Note: I wrote this for www.marioncountytribune.com, but the site is having difficulties. Thought I'd share here, as I haven't for a while.
Knoxville School Board President Marty Duffy called for a special
meeting to be held at 6 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 2. Board Vice President Larissa Van
Donselaar was unable to attend, due to a previously planned vacation. Cheri
Gerdes expressed her disapproval of the way the meeting was called.
“As a board member, I wasn’t consulted at all about this
time or this date,” Gerdes said. Neither were board members Dave Smith or Larry
Scott. “Give me a few more extra days to rearrange my schedule.” She added that,
for the subject of the meeting, every board member should be at the table.
That subject was the climate and culture of the school buildings.
Duffy was led to believe that building administrators have not been accessible,
due to too many meetings. He opened the board’s discussion by saying that there
should be no more meetings – including those for professional development. Iowa
law requires schools to provide professional development for teachers.
Moreover, Duffy was concerned that teachers – especially older
teachers – do not feel valued. He gave building principals five questions to
ask their staffs and report back on responses in February.
“Education today is enormously stressful. If we don’t take
care of ourselves, no one else is going to,” Duffy said. Apparently, the board
as a whole had not discussed climate and culture prior to this meeting.
“We have not chatted about this,” Gerdes said. “The board
has not discussed this at all.”
Duffy said he did not realize the board room would have so
many people in attendance. He just wanted to have a talk with administrators. The
board president added that he intended to be punitive with his opening
monologue and that he wanted to ensure that the atmosphere in which school
employees work and Knoxville children learn was the best it could be.
Gerdes said that begins at the top, where the board of
elected representatives for the district sit. If the climate is not right, it’s
the board’s fault.
“I think you should be worried about us,” Gerdes said. “We’re
a team, Marty.”
Duffy opened the floor to discussion. Northstar Elementary
Principal John Keitges said he believes the climate and culture in his building
is great.
“Culture and climate, I think, is tremendous,” Keitges said.
He went on to say that meetings are held to discuss ways to improve learning, explore
opportunities for collaboration and discuss concerns teachers may have about
students. There are bad things that can happen at Northstar on a daily basis,
and there are limits to how the staff can handle it. Meetings also allow staff
to share frustrations and work them out. But overall, Keitges said, “I have
zero concerns for culture and climate.”
Gerdes added that, since being notified about the meeting
(Iowa law requires at least 24 hours’ public notice.) she had spoken with members
of the community, including students. She heard no negative feedback regarding
the climate and culture of the school buildings.
“If there’s any indication, the children are happy shows we
must be doing something right,” Gerdes said.
Upon receiving the agenda for the meeting, the Tribune
reached out to Knoxville Education Association (teachers’ union) spokesman Matt
Heston. When asked if those in the union, and the bargaining unit overall, were
happy, Heston replied, “The KEA is encouraged that the board is talking with
the administrators about climate and culture within our schools.” He did not specify
what changes he would like to see. Not all teachers are members of the KEA. As
Iowa is a right-to-work state, union membership is not required to be part of
the bargaining unit covered by KEA’s negotiations with the board.
Heston was also in attendance at the meeting. When the
discussion turned to the possibility of a survey being distributed to gauge the
climate and culture of the buildings, Heston said he hears the negative. He
also believes that the most honest survey results would come from anonymity. Staff
may fear reprisal if they express opinions unpopular with administrators and
the board.
“My perception on the whole is that things seem to be going in
the right direction,” Scott, a former teacher, said. “Things are going kind of
like the way I’d like to see it go.” He added that there are a “few rough spots”
that should be addressed.
One concern Smith mentioned was a lack of “space” at West
Elementary. When children have an outburst, it can make others in the room
uncomfortable. Smith, another former teacher, echoed the opinion that older
teachers do not feel valued.
“As an older teacher, they tend to speak out more,” Smith
said. “For that reason, I think they get targeted.” He believes the frustration
is widespread, about “three-quarters”.
Business Manager Craig Mobley said that 57 percent of
teachers in the district are in the bottom lane of the salary schedule. The
organization of the salary schedule puts certified staff in different lanes, based
upon their level of education. Each year, their loyalty and longevity are rewarded
with pay increases. Teachers who work in Knoxville longer are paid more. Discussion
turned whether or not the board should search for more teachers with Master’s
degrees. Superintendent Cassi Pearson reported that the average number of years
current teachers have worked in Knoxville is 13.
Duffy had stated earlier in the meeting that Pearson had
told him a firm could handle a survey for $10,000. Pearson clarified by saying
that a district in which she had worked previously spent around that sum
several years ago. Costs may vary.
“I’m sick to death of paying professionals when we have
professionals,” Scott said.
Duffy said he just wanted to start the conversation. He
wants things to improve to better serve children with special needs.
Following the meeting, Keitges said he believes in his
building – and the district – children’s needs are always first, followed by
the system and then the staff. At Northstar, there is a strong culture with a
staff that values professional development because they are lifelong learners.
“I think it is a small number of staff that don’t like their
job on a daily basis,” Keitges said. He admits everyone has bad days. He sees
his role as one to guide and trust them to do what’s best while providing
appropriate support.
The Tribune will have a separate story regarding how the
district handles challenging children, including the restrictions placed upon
teachers by the Iowa Legislature.
