to film for an
entire day. She's been interviewed by Philadelphia's Channel 6
Action News, the News Journal and
Delaware's NPR radio station,
WDDE 91.1FM. And, of course, she
has received many congratulatory
emails from former students. She’ll
be the star at the Awards ceremony
next month in New York City. "All
this just isn’t me," she says.
What is true for her is that the
award validates her efforts to "...
make history dimensional by using
historical documents, taking students on site visits, and allowing
them to connect with history on
their own terms," she says. She was
selected from among 51 elementary
school candidates. The organizations alternate the award between
elementary and secondary teachers
of Social Studies.
The award comes with a $10,000
prize from the Gilder Lehrman
Institute, History® (the History
Channel and Preserve America,
sponsors of the National History
Teacher of the Year program. This
month she’ll be bringing two of her
students to New York City for the
awards ceremony. They will also
speak about this award, and what it
was like to be one of her students.
At the ceremony the History
Channel will show video of
Szymanski’s classroom.
T
She makes Social Studies a
priority, all year
The post on the DSEA Facebook page of Jill Szymanski’s selection as the country’s
National History Teacher of the Year has broken all DSEA records with 10,244 page
views!
History was her least
favorite subject
Although she always remembers
wanting to be a teacher, history, she
says, was her least favorite subject.
"The way it was often taught was by
memorizing dates, places, battles it was hard to relate to."
A native of Delaware and a graduate of Red Clay schools, Szymanski
graduated from the University of
Delaware with a degree in elementary and special education and a
masters degree in education.
Thanks to professional development from her alma mater, she has
been able to teach living history.
"This type of professional development, where you can work with
other teachers, and receive help
finding and using primary and secondary sources, is the best professional development I’ve ever had.”
She has benefited specifically from
the Democracy Project and, more
recently, the Freedom Project.
The Freedom Project is a partnership between the Red Clay and
Christina School Districts. "Not
only did we get to hear from people
from the Delaware Public Archives
and the Delaware Historical Society
about their primary sources, but we
were given actual lessons plans.
What made this extraordinary, is
that we were able to plan a lesson in
teams of four, and then teach the
lessons while the others observed.
We then met to revise the lesson
using the observers’ feedback.”
Civil War study ends with
Living History Museum
For the past few years she's been
teaching the same students in twoyear rotations. Called "looping," it
is an old technique that she finds
very helpful. She "loops" 4th and 5th
graders. "In the fifth grade, you can
hit the ground running. You know
each other so you know the students' strengths and weaknesses."
Last year she had fifth-graders
whose month-long Civil War
Museum project caught the judges'
attention. The study allowed each
student to work individually or in
teams to become experts on some
aspect of the civil war era. For
example, Szymanski used document-based questions whose
answers the students used to begin
what became research papers. They
then developed their own question
and answer sheets on their topic.
At the end of the year, they took
over the school's cafeteria and
opened up their "Civil War Living
History Museum" to the parents
and other students. Some had painted particular scenes and events;
some were specific characters and
In her district, as in many others,
English and mathematics are
taught year-round, but science and
social studies take a back seat, each
taught only half of the school year.
Science gets attention as a STEM
subject, leaving Social Studies at
the bottom of the priority list. "I
don't take Social Studies time away.
Ever. There are ways that you find
to keep it a priority all year," she
says. "You figure out a way to make
it work. That's what we do.”
For example, reading and writing
can be about historical subjects primary sources as well as literature.
Along the way she teaches good
citizenship, the economy, how government works, voting rights - "a
ton of civics!" She firmly believes
that one of public education’s missions is to help educate good citizens. “Our form of government
depends on people who can participate and vote intelligently,” she
says. A well-rounded education, she
adds, is more than learning how to
read, write and do mathematics.
Social Studies, including citizenship, needs to be a priority, too.
And that, she says, will be her
message as the National History
Teacher of the Year.
www.dsea.org
Vol. 34 No. 3
THE VOICE OF THE DELAWARE STATE EDUCATION ASSOCIATION
INSIDE
Hundreds of members
take professional
development and
union skills workshops
Pages 12-13
n n n
See who’s running
for DSEA offices
Pages 4-6
n n n
Looking ahead
to the
General Assembly
Page 11
n n n
“Great School
Great Communities”
in high gear
Page 15
Nov./Dec. 2013
Laurel teachers take action
to publically challenge
district’s bargaining position
“Work to rule” protest began a
month ago
s a visible sign of how serious their frustration is,
teachers in Laurel are gathering at their schools’ flag poles five
minutes before the start of each
school day and walking in together.
At the end of the school day, they
leave their buildings together.
This job action, called work to
rule, means that educators will
work the hours that are required,
but no more – no coming in early or
staying late. Teachers will do their
jobs. Students should see no disruption in the educational process –
A
Association (LEA) have been negotiating a successor contract without
success. After nine bargaining sessions, they recently went the next
step, continuing negotiations with
the help of a state-appointed mediator. After three sessions, two with
the mediator and a third without,
there is still no progress.
“It’s time to get the attention of
the Laurel community,” says Sue
Darnell, president of LEA and its
chief negotiator. “After the last
negotiations session,” she explains,
“we made a proposal which we
Instead of thanking teachers
for doing extraordinary work
under stressful conditions, the
district wants to strip the
existing contract of much of
the previously-negotiated
language.
just nothing extra before or after
school. However, coaches and other
advisors that are under contract
will fulfill their extra duties.
During the first week, DSEA
President Frederika Jenner
joined LEA members in solidarity
at the high school and at Dunbar
Elementary School.
Since March of this year, the district and the Laurel Education
believe is respectful of the district’s
financial situation, including no
raises for the next two years.”
After several years of cuts in
both programs and staff due to economic difficulties, staff morale has
understandably sunk even lower.
Teachers are frustrated and
angry, Darnell says. “We have
offered the district a proposal that
Teachers are frustrated and angry. Sue
Darnell tells WMDT-TV, “We have
offered the district a respectful proposal
that will work. After so many bargaining
sessions, there is no reason why this
can’t be settled. ”
will work. After so many bargaining sessions, there is no reason why
this can’t be settled. ”
Joe Kirk, DSEA’s field staff representative for LEA, comments,
“The district is now spending precious taxpayer money on legal fees
and at the same time disrespecting
its teachers by rejecting a proposal
that is thoughtful and respectful of
the Laurel community.”
Adds Darnell, “There is no reason
to further anger our teachers, and
tarnish our community’s
‘Laurel pride’ by showing such disrespect.”
At the most recent school board
meetings, supportive parents and
teachers packed the room and made
their dissatisfaction known.
WMDT-TV is giving this important
story on-going coverage. You can
see it at www.wmdttv.com.
LEA has established a
Facebook page (Laurel Education
Association) where you can read
more about their issues and
anger, as well as post messages of
support.
How the president sees it
DDOE report
not surprising
DOE’s year-one report on
DPAS II held no big surprises. The fact most of the
5,075 educators in cycle last year
demonstrated competence is
encouraging. It’s a transition year
in a complicated system and one
year of data does not allow anyone
to draw conclusions or establish
trend lines. What is important is
how the data is interpreted and
used.
The report attracted media attention and raised questions about the
system’s rigor and implementation
by administrators. We must proceed
cautiously as we move forward with
DPAS II-R.
The system is touted as one of
“continuous improvement”, whose
goal is to enhance the performance
of all educators. It’s designed to
strengthen practice so that everyone—even the 1%—is highly effective. There is no need to apologize
for most educators performing well
D
DSEA ACTION! (USPS 010111 ISSN
01995413) is the official publication of
Association.
ACTION! is mailed 7 times a year,
(September, October, combined
Nov/Dec issue, February, March/April,
June and July) at DSEA headquarters
located at 136 E. Water St., Dover, DE
19901. Telephone: 302-734-5834, or
toll-free: 1-866-734-5834. Our
Wilmington office may be reached by
calling 302-366-8440. Subscriptions are
included in membership: $2.32 a year
for teachers and $1.19 a year for ESPs.
Subscriptions are $5 per year to those
ineligible for membership. Periodical
postage paid at Dover, DE 19901.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to
DSEA ACTION!, 136 E. Water St.,
Dover, DE 19901.
President
FREDERIKA JENNER
Vice President
KAREN CROUSE
Treasurer
DOM ZAFFORA
NEA Director
MIKE HOFFMANN
Exec. Director
JEFF TASCHNER
Editor
PAMELA T. NICHOLS
Program Assistant
SUSAN W. KELLER
Pres. Jenner comments on the release of
the results for the first year of the
teacher/specialist evaluation system.
on a measurement system designed
by DDOE.
DPAS II was a highly regarded
evaluation framework which
allowed educators to set student
improvement goals as part of the
process. Educators found this productive and there was statewide
confidence in the system. However,
DPAS II-R, especially Component 5,
is a different story.
DPAS II-R is a different
story
Last year’s roll-out of the new
system seriously compromised the
validity of the data it produced.
Computer shut-downs during testing, serious technology glitches,
and test administration delays into
late-October and early-November
also created an exhausting level of
frustration for educators. Nevertheless, they endured and dealt with
problems professionally.
Teachers and specialists are
exactly that, professional. They do
not shy away from accountability
for the things which are within
their genuine control.
There are still concerns about the
tests themselves. DCAS is not adap-
tive enough. There are floor and
ceiling issues with a test that only
goes one year above and below
grade level—compromising an
accurate measurement of a student’s true learning growth.
Measure B tests do not provide a
true indication of a student’s grade
level abilities and are not helpful in
planning or tailoring instruction.
Reading and math teachers have
never seen the DCAS tests—a key
weakness in the system. Alignment
between instruction and assessment is critical for both to be effective. I am not championing teaching TO the test, but rather teaching
FOR the test.
Teachers have no way of knowing
where the focus lies or how questions are framed. Confidence and
test validity are questionable when
alignment cannot be confirmed. By
contrast, under the DSTP, teachers
could tailor quizzes and tests to the
DSTP formats, matching instructional focus to the standards and
curriculum areas reflected in the
tests. It wasn’t cheating—it was
smart instruction.
Administrator discretion for
Component 5 ratings has also
raised questions. Discretion gives
principals the opportunity to use
other data to determine a teacher’s
level of effectiveness, beyond the
number DCAS assigns for their
effectiveness. The questioning of
administrative discretion again
raises concerns about disconnects
between the classroom components
and Component 5. What does it
mean when I do everything right,
identified as ‘distinguished’ in an
overwhelming number of the
rubric elements for Components 14, yet my students fail to meet their
DCAS and Measure B targets?
In light of these questions and
concerns, how can one account for
the indications of educator (and
student) success found in the YearOne report? In the past four years,
a number of initiatives were undertaken with the intent of showing
substantial progress. They include:
• developmental coaches and leader
fellowship programs to strengthen
school leadership
• data coaches, academic deans,
and teacher leaders using data to
strengthen classroom practice
• using PLC’s, school, district, and
state PD to increase student success
through collaboration
• Experience using the Danielson
model to identify critical elements
of instruction and define unambiguous pathways for teachers and
instructional leaders
If these reform efforts did not
tangibly enhance teaching and
learning, then accountability is a
much larger issue than identifying
a greater number of ineffective
teachers.
We want everyone to continue
searching for ways to meet the criteria set by Sec. Murphy—but the
process must be fair, transparent,
easy to understand, respectful of
the profession, and not disruptive to
the learning environment. Let’s
wait for additional data before drawing conclusions about the effectiveness of the evaluation system, those
charged with implementation at the
district level, and those whom the
system intends to evaluate.
THERE IS POWER IN THE UNION.
Frederika Jenner,
President
[email protected]
Leading the way. . .
his month
we feature
Brenda
Abrams, membership chair of
the Brandywine
School Nutrition Association.
She has worked at Concord High
School's cafeteria for almost 14
years.
Prior to being membership
chair of BSNA, she was co-president with Dana Finnegan.
T
2 Nov./Dec. 2013 DSEA ACTION!
What accomplishments as a
leader are you most proud of?
We were able to get more people
interested in coming to meetings
and getting involved.
What is your local’s biggest
challenge this year?
We need to help more people better understand the benefits that
DSEA has to offer. Before getting
involved, I had no real understand-
ing of all of the work that takes
place behind the scenes. Once I
got involved and started going to
RA meetings and other conferences, I had a better grasp of all
the work that goes into making
DSEA successful.
“In the perfect world at work,
"we would have enough workers
and time to do our jobs more efficiently."
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
What’s hot
NCC Vo-Tech’s Kelley Cole to join DSEA Exec. Board
ue to the hiring of David
Wright as DSEA’s new director of communications, his
seat on the DSEA Executive Board
needed to be filled. At its November
meeting, the Board considered nominations and selected Kelley Cole
to fill this New Castle County seat
whose term ends on August 31, 2014.
Cole is an English Language Arts
teacher at St. Georges Technical
High School in Middletown, one of
New Castle County Vo-Tech’s
newest high schools. A teacher for
almost 14 years, she is currently an
Association Rep. for the members
in that school, as well as NCCVoTech E.A.’s membership chair. She
D
Have you received your new
DSEA forever membership card?
SEA’s new membership
cards were mailed
December 3 to home
addresses. If you were a member in
prior years, your membership number has not changed. What has
changed is that this is a “forever”
card. It doesn’t expire until you
leave the Association.
If you are a new member this
year, you are receiving this card as
well. Everyone for whom we had
membership forms in mid-October
was mailed the DSEA card pictured
above.
The new card not only verifies
your membership, but continues to
open doors to hundreds of discounts that are available to you as a
member of NEA, DSEA, and your
local association.
D
If you haven’t already, take a few
moments to register your card at
www.dsea.org. To register, click on
the words “Member-Only Section,
Log in here.” You will be asked for
your email address, your membership number and to choose a password.
Notice that after you are registered, you can update your personal
information, such as change of
address or name, right at the DSEA
website.
If you haven’t received
your new card yet, please
contact either DSEA office
(302-366-8440 or 1-866734-5834).
Every Delaware fifth grader to
have own copy of Constitution
n partnership with the
Liberty Day organization and
the Delaware Bar Foundation, DSEA helped fund the
printing and mailing of a
Liberty Day booklet containing
our country’s founding documents: the U.S. Constitution and
the Declaration of Independence.
Sent to fifth grade teachers in
September, the boxes also
include the booklets plus sets of
24 Q&A flash cards to help students understand the key provisions of the Constitution.
As DSEA President Frederika
Jenner and Melissa Flynn, executive director of the Delaware
I
www.dsea.org
Bar Foundation, said in their cover
letter: “In light of the often horrifying unrest in the world, as people in
other countries fight for freedoms
we often take for granted, we feel it
is more critical than ever to help
our students understand the founding documents of our nation and
the benefits of the freedom and liberty these documents represent.”
If you are a fifth grade teacher
and have not received these booklets, please let us know by emailing
[email protected]. We’d also
like to know if we should fund
these booklets next year. Please let
Wright know if they helped student
learning.
@dseafan
Kelley Cole
is also on the Delaware District
Executive Board of the United
States Tennis Association (USTA).
She became interested in becoming more involved after attending
the Assoc. Rep training this fall.
After 28 years,
Nichols retires from
DSEA; David
Wright steps in
amela T. Nichols, who has
been DSEA’s director of communications for 28 years, is
retiring at the end of December.
Responsible for member and public
communication for DSEA, she has
seen the work change from typewriters and network TV to digital
publishing and social networking.
“I have been honored to help
Delaware’s public school educators truly our unsung heroes - with
information and opportunities to
advance their profession. Being
able to help keep the focus on their
voices, no matter what the issue of
the day, has been much more of a
privilege than a job,” she says. She
taught French and German for four
years at McKean High School in
what is now the Red Clay
Consolidated School District.
Her replacement, David L.
Wright, begin in mid-November in
order to give him time with Nichols
to familiarize himself with DSEA’s
current communications programs.
Wright, age 36, has been a digital
publishing and English Language
Arts teacher at Middletown High
School since 2004. While there, he
instructed students in American literature, with a focus on the development of writing skills. He also
developed and implemented the
schools’ curriculum for Journalism
and Graphic Design, and was the
advisor for the school’s nationally
P
David Wright moves from the classroom
to be DSEA’s new director of communication, replacing Pam Nichols, who is
retiring.
award-winning yearbook.
Since 2009 he has been president
of the Appoquinimink Education
Association. He has also been a
member of the DSEA Executive
Board, a local delegate to the NEA
Rep. Assembly, and since November
2012, a member of the State
Employee Benefits Advisory
Council, appointed by Gov. Jack
Markell.
Adds DSEA’s Executive Director
Jeff Taschner, “DSEA and its
members have been fortunate to
have Pam Nichols working on their
behalf for the past 28 years. Under
Pam’s leadership, DSEA’s reputation and image have grown to be
valued among the Delaware education community and general public.
We are excited to have David
Wright joining the DSEA team and
are confident that he will continue
to build upon Pam’s hard work.”
In addition to his education certifications, Wright holds a masters
degree in Journalism and Public
Relations from Temple University
in Philadelphia; and a bachelor of
science degree in Sociology and
Communications from Mount St.
Mary’s University in Emmittsburg,
Maryland.
Nov./Dec. 2013 DSEA ACTION! 3
Seeking your vote
You
decide
who will
govern
DSEA
resented here are the candidates running for DSEA president, vice president,
Executive Board and state delegate
to the NEA Representative
Assembly.
Uncontested, Pres. Jenner is automatically re-elected. Also elected
are the candidates for Sussex
County Exec. Board seats and New
Castle County Exec. Board seats.
There are two contested races: for
DSEA vice president and Kent
County Exec. Board seats, where
there are three people running for
two seats.
At the DSEA Representative
Assembly on March 15, elections
will take place for the remaining
vacancies: one New Castle County
Exec. Board member (four people
are running for five positions) and
one NEA RA delegate position (four
people are running for five positions there also).
P
When does voting take
place?
Between January 6 and January
21 - only two weeks!
On January 6, 2014, DSEA will
email to all members for whom we
have email addresses, and mail all
others, voting information.
Everyone will have the option of
making their selections and returning them to DSEA by mail or by voting online.
The deadline for casting ballots
– whether online or by paper - is
the same, January 21, 2014.
Preliminary results will be
announced on January 27, to be ratified by the Exec. Board on
February 11.
This information is also available
on the DSEA Elections page at
www.dsea.org/AboutDSEA/DSEA
Elections.html.
For president - 3 year term
Frederika Jenner
Our union is strong, but with the
difficult issues we face as public
school educators, we must continue
to work together to make our union
stronger. Decisions made by DSEA,
and the stands we take on education issues, have lasting influence
not only for our members, but for
students we serve and communities
in which we live. I know the importance of maintaining relationships
with local leaders and members, to
enable them to be well-informed, to
empower them, and to enlist their
active participation in the governance of DSEA.
I am committed to member advocacy, shared decision-making, and
sound educational policy. I recognize that the power and strength of
DSEA reside in our local associations.
I know that effective teaching is
vital to student success. I also know
that it takes the teamwork of every
education professional to support
student success. I am proud that
DSEA represents food service workers, secretaries, custodians, paras,
and bus drivers, as well as librarians, nurses, and student support
specialists.
In the past two years, DSEA has
helped keep members on the job
and healthcare and pension benefits intact. Continued funding for
education in Delaware has resulted
in a minimum number of education
layoffs. We have done what it takes
to maintain the 4-year salary
increase agreement for paras.
Members expect that DSEA’s
Leadership Team and Executive
Board will work together to guide
us thoughtfully through challenges
Frederika Jenner
presented by education reform.
Positions we take are based on
experience and education expertise.
The beliefs we assert are intended
to ensure the best possible outcomes for members and students
alike.
I am a proud union member. I
respectfully ask for your vote for a
second term as President of DSEA.
For vice president - 3 year term
Michael Brown
My name is
Michael Brown, a candidate for DSEA’s VicePresident. Presently, I
am a certified
Paraeducator at
William Henry Middle School in
Capital School District and
President of my local union,
Capital Paraprofessional
Association. Formerly, I served on
DSEA’s Executive Board until
August 2013. Since my initial
involvement in the Association, I
decided that this work was important to me and I wanted to “dig
deeper.”
In March 2013, I was named
DSEA’s ESP of the Year. I’ve attended NEA’s Emerging Leaders
Academy and have been very active
at the state and local levels by participating in many conferences,
committees and task forces such as:
NEA Representative Assembly
NEA Minority Leadership Training
NEA ESP Conference
DSEA Representative Assembly
DSEA Finance Task Force
DSEA Human and Civil Rights
Task Force
DSEA Winter Advocacy Retreat
As a member of my local community, I serve as the Artistic Director
for Dover’s Inner City Cultural
League, Inc., a community arts
organization that promotes “educational advancement through the
arts.” Additionally in May 2013, I
was promoted to Director of
Pegasus Artworks, the after-school
arts program for the Boys & Girls
Club of Delaware providing arts
programming to youth at 48 locations statewide.
If elected Vice-President of
DSEA, I will continue to foster relationships with our state elected officials to build bridges and bridge
gaps within our state’s educational
system and ensure the voices of all
our members continue to be heard.
Karen Crouse
I was elected by
our Executive Board in
March to fill this unexpired term. I have previously served as your
Treasurer for two
terms.
I would like to work on helping
our members be respected for the
role each of us play in the educational world. At the NEA RA this
year we were challenged to be part
of the “Raise Your Hand”
challenge. Therefore, I am challenging you to go to NEA’s website and
take this pledge. Only together can
we show politicians and those that
think they know how to educate
children what we need, how evaluations should be done, how Common
Core should be implemented, and
all the other initiatives others think
we should be doing. We can sit back
and let this be done to us or we can
join together one member at a time
and show a united force to be reckoned with to make a difference in
our profession.
I ask you to “Raise Your Hand”
and become involved in your local
and state association. By donating a
few hours, you can make a
difference in our profession. When I
use the word educator or in our profession I am referring to teachers,
paraprofessionals, specialists, secretaries, custodians, child nutrition
workers, bus drivers and others
having a role in our schools.
I have served as president of
LFEA a unified local, bargained
employee contracts, served as grievance chair and worked on numerous committees to improve the
working conditions and rights of
our members. I work as a financial
secretary at Lake Forest High
School, serve as a 4-H leader, and a
member of Harrington Fire
Company’s Ladies Auxiliary. I live
in Harrington with my husband
Doug and two daughters.
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
You decide who will govern DSEA
For Exec. Board - New Castle County five vacancies
For Exec. Board - Kent County - two
vacancies
Michael Bank - NCC
Stephanie Ingram - NCC
Linda Brown - KC
Denise Waples - KC
My name is
Michael Bank and I am
running for a seat on
the DSEA Executive
Board. I have been
very active in DSEA and RCEA for
many years. Currently I serve as
chair of the DSEA Resolutions
Committee and I represent
Delaware as its delegate to the NEA
Resolution’s Committee. I regularly
attend and actively participate in
both the state and national representative assemblies and serve on
many other committees at both the
state and local levels.
I have worked in Delaware public
schools for 23 years. For the past 21
years I have been a school counselor at Richardson Park Learning
Center in Red Clay. I am very passionate about the concerns and
issues faced by those of us who
work with special needs students
and I hope to be able to continue to
serve as an advocate for all public
school educators.
I would like the
opportunity to continue to serve as a member of the Executive
Board.
My time on the Executive Board
has given me the good fortune to
grow as a professional and to have
almost an inside view on the educational landscape here in our state.
The training and information I
have received as a board member
have made me more able to recognize the needs of educators both
throughout the state and in my
local association, where I am president.
I believe that DSEA continues to
stand up and speak out for our
members in a time when the barrage of criticism is all too strong. I
want to remain a part of this
important organization and continue to help all of us face the multitude of challenges that are sure to
come.
I appreciate the trust you place in
me by re-electing me to the Board.
As a present DSEA
Executive Board member, I would like to
reapply to be a Kent
County representative.
I am a teacher in the
Capital School District where I have
been teaching for 12 years. I have
taken this year to become highly
involved within DSEA and my
local. Presently, I am one of DSEA’s
Guiding Team members for
Common Core and training members on the shifts. Also, I am a
member of the HCR task force. On
the local front, I am now the Vice
President for the elementary level
within CEA. With my participation
in trainings, conferences and meetings, I have a broad perspective on
the needs of members and the
union. Thank you for this opportunity and for your continued diligence!
I am a second
grade teacher at
Benjamin Banneker
Elementary in Milford
School District.
Currently, I am very active on the
local, state and national levels of
our organization. My involvement
has increased my knowledge of our
organization as well as made me a
stronger advocate for our members
and students. While serving my
local, I have held the positions of
President, Secretary, Political
Action Chair, Ethnic Minority
Chair, Negotiations Chair, and
Building Representative.
I currently represent Kent
County on the DSEA Executive
Board as well as chair the Human
and Civil Rights Task Force. Also, I
am a member of the Scholarship
Committee, Policy, and Budget Task
Forces. I have represented our state
as a delegate to the NEA
Representative Assembly, and as a
member of the National EMA
Committee and Black Caucus.
It is with this in mind that I am
asking for your help. Your vote will
allow me to continue to represent
you, the members, and the students
we serve.
Kelley Cole - NCC
I am in my 11th
year of teaching
secondary English.
Currently, I teach at St.
Georges Technical
High School in the New Castle
County Vo-Tech School District. I
am also a building rep and the
Membership Chair for the NCCVTEA.
I’ve been fortunate to participate
in numerous workshops sponsored
by DSEA and the NEA. I will be
attending the Women’s Leadership
Training and the National
Leadership Summit in Atlanta this
February. I am also a member of
DSEA’s CCLEAR cadre (Common
Core Leaders Educating and
Advocating for Reform), a group
dedicated to fully understanding
and sharing our knowledge of the
Common Core Curriculum with
other educators. It is important for
me to be involved so I can learn
how to better assist our members.
It would be an honor to continue
to serve on the Executive Board. I
am hoping you will allow me to represent you by giving me your vote.
www.dsea.org
Mike Kempski - NCC
DSEA recognizes
that it must adapt to a
different social, economic and political
environment. We must
continue to deliver the services that
emphasize advocacy for individual
members, but we also must organize members to act on the key
issues impacting their profession.
These issues include obtaining an
evaluation system that works, fighting for the resources necessary to
meet the needs of our students, and
building our capacity to have a powerful presence in every building.
I would appreciate your vote and
support so I can continue to serve
on DSEA's Executive Board.
Thank you.
@dseafan
Tawanna Prophet - KC
I am running for
the DSEA Executive
Board because I want
to make a difference
on the state level. The
past two years I have
been an active member of my local,
the Caesar Rodney Education
Association.
As a paraeducator for several
years, I’ve learned my voice is
important. I want to continue fighting for new and experienced educators and the education of our children. I believe that legislators have
lost sight of what is important. I
can no longer sit on the sideline
and allow our children to fall
through the cracks. Our educators
should be treated fairly and receive
the accolades they deserve. I believe
that I, Tawanna Prophet, can make
a difference as a member of the
DSEA Executive Board.
Kent County
members: This
is a contested
race. When
you cast your
ballot, vote for
two.
Seeking your vote
NEA RA delegates - five seats open
Diane Saienni Albanese
Kelli Bradley
Ann Harris
Denise Waples
I wish to be placed
on the ballot for the
Delaware State
Education Association
NEA - Representative
Assembly candidate
for a two-year term and I ask for
your support.
I am uniquely qualified for this
candidacy because I have an extensive experience and expertise in
attending and participation of
these national meetings having
been to Washington, Chicago and
Atlanta.
I have crafted a New Business
Item and even had it pass with overwhelming support on the floor of
the NEA Representative Assembly
last summer.
Additionally, I am a member of
several caucuses including
National Board Certified Teachers
and the American-Italian Caucus.
I’d like to continue these endeavors
and bring good information back to
my DSEA colleagues.
I am ready to go! Please vote for
me!
Thank you for
electing me two years
ago as one of your
state NEA RA delegates. I’d be honored
to represent Delaware again! As
part of the NEA-RA and DSEA-RA
for the past 13 years, I’ve had the
opportunity to discuss issues facing
educators and paraprofessionals
today.
We aren’t alone in our struggles
and I enjoy discussing and sharing
Delaware’s perspective. I would
like to continue DSEA’s representation on the NEA Community
Outreach Committee at the RA.
These past two years in
Washington, DC and Atlanta, we
had Delaware delegates serve meals
to the homeless, work with Habitat
for Humanity and other community
outreach activities in each of these
cities! It’s been fun serving as an
officer on this committee and getting Delaware involved in volunteer
activities!
NEA RA Community Outreach
Board Member – 8 years
DSEA Executive Board Member – 7
years
BEA Executive Board – 13 years
BEA Building Rep – 21 years
I was a building
representative for six
years, have served as
CREA secretary for
seven years, and have
attended the DSEA
Representative Assembly for the
last ten years. I am now ready for
greater responsibilities; therefore,
I, Ann Harris, would like to represent DSEA at the NEA Assembly.
As a delegate to the DSEA RA, I
have gained valuable insight into
how the education system works in
our state. I have learned the importance of being an advocate for all
educators.
As a delegate, I have been the
voice for members in my building
and my local. But I also realize
there is still much to be achieved
for Delaware educators. I now want
to be that voice for all DSEA members by representing the State of
Delaware at the NEA Assembly.
Please assist me in accomplishing
this goal. Thank you in advance for
your consideration!
I am a second
grade teacher at
Benjamin Banneker
Elementary in Milford
School District.
Currently, I am very active on the
local, state and national levels of
our organization. My involvement
on all levels has increased my
knowledge of our organization as
well as made me a stronger advocate for our members and students.
Jan. 6 - Information
on how to vote
mailed and e-mailed
Jan. 21 - Deadline
for return of ballots
and online voting
Jan. 27 - Preliminary
results announced
Feb. 3 - Candidate
challenge deadline
Feb. 11 - Ratification
of results by DSEA
Executive Board
I have held the positions of
President, Secretary, Political
Action Chair, Ethnic Minority
Chair, Negotiations Chair, and
Building Representative.
I currently represent Kent
County on the DSEA Executive
Board as well as chair the Human
and Civil Rights Task Force. Also, I
am a member of the Scholarship
Committee, Policy and Budget Task
Forces. Nationally, I have represented our state as a delegate at the
NEA Representative Assembly, and
as a member of the National EMA
Committee and Black Caucus.
Your vote will allow me to continue to represent you, the members
and the students we serve.
For DSEA Executive Board - Sussex County -two seats open
Ray Sockriter
I am running for
re-election to a
Sussex County seat
on the DSEA
Executive Board. I
was elected to fill the last year of
a two-year term and would like to
continue representing the members of Sussex County.
In my thirteenth year of teaching, I am a Seventh Grade teacher
in the Woodbridge School District
and have been a member of DSEA
all throughout my teaching
career. I am also currently serving as Vice-President of the
Woodbridge Education
Association, participating on the
Negotiating Committee and
Grievance Committee.
With constant changes making
the profession of teaching more
political than ever, I would like to
continue to be your voice on the
DSEA Executive Board as they navigate shifting landscape of teacher
evaluation, lesson preparation and
workplace conditions, as well as
many other issues.I would appreciate your vote for DSEA Executive
Board member from Sussex County.
Adele Jones
My name is Adele
Jones and I am in my
fifth year as a Visiting
Teacher in the Indian
River School District.
Prior to this, I was a classroom
math teacher for 26 years.
I have been a member of the
Association since I started teaching. I am currently an Association
Representative of my local,
Indian River Education
Association. I was previously
Membership Chair of IREA for 12
years.
I would like the opportunity to
continue being a voice for Sussex
County on the Executive Board.
As a state, we are facing many
tough issues and programs Component 5 of DPAS, Vision
2015, RtI, Race to the Top, DPAS II,
etc.
I believe that I can have an
impact on the future of public
education in Delaware. Than you
for your support!
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
Supporting the Profession
Christopher K. Smith Future Teacher
Scholarship now taking applications
Please share this information with students
you know who are
applying to colleges of
education
uty-free lunch… It’s a part
of nearly every collectivelybargained contract affecting
DSEA members. However, what is
now an important fabric of those
contracts was once something elementary teachers were forced to do
without. In 1969, though, a social
studies teacher organized his colleagues to lobby for that contractual
right, marking a pivotal moment in
DSEA history: the organization’s
first foray into member lobbying.
Christopher K. Smith, the social
studies teacher who organized the
effort, built a career as both an educator and union leader. In addition
to his years teaching in the
D
Chris Smith is remembered for successfully organizing DSEA members to lobby
for duty-free lunch for elementary
teachers.
Georgetown and Colonial School
Districts, Smith served two terms
as Delaware’s representative on the
NEA Board of Directors.
Smith passed away unexpectedly
in 1989. The following year, the
DSEA Executive Board established
the Christopher K. Smith Memorial
Future Teacher Scholarship to
honor his work as an educator and
advocate.
The scholarship offers $1,000 per
year, for four years, to a graduate of
a Delaware public high school. They
must major in education and maintain a 3.0 grade point average.
While not a requirement, graduates
are encouraged to teach in a
Delaware public school.
The selection committee, comprised of DSEA staff and members,
considers a variety of factors when
making its decision. These factors
include academic performance,
involvement in high school activities, and career plans. Applicants
must also submit two letters of recommendation from their teachers,
which focuses on their leadership
potential, personal character, and
degree of initiative.
Is your child college-bound next year?
Check out new Howard Weinberg Scholarship
This new DSEA scholarship is for sons and
daughters of DSEA
members pursuing any
university course of
study
oward Weinberg’s life as
an advocate began in middle school. Albert, a classmate with Down Syndrome, was
being picked on and Weinberg
stepped in to help him. That innate
trait of helping others continued
throughout his entire professional
career, whether it was during his
time as a teacher, UniServ Director,
or executive director.
Weinberg began his career in 1969
as a business teacher in Delaware
County, Pennsylvania. He immediately gravitated to member advocacy, becoming president of the local
association after just three years.
H
www.dsea.org
Seven years later, Weinberg joined
DSEA as a UniServ Director and
eventually as manager for the
UniServ staff. After over a decade
in this role, he was tapped in 2001 to
replace Ron Pierce as the Executive
Director.
DSEA will continue that history
of helping people by awarding the
first-ever Howard Weinberg
Scholarship to a 2014 high school
graduate.
The Howard Weinberg
Scholarship was established to
honor Weinberg and assist the
children of DSEA members in
attending college. Recipients
receive $1,000 per year for four
years to help them pursue a degree
of their choice. They must maintain a 3.0 grade point average in
order to remain eligible for the
scholarship.
The selection committee, comprised of DSEA staff and members,
considers a variety of factors when
@dseafan
Application
deadline
March 14
or both scholarships the
required materials must
be postmarked by March
14, 2014. The initial pool of
applications will be screened to
produce five finalists. The finalists will then participate in an
interview and complete a timed
essay. Winners are announced
shortly after the conclusion of
the interviews.
Visit www.dsea.org/About
DSEA/Awards.html# scholarship
for additional information about
the scholarship, including the full
list of criteria and application
procedures, as well as the application form.
Contact Sandy Dearman at
(866) 734-5834 or by email at
[email protected] if you
need further assistance.
F
Golf tournament
supports
scholarships
In honor of Howard Weinberg, the
DSEA Exec. Board has created a scholarship for sons and daughters of
members.
making its decision. These factors
include academic performance,
involvement in high school activities, and career plans.
Applicants must also submit two
letters of recommendation from
their teachers regarding their
leadership potential, personal
character, and degree of initiative.
Benefit golf tournament
supports scholarships
his popular annual event, to
be held June 14, 2014 next
year, features a silent auction, donated items, and prizes for
the winning golfers. Last year, the
tournament brought in over $7,000
to help graduating students in
Delaware public high schools.
For information, contact
Tournament Coordinator Tammy
Wagner by e-mail at tammy.
[email protected] or by telephone
at 866-734-5834.
T
Celebrate Diversity
Nominate a
Human and Civil
Rights hero
ach year we honor those
who have made outstanding
achievements in Human and
Civil Rights, especially regarding
advancing human and civil rights
for all in Delaware.
Through DSEA’s Human and Civil
Rights Task Force, two
Delawareans are honored – one
DSEA member and/or one individual outside of our organization.
Go to www.dsea.org to print out
the HCR Award nomination form
printed here. Questions? Contact
Carol Zeisler at 1-302-366-8440 or by
E
Deadline for nominations
and portfolios is March 7,
2014
Our 2014 Human and Civil Rights
Awardees will be honored at our
annual Human and Civil Rights
Awards Banquet on May 20, 2014 at
the Dover Downs Conference
Center. This event is open to all.
This past year we honored
Frederick Duffy, a long-time community leader, teacher and principal in Lake Forest, who mentored
hundreds of young people, helping
them their way to success.
Student contests now
open: Art, Multi-Media and
Writing
“From Human Rights to Civil
Rights” is the theme of this year’s
student HCR contests.
The purpose of these contests is
to remember the legacy of Martin
Luther King, Jr., a legacy of peaceful protest for economic justice for
all and the end of racial segregation. The contest is designed to
increase students’ knowledge of
how diverse groups working together can impact human and civil
rights and enhance the quality of
life for everyone in our diverse society.
Complete entry information is
available online at www.dsea.org.
Winning entries will be displayed
and students honored at the same
banquet, May 20, 2014 at Dover
Downs.
Encourage your students to enter
and be recognized for their work at
the most moving event on the DSEA
calendar.
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
Evaluation update
How were teachers rated last year?
Department of Education releases
report on first year of DPASII-Revised
Go to www.doe.k12.de.
us/news/2013/1106.
shtml for a summary
and a link to the full
report
ere’s what DSEA President
Jenner said to the press
about the report’s findings
and the state of the educator evaluation system, DPASII-Revised:
This is the first year of implementation of a system that doesn’t
have all of its student assessments
in place yet. The system is still in
transition.
In addition, we know that one
year of data does not allow you to
draw conclusions or establish trend
lines.
We know that this data (DPAS IIR and Component 5 data for 20122013) show that only 1% of the nearly 5,100 teachers who received summative ratings were ineffective.
(Approximately 3,400 teachers are
not included in this data since not
all teachers receive summative evaluations every year.)
What we will all need to do is continue to monitor and refine DPASIIR so that its results are valid and
reliable, holding teachers accountable for those things that are within
their control.
H
“
Specifically, the results show us
what we need to do going forward • Continue to monitor and refine
DPAS II-R so that it holds teachers accountable for those things
that are within their control.
Because that’s what teachers want:
to be held accountable for what
they can control while continuing
to learn and grow – and the evaluation system is designed to do that:
help teachers identify areas where
they can improve.
• Continue to refine and improve
the assessments used to determine
achievement of student growth
goals for Measure A and especially
Measure B.
• Continue to refine and improve
Measure C growth goals to make
sure that they are appropriate and
reflect the work of Group 3 educators and are not meaningless data
points - for instance, number of students enrolled in AP courses.
• Provide continual, quality
training on the DPAS II-R system
to educators and administrators
to make sure that they are operating from the same pool of knowledge and kept current on the system and its requirements.
• Calibrate the performance of
evaluators to ensure that they are
implementing the system with
fidelity to its design, and that all
evaluators see and measure classroom performance in the same way.
• Continue to work together to
develop and provide on-going,
outstanding professional development that is differentiated,
timely and relevant.
• Continue to work towards
Secretary Murphy’s goals of
developing an evaluation system
that is fair, transparent, easy to
understand and respectful of the
profession.
• Finally, we need to look to
improve the system further so
that it does not treat all educators the same, regardless of their
length of service and past performance record. A quality evaluation
system would focus the majority of
its resources on two groups of educators – those who are new to the
profession and deserve continual
feedback to ensure their growth,
and those who demonstrate identified performance problems that
need to be remediated to ensure
that their performance meets
acceptable professional standards.
”
Let’s determine how to create an evaluation system that works
resident Frederika Jenner
has asked Dom Zaffora, a
middle school Social Studies
teacher at Phillis Wheatley Middle
School in Woodbridge and DSEA
treasurer, to chair a new Task
Force that she is currently appointing. She is charging the new Task
Force with researching, discussing,
evaluating and making recommendations about where they believe
teacher and specialist evaluation
should go.
"We've been at DPAS now for six
years," Jenner says. "We've gone
from DPAS II to DPAS II-Revised,
which became part of our Race to
P
www.dsea.org
the Top application. It's time for us
to create a system that works."
Should the Danielson
rubrics for K-3 be revised?
The evaluation rubrics from
Danielson’s Framework for
Teaching are currently validated
for Grade 4 and above. A number of
states using the Danielson framework are now working to create preK to grade 3 adaptations to meet the
needs of educators teaching at that
level.
Other states are also considering
moving to Danielson’s 2013 version
of the Framework which now
@dseafan
reflects the shift to the Common
Core. Both of these topics will be
part of discussions held with the
DOE DPAS II Review Group in the
upcoming months. DSEA has three
representatives on that group.
DSEA's "Making it CCLEAR"
cadre is taking shape
CCLEAR stands for Common
Core Leaders Educating and
Advocating for Reform.
Twenty members have volunteered to take the lead in training
their colleagues and be a resource
for members and DSEA leadership
regarding implementation of the
Common Core standards. Using a
grant from NEA, DSEA created this
program to offer teacher leaders
multiple opportunities for networking and training as well as advocating for effective implementation,
support and financing that is necessary for Common Core success.
All of DSEA's CCLEAR participants are scheduled to take Kagan
Training (principles for effective,
dynamic teaching) in early
December, sponsored by DSEA.
Big Picture: Alternative Compensation
Is there a better way to pay
teachers and specialists?
- by David Wright
he push to change the model
for teacher compensation
continues to gain steam and
is already being implemented in
states from Maine to Colorado. The
tradition of ‘step-and-lane’ appears
likely to change not just in isolated
states and districts, but nationwide.
“Let’s get rid of step and lane,”
said NEA President Dennis Van
Roekel, in remarks to the Education
Writers Association (EWA) in early
October. “It forces people to work
for peanuts when they start and, if
you stay 30 years, you get all the
way to, depending on the state,
$40,000, $70,000, or $80,000.”
The teaching profession continues to rapidly evolve, which makes
adherence to the static structure of
step-and-lane archaic. Changing
the compensation model resonates
because policy makers and teacher
organizations are willing to make
attempts at creating a model which
achieves results for students, fairly
compensates teachers, and attracts
the best candidates.
T
Defining the Systems
The current system of teacher
compensation in Delaware is called
a “single salary schedule”, or stepand-lane. The salary grid prescribes a dollar value to each step
and lane. Steps are defined as the
horizontal rows which identify
years of experience and Lanes are
the columns that represent a person’s level of education. It is considered “single” because there is no
differentiation among employees
for grade levels or subjects taught.
Alternative compensation is the
umbrella term applied to models
which deviate from step-and-lane.
The most common types of alternative compensation are: knowledge/skill-based pay; market-based
pay; career ladder; evaluation-based
pay, extra-duty-based pay; and pay
for test results.
Evaluation-based pay and pay
based on test score results are two
of the more controversial models.
They have received the most attention nationally. The controversy
lies in the desire to tie compensation to systems and outcomes which
are not within the teacher’s control.
In evaluation-based models, evaluations by administrators form the
justification for pay. This is problematic because it assumes that all
parts of the evaluation system are
properly vetted and designed to be
equitable across grade and subject
levels. As Delaware educators can
attest, creating this type of evaluation system is an exacting endeavor.
Tying compensation to results
from tests is equally problematic.
The goal of using tests to provide a
barometer for learning progress is
often supported by educators.
However, basing a teacher’s pay
on where on the scale their students fall doesn’t factor in the effect
which non-classroom influences
can have on learning.
Even though alternative models,
when examined on their own, are
rife with inequities, legislatures
was given a moratorium in 2009.
The committee’s recommendations regarding the benefit of tying
test performance to teacher pay is
perhaps the most contentious.
While the state has never done this,
the discussion has continued.
NEA’s Position
NEA supports the move to alternative models of compensation,
believing it is one of the best ways
to aid in the recruitment of candidates and better ensure they stay in
the profession.
In order to achieve this goal, NEA
has outlined five key principles
they believe must guide the creation and implementation of these
new models:
(1) Outline a career path for teachers who want additional responsibility but remain in the classroom
(2) Recognize and reward teachers
for knowledge and skills that
improve their teaching practices
(3) Recognize and reward teacher
practice that improves student
learning and outcomes
(4) Provide guidance for how to
“If we’re to have the best education
system in the country, we can’t continue to
have the lowest starting and average teacher
salaries in our region,” said Gov. Markell.
and state education departments
across the country continue to
press forward with plans to move
away from the single-salary schedule.
Delaware History
Delaware is no different in
exploring changes to the step-andlane model of compensation. The
discussion began in earnest during
Senator Tom Carper’s tenure as
Governor (1993-2001).
In 1998, then-Governor Carper
established the Education Salary
Schedule Improvement Committee.
He tasked it with identifying clear
methods by which the state could
create a more diverse model for
compensating its teachers. In fact,
many of the recommendations
made by the committee were adopted, such as incentivizing graduatelevel coursework and providing a
percentage increase for National
Board Certification. The increase
Dennis Van Roekel, NEA
President, also highlighted this
point in his remarks to the EWA,
stating “If you’re not willing to
invest more money into the compensation system, it’s a really difficult challenge to find a different
way of paying teachers.”
Transparency in the new system
is also important to success.
Lawmakers, educators, and the public must be able to understand the
new salary structure and how effectiveness will be monitored. A lack
of transparency on these fronts will
risk a loss of support, which
inevitably impacts financial sustainability.
Collaboration amongst the parties will also influence success. The
new model must be co-created with
teachers through collective bargaining in order to be seen as legitimate
by teachers. Without collaboration,
implementation could be seen as
yet another top-down directive from
individuals who are not impacted
by the changes.
Addressing these concerns does
not mean success. However, it does
ensure that the new model and its
parameters are co-created by those
directly affected by the changes.
Looking Ahead
compensate teachers for their
duties beyond direct instruction
(5) Position teachers on par with
the salary, professional opportunities, and career earnings of comparably-prepared individuals
Even though NEA believes in the
importance of creating new models,
the issues of sustainability, transparency, and collaboration will play
a large role in determining success.
Roadblocks to Change
The desire and energy to create a
new model for teacher compensation will undoubtedly run into several pragmatic concerns, each with
the capacity to seriously hinder
success.
The first issue is the financial
sustainability of the changes.
States or districts must commit to
providing the financial support necessary to sustain an improved compensation structure. Without financial support, the initiative cannot
survive.
The key to success may well rest
with understanding the potential
value in making changes and
embarking on a path of collaboration. The value of changing
teacher compensation in Delaware
was explored extensively under
Governor Tom Carper and continues under Governor Markell.
“If we’re to have the best education system in the country, we can’t
continue to have the lowest starting
and average teacher salaries in our
region,” said Gov. Markell. “I ask
that the General Assembly work
with me to reexamine pay structure
so we can incentivize teaching in
high-needs schools and critical subjects, raise starting teacher pay, and
reward teacher leadership.”
The work for teacher organizations like DSEA will be to ensure
that changes are equitable, sustainable, and grounded in common
sense.
Information from David Schein (NEA),
Kaitlin Remington (Center for American
Progress), and John Rosales (NEA) was
used in writing this article.
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
Legislative Outlook
Looking ahead to the
next legislative session
The second session of
the 147th Delaware
General Assembly
reconvenes in January
for six months. But just
because the General
Assembly isn't in session
now, doesn't mean that
nothing is happening.
Joint Finance Committee
puts focus on public
education funding
This fall, for the first time, the
JFC held meetings during the legislative recess. Normally they only
meet during session, which begins
January 14.
These fall meetings allowed the
committee to discuss issues away
from and in advance of the hectic
environment of the regular budget
calendar. According to DSEA's
Kristin Dwyer, dir. of legislation
and political organizing, “JFC
Chairs Sen. McDowell and Rep.
Melanie Smith are going above and
beyond to ensure that members of
their committee are up-to-date on
every aspect of the state budget.”
According to JFC Chair Melanie
George-Smith in an email newsletter from the Democratic Caucus,
the Joint Finance Committee
addressed several key parts of the
budget during its recent sessions,
including these three:
overcoming the resistance to
reform how property is assessed in
Delaware and the resulting tax base
for school districts.
Health Care
Delaware’s share of the state-federal health care plan for those in
need, Medicaid, has grown rapidly
in recent years. Significant steps
already have been taken to bring
down the cost of the program, but
more needs to be done. The committee evaluated ideas for pushing
more preventive care measures,
intended to keep Medicaid patients
healthy and away from costly treatments later in life. Also, the JFC
looked at ways to curb abuse of the
Medicaid system and root out
fraud.
Public Paratransit
The cost of providing reliable
public transportation for
Delaware’s elderly and disability
communities is well above national
averages. The committee heard
about plans in the works at DelDOT
to overhaul the state’s transit system, including proposals to raise
decades-old rates and fees. The committee also discussed the need to
improve the quality of paratransit
service.
The Joint Finance Committee will
begin its formal budget review
process for fiscal year 2015 in
February, with Governor Markell
unveiling his proposed budget in
January.
Education
The Joint Finance Committee discussed the need to determine which
programs are working and which
ones are not, and to reallocate funding accordingly. Members also
talked about the need to ensure that
school programs serving special
needs students have the funding
they need. This included, of course,
a discussion of school "units" and
how they are allocated.
The committee also talked about
the state's equalization formula,
which most agree doesn't work.
This is tied to the need to somehow
www.dsea.org
School nurses and DSEA
lobby for nurse preparation
regulations that reflect
today’s nursing education
The Professional Standards
Board (PSB) - in response to Senate
Bill 51, which tightened the requirements for teacher preparation last
year - has proposed regulations for
issuance of an initial license which
would require school nurses to complete traditional student teaching
and pass the PRAXIS I test as evidence of general knowledge, skill
@dseafan
and ability to be a school nurse.
These requirements are superfluous for nurses. Today's accredited
school nursing programs require
three years of both supervised clinical and field experience as well as
an exit exam - developed and owned
by the National Council of State
Boards of Nursing, Inc. - that is
specifically designed to test the
knowledge, skills and abilities
essential for the safe and effective
practice of nursing at the entry
level.
In October, DSEA and the
Delaware School Nurses
Association began lobbying the
Professional Standards Board to
include both teachers/specialists
and school nurses. The PRAXIS
and student teaching requirements are superfluous to nurses,
and make it more difficult for
nurses to enter the profession.
Many people are surprised to
learn that school nurses today are
not only RN's (Registered Nurses),
but also have bachelor degrees in
nursing.
While teachers must earn 90
clock hours of professional development every five years in order to
maintain their license to teach in
Delaware, nurses (no matter where
they practice) must complete 30
CEUs every two years, as well as
the 90 clock hours every five years
to keep their school nursing certificate.
A nurse in every building for real?
There is an informal caucus of
state legislators concerned with
education called the Kids Caucus.
Led by Rep. Melanie MarshallSmith, the Caucus is looking to find
a way to fund a full-time nurse in
every public school building. Right
now, one only needs to be available,
which means that buildings can
share nurses.
Tax Intercept bill
would benefit
school districts by
millions
ouse Bill 27 allows school
taxes and property taxes
to be “intercepted” (collected) on behalf of the counties,
from pay checks of taxpayers
who are delinquent in their payment.
The current law prohibits garnishing wages for school taxes.
As a result, millions of dollars of
property taxes owed to school
districts and local governments
go uncollected. These taxes,
when delinquent, are difficult to
collect.
Tax intercept programs have
been successful in collecting
child support and other obligations owed the state.
The bill is sponsored by Rep.
Dan Short (R) and Darryl Scott
(D) and Sen. Brian Pettyjohn (R).
It was introduced last session
when it passed in the House. It is
currently assigned to the Senate
Finance Committee.
H
Big Picture: Alternative Compensation
Over 400 members take
DSEA workshops this fall
his Fall DSEA hosted and/or
sponsored professional
development workshops in
response to member surveys.
Members took advantage of:
Implementing Common Core,
SMART Board training, School
Employees and the Law, and
Understanding Component V – Part
I.
We also sponsored a day of Union
Skills Training: Know Your Rights
and Association Rep I and II were
the trainings that members selected
for that day.
T
What’s ahead? Professional
Development Conference
March 22
Mark your calendar for March 22
(not March 29 as previously
announced) when DSEA will host a
Conference at the Dover Downs
Conference Center.
Details are still being worked out,
Possible sessions include:
Bullying Prevention, Safety in the
Schools, Working with Children
with Autism and Other Disabilities;
Special Education 101 – IEPs,
Collecting Data, and Behavior
Plans; and Differentiated
Instruction.
Teachers and Specialists:
Understanding
Component V – Part II
coming in April
n April, watch for sign-up
information for
Understanding Component V
– Part II. It will be offered April
15 in New Castle County, April
17 in Dover, and April 29 in
Sussex County.
This workshop will focus on
• roster verification;
• planning for and participating
in an effective spring conference
with your building administrator; and
• deriving a Component 5 rating
and overall rating for DPASIIRevised.
I
Tony Parsons of Red Clay (left) and Gill Walls of NCC Vo-Tech compare notes during
Assoc. Rep. I training.
A first: Kudos to our
student members
SEA and its Delaware
Student NEA Chapter are
hosting their first-ever
Student NEA Conference,
February 8. Bravo!
D
In AR I training, Shirley Scott, a para
member of CREA, answers questions
from her tablemates about her work.
Tammy Stewart, an AR in Capital, discusses the AR as advocate with Joe Hartman
of Caesar Rodney.
In “Know Your Rights” training, Cindy
Strusowski of Red Clay Food Service,
identifies where employee rights are
found.
Lake Forest’s Jayne Randle (right) participates in a mock recruitment conversation with Sue Connor, a para in
Christina.
What makes an Effective Association
Rep? Mary McCloskey of Christina discusses this at her table.
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
Union Skills Training
In the “Know your Rights” workshop,
Janice Johnson, a paraprofessional in
Appoquinimink, participates in a “people hunt” activity with Benjamin Brown,
also a paraprofessional, in Red Clay.
In AR II training, participants respond to the numerous roles of a Building Rep.
Shown here are Tom Bessellieu of CR Support (left) and Lee Olmstead of Capital.
National
community
organizer
Michael
Gecan:
“Take time
to get to
know
people”
by Kelley Cole
t’s something we do every day.
In the main office, in the cafeteria, in the hallways, and in the
teacher’s lounges: we chat with our
colleagues. However, when it comes
time to talking about the union or
membership issues, the one-on-one
conversations tend to stall.
Michael Gecan, a community
organizer affiliated with the
Industrial Areas Foundation in
I
www.dsea.org
New York, spoke to DSEA leaders
and members on October 10 about
how to talk to fellow colleagues
about the union, specifically about
joining the union.
His approach was straightforward: get to know colleagues on a
personal level first. Gecan had his
audience practice with each other.
Paired up, everyone had to take 10
minutes to chat with someone they
didn’t know. The most common
opening question? “How did you get
into teaching?” It was a simple
inquiry that got people
talking…sometimes with a lot of
emotion.
Want more participation?
Don’t shortcut getting to
know people first
A simple concept but, as Gecan
explained, one that is often overlooked. Encouraging more participation among active members was
a goal for the union representatives
in the room. One-on-one meetings
are a vital part of the equation.
Jeff Taschner, DSEA’s executive
director, was responsible for bringing Gecan to Delaware after seeing
him speak previously.
“To me, the importance of Mike’s
message is that there is only one
way to build relationships with
your members, that is to get to
know them – why they do what they
do, what interests them, what chal-
@dseafan
Ciara Smack, an elementary teacher in
Lake Forest, writes about what makes
an effective local in AR I training.
Participants in “Know Your Rights” get to know each other.
lenges they face and where they see
themselves as educators and individuals in the years to come,”
Taschner said.
“I often worry that we allow technology to be a substitute for relationships. We don’t take the time to
get to know each other; we don’t
create a relational context. It is the
relationship, its value and meaning, which gets others to contribute
to their union in ways other than
paying their dues.”
Is anger a good leadership
quality?
During the second part of the day,
Gecan asked everyone to think of a
leader they admired and why they
admired him or her. Volunteers
then shared the qualities their
favorite leader possessed, until
Gecan had filled a page with words
such as honest, real, knowledgeable, and confident.
One word that also made the
chart was angry.
Gecan explained that anger
should be an admired quality
because good leaders get angry for
a reason. Anger can cause change
instead of allowing people to stay
stagnant. Good leaders can control
and channel their anger into a positive; good leaders use that anger to
make something happen.
At the end of the day, DSEA members were ready to put their one-onone leadership skills to good use.
Barbara MacGeorge-Sorg, president of
the Appoquinimink Educational Support
Professionals, role plays a recruitment
conversation with DSEA UniServ assistant Carol Zeisler.
Frederika Jenner, president of
the DSEA, was seeing Gecan for a
second time. She was thrilled to
share the experience with fellow
DSEA members.
“It was great to have so many
Delaware people in the room--to be
able to empower so many local leaders and members,” Jenner said.
“There is great potential here. I am
looking forward to hearing
accounts of how folks put this strategy to work and how their first
round of one-on-ones go.”
Kelley Cole is an English Language Arts
teacher and Assoc. Rep. at St. Georges
Technical High School, NCC Vo-Tech
School District.
NEA’s Read Across America Day March 3, 2014
Class project?
Encourage
students to
enter DSEA’s
Read Across
America Student
Contest 2014
Book Focus: “The
Sneetches,” by Dr. Seuss
Theme: Learning to live
together
e urge Delaware’s public
school students to enter
DSEA’s Annual Read
Across America contest sponsored
by DSEA, the News Journal Newspapers in Education Program, and
FuturTech. This year’s contest
seeks entries that are about how
different groups in our community
– real or imaginary – can overcome
their differences, and why this is
important to everyone.
• Billboard drawing
• Video (3 minute maximum) or
• Essay (high school students
only).
W
Contest Divisions
K-3 Division
Billboard drawing or video
Grades 4-8 Division
Billboard drawing or video entry
Grades 9-12 Division
Billboard drawing, video or essay
Contest Prizes
All winners will be featured in
the News Journal on or around
March 3, 2014, Read Across America
Day.
First prizes
K-3: Visit from the Cat in the Hat,
Dr. Seuss logo items, gift certificate
Grades 4-8 and 9-12 winners: Gift
certificate, Dr. Seuss logo items
The billboard winner will see his
design on highway billboards in
Delaware during August 2014.
Read Across Delaware is
co-sponsored by
Newspapers in Education
and FuturTech Consulting.
Second and Third prizes
K-3, 4-8 and 9-12: Dr. Seuss logo
items, certificate
Grand Prize Winner Prize
Left to the discretion of DSEA and
the News Journal depending on age
of winner(s)
All winning artwork, essays and
videos will be posted on DSEA’s
Great Schools Great Communities
website at www.greatschoolsgreat
communities.com.
Contest rules
Video entries may be submitted
by an individual student, or by a
team or class of students who
worked together on their project.
Videos should be a maximum of
three minutes in length and include
a title as well as a credit listing of
the students who worked on the
project, as well as the names of any
teachers or paraprofessionals who
advised or helped. Please submit
videos in MOV format only on a
DVD or on a thumb drive, or indicate a url address for YouTube.
Billboard art and essay entries
should be the work of individual
students, not teams.
Billboard drawings should be
horizontal, with a ratio of 1 (height)
to 1.5 (width), and no larger than
24” tall by 48” wide.
Essays should be 600-800 words,
with citations in parentheses following the quotation or paraphrase.
When making a citation, please
include the title of reference,
author, date of publication or posting, and/or web site/url/page number.
All entries must be accompanied
by a completed entry form found at
www.dsea.org.
Only one entry per student, or
team of students for video entries.
Mail entries to Read Across
America Contest, DSEA, 136 E.
Water St., Dover, DE 19901. Do not
deliver or mail them to the News
Journal or to FuturTech
Consulting.
Deadline: Entries must be
received at the DSEA office in
Dover (136 E. Water St.) by 5pm,
Friday, February 14, 2014.
Questions? Contact Susan Keller
at DSEA, [email protected], or
by phone toll-free at 1-866-734-5834.
Now, the Star“
Belly Sneetches
Borrow the Cat
in the Hat suit
for your reading
event
Had bellies with
stars.
he official Cat in the Hat
costume/suit owned by
DSEA is available for
members to borrow, on a firstcome, first-served basis through
the Communications Dept.
The first step is to find someone
who is not claustrophobic and
who is 5’3” or less in height.
Check out the requirements for
borrowing the suit at
www.dsea.org.
If you are still interested in
borrowing the suit – which also
includes easy-to-wear Thing One
and Thing Two costumes – then
contact Susan Keller to determine if we can accommodate
your time and date preference.
She can be reached at
[email protected] or by
phone at 1-866-734-5834.
T
The Plain-Belly
Sneetches
Had none upon
thars.
Those stars
weren’t so big.
They were really so
small.
You might think
such a thing
wouldn’t matter at
all.
”
- from The Sneetches, by Dr. Seuss
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
Great Schools make Great Communities
Ginger
Barkley
WDSD’s
October AllStar Educator
of the Month
ominated by Michelle
LaFon, a special needs para
at Smyrna High School, is
Ginger Barkley, secretary to the
Student Support Services Office
there.
N
Here’s what LaFon wrote about
her:
“Since Mrs. Barkley has joined
the staff at Smyrna High School,
the organization in our department
has been phenomenal. Whenever
we need an answer, Mrs. Barkley
has an answer for us. Mrs. Barkley's
door is always open to students in
need. Out of the kindness of her
heart, she goes the extra mile and
buys snacks to keep on hand for
students that need a snack. Mrs.
Barkley also makes all necessary
phone calls to ensure that parents
attend their students’ annual meetings. All in all, Mrs. Barkley is an
asset to our department at Smyrna
High School.”
Adds Department Chair Janet
Jarrell, “I couldn’t live without
her!”
With Ed Reese (wearing the cap) is,
from left, John Marinucci, director of
administrative services, and Reese’s principal, John Kramer. The student’s name
is Allen!
On hand to surprise Ginger Barkley (front row, holding papers) when DSEA representatives came to present her award, are (back from, from left) Mikell Reed, John
Camponelli, and Marc Deisem, asst. principals; Michael Shaner and James Golson,
teachers; and Clarence Davis, dean of Discipline. Standing in the front row (left to
right) are Stacy Cook, principal; Ginger Barkley, administrative asst., Michelle LaFon,
Level IV para who nominated Barkley; Janet Jarrell, Special Education Dept. chair;
Amy Haughey, specialist; and Genny Shinn, teacher.
From left, Principal Jacqueline Lee, colleague Teresa Arban and students pose
with Janice Wilson (right).
Colleague wanted
Janice Wilson of
Gallaher E.S. to get
recognition she
deserves
irst grade teacher Janice
Wilson was surprised when
folks from WJBR, Deerfield
Country Club, DSEA and her
school’s administration invaded her
F
classroom with good news: she was
WJBR’s Teacher of the Month for
October.
Also there was colleague Teresa
Arban, a Kindergarten teacher,
who nominated her for this recognition.
“I feel Janice is one of the unsung
heroes of our school. She arrives
early and is one of the last, if not
the last, teacher to leave most
evenings. She stops at nothing to
provide the best for her students
academically. She carefully plans
lessons and spends her own money
to buy additional materials. She
often tutors students for free, and
will do anything to see them succeed. She sacrifices her time and
energies without any special recognition. She is kind, compassionate
and caring – a team player and wonderful person.”
Brandywine High’s
Rosanna Leahan
November WJBR
Teacher of the Month
er French II students erupted in applause after WJBR’s
Katey Hill presented
Rosanna Leahan with their
November Teacher of the Month
Award!
This is only her third year teaching, but Leahan is already planning
a field trip to Europe this spring for
some of her students.
Her sister, Jamie Plakosh, nominated her on the WJBR website.
“She consistently goes out of her
way to ensure her students have the
H
www.dsea.org
Rosanna Leahan’s French II students applauded her Teacher of the Month award.
best learning environment to
enrich their lives with foreign culture. She teaches French and
Italian to all four grades. She also
conducts annual troop drives, collecting donations and holiday cards
@dseafan
for soldiers and airmen deployed
overseas during the holidays. To
date, she has helped raise 700
pounds of donations and more than
600 cards. She is a true community
leader.”
First “All-Star Educator
of the Month” a custodian from Woodbridge
ongratulations to Ed Reese, a
bus driver for Woodbridge
Elementary School in
Bridgeville. He was nominated on
the WDSD website by a father,
Henry Quakenbush: “He is always
kind and helpful to all the kids. He
is always happy to see the kids and
if one of them is out for a day, he is
sure to ask if they are ok. My little
man has been on his bus for three
years and loves Mr. Ed.”
C
WJBR Teachers of the
Month receive an engraved
plaque and Sunday buffet for four
from the Dearworth Country
Club in Newark. To nominate a
teacher or specialist, go to
www.wjbr.com and look for
Contests.
The WDSD All-Star Educator
of the Month program includes
a special certificate, a gift card to
Wawa and a phone interview
with Scott Klatzkin of WDSD.
This program recognizes our
ESP colleagues – school secretaries, cafeteria/nutrition workers, paraprofessionals, aides, custodians and bus drivers.
The KISS School Spotlight
program, which DSEA also
sponsors, recognizes schools
for various achievements.
Congratulations to the New
Moyer Academy Charter
School in Wilmington, and
the Frederick Douglass E.S. in
Seaford. Go to www.Kiss107.
com, then Contests, and then
DSEA School Spotlight to
nominate your school.
Celebrating social justice
We’ve
come a
long way
since 1989
- by Rich Phillips, DSEA-Retired
President
ur first meeting was held in
February 1989, our founding
convention.
O
Legislative Comm. leads
major successes in pension
improvements
Since its inception, the DSEA-R
Legislative Committee has been
very active in lobbying for changes
for the better for our retirees. It
continues to this day. In September
1989, there was a major change for
retirees:
“The DSEA/NEA-R Legislative
Committee is pleased to announce
the passage of two of its top priorities. The Legislature has approved
the offering of the 75% Survivors
Option to current retirees.”
In June 1990 we reported an
increase in the pension death benefit:
“Even during one of the tightest
financial years in recent memory,
the efforts of DSEA-Retired members and leaders have paid off. On
July 10, the Governor signed Senate
Bill 203, the bill that increased the
pensioner’s death benefit from
$3,000 to $4,000.”
September 1994 marked another
milestone for DSEA-R: death payments were once again increased by
the State, from $4,000 to $5,000.
Finally, there was victory in getting full pension and full Social
Security payments without any
deductions (DSEA Action! July,
1996):
Mission remains steady
The original DSEA-R Mission
Statement was composed and published in 1991. You will notice that
it hasn’t changed much over the
years: DSEA-Retired still works for
its membership.
“DSEA-Retired, as an affiliate of
Association and the National
Education Association – Retired, is
an association of retired employees
of Delaware Public Schools.
“Our mission is five-fold:
1.To provide an organization of
retired school employees to assist
those persons in achieving goals
that, as individuals, they cannot
achieve on their own.
2.To promote a better quality of life
and higher standards of living for
our members.
3.To provide a form through which
our members can maintain a relationship to their chosen profession
in retirement.
4.To provide a form through which
our members can coordinate activities in pursuit of their interest with
others still active in the profession.
5.To actively support the public
schools of Delaware.”
Victory for Pension
Equality
“No longer will the state pension
formula discriminate based on
salary. Not only future state
retirees, but – thanks in large part
to the lobbying of our DSEARetired colleagues – current
retirees are now included in a new
law which takes away the Social
Security offset from the pension formula.
“Imagine receiving a monthly
state pension check of $625. Then,
the month you turn 62, the check is
reduced to $456. That’s no mistake.
When they added your social security amount to your pension check,
it totaled more than 75% of your
final average salary before you
retired. You lose the difference.”
DSEA-Retired gets into the
Cat in the Hat spirit
Many of you may remember
Jack Kinnaman, our first DSEARetired president.
“Our former president, Jack
Kinnaman, has volunteered to be
the Cat in the Hat again this year
for NEA’s Read Across America celebration, March 2.” [from March
1999]
We realize increases in
death benefits
There was another increase in
State death benefits from $5,000
to $6,000. The current lump-sum
death benefit payment is now
$7,000.
WARNING: DON’T BE
CONFUSED!
Many retirees are confusing
DSEA-Retired with another retiree
group DRSPA (Delaware Retired
School Personnel Association); we
are NOT the same group! DSEARetired is the ONLY Delaware
retired state-employee organization affiliated with NEA, DSEA
and NEA-Retired.
There was also a 2% pension
increase to those who retired
between January 1, 1980 and July 1,
1998, and a 3% increase to those
who retired prior to January 1,
1980.
Membership grows
Membership in DSEA-Retired,
Inc. was growing in 2006; it is still
growing in 2013. Membership now
stands at over 1,100 members
strong.
The November 2006 DSEA-R
newsletter describes a great year:
“This has been a great year legislatively for retired and active state
employees. The pension increase
effective in July 2006 is 2% for those
who retired prior to July, 1 2005;
and $25 per month or 2% whichever
is large, for those who retired prior
to January 1981. This is the 12th
pension increase in 13 years.
“Another milestone is the new
disability legislation. This ‘world
class’ legislation provides for 75%
salary while on short-term disability and 60% while on short-term disability.”
Retired members still
advocate and contribute
DSEA-Retired has always had
seats at the DSEA Representative
Assembly. They have always made
contributions to the Children’s
Advocacy Fund either through separate member donations or combining their efforts with DSEA. Our
April 2009 newsletter lets us know
that DSEA-Retired members do care
about our children and try to help
as much as they can.
“DSEA-Retired leads the pack: At
the 2009 DSEA Representative
Assembly, DSEA-Retired took the
honors of contributing the most to
the Children’s Advocacy Fund
• Leading local contributing DSEARetired with $300
• Locals meeting goal of $30+/delegate – DSEA-Retired $60.”
August 2009 had some good and
some bad results for our Legislative
Committee. This report from Jim
Testerman, Legislative chair, and
article excerpts were reported in
the August 2009 newsletter:
“Here are the final results of the
turbulent Legislative year for
retirees:
• No change to our pension this
year;
• 50% increase to the health benefits compared to original 100%
increase by SEBC;
• ‘Double State Share’ still intact;
• No increase in co-pays for your
heath benefits”
DSEA-Retired receives NEARetired grant -- $4,160 to
assist with membership
recruitment
DSEA-Retired continues to
expand and is being recognized rapidly, according to these excerpts
from the Summer/Fall 2010 issue:
“Newletter receives award: Your
newsletter received an award for
‘runner up’ in the NEA-Retired
newsletter contest this year.”
“Lifetime membership to be discontinued.”
“DSEA-R now is the second
largest unit in the state, with 1,081
members; this is an increase of 281
new members over the last year.”
“Congratulations to Shirley
Redmond: One of our own DSEA-R
members was honored at the DSEA
‘Celebration of Leadership’ dinner
on Friday, April 16th at Dover
Downs. She was the recipient of
the 2010 Helen Wise Friend of
Education Award, given for a lifetime of significant contributions to
public education.”
In the more recent issues of the
DSEA-Retired newsletters and
DSEA Action! articles about DSEARetired, you’ve seen many other
changes, including our website
(www.dsea-r.org) , the return of
Life Membership, increasing membership numbers, two retired members on the State Pension Advisory
Council, several members/officers
attending the State Employee
Benefit Committee meetings, and
being more visible to DSEA and
DSEA-Retired members. THANK
YOU to all those – past and present - who have helped make DSEARetired what it is today!
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
Building strong partnerships
Parent“BE HEARD”
B
Teacher
E
Conferences: H
A Tip Sheet E
A
for Teachers R
emphasize how “we” can work
together to resolve any problems.
- from the Harvard Research
Project
Establish lines of communication.
Describe how you will communicate with families (i.e., through
notes home, phone calls, email etc.)
and they can contact you. Schedule
a way to follow up on your conference in the next few months.
est intentions assumed
mphasis on learning
ome-school collaboration
xamples and evidence
ctive listening
Make an action plan.
Spend the last few minutes discussing how you and the family will
support the student. Be specific
about the kinds of things you will
do, for how long you will do them,
and how you will check in with one
another about progress.
espect for all
arent-teacher conferences
are an important component
of ongoing home-school communication and family involvement
in your classroom. Did you also
know that home-school communication predicts positive outcomes for
students and for schools?
Although you may already be
working hard to engage parents in
their children’s education, this tip
sheet is designed to build on your
own experiences and provide you
with additional information to help
make your parent-teacher conferences productive and effective.
P
Ideas for before the
conferences
Send invitations.
Disseminate information about conferences to families through flyers,
notes, phone calls, and community
meetings. Include information
about the timing and goals of the
conferences, as well as alternative
scheduling options in your invitations.
Review student work.
Be prepared to go over student data,
assignments, and assessments during the conferences. Think of what
more you would like to learn about
your students from their parents.
Prepare thoughts and materials.
Create an agenda or list of key
issues you want to discuss about
each student’s progress and growth.
Also consider creating a portfolio of
student work to walk through with
families during the conferences.
Send reminders.
The week before the conferences,
send home a reminder for when and
where the conferences will be held.
www.dsea.org
D edication to follow-up
You may also want to include an
outline of your agenda to prepare
parents for the conferences.
Create a welcoming environment.
Make your classroom comfortable
for families by displaying student
work, arranging seating in circles
(with adult chairs, if possible), and
making a private space for the conferences.
Ideas for during the
conferences
Discuss progress and growth.
Starting with the positive, let families know about their child’s ability
level in different subjects and in
relationship to his or her peers.
Help families understand student
data to demonstrate progress
against learning goals and to identify areas that need to be addressed.
Use examples.
Walk parents through the assignments and assessments that are
particularly demonstrative of the
student’s progress and abilities.
Ask questions and listen actively.
Solicit family input into student
strengths and needs, learning
styles, and nonschool learning
opportunities. Ask parents about
their hope and dreams for their
child.
Share ideas for supporting
learning.
Provide suggestions for activities
and strategies families can use at
home to help their child learn and
grow.
Seek solutions collaboratively.
Avoid judgements about what
“they” should do and instead
@dseafan
Ideas for the conferences
Follow up with families.
If practical, contact parents (either
by phone or in a note) who attended
the conference and thank them for
doing so. Ask if they have further
questions or concerns and send
home materials that can help them
support learning at home. Contact
parents who did not attend, as well,
and offer alternative ways to communicate about their child.
Communicate regularly.
Communicate on an ongoing basis
with families, with positive news as
well as updates on student progress
and challenges. Also let families
know about other opportunities for
them to be involved.
Connect in-class activities. Create
responsive instructional practices
based on what you learned about
family cultures, home learning
environments, and student
strengths and needs.
Approaching
Parent-Teacher
Conferences
• A two-way conversation
The parent-teacher conference is
not only an opportunity for parents to learn from you, but for
you to learn from them. Nobody
knows your students better than
their families. Their insights into
their child’s strengths and needs,
learning styles and nonschool
learning opportunities can help
you improve your instructional
methods. Your efforts to better
understand their aspirations and
perspectives make parents feel
respected and build trust with
them.
• Emphasis on learning
You can make the most of parentteacher conferences, and other
forms of family involvement, by
“linking them to learning.” This
means bringing events and communication back to a discussion
of strategies to support student
learning. You can arm parents
with knowledge and suggestions
for how to help their children
learn.
• Opportunities and challenges
We all need praise and constructive criticism to grow. All parents
are proud of their children and
need to hear about their
strengths as well as their challenges from you. This helps show
parents that you value the unique
strengths of their children and
have high expectations for their
ability to succeed in school and
in life.
For more resources on family
involvement, visit www.hfrp.org.
These tips are baseds on the following resources:
Henderson, A., Mapp, K. L.,
Johnson, V., & Davies D. (2007).
Beyond the bake sale: The essential
guide to family-school partnership.
New York: The New Press.
Lawrence-Lightfoot, S. (2003). The
essential conversation: What parents
and teachers can learn from each
other. New York: Ballantine Books.
Copyright © 2013 President and
Fellows of Harvard College.
Reprinted with permission from
Harvard Family Research Project.
Since 1983, HFRP has helped stakeholders develop and evaluate strategies to promote the wellbeing of
children, youth, families, and their
communities. To learn more about
how HFRP can support your work
with children and families, visit
www.hfrp.org.
Member-only benefit
winner.
These courses are given by an
instructor from Interstate Training
Alliance, LLC. You must attend the
full six hours for the Basic course
OR the full three hours for the
Advanced/Refresher course to
receive your certificate. The Basic
course is required first and is
good for three years before it is
necessary to take the
I
No phone reservations
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March 3 & 4 (6-9pm)
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March 25 & 26 (6-9pm)
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q May 3 (9am - 12 noon) - (DSEA Newark Office)
qMarch 25 & 26 (6pm-9pm) - (DSEA Newark Office)
qMay 10 (9am-3pm) (DSEA Dover Office)
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@dseafan
www.dsea.org
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private, nonprofit
nonprofit institution.
Your pocketbook
Ten insurance
mistakes to
avoid
- by Kimberly Lankford
nsurance can help protect your
finances in case of an emergency. But you shouldn't pay
more than you have to for this protection. Whether you're buying a
policy for the first time or have had
coverage for years, you can keep
insurance costs under control by
avoiding these ten common mistakes.
I
1.Setting low deductibles
With low auto and homeowners
insurance deductibles, you often
pay more in premiums than you
can recover in claims. Low
deductibles also encourage you to
make small claims, which could
cost you a claims-free discount or
prompt your insurer to drop you.
Boosting your homeowners
deductible from $500 to $1,000 could
reduce your premiums by 25%;
increasing your car insurance
deductible from $200 to $1,000 could
save you 40%. Add some of that savings to your emergency fund to
cover the extra out-of-pocket
expense.
2.Failing to ask for discounts
You won’t get credit for some discounts unless you let your insurer
know that you qualify. The list
varies from company to company,
but often includes installing a home
alarm system, adding stormproof
shutters, taking a job with a shorter
commute (or not commuting anymore), carpooling and even working
at certain occupations.
3.Giving in to inertia
The insurer that offered you the
lowest rate a few years ago may no
longer have the best deal. Get price
quotes from several insurers whenever you experience a major change
— for example, if you get married,
move to a new state, buy a new car
or your teenager starts driving.
Also go shopping if you’re hit with
a rate hike. Get quotes at
www.carinsurance.com, www.ins
web.com or insurers’ sites (such as
www.allstate.com, www.statefarm.
com and www.progressive.com).
You can find an independent insurance agent at www.iiaba.org.
Brought to you by NEA Member
Benefits.
© 2013 The Kiplinger Washington
Editors
4.Ignoring a bad complaint
record
It’s a good idea to shop around
every few years, but switching
insurers just to save a few dollars
can backfire if the new company
hassles you on claims. Look up the
insurer’s customer-service rating
through the National Association of
Insurance Commissioners’
Consumer Information Source, and
avoid companies with a higherthan-average complaint ratio.
5.Assuming that group life is
cheaper
Free group life insurance from your
employer is a great benefit. But if
your boss offers extra life insurance
for an extra charge, don’t automatically say yes. Insurers that offer
group policies assume that people
who are not in the best health will
apply. They also tend to boost their
rates every five years instead of
locking in a fixed rate for 20 or 30
years, says Byron Udell, of
AccuQuote.com. If you’re healthy,
you can generally get a better deal
on your own.
6.Dropping long-term-care
insurance
Many people with long-term-care
policies were recently stunned by
rate hikes of 40% to 90%. If your
insurer notifies you that your premiums are about to soar, you might
be tempted to drop your policy. But
because you’re older, a new policy
will usually be more expensive than
the old policy, even with the rate
hike. Plus, rates for new policies
have been rising even faster than
rates for older policies. You can
make the premiums more manageable by reducing the benefit period
to three years, which is the average
claim.
7.Signing up for COBRA
Under the federal law known as
COBRA, employers are required to
let you continue on their group
health insurance policies for up to
18 months after you leave your job.
But you have to pay 102% of the
cost yourself (most employers pay
60% to 75% of the premiums for
their employees). If you’re healthy
and live in a state with a competitive insurance marketplace, you
could get a better deal on your own.
Get price quotes at eHealth
Insurance.com or find policies in
your area at HealthCare.gov.
8.Relying on Life Insurance
“rules of thumb”
The standard advice is to get
enough life insurance to equal eight
to 12 times your annual income. But
two people who earn the same
income may need very different
amounts of coverage — say, if one
is the sole earner in a family with
several young kids and the other
has a working spouse and children
in college. Instead, you need to consider what your family’s income
and expenses will be after you die
(See Life Insurance Needs
Calculator at www.neamb.com/
safetynet; Life Insurance Basics:
www.neamb.com/insurance/lifeinsurance-basics.htm; and NEA
Life Insurance Programs at
www.neamb.com/insurance/lifeinsurance.htm .)
9.Insuring your home for its
market value
The market value and the insurance value are not the same. You
need enough insurance to pay to
rebuild your home if it is
destroyed. But you’ll still have the
value of the land, which is part of
the market value. Run your numbers through the calculator at
www.accucoverage.com ($7.95) for
the same rebuilding-cost estimates
that insurers use.
10. Picking a health policy based
on premium alone
In addition to boosting premiums,
health insurers have also been raising rates in less-obvious ways —
such as by increasing coinsurance
rates (the percentage you pay for
doctor’s visits and procedures) and
adding new pricing tiers for prescription drugs. You could also pay
a lot more in out-of-pocket costs if
your doctors aren’t in your plan’s
network. Compare overall costs and
limits, make sure your doctors are
in-network, and check out the
insurer’s complaint record
(www.naic.org/cis).
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www.dsea.org
Time to recognize our heroes
DSEA Awards time
It’s time to think about
those people you
believe deserve recognition from DSEA
t the annual Celebration
Dinner the evening before
the DSEA Representative
Assembly, we throw a party for public education and the people who
make it great. Next year’s
Celebration Dinner takes place on
Friday, March 14 at the Dover
Downs Conference Center.
The celebration includes the
presentation of awards to the DSEA
Legislative Friend of Education;
the ESP (Educational Support
Professional) Person of the Year;
the Helen D. Wise awardee (for lifetime achievement in their work to
support public education and educators), the Community Partner
awardee(s) (for their visible support
A
of public school students) and the
Susan C. Roushey Advocacy
awardee (for outstanding advocacy
activities on behalf of all DSEA
members).
The organization is currently
accepting nomination applications
for its awards. The Helen D. Wise
Award may be bestowed on members of the public or a DSEA member. The ESP and Sue Roushey
Advocacy awards are for members
only.
To access the application and
descriptions of the qualifications
for these awards, go to www.dsea.
org/AboutDSEA/Awards.html. You
can also see there the lists of past
awardees.
The deadline for receipt of
nominations is Friday 5:00 p.m.,
January 31, 2014.
Questions? Contact Sandy
Dearman at 1-866-734-5834 or by
J y
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www.dsea.org
@dseafan
Resources and opportunities
Nominate your
school for national
recognition - the
Green Ribbon
Award
The Delaware Department of
Education is accepting applications
from public and private K-12
schools to be a state nominee for
the U.S. Department of Education's
Green Ribbon Schools award.
The federal Green Ribbon Schools
recognition award, now in its third
year, honors schools and districts
that are exemplary in:
• reducing environmental impact
and costs;
• improving the health and wellness of students and staff; and
• providing effective environmental
and sustainability education, which
incorporates STEM (Science,
Technology, Engineering and
Mathematics), civic skills and green
career pathways.
Last year, St. Andrew’s School, a
private school in Middletown, was a
national winner. The state also honored Red Clay Consolidated School
District’s Conrad Schools of
Science and Richardson Park
Elementary School, in partnership
with the Richardson Park Learning
Center.
Each participating state may submit up to four nominations for the
award to the U.S. Department of
Education. Winning schools will be
recognized at a national ceremony.
State applications, available at
www.doe.k12.de.us/infosuites/st
aff/ci/content_areas/science.sht
mle, are due Jan. 24, 2014.
The department will announce
state winners by early April.
National winners will be named
April 22.
More information and resources
are available on the official federal
Green Ribbon Schools website at
www2.ed.gov/programs/greenribbon-schools/index.html.
Items described on
this page are not
always endorsed by
the Association, but
are provided for
your information.
$100,000 available for high
school athletics through
California Casualty’s
Thomas R. Brown Athletics
Grant Program
Moody’s Mega Math
(M3) challenge
contest open
High school students are urged to
enter and compete for a share of
$125,000 in scholarship prizes to be
awarded in the 2014 Moody’s Mega
Math (M3) Challenge, a prestigious
applied math competition. Internetbased and free of registration and
participation fees, the M3 Challenge
requires participants to consider
and analyze a relevant issue using
mathematical modeling to come up
with a practical solution.
Registration closes February
28, 2014. For a complete list of
rules, go to
http://m3challenge.siam.org/
participate/rules/.
Neither the participants nor their
teachers have any idea what issue
the 2014 Challenge will address. The
problem remains entirely unknown
to teams until they log in on the
morning of their scheduled day
during Challenge weekend—either
March 8 or 9. A final solution paper
must be submitted by 9 p.m. the
same night.
The M3 Challenge reminds students that mathematics is vital to
solving some of our nation’s most
trying problems. It encourages students with varying strengths and
interests to address meaningful
questions and sharpen skills not
routinely used in their math classes—problem solving, critical thinking, writing, and communication.
Teams are assessed based on
approach, methods used, and creativity displayed in math modeling.
Teachers may visit http://m3
challenge.siam.org any time before
February 28 to register their teams
of three to five students (up to two
per school).
California Casualty’s Thomas R.
Brown Athletics Grant program
will receive requests for grants
from its $100,000 pool of funding
through January 15, 2014. Grant
applications received after January
15th will be considered the following year. Guidelines and application
forms can be found at www.calcas
athleticsgrant.com.
Shrinking state education budgets, pressure on schools to focus
efforts on academics, and diminishing funds for athletics inspired
California Casualty CEO, Beau
Brown, to establish the grant program in honor of his father –
Chairman Emeritus Tom Brown, a
lifelong athlete and sportsman.
“Youth sports teach teamwork,
discipline and that hard work pays
off,” Tom Brown said. “They’re a
valuable complement to lessons
learned in school.”
The California Casualty Thomas
R. Brown Athletics Grant program
began three years ago, with $25,000
in grants in four states. Since its
inception, 154 public high schools
across the nation have received
over $200,000 in athletics program
assistance. High schools in
Seaford, Laurel and Lake Forest
received these grants in 2012 and
2013.
Applicants must be active
employees of the public high school
for which funding is sought and a
current member (or referred by a
member) of the state NEA affiliate.
Complete details can be found at
www.calcasathleticsgrant.com.
Award notifications will be made
by May 30, 2014.
New memoir looks
at insider's view of
DSEA in the 1960's
Chet Elder, who worked for
DSEA for four years in the late 60's one of only three professional staff
at the time - has written a memoir
about his time here. Using experience first as a Delaware teacher in
what is now the Colonial School
District, then local association president, then DSEA assistant executive secretary, The Reluctant
Revolution - DSEA in the 60's is an
insider's look at a time before collective bargaining, before UniServ
directors, when administrators
were members, when DSEA presidents rotated through the three
counties, and when there were 30
districts, not the 19 that we have
today.
Although the book was not commissioned by DSEA, nor is it
endorsed by DSEA, it will be a fascinating read for many DSEA members. Elder worked at DSEA from
1964-1970 and then for the Maryland
State Education Assoc. for 30 years,
retiring in 2000.
Elder is offering DSEA members
a 25% discount, $19.60 per copy
instead of $24.99, plus $3.50 shipping for a total of $23.10, compared
to the original $34 including shipping.
The book is self-published, so
make your check payable to Chet
Elder and mail your order and
check to him at 400 Black Gum
Drive, Bethany Beach, DE 19930.
For questions, contact Elder at
302-265-8154 or by email at
chetelder@ mchsi.com. For bulk
orders, please call for exact postage
or UPS fee.
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
www.dsea.org
@dseafan
Making a difference
Teacher of
the Year:
"I try to help
students
understand
the world,
and French is
the vehicle"
Why French? She loves
the way it sounds and
then she found she was
good at it. But why
teaching? That question
isn’t as quickly answered.
aving met with other
Teachers of the Year, Lea
Wainwright has found that
hers was not the only circuitous
path to the classroom.
Although she majored in French
Language and Literature at the
University of Delaware, she
minored in Business Administration. She thought she'd like to be an
accountant, but found that the
course work didn’t match her personality. She was also drawn to
International Relations: while at
Delaware, she attended the
Sorbonne for a semester in Paris,
living with a family, and then spent
a summer studying in the southern
port city of Marseille. But after college and getting engaged, she knew
that lots of travel would be difficult.
Born and raised on a farm in the
Middletown area, after graduation
from Delaware, she worked for several companies and organizations
in marketing and accounting. But
when her son was born, she did
some tutoring and discovered that
teaching was her calling. "I tell my
students and my own kids, 'Do what
you love to do. Go where your heart
takes you.'"
The pull to teaching was so strong
that, even with a four year-old and a
six-month old, she went back to the
University of Delaware for certification courses.
H
Delaware Teacher of the Year Lea Wainwright loves coaching lacrosse, mentoring
new teachers and using foreign language teaching to help students explore global
issues. “We all need to feel that we belong to something where we are needed,
and that we can learn to make our world a better place,” she says.
Do you remember the
name of your first grade
teacher?
Although the teaching gene didn't
manifest itself in her immediate
family, she does have a favorite
teacher: Mrs. Schabinger, also a district teacher of the year.
Wainwright's first grade teacher,
her caring and help was so important that Wainwright remembers its
impact to this day.
This year she is teaching French
III, IV and V - an AP course. Ninety
minutes go by quickly thanks to
many factors, some related to technology. Wainwright’s is one of a few
classrooms at Appo High School
allowing a BYOD, Bring Your Own
Device, policy.
In a recent French III class the
atmosphere is casual, with
Wainwright projecting a steady
emotional attitude no matter how
many times or how many different
ways she finds to help students
understand a word or a concept.
"She goes over things and explains,"
was, in fact, the reason a French IV
student gave for liking her class.
During the 90-minute block,
Wainwright’s timer is always at
work. Students work alone, then in
pairs, in groups of four as well as a
whole class. They work with vocabulary lists on paper and also on a
White Board. The timer keeps students on task. “Vive La ______ “ is
one of her class signals for shifting
their attention to her.
Students use their vocabulary
lists to practice asking each other
questions about them. They listen
and watch a video of a French child
recount her own fanciful version of
a Winnie l'Ourson story. Thanks to
Wainwright's adept transitions,
today's lesson - all in French - never
bogs down. Wainwright walks that
fine line between keeping the class
moving and taking time to explain.
French class is more than
conjugating irregular verbs.
It’s about being authentic
Although French is still the language of the United Nations, the
Olympics and diplomacy, studying
it is more than the language, its history or even its culture.
After reading Thomas Friedman's
The World is Flat (2005),
Wainwright realized that foreign
languages were the perfect vehicles
for helping students contemplate
globalization, world problems and
offer solutions, in collaboration
with each other, as well as with students in France.
Her French IV class has a sister
class in Rozay-En-Brie outside of
Paris. They "skype" their French
counterparts several times a year.
Wainwright has taken students to
visit them in France, a priority for
her. "Learning French," Wainwright
says, "is about stepping out beyond
Middletown, Delaware and into the
world, because the world is their
territory."
Tonight she's been asked to speak
at the monthly meeting of
Delaware's Alliance Francaise.
Delaware's Francophones will hear
the same message - although in
French - that she intends to commu-
nicate throughout her year as
Delaware's Teacher of the Year, that
French is a vehicle for teaching
global issues.
In her AP French V class, for
example, the students take an AP
theme – deforestation, for example and use it to produce, in French, a
vocabulary list, a Q&A, and a paper.
They read, they discuss, they watch
French videos on the subject. They
will collaborate to not only understand the subject, in French, but
also offer solutions, in French.
Education has always been about
expanding horizons, learning about
the possibilities out in the world.
Teachers know how very powerful
that concept can be to lifting students up to realize their potential.
“I encourage them to also work
with each other to offer solutions to
our global problems, in another language. It’s very empowering for
them, and, in fact, is what they will
be called upon to do as our next
leaders.”
“We've all had a first-year
teacher.”
With 20 years of teaching experience, Wainwright is also passionate
about helping new teachers. As lead
mentor for her high school, where
there are as many as 30 new teachers in any given year, she understands that they need help, information and support during their early
years. “Nobody can tell you how to
teach. It takes a while to figure that
out, and having a mentor as support can make or break a potentially great teacher,” she says. And, she
adds, “We’ve all had first-year
teachers and been first-year teachers. Helping them get through those
early years as positively as possible
reaps enormous benefits for them,
their students and their school.”
“Here’s your problem.
Solve it.”
The more Wainwright thinks
about our world today and education, the more she believes that subjects need to be articulated, i.e.,
taught with even more attention to
reinforcing each other, as is often
the goal with the best Professional
Learning Communities (PLCs).
“The world is full of problems.
When all is said and done,” she
adds, “we need to push our students
to collaborate, work, think and ultimately lead us toward solutions.”
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
Vol. 34 No. 4
The Voice of the Delaware State Education Association
INSIDE ACTION!
February/March 2014
NEA President: Keep the Core, but
Course Correct to Achieve Its Purpose
David Davis, former president
of Christina E.A., joins DSEA as
new UniServ Director in NCC
page 5
DSEA and Radio Disney hold
Read Across America event at
Wilmington Public Library
page 7
DSEA Student Program holds
first-ever conference at Dover
Downs on March 29th
page 10
In-depth interview with U.S.
Senator Chris Coons on key
legislation on the horizon
page 12
photo courtesty NEA
by Dennis Van Roekel
NEA President
As part of American Education Week, NEA President Dennis Van Roekel visits with
students and staff at Totem Middle School in Marysville, Washington.
During my 23 years as a high school math teacher,
I learned some important lessons. One of the most
important was that effective teaching and learning
required me at times to be the teacher and at other
times, the student. I listened closely to my students
because they were the ones who told me what was
working and what wasn’t. I don’t believe I am any
different than any other NEA member—we all want
the best for every student in our classrooms and
schools.
So when 45 states adopted the Common Core
State Standards (CCSS), we as educators saw the
wonderful potential of these standards to correct
many of the inequities in our education system that
currently exist. Educators embraced the promise
of providing equal access to high standards for all
students, regardless of their zip code or family background.
We believed the standards would help students
develop the critical thinking and problem-solving
skills they need to succeed in the fast-changing
world. NEA members overwhelmingly supported
the goals of the standards because we knew they
could provide a better path forward for each and
every student. The promise of these high standards
for all students is extraordinary. And we owe it to
our students to fulfill that promise.
As educators, we also had high hopes that our
policymakers would make an equal commitment
to implement the standards correctly by providing students, educators, and schools with the time,
supports, and resources that are absolutely crucial
in order to make changes of this magnitude to our
education system.
So over the last few months I have done what my
students and fellow educators have taught me: I
have been listening closely. I have joined our state
leaders in member listening sessions around the
country, observed dozens of member focus groups,
and invited hundreds of thousands of NEA members
to share their views about how CCSS implementation is going.
I am sure it won’t come as a surprise to hear that
in far too many states, implementation has been
completely botched. Seven of ten teachers believe
that implementation of the standards is going poorly in their schools. Worse yet, teachers report that
there has been little to no attempt to allow educators
to share what’s needed to get CCSS implementation
right. In fact, two thirds of all teachers report that
they have not even been asked how to implement
these new standards in their classrooms.
Imagine that: The very people expected to deliver
universal access to high quality standards with high
quality instruction have not had the opportunity to
share their expertise and advice about how to make
CCSS implementation work for all students, educators, and parents.
Consequently, NEA members have a right to feel
frustrated, upset, and angry about the poor commitment to implementing the standards correctly.
So, where do we go from here?
NEA has been called upon to oppose the standards. It would be simpler just to listen to the detractors from the left and the right who oppose the
standards. But scuttling these standards will simply
Please turn to VAN ROEKEL, Page 19
Educators want a fair evaluation system
Since Day One, I have worked with our
staff, state and local union leaders, and members to advocate for an evaluation system that
actually does what it promised to do: provide
a framework for continuous improvement for
all educators and administrators.
We have always made the distinction between getting DPAS II-R done and getting it
done RIGHT. We have tried to move past complaint and criticism and offer practical suggestions to transform and improve what has
become an exceedingly complicated plan.
“
There is a pervasive sense of
disappointment and cynicism
that the current system fails
to provide for the continuous
growth it promised.
“
What do strong evaluation systems do?
They focus on what is important, create
a foundation of support through carefully
planned training, and assess educator effectiveness using as many indicators as educators
use when judging student progress. They capture valuable observations, utilize meaningful
data to verify classroom observations, and
provide helpful feedback. Good systems also
include resources and pathways for support
and provide opportunities to address questions and concerns. They build on success and
reduce complications. They minimize compliance, redundancy, and paperwork.
Where are we here in Delaware?
There is a pervasive sense of disappointment
and cynicism that the current system fails to
provide for the continuous growth it promised.
We continue to hear from teachers and principals alike who struggle with Component 5’s
goal-setting process. Establishing appropriate
goals for cohorts of students with various and
changing needs is never easy. Despite three
years of experience with DPAS II-R, teachers
do not have confidence that the process, as
defined by DDOE, results in goals that are
not only realistic and rigorous, but also attainable.” There are schools where goals are
pre-set by administration without regard for
student data, teacher insight, or system guidelines. Additional information and clear communications, as well as training and practice,
seem like reasonable remedies.
All parties agree that high-quality professional development is an invaluable foundation for effective teaching. Proven, beneficial,
PD is differentiated, on-going, and long-term.
It’s based on successful delivery models appropriate for adults. It involves multiple sessions
with opportunities for processing, innovation,
and implementation. Good PD is assessed
and modified as required. Unfortunately, too
much of PD provided to educators remains
one-shot, “sit and get,” with PowerPoint delivery. Likewise, the “train the trainer” model
has not proven to be universally successful.
Just as effective teaching is essential to student
success, so is the delivery of worthwhile PD.
A third system deficiency that continues to
2
DSEA ACTION!
-Frederika Jenner, DSEA President
trouble me is the Improvement Plan. As a local
and state president, I’ve seen plenty of IEP’s.
None struck me as useful or helpful. Time was
seldom arranged for observations of effective
teaching, and rarely did plans suggest working with another teacher or staff member.
They were often cookie-cutter plans and uniformly DIY: Do It Yourself. Read a book, watch
a video, and turn in next week’s lesson plans
this Friday. DIY might be OK for home decorating, but not for improving teacher effectiveness. How about designing realistic, scaffolded, professional Assistance Plans developed
within the framework of skills, knowledge,
and expertise of one’s colleagues?
Teachers and administrators need a system that helps identify strengths and areas
for continued development. They deserve
opportunities to work with their evaluators to
strengthen what works, modify what needs attention or eliminate what appears unproductive. Without these elements, the system will
never live up to its promise.
The Road Not Taken
In the Winter 2013-14 issue of DDOE’s publication, The Delaware Educator, Sec. Murphy
stated: “We also know our educational system
is only as strong as our educators who work
with their students every day. That’s why it
is essential that we have an evaluation system
that leads to an accurate assessment of the
quality of practice and results our educators
demonstrate.”
When DPAS II was first developed, time
was taken to get it right. The plan was based
on the work of a renowned education specialist. Educators were involved from the start.
The proposed system, including a comprehensive implementation plan, was reviewed and
vetted by educators from across the state. The
system was piloted and changes were made
on the basis of what was learned, prior to a
state-wide roll-out. A minimum of six hours
of face-to-face training was mandated for all
educators. The end result was a system we
universally understood and trusted.
The changes to DPAS II resulting in DPAS
II-R were made with very little educator involvement, little effort to pilot the new system
(only Component 5 was piloted for one year),
and no real effort to train educators on how to
effectively navigate the revised system.
Since 2010, every step of the latest iteration
of teacher evaluation has been rushed. We’ve
been forced to comply with guidelines and directives required to stay on course. Why have
we allowed ourselves to be “bullied” by the
USDOE and their artificial timelines for RTTT?
Delaware educators stand ready to be held
accountable for their performance through an
evaluation system that embodies the principles of fairness, reliability, transparency and
common sense; a system that does not disrupt
the learning environment and respects the education profession. The essential question is
whether DOE stands ready to provide educators with such a system?
DSEA ACTION! (USPS 010111 ISSN 01995413) is the official publication of the Delaware State Education Association.
ACTION! is mailed 7 times a year from DSEA Headquarters, located at 136 E. Water Street, Dover, DE 19901. Telephone: (302) 734-5834, 866-734-5834. Our Branch office can
be reached at (302) 366-8440. Subscriptions are included in
membership. Subscriptions are $5/yr for those ineligible for
membership. Periodical postage paid at Dover, DE 19901.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to DSEA ACTION!,
136 E. Water St., Dover, DE 19901.
DSEA Officers
President: Frederika Jenner
Vice President: Karen Crouse
Treasurer: Dom Zaffora
NEA Director: Mike Hoffmann
DSEA Staff
Executive Director: Jeff Taschner
Business Manager: Judy Anderson
Editor: David Wright
@dsea1
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
Creativity keeps WJBR winner on her toes
After ten years in education,
student creativity is what keeps
Sarah Brady on her toes.
When she arrived at work on
February 6th, it wasn’t only her
student’s creativity that surprised
her. Brady was surprised in her
classroom by representatives
from 99.5 WJBR, who were there
to honor her as WJBR’s Teacher
of the Month for January. Brady
currently teaches eighth grade
English at H.B. duPont Middle
School in Hockessin.
WJBR recognizes one teacher
each month, choosing from nominations submitted on their website. Brady was nominated by
Kathleen Stewart.
“One reason stands out among
many,” Stewart said. “She un-
derstands reading a book and answering questions can be boring,
so she tries to make it fun, relating it to real-life events and trying
to make us laugh.”
Creating rapport with her
students and trying to build an
enjoyment of learning is one of
Brady’s top priorities in the classroom.
“Kids are able to blossom and
grow when they feel safe enough
to go out on a limb with their
learning,” she said. “There are
all kinds of strategies and tricks
to get their attention, but they’re
worthless unless the students
respect the culture of the classroom.”
photo courtesty of WJBR
Sarah Brady (center, with plaque), who teaches at H.B. duPont Middle School in Hockessin, was selected as the WJBR Teacher of the Month for January.
Christina E.A. teacher named
WJBR Teacher of the Month
Sally Rybachak was selected as
WJBR’s Teacher of the Month for
December.
Rybachak has been teaching
for 42 years, with the past 22 years
taking place at Leasure Elementary School in the Christina School
District. She is a member of the
Christina Education Association.
What is it about your job that
makes it worthwhile every day?
I look forward to each new
school day for many reasons. I
find working with young children
very rewarding because I witness
their enthusiasm for learning. I
am rewarded throughout the day,
whether in the form of a kind note
from a parent, a comment from
my administrator, or the look of
pride on a student’s face when
they show me something they did
independently.
I also like coming to work because at Leasure, the teachers,
support staff, paras, parents, and
administrators work together to
ensure our students reach their
full potential.
How do you try and engage your
students to be productive?
I plan lessons that recognize
their different skill levels and
learning styles. I then provide
opportunities for my students
to apply those new skills inde-
photo courtesty of Pam Nichols
Sally Rybachak (front row, 2nd from right) is suprised by colleagues at Leasure Elementary and WJBR with the award for WJBR’s Teacher of the Month for December.
pendently. I feel I’m setting the
stage and preparing activities that
will engage them.
I want them to feel free to explore, to take risks, and to be challenged. I want them to love to
learn. I try to include interactive
lessons on a Smartboard because
all of my students love participating in those kinds of activities.
Helping her special education students
excel drives paraeducator Patti Smith
photo courtesty of Pam Nichols
Patti Smith (far right) is the All-Star Educator of the Month for December. The award
is presented by WDSD.
www.dsea.org
@dseafan
@dsea1
Bright eyes and wide smiles
are just two reasons why Patti
Smith is in love with her job as
a paraeducator at East Dover Elementary School in the Capital
School District.
Smith displayed her own wide
smile when WDSD radio named
her as their All-Star Educator for
the month of December.
WDSD recognizes one educator each month for their contributions to students and schools.
“I’m grateful to have been
nominated by my coworkers,”
Smith said. “They’re a great
group and it shows every day as
our East Dover students shine.”
For Smith, the chance to see
her special education students excel is what makes all of the hard
work worthwhile.
“I’m so lucky to do what I
love,” she said.
DSEA ACTION!
3
Summit focuses on building leaders
by Kelley Cole
DSEA Executive Board; NCCVT E.A.
4
DSEA ACTION!
Mike Hoffmann, a paraprofessional from Colonial School District, and Jeannette Wilt, from Brandywine, listen to their group members as part of an exercise during DSEA’s 2014 Leadership Summit, held at the Christiana Hilton on January 24th and 25th.
“Not temper, don’t get that
confused,” he said. “But anger
that fuels the desire to make a
change, to make a difference.”
Lee Olmstead, Grievance Chair
and Vice President of the Capital
Education Association, appreciated Gecan’s message.
“He is an inspirational motivator that helps you assess
where you’re at and how you can
transform your organization and
address our needs as we progress
from one issue to another.”
After Gecan’s presentation,
the Saturday session concluded
with breakout sessions, allowing
locals to meet with their UniServ
Directors and to discuss how they
could use Gecan’s strategies at the
local level. Every district created
an action-plan as far as organizing one-to-one meetings.
After a Saturday evening din-
“
lowing an agenda and of implementing Robert’s Rules of Order.
Judy Anderson and Val Hoffmann teamed up to emphasize
the important role a leader has at
the local level, specifically when
it comes to finances. Wendy Cannon walked her groups through
their district’s by-laws, helping
them become more familiar with
the contents.
DSEA President Frederika Jen-
You can transform your
organization and yourself,
so, instead of reacting to
events, you can be proactive
and set the agenda.
“
Being a leader is more than
just attending a few meetings or
sending some emails. Leaders,
especially in the DSEA, cultivate
relationships, help others who
are in difficult situations, and
are responsible for the financial
well-being of a local. Local leaders are key to the success of the
DSEA.
This was the message that 62
participants received at the first
DSEA Leadership Summit held at
the Christiana Hilton in January.
While DSEA has hosted training events in the past, this was the
first “Leadership Summit” sponsored by the association.
According to UniServ Director and summit co-organizer
Val Hoffmannn, the idea for the
summit came about last June,
when the staff met with the DSEA
Leadership Team. NEA Director
Mike Hoffmannn suggested that
a weekend for leaders, focusing
largely on organizing and building relationships would be beneficial.
DSEA staff worked with
UniServ Directors and local leaders to identify the best candidates
to bring to the three-day event.
Saturday’s agenda highlighted
Michael Gecan, a community organizer for the Industrial Areas
Foundation in New York.
Down-to-earth,
personable,
and engaging, Gecan captivated the audience with his stories
about how to best connect with
– and ultimately help – members.
The main focus of Gecan’s presentation was to emphasize the
importance of one-to-one meetings. The simple concept of taking
time out to meet with members in
a non-group setting is an important foundational component for
leaders. Unions are nothing without members; showing members
that they are valued and heard
creates a sense of trust.
“Get to know them, ask them
why they teach. You’ll learn that
people will really start to open
up,” Gecan advised. Once a member feels comfortable, they are
more likely to become an active
participant in the union.
During the last part of the
session, Gecan focused on what
makes a great leader. His answer?
Anger.
- Lee Olmstead, Capital Education Association
yourself so, instead of reacting to
events, you can be proactive and
set the agenda,” Olmstead said.
“He also helps you understand the value of reaching out
to people and getting to know
them, something we seem to lack
nowadays with all of our Twitter,
email, and Facebook technologies. [Gecan] expressed the high
value of cultivating and nurturing
relationships so we can adapt and
ner, participants spent Sunday
morning attending three different
sessions moderated by UniServ
Directors Laura Rowe, Val Hoffmann, and Wendy Cannon. Business Manager Judy Anderson
also conducted a session on leaders’ financial responsibilities.
Laura Rowe’s session discussed how to run effective
meetings with members. She
discussed the importance of fol@dsea1
ner was pleased with the overall
outcome of the association’s first
Leadership Summit.
“It was a privilege to have Michael Gecan work with DSEA’s
state and local leaders to develop grassroots organizing skills.
Attendees appreciated the three
workshops on fiduciary responsibility, effective meetings, and
bylaws—important information
for all local leaders!”
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
Local Leader Spotlight: Jossette Threatts
ate about our members and what
CREA represents. After completing NEA’s Leaders for Tomorrow, I knew I was ready for this
worthwhile opportunity. I looked
forward to working with great
people in CREA that would be
there to assist me when needed.
What’s been the biggest challenge as a local president so far?
Why did you pursue the presidency of the Caesar Rodney
Education Association?
I pursued the role of President
of our local after watching and
working with past Presidents of
our Association. I felt passion-
One of the biggest challenges
has been to be able to meet more
members. As a local, it has been a
priority to hold all member meetings. However, as the State continues to add greater demands to
everyone’s plate, time has become
a limited commodity. There is
limited time to bring everyone
together.
What are the challenges of being
president of a merged local?
This is the first time an ESP has
been the president of our local,
but we make sure all parties have
a voice and a vote.
How do you encourage members
to become more involved?
I would encourage our members
to become [understand] what
fuels their passion and use that
to find something they can do
to help build us up and make us
stronger.
DSEA creates leadership training program
targeting ESP members across the state
Amy Johnson never thought
of herself as a leader. She was always content to stay in the background observing others.
Then someone gave her an
application for an NEA program
aimed at developing the next generation of ESP leaders. Initially,
she didn’t give it much thought,
and the application languished,
untouched on her coffee table.
However, friends and colleagues
continued to encourage her to
take on leadership roles, including applying for the program.
She finally sent the application off
to NEA and never thought anything would come of it.
She was wrong.
Johnson made an impression
as she was chosen by NEA for the
leadership program.
“[The program] has been a
journey, but I like it,” Johnson
said. “When I’m asked to speak
about different issues now, it’s
hard at first, but I realize that it’s
inside of me and I have to let it
out.”
Johnson’s growth as a leader,
with the Indian River Education
Association and as a member of
the DSEA Executive Board, was
aided by her participation in the
NEA Leaders for Tomorrow program, which has also selected
other Delaware educators over
the past five years.
Now, with the help of a grant
from NEA, DSEA has created
www.dsea.org
@dseafan
its own, localized version of the
national program.
The goal,
though, remains the same: train
future ESP leaders in areas such
as self-awareness, self-management, risk-taking, communication, and organizing.
Laura Rowe, one of DSEA’s
UniServ Directors, is spearheading DSEA’s Leaders for Tomorrow (LFT) program. She believes
the program can have an incredible impact on any local association involved.
“We want our local ESP leaders to become champions of their
profession,” Rowe said. “We
want to help them become confident in their ability to engage in
a variety of ways with members,
administrators, politicians, and
the community.”
Once participants have completed the program, they will
have received training on developing plans for their local associations around member retention
and recruitment, issue organizing, and community engagement.
On a personal level, the participants will hopefully, according
to program organizers, have renewed confidence in themselves,
know their strengths, and become
visible and vocal advocates.
“There’s a specific need for
leadership across all of our locals,” said Wendy Cannon, a
UniServ colleague of Rowe, who
is assisting with the program.
@dsea1
“This grant gives us the opportunity to implement a program and,
if it’s successful, look at making it
a part of DSEA’s training budget
on a broader scale.”
The most immediate example
of the program’s value might be
when a local association loses a
long-term leader and a void is
created.
“Setbacks [for locals] are common because the person steps up
but is unprepared, no matter how
willing they are to do the work,”
Rowe said.
DSEA leaders hope to expand
their leadership development
program, making it an ongoing,
integral part of the organization.
The ability to do so, Rowe said,
will help move the organization
from a “service” model, where
staff and officers do most of the
work, to an “organizing” model,
which is driven by active and engaged members on every level.
Rowe and Cannon are working
with local association leaders to
publicize the program and recruit
individuals who have been identified as strong leadership candidates. The goal is to complete recruiting by the end of the current
school year and begin training in
the fall.
David Davis, DSEA’s new UniServ Director, will assist seven locals from NCC.
David Davis joins
DSEA as UniServ Director after 15 years
of teaching
The role of a UniServ Director is to counsel and advocate for
members, ensuring their rights
are respected. It’s a role David
Davis was no stranger to as president of the Christina Education
Association.
Now, after teaching English at
Newark High School and being
a local president, Davis will step
into that role full-time as DSEA’s
new UniServ Director.
“When the position became
available, Tim Barchak [UniServ
Director] came in to my office and
asked if I was going to apply,”
said Davis. “I asked him why I
should and he said that I’d been
doing much of the same work as
a local president. I gave it some
thought and gave it a shot.”
Davis’ path to teaching and
UniServ work actually began in
the food service industry. As an
English major at Seton Hall University, he worked in food service
to pay the bills. After graduating,
in need of a job, he began working in the industry, despite wanting nothing more than to teach.
“I couldn’t find a teaching job,
so I went back to doing what paid
the bills in college,” he said. “I
had a career I didn’t want for 15
years. I woke up one morning
telling myself ‘I thought I was going to be a teacher.’”
When an English position
opened up in 2000, Davis jumped
on the opportunity, spending the
next 13 years in the classroom.
The decision to leave a position
he had waited so long to find was
Please turn to DAVIS, Page 21
DSEA ACTION!
5
Delegates head to Dover Downs on March
15th for the DSEA Representative Assembly
Billy Smith, a CREA member, participates
in AR training in September of 2013.
PD Conference in
March now waitlist
after filling all spots
Results from the Tell Delaware
survey opened the door on concerns educators held about their
working conditions. Those concerns dealt with topics ranging
from time, to facilities and resources, to access to quality professional development.
It was the responses to a question in the professional development section of the survey which
highlighted a significant concern
around the implementation of
Common Core: 70% of teachers,
over 3,400 of all who answered
the question, state that Common
Core was the area where they
needed professional development the most.
“Teachers are desperate for
appropriate, differentiated, and
timely professional development,” said Frederika Jenner,
DSEA President. “It’s important
for our organization to take the
lead on this.”
DSEA is indeed taking the
lead by hosting an all-day professional development conference.
The conference will take place
on Saturday, March 22nd at Dover Downs Conference Center
and features topics ranging from
“Integrating LFS and Common
Core” to “Preventing and Diffusing Crisis Situations.”
The sessions cover a broad
range of topics, each developed
to meet the needs of teachers and
ESP’s, according to Deb Stevens,
Director of Instructional Advocacy for DSEA.
“The sessions move beyond
theory and will give those teacher and ESP’s concrete strategies
Please turn to CONFERENCE, Page 22
6
DSEA ACTION!
Over 150 educators will travel to Dover on March
15th to participate in the 2014 DSEA Representative
Assembly (RA).
The RA is the annual “business” meeting where
policy changes, bylaw amendments, budget, and
new business items are debated and voted upon by
local delegates.
The delegates are members of the different local
associations within DSEA. Each association is alloted one delegate for every 50 members. This is
done to provide the various educator groups with
proportional representation.
Delegates are invited to attend the Celebration of
Leadership dinner, held the night before. The dinner is highlighted by the announcement of the winners of DSEA’s annual awards.
The awards include ESP of the Year, the Helen
Wise Award, which recognizes outstanding contributions to public education, and the Community
Partner Award, which celebrates a local business for
its strong support of public education. DSEA also
awards the Legislative Friend of Education, which
honors a legislator whose work in the General Assembly respects the work educators do. Nominations are submitted by members and voted on by
the DSEA Executive Board at its February meeting.
In addition to the celebration dinner and the
business conducted on Saturday, delegates are also
asked to support two important drives.
Local associations provide a “basket”, which is
included as part of a silent auction raising money
for the NEA Fund for Children and Public Education. Baskets will often have a theme, ranging from
sports memorabilia to spa supplies. Delegates place
their bids starting on Friday evening, before the dinner, and bidding continues until midday on Saturday, when the winners are announced.
In addition to the basket silent auction, delegates
have also been tasked with bringing school supplies. The supplies will be collected and distributed to community organizations who assist students
and families in need.
A full recap of the 2014 RA will appear online
in the April edition of ACTION!.
NEA Secretary-Treasurer Becky Pringle to deliver
keynote address at 2014 Representative Assembly
Becky Pringle, a science teacher from Harrisburg, Pa., is secretary-treasurer of the National Education Association. She will be
in Dover on March 15th to deliver
the keynote address for the DSEA
Representative Assembly.
As secretary-treasurer of the
nation’s largest professional organization, Pringle ranks third
among NEA’s leadership.
Her responsibilities include
oversight and maintenance of the
Association’s multimillion dollar budget, and the fiscal integrity of the organization. She has
also been integral to the success
of NEA’s work to transform the
education professions and to improve student learning.
Pringle led the workgroup
that produced the Association’s
groundbreaking Policy Statement
on Teacher Evaluation and Accountability. As the NEA’s first
broad endorsement of the need
for evaluation and accountability reform, the Policy Statement
outlines a system that positions
teachers to take the lead in improving professional practice
to meet the diverse needs of all
students, and offers sweeping
changes to elevate the profession
of teaching.
A middle school teacher with
31 years of classroom experience,
Pringle has held Association positions at the national, state, and
local levels, including serving on
the Board of Directors for NEA
and the Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA). She
also served two terms as a member of NEA’s Executive Committee where she distinguished
herself as a thoughtful and passionate advocate for the nation’s
public school educators and students.
Pringle’s long history of leadership includes a focus on diversity issues, student achievement,
and developing leaders within
the Association. During her terms
on the NEA Board and Execu-
tive Committee, she chaired the
NEA Reading Task Force and
NEA ESEA Advisory Committee,
which helped prepare the organization for the law’s pending reauthorization.
Pringle served as the finance
chair of the National Board for
Professional Teaching Standards,
overseeing the organization’s revenues and expenses, investment
portfolio, and budget; on the Blue
Ribbon Panel on Teacher Preparation for the National Council for
Accreditation of Teacher Education; and on the Institute for Educational Leadership Task Force.
A Philadelphia native, Pringle
received her Bachelor of Science
degree in elementary education
from the University of Pittsburgh
and a master’s degree in education from Pennsylvania State University. She and her husband, Nathan, have two children – Nathan
III manages web production, and
Lauren is a producer.
Delegate Reminder
RA Delegates are reminded to bring donations of school supplies.
These donations will be distributed to community organizations who
help ensure our students and families in need have the supplies they
need when they enter the classroom.
@dsea1
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
Students from Warner Elementary, Highlands Elementary, Lewis Elementary, and
Shortlidge Elementary participated in a Read Across America event, hosted by
Radio Disney Philadelphia, at the Wilmington Public Library. Students played a
variety of educational games, danced, and won prizes.
DSEA joins Radio Disney for Read Across America
While Delaware is one of the
smallest NEA affiliates, its plans
for Read Across America Day
on March 3rd were on par with
states far bigger.
DSEA joined with Radio Disney Philadelphia to recognize
Read Across America (RAA) Day
with two special events for students. It was a natural fit, given the scope and reach of what
DSEA wants to accomplish with
its program.
“Reading is one of those essential skills in education that influences all the others,” said Frederika Jenner, DSEA President. “A
program which aims to foster a
love of reading and expand children’s understanding about the
importance of reading is entirely
worthwhile.”
The first event was the official
recognition of Read Across America Day on March 5th. The invitation-only event will be held at the
Wilmington Public Library. Radio Disney Philadelphia’s Road
Crew hosted a 60 minute program centered around the theme
of “Diversity” and “Acceptance”
found in the featured Dr. Suess
book for 2014, The Sneetches.
DSEA selected the Wilmington Public Library because the
location fit the goal of providing
a central location for students attending the elementary schools
within the City of Wilmington.
Given the challenges the city
continues to face, DSEA wanted
to look for a way to bring a Disney program to the students who
are expected to learn every day
amidst those challenges.
“Focusing on the Wilmington
elementary schools allowed us to
give an extra boost to those students and help them get and stay
interested in books and the experience of reading,” Jenner said.
The second event serves as
the grand prize for DSEA’s 2014
RAA student contest. The winner, selected by a panel of DSEA
staff and representatives from
FuturTech Consulting and DelawareOnline, will receive a Radio
Disney Philadelphia-hosted event
at their school. Radio Disney
Philadelphia will work with the
winner’s school administration
to select a date and appropriate
theme.
DSEA hopes the addition of
Radio Disney Philadelphia for its
2014 student contest, and in the
years to come, will continue to
be a source of excitement for students, encouraging them to participate every year.
“Disney is such a universally-appealing company for our
kids and their families,” Jenner
said. “There’s tremendous benefit to our organization and its
members in working with such a
solid, stable company.”
NEA grants help fund variety of Read Across America events
reprinted from NEA
Wash. D.C., Feb. 12, 2014- There’s
only one event that will get teachers, principals, school employees—even elected officials—to
dye their hair blue, cook up a
breakfast of green eggs and ham,
or be duct-taped to a wall if it
boosts their students’ enthusiasm
to read.
Every year, an estimated 45
million readers join the National
Education Association (NEA) to
celebrate its annual Read Across
America Day. Through a continuing partnership with Renaissance Dental, NEA awarded Read
Across America events grants to
18 state affiliates for state and local Read Across America events
and activities—all designed to
motivate children to develop a
love of reading.
From Arkansas to Wyoming
and California to Maine, a total
of $133,000 was awarded to 18
www.dsea.org
@dseafan
states in varying grant amounts
ranging from $800 to $10,000.
The grants provide state affiliates
with the funds to purchase books
and coordinate reading events
with students statewide. Thanks
to the generous donation from
Renaissance Dental, everyone can
be wacky, wild, and read with a
child on March 3.
“Our members come up with
some Seuss-tastic ideas to motivate children to read, but funding
isn’t always available, especially
with tightening school budgets,”
said NEA President Dennis Van
Roekel. “We want everyone to be
in the company of a good book,
and thanks to our partnership
with Renaissance Dental, more
readers will continue to make
Read Across America Day the
nation’s largest reading celebration.”
The partnership between Renaissance Dental and NEA ar-
@dsea1
rived after studies and research
found that American students
were missing more than 51 million hours of school each year due
to oral health problems. Through
NEA’s Read Across America, 3
million educators are helping to
deliver a very important message
to students: “2 x 2 + 20 = good
oral health and literacy habits.”
The pledge asks children to brush
for two minutes, two times per
day, plus read for 20 minutes
each day—for a daily total of 24
minutes, all focused on developing good oral health and reading
skills.
The unique partnership between the nation’s largest union
of educators and Renaissance
Dental also will deliver books,
toothbrushes, and other oral
health items to students in need
during the popular Cat-a-Van
Reading Tour, scheduled February 24 through March 14. The
reading tour will visit Texas,
Oklahoma, Michigan, Indiana,
Ohio, South Carolina, Georgia,
and Mississippi, with additional Seuss-themed events planned
from coast to coast on the annual
Read Across America Day, Monday, March 3.
Originally created as a one-day
event to celebrate the joy of reading, Read Across America, now
in its 17th year and sponsored by
NEA and Dr. Seuss Enterprises,
L.P., has grown into a nationwide
initiative that promotes reading
every day. With Dr. Seuss’s birthday falling this year on Sunday,
March 2, the official Read Across
America Day will be celebrated Monday, March 3, enabling
schools nationwide to participate
in the reading fun.
DSEA ACTION!
7
NEA’s Read Across America Kicks Off in South Texas
by Brenda Alvarez
reprinted from NEA
February 25, 2014- Life in the Rio
Grande Valley in south Texas is
relatively quiet. It’s a family-oriented area, where much of the excitement surrounds local football
or basketball games. On Monday,
Feb. 24, however, students from
two elementary schools in Hidalgo County received a special
treat from local, state and national guests, who read books from
the beloved author Dr. Seuss. The
event was part of the 17th anniversary of the National Education Association’s award-winning
Read Across America literacy
program.
The first stop on the tour was
to M. Rivas Elementary School
in Donna, Texas, which serves
more than 600 students. One look
down the school halls would give
anyone a clear indication that students and school staff are serious
about reading. Walls are plastered with posters promoting super star readers who are turning
pages and have a goal of reading
one million words for the school
year.
Guest readers at Rivas were
NEA Executive Committee Member Princess Moss, who read The
Cat in the Hat, as well as State
Board of Education representative Ruben Cortez and Texas State
photo courtesty of Jati Lindsay/NEA
TSTA President Rita Haecker (foreground) joins NEA Executive Committee member
Princess Moss in handing out goodie bags provided by Reanaissance Dental at M. Rivas
Elementary School in Donna, TX.
Rep. Armando Martinez who
tagged team to read Green Eggs
and Ham. Other special guests included Texas State Teachers Association (TSTA) President Rita
Haecker, TSTA Vice President
Noel Candelaria, and several
Donna Independent School District school board members.
Principal Gregorio Arrellano
says, “We need to get students
excited about learning, and it all
starts with reading,” emphasizing that programs like NEA’s
Read Across America add energy
to existing reading initiatives and
show students they have the support of outside groups.
Brissia Quintanilla, a kindergarten student, shared, “I like to
read because it’s fun and my favorite book is The Cat in the Hat,”
which worked out well because
she, along with over 200 other
students who participated in the
reading event at Rivas received
their own copy, along with toothbrushes and other goodies like
tooth timers to keep them reading
and brushing at home.
For a second consecutive year,
Read Across America events and
activities have been sponsored
by Renaissance Dental. Recent
studies have found that American
students miss 51 million hours
of school every year due to oral
health problems. This translates
to students missing critical instruction time; especially in early
grades where reading skills are a
focus—and students who don’t
read at grade level are four times
more likely to drop out than those
who do.
In Donna, which is less than
ten miles from the U.S.-Mexican
border, resources are limited. In
fact, the nearest book store is a
thirty-minute drive outside of
town.
Haecker says that “people in
south Texas don’t have access to
a lot of libraries or books, and the
association has taken a leadership
position on this issue and is working to bring in as many resources
as we can to help our students.”
Day one of the tour ended at
Jefferson Elementary School in
Edinburg, where 300 K-5 students received the same special
treatment. On hand were special
guests Texas State Rep. Terry Canales, who led students in a reader’s oath of promising to read
each day and each night, and local meteorologist Tim Smith who
read Green Eggs and Ham.
“We’re honored we were chosen,” says Raul Gonzalez, referring to NEA’s Read Across America program coming the school.
Please turn to RAA, Page 22
Educators highlight economic struggles facing families and students
reprinted from NEA
Wash. D.C., Feb. 25, 2014- Edith Kimball, a
wife, mother of three, and elementary school
food service professional at Lee Elementary
School, and Courtney Johnson, wife, mother and high a school English teacher at Fort
Hayes Arts and Academic high school, today
provided personal stories to Senate lawmakers about the economic struggles of working
families in America.
Chairman Patty Murray (D-WA) and the
Senate Budget Committee called the hearing
to more fully understand the issues and concerns facing working families and families
working to break into the middle class.
The hearing took place on the heels of the
worst economic recession since the Great Depression, where one in five children still lives
in poverty. More than 2.3 million children
live with a long-term unemployed parent –
triple the number just five years ago.
The average American household made
less in 2012 than it did in 1989. For the na-
8
DSEA ACTION!
tion’s educators like Edith and Courtney,
these “statistics” are too often the families
and the students they serve.
Edith is member of the National Education
Association and the American Federation of
Teachers as well as the Florida Education Association. Courtney is an NEA and Ohio Education Association member.
Below are highlights of their testimony:
Edith Kimball, Lee Elementary School (FL)
“My school, like our county, is poor. A
few years ago almost all our kids were on
free or reduced price lunch, and now a new
grant helps provide meals to all of them. I
love preparing healthy meals for them, even
though many are picky eaters. And I know
many of their families, like mine, struggle to
make ends meet.
“I know that Congress is talking about
raising the minimum wage. For me, in my
job, that would mean an increase of $200
more a month for my family. That would
help give us a just a little more in our budget.
It could help me open a college savings plan
for my children for their future.”
Courtney Johnson, Fort Hayes Arts and Academic High School (OH)
“I am frustrated that the pathways to the
middle class that existed for my generation
no longer exist for my students or my son.
Why does the American dream have to end
with me?
“When I was a little girl growing up in
Ironton, Ohio, I knew that college was how I
entered the middle class. Becoming a teacher
was not something I settled for as a career.
I made a choice. Teaching was my pathway
to making a middle class life that would
allow me to build lives, too. Where are we
as a country when the folks who teach our
children can’t have a stable economic avenue
into the middle class?”
@dsea1
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
N.Y. teachers union withdraws support for CCSS implementation
by Celeste Busser
reprinted from NEA
Wash. D.C. Jan. 27, 2014- The New York State
United Teachers’ (NYSUT) Board of Directors
withdrew its support for the Common Core
State Standards as implemented and interpreted in New York State until the state education
department makes major course corrections to
its failed implementation plan.
NYSUT also reiterated its call for a threeyear moratorium on high-stakes consequences
from standardized testing. The union’s board
acted unanimously Saturday morning at a
meeting in Albany.
The National Education Association issued
the following statement today from its president, Dennis Van Roekel in support of educators of New York:
“The new Common Core State Standards
provide real opportunities for the students in
our nation’s public school system, but we owe
it to them to provide teachers with the time,
tools, and resources to get it right. Educators
in New York were given no choice but to make
a strong statement against the inadequate implementation of the standards. Teachers, administrators, parents and communities must
work together to align the standards with curriculum, instruction and assessment, and this
isn’t being done in New York.
“NEA and many other leading education
organizations have expounded on the importance of getting implementation right, and we
support the call by New York educators to listen to those in the classroom. Educators need
adequate time to learn the standards. They
need the time to develop the tools and curriculums that are aligned to those standards.
And assessments must be aligned with the
standards. Implementation of the standards
is proceeding better in states like Kentucky
and California where educators and parents
were involved in crafting the implementation
plan from the beginning. If we are to deliver
a high-quality public education that prepares
students for college, careers, and citizenship
all states must design implementation plans
with practitioners and families that follow
common sense principles. What is happening
in New York is a bad case of cart-before-thehorse.
“Last fall, NEA members were polled about
their views regarding the new standards. Our
members overwhelmingly support the goals
of the standards, yet only four in 10 teachers
said they were playing a major role in the implementation of the standards. When asked
to suggest measures to help teachers with the
standards, educators cited collaboration time
with colleagues, more planning time, updated
classroom resources, in-service training and
better technology to administer the computer-based assessments.
“Our members support the Common Core
State Standards because they are the right
thing to do for our students and they embrace
the promise of the standards: that all students
will have access to the critical thinking and
creative skills they need to succeed, regardless
of where they live. But in order to fulfill the
standards’ worthy goals, we need an equal
commitment to common sense implementation. And there should be no high stakes consequences before adequate time is given to
ensure quality implementation. When states
fail to step up with the needed investments for
implementation, NEA and its state affiliates
are pushing hard for the resources needed. We
all need to work together—parents, education
support professionals, teachers, administrators, communities and elected officials—to
make sure we get this right.”
For the latest information from NEA on the
Common Core State Standards, please visit:
www.nea.org/home/46653.htm.
Calif. lawsuit threatens teachers’ professional rights
by California Federation of Teachers
reprinted with permission
Los Angeles Jan. 27, 2014- Two
days after nearly 1,000 educators
denounced the Vergara v. the
State of California lawsuit, opening arguments begin today in Los
Angeles County Superior Court.
This meritless lawsuit, which
seeks to eradicate teachers’ professional rights, highlights the
wrong problems, proposes the
wrong solutions, and follows the
wrong process while doing nothing to improve student learning.
This is another attempt by corporate special interests to undermine the teaching profession and
push their agenda on California
public schools and students.
The California Federation of
Teachers (CFT) and the California
Teachers Association (CTA) intervened in the litigation last year on
the side of the state of California
to actively participate in the legal
proceedings in support of educators and students.
“A teacher’s simple right to a
hearing before dismissal is not
‘unfair’ to students. Students
www.dsea.org
@dseafan
need a stable, experienced teaching workforce, not a revolving
door of educators,” CFT President Joshua Pechthalt notes. “Socalled ‘tenure’—that is, the right
to a hearing before dismissal—became law because educators used
to be subject to political pressures and arbitrary decisions that
threatened academic freedom
and robbed teachers of their ability to advocate for their students.
If Vergara succeeds, all students
will suffer.”
Circumventing the legislative
process to strip teachers of their
due process rights will not improve student learning, will make
it harder to attract and retain quality teachers in our classrooms,
and ignores all the research that
shows experience is a key factor
in effective teaching. This lawsuit
comes at a time when California
has the largest student to teacher ratio in the country and ranks
50th in the nation in per-pupil
spending.
“The real support our students
need today is adequate resources, smaller class sizes, parental
@dsea1
involvement and quality teacher training,” said CTA President
Dean E. Vogel. “We need to be
attracting new teachers to the
field, not driving them away.
This lawsuit and trial are a waste
of valuable taxpayer money that
would be much better spent actually investing in our students and
schools.”
The Vergara lawsuit is backed
by a conservative Silicon Valley
millionaire and charter school
proponent, David Welch, who
started a group called “Students
Matter” to pursue the suit. It also
wrongly proposes that seniority
rules mean that when layoffs occur bad teachers stay and good
teachers are forced to leave. But
the problem with layoffs is not
seniority. The problem is the underfunding that causes layoffs—
lack of revenues, exacerbated by
the ongoing aftereffects of the
economic recession.
Seniority
simply provides for fair, transparent rules to administer layoffs
if they occur.
“The best way to avoid losing
good teachers to layoffs is to find
the funding to prevent layoffs,”
says Pechthalt. “CFT and CTA
led the campaign in 2012 to pass
Proposition 30, which, by bringing new revenues to the schools,
stopped layoffs in their tracks.”
“Not one of the Vergara backers were anywhere to be seen
during the campaign to pass Prop
30, which, by filling in part of the
hole ripped in education funding
over the years, stopped layoffs
this year, and did more to support
equal access to education for all
students than anything proposed
in this lawsuit,” added Vogel.
More background and facts
about the nature of this lawsuit,
including links to a variety of articles updating the case and information on the organization behind the lawsuit, please visit the
California Teachers Association
website at http://goo.gl/Z9zSxQ.
DSEA ACTION!
9
Student program continues to grow
It boasts 60,000 members, more
than 1,100 college/university
chapters, and began in 1937, but
until 2008, the NEA Student Program did not count Delaware as
an active participant.
Now, that absence is a memory
as the student program continues
to grow and attract members.
The student program is one of
the first exposures potential educators have to the benefits which
DSEA provides, whether it’s discounts or liability insurance.
“The students get most of the
same discounts and services as
active members,” said Tammy
Wagner, who coordinates DSEA’s
student program. “One of the
main benefits is the EEL insurance they get while they’re in the
classrooms or student teaching.”
Educator Employment Liability (EEL) insurance is a professional liability insurance program
provided by NEA. It protects
members from liability for most
incidents arising from their educational employment duties.
In addition to the insurance
and discounts, student members
receive reduced dues when they
join DSEA as full members.
“The students receive a $20
per year rebate for each year they
were a student member,” said
Wagner. “We’ve found that it’s
much easier to recruit members
at New Hire Orientations if they
were student members.”
The 2012-2013 school year saw
DSEA’s student program take big
steps forward.
This was the first time student
members attended the Student
Leadership Conference (NEA)
and the NEA Representative Assembly (NEA-RA), the NEA’s annual meeting of all state affiliates.
Rayshaun Ward, president of
Delaware State University’s student chapter and DSEA’s Student
Program, attended the NEA-RA
in Atlanta and was impressed.
“The RA in Atlanta really
opened my eyes to another realm
in education,” said Ward, who
graduates in May and hopes to
stay in Delaware to teach. “There
were so many different viewpoints in the room, but they were
all there together to focus on help-
David Tjaden will
address student
members at their
March conference
David Tjaden, 26, currently
serves as the President and Chairperson of the National Education
Association Student Program, the
largest organized association of
college students in the country,
representing nearly 60,000 college students studying to be educators.
Tjaden holds a BA in Political Science and an MA in Social Studies Education from the
University of Iowa, with a focus
in education policy. During his
graduate study, he worked for
the University of Iowa Center for
Human Rights, teaching courses
and advocating for immigrant
and worker’s rights across the
Midwest.
Tjaden has been a champion
in increasing emphasis on the
arts and infusing creativity and
collaboration in the classroom,
while simultaneously advocating
strongly against the privatization
movement and high-stakes test10
DSEA ACTION!
Rayshaun Ward, president of Delaware State University’s Student Chapter, discusses
plans for the upcoming DSEA Student Conference with Devon Coventry (Vice Pres.).
ing support public education.”
The current membership year
has seen the program continue
its move forward. Membership
has nearly doubled, a full slate of
officers was elected, and student
members attended NEA’s Fall
Connections Conference.
DSEA’s rapidly developing,
student program continues to
build upon the NEA’s mission
of helping the student program
of all state affiliates provide net-
working and peer mentoring opportunities for its members.
“[The student program] gives
the students the opportunity to
connect with practicing educators in the field,” said Frederika
Jenner, DSEA President. “I think
it’s important to have that access,
both for the students and the
practicing educators. Sure, it’s
beneficial to DSEA, but it’s probably even more beneficial to the
students themselves.”
Student program hosts conference and
trainings at Dover Downs on March 29
David Tjaden, 26, is the chairperson of the
National Education Association’s Student
Program.
ing reforms. He has outspokenly
been on the front lines fighting
for these ideals through appearances in local and national media,
addressing current and future
educators in over 25 states, organizing issue advocacy campaigns
and Get Out The Vote efforts,
multiple trips to lobby Congress
and the White House, and even
an invitation to the United Nations.
David has twice (2013, 2014)
been nationally recognized for
his efforts by Forbes Magazine in
their list of “30 Under 30: Changing the World Right Now.”
On Saturday, March 29th,
DSEA hosts its inaugural Student
Association Conference at Dover
Downs, open to all education majors throughout the state.
The opportunity to host the
event came from an NEA Center for Organizing grant which
DSEA received last year.
The goal of the conference,
much like the program itself, is to
provide opportunities for future
educators.
“We want to bring together
the student members across the
state to network and help prepare
them for the classroom,” said
Tammy Wagner, who coordinates
DSEA’s Student Association program. “The agenda was designed
by talking to the students about
what they felt was important.”
The half-day event features
a full-slate of presentation topics, including “Educators and
the Law” and “Common Core
and the Teacher Evaluation System.” Students will also receive
a Certificate of Attendance for
their portfolio, supply bags from
@dsea1
SmileMakers and Staples, and the
opportunity to win door prizes.
However, it’s the access to
knowledge about the profession
that is the most important takeaway for the students who attend.
“We want them to learn about
what to expect on job interviews,
current information on Common
Core, legal advice on classroom
activities, and what DSEA can do
for them,” Wagner said.
Students can register by visiting the following web address:
www.regonline.com/2014-Student-Conference.
Who: All college education majors in Delaware
What: DSEA Student Association
Conference
When: Saturday, March 29th
Where: Dover Downs Hotel Conference Center
How: register only; contact Tammy Wagner for more information
at 866-734-5834 or [email protected].
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
Modern Families: What educators need to know
by Brenda Alvarez
reprinted from NEA
Percentage of Children, Ages 0-17, Living in Various Family Arrangemets (2012)
Modern Family” may be a show on television about different family structures. But now
that students and families throughout the U.S.
are more diverse than they were 30 years ago,
“Modern Family” is much more than a sitcom.
Today’s family is less homogenous and
monochromatic than ever before. They’re often a blend of cultures, ethnicities, and races. A
salient shift in parental roles is on the rise, too,
with fathers serving as nurturers and mothers serving as breadwinners. The number of
same-sex parents is also increasing, and represents the evolution of family.
These diverse family structures make up today’s modern family. Keeping them engaged
will require different tactics, especially when
it comes to parental engagement and creating
a welcoming school environment.
Here’s a closer look at four distinct family
units:
No Parents (4%)
Single mother
One Parent
(28%)
80%
Single mother with
cohabitating partner
Single father
60%
Single father with
cohabitating partner
40%
Two Parents
(68%)
Two biological/adoptive
married parents
20%
Two biological/adoptive
cohabitatin parents
One biological/adoptive
parent and stepparent
0%
Breadwinner Moms
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplements
Leah Weaver is a compliance officer (attorney) for U.S. Bank in Minnesota and the mother of two girls, Maisie, 6, and Ella, 4. Leah is
the sole breadwinner of the family.
Her husband, Aaron, is a stay-at-home dad.
He manages the household, which includes
prepping backpacks and getting the girls to
the bus on time.
Four years ago, when their youngest daughter was born, the Weavers decided to have one
parent stay home while the other worked. It
turned out that Mom was the moneymaker.
“We’re fortunate where I make enough
money,” says Weaver. “We’ve had to do some
creative budgeting and we do pinch our pennies, but it’s worked for us.”
The scenario is not uncommon.
Last year, a Pew Research Center study
showed that between 1960 and 2011, the number of households with children whose mothers were either the sole or primary source of
income for their families rose from 11 to 40
percent. The rise is connected to the growing
number of workingwomen, who make up 47
percent of the U.S. labor force.
Does Weaver feel connected when it comes
to school engagement?
“The teachers still engage us,” says Weaver.
“We feel fortunate that they’ve been responsive. “But it’s really hard to stay engaged. I
wish I could do more volunteering or chaperoning on trips because I want to see my kids at
their school, but there are only so many hours
in the day.”
Many teachers recommend parents read to
their children at home, check homework and
backpacks, and get students to bed on time.
Lynn Nordgren, a 17-year veteran elementary school teacher in Minneapolis, is the local president of the Minneapolis Federation of
Teachers. She explains that in addition to prowww.dsea.org
100%
@dseafan
@dsea1
viding academic support at home, there is still
plenty for busy moms to do for the school.
Nordgren suggests moms purchase classroom supplies, like a box of Kleenex or a pack
of pencils. On cold winter days, moms can
arrive 15 minutes early and help students remove gloves, hats, and coats. Moms can make
phone calls about a special event or send reminders about parent-teacher conferences.
“These things are a big help,” says Nordgren. “Coming in and eating lunch with
students—not just your child—and talking to
them about what they’re eating or learning is
also helpful. Or, if they can just come and say,
‘hi’ to the child,” explaining that kids like it
when their family shows up to school.
Keeping these breadwinning moms engaged without overwhelming them boils
down to understanding the family dynamic
and communicating about the type of support
that is doable for moms.
PTA Dads
For Ruiz, being asked was the key to getting
involved. “I probably would not have been as
involved…if someone didn’t encourage me.”
In 2004, National PTA surveyed nearly 2,700
men to learn how to get more men involved.
Key takeaways were asking and making membership pitches more relevant to males by, for
example, letting them know their involvement
would benefit their children and their children’s school. Survey respondents said they
wanted to see promotion of male involvement
to help encourage more men to join, and they
wanted more opportunities tailored toward
men, such as “dads only” events for fathers
and daughters or fathers and sons.
Recent years have seen more effort aimed
at increasing male involvement in schools. In
southern Indiana, Natalie Jones, a special education teacher and area council PTA president
in Evansville, organized a campaign dubbed
“Real Men Join the PTA.”
The year-long campaign used a photo of
Evansville men to showcase the city’s great diversity of fathers. Hometown notables included the mayor and sheriff. Lesser-known residents were also featured, and included single
and older dads, a veteran, and a police officer.
The image, which had a hot-pink background,
was plastered on billboards all around town,
and also appeared on T-shirts and yard signs.
“We get it. It’s not just about moms,” says
Jones. “Years ago, moms were baking cookies.
Now, we’re dealing with issues like bullying,
sexting, and childhood diabetes. It’s important
to have both parents involved.”
Tradition, or perception, once dictated
mothers were the parents involved in parent-teacher groups. Those days are waning.
According to the National PTA, in 2009, 10
percent of men belonged to the organization.
Just five years ago, the number was 3 percent.
Their reasons for joining may vary, but
Hector Ruiz, the dad of 8-year-old Elsee, and
5-year-old Mateo, says he joined, “because
my parents weren’t so involved. I remember
always wanting them to be there more than
they had been.” Ruiz is PTA president at Patrick Henry Elementary School in Arlington, “That’s My Mom Too”
Va. He started volunteering when Elsee was in
kindergarten. “I volunteered so often that the
Heather Kawamoto of Tacoma, Wash., leprincipal of the school asked if I would consid- gally married her wife, Kay, in 2012. They
er helping out in an official capacity,” he says.
Please turn to FAMILIES, Page 20
DSEA ACTION!
11
a conversation with Senator Chris Coons
On February 14th, DSEA had the opportunity
to sit down with Senator Chris Coons at his Wilmington offices. Sen. Coons discussed his position
on a wide-range of topics. The content of this discussion will be presented over the next several issues of ACTION!.
In the coming months, ACTION! and DSEA’s online media will also feature additional discussion
with Senator Coons about issues affecting children
and educators, some of which will be generated by
our members by way of an “Ask the Senator” feature. The goal is to bring our members input and information directly
from one of their elected leaders in Washington D.C.
Government Shutdown
DSEA: Could you describe why the shutdown occurred and what the
effects of it will be?
Coons: It was hard to explain to folks why they were being told to go
home without pay, why the government was shut down. It was over an
ideological objection to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). It was a purely
partisan exercise by a small group of Republicans who were determined
to try and defund or repeal ACA, even though shutting down the government had no chance of success.
The shudown was a watershed moment in that the party that led and
sustained the shutdown, the Republican Party, namely Ted Cruz, took an
enormous beating in their public approval rating about the competency
and ability [of our government] to work together in a bipartisan manner.
I think, though, it set up what we needed to have in terms of the proper environment to actually get deals done regarding the budget and appropriations. Coming out of the shutdown, the average American was
completely fed up with the combination of the sequester and “austerity”
12
DSEA ACTION!
politics. The shutdown nudged, pushed, dragged, kicking and screaming, many in the Republican Party out of what had been a sort of “crisis”
politics of the previous three years. Over this time, their agenda was overwhelmingly about “austerity” and cutting spending, particularly domestic spending on discretionary accounts.
I don’t think either the budget deal or the appropriations deal would
have been possible without the shutdown.
Debt Ceiling
Coons: The clean debt ceiling that was enacted on February 12th… This
is the first time in the four years I have served in the Senate that there was
a clean debt ceiling extension without a sustained effort [by the Republicans] to extract concessions from the President. That it passed the House
and Senate so quickly is an artifact, I think, of the lasting impact of the
politics of “austerity” caused by the government shutdown.
Formula vs. Competitive Grants
DSEA: What is the feeling in the Senate regarding ‘formula’ versus ‘competitive’ grants and the possibility of restoring federal funding for formula grants, which are especially important for Title I and Special Education?
Coons: I do think broadly, across the whole committee (bipartisan budget committee), there was a preference for restoring funding to formula
grants. I think there was a dislike for competitive grants, both because
most of the senators represented states that were unsuccessful in the competitition (e.g. RTTT), and because it was viewed as a means of driving
a policy agenda by the administration. It [competitive grants] was not
supported by either Democrats or Republicans.
DSEA: Since 2009, nearly $56 million has been cut from our state budget
in Education. What we see, more and more, is because of tight resources,
the General Assembly is looking to do competitive grants for things that
really should be line items in the budget, like gifted and talented programs in every district. Is the federal government’s position on ‘formula’
vs. ‘competitive’ grants a signal to the states that there should be funding
priorities, priorities which should be left to a competitive grant?
Coons: I would say that funding Title I broadly through formula grants
was a priority for Democrats on the budget appropriation side. Special
education enjoyed a broader support and a broader appreciation of the
cost impacts on districts.
Sequestration
DSEA: Could you describe what sequestration is?
Coons: The sequester is across-the-board cuts to federal spending, solely
in the area of discretionary, and not mandatory, spending. It came about
because of the August 2011 debt-ceiling fight and the resulting Budget
Control Act that was put in place as a condition of moving forward on the
debt-ceiling, which basically meant paying for the things we’ve already
authorized and spent as a country.
Using the debt-ceiling to extract concessions is like going to a restaurant, everyone agreeing we’re going to order dinner, ordering dinner, eating dinner, and then refusing to pay the bill.
There is no other modern, industrialized country that requires a second legislative vote authorizing the paying of the bills after you’ve had a
bill that authorizes the programs, payments, and execution [of the legislation]. You don’t then put up for a vote whether or not you’re going to pay.
It does reflect something profound across the country, which is great
anxiety about the size of the national debt, about the scale of our deficits.
It bears mentioning that we have cut the deficit in half over the last
three years.
DSEA: What did the resulting negotiations around sequestration provide
and what does it mean going forward?
Coons: The budget deal, and the appropriations deal that came after it,
essentially gave us two years of relief from the depth of the sequestration
cuts, but did not relieve them. To be clear, we are still locked in to, by law,
a 12-year trajectory of reducing federal spending. We still need to get back
to a conversation about a broader deal that raises revenue and reforms
entitlements in a way that gets us to a sustainable federal budget.
Poll after poll shows that a majority of Americans agree that, instead of
more spending cuts, we need to be focusing on creating jobs, investing in
education, investing in infrastructure, investing in things that will make
us more competitive as a country in science and in research.
My hope is that for the next two years, at least, we will have an environment where a more responsible approach towards balancing between
spending and cuts will reduce some of the harshness of the impact of sequester, especially on education.
DSEA: In Delaware, we lost $6.1 million in federal funding because of
sequester. It hit TItle I and Special Education pretty hard. Last year, JFC
was able to backfill those sequester cuts, helping those Delaware citizens
most in need. They are not going to do it again this year. What does the
fact that the federal action which restored sequester cuts last year will not
happen again this year mean?
Coons: Going forward, the sequester cuts will reemerge with a vengeance.
Assume that, in the absence of some larger deal that brings revenue to the
table and that makes some reforms to entitlements, we will be back to sequester cuts in another 18 months. We struggle, I struggle, to see what the
solution is and how we get out of this box.
DSEA ACTION!
13
Moore recognized with national award
by Leigh Giangreco
reprinted with permission from Leigh Giangreco and
The Daily Times (Salisbury, MD)
MILLSBORO — Even with her new title of
outstanding math teacher and a $10,000 from
the National Science Foundation at her disposal, Jeanine Moore is still in shock.
The fourth-grade math and science teacher at Long Neck Elementary School in Millsboro recently received the Presidential Award
for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching,
the highest recognition that a kindergarten
through Grade 12 math or science teacher can
receive in the U.S.
The National Science Foundation and the
White House gave awards to teachers in each
state, including two in Delaware.
“I’m just over the moon,” Moore said.
Moore began her teaching career 18 years
ago in the Indian River School District as an
assistant for the summer migrant program.
She has taught at North Georgetown Elementary School, Southern Delaware School of the
Arts and Long Neck.
“I’ve been pretty versatile,” she said. “I’ve
taught everything from social studies to language arts, and now math and science.”
photo courtesy of Joe Lamberti/Daily Times
Long Neck Elementary School teacher Jeanine Moore
teaches her fourth-grade class a math lesson.
Long Neck Principal David Hudson said
Moore has gone above and beyond at school .
“Whether it’s 6:30 in the morning or 6:30 at
night, you’re going to see her in her office grading [papers], meeting with parents,” Hudson
said. “She’s never satisfied and always seeking
perfection.”
But Moore didn’t find success overnight. It
took her four years as a teacher to adjust to her
role and she didn’t begin to take on leadership
roles until she started teaching at Long Neck.
Now, she has added a list of extracurricular
work to her résumé, including teacher leader
for math and social studies. She also mentors
new teachers and volunteers time to teach
parents how to help their children with homework.
“The doors just started opening,” she said.
“I started to feel more confident as a teacher
and really perfect my craft.”
Mary Jane Short, a reading and math
support teacher at Long Neck, received the
PAEMST award in 2004 as a second-grade
teacher. She said teachers such as Moore are
chosen for the award based on their quality of
instruction.
“You’re leading the instruction, but your
children are active participants,” she said.
“You’ve taught them how to solve problems.”
Short often stops by Moore’s homeroom,
which is directly across from her own office, to
sit in on a class.
“She’s a phenomenal teacher,” she said.
“You can see her students are very engaged.
They forget they’re learning because they’re
having fun.”
Dalby earns Presidential award for teaching excellence
When he started college at the
University of Delaware in 1995,
Tim Dalby knew he wanted to
teach at the elementary level. He
didn’t plan to specialize in science, but chose it when he was
required to identify a specialty
for his major. Dalby’s student
teaching experience solidified his
choice and he’s spent the past 15
years dedicated to bringing his
own excitement about the subject
to his students.
That dedication paid this December when Dalby was honored
with the Presidential Award for
Excellence in Mathematics and
Science Teaching (PAEMST).
Dalby, who is the Lower School
Science Specialist at Wilmington
Friends School, joined Jeanine
Moore, a fourth-grade math and
science teacher at Long Neck Elementary School in Millsboro, as
Delaware’s two honorees.
“The award affirms that what
I’m doing in the classroom is a
best practice,” Dalby said. “It’ll
encourage me to continue what
I’m doing both in the classroom
and in my own professional development.”
The awards are the highest
honor given by the Federal gov-
14
DSEA ACTION!
ernment specifically for the teaching of mathematics and science in
grades K-12. Established by Congress in 1983, the program authorizes the President to bestow up
to 108 awards each year.
Recipients of the award receive
a certificate signed by the President of the United States, paid
trip for two to attend a series of
recognition events and professional development opportunities, and a $10,000 award from the
National Science Foundation.
Dalby’s work at Friends has
included creating integrated
units, such as Monarch Butterflies and Flight, and developing
the school’s STEM Lab. The lab
encourages students to solve real-world problems utilizing the
lab’s open space and materials.
Dalby described a recent lesson to illustrate his biggest challenge: letting students learn from
trying and failing at a task.
His students were studying air
resistance and napkin parachutes.
He challenged the students to
build their own parachutes using
different materials. One student
decided to use heavy cardboard
to construct his parachute. Dalby
knew it wouldn’t work as well as
photo courtesy of Wilmington Friends School
Tim Dalby, the Science Specialist at Wilmington Friends Lower School, demonstrates the
concept of air resistance while his students listen attentively.
other designs, but let the student
to follow through with his design.
The class tested the parachutes
and the cardboard design didn’t
work as well as the lighter materials. But the student, seeing his
design not work as well and observing how the lighter materials
did succeed, was able to understand his error and gain a deeper
understanding of the concept.
“Coming to his own conclusion was more meaningful than
me telling him what to do before
@dsea1
he tested his idea,” Dalby said.
Allowing students the freedom
to fail and learn is something the
award has reinforced for him and
also something he feels is key to
building a strong student.
“It’s extremely important that
student have the opportunity to
collaborate, try out their ideas,
fail, and try again,” he said.
“These experiences are necessary to prepare them for the real
world.”
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
New site provides Common Core lesson plans
by Isabel Laura
reprinted from NEA
BetterLesson: Common Core English/Lang. Arts Lessons (1,136 lessons)
Washington D.C., Jan. 15, 2014- The National
Education Association (NEA) and BetterLesson launch a new website today, cc.betterlesson.com/mtp. The site, where teachers share
what works in the classroom, features more
than 3,000 classroom-ready lessons that are
easily accessible and can be integrated into
any curriculum. This new BetterLesson product was built entirely for the Common Core
State Standards (CCSS) and features the lessons of 130+ Master Teachers (MTs), who represent every K-12 grade level for math and
English Language Arts & Literacy. This is one
of several long-term partnerships NEA has
pursued to support its members’ professional
development and leadership in the teaching
practice; members have been recruited around
the country to participate and develop comprehensive materials along with these partner
organizations.
“The new Common Core State Standards
are a transformation for the students in our
nation’s public school system and we owe it to
them to provide teachers with the time, tools
and resources to get it right,” said NEA President Dennis Van Roekel. “The best ideas for
the classroom come from classroom teachers,
and our new site will allow educators to share
lessons to help ensure all students have the
skills they need to succeed.”
“When we teamed up with National Education Association last summer on The Master
Teacher Project we knew there would be powerful results,” said BetterLesson’s Alex Grodd,
CEO & co-founder. “We are so excited to offer
the most comprehensive body of knowledge
around Common Core teaching.”
Before CCSS were introduced, 62 percent
of teachers in the U.S. reported feeling unprepared for daily work in the classroom, according to the “Educating School Teachers” report.
BetterLesson aims to help those teachers become more prepared by providing 5 to 10 lessons for every single common core standard.
By the fall of 2015, BetterLesson will have
more than 16,000 Master Teacher lessons live.
According to a NEA poll from this past September, more than 75 percent of NEA members supported the standards wholeheartedly or with some reservations. Unfortunately,
while two-thirds of members indicated they
participated in trainings around CCSS, just 26
percent said the trainings were helpful.
“The power of educators’ expertise is important and educators are passionate about
promoting student success,” said Van Roekel.
“Our partnership with BetterLesson allows us
to tap into the passion, creativity, and power
of those who spend their lives in the nation’s
classrooms. Educators will be able to customize the shared lessons to their students’ individual needs and provide high quality instruction for all students, regardless of their zip
code.”
www.dsea.org
@dseafan
@dsea1
7.0%
Literature (367)
Writing (341)
30%
29.2%
1.5%
Vocabulary (17)
Reading (332)
32.3%
Listening/Speaking (79)
1.1%
BetterLesson: Common Core Math Lessons (3,340 lessons)
7.7%
4.4%
11.7%
12%
6.1%
26%
31%
Number Sense/Operations (867)
Algebra (1,037)
Precalculus/Calculus (390)
Geometry (400)
Statistics (258)
Trigonometry (205)
Measurements (146)
Data Analysis/Probability (37)
Every week, Master Teachers will be sharing new lessons, which other educators can
use immediately. By the end of the project,
each Master Teacher will have shared a full
year’s worth of lessons (120 or more!) on the
BetterLesson site. In these lessons, Master
Teachers will share:
• The “how” and the “why” of their effective
practice, narrating their enactment of each section of a lesson;
• Videos of particular instructional strategies;
• Thoughts on their implementation of CCSS;
• Resources they’ve tried and the results; and
• Examples of student work.
“The deep knowledge and resources provided by the Master Teachers exceed all of our
expectations,” continued Alex Grodd, BetterLesson CEO. “We are looking forward to adding more features and capabilities to the site –
leveraging usage metrics and teacher feedback
to make it the most valuable resource for k-12
educators.”
Funded in part by NEA and in part by the
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the goal of
The Master Teacher Project is to create exem-
plary, CCSS-aligned, year-long, teacher-designed courses, presented in a palatable, accessible way to all teachers, free of charge.
NEA is taking the lead within the education
profession through Better Lesson, the NEA
Master Teacher Project and a series of initiatives that put educators in positions of leadership within their practice. Earlier this month
NEA, the Center for Teaching Quality and
the National Board for Professional Teaching
Standards announced the national Teacher
Leadership Initiative (TLI), a joint endeavor
to develop a new generation of leaders within
the teaching profession. NEA has also partnered with Teach Plus to launch a selective fellowship that will empower solutions-oriented
teachers, most of whom are in the first 10 years
of their careers, to advise union leadership on
teacher engagement and retention. As the education leader, NEA is aiming to empower
teachers to lead, shape education policy, and
prepare the next generation of teacher leaders.
For more information about BetterLesson and to
access their collection of CCSS lesson plans, please
visit cc.betterlesson.com/mtp.
Additional information can be found at NEA:
www.nea.org/tools/lessonplans.html.
DSEA ACTION!
15
DSEA scholarship deadline is March 14th
Kevin Gilbert, a member of the NEA Executive Committee, is the keynote speaker
for the 2014 Minority Leadership Conference.
The deadline to apply for one
of the two college scholarships
which DSEA offers is March 14th.
The Christopher K. Smith Future Teacher Scholarship honors
Christopher K. Smith, a longtime
DSEA member and leader, who
passed away unexpectedly in
1989. Smith was intrumental in
earning membership rights, successfully bargaining a duty-free
lunch period for his local association in 1969. It was DSEA’s first
foray into lobbying for members.
The scholarship provides assistance of $1,000 per year for all
four years of college. The successful applicant must major in
Education and maintain a 3.0
grade point average. They must
also graduate from a public high
school in Delaware. Although
not a requirement, they are encouraged to work as teachers here
in Delaware upon graduation.
The second scholarship is in
recognition of the oustanding
contributions made by Howard
Weinberg to DSEA and public education in Delaware.
Weinberg is the former Executive Director of DSEA, having
retired in December of 2012. Before his 11 years as the Executive
Director, Weinberg was also a
UniServ Director and UniServ
Staff Manager. His career began
as a business teacher in Delaware
County, Pennsylvania in 1969.
The Howard Weinberg Scholarship was expressly created to
assist the college-bound children
of DSEA members. There is no
stipulation as to what their major
must be. Much like the Christopher Smith scholarship, recipients are awarded $1,000 per year
for their four years of college.
They too must maintain a 3.0
grade point average.
Both the Christopher Smith
and Howard Weinberg scholarships look for strong academic
performance and involvement
in school activities. Applicants
must submit two letters of recommendation from their teachers, addressing their leadership
potential, personal character, and
the degree of initiative they exhibit.
For more information about
the scholarships, contact Sandy
Dearman by phone (866-7345834) or email (sandy.dearman@
dsea.org).
On January 30th, Governor
Jack Markell released his budget proposal, urging significant
investment in a host of areas,
including Education and Public
Safety.
Gov. Markell has proposed
that all state workers receive a
one-percent raise, in addition to
the step increases which workers
may already be eligible for.
The highlights of the Governor’s Education budget could
bring some needed relief to overcrowded classrooms this fall. He
has requested that the General
Assembly fund $18.9 million for
the addition of 220 new teaching
units throughout all schools.
In addition to adding the new
teaching units, the Governor has
also requested funding of $9.2
million to support step increases
for employees and $1.2 million to
continue the State’s committment
of advancing pay for paraprofessionals. He has also recommended that the capital budget dedicate $92.6 million for contruction
projects in school districts.
“The future of our state is only
as strong as our schools,” Markell said, in his official release of
the budget proposal. “We have
a responsibility to invest in the
teachers who shape our next
generation of workers, entrepreneurs, and innovators. Our support must include providinig the
facilities and resources needed to
foster a productive learning environment.”
The budget proposal also requested that funding be allocated
to create a new Division of Special Investigations that will focus
on gun-trafficking in the State.
The amount of that request was
$265,300.
The proposed budget is currently being debated by the Joint
Finance Committee (JFC). The
JFC is responsible for writing the
annual appropriations and identifying how to balance the State’s
budget. The Delaware Constitution requires that the State’s budget be balanced every year.
The JFC has met throughout
February and will continue their
public hearings on State agency
budget requests and their debates
through March. The committee
also meets in late May and June
to prepare necessary bills for introduction, prior to the end of the
legislative calendar on June 30th.
Gilbert to deliver
keynote address
at 4th annual
EMAC conference Governor Markell proposes one-percent raise for state
The 4th annual Minority Leadership Conference, sponsored by workers in budget request to the General Assembly
the Ethnic Minority Affairs Committee (EMAC) returns to Delaware State University on April
5th.
The keynote address will be
delivered by one of the newest
members of the NEA Executive
Committee, Kevin Gilbert.
Gilbert is a 17-year veteran of
both the Clinton and Jackson Public School Districts in Mississippi.
He has worked as a bus driver,
substitute teacher, social studies
teacher, and administrator. Currently, Gilbert serves as Coordinator of Teacher Leadership and
Special Projects for the Clinton
Public School District. He is also
a past-president of the Missouri
Association of Educators.
In addition to Gilbert’s keynote address, attendees will participate in a group of sessions
uniquely relevant to not only the
Minority Leadership Conference,
but also to the Ethnic Minority
Action Committee, who has sponsored the conference each year.
The conference sessions include Reacting to Differences,
Know Your Rights, Developing
Community Partnerships,, and
Understanding the Association..
Registration for the conference
began on March 3rd and will remain open until March 28th. If
you are interested in attending,
please contact Yvonne Williams
by phone (302-366-8440) or email
([email protected]).
16
DSEA ACTION!
dentity
Avoid I :
Theft
the
Attend
hred-It
S
A
E
S
D
Event
Properly destroying personal
documents can help avoid identity theft problems in the future.
Bring your paper, CDs, DVDs,
videotapes, etc., to be shredded.
DSEA members are invited to
bring these personal documents
to the Shred-It Event to have them
safely destroyed.
There is a max of three boxes
per member.
Dover Office: 136 Water St., Dover, DE 19901
Shred-I
t Event
Sat. Apr
il 5th
10:00 a
m - 1:00
pm
Locatio
n: Both
D
S
Offices
EA
(Dover/
Newark
)
Branch Office: 4135 Ogletown-Stanton Rd., Suite 101,
Newark, DE 19713
@dsea1
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
Tips to help Seniors save money and find discounts
We all love a good bargain, no matter what
our age. But if you’re a senior citizen on a fixed
income, finding discounted goods and services can mean the difference between making
ends meet and going without.
The good news is that tons of senior discounts are available – often for people as
young as 50. One caveat right up front: Although many senior discounts are substantial,
you sometimes can find better bargains – especially on travel-related expenses like airfare,
hotels and rental cars. So always do your research first before requesting the senior rate.
Here’s a roundup of some of the best senior
discounts I’ve found:
An AARP membership costs only $16 a year
for anyone over age 50, including free membership for spouses or partners (www.aarp.
org). AARP’s discounts website features discounts on dozens of products and services including rental cars, hotels, restaurants, clothing and department store chains. AARP also
offers an inexpensive driver safety course for
drivers over 50 (members and nonmembers
alike) that can lower auto insurance premiums
by up to 10 percent or more.
Popular AARP discounts include:
• 45 percent off membership to Angie’s List.
• 20 percent off purchases from 1-800-FLOWERS.com.
• Up to 20 percent discount at many hotel
chains including Hyatt, Hilton, Wyndham,
Best Western, Days Inn and Ramada, among
others.
www.dsea.org
@dseafan
@dsea1
“
Bottom line: Abundant resources are available to
help seniors save money on their purchases, large
“
by Jason Alderman
from Practical Money Skills Summit (2014)
and small. You just have to do a little research and
whether discounts are available.
-Jason Alderman, Vice President of Visa Inc.
• 10 to 20 percent off at many restaurant
chains, including Claim Jumper, Denny’s and
Outback Steakhouse.
• 15 percent off many Geek Squad services
from Best Buy.
A quick Google search will uncover numerous other senior discount resources. One
popular site is SeniorDiscounts.com, an online
directory of more than 220,000 U.S. business
locations that offer discounts to people over 50.
Registration is free, although they also offer a
$12.95/year premium that offers members-only discounts and other perks. Other good sites
include Brad’s Deals, Sciddy.com and Savvy
Senior.
Other commonly available senior discounts
include:
• A 15 percent discount on the lowest available rail fare on most Amtrak trains for travelers over age 62.
• Southwest Airlines offers senior fares (over
65). Although not necessarily their lowest
available rates, Southwest’s senior fares are
fully refundable.
• Verizon Wireless offers discounted mobile
phone service for subscribers over 65.
• Both Walgreens and Rite Aid offer monthly senior discount days for members of their
rewards programs when most non-prescription items are 15 to 20 percent off. Ask your
neighborhood pharmacy if they offer similar
programs.
In addition, many restaurants, department
stores, movie theaters, museums, theme parks,
banks, credit card issuers, utilities (including
gas and electric, water, garbage, telephone and
cable) and other businesses offer special discounts or promotions for seniors. Always ask
before your purchase is rung up.
Bottom line: Abundant resources are available to help seniors save money on purchases
large and small. You just have to do a little research – and ask whether senior discounts are
available. Remember, 10 percent here and 20
percent there can really add up.
DSEA ACTION!
17
DSEA-R supports wellness for all retirees
by Rich Philllips
President, DSEA-Retired
Several years ago, the State of Delaware
introduced the DelaWELL program to its employees and non-Medicare pensioners. Your
President has taken advantage of the program
for the past three years. He is now honored to
be a DelaWELL Wellness Champion; he serves
as an ambassador for DelaWELL Health Program.
“If you want to lose weight, manage a
chronic health condition, become more active,
quit smoking, control your stress, improve
your nutrition or maintain a healthy lifestyle,
the DelaWELL program has the resources to
help you make your health goals happen.”
[Delaware Public Employees’ Retirement System Newsletter, December 2013.]
State pensioners eligible for State benefits
and non-Medicare eligible pensioners and dependents currently enrolled in a State of Delaware Group Health Plan can take advantage of
the following:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Earn DelaWELL Rewards up to $200/year
Confidential online wellness assessment
Onsite health screenings
Online and onsite health seminars
Personal health coaching
Condition care programs
Health information from DelaWELL
Membership discount for Weight Watchers
Nurse 24 line
Governor’s Cup 5K Run/Walk
Just recently introduced, according to Aaron B. Schrader, DelaWELL & EAP Program
Manager at the Statewide Benefits Office,
Medicare eligible State pensioners, now have
the following wellness resources available to
them; they include the following:
• Onsite health seminars – go to this website
for a list of dates & classes http://delawell.delaware.gov/Seminar_Registration/Semi_Reg.
asp
• Online health information on the DelaWELL
website with health events, activities, education, tips, and health calculators
• Governor’s 5K Run/Walk
• Gym membership discounts
If you are interested in the NEW DelaWELL
website exclusively for State of Delaware
members, you can access it as follows:
WILL I BE ABLE TO RETIRE?
When should I start planning for retirement?
What if I become severely disabled?
DSEA ACTION!
April 12th @ 9 a.m.
Registration & Refreshments: 9 a.m.
Program: 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
* light lunch provided *
sponsored by
MetLife Resources
DSEA Newark Office
4135 Ogletown-Stanton Road
Newark, DE 19713
Advance Registration Required
No fee for DSEA Members
$5 for Guests/Non-Members
Register by Friday, April 4
th
Presenters from: State of DE
MetLife Resources
NEA Member Benefits
valuable source; it provides you with Professional Counselors for short-term, confidential
help with a wide-variety of personal issues.
You can also reach the program site, if you do
not have a computer, by calling toll-free 24/7 at
800-343-2186.
One of the concerns that your President has
expressed to Aaron and to the Statewide Benefits Office, is that most of our retirees are on
Medicare; don’t worry, I’m joining that group
in June, 2014! What benefits do we have?
For one, the above-mentioned DelaWELL
options are now available to us. Your President has gained valuable information from the
seminars presented by DelaWELL and will
continue to take advantage of them after June.
Faith Rentz, Deputy Director of the Statewide Benefits, OMB, also shared information
with me about improvements to the Medicare
Preventive Benefits. As of January 1, 2011,
people with Medicare have access to an “Annual Wellness Visit” where they can receive a
comprehensive health risk assessment and develop a personalized prevention program.
Plus, Faith said that as of January 1, 2011,
the ACA eliminates the cost-sharing for Medicare-covered Preventive Services that are
recommended by the US Preventive Services
Task Force. The services which now have no
cost-sharing (if a doctor accepts assignment
under Medicare, meaning he or she accepts
what Medicare pays for a service as payment
in full), include the following:
1. Go to hms.healthadvocate.com
2. Enter “State of Delaware” where it asks for • Abdominal aortic aneurysm screening
• Bone mass measurement
the name of your organization
• Breast cancer screening/mammograms
3. Click “submit”
• Cardiovascular screening tests
On the website you can view all of your • Types of colorectal cancer screenings
benefits and a host of new resources including • Diabetes screening tests
newsletters, webinars, provider databases and • Flu shots
other valuable online tools. You can also check • Hepatitis B shots
out the EAP+Work/Life Program, which is a • HIV screening tests
18
A seminar for all ages
How do I qualify for Social Security benefits?
Questions: Contact Tammy Wagner
866-734-5834 / [email protected]
•
•
•
•
•
•
Medical nutrition therapy services
Pap tests and pelvic exams
Physical exams
Pneumococcal shot
Prostate cancer screening
Smoking cessation counseling
To learn more about the above Medicare-approved screenings, etc., please register
for the DSEA-Retired/State of Delaware Medicare Preventive Care Workshop to be held on
April 9, 2014 at the DSEA Dover office at 10
a.m. The workshop will be presented by Faith
Rentz, Deputy Director of the Statewide Benefits Office, OMB. Pre-registration with Jenny
Lloyd is required by April 2!
Other DSEA-Retired Workshops coming
up are as follows:
• Social Security Workshop, DSEA Dover office, 10 a.m. on March 11, 2014. This workshop
is presented by our good friend Rosemarie
Kosmalski from the Social Security Administration Pre-registration with Jenny Lloyd is
required by March 4!
• Diabetes Workshop, DSEA Dover office,
9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., on March 6, 13, 20,
17, April 3, 10 (this is a series of 6 classes).
This workshop is presented by one of our
DSEA-Retired Associate Members, Maria Seliga. Pre-registration with Jenny Lloyd is required by February 28!
• Estate Planning/Pre-Planning for Funerals
Workshop, 1 p.m., on May 14, 2014. The Estate
Planning portion will be presented by F. Peter
Conaty, Esquire; Bill King from Spicer-Mulliken Funeral Home for Pre-Planning Funerals
portion. Pre-registration with Jenny Lloyd is
required by May 7!
All DSEA-R workshops require registration
with Jenny Lloyd, DSEA-R workshop coordinator, at: 302-834-4979 or [email protected].
@dsea1
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
VAN ROEKEL: Too much at stake for our children and country to risk getting this wrong
Continued from Page 1
return us to the failed days of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), where
rote memorization and bubble tests drove teaching and learning.
NEA members don’t want to go backward; we know that won’t help
students. Instead, we want states to make a strong course correction
and move forward.
Not surprisingly, as a math teacher I have some strong views
about the proper sequence of things—not only in my classroom, but
also when it comes to implementing this kind of systemic change in
public education. Start with high standards, create a curriculum that
supports them, then focus on assessments that are aligned to what
is taught and that really measure learning, then evaluate progress in
teaching and learning, and finally pledge to make continuous adjustments to improve teaching and learning for each and every student.
So the first step is for policymakers to treat teachers as professionals and listen to what we know is needed. Give us the resources and
time—time to learn the standards, collaborate with each other, develop curriculum that is aligned to the standards, and time to field-test
the standards in classrooms to determine what works and what needs
adjustment. We also need the financial resources for updated textbooks and fully aligned teaching and learning materials.
Second, work with educators—not around us—to determine how
to properly use assessments in classrooms across America. It’s beyond
me how anyone would ask teachers to administer tests that have no relation whatsoever to what they have been asked to teach. In too many
states, that’s exactly what’s happening.
Old tests are being given, but new and different standards are being
taught. How on earth does that give any teacher, student, or parent information that is relevant to what they need to know or how they can
improve? Why would we waste valuable learning time for students?
And, then, to make matters worse, many states are proceeding to use
these invalid test results as the basis for accountability decisions.
This is not ‘accountability’—it’s malpractice.
In states that have made a commitment to involving teachers up
front and providing teachers with the time, training, and resources
they need to make the standards work, educator support for the standards is strong.
So if better teaching and learning is our goal, then policymakers
need to implement educators’ common sense recommendations to get
implementation on track:
1. Governors and chief state school officers should set up a process
to work with NEA and our state education associations to review the
appropriateness of the standards and recommend any improvements
that might be needed.
2. Common Core implementation plans at the state and local levels
must be collaboratively developed, adequately resourced, and overseen by community advisory committees that include the voices of students, parents, and educators.
3. States and local school districts must place teachers at the center
of efforts to develop aligned curriculum, assessments, and professional development that are relevant to their students and local communities.
4. States must eliminate outdated NCLB-mandated tests that are not
aligned with the new standards and not based on what is being taught
to students in the classroom.
5. States must actively engage educators in the field-testing of the
new assessments and the process for improving them.
6. In any state that is field-testing and validating new assessments,
there must be a moratorium on using the results of the new assessments for accountability purposes until at least the 2015-2016 school
year. In the meantime, states still have other ways to measure student
learning during this transition period—other assessments, report
cards, and student portfolios.
7. Stakeholders must develop complete assessment and accountability systems. It takes more than one piece of evidence to paint a
picture of what students are learning. Testing should be one way to
inform effective teaching and learning—not a way to drive it.
I know that NEA members are committed to seeing the promise
of the standards fulfilled. But we can’t do it alone. Elected officials,
school administrators, and other stakeholders are part of the accountability system, too, and that means stepping up and accepting more
responsibility to get CCSS implementation right. There’s too much at
stake for our children and our country to risk getting this wrong.
SAVE UP TO 15% ON YOUR CAR INSURANCE
In the State of Delaware, if you take a six-hour Basic Defensive Driving course, you can knock 10% off
your car insurance. If you take an Advanced Defensive
Driving course, you may save up to 15% off your car
insurance.
DSEA is pleased to announce that we are offering
these two courses just for members and their families, a
$35 value, for only $12. Refreshments will be provided
and Horace Mann Insurance Co. will also offer a door
prize to a lucky winner.
• March 25 & 26 (6-9pm)- Newark Office
• May 3 (9am-3pm)- Newark Office
• May 10 (9am-3pm)- Dover Office
• March 18 (6-9pm)- Dover Office
• April 7 (6-9pm)- Newark Office
• May 3 (9am-12pm)- Newark Office
• May 10 (9am-12pm)- Dover Office
Questions?: Contact Tammy Wagner at
(866-734-5834) or tammy.wagner@dsea.
org
www.dsea.org
@dseafan
@dsea1
These courses will be given by an instructor from
Interstate Training Alliance, LLC. You must attend
the full six hours for the basic course OR the full three
hours for the Advanced/Refresher course to receive
your certificate. The Basic course is required first and
is good for three years before it is necessary to take the
Advanced/Refresher course. Each certificate is honored by your insurance company for three years.
Spring 2014 Defensive Driving Courses
no phone reservations accepted!
Basic:
March 25 & 26 (6pm-9pm) (Newark)
May 3 (9am-3pm) (Newark)
May 10 (9am-3pm) (Dover)
Advanced:
March 18 (6pm-9pm) (Dover)
April 7 (6pm-9pm) (Newark)
May 3 (9am-12pm) (Newark)
May 10 (9am-12pm) (Dover)
DSEA Member’s Name: __________________________ Local Assn: _______________
Attendees: ___________________________________________________________________
Address: ____________________________________________________________________
Email: ____________________________ Phone: _________________________
Payment enclosed at $12 per person (check payable to DSEA): ______________
Mail form/payment: DSEA Def. Driving Course; Attn: Tammy Wagner; 136 E. Water St.; Dover, DE 19901
NOTE: NO REFUNDS STARTING ONE WEEK PRIOR TO CLASS
Directions: www.dsea.org/AboutDSEA/Directions.html
DSEA ACTION!
19
FAMILIES: Connecting with all types of families seen as key part of school success
are mothers to Kayleigh, age 10.
Kawamoto recalls taking their
daughter to school five years ago.
Referring to Heather, the teacher
asked Kayleigh, “Who’s that?”
“That’s my mom,” Kayleigh
said.
“And who’s that?” the teacher
asked Kayleigh, this time referring to Kay.
“That’s my mom, too,”
Kayleigh answered. Without
pause or confusion, the teacher asked students who else had
two moms. Kawamota mentions
an excited student who said that
her dad had a new wife, so that
meant she had two moms, too!
The exchange sent a strong message to her daughter, Kawamoto
explains, one that said, “My family is not abnormal.”
“We were able to say, ‘I’m
Kay and I’m Heather and we’re
Kayleigh’s moms.’ No one asked,
‘Who’s the real mom? Where’s
the father?’ We could just be her
moms without being questioned
or having to explain our roles,”
Kawamoto says. The school
principal and education support
professionals at the elementary
school within Tacoma Public
Schools created a welcoming
environment for Kawamoto.
The principal invited all families to visit with her, creating a
sense of support. The paraeducators, who are often the first to
greet and receive families, were
professional and supportive. If
anyone had an opposing view to
their family structure, it was not
visible to the Kawamotos.
This was a dramatic difference
from when Kawamoto’s stepson,
Jack, was in middle school 13
years ago in Pierce County, Wash.
“The assumption was Jack’s mom
and dad were the only caregivers.” But when Kawamoto, Kay,
and Jack’s dad showed up at the
parent-teacher conference, teachers were blatantly shocked, asking Kawamoto who she was and
why she was there.
“All of a sudden you have to
share this relationship you have. I
have no problem outing myself…
but if Jack’s father had brought
his wife it wouldn’t have been an
issue,” says Kawamoto.
She recalls painful years when
her family didn’t feel welcomed.
Kawamoto wasn’t Jack’s mother.
She wasn’t his father. She was a
parent who loved him, dearly, but
20
DSEA ACTION!
Percentage of Children, Ages 0-17, By Presence of Parents in Household (1980-2012)
80%
Two Parent
70%
Two Married Parents
60%
50%
40%
30%
Mother Only
20%
10%
0%
No Parent
1980
Father Only
1985
1990
1995
2000
2005
2007
2012
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplements
didn’t fit within their paperwork.
She explains today: “I would say
I’m his ‘stepparent’ and their response would be, ‘Oh, so Jack’s
father is your husband.’”
“Having a gay or lesbian parent is a social stigma and unfortunately that was reinforced by
staff, the principal, and peers. We
had no desire to be in the PTA. It
was such an unsupportive experience for him,” she sadly says.
Though the experience occurred 13 years ago, opposition
toward same-sex parents and
marriages remains. “Just because
you don’t know doesn’t mean it’s
not happening,” says Kawamoto.
Frank Burger, a biology and
physical science teacher in Flint,
Mich., says, “Things are changing, but there’s still some resistance,” referring to the reluctance
within school settings to openly
embrace same-sex parents.
And it’s everyday interactions
that can send the wrong or right
message. “I’m cognizant of the
language,” says Burger, “but I’m
an openly gay male. So instead of
telling students, ‘Take this home
to your mom or dad,’ I’m saying,
‘Take this to your parents.’”
School policy is outdated, too.
Some schools only recognize
the parent of record or the birth
parent, stripping away the other
parent’s authority and ability to
speak on behalf of their child.
School forms can be updated to
create a more welcoming school
environment. Instead of the father-mother language, forms can
indicate parent or guardian.
“It’s such a heterosexist viewpoint where every child has a
mother and father…and this is
the only option,” says Kawamoto.
“All these messages on one piece
of paper gives a family before
they even walk into a school…it’s
micro-aggression of an assumption of what a student’s family
makeup should be.”
Changing a school form to reflect a gender-neutral tone may
be minor, but “it’s significant for
a family,” Kawamoto says.
“Welcoming Schools,” a project
of the Human Rights Campaign,
provides schools with resources
on how to be more inclusive and
create learning environments that
welcome and respect all students.
The group offers professional
development tools, lessons, and
information on topics like embracing family diversity, avoiding gender stereotyping and
affirming gender, and ending
bullying and name-calling.
Not So Single Parent
During business hours Peggy
Hernandez of Fairfax County,
Va., treks through the Capitol
grounds in Washington, D.C. She
goes to and from the U.S. Capitol
Building, the Library of Congress,
and other landmark buildings.
“I have a lot of meetings and I
do a lot of walking,” says Hernandez, who works for the Architect
of the Capitol, which is responsible for the upkeep of the Capitol
grounds. During non-business
hours Hernandez works a “second job,” as mom to her sons,
Cassius, 11, and Lazaro, 8. Her
duties include the usual pick-ups
and drop offs at school. But it can
also include—and in one night—
lacrosse, baseball, and basketball
@dsea1
practice, and a book fair at school.
Hernandez is the sole breadwinner and caretaker of her boys. She
is, by standard definition, a single
parent. She identifies as a single
parent, but doesn’t necessarily
always “feel” like a single parent because her boys do get some
support from their father.
“My situation is different,” she
says, explaining she wouldn’t go
as far as identifying her situation
as co-parenting, which is when
parents maintain equal responsibility for a child’s upbringing.
“My ex-husband lives in Texas,” she says, “but he’s a phone
call every night. He’ll also go
through the Fairfax County
Schools website and Blackboard
services to stay informed.”
Through technology, more divorced, separated, or co-parenting families can stay connected to
their child’s education.
Thinking back, Hernandez
says, “For back-to-school nights,
a lot of the information presented
can be done through a webinar,”
understanding that schools may
not want to take away from the
human element, but that type of
engagement via technology has
its benefits for families like Hernandez’s. The most important
point, she says, is open communication between families and
schools. “I always give information up front. I want them to
know that their dad is in Texas
just so they know it’s different.”
Hernandez also wants to know
the school’s capabilities. For example, can the teacher call the
boys’ father through Skype or
FaceTime during parent-teacher
conferences? Or, is there a way to
get him on speakerphone? “That
would help me with the boys to
show that we’re all a united front
and they can see that, ‘Oh! Dad
knows…it’s not just mom.’”
Communication and collaboration are the keys to parental
engagement. Whether its mom
and dad, mom only, mainly dad,
mom and mom, or dad and dad,
most parents want to be involved
and engaged by their child’s
school. Some parents may need to
be asked or can only give an hour
of their time. Others may need
some encouragement or be given
additional tools, like technology,
to be as engaged as they can. The
idea is to understand the uniqueness of each family and help create a welcoming environment for
all students and their families.
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
DAVIS: Years as president of Christina
E.A. helped prepare for UniServ work
not an easy one.
“There was some apprehension [about leaving],” said Davis.
“I wasn’t emotionally prepared
to leave teaching at first. I saw
myself as a teacher for a lot longer and I didn’t want to leave my
students in the middle of the year.
While it wasn’t a perfect fit for
timing, sometimes you just have
to take a chance.”
The “chance” Davis has now
taken leads him to working closely with a variety of local associations in New Castle County. He
will be responsible for Brandywine EA, New Castle County
Vo-Tech EA, and Colonial Transportation. He will also work
with food service locals in Brandywine, Christina, Colonial, and
Red Clay.
The change, over the course of
just several weeks, in job duties
has required quite a bit of adjustment on Davis’ part.
“Time management has been
the biggest [adjustment] so far,”
www.dsea.org
@dseafan
he said. “When you teach, you
have to be at a certain place at a
certain time and you have to be
there for a specific length of time.
Now, I don’t really manage the
schedule so much as the schedule
manages me. I have to be available when I’m needed for representation or a meeting.”
Yet, despite the new challenges, leaving a career in teaching,
Davis said he hopes to accomplish the same thing now as what
he did when teaching: Having a
lasting impact on people.
“I think the thing I’ll miss the
most about being a teacher is not
being able to follow up with students years after they’ve graduated,” he said. “I’d have a former
student contact me or send me a
message on Facebook saying ‘Remember how mad I was when
you gave me that grade? You
were right.’ Those are the kinds
of things I’ll miss; that lasting impact on [students]. Hopefully,
I’ll have that in my new role as a
UniServ.”
@dsea1
My Credit Union
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saving for retirement. It’s no wonder
so many folks like me turn to Dover
Federal, the family that truly cares.
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DSEA ACTION!
21
CONFERENCE: March 22nd conference
one of largest ever for the organization
to immediately use in the classroom,” she said.
Funding for the conference
comes, in part, from a grant
awarded from the National Education Association (NEA). The
NEA established the grant in response to consistent reports from
affiliates that the training and resources from their state Department of Education was often insufficient and untimely.
DSEA applied for the grant,
received it, and set about designing a professional development
agenda centered not just around
Common Core Standards, but
around the needs identified by its
members in a recent professional
development survey.
The agenda features 11 different training sessions, with topics
including “Structures for Cooperative Learning” by Kagan Professional Development, “Deep Diver into the Common Core Math
Shifts” by the DSEA CCLEAR
Cadre, and “Social Studies and
CCSS ELA/Literacy” by teachers
from Marlboro, New York.
The teachers from Marlboro,
New York, as well as the other
presenters, were selected because
of expertise in their area. Marlboro educators are substantially
ahead of other states in crafting
successful CCSS implementation.
The diverse curriculum and
the expertise of the presenters
will allow DSEA to meet the goal
of “appropriate, differentiated,
and timely professional development,” described by President
Jenner.
Access to the planned professional development, especially
the session on Common Core, is
expected to help DSEA overcome
the challenge in making Common
Core Standards a useful tool in
the education system.
“The two biggest roadblocks
are time and resources,” Stevens
said. “Teachers need time to meet
with colleagues about Common
Core, determine their curriculum,
develop materials for instruction,
reflect on their successes, and
share them. This type of professional development can accomplish that.”
RAA: Reading programs help to
provide strong start for students
“Our kids love to read but we
have a problem in that our library
was built to hold 10,000 books
and we have 13,000 books in
stock—this is a good problem to
have, but we’re hoping to expand
our library.”
Each school received a $500
check for its library. At Jefferson,
this will help with the expansion
of the library, says Gonzalez. In
Rivas, librarian Salina Villaneda
says she plans to use the check to
update the library. “We are an old
school and we have an outdated
library…that’s one of the things
I want to do with the grant is to
buy new books.”
“I’m delighted we’re here to
bring the gift of reading,” Moss
says. “What we know is that reading is the foundation of success in
other subject areas and we want
to make sure we put books in the
hands of every student because
many don’t have access to them
at home.”
MINORITY LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE
Delaware State University
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Student Center
April 5, 2014
8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Keynote Speaker: Kevin F. Gilbert, NEA Exec. Committee
Sessions include:
Reacting to Differences
Know Your Rights
Developing Community Partnerships
Registration runs from March
3rd to March 28th.
RSVP: Yvonne Williams
[email protected]
Enhance your credentials
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Today’s teachers address a wide array of educational
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whenever—and wherever—it’s most
convenient for you.
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22
DSEA ACTION!
1-877-456-7003 | wilmu.edu/EducationDegrees
Wilmington University is a private, nonprofit institution.
@dsea1
@dseafan
www.dsea.org
Are you missing out on
educator tax savings?
Find out and discover more ways to save at
neamb.com/LearnMore
Whether you need tax advice or ways to beat the
winter blues in your classroom, we’ve got you covered.
Drop by and you’ll also find exclusive deals, and exciting
opportunities to travel, learn and grow—both inside
and out of school.
You’ll also find:
Tax Preparation Tips and Advice
Spring Travel Values and Insights
Classroom Winterization
Visit neamb.com/LearnMore
NEA, NEA Member Benefits and the NEA Member Benefits logo are registered service marks of NEA’s Member Benefits Corporation.
CO090214
www.dsea.org
@dseafan
@dsea1
DSEA ACTION!
23
ABOVE: Michelle Bundek (left; Capital EA), Michelle Bates (middle; Capital
EA), and Christine McCann (right; New Castle County Vo-Tech EA) listen to
Cadre members discuss a recent training in Phoenix, Arizona.
LEFT: Deborah Stevens (right), Director of Instructional Advocacy, reviews
potential training sessions with the CCLEAR Cadre as Lynelle Hyland (left), a
teacher at Central Elementary School, reviews her notes.
CCLEAR Cadre to train DSEA members
24
DSEA ACTION!
“
I’ve been able to learn how
the shifts will interact with
what we currently do and
that’s what I want to provide
to my colleagues.
“
For Michelle Bates, a 6th grade special education teacher at William Henry Middle
School, it was the opportunity to learn more
about the standards which made her eager to
sign up. She was even able to use the strategies in her class immediately.
“I’ve been able to use the strategies to help
get the kids motivated, up and out of their
seats, and thinking in different perspectives,”
Bates said. “It’s very helpful, especially for
special education students.”
Bates is one of 20 teachers who are part of
the CCLEAR Cadre, a select group of DSEA
members who have committed to an in-depth
training program whose goal is to provide assistance to all teachers tasked with implementation of the Common Core State Standards.
“CCLEAR” stands for Common Core Leaders Educating and Advocating for Reform.
The program is funded through an NEA organizing grant and began to take shape in the
Fall of 2013. Members have spent the past
five months participating in Common Core
focused trainings and developing their own
skills in delivering trainings.
The goal is for the participants to take a
lead role in providing Common Core-focused
trainings within their district, offering colleagues an opportunity to learn strategies and
information that might be missing from the
professional development currently available
to them.
“We believe that our local affiliates must
have a lead role in educating members about
Common Core,” said Deb Stevens, Director of
Instructional Advocacy for DSEA. “They are
better able to shape the implementation efforts
within their district and advocate for the resources needed.”
Since the Cadre was selected, the members
have participated in two full days of “Dynamic Trainer” training provided by Kagan Professional Development. They have also worked
collaboratively to create specific training modules to use when conducting professional development in their district.
In addition to those activities, some mem-
- Michelle Bates, William Henry Middle School
bers of the Cadre served as representatives
at both a national and state-level Common
Core training event. The national event was
the Teacher Voices Convening held in Phoenix, Arizona and the state-level event was the
Common Core Night held at Dover Downs
Conference Center. At each event, the Cadre members participated in roundtable discussions about overcoming Common Core
challenges as well as creating effective building-level implementation strategies.
Those implementation strategies will be essential in helping teachers, according to Linda
Brown.
“Not all districts are teaching the standards
the same way,” said Brown, who teaches second grade at Towne Point Elementary School
in Dover. “The ‘why’ and ‘how’ are left untouched and the teachers need to see what
the shifts in learning are and their effect on
instruction. The Cadre can help meet that
need.”
Helping teachers understand those shifts in
learning is one of several benefits which Stevens touted for the Cadre.
“[In addition] to understanding the pedagogical shifts, this provides educators with
professional development information they
need to successfully implement Common
Core,” she said. “The local associations now
have direct access to a group of well-trained
advocates.”
One of the biggest challenges the Cadre
will face is one which any group supportive
of Common Core will likely face: overcoming
the anti-Common Core rhetoric and sorting
through the real and contrived concerns to arrive at the information useful for educators.
“I think getting past the empty rhetoric in
the media [might be] the biggest challenge,”
said Ed Dougherty, a Cadre member and English teacher at Sussex Technical High School
in Georgetown. “I need to provide them [educators] with real facts about the purpose behind Common Core and counter any falsities
they hear.”
For Michelle Bates, the challenge will be in
counteracting a skeptical group of colleagues,
weary from another initiative impacting their
jobs.
“It’s [Common Core] been thrown at us
and not taught to us,” Bates said. “The way
it’s been done, especially in conjunction with
Component 5, made a lot of teachers nervous.
I’ve been able to learn how the shifts will interact with what we currently do and that’s what
I want to provide to my colleagues. To show
them it’s not a scary thing to be avoided at all
costs.”
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