Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/994766
publicly confirmed the teachers' con- cerns about the quality of education their students were receiving, showing that the K12 connection to CAVA was putting profits before kids, and that achievement levels and graduation rates were sub- stantially below statewide averages for traditional schools. I n 2 0 1 6 , t h a t s c r u t i n y l e d t o a $ 1 6 8 . 5 m i l l i o n s e tt l e m e n t b e tw e e n th e n - Att o r n e y Ge n e ra l K a m a l a Ha r - r i s' of f i c e a n d b o t h c o m p a n i e s o v e r a l l e g e d v i o l a t i o n s o f " f a l s e c l a i m s , f a l s e a dv e r t i si n g a n d u n f a i r c o m p e - t i t i o n l a w s ," i n c l u d i n g m i s l e a d i n g p a r e n t s a b o u t s t u d e n t s ' a c a d e m i c progress, college eligibility, class sizes and other issues. Meanw hile, student and family concerns about the school l e d t o a st e e p d e c li n e i n e n r o l l m e n t a n d a t e a c h e r e xo d u s i n p a r t d u e t o layof fs. Today CAVA's enrollment and teaching staf f are down about a third from four years ago. e 2½-year road from initial PERB rec- ognition to a first contract settlement was not an easy one. CAVA's delays in getting to the negotiation table and slow prog- ress once talks began frustrated CVEU members, and some openly questioned — despite believing in the benefit of online learning for some students when done through a quality program — whether working in an environment where they felt so undervalued and disrespected was worth it. In November 2017, after more than a year at the bargaining table, CVEU members voted by 91 percent to autho- rize a strike if necessary. Ensuring student and teacher success That additional pressure worked. Ten- tative agreements were signed of f on workload, achieving permanent job sta- tus (CAVA teachers had been "at-will" employees with no rehiring or due pro- cess rights) and salary. In April, with a potential strike looming, the only 37 J U N E / J U L Y 2 018 T H E Y M A Y N O T be the largest, but they were the first. The iQ Teachers Association (iQTA) represents the 26 educators working for iQ Academy Cal- ifornia – Los Angeles (iQLA), also a K12 Inc. online school. They settled their contract on Jan. 25, just days before a scheduled strike vote. IQLA teachers decided to form a union for many of the same reasons that CVEU members did. "We were very aware of their struggles," says iQTA Vice President Gemma Berkley. "We had similar concerns and knew changes needed to happen at iQTA." Current iQTA President Carrie Moore (on leave and unavailable for this arti- cle) reached out to CTA in August 2016 to begin organizing her colleagues to form the new union. "Carrie was the catalyst in starting the iQ Teachers Association and the force behind the constant movement through bar- gaining," says Berkley. "She keeps us grounded and focused on our goal: a voice for iQ teachers and staff." Always mindful that their contract proposals reflected the needs and values of their respective members, Berkley and CVEU President Brianna Carroll kept in contact throughout both unions' bargaining, and continue to learn from each other and share ideas. "We're separate, but we're mutually supportive unions," says Berkley. "We learned from them, and our settlement, which may have come more quickly because we're smaller and less of a financial impact on K12, may have helped move some things along for them." During negotiations iQTA members were kept informed through virtual town hall meetings that provided bargaining updates, addressed concerns, and helped build solidarity. The iQTA agreement was overwhelmingly ratified and is the first contract for a virtual school in California; iQLA is the first K12-affiliated school with a collective bargaining agreement. At press time, a grievance had been filed over interpretation of the new salary schedule, and Berkley vowed to use the strength of the new union to pursue the matter to conclusion. iQ Teachers Association The first union of virtual educators in the state to settle a contract iQTA's bargaining team, from left: Jennifer Finkbeiner, Sindia Jara, Gemma Berkley, Carrie Moore. " Our settlement, which may have come more quickly because we're smaller and less of a financial impact on K12, may have helped move some things along for CVEU." — iQTA Vice President Gemma Berkley