Dallas, PA Wednesday, February 12, 1992 "0 The Dallas Post Child care ‘available if teachers | walk out Several child care facilities say they are ready to accept children | temporarily if Dallas teachers ~ strike. And the Dallas Taxpayer Forum has lined up caregivers who will take children in their homes | until schools reopen. Little People Day Care, which | rents space in the Back Mountain Memorial Library building, will | keep children all day who now stay ~ only before and after school. While preference for additional children “would be given to previous stu- ~ dents at the school, others might beaccommodated. Call Miss Kohler at 675-6557. ~ Wee Care Foundation, which | has a facility on West Center Street in Shavertown, would make ar- pL rangements to keep before and after school children all day, and may be able to accept more on a temporary basis. Call Lori Snee at 675-8382. - The Child Development Coun- ilof Northeastern Pennsylvania perates several locations, includ- 1g one in the Back Mountain. While space is limited, John Hogan, coordinator of child care, said that many home day care facilities are 3 vailable, and his office would ‘he operators also suggested t since older students who abysit will be available if the | schools are closed, parents should get in touch with their regular sit- ters. | Dallas Taxpayers’ Forum, said his roup was setting up an informal referral service for parents need- ing child care. “People are excited and willing to do this,” Werner said. | Werner can be called at 696- 3516. Stalemate (continued from page 1) John Cleary said that translates into ap- proximately 1 1/3 mill tax increase for each percentage point. “It seems to me that they ought to be able to live with it, especially in view of the current economic conditions and Casey's budget,” said Cleary. “It wasn't frivolous. I thought it was something the teachers and the citizens can live with.” Wycallis said Dallas is expected to re- ceive $151,000 less in state subsidies this year than last year. A 4% increase would have meant ap- proximately a $225,000 increase in the district's payroll, which the teachers un- ion assigns to the salary steps they choose. Richardson said that one thing the board insisted upon was the lowest salary step get at least a 4% increase. Cleary says that “top loading” salary schedules so those at the top get the biggest increases has been a problem at Dallas. “It's dramatically unfair, but when you look at the dynamics of a group and you have 140 people at the top of the group, where are the votes going?” asked Cleary. A negotiating session had been tenta- tively scheduled for February 12. The boards’ negotiating committee includes Richardson, Cleary, and Ernest Ashbridge Jr., who was away on vacation during the February 10 meeting. Teachers want parity with other districts Wagner did not appreciate Richardson's summary of the negotiations. “Unlike Mr. Richardson, I believe nego- tiation is a topic to be discussed between the association and the school board,” said Wagner. Parity with other districts is what the teachers want, charging both in flyers handed out at the meeting and in testi- mony that if they accepted the offer, they would be the lowest paid in the area. “I personally would have been the lowest paid teacher in Luzerne County with my qualifications,” said Rita Mundy, a teacher and resident of Dallas, of the board's latest proposal. “We don't have to be the highest paid. We probably can’t even be average, but we don’t want to be the lowest paid.” Members of the public weren't sympa- thetic. “I am professional. I'm a nurse. I make $8.08 an hour base pay,” said Susan Sylvia of Dallas Township. “I don't make half of what a Dallas teacher makes. On my nurse's Steve Werner, president of the well. The board offered to: unused sick leave pay. $250,000 to $1 million. to $50,000. entirely by the district. fe Fringe benefit increases add to contract value | Though salaries have been the biggest roadblock in contract ne- gotiations with the teachers, other issues have been dealt with as Here's a list of the other parts of the latest plan that the school board's negotiating committee offered the district's teachers. * increase pay for department chairs and extra curricular posi- tions such as coaches by 3 1/2%. ¢ increase home school and summer school rates, as well as * increase Blue Cross/Blue Shield major medical coverage from * increase coverage for mental and nervous sickness from $2,500 * increase life insurance $3,000 a year from its current $34,000. .* add an extra personal day, making it two for the school year. .*increase reimbursement for school credits from $90 a credit now | to 50% the first year, 60% the second year, and 70% the third year for graduate credits. Undergraduate credits would be reimbursed at 10% less each year and in-service courses would be paid for ‘Salaries ontinued from page 1) | make? The latest state survey of | wages in the Scranton-Wilkes- | Barre area, conducted in the fall of 1988 computed the hourly wage of i eachers by ‘dividing their yearly salary by the number of hours they would put in if they worked 52 weeks ayear. The average elemen- tary teacher in the area at that time made $18.39 an hour; more than the average registered nurse ($12. 47), mechanical engineer | ($16.65), electrical engineer ($18.25), civil engineer ($15.22), accountant ($12.11), or pharma- | cist ($17.49). - The only more highly paid pro- fessionals were secondary teach- | ers ($19.13) and vocational educa- tional counselors ($19.42). Today, if the average Dallas teacher's salary is divided as if they worked 40 hours, 52 weeks a year, the hourly wage would be | $18.57. If the hourly wage were figured based on 185 eight-hour days | (which includes in-service days), the average hourly wage is $26.11. | Do extra credits add value? ~~ One of the justifications given | for teacher salaries is the level of 3 education they achieve. At Dallas the average teacher fi 22 years of experience, and most are at an M or ME step level - plus additional credits, which helps determine their pay. - The M stands for a master’s | degree, the ME for master’s equiva- | lency, and they are not the same. A master’s degree is granted by an accredited college, and is fo- : cused in a particular area. - For a master's equivalency, a onctver must take 18 credits from | an approved college; the remain- | ing 18 credits can be in-service courses approved by the state | department of education. ~~ The in-service courses aren't | necessarily focused in a particular ‘subject, and some school board members are concerned that they're not as challenging as they - should be. There's also a difference in the cost involved. A regular three- credit graduate course can cost about $900, which the district will reimburse the teacher for $90 a credit. © “I took a course last year; it was $915 for three graduate credits at Wilkes. 1 was reimbursed $270,” says Wagner. “If you want to get a degree in another field, they don't reimburse you for that.” In comparison, an in-service | course costs between $30 and $45 a credit, more than covered by the district's reimbursement. About 65 teachers in the dis- trict have a master’s degree, with’ | about an equal number with their | master’s equivalency. While there may be a big difference in the ~ amount of money a teacher invests | in the additional credits, the extra pay is the same for both. “I think when we talk about the educational level of the teachers, we have to look past the M plus 36," said John Cleary, a member of the school board. “What kind of credits are they? Are they in-serv- ice courses, travel courses, video courses? The majority of courses in the past few years have not been the normal courses.” School board member Ellen Nagy, a former teacher, said that the board is concerned with the quality of the in-service courses. “Some of the in-service courses are very good, and some of them you wish they were a little more involved,” said Nagy. “I know the negotiating team has addressed the issue. The board would like to tighten up the kinds of courses being offered.” The district had a problem with course offered several years ago by University of California at Santa Barbara. A year after some teach- ers took the course, the district found that it wasn't a graduate level course. An arbitrator ruled that the district had to reimburse the teachers for the course anyway because they had taken it in good faith, said Superintendent Gerald Wyecallis. Board member Thomas Stitzer, a reading specialist in the Wilkes- Food Barre Area School District, feels that in-service courses should be prohibited beyond the master's level. While the in-service courses are not always as challenging as a regular graduate course, Nagy, Stitzer, and superintendent Ger- ald Wycallis say that sometimes they are more relevant to what the teachers do in the classroom. “Personally I think there's a lot of benefit for our teachers to get a master's degree,” said Wyecallis. He points out however, that it's difficult for an elementary teacher to apply what they learn from working on a masters in admini- stration directly in the classroom. Stitzer adds the that in-service courses encourage older teachers, who may not be willing to spend $600 on a regular class, to con- tinue their education. “There are some good in-service courses,” said Wycallis, naming courses in classroom management and teaching the visually impaired as examples. “But where do you draw the line. One thing I try to do is see what kind of courses the person has taken before I approve it. If the person has five or six course in computers I say, don't you think you've had enough, or I may just disapprove it. It's done on an individual basis.” (continued from page 1) United Methodist Committee On Relief. It is part of a nationwide effort run in cooperation with the Russian Orthodox Church and the Soviet Peace Fund to send relief to the troubled country. Of the approximately 18 Back Mountain churches contacted to assist with the collection, six have responded so far, Shillebeer said. St. Therese's, Dallas Baptist, Dal- las United Methodist, Shavertown United Methodist and Courtdale United Methodist churches are helping Trucksville United Meth- odist Church with the collection For further information, con- tact church secretary Cathy Bar- low at 696-3897. These items dered milk. Ibs.) drink. was acquired. These are the specific food items requested by the church: BW Five-pound packages of flour, sugar, pasta, rice and pow- BW Six-ounce cans of .canned meat (approximately 12 equals 5 BW One-pound packages of tea bags, dehydrated soups, solid chocolate bars and dehydrated Vitamin C-enriched fruit juice BH Two-pound cans of shortening. No plastic or glass containers will be accepted for shipping. The church will pack individual boxes containing one of each item for distribution to a Russian family. The UMCOR will add a postcard in Russian explaining what is in the box and how it are needed salary I can't afford to pay the teacher's salary. I have a second job. Not all of those who are educated, dedicated and commit- ted make that kind of money." “I've paid my dues, but I will not make as much money as you will this year,” said Andrew France of Shavertown, who owns his own metal fabrication business. France said that his work as a welder has taken its toll on his eyes and his lungs, and that he pays $2,000 a month in overhead before he makes a dime. Robert Frey of Dallas challenged Wag- ner’s assertion that the teachers have been working harmoniously with the school board. “How harmonious could you have worked with the school board if in over a year you haven't reached an agreement?” “I would say this union will not let the teachers accept anything but an 8 or 9 percent increase,” said Frey. “Ifthese people decide to strike, and I don't think they will because | think they're better teachers than that, but if they do, they walk out that door, you'll have no health benefits, you'll have no salary, and we're going to replace ” you. Wagner said that a strike has not been planned, but.the teachers meet every day. “There are other things we can do besides strike,” said Wagner, who wouldn't elabo- rate. If it does come to a strike, superinten- dent Wycallis said the district is ready. Students question schedule change to seven periods Though talk of the teacher contract negotiations dominated Monday's school board meeting, some other issues were discussed. Approximately 100 students clustered together in a part of the auditorium to protest the district's plan to change from eight class periods to seven longer class | periods next fall. “We as students live with a seven period day and I haven't talked to one student who agreed with it,” said Kristen Gurdin for the students present. Gurdin also questioned if the Taxpayers Forum has a plan to implement the merit pay program they've been calling for. During the regular board meeting, Cath- erine Wega was appointed to the sixth- grade teaching position in the Middle School left open by Anthony Martinelli, who was made principal of the school. Wega was one of the five teachers fur- loughed over the summer by the school board, and had requested sabbatical leave. BELL Home @ FURNISHINGS 95-97 SOUTH MAIN ST. DOWNTOWN WILKES-BARRE 0% NO FINANCE CHARGES FOR ONE YEAR! (On Approved Credit with Customary 20% Deposit) ABSOLUTELY NO FINANCE CHARGES OR INTEREST FOR 12 MONTHS, NO INTEREST 12 MONTH PAYMENT PLAN, FINANCE YOUR PURCHASE OF $500 OR MORE FOR 12 MONTHS , NO INTEREST 12 MONTH PAYMENT PLAN, FINANCE YOUR PURCHASE OF $500 OR MORE FOR 12 MONTHS WITH ABSOLUTELY NO INTEREST OR FINANCE CHARGES. 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Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers