QUOLKE’S CORNER #38
VOLUNTARY TRANSFERS/NECESSARY TRANSFERS/THE Q
Voluntary Transfers
Last Tuesday was the highly anticipated Voluntary Transfer Fair and the initial response is overwhelmingly positive. 91 teachers were selected for new positions on Tuesday. 83 teachers became voluntary transfers in the months of June and July. I have been asked why the Fair was held in August and so close to the Necessary Transfer Meeting. Our original plan was to hold the Fair early in June (possibly even before school was out), however the Service Separation Plan (SSP) was negotiated and an MOU was signed that had the possibility of creating 200 more positions in the month of July. It made no sense to have a Fair in June when 200 additional positions would be on the table a month later. That is how the Fair came to be in August. Everyone who participated in the Voluntary Fair and was matched (selected) to a new school was contacted via CMSD email on Wednesday or Thursday.
Necessary Transfers
At the beginning of the summer 153 people were identified for Necessary Transfer, as of today there are 68 people identified for Necessary Transfer. The Necessary Transfer Meeting will be held on Thursday, August 13 at Barbara Byrd Bennett Center. Letters were mailed to all Necessary Transfers on Thursday. This letter has the time to report to BBB and a current open position list. That list is also available on the CTU website www.ctu-279.org. This list is only for the people on the Necessary Transfer List and is subject to change. If there are any updates they will be posted on the CTU website. The District has hired a number of new teachers for next school year and those teachers will be placed in any open positions that are left on Friday after Necessary Transfers are completed. If positions are available after that, the Voluntary Process will open again on August 17. If positions are available an Open Position List will be posted on the CTU website.
The Q
Yes it is true; the first Mandatory Day of school the District is once again scheduling Convocation at the Q. I agree with many that this is the worst possible day to have an event like that. I have suggested one of the other two mandatory Professional Days (November or February) or the Voluntary Day in August. I have requested shuttle buses to relieve the parking situation (both lack of and cost). All of which has fallen on deaf ears. The District has invited the Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan to attend and there is a good chance that he may come and that changes the nature of the event. It is the mandatory professional day and thus it is mandatory for our members to attend the Q. It is hard to make an event like this successful when it is done to us and not with us. But as professionals we must do what we have to do. This is also going to become the first CTU Solidarity event of the school year. See future updates for more information.
In Union,
David