| California Department of Education Executive Office SBE-006 Specific (REV. 05/2009) ITEM #WC- 10 CALIFORNIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION NOVEMBER 2009 AGENDA 1 Specific Waiver SUBJECT Request by Waugh Elementary School District under the authority of California Education Code Section 52863 for a waiver of Education Code Section 52852, allowing one joint schoolsite council to function for two schools: Corona Creek Elementary School and Meadow Elementary School. Waiver Number: 32-6-2009 1 Action 1 Consent RECOMMENDATION 0 Approval 1 Approval with conditions 0 Denial That the joint schoolsite council (SSC) which will serve during the period of this waiver, be composed of the following sixteen members: the shared school principal; three classroom teachers, one other school employee and four parents or community members selected by parents representing Corona Creek Elementary; three classroom teachers, and four parents or community members selected by parents representing Meadow Elementary School. SUMMARY OF PREVIOUS STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION DISCUSSION AND ACTION Specific authority is provided in California Education Code (EC) Section 52863 to allow the State Board of Education (SBE) to waive the SSC requirements of the School-Based Coordination Program (SBCP) Act that would hinder the success of school-based programs. These waivers must be renewed every two years. All waivers of this type have been approved by the SBE for schools too small to meet the SSC composition requirements of California EC Section 52852. Pursuant to the SBE Waiver Policy: Schoolsite Councils for Small Schools Sharing Common Services or Attendance Areas, available at http: //www.cde.ca.gov/re/lr/wr/documents/schoolsitepolicyr.doc, schools must have small numbers of students and teachers, and have a common site administration, curriculum, or other shared services; or, have a geographic proximity or similar student populations. Since the population of the schools are over 400 students this policy does not apply. However, this district meets the criteria for the SBE Streamlined Waiver Policy available at http://www.cde.ca. gov/re/lr/wr/documents/sbestreamlined.doc, achieving an Academic Performance Index (API) of 800 or above in the current scoring cycle. SUMMARY OF PREVIOUS STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION DISCUSSION AND ACTION (Cont.) Therefore, this waiver has been scheduled for the consent calendar as Waugh Elementary School District has a 2008 API of 898. SUMMARY OF KEY ISSUES The Waugh Elementary School District has two small elementary schools located less than a mile apart from each other and serve similar student and parent populations. There is a common Parent Teacher Association, a common English Learner Advisory Committee, and a common educational foundation. All curricula are identical. All teachers meet for planning staff development. Since the primary purpose of the SSC is to advise on instructional improvement, it’s reasonable to address issues jointly. To have separate SSCs would unnecessarily duplicate efforts and fractionalize employee, parent, and student constituencies. The student population at Corona Creek Elementary School will be 464 and Meadow Elementary School will be 453, so they do not meet the Waiver Policy criteria. The SSC has approved this request. The California Department of Education recommends approval with the above conditions. Demographic Information: Waugh Elementary School District has a student population of 917 and is located in a rural area in Sonoma County. Authority for Waiver: EC Section 52863 Period of request: July 1, 2009, to July 31, 2011 Local board approval date(s): June 16, 2009 Bargaining unit(s) consulted on date(s): September 1, 2009 Name of bargaining unit/representative(s) consulted: Waugh Teacher’s Association/Marlene Scholz Position of bargaining units: 0 Neutral 1 Support 0 Oppose Comments (if appropriate): None Advisory committee(s) consulted: Waugh Schoolsite Council |
| School culture is unhealthy at many, if not most, schools. |
| Maura Larkins is not fighting for herself. She has an exciting new life outside the classroom. She is fighting for kids--and for teachers. Many excellent teachers whose rights have been trampled by CTA needed their jobs to survive. Maura Larkins was able to survive financially without her job, but one younger teacher from Castle Park Elementary, Heather Smith, who lost her job because of the unhealthy teacher culture at Castle Park Elementary, became seriously ill and could not support herself. Let's face it, Castle Park Elementary is not presently a good place to work, so it didn't break Maura Larkins' heart to leave its toxic environment. But it broke her heart to watch the school she loved as a child spin out of control. That school continues to circle the drain. The PTA closed down in 2005 because $20,000 disappeared from its accounts. Castle Park Elementary should be a good place to work. Maura Larkins will continue to work to see that it and other schools become good places to work. |
| If you worked at this place, with people like these, and these, once you got over the initial shock of losing your job, you wouldn't really be sad to be out of a deeply dysfunctional workplace. |
| Coach James "Ted" Carter's students needed him. Principal Dianne Carberry and her husband, a coach who suggested a student take a substance that caused his kidneys to fail, should have been fired instead of Carter, who blew the whistle. Why did Daniel Shinoff and the Escondido Union High School District board appeal the court's award to Carter? They should have apologized, paid the victim, and immediately hired new administrators. |
| Maura Larkins' students needed her. They were deprived, at a critical time of their education, when they were undergoing a critical transition from bilingual to English-only instruction, of a teacher who knew how to teach them. |
| Who wants to silence teachers? Both Arnold and CTA! Arnold Schwarzenegger and CTA President Barbara Kerr BOTH want to silence teachers. How do we keep free speech in California? 1) In November 2005, this site urged a NO vote NO on Propostion 75. Unions deserve to have a voice just as much as corporations. 2) Throw out corrupt CTA officers Barbara Kerr, David Sanchez and Dean Vogel and--even more importantly-- throw out head legal counsel Beverly Tucker and executive director Carolyn Doggett. |
| CTA should quit making demands Bonnie Dumanis has already done enough for Barbara Kerr and CTA head counsel Beverly Tucker by declining to investigate obstruction of justice by CTA and SDCOE JPA in the Larkins case. In the Larkins case, CTA worked closely with union-buster Libia Gil and others whom it usually opposes. Politics makes strange bedfellows! Why did Dumanis decline to investigate? She's courting Republicans more and more these day. Dumanis would receive painful political retribution if she held either Democratic leaders of CTA or Republican leaders of SDCOE* responsible for their crimes. Why would Dumanis risk her neck to protect a third-grade teacher from felony obstruction of justice? She wouldn't. In the Larkins case, individuals from both Democratic and Republican parties were seeking personal power at the expense of the institutions they represent. There was a time when Democrats and Republicans worked together for the public good. That time is past. Now it seems they work together only to split ill-gotten gains. |
| Hasn't San Diego District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis already done enough for Beverly Tucker? |
| San Diego Union Tribune regarding the Coach Carter v. Carberry case |
| Workers need unions, but workers don't need arrogant union bosses and lawyers! California Teachers Association needs new leadership to protect teachers and students from unscrupulous, power-hungry individuals who have obtained control. * * * |
| Update: #1 was accomplished on November 8, 2005. |
| The FBI and the SEC are investigating union presidents in San Diego |
| Public Employment Relations Board) *See PERB Decision 800.00000; UNION UNFAIR PRACTICES |
| But #2 still needs work. |
| "California Teachers Association, a state wide organization, is not the exclusive representative and does not owe employees a duty of fair representation." * |
| CTA relies heavily on the protection of this decision. The San Diego Superior Court disagreed with this decision in the Maura Larkins' case, but the issue has not been raised at the appellate level. |
| California union presidents agreed to and profited from a pension scam in the City of San Diego. Union presidents who were on the San Diego pension board have been indicted. Metropolitan Employees Association President Judie Italiano and her lawyer Ann Smith are determined to keep the ill-gotten gains they obtained by working closely with Republican Mayor Richard Murphy. The FBI and SEC, in addition to the district attorney, are investigating. |
| CTA dishonestly obtained over $6,000 from a teacher in an apparent attempt to punish her for complaining about crimes committed against her by other teachers. CTA lawyer Michael Hersh also wrote a letter gloating over the fact that the teacher didn't know how to defend herself from his taking such a huge amount of her money by dishonest means. |
| A little-known PERB (Public Employment Relations Board) decision allows CTA to run roughshod over ethical teachers who try to blow the whistle on CTA wrongdoing. |
| CTA head counsel Beverly Tucker and executive director Carolyn Doggett have muzzled teachers. They have worked hard to silence teachers in Chula Vista Elementary School District and elsewhere. In 2005, then CTA president Barbara Kerr and Beverly Tucker asked the San Diego District Attorney to investigate an e-mail written by teachers Lillian Perry and Larry Sand. "It's insulting that it was sent to [teachers] at their schools," says Kerr. Only CTA should be allowed to tell teachers what to think, right, Beverly? |
| Unlike other California unions, CTA has no legal obligation to give fair representation. How did this happen? |
| How Did CTA Get Special Permission to Violate California Law? |
| CTA union leaders puffed themselves up with pride because the voters disagreed with Schwarzenegger about the need to silence unions. It was NOT CTA union bosses Carolyn Doggett, Beverly Tucker who did it. And it certainly wasn't the figurehead president Barbara Kerr. It was the rank and file and the people of California! |
| If the Sago mine had been a union mine, shop stewards would have closed it down. Click here for USA Today story about the January 2006 Sago mine tragedy. |
| Since CTA controls local affiliates, this decision removes almost all K-12 teachers in California from equal representation protections. Are the best teachers in charge? Not by a long shot. |
| These people can't tell the innocent from the guilty |
| CTA tells local affiliates what to do, and supplies the lawyers. CTA is clearly in charge, but PERB pretends it isn't. |
| CTA is not required by PERB to obey the EERA, or Elementary Education Relations Act. What is going on at PERB ? |
| *The Prison Guards Union is the most powerful |



| Chula Vista Educators Board of Directors July 2008 update (CVE) Peggie Myers--President 07-09 Jim Groth- was re-elected president in May 2007, but resigned after a couple of months to allow newly-elected vice president Peggie Myers to become president (c. Aug. 2007) Vice-president Monica Sorenson, Esq. (Nov. 2007) Barbara Dunwoodie Nancy Potts Norma Pacheco-Davis NEW!!! Jennefer Porch-NEW!!! Maureen Mcnair--NEW!!! Tim Kriss-NEW!!! Jena Ritchey--NEW!!! New Executive Director Mary Ellen Berumen was NOT involved in wrongdoing 2001-2005 Gina Boyd AKA Virginia Boyd (Former) President Tim O'Neill (Former) Exec. Dir. Former board of directors members Mary Kay Jenkins, Paula Lee Perry, Yolanda Abrenica, Gayle Calliger, Andra (Andy) Johnston, Guillermo Gomez, Donna Padilla, Lasha Allen, Sandra Casares, Allan Insko, Mary Elizabeth "Mimi" Carr, Penny Martinez, Joyce Abrams Other CVE Leaders Robin Donlan AKA Robin Doig, Robin Colls Linda Watson Mary Elizabeth Carr, Esquire Ann Smith, lawyer for San Diego Metropolitan Employees Association (MEA), who also worked for Chula Vista Educators and CTA |
| California Teachers Association (CTA) Carolyn Doggett, Executive Director Beverly Tucker, Head Counsel David Sanchez, President Dean Vogel, Vice Pres. Daniel Vaughn, Secretary Treas. Rosalind Wolf, staff counsel Michael D. Hersh, staff counsel Brenda Sutton-Wills, Esquire 11745 E. Telegraph roadSanta Fe Springs, California Bernhard Rohrbacher, attorney |
| A Troubling Pattern of supporting child abusers who are pals of CTA leaders |

| CTA Covers up Wrongdoing against Members |
| CTA's attitude toward due process for teachers |
| Other unions |
| In 2002, Beverly Tucker, chief counsel of CTA, directed new employee Michael Hersh to take the position that local affiliate Chula Vista Educators president Gina Boyd would refuse to testify about her actions against a CVE/CTA member. CTA and CVE aided and abetted crimes and other violations of law against a member, Maura Larkins, while claiming to represent her. |
| Are the Wrong People in Control of California's 2nd Most Powerful Union? |
| But unlike child molester Albert Truitt, and CTA bigwig Fred Kamper, Carter didn't get CTA representation. |
| Carolyn Doggett, Executive Director Beverly Tucker, Chief Legal Counsel |
| Current President |
| Past Presidents Barbara Kerr (2003-2007) Wayne Johnson (1999-2003) Lois Tinson (1995-1999) |
| David A. Sanchez (2007-2011) Next President: Dean Vogel (2011-2015) On April 2, 2007, it was announced that CTA's president from 2015 to 2019 will be Daniel Vaughn. It became a done deal as soon as Vaughn was elected secretary-treasurer. OR MABYE NOT!!! 2009 marks a turning point. The secretary treasurer was ousted by Gail Mendes in March 2009, and many members want to contest Mendes' transition to vice-president in 2011. |
| (Every four years, the vice-president is automatically and unanimously "elected" president by the State Council by a voice vote; after two terms, the next person in line moves up.) |
| California Teachers Association |
| CTA State Headquarters 1705 Murchison Drive, Burlingame, CA 94010 Phone: 650/697-1400 Fax: 650/552-5002 e-mail: webmaster@cta.org |
| FIGUREHEADS |
| Who wants to silence teachers? The California Court of Appeal does. from California Appellate Report by Shaun Martin Tuesday, August 28, 2007 San Leandro Teachers Ass'n v. Governing Board (Cal. Ct. App. - Aug. 28, 2007) I kept reading this opinion expecting to find a dissent. In vain. Too bad. Justice Swager holds that Section 7054 of the Education Code, which generally bars school funds from being used to support particular candidates or ballot measures, operates to prohibit a school union from placing a brochure in the mailboxes of its member teachers at a school. The teacher mailboxes are just sitting there. The brochures are paid for entirely by the union. The only thing that the mailboxes -- which are ordinarily used by the school -- do is to hold up the brochures and keep them from falling on the floor. That's it. It costs the school nothing for the brochures to be placed therein. But the Court of Appeal holds that this use nonetheless violates Section 7054. Justice Swager says that Section 7054 permits the union to place the brochures on a desk. Or a table. Or on a chair. Moreover, that Section 7054 allows a union official to use a school's desk, or table, or chair, or even its electricity in order to give a partisan speech on school grounds. But using a mailbox, he says, is categorically different. That's prohibited by Section 7054. I'd have loved to see a dissent. - posted by Shaun Martin @ 4:26 PM http://calapp.blogspot.com/2 007_08_01_archive.html |
| More Documents from the CTA cover-up of wrongdoing by union-connected teachers against a CTA member in the Maura Larkins case |
| from www.cta.org School and Student Safety The California Teachers Association believes that all students and education employees deserve a safe learning and working environment. Local school districts and state agencies must take all necessary steps to make schools safe for students and school employees. CTA believes that discipline, order, and safety are essential for an environment conducive to learning. A truly safe school setting must extend beyond freedom from danger to freedom from fear of danger, which inhibits teaching and learning as well as participation in school and community activities. Students must be safe from physical, verbal, and psychological violence. CTA supports legislation that makes schools and the surrounding environment a drug free zone, and an area free of guns and knives and other harmful weapons. And at a minimum, each classroom should be equipped with an electronic device for communication purposes between each classroom and the school office. Educational facilities must be smoke-free and safe from all environmental and chemical hazards, including lead from water pipe systems within schools, inadequate ventilation, and sick-building syndrome. The Association urges the establishment and vigorous enforcement of stringent standards at least equal to the private sector standards of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to ensure health and safety. Students must be safe from the time they leave home until they reach school, during school and on their return. This safety must be protected regardless of the mode of transportation. http://www.cta.org/issues/other/School+and+Student+ Safety.htm |
| CTA undermines student and teacher safety, but talks a different story |
| In 2001, in Chula Vista Elementary School District, CTA helped stop an investigation into a teacher who was reported, by two other teachers, to possibly be planning to come to school and start shooting. The teacher under suspicion begged CTA to demand an investigation to clear her name, but CTA and CVE (Chula Vista Educators) refused. |
| When teachers abuse students and other teachers, CTA defends the perpetrators. |
| POLICY DIRECTORS |
| May 2008: On or before May 13, 2008 someone put a black box over the transcript below. This was not done through my computer. I can't remove the box from the transcript image. So I scanned the document again and republished it below. |
| Maybe CTA lawyer Michael Hersh was right when he said that nobody cares about Maura Larkins (see transcript below), but MR. HERSH AND CTA ARE WRONG TO BELIEVE THAT THE RULE OF LAW DOES NOT MATTER. |
| It's important that the law be followed. Without the rule of law, we have chaos. It's important to remove people like those who have corrupted CTA and PERB. As long as CTA is out of control, education in California is out of control. |
| People might not care about Maura Larkins, but they care about their kids. CTA regularly harms kids in order to protect the power of those with clout at CTA. |
| CTA's attitude toward due process for teachers is clearly one of contempt, as can be seen in the transcript below from the Maura Larkins case. Michael Hersh, who works closely with CTA chief counsel Beverly Tucker, faxed the deposition transcript. Maura Larkins added the emphasis. This attitude harms education in California, frequently causing good teachers to be replaced with less capable teachers for political reasons. |
| June 2007: the following page was mysteriously erased from this website: |
| Lawsuit Against CTA and Head Counsel Beverly Tucker |


| Wednesday, May 14, 2008 An open letter to CTA head counsel Beverly Tucker's subordinate Hi Mike: I just noticed that someone hacked my CTA webpage that had the quote of you saying that you and the rest of the public don't care if my due process rights were violated. You shouldn't be any more ashamed of your attitude than Beverly Tucker or Carolyn Doggett or the officers of CTA should be ashamed of their attitudes. I hope they aren't making you feel bad about it. They should be nothing but grateful to you for doing what they paid you to do. Ironically, your hostility was actually a measure of your humanity. You couldn't have done the job that you were assigned to do if you hadn't dehumanized me. You had to believe that I didn't deserve the protection of the law or my union. You had to believe this, or it would have been impossible for you to help your clients get away with their multiple crimes against me. So hold your head up high when you are in the presence of CTA bigwigs--and 90% of lawyers. You might, however, want to bow your head in the presence of children. Maura Larkins P.S. You shouldn't be any more ashamed than Chula Vista Educators (CVE) officers Gina Boyd, Tim O'Neill, Jim Groth, or Peggie (Peg) Myers. |
| CTA refuses to take any responsibility for illegal actions of local CTA-affiliate officials against members. Yet CTA controls those local officials when it comes to promoting CTA's agenda! CTA is like any corrupt insurance company. It will not spend one dime protecting those who pay premiums if it can help it, even if it has to commit crimes to keep the money. However, it pays huge amounts to lawyers like Beverly Tucker who are in control of CTA. |
| Obviously, there are bullies at Sheldon Elementary, but not all of them are children. The adults involved are very reminiscent of the adults involved in the Maura Larkins case in Chula Vista, CA. In fact, two individuals were involved in both cases! They are Richard Werlin and Pixie Hayward- Schnickele. |
| CTA director Pixie Hayward-Schnickele, who is, co-incidentally, a teacher in Jenny Mo's district, approved the actions of CTA in covering up violations of law, including crimes, in Chula Vista. (Or maybe it's not a co-incidence that Werlin came to Pixie's district? Maybe Pixie was influential in Werlin's hiring? Often there are teachers on the interview committees for administrators. Pixie helped cover up Rick Werlin's (and CTA's) crimes and other violations of law committed in Chula Vista Elementary School District from 2001-2003. See: CTA lawyer Hersh tried to trick court regarding Obstruction of Justice in the Maura Larkins case.) |
| No, the problem is not Richmond schools in particular, although the superintendent of West Contra Costa County Unified School District, Bruce Harter, apparently disregarded this site when he hired Werlin in 2006. He flunked Google. (Or maybe Rick Werlin was exactly what he wanted???) |
| He did the same thing at Castle Park Elementary in Chula Vista Elementary School District. Fortunately, the teacher in Chula Vista was at home, so the police left empty-handed. Werlin's testimony under oath has been contradicted by teachers on more than one occasion. To put it simply, Werlin has a habit of making foolish decisions, then making up false stories to justify his decisions. |
| Richard Werlin deposition Sorry I'm slow in scanning it. It will be one page at a time, starting with page 40. |
| Link: CTA's and Richard Werlin's Chula Vista co-conspirator Robin Donlan is under investigation by the FBI, SEC, IRS and DOJ |
| One might have thought that the Maura Larkins case involved deeply personal issues for the teachers who were exposed as having falsely accused Maura Larkins. It didn't. Nothing about their private lives was revealed. The effort to conceal depositions was motivated only by the effort to cover up CTA's wrongdoing. At right is Maura Larkins' response to efforts of CTA and its co-defendants to keep videotapes secret. Of course, the judge did not have the authority to keep secret the evidence of multiple perjuries in furtherance of spoliation of documents. |
| Maura Larkins' letter to CTA and co-defendants regarding their anxiety about the truth being revealed in her case. |
| In January 2007, Richmond, California second-grade teacher Jenny Mo was arrested in front of her students when she spoke out about children bullying other children at the school, and then refused to be silenced by Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources Rick Werlin. Does the name Werlin sound familiar? To readers of this site, and people in an assortment of school districts across the country where he has worked, Mr. Werlin's name is indeed familiar. |
| Werlin most likely got an okay from Gail Mendez before he took action against Jenny Mo. Gail Mendez is known for her attacks on teachers who speak out. |
| At CTA, "ethics" is defined as not blowing the whistle, no matter what. At CTA, everyone looks the other way, even when crimes are committed against members. (Or especially when crimes are committed against members.) |

| I don't have a picture of Richard Werlin, but here is the next best thing I have to offer. I have long suspected that Mr. Werlin was separated at birth from former United Nations ambassador John Bolton. |
| More about Richard Werlin |
| Werlin and Bolton share the same kiss-up, kick-down personalities, and the same history of fits of anger and abuse of employees. The last time I saw Mr. Werlin, he was sporting a mustache identical to Mr. Bolton's, but he has bright blue contact lenses instead of glasses. |
| Recently, parents have been asking if those in charge of Richmond, California schools have gone" nuts." |
| Richard Werlin seems to have developed a habit of telling principals to call the police when a teacher even threatens to go to the media. |
| CTA's favored administrator Richard Werlin and the arrest of 2nd-grade teacher Jenny Mo |

| How does CTA harm the educational system in California? By insisting that teachers be judged based on politics rather than teaching ability. There was blatant power-mongering in the Joyce Abrams case, with Joyce Abrams as both victim and perpetrator. CTA is powerful in deciding who can teach and where they can teach. |
| How does he get rehired? First, because anti-teacher board members and superintendents think people like Werlin are just what they need--apparently even though his actions tend to result in legal bills costing hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars. But let's not forget the enormous help Werlin gets from California Teachers Association. CTA works with people like Werlin to protect CTA leaders from responsibility for wrongdoing. Werlin received an enormous amount of help from the California Teachers Association when he was covering up wrongdoing by himself and a small group of politically-connected (politically-connected means connected to the union) teachers in Chula Vista Elementary School District from 2001 to the present. Apparently the first thing Werlin did when he got to WCCCUSD was to cultivate union president Gail Mendes, who had a personal relationship with Werlin that included calling him on his cell phone during vacation. |
| Rick Werlin, who has been pushed out of district after district (in Texas, New York, and California), always seems to get rehired. |
| Deja vu? CTA behaved like the CIA regarding these tapes CTA Joined Other Defendants in the Maura Larkins case in asking the judge to keep deposition videotapes secret |
| CTA takes over Long Beach Teachers Association because teachers tried to recall a board member |
| CTA Lawyers Ann Smith Fern Steiner Bernhard Rohrbacher |
| In 2008, the mysterious disappearances have continued. |
| A mystery person put a black box over the transcript in or before May 2008: |
| A HACKER HITS THIS SITE? |
| June 12, 2008: I couldn't remove the black box, but someone came back again within the past month and removed the black box! |


| To see this document clearly, click here. |
| California's Second Most Powerful Union* |
| Other NEA/CTA Local Affiliates |
| Lawsuit Against CTA and CVE (Donlan coverup) |
| Chula Vista Educators (CVE) |
| Letter to former CVE President Gina Boyd |
| The document below was sent in 2002 by CTA attorney Michael Hersh to Maura Larkins after Larkins subpoenaed CVE President Gina Boyd. Why didn't Maura Larkins' representative voluntarily testify about her representation of Maura Larkins? Why did she, instead, refuse to testify?" |
| Why did CTA refuse to have a local affiliate president testify in court about her actions "representing" a member? |
| Los Angeles Times articles about CTA |

| Deposition of Gina Boyd, President of Chula Vista Educators |

| Home Why This Website SDCOE CVESD Castle Park Elem Law Enforcement CTA CVE Stutz Artiano Shinoff Silence is Golden Schools and Violence Office Admin Hearings Larkins OAH Hearing |
| Theoretically, the local affiliates have to obey the law, but PERB has never enforced the law that requires them to give equal and fair representation. CTA members simply do not enjoy the protections afforded to other union members. |
| Deposition of Peg Myers, CVE President, client of Kelly Angell Minnehan |
| Most of the attacks on CTA come from the right. This attack on CTA is coming from the left. I am a Democrat. I am also a teacher and member of CTA since 1974, so I suppose IT WOULD BE MORE ACCURATE TO SAY THAT THIS ATTACK IS COMING FROM BELOW. Carolyn Doggett and Beverly Tucker are my union leaders, but in order to protect the leaders of my local affiliate from responsibility for their wrongdoing, they violated the contract and the law. It turns out that CTA has a curious policy. I'm not sure, but it might be numbered Policy Catch 22. |
| It is this: if CTA fails to live up to its obligations to a member, the member must not complain, because CTA then considers the member an opponent, and rather than honoring its obligations to that member, takes action against the member. Some unions will pay for outside counsel for a member when there is a conflict between a member and her local union boss. Not CTA. Nor can the member appeal to PERB, the Public Employment Relations Board.* Even though CTA executives are involved in every aspect of local affiliate decision making, PERB has decided that CTA has NO OBLIGATION TO PROVIDE EQUAL REPRESENTATION TO MEMBERS! |
| You might be surprised. Take a look at the Albert Truitt and Fred Kamper cases. |
| Which teachers does CTA defend? |
| It's worse in Mexico Teachers here work in terrible conditions for little pay. This is especially true in the small villages. These strikes have been going on for over 20 years. This year, however they have been joined by others, such as the APPO (Asemblea Popular Puebla de Oaxaca). The PRI governor, who undobtably stole his election is terrible, just as his predecessor was, and the one before, and bothe groups are demanding his resignation. The teachers union (STNE) is also very, very corrupt, at least on the national level. Their head, Elba Esther Gordillo has got to be one of the most corrupt politicians in the state and has much to do with the fraudulent presidential elections. by [Parent] mariachi mama on Mon Aug 14, 2006 at 09:18:16 AM PDT |




| I have been a member for 15 years. 403(b) Forum bWise Forums Jul 12 2007 I have been president of our local association and chief negotiator. However, I too am very frustrated with this entire "Members Benefits" program. I am not saying there is never a deal to be had via this program, but as often (or more often) the "deals" they list are not that great. They can construct the paperwork any way they want, but to say that Members benefits is 100% seperate from NEA is just not true. THere is no way that they are just doing this out of the goodness of their hearts - they do it to make money, plain and simple. I joined the union for one reason, the representation in negotiating a contract to work under, and the continued support to uphold those conditions. I am growing increasingly weary of the NEA's involvement in political issues and its newfound obsession with sending me some sort of insurance, investment or credit deal every day in the mail. I also grow tired of the area reps badgering us about membership and spouting off about the "value" of the union dues (which are going up significantly faster than our salaries) plus "all the great deals you get through the benefits program." If I want "deals" I will clip coupons out of the sunday paper, not pay nearly $600 per year in union dues. If NEA really wanted to provide a service - negotiate a great health insurance program, and scrap all the other crap they throw down our throats. As far as investments, they stink - a lot. Rather than endorse a single product, why not simply promote an intelligent investment philosophy that individual schools can implement. Why not come straight out and say: Annuities, sold by insurance companies, are bad nearly 100% of the time. It is important to set up options within your school that provide NO LOAD, NO SURRENDER, NO 12b-1, LOW FEE mutual funds. The reason they don't say that is it would substantially upset the partnerships they have formed with insurance companies. There is NO other reason. It is either that, or the possibility that they are so insanely stupid that they cannot recognize the difference between a good product and a ripoff. Take your pick. But in either case, it has nothing to do with the well being of individual teachers. Dan Puplava talks |
| The Teachers Union and Insurance Companies |
| The National Education Association (NEA), of which CTA is an affiliate, has an insurance company. Is the purpose to benefit members? |
| CTA Job advertisement: Sales Manager - California Teachers Association Company: Standard Insurance Co Description If you want to make a positive difference and stand out from the crowd, you'll fit in at The Standard (www.standard.com). Through our retirement plans and insurance products and services, we help provide people with the financial security and confidence to pursue their dreams... With operations in most states, The Standard's three thousand-plus employees enjoy a vast array of career options... In this exciting role(located either in California or Portland, Oregon) you will drive all sales activities aimed at a newly acquired, very large, and strategically critical customer, the California Teacher's Association (CTA). You will lead a team consisting of 6 Sales Representatives to drive sales growth in premium and lives, and long-term retention, focusing on life and disability products for CTA's individual members. You will partner closely with a dedicated marketing team to plan and execute marketing campaigns aimed at new enrollments, increases in existing business, and retention. You will also manage close working partnerships with CTA state and local district leadership. This strategically visible leadership position will play a key role within a new business unit formed to support this new customer... Primary responsibilities for this position: - Provide leadership to, and manage the performance of, a dispersed, California-based team of Sales Representatives. Be responsible for meeting CTA growth and retention metrics, with a focus on collaboration and partnership with CTA leaders and Chapter and District representatives. Your team will consist of Voluntary Sales Representatives focusing on chapter-level enrollments and retention, and a District-paid Sales Representative focusing on increasing our block of business with districts who provide benefits directly to their employees. - Serve as the principle sales liaison for CTA's leaders at the state and district level to establish and grow your team's partnership, value, and trust. Act as a conduit for information to and from CTA ensuring clear expectations, understanding of sales opportunities, forecasting and other metrics. - Work with business unit leadership, marketing and other operational units within The Standard to build a cohesive sales function in support of CTA. - Partner with a dedicated marketing team to plan and execute a broad range of initiatives and programs aimed at increasing enrollments and existing business, while retaining currently enrolled members. Ensure successful execution of enrollment strategies in the field... Contact Information Contact: Not Available Phone: 123-456-7890 Fax: 123-456-7890 instantly fax your resume >> Ref ID: 6436 Posted: 6/20/2008 |
| Quit maligning teachers and unions San Diego Union Tribune December 8, 2008 Letter to the editor I would like the opportunity to clarify some misconceptions people may have regarding education. The primary purpose for all unions is to prevent arbitrary mistreatment of employees by management. [Maura Larkins' note: Mr. Wolcott would be correct if he had changed his wording just a little: "The primary purpose for all unions SHOULD BE to prevent arbitrary mistreatment of employees by management." Secondarily, unions represent their membership on a wide variety of issues in addition to pay... Although I am retired from the classroom, I always spent a minimum of one hour in classroom preparation every night for each of my five classes; a workday of at least 10 hours, usually longer, all without overtime pay. Aside from parents, teachers are probably the most passionate people when it comes to education. We all want what is best for our kids. At the same time, the San Diego Education Association will continue to be passionate advocates for San Diego's educators. PETER WOLCOTT Santee |
| Section 403(b) of the Internal Revenue Service code allows public and nonprofit employees to pay into tax-deferred supplemental accounts to boost their retirement nest eggs, much like 401(k) programs in the private sector. |
| March 2009 Gail Mendes of United Teachers of Richmond unseated Daniel Vaughn for the postion of CTA Secretary-Treasurer. Ms. Mendes has used a time-honored method of obtaining personal power: cooperating with abusive administrators like Richard Werlin. Where is Gail's support coming from? Perhaps from another CTA director who worked closely with the abusive Mr. Werlin: Jim Groth and his loyal friend, chief CTA counsel Beverly Tucker. |
| Gina Boyd and Tim O'Neill forbid teacher to report wrongdoing to CVE council |