Budget, Bargaining Proceed – with Caution
 Members of the superintendent’s executive staff have been meeting with key school system stakeholders, including MCEA, to help fashion a budget that makes the necessary reductions but keeps important priorities in place.
It appears that, as with other school budgets across the region, there will be across-the-board cuts in all categories of the school budget. MCEA has worked to make sure that increases to class size and cuts to local schools will be minimized. The budget proposal, which includes some restructuring, has now been sent to the superintendent for his review. He will unveil his proposed budget to the Board of Education on Thursday, Dec. 11 at 7:30 at Richard Montgomery HS.
Renegotiations has also moved into high gear with the three school unions (MCEA, SEIU Local 500 [support staff], and MCAASP [administrators]) and MCPS officials meeting three times in the last week and a half.
The unions have stated that avoiding layoffs, protecting our health insurance, and minimizing class size increases should be the priorities. As the economy continues to spiral downwards, it is clear that the school system - and all county services - are in for a couple of very difficult years.
Any change in the negotiated contract will be brought back to the full membership for discussion and a vote before any changes are made.
On the Job
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Teacher Tips
Pictures of Learning
(grades k-2)
Why not take photos of your students to use during conferences? Parents love to see what their child looks like during learning time so consider taking five or six photos that you can show and discuss with them during the conference. Learn more
Relating to the Text
(grades adaptable)
Sometimes small connections can make a world of difference in gaining students' interest. If it's a literature text with older language, try using a modern song that expresses the same sentiment as a pre-reading journal topic.Learn more
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