CLEANING THE SCHOOL HOUSE IN RHODE ISLAND

Seventy-four teachers will face termination tomorrow if Frances Gallo, Superintendent of Education in Central Falls, and the teacher’s labor union can not reach an agreement. Ms. Gallo is cleaning house and she has the backing of the federal and state authorities to do so. In a high school that has a 48% graduation rate and 50% of students are failing all subjects right now, drastic measures need to be taken. The Superintendent came up with a plan asking for six things from the faculty. Those included:

*Extending the school day 25 minutes. Instead of attending from 7:50 - 2:25, they would attend from 8:00 - 3:00.

*Format a tutoring schedule for the kids who needed extra help. It would consist of an hour before school and after. Teachers would be scheduled to cover this on a rotating schedule.

*Agree to eat lunch with the kids once a week in hopes of building relationships with the students.

*Two weeks of Professional Development during the summer at a pay rate of $30 an hour.

*An hour and a half after school once a week to review test scores and work with other faculty members to find more effective ways to reach the students.

*Accept more rigorous evaluations by a third party evaluator.

From what I have read, I get the impression that most of the teachers are not totally against it and would be open to learning more about what would be expected. The labor union, however, says no. These teachers are presently being paid anywhere between $70,000 and $79,000 a year to educate and put the children's first.

I work in our local school district and although I’m not a teacher, I see everyday what our teachers do. Noone demands more money for after school faculty meetings or departmental meetings. Most times there are teachers who volunteer their time to stay after school to help those who want extra help….again with no thought of payment compensation. They do it because they are concerned for the future of our kids….they care. I’m sure that there are two sides to every story and then the truth, but right now the teachers in Rhode Island are looking as if they need a career change.