This story is real and is a symptom of what's going on when it comes to hiring teachers in the New York City Public School System. I did change the names and the father's and his daughter's position to protect their identities.
The father (Sam) is a 58 year old teacher with 20 years in the school system, who was excessed from his closing school two years ago and has been rotating weekly this year. His subject is in a DOE "shortage area". However, after applying to 12 openings in the Open Market System and getting no responses, Sam decided to go to the only "job fair" at the Armory in Manhattan in hopes of landing a position. Unfortunately, the "job fair" was a farce. There were only a smattering of schools, mostly from the South Bronx and transfer schools that even bothered to show up. Many spaces where schools were supposed to be were empty. Worse, the schools seemed only to be interested in the younger teachers while giving the older teachers like himself less than a minute or two to sell themselves. Finally, Sam only saw two schools, both transfer schools, that had vacancies in his subject area. The father went home disappointed and resigned to the weekly rotation he faced.
The daughter (Cindy) 25, fresh out of college with a teaching degree in a non-shortage area, had worked in Long Island as a substitute teacher for two Long Island School Districts in her first year of teaching. In May, realizing she wasn't getting a permanent position next year, Cindy applied to the DOE's "new teacher finder". However, during late June Cindy landed a position as an Assistant Human Resources Administrator for a medium sized company and decided to put her teaching career on hold. Throughout the summer Cindy was besieged with job interview requests from principals in the four Boroughs. Even during the fall and just before the Christmas vacation Cindy told me that she received an average of 10 inquiries monthly. Meanwhile her father is rotating weekly to different schools.
For experienced teachers it was hard enough to land a position when there was a hiring freeze but with the hiring freeze lifted, stories like the "father and daughter" is the reason that the ATR pool is over 2,000 strong and until the de Blasio/Farina Administration stops this destructive "education on the cheap" policy, nothing will change.
Did the daughter have a license in a "shortage area"?
ReplyDeleteThis might be off this topic but I was talking to a teacher in the school I was at this week and he said that the union rep in his school told them there will probably be a contact by June but Deblasio is looking for a longer school day. Nothing about ATRs though - yet.
ReplyDeleteAge discrimination suit anyone????
ReplyDeleteNo. She has a Math certification and that's not a "shortage area".
ReplyDeleteso typical especially in the small schools - only people under 30 need apply - I really thought I would never leave teaching but I am in my 18th year and I am hoping to make it to 20, I can't take life as an ATR anymore it is killing me - and the classroom is worse - way worse. They have killed the profession I loved and I was actually good at it - it makes me so sad and angry
ReplyDeleteI don't understand the concept of the story since the dad has a license in a shortage area and the daughter does not. The dad got no calls but the daughter did. Of course the DOE should have offered any openings to teachers in the system. However, this story does not show that the DOE has preference to newbies over veterans in the same license area. We all know the DOE wants newbies simply for the fact that they are cheaper. This story would have been perfect if both dad and daughter had the same license. At the end of the day, it is totally true that the DOE hired a newbie for her license and they should have given that to somebody already in the system. The dad is in a shortage area. It would be an awesome to investigate in the future to see who they hired to fill the dad's position.
ReplyDeleteI had to write it how it is and the daughter did not have the same certification as her father.
ReplyDeleteFunny how most people think, or are praying that DeBlasio will be the savior. The weeks will turn into months and we will all see that the waste at Tweed are all still in place as well as key people who were influential with closing schools, etc. Not much is going to change. All talk/no action.
ReplyDeleteIt's not cheaper for the DOE to hire new teachers; it's actually much more expensive, it simply is not done with other city jobs. Indeed I have two friends who made almost triple their salaries in over-time. Both went to their supervisors to actually complain. They were told its much cheaper to pay massive OT than hire a new employee, due to benefits, training, pension,etc.. This is going on with police,fire,sanitation,building,and transit. There has been an artificial economic disadvantage put in place at the local level(school) to dissuade principals from placing senior professionals in positions. This is a façade to hide the real motive behind the hindrance -- get those fully formed professionals out of the classroom so pliable untenured neophytes can replace them. Young, eager, enthusiastic, with no complaints (if they want their job) will become stressed out,hobbled and eventually quit.
ReplyDeleteTo Anonymous 7:50
ReplyDeleteDon't give up. I also have 18yrs (Last 2 as an ATR) and wouldn't dream of leaving the system and allow Bloomberg to win. I'm going to stick around as long as I can and receive my fully earned pension and soon to be $100,000 salary. Screw Bloomberg and the morons at the doe. They tried to get rid of us but look who's gone now. Old Bloomberg and his morons. Stick with it and don't give them the satisfaction. I loved being a teacher, worked hard to see my students succeed and got the Bloomberg shaft. Now its time to help myself and my family. Can't wait to collect that nice nyc pension and huge tda.
Anon 11:03 pm
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to the school budget, cheaper is better. The fair student funding formula forces principals to go for quantity over quality to preserve their budget. While it is not cheaper for the DOE overall, it is for the schools.
Anon 7:50
My sentiments exactly.
Anon 11:03 pm
ReplyDeleteWhen it comes to the school budget, cheaper is better. The fair student funding formula forces principals to go for quantity over quality to preserve their budget. While it is not cheaper for the DOE overall, it is for the schools.
Anon 7:50
My sentiments exactly.
when if ever will budgets just go back to the city/doe?
ReplyDeleteits just a shell game where everybody loses.
I heard from a union rep that they will probably do nothing w/ atrs in the new contract, but want a longer school day. I pray that does not happen
ReplyDeleteChaz,
ReplyDeleteI was told by my AP that they will begin observing teachers with the Danielson model starting in 2 weeks when regents exams hit. We will be observed on walking around the room, attendance, seating arrangement properly, if we are on a cell phone during test, if we are sitting to much, if a kid doesn't sign decloration, releasing a child to early, etc etc
Anon 1:01
ReplyDeleteNot true. The union will be4 discussing the ATR issue with the De Blasio Administration. What comes out of it is another story.
Anon 1:09
For placed teachers, that's true. However, for rotating ATRs only the roving supervisor can evaluate you. However, I'm sure if an administrator came in and saw you not doing the job, they can write you up.
People need to be wary of the rumor mill that pops up around negotiating time. I can't tell you haw many times I heard the old "my friend's aunt is a secretary at the B of E and she heard..." clunker.
ReplyDeleteThere will be lots of rumors as the year progresses. When I was teaching I used to used to find them entertaining.
No doubt there may have already been some private discussions but teachers will know when there is an agreement when the DA is called to vote.
I'm sure that ATRs are on the agenda. Will they asked for an extended day? Possibly (they can ask), but usually during negotiations both sides come in with "throw away" demands - items they remove as the talks progress.
Let's hope that both sanity and civility prevail between the City and UFT negotiating team.
People need to be wary of the rumor mill that pops up around negotiating time. I can't tell you haw many times I heard the old "my friend's aunt is a secretary at the B of E and she heard..." clunker.
ReplyDeleteThere will be lots of rumors as the year progresses. When I was teaching I used to used to find them entertaining.
No doubt there may have already been some private discussions but teachers will know when there is an agreement when the DA is called to vote.
I'm sure that ATRs are on the agenda. Will they asked for an extended day? Possibly (they can ask), but usually during negotiations both sides come in with "throw away" demands - items they remove as the talks progress.
Let's hope that both sanity and civility prevail between the City and UFT negotiating team.
I want to relate a story that just happened to me this week at a "better" school in Queens. I am an ATR, 21 years in. Monday, after finishing my program, I donned my coat and was about to enter the elevator to go home when a baby AP (28 years old, certainly a Leadership Academy product) asked me, "Where are YOU going?" I replied, "Home." "Oh no you're not. We have a faculty conference now after school. You should have known about it. You are contractually required to go." He practically dragged me into the room of the conference, which was completely about their school's business. None of the other ATRs in the school that week were present. I had to listen to this and that for 45 minutes, THEN I got to go home. This man had treated me in an extremely demeaning manner although I'm old enough to be his mother. Thursday, I told the payroll secretary (assigner of programs) that I could not take a late program on Friday because the Sabbath began at 4:30 and I'm an Orthodox Jew. Sure enough, Friday morning she handed me a late program, ending at 3:40 p.m. I said that I could not stay until 3:40 and still have sufficient time to get home and prepare for the Sabbath, which entailed warming up food, turning electric lights on or off, lighting my candles, etc. Suddenly, Young Mr. Wonderful, the baby AP, walks up. "What's the matter?" he demanded. "I cannot work 9th period today. It will jeopardize me getting home in time to prepare for the Sabbath," I replied. "I am a Jew, and I say that this is your program!" he shrieked at me. I cited that Chancellor's Regs require people to be given sufficient time to get home for the Sabbath. I also told him that as a non-observant Jew, perhaps he was unaware of what this preparation entailed. He drew himself up and shrieked at me, "Don't YOU talk to me that way!" What? Forget that he's an AP. I was explaining, in a normal tone of voice, as an observant Jew to an non-observant Jew, not as a teacher smartin' off to an AP. I then left the office to await the first class of this program in the teachers' lounge. Very shortly after, I was summoned on the PA system to the principal's office. Baby Boy AP had gone crying to Mommy. I went into her office. She told me, "How dare you act disrespectfully to a member of my staff!" I did not back down one inch. I told her that he, a non-observant Jew, was trying to dictate to me my "Jew business". Would she, I asked her, as a Catholic, like a lapsed Catholic to tell her she didn't have to fulfill some of the Catholic laws? No? Then why should I be forced to jeopardize violating the Sabbath? I also told her I was not disrespectful to him and had never raised my voice, although HE did so to me. I further informed her of his despicably arrogant and disrespectful behavior to me regarding telling me I had to go to the Monday meeting. "Were you not informed of this meeting?" she asked. No, I informed her, I had never received any notification of it whatsoever. Neither had any of the other ATRs at the school. She said she would "speak to Mr. M", the infant AP. I sure hope so, because I'm absolutely positive the AOJT (Association of Orthodox Jewish Teachers) would love to. They backed down and found someone else to cover that last class so that I could leave at 2:50 p.m. I had found a willing teacher to cover that class, just in case. There was another Jewish teacher at that school who was a Sephardic Jew, meaning her origins were from the Jews of northern Africa or Spain. She told me that this selfsame baby AP had recently told HER that "Sephardic Jews aren't Jews."
ReplyDeleteAnon :509
ReplyDeleteI agree with everything you said. Rumors are just that, unfounded hearsay.
Thanks for the vote of confidence - but now that ATRs are being rated and u rated a lot by these bogus sold their souls to devils field supervisors that is the last straw - and I will not teach the Common core crap and I do not want to be attacked by the Danielson crew = all of which have further destroyed the system , I too swore I would suck the blood out of the DOE and take all that is due to me but they have succeeded in making it a torture chamber. we won't rotate forever we will be placed in crappy schools and be rated ineffective - they want us out - how can we survive all that?
ReplyDeleteI honestly believe nothing will change. Remember, people, it's the DOE. Dysfunctionality reigns supreme
ReplyDeletebut its potentially a new doe,
ReplyDeletedysfunctional still, but to what degree is anybodies guess.
money issues always remain, and we do not have bloomturds insidious agenda keeping us atrs anymore
a new doe? come on? they have so much money(even though they act poor).
ReplyDeleteNothing will ever change. Collect your paycheck, enjoy not having stress and go week to week leaving the 1st second you get and enjoying your life.