Citing ‘flawed information’ used to support a controversial calendar change, teachers demanded reconsideration of the plan scheduled for next school year at a Palisades Charter High School board meeting Tuesday night. A petition signed by 78 of the school’s 115 teachers was presented to the board. ‘While we may have different opinions regarding the calendar, we feel as educators, information is the key to making reasonable decisions,’ reads the petition. ‘In the future, we would hope that both the pros and cons are presented to ALL stakeholder groups prior to them making an informed decision regarding the calendar change.’ The board’s decision last November to approve the calendar change despite opposition from parents and students drew sharp criticism. Many parents left the November meeting booing the board, and students protested the change by creating YouTube videos and by staging a campus-wide walkout. When the change is effective, classes in the 2007-2008 school year will begin on August 20 and end June 6, rather than beginning after Labor Day and ending in late June. Also, the first semester would end before winter break, rather than ending weeks after winter break. The school’s Policy Committee proposed the change as a way of potentially raising student achievement. Committee members argued that the calendar would give Advanced Placement students two weeks of additional classroom instruction before the test. Members also argued that ending classes before winter break would increase student performance on final exams. The committee polled all stakeholders, which included parents, students, teachers and other school employees, on the proposed change. Majorities of students and parents opposed the change, but teachers favored it. The board cited teacher support as a reason to override student and parent opinion. Opponents of the change say that the pros and cons of the plan were not represented accurately. In fact, none of those groups was given the estimated financial cost of the change, which could be as much as $80,000. Also, many teachers have said that the original poll was not representative of faculty opinion because only half of the school’s teachers participated. ‘I have been a teacher here for 14 years, and never during that time have I felt that there was an US vs. THEM environment between teachers and administration,’ said English teacher Stephen Klima, who presented the petition to the board Tuesday night. ‘But it seems like that is the case now more so than ever.’ Although the board approved the change in November, the school has to work out the terms of next year’s calendar as part of its contract negotiations with UTLA. State law bars board members from discussing the change as long as it is part of labor negotiations. Klima wants the board to reconsider the change, so that the board can begin discussing the change in public. Cheryl Onoye, chair of the Policy Committee, defended her management of stakeholder polling at the board meeting Tuesday night. ‘The committee discussed this for six months in open meetings,’ she said while holding back tears. ‘It couldn’t have been a more open process. We weren’t trying to skew the faculty poll. And it’s disheartening to be accused of being biased.’ The union representing PaliHi teachers, UTLA, conducted a poll in December that included 101 of the school’s 115 teachers. Teachers narrowly approved the change in a 52-49 vote. ‘In light of this petition, it seems like the majority of faculty want this to be revisited,’ said Joi Tanita, a PaliHi teacher and UTLA representative. There is currently no indication that the board will reconsider the change. Board members did not respond to the petition Tuesday night. ————— Reporting by Staff Writer Max Taves. To contact, e-mail: reporter@palipost.com or call (310) 454-1321 ext 28.
This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.
