At the end of March, I will ask you to vote yes to changing our union’s bylaws so we can create a Committee on Political Education (COPE). A COPE is our local union’s opportunity to create a political action committee to raise money and endorse candidate(s) for school board elections. Union members recently completed a survey of our Board of Trustees and the results are indicative of the challenges we face: 86% of respondents are not pleased with the quality of school board candidates and 76% believe that the union should endorse candidates in the future. (Go to http://gfcce.org for complete survey results.) Below is a list of reasons for why I urge your “yes” vote on establishing a COPE.
As you know, members in the District have had a long history of dealing with Board members who tend to micro-manage issues better left to the leadership at each school site. Too frequently policy decisions are made “to us, not with us.” It seems that our professional opinion is not sought when critical decisions are made. No one asked our input as professionals when they fired Mr. Olmos; no one listened to our concerns over the $2 million loan; no one asked us our feedback before removing School Loop as our student data system, just to name a few instances where our professional expertise has been shut-out of the policy-making process.
According to the California School Board Association, a Board member’s role includes involving “community, parents, students, and staff in developing a common vision for the district focused on learning and achievement and responsive to the needs of all students.” Additionally, Board Policy states that Board members are to “refrain from performing management functions that are the responsibility of the Superintendent and staff.” It is about time the Board lives up to these principles by involving staff and serving the needs of all students. Essentially, by trying to impact the election process we hope to recruit and elect Board members who respect us as professionals, who are responsive to our concerns, who will support academic programs for all students, and who will allow the site-level personnel—those individuals with knowledge of the real issues faced day-to-day at each site—to make the key decisions.
In order to have a positive impact on elections we will need a “yes” vote on establishing a COPE fund in a few weeks. But creating a COPE fund is only the first step: we will also need to begin raising money and we will need members to get involved in campaigns by canvassing local neighborhoods in the weeks leading up to elections. The citizens of this town need to hear our voice and to understand what issues need to be addressed. In the long run, our local union can go a long way toward creating an educational environment that recognizes the importance of involving our professional opinions in policy-making so that the needs of all our students can be better served.
The Highlights of the Proposed COPE Bylaws
There are several key provisions to the proposed COPE bylaws that I hope all members understand before they enter the voting booth.
· The COPE committee will administer the endorsement process including creating the questionnaire for candidates to complete, facilitating the endorsement meeting, and handling all communication issues regarding the endorsement process.
· The COPE committee will consist of five members in good standing. The COPE committee will consist of the following five (5) individuals:
· The COPE Chair appointed by Executive Board
§ One at-large member appointed by Executive Board
§ Two at-large members elected by a majority vote of the membership
§ The union treasurer will act as COPE treasurer
· The COPE election will occur in odd numbered years and COPE committee members serve for two years.
2) VOLUNTARY FUNDING SOURCES and MEMBER ELIGIBILITY
· Participation in the COPE will be voluntary.
· Our local will set up a COPE account where members can voluntarily contribute to the political action committee fund.
· In order to participate in any COPE function members will need to apply for membership in one of two ways:
- For 2010 only: an initial $10 “buy in” and then set up an automatic monthly payroll contribution of a minimum of $1
- Beyond 2010: $40 “buy in” plus the set up of a monthly payroll contribution of a minimum of $1.
- Any member may choose to pay the $40 “buy in” for any COPE function without setting up an automatic monthly contribution.
· Non-union members, including non-staff members, may make voluntary contributions to the COPE account but may not participate in any COPE functions.
· Candidates seeking our union’s endorsement will submit written answers to a set of questions we have provided to each candidate. All COPE eligible members will get access to the returned questionnaires in advance of the endorsement meeting
· At the endorsement meeting all candidates seeking our endorsement will participate in a Q & A session run by the COPE Committee.
· After the Q & A session, the candidates will leave and all COPE eligible members present (and in good standing) will engage in a consensus-building discussion on whether to endorse one or more candidates. Robert Rules of Order will govern the discussion.
· The COPE Committee will then vote to make the endorsement.
Please vote “yes” for our new COPE bylaws.
Note: The entire set of bylaw changes can also be found at the union webpage: http://gfcce.org