Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/686175
Recent research shows that more than 85 percent of CTA members who have been educators for less than 10 years say some- one from the union contacted them in the past year. Heins presented the Jose Colmenares Memorial Award to United Teachers Los Angeles, in recognition of its communi- cations work, outstanding leadership and organi zin g appro ach that unif i ed and transformed the local. In the past two years, UTL A settled a new contract, became a fully merged local chapter with CTA/NEA and CFT/AFT, took on Eli Broad and the school privatizers, started organizing char- ter schools, and voted to restructure and raise member dues. "ey accomplished much of this … by getting into school sites and having real conversations with members," Heins said. "ey put together a plan with targets and goals … and they held each other account- able to meet them. They identified new leaders to be chapter chairs and area reps. And they engaged the broader community." O P P O R T U N I T Y TO L E A D Executive Director Joe Nuñez spoke about the work of implementing the Every Stu- dent Succeeds Act and developing rubrics for the Local Control Funding Formula and local accountability plans (LCAPs). He noted that many decisions are being pushed down to the local and state levels, creating important opportunities for edu- cator involvement — and as outlined in CTA's strategic plan, the oppor- tunity to lead and transform the education profession. E S S A r e c o g n i z e s t h a t parents can excuse their chil- dren from t e stin g in st at e s l i k e C a l i f o r n i a t h a t h a v e o p t - o u t l a w s , N u ñ e z s a i d , and CTA has produced new resources for educators and parents regarding their rights ( cta.org/optout). He said the committee that is reviewing and negotiating with the U.S. Department of Education (ED) on proposed regulations for sections of ESSA " has some really tough issues to be resolved." One of the most significant regulations being decided: "supplement-not-supplant" — how federal dollars for low-income stu- dents must supplement, not supplant, state and local school funding. e ED is already trying to write more restrictive rules, and NEA is warning this approach could over- step the intent of the new law. This could end up having a significant impact as it transitions to states. Nuñez reminded us how : "In California, we con- tinue to have school districts that seem to think supplemental and concentration grant money under LCFF cannot be used for teacher salaries," he said. "As these laws allow states and local districts to make decisions, you need to demand to be part of these decisions." Nuñez referenced the final report on CTA's Quality Education Investment Act, which came out in March and outlines seven lessons learned that would be helpful in building your LCAP, including: • Strengthening professional develop- ment that is teacher-driven. • Cultivating teacher collaboration with sufficient time and resources. • Expanding class size reduction. • Empowering teachers. CO U N C I L CO N S I D E R S L E G I S L AT I O N CTA State Council reviewed approximately 200 bills and took a position on most, on topics ranging from the teacher pipeline to affordable housing to teacher evaluation and dismissal. For more information, see cta.org/statecouncil. In other actions, State Council… • Honored the 2016 California Teachers of the Year Daniel Jocz (finalist for National Teacher of the Year), Mitch Bahr, Michelle Cherland, Doug Green and Ann Park. • Honored Debbie Hamme, CTA's ESP of the Year. • Elected to the CTA Board of Directors Mike Patterson (District D), Margie Granado (District L), and Roberto Rodriguez (District P); and re-elected Terri Jackson (District C), José Alcalá (District O), and Susan Green (District Q). • Elected to the CTA/ABC Committee Amanda Fanning (District N); and re-elected Laura Finco (District C), Chris Aguilar (District F), Wendy Eccles (District K), Madeline Shapiro (District L), Chris Prokop (District P), Joan Sholars (District Q), and Juan Caballero (At-Large). • Elected Dorothy Kim as NEA Alternate Direc- tor, Seat 1. • Established the new statewide seat of NEA Director, District 16. • Recognized Women's History Month. • Supported the Hispanic Caucus Observance. • Supported the CTA Peace and Justice Caucus's 12th annual Youth Activist Awards. #TigersRiseFive from Fremont High School were presented with a Youth Activist Award by the CTA Peace and Justice Caucus. 47 May / June 2016