Comments on: Where’s the outrage? http://www.delmartimes.net/2011/07/28/where%e2%80%99s-the-outrage/ The Latest News from the Community of Del Mar Thu, 23 May 2013 17:18:17 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.3 By: guest http://www.delmartimes.net/2011/07/28/where%e2%80%99s-the-outrage/#comment-205999 guest Sun, 21 Aug 2011 07:13:17 +0000 http://delmartimes.mscsddev.com/?p=25841#comment-205999 There is a reply in the Board Agenda for 8/24. The explanation does not make sense to me. Perhaps someone here understands it. What is does not address: 1. Why was 21, 000 taken out of the General Fund for district office employees when most of the employees in the DO are new - the Super and the Asst. Supers. The all got raises with their promotions and new hires. Why the bonuses? 2. Could the money have been used for ESC funding? There is a reply in the Board Agenda for 8/24. The explanation does not make sense to me. Perhaps someone here understands it. What is does not address:

1. Why was 21, 000 taken out of the General Fund for district office employees when most of the employees in the DO are new – the Super and the Asst. Supers. The all got raises with their promotions and new hires. Why the bonuses?

2. Could the money have been used for ESC funding?

]]> By: DAW http://www.delmartimes.net/2011/07/28/where%e2%80%99s-the-outrage/#comment-192876 DAW Sun, 07 Aug 2011 03:36:50 +0000 http://delmartimes.mscsddev.com/?p=25841#comment-192876 I agree with most of what you are saying. to be quite frank, calling MS "the messenger" is giving her way to much credit. For as long as I've lived here, MS has written vile reporting on Del Mar teachers, Sup Bishop, former and current Board Members. However, she went out of her way to never utter a bad word about her backed Board of Katherine White and fellows (who actually did more damage to the district than all other problems combined). Further more, MS gives no due diligence to same area school district Solana Beach. It's clear that Marsha has a chip on her shoulder regarding Del Mar and because of that, she is not merely an innocent messenger. You must take her reporting with a grain of salt and assume that she is posting all the negatives and skipping over any positives. It's just her way. I agree with most of what you are saying. to be quite frank, calling MS "the messenger" is giving her way to much credit. For as long as I've lived here, MS has written vile reporting on Del Mar teachers, Sup Bishop, former and current Board Members. However, she went out of her way to never utter a bad word about her backed Board of Katherine White and fellows (who actually did more damage to the district than all other problems combined). Further more, MS gives no due diligence to same area school district Solana Beach. It's clear that Marsha has a chip on her shoulder regarding Del Mar and because of that, she is not merely an innocent messenger. You must take her reporting with a grain of salt and assume that she is posting all the negatives and skipping over any positives. It's just her way.

]]> By: DAW http://www.delmartimes.net/2011/07/28/where%e2%80%99s-the-outrage/#comment-192870 DAW Sun, 07 Aug 2011 03:30:02 +0000 http://delmartimes.mscsddev.com/?p=25841#comment-192870 Jeez..MR annoys me to no end! You better start posting some specific references for your remarks as well. 1. How do you come up with benefits of $100k? Health care is about $14k - do you really think the defined benefit input is $20k/year? 2. Sure they can retire at 80% - if they work an incredibly long time, certainly not the average. 3. The entire summer is not 3 months (outright lie). For this calendar year the last day of work was 6/17 and first day back is 8/23 - that's 2 months. And...you won't find a teacher in this district that doesn't go in before Aug 23. 4. Find me a teacher - please post a name or at least a specific reference - that works 30 hours a week - or were you just making this stuff up? 5. In most jobs there are longevity raises of some sort not based on performance - when i was in the military, longevity raises, when I worked at McDonalds, longevity raises. You do a good job of demonizing teachers but offer no solutions and very few facts thus you distort the conversation and make yourself look like a disingenuous liar in the process. Jeez..MR annoys me to no end! You better start posting some specific references for your remarks as well.
1. How do you come up with benefits of $100k? Health care is about $14k – do you really think the defined benefit input is $20k/year?
2. Sure they can retire at 80% – if they work an incredibly long time, certainly not the average.
3. The entire summer is not 3 months (outright lie). For this calendar year the last day of work was 6/17 and first day back is 8/23 – that's 2 months. And…you won't find a teacher in this district that doesn't go in before Aug 23.
4. Find me a teacher – please post a name or at least a specific reference – that works 30 hours a week – or were you just making this stuff up?
5. In most jobs there are longevity raises of some sort not based on performance – when i was in the military, longevity raises, when I worked at McDonalds, longevity raises.

You do a good job of demonizing teachers but offer no solutions and very few facts thus you distort the conversation and make yourself look like a disingenuous liar in the process.

]]> By: DAW http://www.delmartimes.net/2011/07/28/where%e2%80%99s-the-outrage/#comment-192862 DAW Sun, 07 Aug 2011 03:18:37 +0000 http://delmartimes.mscsddev.com/?p=25841#comment-192862 what school? what school?

]]> By: DAW http://www.delmartimes.net/2011/07/28/where%e2%80%99s-the-outrage/#comment-192345 DAW Sat, 06 Aug 2011 09:24:16 +0000 http://delmartimes.mscsddev.com/?p=25841#comment-192345 Ryan - I'm a family member of two DM teachers and a parent and you've got your information grossly wrong. First, pay for DM teachers is very good (the senior teachers make over $92K/year). They have always gotten pay raises - step and column - just not COLAs - virtually no one is getting COLAs now (or step and column for that matter except for public employees). They were not taxed 40% on the incentive - for most teachers their tax rate is about 25%. Most teachers do not spend $500-$600 of their own money. The local PTAs usually give somewhere between $200-$400 per teacher and my family member teachers have rarely spent more than another $100 out of pocket (which is tax deductible by the way on a special line for educators on your 1040). Ryan – I'm a family member of two DM teachers and a parent and you've got your information grossly wrong. First, pay for DM teachers is very good (the senior teachers make over $92K/year). They have always gotten pay raises – step and column – just not COLAs – virtually no one is getting COLAs now (or step and column for that matter except for public employees). They were not taxed 40% on the incentive – for most teachers their tax rate is about 25%. Most teachers do not spend $500-$600 of their own money. The local PTAs usually give somewhere between $200-$400 per teacher and my family member teachers have rarely spent more than another $100 out of pocket (which is tax deductible by the way on a special line for educators on your 1040).

]]> By: Michael Robertson http://www.delmartimes.net/2011/07/28/where%e2%80%99s-the-outrage/#comment-191835 Michael Robertson Fri, 05 Aug 2011 15:15:03 +0000 http://delmartimes.mscsddev.com/?p=25841#comment-191835 So your argument is "there are other government workers who make more so DMUSD is OK"? Unions have done a good job of taking a large amount of tax money it's true and some Unions are even better than others. I know it's not politically correct to say that teachers don't work hard and maybe they do work hard, but they don't work long hours. There's no other job where employees get all summer off plus one week for Christmas, another for Easter, half day on Wed, every possible holiday. Teachers are very well paid for their part time work. The pensions alone are amazingly good. It used to be that government workers had modest salaries but guaranteed job for life and guaranteed pensions - albeit modest. Those days are gone and now government workers are paid more than the average business worker (who's taxes pay their salaries), plus it's almost impossible to get fired PLUS they get dreamy large pensions. -- MR So your argument is "there are other government workers who make more so DMUSD is OK"? Unions have done a good job of taking a large amount of tax money it's true and some Unions are even better than others.

I know it's not politically correct to say that teachers don't work hard and maybe they do work hard, but they don't work long hours. There's no other job where employees get all summer off plus one week for Christmas, another for Easter, half day on Wed, every possible holiday. Teachers are very well paid for their part time work.

The pensions alone are amazingly good. It used to be that government workers had modest salaries but guaranteed job for life and guaranteed pensions – albeit modest. Those days are gone and now government workers are paid more than the average business worker (who's taxes pay their salaries), plus it's almost impossible to get fired PLUS they get dreamy large pensions.

– MR

]]> By: guest http://www.delmartimes.net/2011/07/28/where%e2%80%99s-the-outrage/#comment-190612 guest Thu, 04 Aug 2011 08:29:28 +0000 http://delmartimes.mscsddev.com/?p=25841#comment-190612 Thanks for shedding light on the truth. I think there is a misperception that all of us in Carmel Valley are rich. Many of us overpaid for our houses (and are now house poor) to send our children to this school district. At least the teacher's union protects their retirement. They never account for that in their salary discussions when they site how small their income is or isn't. Meanwhile, I just watched my retirement shrink again today as the DOW plummets, they are protected from that. I also have to pay more every year for health care and have not gotten a raise in two years. Watching them waste money is an insult to us, especially when they expect 800 per student. For those of us with several children that really breaks the bank! But we scrape to do it to provide the best education and I expect the district to respect that and do the same. Thanks for shedding light on the truth. I think there is a misperception that all of us in Carmel Valley are rich. Many of us overpaid for our houses (and are now house poor) to send our children to this school district. At least the teacher's union protects their retirement. They never account for that in their salary discussions when they site how small their income is or isn't. Meanwhile, I just watched my retirement shrink again today as the DOW plummets, they are protected from that. I also have to pay more every year for health care and have not gotten a raise in two years. Watching them waste money is an insult to us, especially when they expect 800 per student. For those of us with several children that really breaks the bank! But we scrape to do it to provide the best education and I expect the district to respect that and do the same.

]]> By: guest http://www.delmartimes.net/2011/07/28/where%e2%80%99s-the-outrage/#comment-190585 guest Thu, 04 Aug 2011 07:28:04 +0000 http://delmartimes.mscsddev.com/?p=25841#comment-190585 In addition, in December Peabody gave a probational employee a one months salary parting gift when it was mutually decided he was not a good fit, because "it was the right thing to do." That was another 10K wasted. In addition, in December Peabody gave a probational employee a one months salary parting gift when it was mutually decided he was not a good fit, because "it was the right thing to do." That was another 10K wasted.

]]> By: Factfinder http://www.delmartimes.net/2011/07/28/where%e2%80%99s-the-outrage/#comment-190264 Factfinder Wed, 03 Aug 2011 22:30:40 +0000 http://delmartimes.mscsddev.com/?p=25841#comment-190264 Sutton brought to our attention, through her column, her opinion that the Federal funds were improperly allocated and, based on the comments already posted, there is little disagreement. However, she did not just make this column up out of whole cloth. The facts that she ferreted out and painstakingly assembled can be found in a news story published in this paper last June. In case you missed it it is posted here: <a href="http://www.delmartimes.net/2011/06/28/local-school-districts-allocate-millions-in-federal-money-differently/" rel="nofollow">http://www.delmartimes.net/2011/06/28/local-schoo...</a> Like all good research it is not exciting, entertaining or sensational. Rather it lays out in great detail, for anyone with the patience to read through it, the facts and events surrounding and leading up to the allocation of those funds. I would urge anyone who wants to engage in a debate on this issue to arm themselves first with the facts. Agree or disagree with the actions of the board, the superintendent, the teachers, or the union, you'll find what you need to know at that link. Hopefully it will help to focus the debate on the issues instead of the personalities of the debaters. Sutton brought to our attention, through her column, her opinion that the Federal funds were improperly allocated and, based on the comments already posted, there is little disagreement.

However, she did not just make this column up out of whole cloth. The facts that she ferreted out and painstakingly assembled can be found in a news story published in this paper last June. In case you missed it it is posted here:
http://www.delmartimes.net/2011/06/28/local-schoo...

Like all good research it is not exciting, entertaining or sensational. Rather it lays out in great detail, for anyone with the patience to read through it, the facts and events surrounding and leading up to the allocation of those funds.

I would urge anyone who wants to engage in a debate on this issue to arm themselves first with the facts. Agree or disagree with the actions of the board, the superintendent, the teachers, or the union, you'll find what you need to know at that link. Hopefully it will help to focus the debate on the issues instead of the personalities of the debaters.

]]> By: VRM84 http://www.delmartimes.net/2011/07/28/where%e2%80%99s-the-outrage/#comment-190251 VRM84 Wed, 03 Aug 2011 21:54:07 +0000 http://delmartimes.mscsddev.com/?p=25841#comment-190251 For anyone interested, information about the Education Jobs Fund program is available online at: <a href="http://www2.ed.gov/programs/educationjobsfund/applicant.html" rel="nofollow">http://www2.ed.gov/programs/educationjobsfund/app...</a>. Select the MS Word Document titled: "Guidance for States on the Education Jobs Fund Program" Section D of that document on page 6 has the information about what the funds could be used for. There is a wide range of uses, exclusively for teachers (ie, not district office employees or consultants, etc.) That is why DMUSD actually did take money from the General Fund for this program in addition to the federal grant.... In an attempt to be "fair" Mr. Peabody offered this program to every single employee, but some number of of employees could not be paid from the Education Jobs Fund monies. Therefore, those employees were paid $1,000 each out of the General Fund....it did cost us money we don't have....just FYI for those who are interested.... For anyone interested, information about the Education Jobs Fund program is available online at: http://www2.ed.gov/programs/educationjobsfund/app....
Select the MS Word Document titled: "Guidance for States on the Education Jobs Fund Program"
Section D of that document on page 6 has the information about what the funds could be used for. There is a wide range of uses, exclusively for teachers (ie, not district office employees or consultants, etc.) That is why DMUSD actually did take money from the General Fund for this program in addition to the federal grant…. In an attempt to be "fair" Mr. Peabody offered this program to every single employee, but some number of of employees could not be paid from the Education Jobs Fund monies. Therefore, those employees were paid $1,000 each out of the General Fund….it did cost us money we don't have….just FYI for those who are interested….

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