Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/65746
TAKING A STAND One bad dismissal bill defeated Two others are amended and moved, but still bad TWO CTA-OPPOSED BILLS would quash teachers' constitutional rights, while doing nothing to address the Los Angeles Unified School District management's fail- ure to protect children. CTA representatives defeated one of three measures spawned by headlines and the failure of the management of LAUSD to protect students from a sexual predator. As the Educator goes to press, two other bills that would undermine teachers' con- stitutional rights are still alive, as LAUSD scrambles to blame "shortcomings" in cur- rent law — rather than the district's neglect — for the problems. meeting of the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing that LAUSD — after years of failing to file reports of suspected misconduct — had rushed over the previ- ous two months to file 530 allegations with the licensing board, more than three times the number filed by all districts in Califor- nia combined in any one year. The filings come at the same time the district is back- ing the CTA-opposed bills, which would broadly expand its powers while eliminat- ing teachers' rights to a fair hearing. CTA efforts defeated SB 1059, a mea- sure by Sen. Bob Huff (R-Diamond Bar) CTA received a report from the April unsafely wearing open-toed shoes in a shop class or abuse of a child. The Senate and the Assembly Education that would have taken away teachers' constitutional rights, including their right to a fair hearing and to confront their accusers. The bill's provisions were so broad that a teacher could have faced comparable district penalties for committees substantially amended and then approved two other measures, which CTA continues to oppose in their new forms. Neither bill addresses the failure of a school district's management to take the necessary steps to protect children. SB 1530, by Sen. Alex Padilla (D- Pacoima), cleared the Senate Education Committee in April over CTA's objections. The bill now heads to the Senate Appropri- ations Committee, where the major focus will be on the bill's potential to raise dis- trict costs while it cuts desperately needed 26 California Educator / May 2012