March 20, 2010

Emporia Weather

Currently Sat Sun Mon Tue Wed
27° Snow
Slight Chance Snow
Mostly Sunny
Partly Sunny
Chance Rain
Unknown Precip and Breezy 33°
26°
38°
24°
51°
35°
62°
42°
58°
38°

Advertisement

Advertisement

Reader Poll

If you were getting married today, would you ask for a prenuptial agreement?

View all polls

Events

Search events

Mediator brings IBB team to agreement

Originally published 08:00 p.m., November 19, 2009
Updated 08:15 p.m., November 19, 2009

Representatives of teachers and the school board and administrators came to a tentative agreement on compensation this evening, with the help of Patrick L. Dunn of the Kansas City office of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service.

The Interest-Based Bargaining team made up of representatives from both groups had reached an impasse during the team's last meeting in October, and had requested mediation.

The agreement tonight, reached about 6:45 p.m., could eliminate the need for fact-finding sessions.

"Both side have to ratify it," Superintendent John Heim said tonight. "It’s just our recommendation out of IBB."

Heim said that the IBB agreement involves the same amount of money offered at the October meeting, though it will be distributed differently than originally proposed.

The contract will increase contract costs $373,916, as offered in October. However, a part of the additional funds will be divided among less than 97 staff members who can go no higher on the salary scale.

The board representatives had offered movement and step increases for the teachers, plus an additional $118.

"We took the same amount that was associated with the $118 and spread it to those (approximately) 97 people who are frozen on the schedule for one reason or another," Heim said.

A combined statement from Assistant Superintendent for Finance Rob Scheib, representing the school board, and Robert Haselhuhn, representing Emporia-National Education Association, was released shortly after 8 p.m. today.

The statement explained that the teachers who could not move on the salary schedule would receive an additional $484.

"The additional money for teachers frozen on the salary schedule applies to the current fiscal year only," the joint statement said.

Teachers will vote on the tentative agreement before the Dec. 9 meeting of the school board.

During the public portion of the mediation meeting, which began at 4 p.m., Scheib presented the latest figures showing how the district may be affected by the latest cut in per-pupil state aid and projected the affects of further cuts anticipated from the governor before the end of the year.

Mediation in closed session began about 5 p.m.

For more on the contract talks and the school budget cuts, see the online or print version of Friday's Gazette.

Comments

We allow registered users to post comments on this Web site. To learn more about our posting policies please read our User Poster Agreement Policy.

admireed (anonymous) says...

As usual, screw the taxpayers

November 19, 2009 at 10:43 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

reddog (anonymous) says...

The NEA {National Education Association} was largely financed by the Rockefeller/Carnegia foundations. A 1934 NEA report advised that "a dying laissez-faire must be completely destroyed and America should be subject to a large degree of social control". These foundations are the culprit behind teaching socialism along with John Dewey and a one world government agenda. Go to the Reece Committee-Rockefeller Foundation-NEA.

November 19, 2009 at 11:09 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

reddog (anonymous) says...

Go to Al Benson.com tax free foundations and brainwashing 101.

November 20, 2009 at 2:24 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

reddog (anonymous) says...

Go to Dr Stan Montieth Real Conspiracies: Past and Present Part 1.

November 20, 2009 at 2:34 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

biscuitboy (anonymous) says...

A depression era report written in 1934 is hardly representative of today's NEA nor is it particularly relevant to anything except history...that is of course unless your goal is demagoguery.

November 20, 2009 at 3:51 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

biscuitboy (anonymous) says...

Besides that, I thought laissez-faire capitalism of the kind that brought us the Great Depression as well as our more recent housing and banking meltdown was already pretty much discredited by most thinking people. If not it damned sure should be.

November 20, 2009 at 5:59 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

reddog (anonymous) says...

Go to Lou Rockwell.com How did we get into this mess by james Ostrowski.

November 20, 2009 at 10:23 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

reddog (anonymous) says...

Google critics of NEA. This is an eye-opener!

November 20, 2009 at 4:41 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

reddog (anonymous) says...

Biscuitboy, big government liberals ruined the economy by making big banks make loans to uncredit worthy people through the Community Investment Act promoted by Acorn and President Obama made 950,000 thousand dollars sueing the banks. Read the Architeits of Ruin by Peter Schweizer. If you want more social engineering vote for Health Care and Cap and Trade. If the Health Care bill passes, the government will in effect control 48% of the private sector.

November 23, 2009 at 3:46 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

create (anonymous) says...

Bunk! And just what part did the real estate industry play for keeping the bubble full of hot air? Yeah sure, blame Acorn and Obama when banking and real estate were first in line shoveling the $$ in full time! Lotta deals were made, lotta deals. How many realtors stood firm and told their applicants, "No, your income won't earn you an approval of this loan...how about a smaller house to fit your income?" Give me a break!

I wonder how many realtors felt so bad about the crisis that they returned their commissions when mortgages failed?

November 23, 2009 at 6:46 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

reddog (anonymous) says...

create, if it were not for the liberals promoting the community Investment act, it would never had got off the ground. Its in the book. Banks were not allowed to expand without meeting certain guidelines pertaining to loaning money to folks that were not credit worthy. Go to c span book tv-Architeits of Ruin. The big banks knew the government would bail them out just like the taxpayers did in 1994 when the big banks loaned money to Mexico.

November 23, 2009 at 9:35 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

reddog (anonymous) says...

Create, don't blame the car for the accident it was the driver[Congress and Acorn}. A lot of us should have seen this coming and sold the big bank stocks short and made millions. This is the difference between Sad Sack and Goldman Sacks.

November 23, 2009 at 10:57 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

reality (anonymous) says...

Got a little off topic didn't we? What does the banking/mortgate mess we got ourselves into have to do with teacher's compensation package? The gazette needs to open a new forum called "The Piss and Moan Page". That way the majority of you people who comment can have a place to voice your constant whining.

November 23, 2009 at 11:34 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

reddog (anonymous) says...

The reality is all these liberal programs are going to bankrupt the dollar and there won't be money for teachers. Reality Hurts. Go to Reality tv.com. Have a blessed day.

November 23, 2009 at 12:03 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

reddog (anonymous) says...

The Reality is a massive wealth destruction from years of pursuing a neo-fascist anti-capitalist mentality, monetary inflation, and radical interventionalism, all of which now virtually assures a continuing decline in the nation's material standard of living and that includes teachers.

November 23, 2009 at 12:28 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

reddog (anonymous) says...

The teachers are doing better than the President, go to UTUBE snl skit.

November 23, 2009 at 12:46 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

reality (anonymous) says...

Wow reddog this topic really struck a nerve with you. First of all let me say that I don't necessarily disagree with you, but also I am sure that I am not the only one that grows tired of your incessant complaining. It is what it is, and you complaining about it on the Emporia Gazette forum is going to have zero effect on how things play out in the future. I suggest that if you feel this strongly that you need to get your message out you choose another method. Have a blessed day.

November 23, 2009 at 3:32 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

reddog (anonymous) says...

Reform of collective bargaining-school's should have more authority to hire and fire teachers, remove exclusive rights to bargain clauses, and strengthen management rights-and return funds to taxpayers. Sound business ideas is a way to return a large portion of school budgets to the class room. Big budgets cause us to buy things we don't need and often can't afford. In educational tax savings, we don't need explanations or promises-but only performance is REALITY. Ralph Nader said, "there can be no daily democracy without daily citizenship." James Bucahanan said,"I like the noise of demoracy." The real purpose of my blogs are to trap your mind into doing your own thinking. A blog should serve as the ax for the frozen river within us. Tom Clancy said, "the difference between reality and fiction is-fiction has to make sense."

November 23, 2009 at 6:09 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

goodoleboy (anonymous) says...

So reddog, since you like to throw blame at liberals, riddle me this, who held a majority in Congress and White House while all this was going on? Hmmm...? Who was behind all the deregulation in the late 90's that helped create this?

Liberals and Conservatives are equally at fault for what happened, some people tend to blame Conservatives more because they had the power to stop it, which I tend to agree with, the buck has to stop somewhere, and it does with those holding the power.

And lets not forget the wars, Conservatives can take most of the blame for those, any politician that opposed it was branded "unpatriotic" and burned at the stake. Wonder how the people of this nation are going to like the war "tax" that is going to happen with a troop increase? Think maybe we will wise up and maybe get the hell out and stay like we should have from the start? The one thing I can say about wasted social programs, at least if they want to waste money here the majority of it stays here, and does not go overseas like everything else in recent memory.

I'll concede one thing in what you said, tenure is a problem. There is no accountability for teachers, they get tenure and from that point on short of breaking the law they won't lose their job. It is high time that the performance is tied to pay, and those that don't perform can find a new profession and stop wasting our tax dollars and most importantly, our kids time.

November 23, 2009 at 9:10 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

reddog (anonymous) says...

Please go to Dr. Stan Montieth New World Order. THIS IS PROFOUND.

November 24, 2009 at 1:10 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

reddog (anonymous) says...

Please go to The Final Countdown Radio Interview Dr. Stan Montieth and Billy Crone.

November 24, 2009 at 1:39 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

biscuitboy (anonymous) says...

reddog

I'm not asking you to provide a reading list for me.....I have one of my own. But goodoleboy made some good points and I would like to read your response to them.....not a list of somebody else's response.

November 24, 2009 at 7:03 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

create (anonymous) says...

Absolutely, biscuit boy. Goodoleboy's post was the most intelligent, up-to-date, and introspective I've read in a long, long time.

I myself got involved in teaching at the secondary level twenty some years ago when I was teaching composition classes to college freshmen and kept encountering kids who couldn't put a sentence together enough to save their own lives let alone develop an idea. It was then that I realized that tenure can indeed be a problem if people keep doing the same old thing year after year whether it works or not. Filling time is not teaching. I ran into some of those time fillers who didn't want to change old ways. Merit pay addresses those problem people and either shows them the door or forces them into performance. Quality Performance Accreditation and the introduction of State Standards has helped considerably without having to resort to merit pay, however.

C'mon reddog, let us hear a response to goodoleboy's post based on your own thinking and not someone else's. Be original.

November 24, 2009 at 9:27 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

goodoleboy (anonymous) says...

Just an FYI reddog, read up on the banking failures in the 80's and the savings and loan scandal, sounds eerily familiar to what just happened, this is not the first time, you would think we would have learned by now.......

I would post links but you can "go to it" or "google it" =)

November 24, 2009 at 9:41 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

Advertisements