Principals have until June 15 to submit surveys to the Texas Education Agency (TEA) measuring the performance of new teachers and how effectively their educator preparation program readied them for the classroom. The survey is a component of the Accountability System for Educator Preparation and the Texas Education Code (21.0452 (g), Chapter 229) requires that principals participate. Surveys were distributed by e-mail in early May.
TEA worked with three nationally recognized educational organizations—the National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality, SEDL, and WestEd, to develop the survey. Principals must complete a survey for each teacher with no prior teaching experience.
The agency estimates that each teacher survey can be completed in approximately 15 minutes. Because TEA intends the survey to be anonymous, the agency recommends that principals take a screen shot of the summary page, paste it into a separate file, and save it as documentation of participation for their records before submitting it. Administrators who have trouble completing the survey because of technical issues can contact pyeagley@wested.org. Those with questions about the information to be collected can email the agency (principalsurvey@tea.state.tx.us).
TEA plans to post the results on a public Web site and share them with legislators.
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has vowed to close the state’s $10.7 billion budget deficit without raising taxes. As the budget cutting begins, he has engaged teachers in a battle over pay raises and increasing health care costs.
In March, Christie asked teachers to accept a one-year pay freeze and to contribute 1.5 percent to their health care costs in exchange for additional state aid for their schools. Christie argued that with one in 10 New Jerseyans out of work, teachers should share in the sacrifice. Teachers in two dozen districts agreed to the freeze, but the New Jersey Education Association advised members to oppose it. Most did.
In addition to cutting education spending by $820 million in 2011, he intends to skip the state’s $3 billion teacher pension contribution. Christie says the policies of public employee unions have divided New Jersey residents into “those who enjoy rich benefits and those who pay for them.”
The New Jersey School Boards Association supports the governor’s move to rein in spending on teacher wages and benefits. The group’s spokesman, Frank Belluscio, noted that requiring teachers to contribute 1.5 percent of their wages to health insurance brings them in line with other public employees, who are already required to do so.
—“Teachers’ Union, Governor Square Off in N.J.,” by Catherine Gewertz, Education Week, April 21, 2010.
The city of Detroit, Michigan, recently put a new policy in place prohibiting employees from using scented products in the workplace. An employee sued the city under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) because her complaints about sensitivity to the chemicals in scented products in the workplace weren’t adequately addressed. The city settled the case and agreed to pay the employee $100,000, include information on fragrance sensitivity in ADA training, modify the employee handbook, and post notices in the workplace.
The employee who filed the lawsuit was sensitive to the room deodorizer and perfume used by a coworker. The new policy requests that employees refrain from wearing or using a variety of scented products: colognes, after-shave lotions, perfumes, deodorants, lotions, hair products, scented candles, air fresheners, room deodorizers, cleaning compounds, or similar products.
Employers struggling with similar issues can consult the Job Accommodation Network 
(JAN) for additional information and sample policies. JAN, a leading source of free, expert, and confidential guidance on workplace accommodations and disability employment issues, suggests the following possible corrective actions to assist an employee with chemical sensitivities:
—“Detroit Adopts Scent Policy to Settle ADA Claim,” by Allen Smith, J.D., Society for Human Resource Management Web site, March 17, 2010.
Financial problems recently forced a district on the Oklahoma side of the Red River to move to four-day school weeks from April through the end of the school year. Grandfield ISD Superintendent Ed Turlington took the action to make up for a shortfall in state funding. The money-saving tactic allowed the district to save 20 percent on utilities and transportation costs.
Turlington’s cost-cutting measures will continue in the fall: personnel will be cut, including newly hired teachers and those on temporary contracts; and he may recommend continuing the four-day week. In addition to saving on utilities and fuel, the district would be able to issue 32-hour contracts for noncertified teaching staff and paraprofessionals, saving an estimated $90,000 to $100,000.
Oklahoma tracks its education time by the minute (while Texas requires a set number of days per school year). Because the district has an eight-period school day, it was way ahead in terms of amassing the minutes required for the year. That allowed Turlington to try the four-day week.
Cutting back on class time will result in the district receiving 5 to 10 percent less state funding, so Turlington has not been able to calculate exactly how much money the district saved by shortening the school week.
—“Grandfield schools go to 4-day week,” by Ann Work, Times Record News, April 6, 2010.
How do you cut your workforce by more than 100 employees and make a postive impression on both the workers who are staying and those who are going?
The Palm Beach County, FL, Clerk and Comptrollers Office did so by creating the “We’re All in This Together” transition program. The program sought to minimize the impact of layoffs through regular, clear communication with employees, by maintaining employee empowerment and sense of inclusion, and by treating all workers fairly and respectfully.
For separating employees, the office provided an on-site job fair and transition workshops on job hunting, professional development, financial assistance, and educational opportunities. For remaining employees, the agency conducted a stabilization intiative during the post-layoff period to help them make the necessary adjustments and receive cross-training for new responsibilities. It also intitiated a new recognition program for office clerks and offered its first “Employee Appreciation Dress Down Day.”
For its efforts, the agency received a 2010 Work-Life Innovative Excellence Award from the Alliance for Work-Life Programs.
—“Employer brings new meaning to ‘parting on good terms,’” Employee Benefit News online, April 9, 2010.
