What good news! The teacher’s contract has passed by a 600+ vote margin!
With this behind us we can now settle down to business and focus on improving educational outcomes and our failing facilities.
Congratulations to all who helped!
Author Archive for admin
- Fitzwilliam: 8-7 @ Town Hall
- Gilsum: 8-7 @ Gilsum Elementary School
- Richmond: 8-7 @ Veterans Hall
- Roxbury: 11-7 @ Meeting House
- Sullivan: 8-7 @ Town Hall
- Swanzey: 8-7 @ Christian Life Fellowship Church
- Troy: 8-7 @ Troy Elementary School
About halfway through this August 7th “NH Taxpayer Radio Show” founding member of the Monadnock School Taxpayer Association Ed Naile (not a Monadnock School Taxpayer himself) and MSTA Web Master Jane Aitken (also not a Mondnock School Taxpayer) mock Judge Tucker’s decision to proclaim an emergency in our distict.
Further, in perhaps a sneak peak of things to come, Mr. Naile suggests if the contract passes on Tuesday, that we should all vote “No” to everything next March at the town level. Essentially encouraging us to pit Firefigher against Teacher.
Who are these people and why are they so interested in our schools?
Various claims by the MSTPA are exaggerated and designed to scare and confuse. The MSTPA is influenced by forces outside our district with a NO TAX, NO SCHOOL Agenda. Consider your sources of information before the vote on Tuesday.
Claim: Fitzwilliam School tax increases in December 2008 will be $800 on a $200,000 house.
Reality: Most of the money $800 was voted and approved in March. A NO vote will not prevent those tax increases. A YES vote for the contract accounts for less than 15% of $800.
Claim: Early retirement cost will continue through 2016.
Reality: A NO vote will allow more teachers to opt for early retirement. A NO vote means this will continue past 2016 and cost us more $.
Reality: A YES vote will end the availability of the benefit and restrict it to the current 25 teachers. This will save us $.
Claim: $4,400,000 for 25 (early retirement) teachers ..is a waste of…money.
Reality: This statement is for shock value! It also tries to justify a NO vote by implying these funds will not need to be raised.
Reality: We have already raised and paid out part of this money.
Reality: We can’t revoke this benefit. A YES vote will save us $
Claim: The “evergreen clause” is now guaranteed by NH State law.
Reality: House Bill 1436 will not apply to this contract. A NO vote means we will have to add an “evergreen clause.” A YES vote means we do not need to add this clause.
Claim: …taxpayers would have to pick up almost 98% of the (health ins) cost increase
Reality: Currently teachers pay for 10% of their insurance cost. A YES vote means the teachers will pay 12% the 1st yr, 16% the 2nd yr, 18% the 3rd yr and 20% the 4th yr of the insurance cost. A NO vote means we continue to pay a higher % of their premiums.
Claim: Average teacher pay in MRSD is $47,402…2nd highest pay in the Monadnock region.
Reality: The data they are using is based on area not school district. For example, Keene at $47,449 Stoddard at $47,844, Chesterfield at $48,804 and Peterborough is listed as part of Hillsborough.
Reality: Average teacher salary in the state of NH is $48,310 as of 4/16/08. Our teachers are being paid below average. (http://www.ed.state.nh.us/
Claim: Enrollment as of 10/1/07 in MRSD was 2,052 student; down 436 students in 48 months.
Reality: As of 4/4/08, 2,240 students were enrolled in the MRSD per the NH Dept of Education (http://www.ed.state.nh.us/
For the amount of money I spent filling up my mini-van with gas tonight ($65) I could pay for one-half of the annual incremental cost of the new teachers contact. A small price to pay for the value it provides our school district.
Incremental Cost on $200,000 Home*
- Fitzwilliam: $92/yr, $7.66/mo, 25¢/day
- Gilsum: $114/yr, $9.5/mo, 31¢/day
- Richmond: $118/yr, $9.83/mo, 32¢/day
- Roxbury: $60/yr, $5/mo, 16¢/day
- Sullivan: $128/yr, $10.6/mo, 35¢/day
- Swanzey: $136/yr, $11.33/mo, 37¢/day
- Troy: $154/yr, $12.83/mo, 42¢/day
- Cross District Average: $118/yr, $9.80/mo, .32¢/day
Oscar Wilde said “A cynic is a man who knows the price of everything but the value of nothing.” On September 9th, lets show our kids that we know what we value.
*Figures from Katie Chambers MRSD Business Manager.
Judy Clark says it all in a LTE today.
To The Sentinel:
I am a resident of the Monadnock Regional School District.
I have been researching the issues regarding the special election to make an educated decision.
As part of my research I went to the Web site of the Monadnock School Taxpayers Association (MSTA) and was appalled by the lack of logical consistency, the half truths and the lies the group is promoting.
The group rails against early retirement. If the new contract passes, early retirement will no longer be offered after June 2009.
The budgetary obligation will then decrease each year until it is all gone in 2016. The group misrepresents the financial aspects of not approving the contract in regards to early retirement.
If the contract is passed, the district will save about $2 million. In other words, not passing the new contract will cost the district more money.
As regards the lawsuit by the town of Sullivan pertaining to the legality of early retirement, the MSTA Web states, “A provision in the new contract says that if the new contract passes, the lawsuit is moot.”
This provision does not exist, thus the statement by the MSTA is a lie. The bottom line: If the contract is defeated then early retirement will remain in effect
The MSTA has also stated its opposition to the so-called evergreen clause and the new state law requiring an evergreen clause in contracts with public employees.
As the contract was negotiated and ratified prior to the enacting of the law, the new law would not affect the proposed contract.
If this contract is defeated, the next contract would have to have an evergreen clause as mandated by the state.
In the past, the MSTA has been adamant that teachers pay more of their health care costs.
Currently teachers pay 10 percent of the cost of the insurance policy. If the contract is passed, then over the life of the contract the teacher contribution will increase to 20 percent — exactly what the MSTA has stated it wants.
If the contract is defeated, the teachers stay at 10 percent.
As far as changing insurance carriers, the MSTA fails to disclose that during the time it is talking about, the district saved several hundred thousand dollars by renegotiating the health care contracts.
It also fails to state that all five unions in the school administrative unit must agree to a change in carriers, it is not at the whim of Monadnock district teachers.
Also last March, the MSTA recommended approval of the support staff contract, which contains the same language as the teacher contract regarding changing carriers.
In summary, the MSTA has made clear in the past that to support a teacher contract the new contract must get rid of early retirement, not have an evergreen clause and teachers must shoulder more of the cost of health insurance. The new contract does these things. If the MSTA is successful in helping defeat the new contract, it ensures everything it is against stays in effect.
After reviewing all the data I could obtain, I recommend the voters of the Monadnock district ratify the new teacher contract, as it will benefit our students by helping ensure the district has an experienced, stable work force that knows and understands the needs of our students.
JUDY CLARK
95 Warmac Road
Swanzey
The School Board has started a e-news letter. We encourage you to sign up today.
Tune in to Cheshire TV at 9:00 on Tuesday, August 19 or Thursday, August 21, or again on Saturday, August 23 at 2:00 to see . . .
“A New Vision for Monadnock Regional High School” — featuring Selectman Bruce Tatro, and with a long interview (presented in its entirety) with new principal Brian Pickering.
“A New VIsion” was produced, directed, and edited by MRHS senior Evan Barlow, who was so energized by what Mr Pickering said in the interview that he devoted the next 24 hours creating the video.
This Saturday August 9th at 10am MRHS.
Your chance to show your support for a new vote on September 5th to give our Teachers the contract they deserve.
Please attend and make your voices of reason heard.
Just saw this great news via “More Coffee, Please”
Judge Tucker, the jurist in charge of deciding whether there was an emergency in the district that warranted a special election, has agreed to a special meeting for Tuesday, September 9. That Tuesday will be the ballot vote to approve teacher’s contracts for the coming four years.
Time to get going again!
