In this time of high unemployment, businesses forced to close or relocate to other states…the Rochester City school teachers demanding an almost 5 percent pay raise is just too much…

These ‘in it for the money only’ gougers need to be unemployed and truely devoted teachers who really love the profession hired…we as parents and taxpayers can no longer afford these gougers…

With a less than a 50 percent graduation rate from RCS, the citizens MUST STAND UP and say NO MORE! YOU’RE FIRED, as Mr Trump made famous…

School Board Postpones Vote

After deliberating for nearly two hours in a closed-door session, the Rochester city school board tabled its vote on a new teacher contract.
The contract, which was approved by 92 percent of teachers who voted last week, calls for a 3.53 percent raise for teachers.
That bump includes the standard increase built into their contract, along with an added 1.35 percent raise.
The board is npw scheduled to vote at a meeting at 5:30p.m. today

State teachers union sues to stop new teacher evaluations

Written by Cara Matthews

ALBANY — New York State United Teachers announced today that it is suing the state Education Department, claiming that regulations the Board of Regents adopted last month violate a state law requiring a new teacher- and principal-evaluation system.
The lawsuit alleges that regents overstepped their authority and violated the law when they prescribed that 40 percent of an evaluation can be based on student achievement on state tests. The law states that 20 percent shall be based on state assessments and 20 percent on other “locally selected measures” that are developed through collective bargaining.

“New York was poised to take the lead in developing a thoughtful, comprehensive evaluation system developed in collaboration with teachers and other stakeholders,” Richard Iannuzzi, president of the 600,000-member union, said in a statement.

“Instead, the regents chose politics over sound educational policy and the cheap way over the right way, doubling down on high-stakes tests of dubious worth instead of requiring school districts and teachers unions to collaborate in ways that would really strengthen instruction in our classrooms.”

New York proposed the new evaluation system last year as part of its proposal for $700 million in federal Race to the Top funding. Lawmakers passed legislation a year ago to implement the new system, expand the number of charter schools and upgrade technology to track student progress. New York won a $697 million grant.

State Supreme Court Justice Richard Platkin signed an order late Monday that requires the Board of Regents to show why the regulations should not be suspended pending a decision on the lawsuit.

State Education Department spokesman Jonathan Burman said the agency was confident the new evaluation system would be upheld in court.

“In May, the Board of Regents adopted critical reforms that will allow schools for the first time to more accurately measure the performance of teachers and school leaders,” he said in a statement.

“This new teacher and principal evaluation system will allow local districts to recognize and replicate teaching excellence, provide intensive professional development for teachers in need of additional support and provide a fair, objective and expedited means of removing ineffective teachers from the classroom.”

Iannuzzi said NYSUT is “fully committed to the development and implementation of a comprehensive, objective and fair system of evaluating teachers.” The regents and state Education Department “rushed into place badly flawed, contradictory regulations that will do nothing to strengthen learning or the teaching profession,” he said.

Iannuzzi is a plaintiff in the case, along with Shelly Packer, a teacher and president of the Greenburgh Teachers Federation in Westchester County; Jennifer Romer, a teacher and president of the East Greenbush Teachers Association; and Gary Fernando, a teacher and president of the Islip Teachers Association in Suffolk County.

As for the regulations, NYSUT claims they “illegally address appeals procedures for teachers rated ‘ineffective’ for two consecutive years”; state that teacher evaluations should not be a factor in determining tenure; and mandate how much of a teacher’s evaluation is based on classroom observations, which are all subject to collective bargaining, NYSUT said. q

CLMATTHE