The Public Speaks...loudly

Even though I left Bellevue so I wouldn't watch the Board meeting with the parents, I watched it via streaming over the internet. I liked that much better than being in the room.

Some things:
The room was absolutely packed
Many people were very angry
They all want the kids back in school NOW
They were more mad at the schoolboard than they were mad at us. The blame seems to have gone to them instead of us (yay!)
They overwhelmingly spoke against an injunction
They want our community healed because they saw this as being very destructive
They want to lobby the legislature to increase teacher pay
For the most part, they support the teachers. Many support but want this to end. Others support and say they will support us no matter what.
A bunch of principals spoke, all speaking warmly of the Curriculum Web, as did the School Board at the end, despite all the negative feedback from parents about the Web...which also bothers me. I want to move back to Bellevue just to vote those people out of office.
A few people called out our standing Superintendant much better than we ever could have done. A few parents addressed issues I've been wanting someone to address.
3 students spoke: 2 were from my school. They both spoke against the teachers based on what "we were doing to them." I am still sick to my stomach about that.

They're not kidding. Those parents were pissed. They don't understand why this can't be resolved and they demanded that the school board work through the night to fix this strike. We've been wanting that all along. The District keeps finding reasons not to meet. We've been through 2 mediators. There were at least 3 parents who spoke tonight that had been mediators in their professions for years and who had teachers AND administrators in their families and whose kids attended our school. I don't see why they don't ask them to help since they appear to me to have everyone's interests at hand.

That said, I feel very strongly that when it comes down to it, the parents support us...but they don't like the strike, which many still attribute to us...which is proper. I feel that if the district serves us with an injunction it will be a bad decision because they will not have given both parties the chance to go back to the table with that new knowledge of parent views to inform the bargaining. I also feel it would be a bad decision because the parents did not support it. (phew!)

That being said...they have half an hour before they will decide what action to take...

If the injunction happens, I can pretty much guarantee that I will lose my motivation to teach this year and I will begin to consider other districts for the following years...as much as that is paintful to think of. If the community can turn that attitude and the feeling of lack of respect around then I may convince myself otherwise, but the damage that this strike has caused on my own confidence and passion for teaching, the disrespect I have felt from the district and from the students is enough to cause me to consider options i never thought I would consider. I recognize that this district can give me much more than many other districts, but is it really worth it if the cost is loss of passion, respect, and support?

I don't know. That is what i have reflected on very seriously for the past three days. I decided today that I will not be leaving the district at this point. Even though I could just say, "Listen...if you can't trust me to teach then you'll have to find someone else. Good luck finding someone good in that short amount of time." That would be foolhardy and frankly childish. If I was an administrator I wouldn't hire me knowing that I left my district in the middle of a strike while my contract was still being negotiated just because I felt disrespected. Plus, with the lack of teaching jobs there would be no guarantee I could get another one for a year or two, even outside the state.

Anyway, in happier news, I went to facebook to look at a facebook group that a student cited in his speech (which, by the way, was misrepresented in numbers...), and ended up finding another group entitled, "You know you go to Newport when..." and it seriously had me laughing all the way through. Since these things are really only funny to the people who go there I won't list them all, but faithful "bloggereaders" may appreciate some of them:

You know you go to Newport when:
- You think that 3 AP classes is an “easy” course load
- You drive: an asian car (Honda, Toyota…) or german car (BMW, Audi, Mercedes…)
- You understand when a significant other spends more time with homework/studying than with you
- You think that the 38% Asian is inaccurate (it’s too low)
- You/ all your friends: are/were in the band/orchestra/choir
- You know at least 3 people that are in the district illegally
Your parents work(ed) for Boeing, Microsoft, a hospital, or their own law firm
- You think more about your transcript than your weekend
- Everyone knows at least one word in Korean
- At graduation there are three entire rows just for students with the last names Lee and Kim


Ok, time to drive back to Kirkland...blech

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