Greetings, Dr. Henderson –

This letter is in response to the communication that was distributed recently, titled “Community Letter” and sent on 03.23.2023. The PTU and all its members are extremely concerned with the overreach and misleading items outlined in this message; thus, we have provided this letter as a response to the mistruths and distorted information that you proffered to the district.

The PTU Leadership strives to work collaboratively with our administration, however, many obstacles have been set before us. You and your administrative team have repeatedly violated labor laws and our rights as employees. We continue to struggle with resolving issues as reflected by the nearly two dozen grievances and unfair labor practice (ULP) charges, all of which stem from your tenure as Superintendent. This is mostly due to you, your administrative team, and the Board’s refusal to meet with us to even attempt to resolve our many grievances. It’s important to mention the unnecessary costs to the taxpayers to address these clear violations of the CBA are both significant and unprecedented. The ongoing fight connected to the many grievances and ULP charges and its cost is certainly not effective stewardship of community resources.

Regarding your comment that you would like to see teachers be paid as much as the teachers in other districts in the area for their continued hard work, we very much agree. However, your vague attempt to connect student outcomes with teacher pay is not the answer to moving student performance forward, as it has not been proven to be effective in other districts. Furthermore, teachers should be involved in all conversations about programs and policies that are connected to increasing student success and outcomes. Over the past year, I have witnessed the administration’s unwillingness to collaborate with the PTU in general over issues that deeply impact both staff and students.

In addition, the limitations placed on faculty by the ongoing issues with safety, larger class sizes, lack of accountability, efficacy, and resources for all students, including EL and Special Education students, hinders the effectiveness of any of the programs that have been attempted to be put into place. Additionally, the absence of true and clear tardy and attendance policies as well as the 50% lowest grade requirement, further directly limit the abilities of teachers to create greater rigor in the classroom and ultimately provide truly consistent and competitive preparation of our students to effectively move into their respective post-secondary experiences.

Another example of misleading information is regarding the 50% lowest grade policy. This policy was adopted and implemented during the national pandemic as a result of a high number of failing grades being earned while remote learning. This decision was made without the input of all stakeholders, including parents, students, and teachers. The grading policy continues to be a limiting factor to real student success and has the potential to negatively impact students in their remaining time in D209 and beyond. Students continue to express their lack of drive due to the existence of this policy. Much research regarding the “covid-slide” in student motivation and enthusiasm has been reported across the nation. As outlined by the CBA, the PTU has the right to “ask and receive an ‘Ad Hoc committee’” meeting[s] connected to policy and procedures employed by the district. The PTU has requested an Ad Hoc committee to review the 50% grading policy. As of today, you have made no attempts to meet with PTU. It is vitally important to set up these conversations.

Last year’s strike was the result of the unwillingness of the administration to address the myriad needs of teachers and, by extension, our students. The negotiation process was severely hampered by your frequently missed and/or rescheduled meeting times, purposefully calling for long intervals between meetings, and a blatant disregard for the PTU’s request to meet more frequently. As such, the negotiation process became harmful for teachers, their families, and the community in which we all serve.

The PTU strongly agrees with one sentiment that was expressed in the communication piece: that the success of our students must be found in the collaboration between teachers and administration. That being said, the district needs to provide tools and resources for teachers to be effective in the classroom, in addition to consistently working to seek an understanding of the impact of both policies and practice so as to make effective and long lasting and positive change for our community and our students. We sincerely hope that a dialogue can be opened along these lines, just as you claim in your letter, as soon as possible. We stand willing and ready to have open conversations to best support our students and community.

Cordially,

Dr. John Wardisiani

PTU President