April 24 , 2006 Volume 10, Issue 3

Inside the Union Movement - April 20th
report By Sarah Ringler

PVFT 1936 is connected to the local union movement through the Monterey Bay Central Labor Council. About 60 local unions made up of about 25,000 members are represented through the council and work together to keep unions strong from Davenport in the north to King City in the south.

Here are some issues that the council has been working on:

• a. Working with Pajaró Primero! to stop Wal-Mart from moving their superstore into the Pajaró Valley causing traffic problems on Salinas Road with their giant trucks and further eroding union jobs in local grocery stores like Albertsons, Nob Hill and Food Max.
• b. Supporting the Reel Works Film Festival now is its fifth year. PVFT sponsored the showing of Granitas de Arena.The festival runs from April 20 to May 1. Go to www.reelwork.org to see the list of films.
• c. Working to protest the war through affiliation with United States Labor Against the War, USLAW and local groups in Santa Cruz, Watsonville and Monterey.
• d. Working to support all workers through the Central Coast Labor Movement Unity Meeting in Defense of Immigrant Rights that will be held Tues. 4/25/06, 3:30 pm at theoffice in Castroville.
• e. Asking all union members to support the 14th Annual NALC NATIONAL FOOD DRIVE - Saturday, May 13th. Set out non-perishable items that day before your letter carrier arrives and help needy families in your area.
• f. Check out "Labor Matters", a weekly radio show on Sundays hosted by MBCLC E. board members Wren Bradley, SEIU 535 and Jose Mendez, CM 300 on KRXA AM 540 on the internet or your radio.

**For more information on any of these issues, contact laborcouncil@mbclc.org.PVFT is entitled to more delegates than we currently have. If you are interested,contact President Savino. Monthly delegate meetings are held the first Wednesday of the month and meeting locations alternateand Watsonville.

In Memory of Betty Peck

PVFT lost an incredible teacher and Building Rep right before Christmas Break. Betty Peck of Valencia Elementary passed away at school. Betty worked in the District for over 22 years, and was always involved in the union. The Peck Family, Valencia Elementary and PVFT have set up a Scholarship Fund in Betty's memory. It will go to a graduate of Aptos High that went to Valencia. We have had an extraordinary response to this fund, and to date have collected over $9500.00.

If you would like to contribute to the scholarship fund, include a check payable to: PVFT/Betty Peck Scholarship Fund to:

PVFT/Betty Peck Scholarship
801 C East Lake Avenue
Watsonville, CA 95076

AFT HeathCare School Nurse Subcommittee Update

Pat Christie, RN, School Nurse, California member of AFT School Nurse Subcommittee, helped facilitate the AFT School Nurse Leadership Development Conference January 29th thru 31st in Orlando, Florida. California was also represented by two other school nurses, Gail from ABC District and Merry Grasska from Los Angeles, School Nurse of the Year 2004. Candice Owley, AFT Chair of Healthcare Program and Policy Council spoke on the commitment AFT has for improving the health of students through support for school nurses in every school. She commended Joni Ketter, Assistant Director of AFT Healthcare, for her role in supporting school nurses and nurse practice acts, with safe and prudent medical care at stake. Janet Bass, deputy director, AFT Public Affairs Department, gave a powerful media training. Be watching for Legislative Issues 2006: The 65% solution, diabetes, diastat, and more! Public speaking tips were practice...These tips will help each person articulate ouir needs to remove student barriers to learning and promote measurable academic success. It was a valuable two days of training!

DR. MARY ANNE MAYS

On Wednesday, March 22, 2006, Dr. Mary Anne Mays tendered her resignation as superintendent to the Board of Trustees citing her frustrations in trying to work with the majority of the Board. In her public statement she thanked Trustees Keegan, Volpa and Yahiro for their support as well as union and community leaders. Ironically, Mary Anne was awarded the CFT “educational leadership” award by PVFT three days later at the CFT convention. She and President Savino also presented a workshop on the district and union PAL activities in PVUSD that have enhanced student achievement. Since her resignation there have been charges and counter charges made toward some Trustees. Again, PVUSD finds itself on the front pages of various publications. PVFT has received numerous calls and emails expressing concern over these recent events and their impact on the future direction of the district and its impact on the students. TheUnion will recommend to the Board of Trstees that they appoint one of the current Assistant Superintendents as an interim superintendent until after the November election. As many as five seats could change as a result of that election as Trustees Gray, DeHart, Volpa and Yahiro are all up for reelection and Trustee Nichols is running for SCCOE Superintendent. Therefore, our position is that a sitting Board should appoint a superintendent they believe they can work with. PVFT will deliver a letter with this recommendation to the Board of Trustees at the Wednesday, April 12, 2006 meeting.

Labor in the Schools Committee

On Saturday, January 28 th , I attended the Labor in the Schools Committee for the California Federation of Teachers in Oakland. The committee is made up of a creative group of teachers who design and distribute Labor Studies curriculum. The committee also works with the UC Berkeley and UC Los Angeles Labor Centers. Diane Bush is a committee member who works with a Young Worker Leadership Academy and Safe Jobs for Youths Month. Teachers can get a free resource guide, Bringing Labor into the K-12 Curriculum: Resource guide for Teachers by writing to: Labor in the Schools Committee California Federation of Teachers 1 Kaiser Plaza Suite #1440 Oakland, CA 94612. Or teachers can go online to CFT.org and click on committees, and then Labor in the Schools Committee to see the various resources available-Mamiche Young.

Congratulations

• -Congratulations PVFT Vice-President Sarah Ringler for winning the position of Treasurer for the Monterey Bay Central Labor Council.
• -Congratulations Ronnie Platt Building Rep at Ohlone Elementary for being awarded the Crystal Apple Award. The award was given by KSBW TV and Dole Fresh Vegetables to one teacher each month from September to May. Lauren Costello, a third grader in Platt's Class, and her mother Kathy Jackson, nominated Ronnie for the Award.

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