Cupertino Education Association

Cupertino Education Association

August 2010 Archives

2010 Election Update August 31st

By
CEA Web
on August 31, 2010 12:52 PM |
August 31, 2010 - It's the last week before the traditional campaign season begins on Labor Day. Of course, that means little to Republican gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman, who has already spent $104 million of her own money to buy her way into office. Get ready to hit the pavement to elect Attorney General Jerry Brown as governor, who is officially kicking off his campaign.
 
Spotlight
If you live in Los Angeles, the Central Valley or the Inland Valley areas, be listening over the next several weeks for a new radio ad campaign on behalf of Jerry Brown. The ad is sponsored by Working Californians, an independent expenditure campaign committee that includes CTA, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, and the Service Employees International Union. Similar to Working Californians' first radio ad in July, the new ad focuses on Jerry Brown's proven ability to get California back on track.
This week's challenge: Share this radio spot with 10 friends.
 
Don't Miss
CTA members - many in period costume - joined more than 2,000 nurses, firefighters and other members of labor organizations in Sacramento last week to mark the 90th anniversary of women securing the right to vote - and to protest billionaire California gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman, who has rarely cast a vote in her life. Read what the Huffington Post had to say about the rally and watch CTA President David A. Sanchez fire up the crowd.
 
Resources
Spanish material is now available in the Election Section of CTA's website. Check under Resources to find a General Election Recommendation flier in Spanish and two fact sheets on Prop. 24. Other new material includes a Q & A about Prop. 25, the "On-Time Budget Act" proposal supported by CTA. CTA President David A. Sanchez also penned an Op-Ed piece on Prop. 24, which ran in the Sunday edition of the San Francisco Chronicle. The column explains the necessity of passing Prop. 24 to repeal unfair tax breaks given to large multistate corporations and putting that money back into schools.
 
Campaign News
How can you help? It begins with staying informed and up-to-date, and turning knowledge into action. We'll provide you with plenty of things you can do as the campaign gears up. In the meantime, to keep up with the progress of CTA's activities, text CTAVOTES to 69866 (include your name and ZIP code) to get the latest information and visit the Election 2010 section at www.cta.org. You can also e-mail us at 2010campaign@cta.org
 
 

 


SB 1285

By
CEA Web
on August 30, 2010 1:57 PM |

Please urge your members to take action to kill SB 1285 (Steinberg Bill).

 

 

cta logo blue                                                               nea logo blue


Urge Assembly Rules, Appropriations to Defeat Rigid Formula Layoff Bill, SB 1285


CTA-opposed SB 1285 (Steinberg) bill is scheduled to be heard either in the Assembly Rules Committee or the Assembly Appropriations Committee as early as Monday. 


Get in touch with these lawmakers at their local offices now and then contact your own Assembly member, if she or he is not on the committee.

The message is simple:  SB 1285 will deprive our neediest students of their most experienced educators. Vote against SB 1285 in the Assembly Rules or Assembly Appropriations Committee - don't vote it out!

This bad bill ties the hands of local decision makers in determining the best layoff procedures to meet the needs of students and schools in the district.  This unnecessary legislation would prohibit a district from laying off more teachers at a Decile 1-3 school than the average proportion in the district.

This proposal requires school districts to keep less experienced teachers and lay off more experienced teachers regardless of performance.  There is no data to support the assumption that this rigid formula improves instruction, but there is significant data that shows students perform better with more experienced teachers. The unintended consequence will certainly be that teachers with less than five years experience will comprise the staff of high priority schools.

SB 1285 establishes an unproven procedure that will eliminate local control and aggravate the destabilizing and traumatic impacts of teacher lay offs on schools and students. 


We urge a "No" vote when this bill is heard in the Assembly Rules or Assembly Appropriations Committee. 

To contact these lawmakers -

Paste the following link in your browser and use the CTA Legislative Action Center:

   
http://capwiz.com/nea/ca/home/ 


Or you can call them directly at their district offices using the numbers below:
 
Assembly Rules Committee

Nancy Skinner, Chair (Berkeley) 510/286-1400

 

Ted Gaines, Vice Chair (Roseville) 916/774-4430

 

Anthony Adams (Hesperia)  626/359-8305

 

Anna Caballero (Salinas) 831/759-8676

Mike Gatto (Burbank) 818/558-3043

 

Curt Hagman (Diamond Bar) 909/627-7021

  

Ted Lieu (Torrance) 310/615-3515

 

Tony Mendoza (Artesia) 562/864-5600

 

Lori Saldana (San Diego) 619/645-3090

 

Jim Silva (Huntington Beach) 714/843-4966

Tom Torlakson (Martinez) 925/372-7990

Speaker of the Assembly John A.  Pérez  (Los Angeles) 213/620-4646
  

Alternates

 

Joe Coto (San Jose) 408/277-1220

 

Jim Nielsen (Biggs) 530/223-6300


Assembly Appropriations Committee


Felipe Fuentes, Chair (Arleta) (818) 504-3911

Connie Conway, Vice Chair (Visalia) (559) 636-3440

Steven Bradford (Inglewood) (310) 412-6400

Charles Calderon (City of Industry) (562) 692-5858

Joe Coto (San Jose) (408) 277-1220

Mike Davis (Los Angeles) ((213)-744-2111)

Kevin de Leon (Los Angeles) (323) 225-4545

Mike Gatto (Burbank) (818) 340-6330

Isadore Hall (Compton) (310) 223-1201)

Diane Harkey (Oceanside) (760) 757-8084

Jeff Miller (Mission Viejo) (951) 737-1671

Jim Nielson (Redding) (530) 223-6300

Chris Norby (Brea) (714) 672-4734

Nancy Skinner (Oakland) (510) 286-1400

Jose Solario (Anaheim) (714) 939-8469

Tom Torlakson (Martinez) (925) 372-7990

Albert Torrico (Fremont) (510) 440-9030




   

Campaign 2010

By
CEA Web
on August 11, 2010 10:02 AM |
As always, CTA's priority during the election season is to support candidates and initiatives that are pro-public education. California's next election is 12 weeks away, and CTA has three main goals:
  1. Electing Jerry Brown for governor
  2. Electing Tom Torlakson for superintendent of public instruction
  3. Passing Proposition 24, the CTA-sponsored Tax Fairness Act to repeal corporate tax loopholes.  

Spotlight

CTA's Tax Fairness Act, also know as Proposition 24, will repeal the tax breaks that were handed out to big business and oil companies at the same time $17 billion was being cut from California's public schools and colleges. The loopholes allow a small number of big corporations to use tax credits they didn't earn to reduce their taxes, shift current losses to past tax years to get additional tax refunds, and choose the way they calculate their taxes in order to reduce what they pay. Proposition 24 repeals these unfair tax loopholes. Be sure to read up on this initiative. The following information is available in the Election 2010 Resource Section:
 

Resources

We will have lots more information for you as we gear up for the campaign ahead, but you can already find plenty of materials on our website. There you can find information on candidates, ballot initiatives CTA supports, and news stories on the campaign. To give you a jump on things, take a look at CTA's Voter Guide and our General Election Talking Points (Spanish).
 

You Can Help

It begins with staying informed and up-to-date, and then turning knowledge into action. Visit the Election 2010 section at www.cta.org to get the latest information. You can also text CTAVOTES to 69866 or e-mail us at 2010campaign@cta.org (be sure to include your name and ZIP code) and we'll send you updates. Once you've signed up, you are ready to share this information with family, neighbors, colleagues, friends, Facebook friends, Twitter followers, and even people in line at the grocery store.
 

This week's challenge: Talk to 5 people about why this election is so important to public education and to you.

 

 

CTA President Update

By
CEA Web
on August 11, 2010 9:56 AM |
Earlier today, the House passed the education jobs bill by a vote of 247-161. The bill is now on the way to the President's desk. He is expected to sign it today so that the implementation process can begin immediately.
 
New figures from the U.S. Department of Education estimate that some 161,000educators--nearly 14,000 in California--who had received pink slips will be heading back to school this fall.
 
This victory is a result of an amazing national effort involving every level of the Association.  The participation by members, the multiple contacts with every single congressional office, the calls, e-mails, and personal visits by affiliate leaders and staff were unprecedented. Together, we overcame multiple pronouncements of the bill's death by the press, advocates, and Members of Congress. 
 
Thank you for all your hard work, your e-mails and calls--and especially to Tahnya Nodar, Christopher Rieder and Jim Costa, three pink-slipped California teachers who traveled to DC to lobby Congress. Our collective voices truly made the difference.
 
David A. Sanchez
CTA President

CTA Board Report. Information about issues throughout the state.

By
CEA Web
on August 11, 2010 9:34 AM |
CTA Board Report July 2010.pdf

You Did It!!!! The Job bill passes :) It is up to the House on August 10th.

By
CEA Web
on August 5, 2010 1:38 PM |
NEA Education Insider: August 5, 2010

You did it!  The Senate has passed legislation to save over 138,000 education jobs!  On August 5, the Senate passed the bill by a vote of 61-39.  This victory for educators, students, and our nation was a direct result of your calls, letters, e-mails and personal visits to Senators.  Thank you for your incredible efforts!

See how your Senator voted on this important bill.

Thank Senators who voted yes, and express your disappointment to those who voted against saving education jobs.

We are in the final stretch now.  The House of Representatives will return to Washington, DC for a special session to vote on the Senate-passed bill.  The vote is scheduled for Tuesday, August 10.  The House has already passed an education jobs bill, but because the Senate bill uses different "offsets" to pay for the jobs fund, the House must now pass it. 

Urge your House members to pass this urgent legislation. 

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