Letter to the Editor
Teach for fuel
Published Friday, October 10, 2008
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To the editor:
I’m a lifelong resident of Fairbanks; I got my bachelor’s at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and then got my teaching certificate. I’m a teacher.
I work at a great school. I love my job. I don’t know many people who get up excited to go to work, but I do. If I wanted to make “big bucks,” I’d have been an engineer, or a process tech, but I didn’t. Teaching is a calling, not a job — I was called.
Sitting at homecoming recently, I watching my kids run the ball, cheer and parade their floats. I wanted to tell them Monday that I’m proud of them and happy for them. I don’t get paid for that. It’s part of being a teacher. We educate, support, protect and encourage. One teacher, who I highly respect, walked out with one of the royalty nominees in place of her parents, who couldn’t attend. We are teachers.
I’m also a wife, a daughter and a granddaughter. I have to pay for heating fuel, my mortgage and electricity like everybody else. Please don’t make me choose between doing what I love and heating my home. The kids can only lose. How? Fairbanks teachers are working without a contract.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics and Consumer Price Index, we’ve seen an 8.67 percent increase for goods and services in the last two years. We aren’t even asking the district to cover the cost of inflation.
I’d like to have the same buying power next year, not less. That’s what everyone wants.
The district’s first offer was zero percent increase for three years. If inflation stays the same, my $100 this year would cost me $117.96 in three years. The district’s second offer was 4.25 percent spread across three years. I can’t afford either of those offers when my bills will cost 17.96 percent more.
We’re all hurting. Inflation is killing all of us. I love my kids. Please don’t force me to choose between them and my heating bill.
Everybody loses.
Write your school board members and tell them you support fair pay for teachers.
Community Discussion
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It is beyond comprehension that the school district continues to act like a spoiled child in their negotiations with local teachers. In negotiations with any other union, the issue would have been solved long ago with a strike. It really shows how invested teachers are in their work that they have gone to such great lengths to avoid harming students. By not proposing a reasonable contract, the school district is using children as pawns, betting that the teachers wouldn't strike for fear of hurting the children they care about. Despicable.
The "School District Priorities" for 2007-2009 emphasize that, "Quality education requires highly motivated, skilled, supportive teachers, administrators, and support staff." Decide what kind of education the school board is interested in providing by telling our teachers that a 0% increase in pay is fair.
http://www.northstar.k12.ak.us/index.php...
Educating our children well is necessary for our future. That takes money. It should be a high priority.
I didnt not get a raise last year
I dont expect a raise this year
I could move and go elsewhere where it is cheaper to live, I would probably make as much as I do here. But I love it here and this is where home is for me.
Im not going on strike, Im not going to write letters to the editor, Im going to be happy I have a job and am able to support my family. I make about the same as a mid level teacher, though I work 12 months (I get 2 weeks paid vacation a year) and I work about 60 hours a week (salary) on average, sometimes over 80. Again I am thankful to have a job. I realize that in this ever tightening economy, my employeer is paying considerably more for expenses and cant expect our rates to maintain the same level as expenses.
Please consider that when my property taxes rise because of a raise for a unionized borough employee, I not only am not getting a raise to combat inflation, I am actually paying more to support a better lifestyle for you.
I do not deny that teachers work hard, often times having to remedy situations that are not teaching related. But we all have these situations. Striving for success requires doing more than the minimum, and I would agree that the vast majority of teachers do strive for excellence.
Just remember, someone has to pay more for you to be paid more.
Lief
Teachers are unable to strike at this point
State Law defines when certain employee groups (teachers being one of them) can strick and what benchmarks must be met first.
As I have previously mentioned in Christine Dyer's Letter to the Editor, public education is fundamental for our nation to progress. Our teachers are already BEYOND PASSIONATE about excelling our lives into a future beyond greatness. But at the same time, our teachers are struggling with an unfair pay which is plummeting some into poverty, which will in turn cause them to have to leave their excellent and important jobs to pursue a job of which will let them purchase the necessities to live in this harsh state of Alaska.
The pay increase is completely mandatory and fair, and anyone in the same situation, regardless of their job, would want the same terms to fulfill their exigencies to life.
Please support our great Alaskan teachers so we will all prevail.
This truly is an urgent matter in which we all need to take part in before it is too late.
Well said by all.
I'm adding my two cents because I live with one tasked with educating our young in a school setting.
Very dedicated, and one who loves her job so much, she's hardly home during the school year.
Always preparing for the next day.
I accept that dedication without complaint.
I find it appalling the School District's "Priorities" for 2007-2009.
"Quality education requires highly motivated, skilled, supportive teachers, administrators and support staff."
That line is laughable at best...!
You seemed to leave out the words "and fairly compensated"...blah, blah, blah.
Maybe the new blood coming in on the School Board will get things rolling for these precious commodities....our educators.
Their service to MY children has been invaluable. You can't put a price tag on it.
And anybody calling them "greedy".....I invite the naysayers to take on the same task of teaching.
How about the Fairbanks School Board "man up" and stop treating these wonderful individuals like "warm bodies minding the store."
They deserve much, much better.....and you all damn well know it.
Do the job you were elected to do.
While you're so very damn high on, and always want to go the extra mile for those receiving that education...it makes no sense to turn your collective backs on those giving that education.
For what they do....this shouldn't even be up for negotiation.
"Im not going on strike, Im not going to write letters to the editor, Im going to be happy I have a job and am able to support my family."
The majority of people with families in Alaska count on teachers to support them as well. That's the whole point: teachers are such a huge part of the lives of children they might as well be part of their family.
Support your family, support your children, support your teachers.
we all have to tighten our belts. everyones standard of living is falling. the price of energy is way up. this is a wonderful teaching opportunity to teach the kids what green economics does to a society. suck it up and learn how to cut corners and expenses like the rest of us.
There is 150 million budgeted for the school district - -
You are telling me that with that huge organization, there are no areas where money can be found for your raises?
cut out your fat - get rid of some of the redundant principals and staff...
I am SURE there is adequate money in the current budget for each of you to make 100k - - just get rid of the BS in the FNSBSD...I know it is there - for I have seen it first hand working as a contractor
Agreed polarmark.
And most of us don't have the ability to extort more money for ourselves from the government.
Talk about teaching the kids! Nothing like placing blame and guilt trips on others. Using the kids as pawns, and feigning "passion" and "calling" 'cause it's all about the children, dontcha know.
Nobody is forcing any teacher to choose between anything. Adults take responsibility for their choices. Who is behaving like a "spoiled child?"
A few of my kids, at times when they were attending government schools, on several occasions have had teachers whine in class about not making enough money. I could give a long list of teachers' failings.
Strike. Please! Then give 'em the Reagan treatment! Oh, how I wish!
But, it'll never happen, because the teachers hold the pawn/extortion key.
Up on the hill, I've talked to lots of kids going to school to be a teacher, and many who are undecided, but considering teaching.
Non were out of a calling. All were about the money and schedule. And that teaching is one of the easier routes to a degree.
Also, pay should be based on merit. I'm with glacierles. Give us vouchers, and a real choice (unlike the misplaced blame choice of the letter writer), and then we'll see who deserves the raises...
"Corinne"....exactly my point from earlier.
You've got to be kidding me with your comments.
Apparently, from what I'm reading from you, there's not much value or appreciation for that matter, placed on teaching...as well as on those WHO teach.
That sure didn't stop you from sending your children to those "government" schools...and into the hands of some of those very same people you obviously have problems with.
At no time have I seen in these posts where you've actually taken on the task of teaching though.
I've said it here many times....you couldn't pay me ENOUGH to do the job. Ever!
You can't even look at today's youth the wrong way without consequences these days.
Exacting discipline? What a joke!
And still these individuals answer the call.
Calling them "extortionists" is very lame as well.
Give them the "Reagan treatment?" You sound like a politician, and last I checked....Reagan held court as President in the 1980's...plus he's been dead for quite some time.
This country's in enough of a fix because of your "Reagan treatment."
Long since time to move on from that.
Last, but not least, you've "talked to alot of kids up on the Hill who want to teach."
That's lovely.
Talking to a bunch of kids in this "all about the money" society we live in today. That analogy holds absolutely NO water.
How about talking to some OLDER folks still hoping to land that first teaching job...working at Fred Meyer, Wal-Mart, or some fast food job...who can't get hired....who are languishing in the "Sub Pool," and who stay by a phone just to get "the call" to teach.
I think you'll find the attitude much different.
Is the process perfect? No! Are there some "bad apples?" ("Whiners" as you call them)....of course! But until you've actually "walked a mile," in most of their shoes, I suggest you keep your "long list of teacher failings."
As I said in an earlier post, their service is invaluable.
The woman I live with IS a teacher.
No she wasn't forced into the profession. It's one she loves, and having been there...I take offense with your "one of the easiest routes to a degree" comments as well.
And trust me...she ISN'T "striking the motherlode" here serving MY, YOUR'S and OUR youth.
For what she does....for what they all do, what they're asking for shouldn't even be up for negotiation.
Corinne, my youngest daughter has wanted to be a teacher since she was 7 yrs. old. She will graduate next yr. from university with a degree in early elementary ed./special ed. She attends college FT and works 32 hrs./week in a daycare to help pay for tuition... she is putting in 12 hrs./day between working and studying. In contrast, I graduated from college in only 2 yrs. -- I am a nurse. Guess what? When she graduates, assuming she finds a job in a 'decent' (i.e., higher-paying) school district, she will make less than I did at MY initial nursing position. "all about money and schedule"? "teaching is an easy route to a degree"? Please.
The average teacher in Alaska makes 57,000!!!
That is above the averages for both Public and Private Sectors...
NO ONE HAS YET TO SAY HOW MUCH THEY THINK THE AVERAGE TEACHER WAGE SHOULD BE!!!!
TELL US, TEACHERS, TELL US WHAT YOU WANT!!!!
Not in percentages, blah blah blah - - - what annual wage are you lookin for!
Is it a surprise that all of you work so many hours? When going to school to become a teacher were you given the impression that you would be working 40 hours per week and then suddenly it rose to 60 when you got the job?
I didn't think so. You knew what you were getting into. Same as a Social Worker or an English major. You knew the pay and requirements when you took the job.
You make above median income and have steady jobs. Quit complaining. I certainly do not hope my child is around this type of behavior at school; I don't want her growing up to be an entitled, ungrateful little brat like these teachers.
Suck it up. Do your job. If you don't like it, quit. Or maybe work towards reforming the schools and cutting out all of the extra junk that kids "learn" while there. Our education system is a joke because the teachers, parents and administration make it inefficient, not because you aren't paid enough.
Fuel or my child's education? Ooohh, my heartstrings. Let me help you by saying you should quit now. You clearly cannot make intelligent choices. Why were you sitting at homecoming, watching yours kids kick a ball, wasting time, when you could've been grading papers or doing something on your own time? It sounds to me like teachers make an awful lot of decisions to do things school related that they enjoy, but want to get paid for it. I don't ask my employer for reimbursement when I go home and read up on latest software trends in medicine...
Most teachers make above median income in Fairbanks. Let me take a moment to educate you: If you make above the median income, then you make more than 50% of the people in this town. I don't care how many hours you work, or what it makes your hourly wage, you still make more than half of the people you see on a daily basis.
Guaranteed raises? I work in the private sector and I don't get a guaranteed raise. Do you see me whining about it? Why should you get one? Please give me a compelling reason to write a letter to the board, other than you won't be a teacher anymore (hardly a threat, judging from the reasoning skills in this letter.) Also, please explain to me why anyone should have a guaranteed raise that has absolutely nothing to do with their job performance.
In closing, what you do is a job. It is no more important than what the next person does; we are all cogs in the same machine. You will be replaced. Don't let the door hit you on the way out.
I consider myself lucky to have gotten a 1.5% raise in response to the 8% increase in cost of living. It is getting more expensive for all of us to live and work in Fairbanks. The automatic cost of living raises the government and public employees have come to expect are no longer sustainable. Asking me to pay you more on top of all my increased expenses in not going to get you much sympathy.
I am so tired of all these people trash talking the teachers in this district. Since I live with a teacher, I figured I’d enlighten people on how much additional time teachers give to the district and the students.
My spouse is at school from 8 am to 6 pm five days a week. That equates to 10 hours per day of which she gets paid for 7.5. Additionally, she puts in at least 2 additional hours each night grading papers and entering them into the computer. That’s 4.5 hours additional each day!! On top of that, she puts in 4-6 hours every weekend prepping lesson plans and her classroom for the next week.
Now let’s do some simple math:
4.5 hours per day extra X 180 days per school year calendar = 810 extra hours unpaid
5 hours per week extra for prep X 39 weeks per school calendar = 195 extra hours unpaid
(Took the average of 4-6 hours/week)
That comes to 1005 extra hours UNPAID that she puts in each school year!!
Now divide that by 7.5 (1005/7.5=134). That equates to an additional 134 UNPAID DAYS that my wife GIVES to the students and the District.
I surely don’t know anybody who would WILLINGLY put in 134 days without getting paid for it each and every year they worked for any company or business, even IF they owned that business.
Now multiply 134 unpaid days per year over a 20 year career: that’s 2680 UNPAID DAYS given up by my wife!
On top of the unpaid time given, add in the REQUIREMENT to take additional classes to maintain their certification, on their own time and at their own expense, and the need to complete their Master’s degree in order to progress in their career, again at their own expense!
Teaching is definitely not an easy profession, what with the attitudes of students AND their parents, and lack of staff support at the school (not my wife’s) and district levels. Additionally, if a student is flunking, it’s automatically the teacher’s fault, even though the student has refused to turn in any assignments all quarter/semester/year long.
My hat is off to all teachers, young/old, new/experienced, active/retired, it is definitely not a job I would have the patience for. So, unless you’re willing to walk in a teacher’s shoes and give up 134 days a year unpaid, stop and think about what these professionals provide to this community, the state, and the nation. All they’re asking for is a salary that keeps up with the cost of living and inflation
Thanks for the reply "Akguy.."
I tell you what.
That 57K sure would come in handy in my household.
I know damn well she doesn't make "the average."
Well said as well "Susie77."
"Corrine's" comment on the "easiest route to a degree" shows someone's got the John McCain "way out of touch" bug.
Moving on! Here's a bit of dedication for ya.
I forgot to add, my "other half" has been told recently that she has already exhausted her materials "quota."
That is....a limited "slush fund" for materials bought for her class and for the benefit of her students.
As a teacher at Ann Wien Elementary, she gets ONE HUNDRED BUCKS (this amount varies from school to school).
That amount is supposed to stretch over the course of the school year.
Already gone!!!! It's only mid-October.
So you know what she's going TO do ("might" isn't even a word here)...she's going to come "out of pocket" for the benefit of her 1st graders.
I wouldn't be able to change her mind on this if I wanted to.
I also deal with her frustrations EVERYDAY.
She has a class of 26 students. She says out of a given day, 2 to 3 HOURS of THAT day is focused on BEHAVIORAL issues ONLY!!!
That's Monday through Friday!
Taking on the physical, emotional and at times mental "baggage" of others who have entrusted that she do so.
And still she rises up to do the job. She loves it.
And these are just FIRST graders.
But yeah....it's an "easy profession, easy to get a degree in the field,"
all about the money, and they should just "be happy to have a job," huh?
Yeah, right.
and still no one will give us a number for what they feel entitled to...
sad
"Ecray" please get a clue!
Teaching "just a job?"
Educating our FUTURE....the very same people tasked with one day seeing about you and yours...probably making decisions that will AFFECT you and yours.....OUR YOUTH....and "it's no more important than any other job?"
Put down the "crack pipe" and read the post from "RLK."
That is pretty much the life I lead as well........!
Telling these folks to "suck it up" is bull.
Especially when all you do is drop your kid off to the same people you criticize.
How about immersing yourself IN the profession for a week or two...take on the entire burden, and then give your "expert" analysis.
And to mention these teachers and "entitled, spoiled brats" in the same breath is just plain crazy.
Have you seen these kids these days?
I personally know when not to invite trouble.
I'd be compelled to put my foot up the ass of alot of these kids.
It's a main reason why I don't teach.
Overall tolerance....just not that high.
But don't "hate" on those who do have the intestinal fortitude to educate MINE, YOURS....OUR youth....and who are merely asking for better.
Enough said.