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Volume 7 #1 | Volume 7 #2 | Volume 7 #3 | Volume 7 #4 | Volume 7 #5
Help Defend and Support Public Education -
Donations Needed for NEA-PAC Fund for Children
The results of the election of GDEA Officers and Contract Managers are as follows:
President -- Carolyn Scafidi
Vice President -- Deb Ricci
Secretary -- Catherine Dart
Treasurer -- Lucas Smith
Assistant Treasurer -- Clare O'Neill
Contract Managers:
Unit A Elementary -- Alan Rider
Unit A Middle School -- Anne Polaski
Unit A High School -- Rick Arena
Unit C -- write in votes were received for Chris Tucker. She has been notified and has not yet accepted the position.
Unit D -- Donna Deforge
Thank you to all that helped with the Variety Show, it was a big success! Once again we have had a successful fundraiser thanks to the generosity of all who participated, contributed and supported the Variety Show & raffle. We couldn’t do it without your help. The GDEA board extends its heartfelt “Thanks”! We’d like to form a committee for next year’s show & it would be great to have someone from every building involved.
Bill # SB1513 – the legislature is working on a bill that would allow teachers who had been laid off and later recalled to purchase the laid off time as creditable service towards retirement. Senator Steven Panagiotakos is Chair of The Senate Ways and Means Committee, the committee currently considering the bill. Please contact Senator Panagiotakos and urge him to report favorably on SB1513. The Senator can be reached at 617-722-1630 or e-mail: Steven.Panagiotakas@state.ma.us We have found in the past that an old fashioned letter sometimes gets a betterresponse from the legislators than does an e-mail.
GDEA Retirement Party: The annual GDEA Retirement Party will be held on May 2, 2008 at The Westford Regency. We have 7 retirees we will be honoring at this party. They are Joanne Antonelli, Jane Harmon, Betty Irelan, Carolyn Jakubiak, Pat Ruby, Joellen Sheehan, & Carolyn Starrett. If you know of any other member that is retiring or has retired during this year, please let the GDEA board know so they may be included in the festivities.
GDEA Website - You can now access the new website. The link is:
http://groton-dunstable.massteacher.org
This is a work in progress and Carol Bradford would like any input and is willing to add documents that are forwarded to her pertaining to the GDEA. Contracts & newsletter and other links are there now. Check it out!
Evaluations: A good practice to initiate whenever you have an evaluation is to attach a letter of response to your evaluation. This practice should be for all evaluations whether good or not. It reaffirms your acknowledgement of review.
The MTA Annual Meeting: The GDEA is allowed 6 members to attend the MTA Annual meeting in Boston on May 9th & 10th.
Election Notice:
The annual election of Executive Board members will be held on May 8th. Nomination forms will be available online in the GDEA folder which you can download . To be eligible to run you need to be an active member of the GDEA and have served as an RA or Board Member for at least one year. You’ll need 10 signatures of active members from at least 2 different schools . The deadline for returning the nomination form is May Read more.
Negotiations:
The Unit A Negotiating Team has been elected and looks forward to starting their negotiations after the start of the New Year. The Unit A Negotiating Team will consist of: Joyce Gilmartin, Jim Klock, Linda Maillet & Sean Murphy.
Thank you to Jen Dinneen for helping the negotiations by heading up a group to solicit concerns & issues most important to members for the upcoming negotiations.
Negotiation Update: Unit A is currently in negotiations & Unit C has ratified their contract retro to July 1, 2007. Thanks to the people serving on these committees for their time & effort. These are tough times to be in negotiations with the financial climate of the district.
Reminder: Maternity Leaves
Please speak to your Contract Manager or a member of the Executive Board before you submit a letter for maternity leave. Your wording makes all the difference when granting the request and we want it to go smoothly for you.
New Benefit: Speaking of Maternity Leave the GDEA has voted to pay the MTA/NEA dues for a year long unpaid leave for current members so you can maintain your rights upon return. You must notify Luke Smith prior to the leave so he can make the necessary arrangements for this benefit. Any questions submit them to the Executive Board and we’ll address it at the meeting.
By-Laws
The by-law committee is in the process of reviewing our by-laws this year. If you have anything you think should be added or deleted or a proposal, please send it to one of the committee members by January 2, 2008 for review.
Members:
Debbie Ricci/ Prescott
Brian LeBlanc/Retired
Clare O’Neill/ MS
Adam Snodgrass/MS
All Teacher Rooms were given a folder with a copy of the By-laws at the beginning of the school year for you to review.
Reminder: If you know of member that is ill, had a loss of a family member or birth of a child, please let your RA know. The GDEA likes to acknowledge these occasions but we need your help in keeping us informed. Sometimes things are not common knowledge and we miss sending out a card. Your help with this is appreciated.
Teachers: Teachers need to stay in their buildings during prep time because it is paid time. During lunchtime you may leave the building.
Meeting Time: Each teacher is responsible for keeping track & documenting their own meeting time. Contractually, 35 hours is mandatory. You are not required to attend meetings after that, but you need to let your principal know that you have reached your 35 hours required contractually.
Speak to Union Rep: If you are unsure about anything in your contract or have a question, please speak to your union rep or any member of the Executive Board.. This includes questions about sick days, personal days, or any matter that concerns you. Together we show our unification and strength and we are here to keep the integrity of the contracts in tact. Don’t go it alone.