Update on Stand for Children Ballot Question

Message from MTA President Paul Toner and Vice President Tim Sullivan:

The Massachusetts Attorney General’s office yesterday certified a ballot question proposed by the organization Stand for Children. This clears the way for Stand to collect signatures starting on Sept. 21 to qualify the question for the ballot in November 2012.

Among other changes, this initiative would diminish the role of seniority and experience in personnel decisions, impose limits on bargaining educator evaluation systems and preclude part-time teachers from attaining Professional Teacher Status. It would also impose a new layer of bureaucracy on school districts that already have their hands full implementing recently adopted educator evaluation regulations.

The MTA challenged the certification of the ballot initiative when it was before the AG, and we intend to file a lawsuit challenging its legality. Meanwhile, if signature collecting begins, we will strongly encourage members and the public not to sign it. If the question does go to the ballot, we will urge members and the public to vote “no.”

When discussing this issue with others, here are some of the key points we have been raising:

Ø We are very disappointed that Stand for Children is pursuing this ballot initiative. It is a distraction from the real problems in public education and will divert time, energy and resources from far more pressing issues that directly affect the quality of education we can provide our students.

Ø Ballot initiatives are the worst way to have an open, democratic debate about complex education issues. Stand was represented on the Educator Evaluation Task Force and had ample opportunity to make proposals along these lines during the regulatory process, yet never advocated for the changes proposed in this ballot question. That would have been an appropriate venue in which to raise these issues, as would a bill in the Legislature. There is absolutely no compelling public policy reason to rush to put this question on the ballot.

Ø This is doing education reform to teachers, not with us. The MTA has been more than willing to discuss and promote proposals to improve the quality of our schools. The ballot initiative process shuts the door on teachers, administrators and other stakeholders having a meaningful role in shaping policies that directly affect us, our jobs and the quality of our schools.

Ø This ballot question is badly worded and poorly timed. After a lengthy process, new evaluation regulations were just approved on June 28. The state has yet to develop a “model plan” under these regulations. Stand is putting the cart before the horse by proposing that high-stakes personnel decisions be based on an evaluation system that has not even been implemented yet!

Ø It is an attack on our collective bargaining rights. The new educator evaluation regulations mandate certain standards and procedures, but still leave many fundamental decisions to collective bargaining. This ballot question would limit bargaining over the evaluations, curtailing the ability of local associations and school committees to develop systems that meet the needs of their own communities.