Long Beach USD achieved a small victory for using criteria beyond seniority to fire teachers.
LBUSD Process For Firing Teachers Stands Up In Court
by Ryan ZumMallen
Long Beach News
07.08.10
After seven days of hearings, a judge ruled today in favor of the Long Beach Unified School District and denied the Teachers Association of Long Beach's assertion that the district did not follow rules while laying off employees.
The local Board of Education is going through its final list of layoffs on July 12.
The judge agreed that the district was within its rights to determine layoffs through its seniority system, its exemption of teachers with training in college readiness programs from the seniority system,
Showing posts with label Teachers Association of Long Beach (TALB). Show all posts
Showing posts with label Teachers Association of Long Beach (TALB). Show all posts
Friday, July 16, 2010
Monday, November 17, 2008
Bakersfield School District apologizes for assault on teacher's character
From the archives:
Bakersfield School Won't Discriminate
Lambda Legal.org
LOS ANGELES
March 18, 1999
Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund announced Thursday that client James Merrick had settled his sexual orientation discrimination case with a California school district.
As part of the agreement, the district will apologize for removing 15 students from the award-winning teacher's science classes and will strengthen district non- discrimination policy...
Lambda and the California Teachers Association (CTA) reached the settlement on behalf of Merrick, after the state Labor Commissioner ruled earlier this month that his Bakersfield school district discriminated against him because of his sexual orientation.
Officials at the Rio Bravo-Greeley Union School District removed 15 of more than 100 students from Merrick's eighth-grade science classes simply because some parents did not want their children in a gay teacher's class. Merrick is a recent recipient of the Teacher of the Year Award from the Bakersfield Chamber of Commerce...
"Faced with a devastating assault on his character, he had the courage to seek justice. The result was a historic case that creates good law for all of us," said Lambda Staff Attorney Myron Dean Quon...
In addition, as part of the settlement, the district will not appeal the Labor Commissioner's decision," said CTA Staff Counsel Scott McVarish...
[Blogger's note: See also Scott McVarish and Teachers Association of Long Beach (TALB)]
In the settlement, approved unanimously by the school district's five-member Board of Trustees, the school district agreed it would not remove students from any class for reasons relating to "the ethnicity, race, national origin, age, sex, actual or perceived sexual orientation, disability, or political or religious beliefs of the classroom teachers."
... "The Board will, in writing, express support for Dr. Merrick as a teacher and regret comments and actions by some members of the public and staff that may have called into question his fitness to teach," the settlement said...
Bakersfield School Won't Discriminate
Lambda Legal.org
LOS ANGELES
March 18, 1999
Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund announced Thursday that client James Merrick had settled his sexual orientation discrimination case with a California school district.
As part of the agreement, the district will apologize for removing 15 students from the award-winning teacher's science classes and will strengthen district non- discrimination policy...
Lambda and the California Teachers Association (CTA) reached the settlement on behalf of Merrick, after the state Labor Commissioner ruled earlier this month that his Bakersfield school district discriminated against him because of his sexual orientation.
Officials at the Rio Bravo-Greeley Union School District removed 15 of more than 100 students from Merrick's eighth-grade science classes simply because some parents did not want their children in a gay teacher's class. Merrick is a recent recipient of the Teacher of the Year Award from the Bakersfield Chamber of Commerce...
"Faced with a devastating assault on his character, he had the courage to seek justice. The result was a historic case that creates good law for all of us," said Lambda Staff Attorney Myron Dean Quon...
In addition, as part of the settlement, the district will not appeal the Labor Commissioner's decision," said CTA Staff Counsel Scott McVarish...
[Blogger's note: See also Scott McVarish and Teachers Association of Long Beach (TALB)]
In the settlement, approved unanimously by the school district's five-member Board of Trustees, the school district agreed it would not remove students from any class for reasons relating to "the ethnicity, race, national origin, age, sex, actual or perceived sexual orientation, disability, or political or religious beliefs of the classroom teachers."
... "The Board will, in writing, express support for Dr. Merrick as a teacher and regret comments and actions by some members of the public and staff that may have called into question his fitness to teach," the settlement said...
Thursday, July 03, 2008
Barbara Kerr is leaving Long Beach teachers under the control of her "deputy"
Former CTA President Barbara Kerr
Teachers in Long Beach got into a power struggle a while back, and that didn't make California Teachers Association (CTA) happy. Instead of allowing the conflict to work itself out democratically and in the courts, CTA took control last October, and still hasn't freed TALB from its control.
Kevin Butler of the Long Beach Press Telegram Long Beach Press Telegram
announced on 06/11/2008 that former CTA president Barbara Kerr will no longer be the official trustee in charge of the local affiliate. After eight months, she is allowing her deputy trustee Jack Cottrell to take over.
Butler writes, "Kerr said she anticipates that the trusteeship will continue through the summer under the leadership of interim executive director and deputy trustee Jack Cottrell...Kerr, a former president of the statewide teachers union, said that the end of the regular school year was a natural time for her to choose to leave voluntarily..."
Good call, Barbara, to leave voluntarily.
The Press Telegram also notes, "Previously, the TALB board hired the executive director. Now, TALB and CTA officials will jointly screen candidates and hire someone..."
The last full time director, Scott McVarish, resigned after an audit that revealed that too much money was spent on politics. Barbara Kerr, however, had nothing but
nice things to say about McVarish.
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Will Barbara Kerr change Long Beach, or will it change her?
Former CTA president Barbara Kerr has taken over as trustee of TALB. Achieving some of the goals on the TALB website will require a change in Barbara's behavior.
DO THESE GOALS REQUIRE A CHANGE FROM BARBARA?
1. "Promote teachers' legal rights"(when crimes committed)--
NO CHANGE REQUIRED
2. "Promote (law-abiding) teachers' legal rights" --
BIG IMPROVEMENT NEEDED
2. "Protect our members" who commit crimes--
NO CHANGE REQUIRED
3. "Protect..." honest, high-performing teachers--
IMPROVEMENT NEEDED
4. "Organize its membership for influence & power"--
NO CHANGE REQUIRED
DO THESE GOALS REQUIRE A CHANGE FROM BARBARA?
1. "Promote teachers' legal rights"(when crimes committed)--
NO CHANGE REQUIRED
2. "Promote (law-abiding) teachers' legal rights" --
BIG IMPROVEMENT NEEDED
2. "Protect our members" who commit crimes--
NO CHANGE REQUIRED
3. "Protect..." honest, high-performing teachers--
IMPROVEMENT NEEDED
4. "Organize its membership for influence & power"--
NO CHANGE REQUIRED
Covering up teacher misconduct? That's right up Barbara Kerr and Beverly Tucker's alley.
Ah! Now it's clear what the problem is in Long Beach: the Teachers Association of Long Beach (TALB)directors take their job seriously.
In this they are polar opposites of the Chula Vista Educators directors, one of whom told me that she didn't know the facts about the lawsuit that she and the rest of the board refused to settle, and that she hadn't seen the lawsuit.
She made it clear that she wanted CVE presidents Gina Boyd and Jim Groth to make authoritative decisions without consulting the rest of the board.
But in Long Beach, according the the www.gazette.com (2/7/2008),
"...in June 2007...several TALB board members voted to fire McVarish, accusing him of misusing union funds and making authoritative decisions without consulting the rest of the board. Several days after the vote, the union's Representative Council met and voted to reinstate McVarish.
www.gazettes.comwww.gazettes.com/mcvarish20720
If he had worked for Chula Vista Educators, McVarish would still have a job. Down here most union affiliate board members appreciate a president who will protect teachers who violate the law and keep Barbara Kerr and Beverly Tucker happy, no matter how much union money is lost in the process.
In this they are polar opposites of the Chula Vista Educators directors, one of whom told me that she didn't know the facts about the lawsuit that she and the rest of the board refused to settle, and that she hadn't seen the lawsuit.
She made it clear that she wanted CVE presidents Gina Boyd and Jim Groth to make authoritative decisions without consulting the rest of the board.
But in Long Beach, according the the www.gazette.com (2/7/2008),
"...in June 2007...several TALB board members voted to fire McVarish, accusing him of misusing union funds and making authoritative decisions without consulting the rest of the board. Several days after the vote, the union's Representative Council met and voted to reinstate McVarish.
www.gazettes.comwww.gazettes.com/mcvarish20720
If he had worked for Chula Vista Educators, McVarish would still have a job. Down here most union affiliate board members appreciate a president who will protect teachers who violate the law and keep Barbara Kerr and Beverly Tucker happy, no matter how much union money is lost in the process.
CTA's Terrifying Twosome (Barbara Kerr/Beverly Tucker) strikes again
Press Telegram Long Beach, California
By Kevin Butler, Staff Writer
03/07/2008
Click here for original article.
"Teachers Association of Long Beach trustee Barbara Kerr Friday denounced a lawsuit filed by members of the teachers union over a takeover by the union's parent organization."
[BLOGGER NOTE:
Kerr is good at denouncing. I'll bet her eyes were spitting fire when she did this.]
"Twenty-two members of the Long Beach teachers union are asking a state court to invalidate the takeover of the local chapter by its state parent union last October.
"The California Teachers Association took over the Teachers Association of Long Beach, then embroiled in an internal leadership struggle, with the aim of restoring "the democratic process" and investigating allegations of financial mismanagement, CTA officials said at the time..."
BLOGGER NOTE:
Since when is a recall not part of the democratic process? Democracy is about leadership struggles. CTA stopped democracy in its tracks.
"TALB is a chapter of CTA, and CTA has the right to impose a trusteeship," she said.
[BLOGGER NOTE:
So why didn't Kerr take over Chula Vista Educators in 2001-2002? She and her lawyer, Beverly Tucker, were informed of criminal actions taken by local union leaders. Instead, she and CTA's head counsel spent teacher dues and obstructed justice to cover up the original misdemeanors and keep the wrongdoers in power.]
"The 22 TALB union members on Feb. 25 filed a lawsuit in California Superior Court alleging that the takeover violated California corporations code...
"The union members in the lawsuit also argue that they were denied a fair hearing before the CTA Board of Directors on Oct. 18 placed TALB in "trusteeship" under the leadership of former CTA president Kerr..."
[BLOGGER NOTE:
Of course they were denied a fair hearing. The board of directors, including Barbara Kerr when she was President, simply does what head legal counsel Beverly Tucker and executive director Carolyn Doggett tells it to do.]
"The lawsuit also asks the court to require to move forward an internal election to recall one TALB board member. Kerr halted the recall process when she took over the union.
"Two of the plaintiffs - Carrie Jones-Brown and Treva Kelly - were vying to replace TALB board member Patria Daliva, who was the target of the recall
effort."
[BLOGGER NOTE:
Ah, yes. Protecting people who are in power is a guiding principle for Beverly Tucker and Barbara Kerr (also known as "Barbarly Kerrtuck").]
"Also at issue in the lawsuit is the upcoming April 8 school board election in
which TALB has endorsed two candidates - Paul Crost and Rosa Diaz - who
each are challenging an incumbent.
"The members in the lawsuit claim that Kerr has refused to implement the union's "political action program" supporting the two candidates..."
[BLOGGER NOTE:
My guess is that these candidates were too independent; Kerr and Tucker and Doggett suspected them of having divided loyalties. In other words, they might put the good of students ahead of the power of the union.]
By Kevin Butler, Staff Writer
03/07/2008
Click here for original article.
"Teachers Association of Long Beach trustee Barbara Kerr Friday denounced a lawsuit filed by members of the teachers union over a takeover by the union's parent organization."
[BLOGGER NOTE:
Kerr is good at denouncing. I'll bet her eyes were spitting fire when she did this.]
"Twenty-two members of the Long Beach teachers union are asking a state court to invalidate the takeover of the local chapter by its state parent union last October.
"The California Teachers Association took over the Teachers Association of Long Beach, then embroiled in an internal leadership struggle, with the aim of restoring "the democratic process" and investigating allegations of financial mismanagement, CTA officials said at the time..."
BLOGGER NOTE:
Since when is a recall not part of the democratic process? Democracy is about leadership struggles. CTA stopped democracy in its tracks.
"TALB is a chapter of CTA, and CTA has the right to impose a trusteeship," she said.
[BLOGGER NOTE:
So why didn't Kerr take over Chula Vista Educators in 2001-2002? She and her lawyer, Beverly Tucker, were informed of criminal actions taken by local union leaders. Instead, she and CTA's head counsel spent teacher dues and obstructed justice to cover up the original misdemeanors and keep the wrongdoers in power.]
"The 22 TALB union members on Feb. 25 filed a lawsuit in California Superior Court alleging that the takeover violated California corporations code...
"The union members in the lawsuit also argue that they were denied a fair hearing before the CTA Board of Directors on Oct. 18 placed TALB in "trusteeship" under the leadership of former CTA president Kerr..."
[BLOGGER NOTE:
Of course they were denied a fair hearing. The board of directors, including Barbara Kerr when she was President, simply does what head legal counsel Beverly Tucker and executive director Carolyn Doggett tells it to do.]
"The lawsuit also asks the court to require to move forward an internal election to recall one TALB board member. Kerr halted the recall process when she took over the union.
"Two of the plaintiffs - Carrie Jones-Brown and Treva Kelly - were vying to replace TALB board member Patria Daliva, who was the target of the recall
effort."
[BLOGGER NOTE:
Ah, yes. Protecting people who are in power is a guiding principle for Beverly Tucker and Barbara Kerr (also known as "Barbarly Kerrtuck").]
"Also at issue in the lawsuit is the upcoming April 8 school board election in
which TALB has endorsed two candidates - Paul Crost and Rosa Diaz - who
each are challenging an incumbent.
"The members in the lawsuit claim that Kerr has refused to implement the union's "political action program" supporting the two candidates..."
[BLOGGER NOTE:
My guess is that these candidates were too independent; Kerr and Tucker and Doggett suspected them of having divided loyalties. In other words, they might put the good of students ahead of the power of the union.]
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