Chicago Principals & Administrators Association, AFSA ...storage.cloversites.com/chicagoprincipals... · moved to Saturday, February 5th. Academy Executive Director Sallie Penman

I am going to get right to the point. Everyone’s asking, is

angry, or in a panic about the furlough days. At the time of

my preparing this article, no ready solution is at hand. A

meeting is scheduled for March 8th, with Terry Mazany, my-

self and our pension representative Chris Kotis, to discuss

the “infamous” furlough days. We, meaning CPAA, have

been prepared and anxious to tackle the issue for some

time. Needless to say, obstacle after obstacle has hampered

everyone getting to the table in a timely fashion. Certainly,

Mazany is coming to his position at a time when almost

nothing is working well. We understand that he needed time

to get his arms around this enormous organizational mon-

ster, CPS. I want to applaud the courage it took to accept the

job of CEO with no expectation of actually having enough

time to make a real impact.

Having had the opportunity to meet with Mazany, I must say

I was impressed with his insight about some of the chronic,

but not so public, problems in the system. His sincerity was

obvious from the start, allowing for comfortable and open

conversations to take place. Those of you at this year’s An-

nual Conference can attest to the astonishing talk he gave at

our opening. Many of you took time to speak to him person-

ally, as he did not dash out the door as so many of his pre-

decessors have done. I felt thrilled to have my impression of

him validated by those present at the Conference.

Despite my encouragement about Mazany’s openness, we

are prepared to press hard on the need for transparency

about the state of CPS’s finances. There have been signifi-

cant additions to the revenue stream coming to CPS over

the last six months. The Federal Government awarded CPS

$104 million through the EduJobs program to save teaching

positions. Let’s not forget about the drastic pension reform

that saved CPS about $400 million. Those savings may one

day put our Chicago Teachers Pension Fund in great jeopar-

dy. Now the Governor’s race is over and the much-debated

State Income Tax increase was approved by the State Legis-

lature. On February 16th, the Governor unveiled the State

Budget, and we are waiting for the analysis of how much

CPS can expect in state funding. None of us are oblivious

to the dire economic status of CPS and the State of Illinois.

Having said that, we want CPS to make every effort to less-

en the already severe economic burden it has placed on its

middle management. Before any more of our hard-earned

money is stripped from us and the accompanying pension

loss it causes, we want to see the books!

Chicago Principals & Administrators Association, AFSA Local 2, AFL-CIO

The Torch Is BurnIng

4

reTIrees’ corner

5

54Th AnnuAl

educATIon conference

6

20 N. Wacker Dr.Suite 622

Chicago, Il 60606312-263-7767

Fax 312-263-2012www.mycpaa.org

FEBRUARY 2011MYCPAA.ORG

A Message From The Presidentby Clarice Berry

VOL. XVII I , NO. 2

The Lamp

The Lamp is published monthly by the Chicago Principals & Administrators Association and distributed to the entire membership. Recent editions are available online at

http://www.mycpaa.org. Comments and suggestions are welcome; please e-mail Associate Editor Kent Lau at [email protected]. The Chicago Principals & Administrators

Association AFSA Local 2, AFL-CIO, 20 N. Wacker Dr., Suite 622, Chicago, IL 60606, Phone: 312-263-7767, Fax: 312-263-2012, www.mycpaa.org

Clarice Berry

Editor

[email protected]

Kent Lau

Associate Editor

[email protected]

Kimberly Tsui

Design/Production

AFFILIATIONS:

American Federation of

School Administrators

(AFSA)

American Federation of Labor-

Congress of Industrial Organizations

(AFL-CIO)

Illinois American Federation of Labor-

Congress of Industrial Organizations

(IL AFL-CIO)

Chicago Federation of Labor-

Industrial Union Council

(CFL-IUC)

January GoverningBoard Meeting ReportJanuary 3, 2011

The CPAA Governing Board met on Monday, January 3, 2011.

Executive Board Members Present – Clarice Berry, Everett Edwards II, Gloria Espinosa, Brenetta Glass,

Donald Mendro, Elba Plúas

Governing Board Members Present – Pedro Beiza, Ana Espinosa, Maria Fresse-Giffels, Senalda Grady,

Guadalupe Gonzalez, David Peterson, Serena Peterson, Virginia Rivera, Efren Toledo, Jerry Travalos

CPAA Staff Present – William Quinlan

Call To Order – President Clarice Berry called the meeting to order at 5:08 PM.

Minutes Of Previous Meeting – Clarice Berry asked for a motion to accept November 8, 2010 minutes

as written. Motion was seconded by David Peterson and unanimously approved.

Treasurer’s Report – Treasurer’s Report was presented by Gloria Espinosa. Serena Peterson moved to

accept the Treasurer’s Report. Motion was seconded by Gloria Espinosa.

Membership Report – Membership Report read by Gloria Espinosa. David Peterson moved to accept

the Membership Report. Motion was seconded by Ana Espinosa.

President’s Report – Attorney Quinlan is awaiting a response from the attorneys for the building at

LaSalle and Wacker.

President Berry will ask CTU President Karen G. J. Lewis and CEO Terry Mazany to encourage principals

to attend the 54th Annual CPAA Education Conference at Fairmont Chicago on February 3rd and 4th.

Auxiliary VII

Move to allow the publication of salaries. President Berry will respond with information in The Lamp.

Move to invite all marginal candidates to a forum; everyone’s platform needs to be heard. President

Berry will contact Gabriel Lopez to set up a forum with candidates.

Auxiliary IX

Move that the Executive Board inquire into the legality of furlough days. Attorney Quinlan read a passage

from the principal’s contract indicating that furlough days were not illegal.

The Lamp —February 2011 3

President Berry set up a meeting with CEO Mazany

on December 14, 2010, which was cancelled;

President Berry will set up another meeting with

CEO Mazany to discuss furlough days.

Move to request meeting with pension representa-

tive. Human Capital identified 2011 retirees as ex-

empt from furlough days, waiting for 2012 retirees

exemption. President Berry will seek restoration of

loss wages for those who have taken furlough

days. Clarice Berry states that the furlough issue

will be clarified in the upcoming newsletter; until

such time, do not take furlough days.

Committee Reports and Meetings

There were no reports.

Old Business

None.

New Business

None.

Submitted by: Brenetta V. Glass, Secretary

Auxiliary IContact Jerry Travlos773-534-3711Smyser Elementary

Auxiliary IIContact Efren Toledo773-534-2312La Villa

Auxiliary IIIContact Herman Escobar773-534-4375La Villa

Auxiliary IVContact Jacqueline Robinson773-534-6050

Auxiliary VContact Virginia Rivera773-535-7252Mi Tierra

Auxiliary VIContact CPAA Office312-263-7767

Auxiliary VIIContact Ana Espinosa773-535-0457Sandoval School

Auxiliary VIIIContact CPAA Office312-263-7767

Auxiliary IXContact Senald Grady773-535-3435Pirie School

Auxiliary XContact CPAA Office312-263-7767

Auxiliary XIContact Chris Jones773-534-2477TBD

Auxiliary XIIContact CPAA Office312-263-7767

Auxiliary XIIIContact CPAA Office312-263-7767

Auxiliary XIVContact CPAA Office312-263-7767

Auxiliary XVContact CPAA Office312-263-7767

Auxiliary XVIContact David Peterson847-223-3958CPAA Office

March Auxiliary Meeting Schedule

Chicago Board of EducationMonthly MeetingWednesday, February 23, 2011Board Chambers 125 S. Clark St.

Registration 8:00–9:00 AMPublic Participation 10:30 AM–12:30 PM

CPAA General Membership Meeting Monday, March 21, 2011(See back cover)

Upcoming Meetings

Member NewsBoard Action — At the December 2010 and January 2011 Board of Education Meetings, the following Principal Contracts were approved: Pedro Alonso, Von Steuben High School; Brenda DeMar-Williams, Earhart Elementary; Mary Dixon, Dawes Elementary; Christine Jabbari, Rogers Elementary; Saundra Jones, West Park Elementary; Antoinette LoBosco, Lane Tech High School; Jorge Macias, Galileo Elementary; Krish Mohip, Walsh Elementary; Antoinette McClellan-Brown, Vanderpoel Elementary; LaTanya McDade, Keller Elementary; Eileen O’Toole, Albany Park Elementary; Melody Seaton, Gompers Elementary; Juanita Saucedo, Kanoon Elementary; Dorothy Thompson, Parkside Elementary; Jerry Travlos, Smyser Elementary.

New Members — David Belanger, Principal, Hanson Park Elementary; Bernadette Glover, A.P., Bret Harte Elementary; Martin Ryczek, A.P., Palmer Elementary; Francisco Sanchez, A.P., Stevenson Elementary.

Condolences — Leonel Craig, father of Michele Barton, former Principal of Metcalfe Elementary School, passed away in January 2011. Nadine DeJulio, wife of Dr. Emil DeJulio, former CAO and CPAA Treasurer, passed away on January 20, 2011.

It’s difficult to be positive during these cold days in

the heart of winter, but nonetheless that’s how I feel

about our 54th Annual Education Conference. This

could easily have been called “the conference that

never was.”

First of all, there was a very real possibility last

September that we were going to skip this

conference due to the generally tough economic

times we were — and still are — all experiencing. It

was a combination of not wanting to break the

conference chain by our President Clarice Berry and

encouragement to go forward from Chicago Board

of Education President Mary Richardson-Lowry that

put the original plan in progress.

All was going well until Mother Nature decided to

test us (as if we don’t have too much testing

already!) with a hundred-year snowstorm. The

CPAA certainly bent, but we did not break. Everyone

pulled on their hightop boots and adjusted to the

situation. The Illinois Administrators Academy

sessions planned for Thursday, February 3rd, were

moved to Saturday, February 5th. Academy

Executive Director Sallie Penman even made

additional accommodations for any who were not

able to make the Saturday classes. Way to go Sallie!

The CPAA staff, under the leadership of Office

Manager Kent Lau, rearranged the conference

details and program. The “Making Ends Meet” 54th

Annual Chicago Principals and Administrators

Association Education Conference was then held at

the Fairmont Hotel on Thursday, February 10, 2011.

It was, I feel, a success on all levels.

The participants started the day with an introduction

to and speech from the interim Chicago Board of

Education Chief Executive Officer Terry Mazany.

What a speech it was! Not one full of dry data and

statistics, but rather one from the heart concerning

all of the difficult aspects of teaching and learning. I

hope the new mayor gives serious consideration to

Terry Mazany as a permanent candidate for the

office of Chief Executive. He seems to be exactly

what we need – a thoughtful educator.

All of the sessions were well-attended, but the three

by Chief Human Capital Officer Alicia Winckler

received special attention. All of the attendees

strained to know the very latest on evaluation

reform and the hiring of school staff. All of our

presenters gave participants a variety of pertinent

topics from which to choose.

In spite of the snow and our change of dates, the

vendor floor was full of presenters. It is always

difficult for them to get to see you in your schools,

so they look upon this conference as a prime

occasion to display their goods and services to all of

you. I hope you set aside plenty of time to visit all of

them. Aside from their financial assistance in parts

of the conference, this is a golden opportunity to

sort through their many offerings and pick out

those who can be of assistance to you and your

school. I frequently found new ideas popping into

my head when I visited the vendors. I’m sure it’s a

similar feeling for all of you.

Although it’s hard, it’s good to sometimes have to

make changes on the fly. An emergency makes you

rethink all you do and some of the changes can turn

out better than the original. Let me cite two as

examples: Our sit-down lunch always seemed to

me to take too long. The food might not be hot

when it was served to you. This time we had six

buffet lines with a wide variety of hot foods from

which to choose. Soup and dessert were at

additional stations. No waiting! Go back as many

times as you wish!! I heard a lot of rave reviews

about this changed luncheon service. The second

item I heard positive feedback on was the raffles at

the evening reception that you had to be present at

to win. We held all of the raffles at the beginning of

the evening reception. Those who wished to get an

early start for home could then depart. No one felt

cheated as they might have in the past when the

raffles were the last item on the agenda.

I could continue with items and events from the

conference that all led to its success. As always, I

think of that networking piece all of us get when we

attend. There is nothing more important than the

people you meet and interact with at the conference.

This might well be the time when you are introduced

to the person who will be your perfect assistant

principal or you hear about a potential principalship

opening in the course of good conversation with

your colleagues.

It’s my hope that we can go back to a two-day

conference and that we are forced to close

registration early because all of our 800 slots are

booked. I urge all of this year’s attendees to please

spread the word about what a valuable – and fun –

time we had. All administrators should attend; a big

THANK YOU to those who did.

I started my column with the cold thoughts of

winter; let me conclude with a warm longing for

spring. It does seem far off – baseball pitchers and

catchers are just now being called to Arizona for

spring training (no, you can’t go!). We have recently

entered the second half of our educational season

as well. Buckle down and resolve again to give your

best effort to our students. They deserve no less

and you’ll feel better because of the worthwhile

work you do. Spring will come.

The Torch Is Burning

by John Butterfield

The Lamp —February 2011 5

STAY ING CONNECTED AND ADDRESS ING THE CONCERNS SHAPING YOUR FUTURE

Happy New Year! The latest Auxiliary XVI meeting

was held on February 15th on the 6th floor

conference room in the 20 N. Wacker Drive building,

new location of the CPAA offices. If you are one of

the 700+ CPAA retired members and have an e-mail

account, you would do well to give your e-mail

address to Auxiliary XVI president, Dave Peterson,

at [email protected], and he will notify you of

future meetings.

The guest speaker at the January meeting was Kevin

Huber, Executive Director of the Chicago Teachers

Pension Fund (CTPF). Mr. Huber indicated that the

latest state income tax increase will not apply to our

pension payments, BUT the taxing of it may very

well be approached during the current new session.

The tax increase will not benefit our pension system

though it will benefit the other state pension

systems. The CTPF is now about 67% funded, and

it will continue to drop, partially as a result of the

state approving a lowering of payments to the Fund

by the Board of Education for this and the next two

years. However, the 20-year return on investments

is 9% rather than the anticipated 8%.

Kevin pointed out that our current focus is to get

the state to provide more funds to the CTPF since

the CPS is not paying what it should be paying (as it

was given permission to do) to make up the funding

below the 90% level. The state should contribute to

the CTPF an amount equitable to that given to the

TRS (retirement system for educators in the rest of

the state).

Although the CTPF’s and the Retired Teachers

Association of Chicago’s (RTAC) legislative agendas

both include the goal of increasing the health

insurance rebate to $100 million from the current

$65 million, Mr. Huber doesn’t see that happening

at this time. It might be better to seek having the

$65 million tied to and reflect an annual consumer

health insurance cost; this might stabilize the

increase rather than there being a need for continual

requests for raising the allocation. The 2011 health

rebate of 60% will be effective for this year and next.

Those in attendance approved a motion to accept/

support the RTAC legislative agenda for 2011, which

was distributed to each member. They also

encouraged the CTPF to change one of its goals

from “Provide for an additional property tax levy of

0.1% with the proceeds to go directly to CTPF” to a

goal which seeks the restoring of the tax levy in

place before it was redirected to the CPS in 1995.

Several of the other items on the CTPF agenda were

also discussed.

A motion was approved, which recommended to

the Governing Board, that the President question

the CPS as to whether all for whom they are making

contributions to the Pension Board are appropriate,

as it seems that some that are included may not

meet the requirements for being included in the

CTPF system.

The motion that was previously presented to the

Governing Board from Auxiliary VIII, “to increase

the retirees’ membership dues from $50 to $100

per year,” was partially discussed. Many related

questions were raised relative to the CPAA costs for

being a member of AFSA (American Federation of

School Administrators), the costs of producing the

calendar and newsletters, the possibility of

providing a printed “retirees directory” for those

who requested it (in view of the fact that many

retirees do not have/use computers), the financial

situation of the CPAA, the CPAA recruiting efforts,

and other concerns. A motion was approved to ask

CPAA President Clarice Berry to attend the next

auxiliary meeting. The discussion of the dues

increase was tabled to the next auxiliary meeting. In

view of the fact that 40% of the CPAA membership

is comprised of retired members, a motion was

presented and approved to request the Governing

Board to support a change of the CPAA constitution

and bylaws to provide for the inclusion of a Retired

Vice-President on the Executive Board.

The Retired Principals and Superintendents group

has scheduled its Spring Luncheon Meeting for

May 12th. It will probably be held at Grace O’Malley’s

on Michigan Avenue. Treasurer MaryAnn Timlin

has expressed her gratitude to all those who have

paid their $5 dues as it has enabled the group to

send a donation to both the Science Fair and the

History Fair. Dues should be sent to MaryAnn at

10549 Thornham Lane, Mokena, IL 60448. For

more information, contact her at 708-478-3019.

Happy New Year and may the return of the lost sun

bring warmth and smiles upon your face.

Send your news about retired members or the

activities of retired members’ groups to Art Fumarolo,

CPAA, 20 N. Wacker Dr., Suite 622, Chicago, IL

60606, or call me at 847-289-7847, or e-mail them to

[email protected].

Retirees' Corner by Art Fumarolo

Photos from the 54th Annual Education Conference at the Fairmont Hotel Chicago.To view and/or download photos from the Conference, please visit www.mycpaa.org.

Please enclose your check for $40 with your reservation. Mail to: CPAA, 20 North Wacker Drive, Suite 622, Chicago, IL, prior to Friday, March 18, 2011.

NAME

POSITION

SCHOOL / SITE

Monday, March 21, 2011

Galleria Marchetti825 West Erie StreetChicago, Illinois

special guestTBD

Cost: $40Valet Parking available for $12

You may also register online by visiting our website:http://www.mycpaa.org

NO RESERVATIONS WILL BE TAKEN AT THE DOOR!

schedule 4–5 Cocktails 5–6 Dinner 6–7 Business Meeting

general membership meeting

Roast Fillet with Mushroom Wine Sauce

Broiled Salmon Steak

Chicken Marsala

Vegetarian (Eggplant Parmesan)

ILLINOIS GENERAL ASSEMBLY CHICAGO EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES TASK FORCE State Rep. Cynthia Soto and State Sen. Heather Steans, Co-Chairs

NOTICE OF PUBLIC FEEDBACK PROCESS REGARDING THE PRELIMINARY RECOMMENDATIONS

Of the CHICAGO EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES TASK FORCE Based on 10 months of public input from a broad array of stakeholders, along with research on national best practices, and analysis of data provided by the Chicago Public Schools (“CPS”), the General Assembly’s Task Force on Chicago Educational Facilities has proposed preliminary recommendations for legislation to reform CPS’ management of and investment in educational facilities, school utilization, and “School Actions”. The Public Input Subcommittee of the Task Force will hold three meetings at which the public may provide feedback on these recommendations:

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 18th, 2011, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM Bilandic Bldg Auditorium, 160 N. LaSalle, Room 500

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 23rd, 2011, 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM

Northern Trust Bank, 7801 S. State Street

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24th, 2011, 5:00 PM – 7:30 PM Roberto Clemente High School, 1147 N. Western Avenue

THE TASK FORCE PRELIMINARY RECOMMENDATIONS WILL BE AVAILABLE AT ALL THREE PUBLIC HEARINGS; and ARE AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW ONLINE AT THE WEBSITE OF THE ILLINOIS STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION:

www.isbe.net.state.il.us/CEF/  

Additionally, members of the public may download and complete the Public Feedback Form found on the above ISBE webpage. They may submit the completed feedback form or any comment via fax to Valencia Rias at 312-­‐236-­‐7927;  or  via  email  to  the  Public  Input  Subcommittee  at:

[email protected]

The Public Feedback Period will remain open for 15 days following the last public hearing.

On March 11, 2011 the ILGA’s Chicago Educational Facilities Task Force will meet to finalize its recommendations at 9:30 AM in the Bilandic Building, 160 N. LaSalle, RM N-505, Chicago, IL.  

Theme: Education is a Civil Right: Upright, Up front, and Up for the Challenge

Come Celebrate Black History with CAABSE and Bring a Friend.

Do You Know Your History?

Play Who Am I?

Black-eyed Peas Cornbread

Cabbage Chicken

Punch Sweet Potatoes

Wednesday, February 23, 2011 4:15 pm – 6:30 pm

Mayo Elementary School 249 East 37th Street Chicago, Illinois 60653

Jeff Dase, President Stephen D. Bournes, Chairperson

Workshop Title: Using African-American film excerpts to Engage Middle

School and High School Students in Higher Order

Thinking

Raffle Prizes!!!

Registration 4:00 pm – 5:00

pm

Join our Round Robin Table

Discussion . .

Meet people who might know about vacancies.

Jewelry &

More

Enjoy Performances by the Mayo School Choir

and African Dance Group