Glorious day by the Bay: great pick for the day, Craig.
Here are some of my photos of the English Department get-together this afternoon.
Enjoy!
--Matt Duckworth
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
A Teacher of 45 Years Speaks Out: How Educators Are Being Blamed for Our Financial Mess
"I am sorry I became a teacher. I honestly didn't mean to place so many states in danger of going bankrupt."
For over 45 years I have enjoyed making a living teaching. It hasn’t been easy or lucrative, but it had its rewards, one of which was a secure retirement plan.Now, after reading the recent California Little Hoover Commission Report that recommends that public school retirements be reduced, even for those who are already retired, and the actions of the Ohio, Idaho, and Wisconsin republicans in accusing teachers and their pensions and bargaining rights as mainly responsible for that state’s financial situation, I am sorry I became a teacher. I honestly didn’t mean to place so many states in danger of going bankrupt.I also realize now that I am sorry to have chosen education as a career for other reasons. I am sorry that my wife may have to work until she is well past 70 and endure the rigors of 12-hour shifts as a nurse. I am sorry that I may become a burden to my children because my retirement income won’t cover the costs of extended care. I am sorry for those students I encouraged to become teachers, telling them to ignore the glow of the better-paying professions.I am sorry that the government is punishing me for being a civil servant by taking away over 60 percent of the Social Security benefits I had paid for during years of part-time work in the private sector to help put two children through college. I am sorry that, if I outlive my wife, I won’t be eligible for her Social Security benefits—because I’m a public servant.♦◊♦I am also very sorry that the vast conservative media have chosen teachers as a topic for loathing and hatred.I am sorry that the right-wing politicians and conservative think tanks are at work to convince the public that education would work better if schools were private. I am sorry that the producers of Waiting for “Superman” didn’t travel a few miles farther to see my school and talk to the parents and students. I am sorry that the writers of the movie didn’t get a chance to see what is really happening in America’s schools. I’m sorry they didn’t call their work Waiting for “Funding.”The use of misleading facts to bully educators is rampant. Most recently, Wisconsin teachers, fighting merely for the right to negotiate as a union, were accused of causing over 7 million dollars of damages to the State Capitol Building and grounds. The media spread that lie and never followed up with the fact that the damages never were properly assessed. Sorry to say, but this is just one example of the media’s bullying of teachers. When is the last time the public learned that 145,100 public school teachers were physically attacked and that 276,000 were threatened with injury?I am also sorry that, as a teacher, I did such a poor job of teaching students to think for themselves, and let the fear mongers drug their critical thinking skills. I am sorry that I spent so much time getting my students ready for the state test that I did a poor job of teaching them to ask for proof when an organization says it offers fair and balanced news reporting.♦◊♦Until today I never stopped to look at what my decision to become a teacher had cost. I wrote a letter to one of the commissioners on the Little Hoover Commission expressing how my decision to become a teacher had cost my family dearly and that their findings made me sorry I had become a teacher.The response was hardly unexpected. The secretary of the commissioner responded by writing that teaching was a valued profession. But apparently not valued enough for the commission to advise the California legislature not to leave the teacher retirement plan alone. After all, the budget has to be balanced and God forbid there is a tax increase. Sorry to say, their recommendations, if followed, would result in extensive court battles, legal costs, and the possibility that teachers would continue to be the scapegoats whenever the economy is troubled. By the way, sorry to say, not one member of the Little Hoover Commission is a teacher or educator, and the commission is dominated by big business members. The findings of the Little Hoover Commission are not unexpected, given President Hoover’s legacy.♦◊♦I left the financial world after tiring of the constant manipulation of the general public to add to the company’s bottom line. I am sorry I didn’t fight my temptation to help others and instead stay in the corporate world with a secretary, reserved parking spot, executive dining room, paid-for college courses, free health care, my own office, and a chance to continue to hobnob with the movers and shakers of the world from Richard Nixon and king-maker Asa Call to Ronald Reagan.At age 22 I had my own upscale apartment in Los Angeles and a racing Cobra. Life was good and the pension plan was lucrative as I had to pay nothing into it. The company was going to move to a beach community and I would have been a made man. All I had to do was ignore my desire to help others.Sorry, but I couldn’t resist: I entered a teaching college and, now, over 45 years later, I have a lot of apologies to hand out.I know that my fellow teachers have spent decades teaching our students about the evils of bullying and to not tolerate it. The theme “Don’t Be a Bystander” is one of our major lesson plans. And yet, I am sorry to say, we are now the ones being bullied. Perhaps it is time for us to join together and write letters, make phone calls, and express ourselves to our elected officials to let them know that there are millions of teachers who vote—and we won’t want them to be sorry.Alan Haskvitz, a teacher for 45 years, honestly didn’t mean to place so many states in danger of going bankrupt. He just wanted a secure retirement plan.
Monday, April 25, 2011
Photo Prompts?
erik-johansson-1
10.jpg
erik-johansson-10
erik-johansson-13
2.jpg
erik-johansson-15
5.jpg
erik-johansson-16
3.jpg
erik-johansson-17
14.jpg
erik-johansson-18
17.jpg
erik-johansson-2
8.jpg
erik-johansson-20
19.jpg
erik-johansson-21
18.jpg
erik-johansson-22
20.jpg
erik-johansson-23
erik-johansson-3
9.jpg
erik-johansson-4
11.jpg
erik-johansson-5
6.jpg
erik-johansson-7
erik-johansson-retouching-7
erik-johansson3
glace3
Mind-Boggling Photo Manipulations by Erik Johansson 1
routecoup�e
Friday, April 15, 2011
Community colleges could turn away 400,000
Community colleges could turn away 400,000
Nanette Asimov, Chronicle Staff Writer
03/31/11
An unprecedented 400,000 students could be turned away from California's community college campuses next fall because state lawmakers are letting billions of dollars in taxes expire in June that would otherwise protect courses, Community College Chancellor Jack Scott said Wednesday.
Pointing to budget talks that stalled this week in Sacramento - and the resulting failure of Gov. Jerry Brown's plan to let voters decide whether to extend and increase taxes - Scott said he expects the state to reduce its allocation to the college system by $800 million, nearly 10 percent of its total budget.
Voter approval of the taxes would have raised about $13 billion, resolving half of the state's $26 billion budget deficit. Democrats backed Brown's plan but were unable to persuade at least four Republicans to join them to meet the two-thirds majority required to place a tax measure on the ballot.
The Legislature has not yet decided how to make up the difference, so it's not clear that cuts to the college system would actually double from the $400 million reduction already planned by lawmakers.
Nor is eliminating courses the only way to make ends meet, said Steve Boilard, director of higher education with the Legislative Analyst's Office. For example, community colleges could impose a second fee hike on top of next fall's increase, he said. The price is rising to $36 per unit, from $26.
Yet higher fees can also be a barrier to college, educators said.
If 400,000 students are locked out of community college as Scott predicts, it would be roughly the same number as are enrolled in the entire California State University system.
"This is a tremendous tragedy, and a very deep blow to the economy of California," Scott said, describing community colleges as the "No. 1 workforce training institution" in the state.
The California system is the largest in the country, with 2.75 million students. And that's 140,000 fewer students than two years ago, when budget cuts forced the colleges to shed thousands of courses and instructors.
Meanwhile, community colleges have never been more popular, with more students knocking on the door every day to study nursing, programming and other careers; gain credits for transfer to a university; or improve basic English skills.
"These are catastrophic reductions," said Constance Carroll, chancellor of the San Diego Community College District. She joined Scott and other chancellors to lay out next year's expected landscape on campuses across the state.
San Diego colleges offered 16,000 courses two years ago, Carroll said, but next year they expect to offer less than 13,000.
"People trying to train for work will not have the opportunities they need," she said.
In Sacramento, Assemblyman Tim Donnelly, R-Twin Peaks (San Bernardino County), disputed the idea that community colleges fuel the California economy by putting people to work.
"It's not even true," said Donnelly, who serves as vice chairman of the Assembly Higher Education Committee. "It's small businesses that do that."
Donnelly said the way to resolve the state's budget crisis is not through tax extensions, but by deregulating businesses and eliminating state targets for reducing carbon emissions.
"I didn't come up to Sacramento - to leave my family and my business and my life - just to put a Band-Aid over the budget," he said.
College faculty members are having none of it.
"California will never emerge from the Great Recession without community colleges," said John McDowell, president of the Faculty Association of California Community Colleges.
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/03/31/BAOB1IMOQG.DTL
This article appeared on page C - 2 of the San Francisco Chronicle
© 2011 Hearst Communications Inc. | Privacy Policy | Feedback | RSS Feeds | FAQ | Site Index | Contact
Nanette Asimov, Chronicle Staff Writer
03/31/11
An unprecedented 400,000 students could be turned away from California's community college campuses next fall because state lawmakers are letting billions of dollars in taxes expire in June that would otherwise protect courses, Community College Chancellor Jack Scott said Wednesday.
Pointing to budget talks that stalled this week in Sacramento - and the resulting failure of Gov. Jerry Brown's plan to let voters decide whether to extend and increase taxes - Scott said he expects the state to reduce its allocation to the college system by $800 million, nearly 10 percent of its total budget.
Voter approval of the taxes would have raised about $13 billion, resolving half of the state's $26 billion budget deficit. Democrats backed Brown's plan but were unable to persuade at least four Republicans to join them to meet the two-thirds majority required to place a tax measure on the ballot.
The Legislature has not yet decided how to make up the difference, so it's not clear that cuts to the college system would actually double from the $400 million reduction already planned by lawmakers.
Nor is eliminating courses the only way to make ends meet, said Steve Boilard, director of higher education with the Legislative Analyst's Office. For example, community colleges could impose a second fee hike on top of next fall's increase, he said. The price is rising to $36 per unit, from $26.
Yet higher fees can also be a barrier to college, educators said.
If 400,000 students are locked out of community college as Scott predicts, it would be roughly the same number as are enrolled in the entire California State University system.
"This is a tremendous tragedy, and a very deep blow to the economy of California," Scott said, describing community colleges as the "No. 1 workforce training institution" in the state.
The California system is the largest in the country, with 2.75 million students. And that's 140,000 fewer students than two years ago, when budget cuts forced the colleges to shed thousands of courses and instructors.
Meanwhile, community colleges have never been more popular, with more students knocking on the door every day to study nursing, programming and other careers; gain credits for transfer to a university; or improve basic English skills.
"These are catastrophic reductions," said Constance Carroll, chancellor of the San Diego Community College District. She joined Scott and other chancellors to lay out next year's expected landscape on campuses across the state.
San Diego colleges offered 16,000 courses two years ago, Carroll said, but next year they expect to offer less than 13,000.
"People trying to train for work will not have the opportunities they need," she said.
In Sacramento, Assemblyman Tim Donnelly, R-Twin Peaks (San Bernardino County), disputed the idea that community colleges fuel the California economy by putting people to work.
"It's not even true," said Donnelly, who serves as vice chairman of the Assembly Higher Education Committee. "It's small businesses that do that."
Donnelly said the way to resolve the state's budget crisis is not through tax extensions, but by deregulating businesses and eliminating state targets for reducing carbon emissions.
"I didn't come up to Sacramento - to leave my family and my business and my life - just to put a Band-Aid over the budget," he said.
College faculty members are having none of it.
"California will never emerge from the Great Recession without community colleges," said John McDowell, president of the Faculty Association of California Community Colleges.
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/03/31/BAOB1IMOQG.DTL
This article appeared on page C - 2 of the San Francisco Chronicle
© 2011 Hearst Communications Inc. | Privacy Policy | Feedback | RSS Feeds | FAQ | Site Index | Contact
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Great Videos on Teaching
Taylor Mali (http://taylormali.com), one of the most well-known poets to have emerged from the poetry slam movement and one of the few people in the world to have no job other than that of poet., gives his mind on what teachers make. Mali is a vocal advocate of teachers and the nobility of teaching, having himself spent nine years in the classroom teaching everything from English and history to math and S.A.T. test preparation.
He has performed and lectured for teachers all over the world, and his New Teacher Project has a goal of creating 1,000 new teachers through "poetry, persuasion, and perseverance."
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Crissy Field Picnic Party: April 30, 1pm
On Saturday, April 30, 1-4pm (maybe later), we'll be having a bring-your-own-but-sharing-would-be-nice picnic party at Crissy Field in the grassy area somewhere near the Warming Hut Cafe. The picnic tables and grills are snagged on a first-come, first-served basis, so if anybody would like to earn non-instructional lab hours guarding a table, please let me know. (A permit would cost $50 and might not be necessary.) This is a beautiful part of the city, featuring great views, a little beach, historic structures, and an actual parking lot that might have vacant spots. See images below.
Since the Department's "adult" party on May 13 at the Presidio will be at night and cost a bit of do-re-mi, this daytime party at Crissy Field will be a fun, low-cost alternative for all, especially those of us with children, leaving us more babysitting money for the May 13 night party.
Will you be going to this Crissy Field party on April 30? Let me know.
Craig
Department Party at the Presidio Cafe: May 13, 6pm
Hi Everyone, You are being welcomed back from Spring Break with paper flyers in your mailboxes announcing our annual party scheduled for May 13. The flyer should answer all your questions about how much, what time, etc. so be sure to look for it and get your order and money in ASAP. The venue cannot handle changes, so we must meet the deadline. The price includes dinner ,contribution for a celebratory cake, and six retirement gifts. We have the same venue as before , the Presidio Golf Course Cafe. I forgot to mention last year that just around the corner from the restaurant and into the woods a bit is an art installation by Andy Goldsworthy, the environmental artist who also did the walkway of the DeYoung. Some of you also may have heard about him from the movie about his nature art, designed to disappear into the environment. Check it out. Maps: The Presidio Cafe (near the Arguello Gate)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)