" Teachers are in a category of our own. We are treated like blue collar workers in many instances. (Thus, the need for a union.)Yet, we are trained as professionals and expected to perform as professionals. Nobody goes into teaching expecting his or her pay to ever equal that of a medical professional,lawyer, engineer, or accountant. Really, WE DO NOT EXPECT THAT. However, compared with other professions, we are at the bottom of the pay scale. Compared with blue collar workers, I believe we are near the middle. The mechanic who works on my car makes quite a bit more annually than I do. So does the stylist who cuts my hair. Folks can jabber all they want about their perception of the perks of teaching and how local teachers are paid "well enough." What they ought to know,though, is that the tide is turning. There are places, now, in the U.S., where teachers are in high demand. They are being paid accordingly and that is where all the good teachers will eventually gravitate to. Little towns that have put teacher pay low on the priority list will have to take the leftovers. "

" To post #52:
Attacking me does not help your argument. PDU's are required by TSPC, but they can be acquired though workshops and inservices. They do not have to be college credit. Back to the original point,..teachers are paid very well when you figure in health benefits and PERS. I was on the union side of negotions many years ago. In fact I stayed up all night during negotiations with a mediator. But I learned during that process that unions are not for kids, they are for teachers. I became disenchanted and left the union. There are TERRIBLE teachers out there who cannot be removed because of the laws that unions pushed.
Teachers get paid very well for the hours they put in.
Good luck to you in you negotiations. "

" I've finally finished grading the 500-some pages! Nobody volunteered to help :( "

" Well, someone finally "pulled my chain" and made me see red! The Blog from a "teacher in another district" said that if you tallied up the hours teachers "actually work" we would be paid a tremendous amount. Well, I did just that. I then verified the time with my husband. I figured the 8 hours I am contracted, added the daily before and after school time at the building, then added the computer work for lessons and time for grading, the week-end time to set up and clean up, and summer school classes I take to be current in my profession. I did not include the time I put in do work for the association, CPT, the Carnival, family nights at school, or community and school fund raising events.
The Total: 2,828 hours.
Divide that by the average 40 hour week = 70.7 weeks. The last time I looked the year has 52 weeks. I don't know what district that person works in, but my husband says I should find out and go there. (I don't want to.)
Just in case people are wondering how I have time to do this Blog-- I happen to be out on sick leave right now. I had a brain tumor removed. I am itching to get back to my classroom and the kids that parents have trusted to me this year. I take my job very seriously. Maybe all teachers in this world do not spend as much time as I do working on school, but I know that many of my Nyssa colleagues spend more. We are a dedicated bunch of people - as are our administrators and board members. Nyssa gets a big bang for its buck. I am proud of the job we do. The purpose of this negotiation is to raise our pay to be comparable to other districts around us. Not to bash anyone. We believe our district has the funds to raise our pay or we would not be proposing this pay raise. "

" Looking at your blog would make me question whether a teacher actually wrote this. If, in fact, it was a teacher who wrote it, I would suggest that your school district INSIST that you go to "summer school" and attend more than "a workshop once in a while." From the looks of your punctuation and sentence structure, it looks like you need it. All school districts are different and have different requirements for their employees. Just because one district does not require further education does not mean another does not. Correct me if I'm wrong, but most of the requirements are being set by TSPC which would include everyone in the state of Oregon. "

" I am teacher in another school district. We get paid a tremendous amount of money for the time we put in. We DO NOT have to go to summer school Once in awhile we go to workshop during the summer, but it is a farce that we spend all summer going to school. If you tallied the actual hours teachers put in, the pay is awesome. Teachers should not be so selfish... Right now you are getting $900 a month for health insurance!!!! "

" My teachers, from the Elementary-High School, deserve a raise. My class, not only the most athletic, but we have the highest academics. The reason is because of the teachers we have always had. FINAO is our saying "Failure Is Not An Option" ALL of my teachers, EVERY one of them, follow this for us! They will not let us fail. And if it seems like we may, they work with us to fix it. They come to us to help us. They reach out and make sure that we will not fail. I feel horrible that they are not getting paid what they deserve. They ARE the best in the state. Especially in this area, to know they are being paid less then ONTARIO, c'mon. Give my teachers what they deserve, or we just might lose them. "

" Just to clarify on the hours a teacher works: My mom gets to school by 8 every morning and tries to leave by 6:30 pm to come home. If I want to see her, I go to her classroom. And I've never known our kitchen table not to be covered with papers to grade, lesson plans, misc school projects; unless it was a holiday. I don't think she expects a pay increase, but having lived with a teacher my whole life, I can tell you, they're not paid enough. "

" Does the average joe you are comparing teachers to have as much education under his or her belt? Is the average joe expected to spend their time away from their job furthering their education? Is the average joe expected to spend their own money to further that education in order to keep his or her job? Better yet, would the average joe even want a teaching job. Most people I talk to say I can't believe you are a teacher. I wouldn't do that job! If you want to make a comparison, make it a fair one, apples to apples, not apples to oranges. For the most part, in comparison, other professions that require as much education as the teaching profession does pays much higher than what an average teacher makes. Now, that's a comparison! In reference to most teachers getting caught up on most of their stuff during their free period, I say that's a pipe dream. You obviously aren't aware of a teacher's responsibilities to their students and to the state and the amount of work that goes into it. "

" I have 181 10th grade practice State Writing Assessment essays to grade. Each one is roughly 3 pages long. That's 543 pages that must be graded using a 6 point scale in 7 different categories.

543 pages to not only read, but edit, as well. Anybody want to help? How long does it take you to read a 543 page book? "

" You really think teachers work an average of 2-5 hours AFTER class. I think not. I remember most of my teachers catching up on most of their stuff doing their "free period". The fact is that teachers do, on average, work about 180 days out of the year (maybe more, but not much if you want to include in service days, parent conferences). Let's be honest, teachers salaries, while not great, is pretty darn good compared to the average joe who works all year, with less benefits, and with no retirment like teachers enjoy after working 25 years or so (when can teachers retire now?).

However, i do agree, that Nyssa teachers should receive the same pay as their neighbors. "

" So You are saying that the teachers and Administrators are good, honest, upright, hardworking, moral and above reproach, while the ELECTED board is a stingy bunch of crooks. Isn't that a bit of a slap in the face to the voters who elected these people? Do a little investigation. Boards usually only act on the recommendations of the superintendent and the administrative team. If Don Grotting wanted the teachers to have a raise, they would be getting a raise. "

" First, I would like to thank Mrs. Conant for her professional and appropriate comments in her blog. She is in a very difficult position as President of the Teachers Association, yet is EXACTLY right in her comments about keeping comments on the up and up. Mr. Fenton, I suggest you get your figures correct prior to putting them in a blog. Yes, the taxes are high in Nyssa and the home values have dropped. However, teachers work FAR MORE than 50% of the school year. In fact, when most people leave their jobs at the end of the day, teachers will go home and put in any where from 2 to 5 hours extra just to get the work corrected and to plan for the upcoming days. Please don't shoot down the hard work that the teachers put in every day. We have ALL received a good education due to having good teachers. Now, for the teachers in Nyssa. THEY DO DESERVE A RAISE so that they are on the SAME PAGE as the rest of the area schools. The Nyssa teachers have been asked and continue to be asked to do more work that is on top of their already busy work load. They are not given this choice, they are told that they need to do this. They have been given less time each year to properly plan for their lessons and how they will better meet the needs of their students (Especially in the Elementary School), yet the cost of living has gone up substantially. I do feel it is important to have a new middle school built, because the current one is in NO WAY suitable for the students that attend there. However, the teachers ARE DUE for an appropriate raise that equals or even slightly raises them above Ontario and Vale. They are asked to do a lot with very little extra help. Class sizes have increased in some grade levels, yet no extra help has been given. My children have been affected by this. I know that the process is not an easy one, however, I hope that the Nyssa School Board will wake up and begin to APPRECIATE the hard work Professional Teachers that they have before more leave. Our children deserve the best, and they teachers need to be fairly compensated for this. For those of you who want to bash on Mr. Grotting and Mrs. Weeks. Get a life. They are hard work professionals who have work hard with the teaching staff to make Nyssa a good place to educate children. THE NYSSA SCHOOL BOARD decides what the teachers will get, Not Mr. Grotting. They also decide in salary, Not Mr. Grotting. And to think that someone thinks that Mrs. KItamura and Mr. Carter are like Mother Theresa compared to these two, Get Real, there is NO COMPARISON!!!
GOOD LUCK TO THE TEACHERS IN THEIR QUEST TO BE APPROPRIATELY AND PROPERLY COMPENSATED for ALL their hard work and dedication!!! "

" Mr. Fenton,
I am sorry that the economy has gone haywire and devalued your property. There seems to be very few homes on the market in Nyssa, so if the teachers were able to get the raise they are asking, then maybe one of them would be able to purchase your home at it's value.
I spend a lot of time trying to understand the money that comes into schools in the state of Oregon. As I understand it, general fund monies are given equally to ALL districts in the state according to student enrollment. Then, the state subtracts local revenue from that and sends checks throughout the year to the school districts. Dollars can fluctuate if enrollment changes. Out of around 9 million allocated to Nyssa in 2007, under $700,000 came from "local funds" which I assume are property taxes. I may be wrong on that -- you know the saying about assume! I believe General Fund Revenue comes basically from INCOME TAX -- not property tax. All of the teachers pay into income tax along with all the people living in the district. I think I understand your frustration when everything just keeps going up, up ,up and everyone wants more, more, more.
I am one of the "old" teachers in the district. My children are grown and gone from my home. One of my biggest concerns in this negotiation is the teachers with young families that are having to feed and clothe their children, or the teachers trying to make ends meet while sending their children to college. I remember all those days. It was often a struggle. Even now, with no children at home money can often be a struggle.
You mentioned your taxes rising 5% per year. Assuming that as truth, then the teachers living in the district would have had their taxes rise 30% in the past six years, while their base salary increase was 10%. They are in the same boat as you.
By the way, teachers are contracted for 74% of the year. Christmas break and spring break are not paid. (except for Christmas Day and New Year's Day which are paid holidays.) It takes 78% of the year to complete an actual school year. The summer months are not paid. Teachers receive summer checks for the work they have ALREADY done. Many teachers take classes in the summer to keep current on new educational practices. We are required to take classes to keep up our certification, but I also take classes that I know will help me do a great job with my students -- above those required for my certification- and I am Not the only one!
When you see teachers at Nyssa schools on week-ends and after hours, those are usually volunteer hours. Free to the public! We are dedicated to our students and we are there making sure our lessons are ready and our grading is done. We often take work home and spend our evenings working. This is NOT a light duty job. The teachers in Nyssa strive to be the best, so that the students in Nyssa can be the best. Expect no less. We don't. "

" I am a Nyssa Middle School teacher. I would like to address four subjects which I have been reading about in these blogs. First of all, I don’t know of any teachers who are working without the proper credentials. Some are working toward the credentials they need to teach the particular subject they are responsible for, but they are doing it under the requirements set forth by the TSPC. Second, I would like to make a comment to the blogger who referred to the tension between the staff and administration at the middle school. This is my eleventh year in the district, all of which I have spent in the middle school. During that time I have taught under 3 different principals and 4 different vice principals. Yes, at times, in the past there has been dissention between the staff and administration. However, I don’t know what tension he or she is referring to last year. I personally believe at the middle school our staff has an excellent working relationship with our administration. Third, there has been some alluding to the fact that we, as teachers, get paid through the summer for not working. Yes, we do get paid through the summer. Our annual salaries are divided into 12 equal parts which is paid to us throughout the year. It may appear that we are being paid to be on a 3 month vacation, but that money is actually money that we earned for the other 9 months that school was in session. Last, I would like to weigh in on the salary part of this situation. I just received my first paycheck of the school year. I am currently working on last year’s contract, with a minor increase which is due to the step increase in our contract that is based on yearly experience. As my contract is currently, I will be bringing home less this year than I did last year. This is mainly due to the increase in insurance premiums stemming from the state mandated insurance carrier change which, by the way, the district had no voice in. In an economy in which the cost of living is climbing uncontrollably, mine and many other Nyssa teacher’s salaries are declining. For the last several years, our salaries have lagged behind the other nearby Oregon districts. Yet, we continually bring the good to excellent test results that many other districts do not. The teachers here work hard, as do many others across the state, and we would like to be paid as well as our neighboring Oregon districts. "

" Let's see, my taxes in the Nyssa School Dist. have risen 5% or more every year and now my home has lost 20% of it's value in the last year and now the teachers want a raise in this economy while working 50% of the year. Something is very out of whack! "

" Give them the raise!!! I went to school in Nyssa many a years ago and got a first rate education that would stack up to any school in the state. Suck it up and pay them what they are worth. "

" I find it truly amazing the support shown for the teachers in Nyssa. I am sure they appreciate it. From what I hear Nyssa has great schools. Come on! give them the raise! "

" What the heck is the hold-up, Nyssa Schoolboard? Find an expense that is low priority and put that money toward teacher salaries, which should have highest priority. I heard of a district where they stopped watering and mowing lawns on school property. They were able to save a teacher position that would have been cut otherwise. Maybe some of the support staff will have to go, and teachers will have to start tending to the playground again, etc., What can be discontinued or reduced that will have the least effect on the general student population? GET BUSY AND PAY THOSE TEACHERS WHAT THEY DESERVE! "

" I know quite a few teachers in the Elementary School district that work hard to ensure those students are learning what they need to learn. I do though wish that the school would go back to 5 school days a week, and either that or go to longer hours mon-thurs and just take Friday off instead of going half day. It doesn't do a student good to just take a half day off. Compare the Nyssa School District, Ontario School districts' teachers to Washington's school districts teachers, they are so much better at wanting to teach the children and really working hard to earn the monies they deserve. "

" Once again I ask people to PLEASE not make personal attacks on others. Several of the last Blogs have also indicated the same. The Nyssa Teacher's Association has held to our standard of attempting to take the high road. It is to the advantage of our teachers, students, and community to state your views in a positive and truthful manner. Mediation was not successful this time, but we are hopeful that the next one will be. The teachers in Nyssa have worked hard to do the best job they can for the students in Nyssa. They will continue to do so. I am very proud to work among them. I would rate their skills and dedication to their PROFESSION at the top of any scale. The issue here is that they are paid less than the teachers in neighboring districts. We want that changed. We believe the district has money enough to do that. However, mean words and personal attacks will not help the teachers. Truth and honesty will. "

" During summer negotiations, the School Board's response to the teacher's request for more money was that we would never be paid what we are worth and they didn't have the money. Using the school's own audited records, the teacher's negotation team showed them exactly where they had the money. The School Board was asked repeatedly to show teachers where that money had to be spent, if not on teacher's salaries. Most of the time they hedged and diverted the attention elsewhere, but when they were finally cornered, they said they could bring that financial information into the meeting the next day. They failed to do so and to this day, we have never heard where this money needs to go if not to teachers. We are not a greedy lot. Most of us owe thousands upon thousands of dollars in student loans to work at a job where we make as much as someone without any sort of post-high school education. I personally owe $60,000 in school loans and take home about $2000 a month working at the Nyssa School District. I obviously care about our students, or I wouldn't be here. I can take my master's degree and earn a lot more doing something else. We are reasonable people, and if the School Board can SHOW us, not tell us, where this money MUST be spent in order to continue the level of education we have been providing our students, than I would gladly take what they are offering because it would be good for our school and I would know for sure it was their absolute best offer. They have not done that. When a beginning teacher in Nyssa with a family of four qualifies for food stamps, we have a problem. I love Nyssa and have always been proud of our school. I am asking the School Board to make things right. Stop relying on your lawyer to make all the decisions for you. You know what we are worth, she doesn't. Talk amongst yourselves and use common sense. Do you really think you're going to keep the quality of teacher you have now when they can go down the road and make much more money and feel respected and valued? What kind of district are you looking forward to the next 3,6, 9 years if you get your way and shortchange the teachers again this time around? We fall continually behind, and no matter how much I love Nyssa, I won't let my family and our future financial stability suffer. Unfortunately, the District's attitude to a statement like that is to perceive it as a threat and react in a "don't let the door hit you in the rear, we have lots more where you came from" manner. My hope is that they look at it for what it really is: a heads up that teachers, just as in any profession, have worked hard and spent a lot of time and money to do what they're doing, and we shouldn't have to spend all this time scrounging for fairness. I agree, they can absolutely replace me. But I guarantee they will be replacing me with someone less qualified and definitely less committed. I hope that I and many other teachers do not have to make that choice. To the Nyssa School Board: Please re-evaluate the financial priorities of our district. From what I can see, the money is there. Take care of our teachers, which takes care of our students. "

" I think we have gotten away from what we teachers are working for in Nyssa. Don Grotting is a great Superintendent and Janine was a great principal, she made me feel great about the job I did with the children of Nyssa. People out there need to stop speculating and find out the truth.
You might wonder where all this trouble began. I feel it was in a letter sent to us by the board saying you have until 6:00 P.M. to take our offer or it is off the table and you will NEVER get that offer again. Then they think that we can sit down and bargain in good faith. I sat in at some of the bargaining sessions and I heard we were bargaining in bad faith from their spokesperson quite a few times. They had already made their offer and that was it.
To me it didn't make sense to try and bargain with people that had already basically said, "Take it or leave it!" To me that is called bargaining in bad faith.
What I feel we want is to start making up for the 1 and 2 percent raises we have received over the past 6 years because we were bargaining in good faith. Six years ago we teachers took the hit of economic uncertainty and three years ago we took less in the wake of the closing of the sugar factory. We have bargained in good faith and understanding while we have watched EVERYONE around us surpass us in salaries. We are not asking to become wealthy or put the school district in a fincial crunch. We are asking for fairness and respect.
I cannot believe the administration or the board would want to say to future applicants that we are one of the lowest-paid school districts in the state of Oregon. I have seen other districts get 3% or better over the last six years. It is time that you bargain in good faith and understanding towards us and make a good and fair offer with no "take it or leave it" attatched.
I have heard that the teachers do not have the support of our community. I do not believe that is true. Let the board know that you, the parents and students of Nyssa, want the school board to settle this contract now and show the teachers that work hard for our Nyssa children(AYP) that we are worth it! "

" The NMS science teacher that was hired in 2007 does have a Teachers license. He has a NCLB Alternative Route teaching license. He is licensed to teach MS science. In order to receive this type of license one must have a BS or BA in the field they want to teach in, plus have a school district co-apply with them. This license is controlled by the state of Oregon TSPC. No school district can get around that. All of an applicants records go to TSPC, including official college transcripts and a copy of the applicants diploma. Yes, this is legal, yes, there are other teachers across the state teaching on this sort of license. I know this because I have used the same procedure to apply for a substitute license. The teacher in question worked as a teachers aide at NMS while he was finishing his Bachelors degree. The Alternate Route license is only good for three years, and is not renewable. In order to keep teaching the teacher in question will need to refile, with a Masters Degree. "

" We members of the Nyssa Community should have more pride in our community and school; we should not allow people to continue to go on like this. We have a lot of very talented caring teachers, administrators and board members. I have friends on all sides and they deeply care. There is a lot of false information being spread in these blogs.
Please get your facts straight before you start spreading rumors or false information. You are not just hurting the teachers, administrators and board members, but you are hurting our community and students. Bargaining for higher wages is never an easy thing to do. The teachers always deserve higher pay and I don’t think there is anyone in the community including the School District that thinks other wise, but the district also has to continue to do the best they can do for the students and the district as a whole. As a business person, I know that budgets are not always the easy things to work with. We do the best we can do with the resources that we have. We have been very lucky to have such a great School District; everyone has worked very hard to get us there. All Students, Parents, Teachers and Administrators should be very proud of all they have accomplished.
Please stop all the name trashing, false information and get your facts straight. You are hurting all of us in this community. "

" to Ironic

I happen to know Janine Weeks very well. She is a person of great integrity and would never "cook the books." I wander if you have any kind of proof or if you are just shooting in the dark. Remember Jill Conant requested that there be no personal attacks. I don't know her but she sounds like a good person to me. Also do you have any proof that Don Grotting "cooks the books." From what I have heard about him he also is a person of integrity. "

" "The construction teacher - do you really think there are a lot of construction teachers with bachelors degrees out there?"

I know of two of them. Both have Masters in Mathematics. "

" After having heard about some of the things being written in this blog, I want to address the misconceptions regarding several issues.

The science teacher we hired last year was an instructional assistant for the school for 3 years. He completed his Bachelor's degree and obtained licensure as a "highly qualified" science teacher. When he was hired, he was the only qualified applicant. I had no reservations in recommending him - he'd worked for us so I knew his level of responsibility, concern for students and knowledge of working with kids. He'd also spent 3 years in several different classrooms so had been exposed to a variety of teaching styles and expertise. As it turned out, he was an outstanding 1st year teacher and will continue to grow. Every teacher has to develop their own classroom techniques - he was ahead of the learning curve. This was not the "good ol' boy system" - I don't operate that way. Please be aware that no teacher is perfect or is the best teacher for every student - to whomever had the child who had a bad experience in 6th grade, I hope you took the time to visit the classroom, visit the teacher, and visit me (though I know you didn't visit with me).

The ELL instructor we had originally hired was unable to renew his license in August. Just a week before school started, we reopened the position and hired our retired ELL teacher to start the school year as a substitute. We have been looking for options since the candidates we had interviewed earlier in the year already had positions. We were interested in the instructional assistant working toward a teaching license here in the district - again, we know her and the abilities she will bring to the school and believed she would be great. That didn't work out because she wasn't far enough along in her education. We are looking at hiring after student teachers finish in December because there will be a new set of candidates at that time.

The vocational instructor is licensed as just that - a vocational instructor. Those areas require teachers with real experience in the area they will be teaching and he has that.

As for Don Grotting and Janine Weeks, they, just as the board, want teachers to make as much as possible. The decision to offer specific economic packages or even how to put these together is not Don and Janine's, it is the board's. All these people are working toward offering as much as the district can afford - they are definitely not trying to cheat anyone. There was also mention of them wanting their name on a building. I hope whoever stated that has visited the middle school. Nobody can argue against the need for a new building if they've been to the school.

Finally, I am not aware of the tension that someone said existed between the administration and staff at the middle school. Yes, there have been issues - but there will be issues in every school, in any place, that will cause tension. The middle school staff is outstanding, dedicated, and gets along with each other as well as the administration. Certainly there is no place where everyone agrees all of the time - and I don't believe that's how it should be. Differences help us improve.

Finally, I would suggest that if you care about knowing what is true rather than taking for granted that rumors are the truth, please ask those that would know or look into the matter yourself. For example, call the district office regarding the teachers who you believe are not certified. You can get their names and locate their licensure credentials on the Teachers Standards and Practices Commission website. I would also be happy to discuss issues with anyone.

Hopefully the contract will be settled soon. "

" I don't know if it is true that there are people teaching without a license at Nyssa or not, but this is simple to find out. Anyone who goes to teachers standards and practices can look up a teacher by name to see if they are currently licensed and what endorsements they hold. There is a link at the ode website as well for teachers standards and practices. Go to www.ode.state.or.us then teachers, teachers certified and you can look up any teacher in the state of Oregon. Or simply go to www.tspc.state.or.us and do the same thing. If you know the first and last name, you can get all the information you want. It's hard to believe that this could happen in the state of Oregon. I would be interested in knowing the names. "

" "From the community" is ridiculous. This person is taking shots at people and spreading "information" that most likely is untrue. New teachers need experience to establish their management practices. Students are not going to click with every teacher. Not all parents are as unrealistic as "from the community".

Yes, the teachers should make more money - who can argue that? The problem is how much more can the district afford. It sounds like the Board intends to give the teachers a raise but it just isn't at the level they would like. Maybe that's the level the Board believes it can afford and still maintain programs and work toward a new middle school facility.

Hopefully the two sides will be able to agree soon so that the name-calling, accusations, justifications, etc. can end. The Board, administration, and teachers care about the students in the district and are doing the best they can which is VERY good. "

" You need to get your facts straight. The science teacher hired at the middle school last year had a bachelor's degree and is properly certified. My children have had him as a teacher and believe he is terrific.

The construction teacher - do you really think there are a lot of construction teachers with bachelors degrees out there?

The ELL teacher who was hired didn't get his license renewed through TSPC as he had promised, so they had to start looking again.

Finally,tension between the administration and teachers at the middle school? This is news to me and probably both the administration and teachers. Just where are you getting your information?

What you have shared on this blog is gossip and heresay - you know nothing and don't care whether or not you spread lies. You need to look within. "

" Teaching without a bachelor's degree is very legal and acceptable. It is called a vocational teaching certificate. Vocational certificated have been around for years in the state of Oregon. Many vocational teachers in the state teach with them and they are extremely effective in what they do. "

" Currently two teachers at the middle school level to my knowledge do not hold eduaction degrees. A second year science teacher that had worked as a student assistent was given a position last fall even though licensed and properly endorsed teachers applied for the position (good old boys at work). This year the construction teacher they hired is three credits shy of his associates degree - he does not even have a bachleors degree. How is this even possible with No Child Left Behind? The district has also been trying to work a deal for an ESL aid to move into the ESL teaching position at the middle school - not sure what level of education this person has other than the fact that she does not have a teaching license either.


These may be cost saving measures for the district in the short run, but in the end the kids will suffer. I know my son did last year in that science class as this untrained person had to figure out classroom management and how to actually instruct a group of squirmy middle school students.

The school board and administration need to reevaluate their personal agendas of putting their name to a building and take care of the ones in the trenchs, the ones that are making differences everyday in the lives of the children in this community.

My children loved their experiences in elementary and so far in high school. The middle school has been a nightmare for my children and I blame a large part of that on the tension between staff and administration last year. Our family is actually to the point of leaving Nyssa because the environment in the middle school was so bad last year.

I hope that the administration is hearing the concerns of not only teachers but students and parents as well and work to keep our quality teachers here and happy. Why shouldn't they be paid equal to Vale and Ontario? They do a quality job, give them a quality salary that makes it attractive for high quality teachers to come to our district. "

" Don Grotting and his loyal hench-person, Janine Weeks have been getting so many accolades for cooking the books in Nyssa, for so long, to make themselves look good, that they are now so arrogant, that they believe that they can continue to do it without teachers. Give a person a little power and a little praise.... Well, you get the picture. Good luck teachers. You're going to need it. Those two make Carter and Kitamura look like Mother Theresa. "

" Which teachers in the Nyssa School District are not certified? "

" I love these schools. I love these teachers. I have gone here my whole life. I take pride in what they do for us. We are always ahead in everything we do because of them. It shocks me to know that they are not getting what they deserve. These teachers are amazing and our district is one of the best. We need to keep them. If that means a raise then do it, they deserve it. If you want to keep one of the top educational schools in Oregon going, do what needs to be done, do what is right. Or you will lose it all. "

" It makes me sad to think that MY teachers at Nyssa are not getting paid what they DESERVE. I have attended Nyssa since Pre-School. We have always been the top schools when it comes to education. The teachers are hard working and dedicated. They do a lot for us at Nyssa. I have had teachers that stay after with me to get things done, or come before school for me. It is horrible to think these great people are not getting what they need. I know for a fact that Ontario's education is not even close to what we have in Nyssa and their drop-out rate is horrible. Nyssa is used as a great example across the state. Our standards are even harder in some cases then what the state requires. Here in Nyssa our teachers work hard to get us to meet all standards. We get prepared for life after schooling here. These teachers are amazing and make the students the best in the state. Plain and simple. They deserve a raise, or else we will lose the great people we have and the standards we have set for ourselves and the example we are setting, we be lost. "

" It's very simple: you get what you pay for. Nyssa can't even attract qualified applicants on a regular basis anymore as evidenced by the number of uncertified hires this year. The administration clearly believes they are indespensible and must be paid enough to be ranked among the highest 15% in Oregon in order to keep them. However, they have shown by these very actions they believe teachers are a "dime a dozen", and are among the bottom 10% on the Oregon salary scale. Can the powers that be really not see they are cutting their nose off despite their face? Administration is important, and if they want to pay them a billion dollars, I guess that's their business. But to short change those in the trenches to save a dime guarantees the future failure of the Nyssa School District. Remember the successes of the past several years, for they will be a distant memory if the pride and joy of Nyssa --- the school district --- is not well taken care of. Those in charge should start being good stewards of our school, teachers and students, rather than focusing on whatever else they seem to be making a priority. It's common sense. It's not too late, and I for one will be watching for a responsible, positive outcome. "

" The stress level over all of this is huge. However, when I walk in the classroom I leave all of it behind me and love what I do. A strike is the last thing I want to do. I can't stand the thought of what it might put the children through. Nyssa is a great community that supports the schools time and time again. I'm pleased with the community involvement and participation. Yes, it is a great place to live and work. Please educate yourselves with the facts. The ODE website can be accessed by anyone. The information here will show what our superintendents make, what kinds of grants we can get, if you live in Nyssa, you should know where and how the money is being spent. This is public information. This school is in great standing because of our test scores and AYP. This is no accident and doesn't get done by upper management. We the teachers bring this home. We the teachers work during recess to make this happen. We have done recess, lunch and other duties, yes this year as well. The district is accountable if you request the information. I loose sleep worrying about the outcome of this and how to pay all of my bills. Playground duties and bus duties are mentioned. I for one will take my turn. I need to feel that I am appreciated for the good job that I do. Just for kicks, lets nip the summer pay in the bud. YES! TEACHERS get paid in the summer. WE smile and wait for the money we have earned all year long until June, then we line up and get paid for what we have already earned. The only pay a teacher receives in the summer that hasn't been earned months earlier is called summer school pay. "

" To State Employee - It is really hard to believe you can say to teachers to get a life. Teaching is our life. We take it home everyday, it's the majority of our conversations with anyone we know, it's the first thing we think about when we get up. We have a life teaching children and we have earned the right to be paid better. "

" Obviously we as teachers did not go into the profession to make "the big bucks." But, I do want to make a living. What most people do not understand is the amount of school loans that teachers have accumulated, the amount of money that goes into staying current on teaching licenses, the amount of money that goes into staying current on up to date teaching strategies, and just the money that goes into our classrooms. What other profession takes thousands of dollars a year to keep up with the times??? What kind of message are we sending to our students? Don't go into education because you are not valued? Pick a profession where you will make an amount of money worthy of your education? With 1 in 4 teachers in the first 5 years of teaching leaving the profession, at some point we will have a teachers shortage. In fact, this year we are at a teachers shortage because there still isn't an ESL teacher hired for the year...just a nice retired teacher who is filling in. I agree that Nyssa is a great place. But why aren't teachers beating down doors to work here? Because they can make more money somewhere else...plain and simple! "

" I welcome your defense of your union secretary. She is my adversary in this issue, and my friend in life. You brought up some issues that I would like to address. The first is comparing our two jobs. Earlier this summer I researched wages in the area that were not teachers. I attempted to check the salary at Snake River Correctiona Facility. I may be wrong, but it looked like ALL correctional institutions in the state are paid the same. That is not true for educators. Many beginning teachers on the other side of the state make $34,000 their first year teaching. Nyssa teachers made $28,400 last year. A correctional officer monthly salary is $2686. With the 3% increase you mentioned, that annual salary would be slightly over $33,200. We have 25% of our staff not earning that amount, some with master's degrees. Those degrees cost the teachers anywhere from $13,000- $30,000. That is offen what they were doing on the 2-3 months off that you believe they had. Many of us spend our off months building our next year's lessons, going to school, or other activities related to our job. Go past our school on a week-end and you will see many cars in the parking lots. They belonging to the teachers who are inside working.
I have seen pictures of your facility. It seems very well cared for. So is ours. That is one of the issues that Mr. Grotting brought up. He stated in the article that since we have such nice facilities, we should be paid less money. Since once again, I think all correctional officers in the state have equal pay, should your next raise be less because you work in a nice facility? I certainly hope not.
I applaud you for the job you do. I do not for one minute believe I have the skills or the guts to do your job.
Teachers' jobs are not done when they leave the school building. They often have hours of correcting and planning to do after work. Often when a teacher goes to sleep they dream about how to do the job better for each and every student in their class. I don't believe I have the skills or the guts to do your job, but I do have the skills and the guts to do mine. "

" The teachers in Nyssa do a great job. We need them to keep up the dedication they have for our kids. "

" To State Employee - it is hard to believe that people still think teachers get paid during the summer - we do not! It also sounds like your raise was better than our offer. How many hours do you work in a day? Look up a recent survey done in the Beaverton School District and you might get an idea that teachers work hundreds of extra hours that they are not paid for- maybe we should get paid for the summer! "

" Not only did Don get a huge pay increase (he must pay for that HUGE condo in McCall you know), but you also now see Larry Ramirez and Luke Cleaver as new principal and vice principal, we have a new AD, the middle school has a new vice principal- you know these people had to be offered a very tasty offer otherwise they would not have taken the position. I know of many teachers who have been teaching LONGER than some of these people have been alive on top of being in an administrative position! So the district needs to look at the value of these teachers, not just the administration. Yes, the administrators and valuable, but it is the teacher who is in that classroom day in and day out with our children. They are the hard workers! "

" I feel the Teacher's Association at Nyssa has made it a point to hold to the "high ground" when it comes to personalities, attacks on character, and anger generated by just the "beast" that negotiations can be. I am personally saddened when people are singled out and attacked even a little. I appreciate all opinions, however, please let us not be lowering our standards with personal attacks. Two wrongs don't make a right. "

" It is true that if you can keep salaries up, you can attract the higher quality teaching applicants. I left a school I loved elsewhere in Idaho, a job I was excelling at, to come here to the Treasure Valley, for one simple reason--higher pay. Teachers have a big investment in their educations and are responsible for staying current. They undergo a huge amount of stress, especially in the wake of No Child Left Behind. And they essentially hold the line between civilization and total chaos. They deserve to be paid and respected as professionals. The Nyssa board needs to prioritize a catch-up pay package for teachers above building improvements, above athletics, above everything else. I'm told that Nyssa is a great school district and that they are very good to their teachers. Mr. Grotting mentions several perks to be experienced there, including reduced playground duties, small class sizes, etc.; but when you can't make your car payment, those perks cease to matter. Jobs in Alaska start looking good to you! "

" To Community Member 2.
I know the secretary at the Union Office. It is not considered a conflict of interest unless she works for the same Union that represents the teachers, which she does not. She works for a different Union. She is a great person to work with and is very understanding and is very fair. She has done a great job for us. I work at the prison and we got a 3% raise, which is very good at this day and age. It's my understanding that they have offered the teachers a 2.5%, however that does not include a step increase, which I think that would bring their incease to almost 6% each year. Get a life teachers, that is a great raise. You are doing better then the rest of us. You should take the deal. Also, Don't you get 2-3 months off during the summer and still get paid. Just remember it's not just about you. Take a look at the over all picture, not just the money. We all have to just feel lucky that we have a job. "

" The Nyssa teachers are proposing to catching up and keeping up with other area schools. Vale's teachers were paid as much as 6.88% more than Nyssa teachers this past year, and Ontario was even higher in most places on the salary scale. Both of those schools recieved a 3.5% increase for 2008-2009. From my figures I see Nyssa currently behind Vale anywhere from 6.3-10.6% for the current year. The board's current offer is 2.5%. We simply cannot survive with that. The cost of living in the past 6 years has gone up at least 16% while our wages went up 10%. The teachers helped the district by taking smaller raises on the last two negotiation cycles. When we helped the district through the last crisis with the sugar factory closure, I thought they would help us catch up for this negotiation. Our school beginning salary ranks 137th in the state. However, thanks to a dedicated staff and great students, we have won awards for excellence in education. We are often used as an example for other schools. As teachers, we want to get and keep quality educators. We can't do that easily with sub-standard pay. Not only are we paid less than Ontario and Vale, but ALL of Malheur County is paid less for beginning teachers than beginning teachers are paid in Idaho. "

" Our school board chair is a secretary for the union at the prison in Ontario. That seems like a conflict of interest to me. A union employee negotiating against a union. If not a conflict of interest, at least immoral. Who pays her salary? Do union prison employees only get 1-2% a year when they negotiate? Who else that works in this community has to continue getting education to just continue to work? If as someone said, some employees are not even certified teachers how does the district get away with that? What about No Child Left Behind and state requirements? So is the good old boys system still in control?
These teachers work really hard. Infact, I thought I heard our children in Nyssa meet the state AYP scores while others in our county don't. They deserve a raise to catch them up with surrounding districts. "

" Being a Student in the Nyssa School District, I take great pride in the quality of my teachers. I love the fact that when I come to school I know that each teacher cares about me and is totally committed to their work. Knowing this it shocks me to find out how low our teachers are paid in our district. "

" I have been a teacher in Nyssa now going on 13 years. I work very hard hard at the profession that I love. I have given many many hours of my own time to do my job well. I have given many dollars out of my own pocket on rewards and incentives for the children in my classroom. I have volunteered to help with many school activities that had nothing to do with my own children without thought of compensation. There are a lot of"I's" here, however we, the teachers that I know and work with do all of what I just mentioned and more. It is not just what we HAVE in in our district that helps us do our job well it is also about what each and every teacher in our district gives back - not to mention dedication, loyalty, and pride. We have earned the right to paid as much as the surrounding school districts. However to me, it's not so important that we make the same or more than Ontario or Vale but it is truly a travesty that we are near the bottom in salaries in all of Oregon. Our job is no easier than any other districts around us. Pay us what we deserve. "

" It is obvious that the school district needs to step up to the plate and pay our teachers salaries that keep up with the area. This is very obvious when you look at the fact that the district has begun hiring teachers that DO NOT even have teaching credentials (and in one case not even a bachelor's degree) to teach our students - that is appalling considering the importantance of state testing. But I guess the "good old boy" system is well and good in Nyssa. "

" 8% over the life of the contract still leaves Nyssa teachers well behind Ontario and Vale in salaries (this include the additional health benefits). Additionally the district included contract language in that offer that would have taken away a lot of teacher rights. During the last negotiation meeting Nyssa teachers were left with the impression that the school board felt that employees with Masters and Doctorate degrees did not need to be paid any more than someone that had only a high school deploma and worked as a physical laborer. The school board obviously has little understanding of the cost that this type of education costs and that is necessary in order to maintain teaching cradentials! "

" To begin with I want to thank all of the teachers in Nyssa for their dedication to quality education to our students. It shows in all the “extra” work they do each day! I am appalled to know that one of the richest school districts in the area (they have millions in savings accounts) does not see the value of paying our teachers comparable salaries. I wouldn’t blame them if they did strike, it is embarrassing! On top of that, it is my understanding that Don Grotting received an 18% pay raise this last year in salary and benefits as incentive to keep him here in Nyssa. This is the same person that has told staff in the past that if they do not like what they are paid they are free to go elsewhere.

Nyssa has always been a great place to get an education, but with unhappy teachers that will surely change. The school board needs to recognize that our most valuable resource is in quality, well-compensated teachers and get our teachers to the same levels as others in the area. "

" so what exactly are the teachers asking for? why wasn't that put in the article? 8% over the term of the contract seems pretty good to me. If I understand it right.... "