The Oley Valley School District started a process, which drastically reduces access to school information.
The school board approved a public participation policy inhibiting and preventing community comment at regular school board meetings. They continued their assault on our rights with a new public record request policy that potentially makes school documents too expensive for review.
Apparently, these tactics are not enough because the administration recently refused a public document at a budget meeting. The business manager gave the school board a “big ticket list” for them to consider for the 2007-2008 budget. When asked at the meeting for a copy of this list, the business manager refused the request. The district even denied the document after a written request.
What is on this list the school board does not want the community to see?
Is it another $1,400,000 non-educational pork barrel project? Are they planning another Taj Mahal building even though student enrollment cannot justify such expenditure? Does the administration want a grandiose duplication of our high-speed internet connections? Does the administration want a complete refurbishing of their offices with mahogany desks, Chippendale chairs, and oriental rugs? Does the superintendent want another $13,000 pay increase? Are we facing another $1,000,000 lawsuit? Does the school board want more money for banquets?
We know one item that is not on the list, tax relief.
The preliminary 2007-2008 budget submitted to the state has our millage rising from 22.50 mills to 23.85 mills, a 6% increase. This will be the seventh consecutive increase in school property taxes.
Yet the budget states the district has “Total Cash and Short Term Investments” totaling $4,575,400!
$4,575,400 of excessive taxation dollars sitting in funds and a wish list the board does not want us to see.
You do the math.
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«Oldest ‹Older 201 – 210 of 210The union has strength and power because politicians and courts have given it to them. They also periodically have to remind local boards of that power through acts of pettiness. I am reminded of the time one year when, because of illness, our custodial staff was shorthanded in the middle school. Because of that, the middle school principal asked each teacher if they would wash their own blackboards for a couple days. Needless to say, the union threatened to file a grievance if the request was not withdrawn. Since the union knew we wouldn't waste the money to fight it they used that petty issue to flex their muscles and let us know who was really in charge. It can demoralize a board real fast...
What RS has posted in the last blog, has got to be the most pathetic thing I have ever heard of.
A representative of the Oley Teacher's Union local told me at a board meeting, that they were concerned for the children.
Obviously this is not the case, has not been the case and never will be the case. The children do not mean anything to our teachers - that is, except for a very, very few in this district. I know who they are, they know who they are, and those who do not give a !!!! know who they themselves are.
How utterly pathetic. The children are just a PAYCHECK to them.
And the administrators wonder why charter schools are coming into play.
I think it's time for the parents who really care about the education that their children are receiving, to start to pull their children out of the public schools and start to find alternate ways to educate them.
There are quite a few wonderful charter schools and cyber charter schools out there, and I believe it's time to send these money-grubbing teachers a message as to what education is about, and it is NOT ABOUT THE TEACHERS' PAYCHECK.
If parents do not step up to the plate now, this country will spiral downwards at an alarming rate, and the rest of the world will be watching and waiting.
I challenge the teachers in this Oley School District to stand up against the teacher's union and reinstitute real education.
I will make a bet there is not one teacher who has the GUTS TO DO THIS.
PROVE ME WRONG.
I heard there is a wonderful performing arts charter school up Allentown/Bethlehem way.
This is definitely a program that Oley cannot and would not offer.
Parents, you need to look into these options, as there is no charge to the parents. This money has to come out of the local school district's state allocation and local allocation for YOUR CHILD.
Perhaps when Oley loses half their enrollment, they will get it.
Anyone want to bet on that?
There is one a absolutely wonderful teacher who has stood up against the system. This teacher is not a member of the union because of integrity.
Because this teacher was outspoken, they were removed from the department chair and replaced with a lesser, more docile individual. That's what the union does to those who have integrity, backbone and true grit.
So, folks, we have ONE teacher who has put their individual integrity on the line. This person's example showed the other weak individuals what happens to those who stand for truth. Thank God, this person continues to teach, and blesses so many good students.
One parent I know credits this teacher with her daughter going on to become a physician in a very difficult area of specialty. One has to wonder how many other lives this teacher has influenced for the good, and how much better the system could be if others would have had the guts to stand for real education.
I know who this teacher is and my daughter has had a great experience with him. She will take one more class with him next year for her final year at this district and cannot wait to be back in his classroom. He is what you call a great teacher.
No, it has long been held that teachers are not required to, either be a union member, or have their none union service charges be used for political purposes (sic - support the Democrat party). However, since they, the teachers, as a group, have no backbone or principles, they blindly follow along and join the union.
Thank God for the few teachers who refuse to be intimidated into joining the socialist movement presented throughout the teacher's union's doctrine.
Hi. Remember me?
Well, then there must be more than one teacher who doesn't belong to the union, because I know of a female teacher who is not a member. She is also an awesome teacher!
I guess everyone is too shocked to comment on last night's vote on the track. Oh, that's right, it isn't going to cost us anything because the money is coming out of donations, grants and the Capital Reserve Fund.
No surprise here about the track and all the extras.
Everybody has great plans to take more of our money -- any fool can do that. No one seems to have an interest in cutting overhead and increasing efficiency. We need public servants with integrity. Wow, that would be a miracle!
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