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meggiemom

Beach Lover
Jun 24, 2012
222
22
Walton
It's sad that dedicated teachers have no real representation. They're all afraid to speak out and it seems the union is only a token organization.
 

UofL

Beach Fanatic
Jan 21, 2005
693
443
Louisville KY
Sounds like teachers should boycott Sowal as a vacation spot. With all the snow we're getting this year we probably won't have summer break anyway. Ellen
 

Bob

SoWal Insider
Nov 16, 2004
10,364
1,391
O'Wal
Rick Scott...stealing 2 billion + in teacher salaries to balance the state budget. No raises for teachers in years. Our teachers being denied what amounts to less than one half dollar an hour raise. Everyone reading these posts are equally culpable in their silence. What possible motive is there for treating educators this way? The entire process is devoid of any human decency and virtue. What say we throw another Tea Party?
 

Independent Thinker

Beach Lover
Aug 21, 2012
108
110
Santa Rosa Beach
Nothing will ever change until large groups of parents demand change. I have seen and heard a few parents speaking out and getting involved, but not many. The Walton County Teachers Union is the biggest joke I have ever seen. If the parents of children in this county really want to stand up for the teachers they should be bombarding the Superintendent and School Board members with phone calls and emails demanding the money be disbursed as intended. Why aren't people contacting Rick Scott and complaining about this ? School bus drivers and administrative staff are not subject to the same standards as teachers are. Only the teacher's jobs are on the line because of test scores. They are the ones spending their own money to buy supplies for the class room. The district office workers and school bus drivers do not deserve one dime of this money. If the people in this county really want to have a good school system, it's time to get involved and hold Carlene Anderson and the School Board members accountable for their actions.
 

Jdarg

SoWal Expert
Feb 15, 2005
18,068
1,973
IT- I agree with most of what you say, however let me clarify a few points. Rick Scott gave the money to the teachers then the legislature said it could also go to other personnel, and that the decision on who gets the money would be made at the district level. What I've seen many other districts did give the money to employees other than teachers, I would like to find a statistic on this. So the Florida government basically passed the decision buck. The school board is not involved in the decision of how this money is distributed. The contract negotiations are between the district office and superintendent and the teachers, represented by their union. The school board will only get involved there's an impasse in the negotiation process. That is how it is set up. Until the superintendent is appointed instead of elected, we will continue to have a two part school system where there is no accountability, and no team effort.

And since we have mentioned the school board, Mark Davis is the only school board member that is not touched by petty and small Walton County Republican politics. (Sorry but that had to be said. Some are more strangled by the local partisan politics and squabbles than others.) Every decision he has made has always been well thought out and looking towards the betterment of this school system for all, not just a few, and not caring about what his political cronies tell him to do. He doesn't have to be on anybody's "team", which leaves him with the mental bandwidth to do what needs to be done, not encumbered by political strings. We need more like him, but God knows where we are going to find them.
 
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Andy A

Beach Fanatic
Feb 28, 2007
4,389
1,738
Blue Mountain Beach
"We need more like him, but God knows where we are going to find them." Jdarg, are you not available? If not, I suggest you make yourself so. You would make a excellent candidate despite being a Democrat. (Sorry but that had to be said).
 

Independent Thinker

Beach Lover
Aug 21, 2012
108
110
Santa Rosa Beach
IT- I agree with most of what you say, however let me clarify a few points. Rick Scott gave the money to the teachers then the legislature said it could also go to other personnel, and that the decision on who gets the money would be made at the district level. What I've seen many other districts did give the money to employees other than teachers, I would like to find a statistic on this. So the Florida government basically passed the decision buck. The school board is not involved in the decision of how this money is distributed. The contract negotiations are between the district office and superintendent and the teachers, represented by their union. The school board will only get involved there's an impasse in the negotiation process. That is how it is set up. Until the superintendent is appointed instead of elected, we will continue to have a two part school system where there is no accountability, and no team effort.

And since we have mentioned the school board, Mark Davis is the only school board member that is not touched by petty and small Walton County Republican politics. (Sorry but that had to be said. Some are more strangled by the local partisan politics and squabbles than others.) Every decision he has made has always been well thought out and looking towards the betterment of this school system for all, not just a few, and not caring about what his political cronies tell him to do. He doesn't have to be on anybody's "team", which leaves him with the mental bandwidth to do what needs to be done, not encumbered by political strings. We need more like him, but God knows where we are going to find them.

Point taken jdarg, but I still think if enough people complain and stand up to the Superintendent and School Board changes can be made. But getting enough people to do that is the problem. Constant relentless pressure from constituents is the only thing that ever gets a politicians attention.
 

luca brazzi

Banned
Jan 6, 2013
41
3
So our sorry superintendent is the product of "petty Republican politics"? In Walton county if you want to win you'll run as a Republican. If the school board wasn't NPA, I suspect Mark Davis would have about as much of a chance of winning as a rich, white tea party Republican would have of winning an election in Harlem.
 

meggiemom

Beach Lover
Jun 24, 2012
222
22
Walton
My teacher friends are scared to death of Carlene Anderson. Two have applied for position in other counties and one of them is even considering leaving the state. Teachers in Walton county have been treated poorly and fighting it with BS isn't going to help. Of course having a functional board would help.
 
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