This response was e-mailed in as it was too long for the comment section of the original post
I appreciate the fact that the five individuals identified in The
Press article are willing to pay approx. 7 percent into their
health plans but I am wondering what this 7 percent really amounts
to? How much money are we talking about for each individual and
what were these five paying in years past? Seems to me that the
highly compensated business administrator can afford to give this
back considering she’s being given a raise of over $4,000/year.
The same applies for the superintendant, the two principals, and
the curriculum supervisor.
President Malaspina states that the Board is hoping the new
administrative contracts can set an example for the teachers’
contract. Are they that naïve? I am assuming that what the
district pays in terms of health care for each of those five is the
same that they pay for each teacher. Is the Board planning to ask
each teacher to contribute the same 7 percent? I’m guessing that
my child’s teacher would agree to the 7 percent were he/she looking
at a $4,000 raise. However, he/she makes about $30,000/year less
than the business administrator and less than half what the
superintendant makes. I don’t think they’re going to bite on the
7%, not to mention the rest of the people his/her union represents.
I am really starting to wonder about each member of our school
board if they are satisfied with the deal they have just cut.
When, just when, are they going to take a critical look at the
school staffing overall and start making some significant changes
that would result in some meaningful tax savings to the residents
of Mullica?
For example, who in this community truly believes that our schools,
with a total enrollment of less than 750 really needs a full-time
superintendant and two full-time principals? The salaries of those
five individuals mentioned in the article will total over $510,000
next year EXCLUDING their benefits! In addition, it is my
understanding that each one of them has at least one full-time
secretary. Why does our district have one superintendant and two
principals for less than 750 students and about 70 teachers when
our high school only has one superintendant, one assistant
superintendant, one principal and two vice principals for over
1,700 students and 130 teachers? Does this seem comparable? How
does our Board feel about this? Do they even compare these
statistics? At a minimum, do all five of these individuals need to
be full-time year-round? Don’t tough times call for tough measures?
It seems to me that we have asked quite a bit of our children’s
teachers… not always replacing their positions when one quits or
retires, make due with less supplies, take on various volunteer
positions, support our various fundraising programs, contribute out-
of-their-pockets to the functioning of their own classrooms, etc.
What have we asked of the administrators? Have we asked them to
make due with less? These recent salary increases and the fact
that there has been no reduction in bodies or hours here for as
long as I can recall, make me believe that the answer is “NO”.
In addition, while I am not proposing that we terminate the shared
service agreement with Green Bank, I am wondering whether our Board
monitors the time the upper-echelon spends there to make this
agreement work? Does anyone know how much time the principals
spend there? I was told that the principal of the primary school
is at Green Bank three times per week for a half a day each time?
Is this correct? That school has only 10% of the enrollment that
our district does. Isn’t it logical that Green Bank would only
require 10% of his time? If we can spare the kind of time that he
spends over there, then can’t that position be reduced to part time
/ partial year? The savings on that salary alone plus benefits
would have to come close to what we’re receiving from Green Bank,
if not exceed it!
Finally, my child mentioned that one of his special teachers comes
into their classroom weekly to assist with reading. (A “special”
teacher is someone who teaches art, music, gym, etc.). When I
asked my child’s teacher about this, he/she said that my child was
correct and that the teacher visits a different classroom each day
for over an hour. I also learned that there are a variety of
“special” teachers who do this each day and that these teachers are
also utilized for a variety of other jobs that could be performed
by lower-paid, part-time aides (bus duty, lunch room duty, etc.).
I say kudos for these teachers being forced to keep busy during
their down time, HOWEVER, this question needs to be asked… Has our
School Board even considered why all of these positions are full-
time if they are not fully utilized in their area of expertise?
Does our Board even know this is occurring? Are they asking the
right questions?
When is the last time that our School Board President, or any other
board member, has actually walked around the school during school
hours to see for themselves what is occurring in terms of
productivity?
My extended family has always supported our local school budget,
whether we had children attending the school at the time of the
vote or not. However, upon becoming aware of all of the above, I
don’t believe I could support another increase in my taxes or re-
elect any of the existing board members until I am convinced that
the seemingly “low hanging fruit” is picked. I hope my fellow
Mullicans will begin demanding more of our Board members and the
Administrators.
Mr. Goldberg and President Malaspina, stop raising my taxes, stop
getting rid of the teachers that directly impact our children, and
stop cutting programs that benefit the school children of Mullica
when you both know there are other obvious means available to meet
our town’s school budget!
Under any other circumstance, I would be most comfortable signing
my name to this post. However, out of concern for my child’s
teacher who has been forthright and honest in answering my
questions, I cannot sign my name.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Response to Mullica BOE approves raises for five school administrators
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31 comments:
Excellent post!
This is a situation that is repeated throughout our State but on a much larger scale in some cities. Check out www.thecartelmovie.com and watch all of the trailers. While I never believe 100% of everything I read or hear because most people have an agenda, if half of what is portrayed in this documentary is true then it is a sad state of affairs.
We are lucky hear in Mullica because we are small enough to "watch the store". I would think in larger cities like Newark, it would be more difficult for the ordinary citizen to understand just where the money is going.
Electing Board members that truly reflect your postions and desires is the only way for us ordinary citizens to watch out store.
Well said and I agree! Now let's see if anything happens as a result. Can we convince the writer of the response to run for our
school board?
According to the Press, Mullica Twp's 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade are below the State average in Language skills.
3rd grade- 47.8% FAILED,4th grade- 39.7% FAILED, 5th grade 37.5% FAILED.
This is not acceptable yet the teachers and administration think they deserve more money and the gold plated benefits that hardly any of the parents and taxpayers can afford.
We, as a small rural town, can not afford to keep putting more and more money into their unproductive pockets as our children are forced into larger classrooms and given less and less every year.
Our seniors and disabled were not given raises this year. Many people are unemployed. People are having tax liens put on their homes or are facing forclosure. A lot of people in this town don't even have health insurance and those that do buy their own, spend between $500 -$1,500 a month.
The teachers and adminstrators need wake up from their dream world and see how the people are struggling with everyday real life.
Our school,which was once called a "jewel", is already going down hill. If the teachers won't be reasonable and start paying for some of their benefits or accept a less than desired salary, soon we will have to have lay offs. Our children will suffer if they have one highly paid,full benefited teacher in a class of 50 or more kids.
Our State test scores which are bad now, will only be get worse if we lose more teachers and programs. I agree that the adminstration staff could be cut but the teachers have to be reasonable in their expectations this year.
Those are the test results from the third, fourth and fifth graders that they took last year. I am curious to see how those same third and fourth graders fare on the testing they will have this year.
I am disappointed with the school system in general and feel the teachers and administration have let us down because we were once considered one of the best public school systems in Atlantic County and I would love to know where we fall now.
While a handful of Mullica teachers appreciate that they have it much better than their counterparts in Pleasantville, Atlantic City, and other troubled cities, the teachers' union has browbeaten them to make sure that they don't give a community like Mullica the "hometown discount." Educators in some of New Jersey's more difficult districts would likely give their right arm to trade places with the teachers here. As one previous poster stated, classroom sizes will get bigger as younger, newer teachers lose their jobs thanks to the greedy long-timers who don't care about the job security of the newer teachers. Shameful.
I do not have children in the school system and I never voted in the school board elections or on the budget because I always thought that the parents,teachers and administrators would vote in the best people for the job and they would give the children the best possible education for our tax dollars.
I'm very disappointed about the test scores. The school tax is the biggest item on the tax bill. It appears that the Administration is getting the largest piece of the pie. We certainly do not need 2 principals for 750 kids. This should be investigated along with other cuts mentioned by the poster. That money could go directly into programs to bring the children back up to at least State level.
I will be voting in the next school election and I hope someone like the original poster will be running for office.
I haven't voted in the election either, but don't worry I will make sure that I vote down the budget every time from now on!
Let me see if I got the math right? 700 students in Mullica School and 70 teachers equals a class size of 10. When I went to school we had class sizes of 30 to 40 with no aides to help the teachers and I was able to post this note in English!!!! I even learned enough to get a job that paid enough to afford our ridiculous taxes - well, up until now!
The 70 teachers must include all the “special” teachers, including physical education, etc., as well as support staff. There is no way the class sizes are 10 students per teacher. Some of the classroom sizes have over 25 students.
Even with this large amount of teachers and support staff and nearly half of the third grade students failing the English portion of the State tests, they want to be rewarded with raises?
Maybe it's time for both the administration and teachers to realize that in this economy, they should be grateful for the jobs and benefits they already have and not keep asking for more and more from the taxpayer's.
Larry used to refer to the teachers' union as being greedy and the teachers cry babies.
They're still the same today. Nothing has changed. Their rallying cry has always been "think of the children" as the try to justify their big raises and gold-plated benefits and taxpayer-paid retirement packages that the rest of us working stiffs can no longer afford to pay, and don't get ourselves.
Their justification for more that I like most is "you have to pay us more so we don't move to better paying districts". What a joke. Please, move. We can't afford you any longer. We'll hire someone lower on the pay scale to replace you. And the other, "we're taxpayers too" as they argue not to have to contribute to their health care costs and retirement like the rest of us taxpayer do.
What do the teachers pay now for medical and what are their deductibles and co-pays?
Maybe the teachers should pay as much as the rest of us do for insurance. That is closer to 13%. They only have to pay $200 per year now and they are complaining? Maybe they should wake up to reality!
re 12:17 pm
Hiring lower on the pay scale would be a good idea but I heard rumors of just the opposite.
I heard that any new hires would have to have Masters Degrees. This would cost us tens of thousands of dollars more for a new teacher.
Do we really need this for the lower grades?
Can anyone out there confirm this rumor?
The teachers do an important job and I have no problem with well compensated teachers. My problem is with the administration-too many of them getting too much.
We had a former school board member not all that long ago who insisted at the time that her kids' education here was a bargain but by the time that they had graduated she couldn't afford her ever-increasing property taxes anymore and was forced to move and find work in a low tax state.
If you don't have the correct facts, please don't state incorrect ones in their absence. The teachers pay more than $200/year for health insurance.
RE: 1:01 AM
Enlighten us with the correct facts, please.
Teachers pay $400/year, Support staff pay $200/year.
Mullica teachers are the only ones in Atlantic co. that pay into their health benefits - even recently settled distrcits (Buena , Absecon) don't pay into them.
If Mullica's pay scale is low and teachers are made to pay large amounts into their health benefits - How will the district be able to replace the many upcoming retirees with quality people? What happens to our "jewel" then?
re 1:28 pm
There are many college grads that will be thrilled to join our school system.
New enthusiasm, new methods & high energy can be brought into the school for a lot less money then we're paying now.
Let's hope the Board will set a minimum salary and let them grow into benefits slowly.
A $400 year contribution to health benefits amounts to less than 1% of a starting Mullica teacher's pay, while the people paying their benefits often are also paying ten times or more for the own, less comprehensive insurance plans. They don't have the luxury of $3 and $5 co-pays either that the teachers have. The teachers need to pay much more.
I would like to start this blog with this in mind; negativity is contagious, but positive encouragement can overcome and enlighten those who want to believe in a promising tomorrow. It is easy to point the finger and pass the blame, but it’s when you open your eyes and take positive action then we can all agree to work together. Let’s make our community a better place for the youth of today. Yes it is no doubt that times are difficult and that we have faced many burdens. It is our job today to fix today’s problems and promise our youth a better future. I believe that is what Mullica Twp. Educators were doing, are doing, and will be doing. I have no doubt that Mullica Twp. School district is one of the best- hidden jewels in South Jersey. I don’t think we give Mullica Twp. Educators enough praise for the amount of time and energy they put in to our school district. Many community members are unaware of the amount of work that coincides becoming an educator. When most people work a 9-5 job, they leave their place of employment and their day is finished. When a teacher takes his or her job, not only do they sign on for the love of teaching, but also sign on as the unsung hero. They come in two hours early and staying maybe two hours or more after their regular day is through. Many people forget that our unsung heroes (our educators) do not live in their classroom. When they leave their job, not only do they bring home piles of work, but also sometimes that work takes precedence over family time that they you and I take for granted. Many of Mullica’s educators are moms, dads, grandmas, grandpas, etc. and when you and I are home enjoying special time with our families, our educators are planning, grading, and making projects for Mullica’ youth. So much time and energy goes into Mullica’s wonderful school system. When you and I have extra money saved up we spend it on our families or special needs. When Mullica Teachers have money saved up, they are spending it on their classroom needs or student needs. Did you know that the teachers in Mullica would only get thirty dollars to spend on their classrooms per. Year? I am pretty sure when you do the math, that might buy each student a pencil. Did you also know that these teachers were not given their thirty dollars last year and will not get it this year? So how do all the teachers have such wonderful teaching tools in their classrooms? Yes you guessed it, instead of buying that nice dress or fancy suit, your classroom teachers spent their hard earned money on their classroom. I guess I could go on with the many wonderful things I know that our classroom teachers do. Instead of looking at the negative points, let’s focus on the good, the positive on Mullica’s education. Thank you teachers, you are wonderful. Until someone walks in your classroom and really asks you what you do. Please don’t forget there are community members who think you are wonderful job and appreciate the many “hats” you wear while you are teaching our youth. I think you are the unsung heroes that need a standing ovation.
Our teachers are being paid enough.
In the good old days, teachers and other public sector workers were paid far less than the average incomes of private sector employees. Public sector workers were rewarded for their pay inequity in the form of very good pension and medical benefits. It was a trade-off.
The world has changed now, with these same public workers earning more than the average private sector workers. Lower-earning private sector workers receive no guaranteed pension and often pay anywhere from $1,200 to $12,000 PER YEAR toward their benefits.
A little bit of honesty would go a long way: how about the teachers admitting that working in Mullica is a pretty good gig compared to, say, Atlantic City, Pleasantville, and most other towns in Atlantic County? That kind of admission would help their cause, not hurt it. Instead, parents of Mullica's children are left to shake their heads and wonder, are these the same teachers that I have come to know over the past however-many years?
We all have things in life to be thankful for...the teachers will need to express a little more appreciation for what they have if they want the taxpayers to identify with what their needs are. Otherwise, they look like the same spoiled crybabies that we have come to associate with professional athletes.
I think the teachers in Mullica are appreciative of what they have - that's why they don't leave and that's why they fight to keep what they have. If you listen, you will hear statements of "County Average" and "just looking for what other districts in the county are doing/getting/paying" in return for the hard work and dedication that is the norm in Mullica.
RE 10:54 am
I understand what you're saying about the teachers coming in early and staying late. They are making this choice to get their work done.
People on a salary don't get paid overtime if they put in a 50 hr. week to get their work done.
Teachers also get the whole summer off to do whatever they please.
I don't think that any of the teachers should have to put out their own money to pay for classroom supplies. That is just wrong.
This Board should supply every classroom with all the tools that the teachers need.
What good are two Principals and all the top Administrative people being paid for if they can't provide paper,pencils or learning tools for the kids.
Teachers only work 180 days a year for their money and benefits. The rest of us work 250 days a year, if we are lucky enough to have a job in this poor economy. Many of us are struggling financially. The teachers need to get their heads out of the clouds or they will soon price themselves out of the market and the government will be giving out vouchers for private schools.
When I was a kid my parents had to supply a book bag, pencils, loose leaf paper,a binder, construction paper, glue, a pencil sharpener, a ruler and a notebook. (We even had to walk to school.) That's not asking a lot from the parents. Why would anyone expect the school or teachers to supply them?
People I think you are forgetting that half of Mullica's teachers pay is "up there" only because Mullica's teachers have been working in the district for a long, long time. So therefore, yes their pay looks like it's high on the payscale, because half or more then half of the teachers have been teaching 12+ years. So I dont' understand why we are making such a fuss. They put their time in, they earned their pay. At your job don't you get a pay increase with time?
I am worried about our new teachers, are they going to get an increase in pay? What is going to be the incentive to keep our new teachers in Mullica? If we are not willing to give the teachers any help, we will a turn around on teachers. Yes on paper this looks great ( when talking about money) , but we will see a major problem with education. Education will become inconsistent. We need teacehers to stay in their positions to help pave a path for consistency and a promising tomorrow. Yes again on paper teachers work 182 days... and you think they are off in the summer, but I know many teachers work summer jobs to pay bills. So are they off or are they just like you and I trying to make ends meet? NO teachers are not off in the summer they work and if they are not getting paid to work, they are getting ready for the upcoming school year.
RE: 11:57 AM
The reality of it is that a lot of parents do not send their children in prepared and the teacher's do take a lot out of their pockets for things like extra pencils, rulers, pencil sharpeners, glue, the gifts that get sent home for holidays to the parents, decorating the classroom, the "library" in the class of books during the free time when the kids get to read. $30 is nothing.
The book fair has a program where you can buy a book for a classroom and a bookplate is put inside the book with the student's or family's name who donated it.
The teachers do spend a lot out of their pockets for things like the goodie boxes in the lower grades, little holidays gifts & birthday gifts for their students. As a parent, I received gifts my children made each year they were in the elementary school and the teacher paid for all the supplies for these gifts, not including the time it took them to help make each item.
The administrators should give them more to spend on classroom decorations, supplies, etc. and it's not fair to the teacher's to have to put out so much money for things the classroom should have, like pencils, glue and other supplies.
And to clarify, no I am not a teacher.
3:47 You should be worried about the newer teachers. Just because the unified contract might indicate a 3% raise per year for example, the older teachers typically get more of a percentage then the younger ones. A 15 year veteran might get 2% while a 3 year teacher gets 1%. 2% of $60,000 is a lot more than 1% of 40,000.00. So, yes the more veteran teachers drive up the overall salary expense. I agree, I'm sure there are younger, energetic, and well qualified teachers who would love to come teach in our town.
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