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Senate Fails To Pass Funds for Educator Jobs

On July 22, the U.S. Senate failed to pass the 2010 supplemental spending bill that included $10 billion for educator jobs and nearly $5 billion for the Pell Grant program. (Click here to see how your senators voted.) The $15 billion for education, which was fully paid for and  did not add a dime to the deficit, faced opposition from senators opposed to providing aid to states.

Others were concerned about some of the $800 million in cuts to Race to the Top, charter schools and the Teacher Incentive Fund, which would have helped pay for the bill. While the Senate leadership reportedly developed a way to avoid the proposed cuts to Race to the Top, they chose to not bring this alternative version up for a vote in the face of Republican opposition. The Senate vote undercuts the outstanding work done by the House of Representatives majority to blunt the impact of the drastic budget cuts taking place across the nation that are shortchanging the needs of students, parents and educators. The AFT is grateful to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Reps. David Obey (D-Wis.) and George Miller (D-Calif.) for their leadership and tireless efforts on this issue, as well to those senators who have supported public education.

This assistance was fully paid for and did not add a dime to the deficit. However, some senators voted against it because they were opposed to providing aid to states, while others were concerned about cuts in programs such as Race to the Top, charter schools and the Teacher Incentive Fund that would have helped pay for the bill.

We need to take the time to respond to the Senate.

Please thank those senators who supported our students, and tell those who did not how this denial of assistance fails our children, our schools and our communities.

In unity,
The AFT

Local 243 News and Updates

Response to Open Records Request - Wisconsin State Journal

Charles E. McDowell, Executive Director, Human Resources at Madison Area Technical College wrote to let you know that the college received a request pursuant to the state open records act from the Wisconsin State Journal for an electronic database of salary information for full-time and part-time faculty members and administrators for the 2009-2010 academic year. The request included access to overtime and other salary source information. Additionally the request asked for hire dates, years of service and seniority for each faculty member. A follow-up request asked for the names of the employees to match the information, as opposed to other identifying information such as an employee ID number.

The college had complied with these legal requests.

Salary information has recently been printed in the Wisconsin State Journal for specific City of Madison employees and University of Wisconsin-Madison employees. It is possible that the compensation information was rezzzzquested from the college for the same purpose.

If you have questions about this open records request please feel free to contact him.

Survey on College Facilities Mast Plan.

Right now the District Board is evaluating options and preparing to take the next steps in implementing our College Facilities Master Plan. It is critical that faculty and staff offer perspectives on vital aspects of this planning and be involved in communicating the vision behind our academic and facilities plans to our external stakeholders.

To assist us with this effort, the college is working with School Perceptions, an independent firm with expertise conducting surveys. All survey data is returned to School Perceptions, and your responses will remain anonymous.

NOTE: YOU SHOULD HAVE RECEIVED AN EMAIL WITH A LINK TO THE SURVEY. IF YOU DIDN'T, PLEASE CHECK YOUR JUNK MAIL AS IT MAY HAVE ENDED UP IN THAT FOLDER.

Please take a moment to complete this short survey before Monday, August 2. You’ll be helping guide the Board in the next steps and building our message. Final results will be shared and discussed at our Convocation on August 17.

Thanks for your help! This is more important then just help, your Union can only represent your views if you give them. Yes we know it's summer and maybe the last thing you want to do is complete a survey. It's important, no it's really important. It's YOUR FUTURE.

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Lynn Konkel, Paraoptometric Professional of the Year 2010 (Kudos)

Many of us on the Benefit's Committee receive questions on the two health plans offered at the College. We offer two excellent plans with WPS & GHC. Questions come up on the difference between the two plans, often regarding what GHC has to offer. Benefit's Committee email on GHC (June 15, 2010)

FInancial Statements for period ending June 30, 2010
Audit Reports (CPA) for year ending June 30, 2009

A few months ago, Kristin Gebhardt, Human Resources Administrator sent out a communication to you regarding coverage of dependent children to age 27 due to a new state mandate. She had indicated the coverage would be effective August 1, 2010; Madison College's renewal date, for eligible dependents. WPS Members-Changes in Coverage for Dependent Children

What will 2011 look like for Wisconsin's professional public employees?

If Scott Walker has his way, the answer is "bleak."

That's because he is relying on the same tired rhetoric and cheap political tricks that have worked so well for anti-public employee candidates in the past: Make all public employees contribute to their pension, despite the fact that their wages are 8% below their private sector counterparts. Slash state employee positions, although agencies already work with bare-bones staffing levels. Reinstate the QEO for public school teachers, and extend it to all state employees. Outsource public projects to private corporations, despite higher costs and lower accountability.

COPE -The choice is up to you

Convention Delegates Back Per Capita Increase:

AFT Convention delegates on July 9, 2010 approved a 55 cent per capita dues increase; the new revenues will fund efforts to help locals facing crises, and will increase the amount going to the AFT's Solidarity Fund. These two amendments to the AFT bylaws together will raise the national per capita rate from its current $16 per member per month to $16.55 effective Sept. 1 and then to $17.10 effective Sept. 1, 2011. (Read more)

Welcome to this edition of the Bulletin, the e-newsletter dedicated to the AFT's Faculty and College Excellence (FACE) campaign and other issues related to academic staffing in higher education. This edition includes:

Organizing Round-Up
Statehouse Action
New Research on Contingent Faculty and Student Success
Activists on the Move
AFT Convention in Seattle

Face Bulletin

Where trade unionists start their day on the net.