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Palmdale School District restores salary reductions, furlough days

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The announcement is good news for Palmdale teachers, who’ve held several rallies this year to protest proposed salary reductions and furlough days.
The announcement is good news for Palmdale teachers, who’ve held several rallies to protest proposed salary reductions and furlough days.

PALMDALE – The Palmdale School District announced Thursday that the 3.8% salary reduction and nine furlough days implemented for the 2013-14 school year will be restored.

Two major factors contributed to the District’s ability to initiate the restoration. First, the District received unexpected revenue of approximately $3.5 million related to special education costs charged to neighboring districts. Second, the District is in the final stages of “closing the books” for the 2012-2013 school year, as required each year at this time of the year. While this process will not be complete for another couple weeks, the District is confident that the unrestricted, ending fund balance will be an amount that allows for restoration of furlough days.

During negotiations, the District drafted excellent “contingency” language as part of its proposals in response to the positive outlook reflected in the Governor’s budget. This language details a formula by which any new, unrestricted revenue and/or any additional unrestricted money in the ending fund balance shall be immediately applied to reduce the percentage of salary reductions and then restore furlough days.

Therefore, the new, unrestricted $3.5 million related to special education costs and the additional unrestricted ending fund balance was factored through the formula and resulted in the restoration of all salary reductions and furlough days for the 2013-14 school years.

“The contingency language was an extremely important component of our negotiations,” commented Roger Gallizzi, District Superintendent. “Having this language provided us the opportunity to immediately utilize the new unrestricted revenue and the ending fund balance for the benefit of the entire district and community. We have made a concerted effort to reduce our spending across the district and at the school sites, which resulted in a healthy ending fund balance.”

The contingency language remains in effect throughout the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 school years. The District is optimistic that through the use of the contingency language formula, they will have the ability to reduce salary reductions and/or restore furlough days next year as well.

Sandy Corrales-Eneix, Palmdale School District Board President stated, “Employees have been contacting me expressing their gratitude about this good news. This is a testament to the District’s commitment to working together with employees to provide our students with the best education possible while maintaining fiscal solvency.”

(Information via press release from the Palmdale School District.)

Previous related stories:

Palmdale teachers to unite at TNOTS, urge public to pressure school board

Palmdale School District, teachers remain at odds

Factfinder backs furlough days for Palmdale teachers, PETA responds

Classified staff and PSD reach tentative agreement

Palmdale teachers, parents stage protest

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136 comments for "Palmdale School District restores salary reductions, furlough days"

  1. Eval is usually a raise…let’s not play a guessing game. I’m quite sure Gallizzi & Corrales both frequent this site….. perhaps one of them can answer the question….that goes for any of the PSD board members. What’s the deal? Sup of the year? LMFAO!! Politics never cease to amaze me! PSD has never been in such total disaster, and Gallizzi is rewarded?! Like I said LMFAO!!

    • Dave I’m going to start off by telling you that I am a teacher in the Palmdale School District, and have been for longer than you. I have been a site rep for PETA, and a strong advocate for teachers. Lately all I have heard about is PETA harassing its own members, coercing them to take part in things they do not want to attend, and threatening them if they disagree. So obviously this isnt my real name, as I believe with the level of harassment being carried out on new and veteran teachers by PETA (and its site reps), I would choose to remain unharassed. But I do wish to express my opinion and my dismay…

      So Mr. “Quigley” are you insinuating that teachers who win a “Teacher of the Year” award are products of the politics of a school or the district? If so then I would agree…I have been one of them several times, and each time I felt it to be a popularity award more than anything else. Others, were far more deserving, but never even nominated.

      Secondly, my opinion and the opinion of about 90% of us is that the district is only in a mess as it concerns the “nut factory” of fist pounding union hounds that “want” the district to appear to be in a mess. For the rest of us teachers, that actually see the damage that PETA is doing to its own members, we don’t believe a single word any of you say anymore.

      A few of you in leadership may have been good people at some point, but over the past several months you have allowed yourselves to be lead quite literally into madness. You follow blindly. What has our school district done to us except keep us employed? Have we lost step and column? Nope! Have we lost days to furloughs like the other valley districts have? Nope! Have we lost benefits like the other districts have? Nope! Have we had to reduce force, lay-offs? Nope! Does the district still provide extra training, extra duty time for extra money? Yup! Supplies? Yup! Have we lost the rights we had two, or five or even ten years ago? Nope! What we have lost is a positive relationship with our district and board, because of the shenanigans of so called “leaders” like you. If anything is falling apart it’s because of people like you being selfish, and we see that.

      Being juvenile in your comments, like “LMFAO” just solidifies the sense that the bulk of you have become so jaded and childish that literally nothing will get you better short of finding another career somewhare else. So, please do the rest of us teachers a favor and quit, resign and find a job in a district that you actually like. You and your fellow leadership people are ruining this one for the 90% of us that like it here, and thats not fair.

      • Thank you “Mr. Harding”!! Finally someone with the guts to say what’s really going on here. I’ve been watching my fellow union members go after one another like sharks. The older union supporters harass us in the staff lounge, between classes, and in the parking lot.

        I even had a union “heavy” stop me and my kids in a local grocery store parking lot to harass me in public because I’m a new teacher and have said I would cross a picket line.

        Oh and the things these people say about our board and district in that staff lounge…..! Mind you, I agree that it’s only the older teachers who are old time union members, but they still scare us with the “plans” they make and they make us feel unwelcomed becasue we never know who is going to say something negative to us. It’s making my job a living hell. It’s insanity, and it has to stop. We need to hold an emergency election and replace every one of our leaders. Oh, and Mr. Harding, this isn’t my real name either, I don’t want any union members at my house threatening me or my family.

          • Ditto, just resign and take the exec council with you please. I was happy here until you started this mess. BTW, 22 year teacher, CTA member and 17 with PETA and never saw this kind of garbage until this group of exec council people and negotiators came along. Please just resign, you’re not helping.

        • Hey I have a question for one of our union execs… How come we employ three people to represent our union? The president who makes $92,000 a year in salary and $16,000 a year in benefits with no student contact, and supervises nobody… And two CTA representatives, each making about $100,000 and $16,000 in benefits.

          Thats a whopping $340,000 for our own union representative, none of whom has one person they supervise, no set work schedule, and no student contact at all. Our own superintendent comes under fire from my own union for making $100,000 less than that and supervising 2000 plus employees.

          $340,000 of tax payer money to pay for three “union” people that don’t work! No that’s a taxpayer travesty!

          • I DIDN’T KNOW THAT!! $340,000 for no work!!?? They need to all resign! You’re right, our union is nuts.

          • I wish my salary was that high. Do a little more research. The association reimburses the district for my cost. CTA reimburses the district for our CTA directors. No tax dollars.
            I’ve always encourage those nmembers not satisfied to run for office, speak up, but more importantly, vote.

      • @Tom…at least get some of it right if you’re going to respond. No mention of “Teacher of the Year” in my post and ummm “90%”….where the heck did you get that number cuz you’re waaayy off! Geeez…sure hope the Peta Bouncers don’t encourage the intimidated teachers to jump off the bridge…they just might do it! FYI…I’m still “LMFAO” and you can thank Gallizzi for that!

    • These individuals who are saying they are “teachers” and are anonymous…are ridiculous. They are not teachers. They sound more like Gallizzi and Corrales plants or they are them.

      All I can say is be careful what you wish for. This is the time for teachers to stand together to get rid of Corrales, Ferrin, Stanford, Gallizzi, Asst. Sup. Of Business, and some others. Bynum needs to be gone also. Teachers, classified & Confidential staff have been lied to by the Board, Superintendent & Administration about their finances. They have done nothing in good faith. Karma is out there. These people later will have the nerve to say “Why me?”. Karma has a way of coming around a biting you. Not with a nip, but with a large chunk. I think it will be seen sooner than later.

      If you are truly a teacher you have your head in the sand. If you do not back your other teachers, then do not complain later. You need to wake up. I still believe you are plants. As you are entitled to your opinion so am I.

      • Quigley and Angel if you haven’t noticed your support is starting to drop off. Fact is that we have over 800 teachers in our ranks and only the nutty fringe still support your agenda. And yes, intimidation and attempting to coerce fellow union members to behave just like you do. Be as sarcastic as you’d like but facts are facts and maybe someone needs to file a PERB complaint against your tactics with our own people.

        Jump off a bridge? Maybe you guys could do the rest of us a favor and do just that.

        Now as for your bright idea to start firing people, firing the superintendent will cost about $400,000 just to buy the rest of his contract, assuming he doesn’t sue for wrongful termination that is. Everyone with a contract will get a piece of the pie, and chances are they will all sue. They do have that right after all.

        What’s interesting to the rest of us is that you don’t even try to hide your agenda. This has never been about us as teachers, it’s always been a power grab by the two or three of you.

        As for my head in the sand, you haven’t listened to our membership “ever” at any point in your elected terms. We are watching gentlemen, and we will have our day.

        • Oh and I stay anonymous for the same reasons you two do, except I’m worried about union reprisals. That being said Mr. Quigely Cuestas, my analogy of the teacher of the year was just that, an analogy. Read it over a few times, I know that you folks have some problems with comprehension, so just take your time. Sound out those big words.

          • Hey!! Nobody wants to comment on Hugo Estrada’s whopping $92,000 salary? Or Mr. Meedin’s $102,000? Or Mr. Milenedez’ salary of over $100,000?

            How about the $48,000 they collect in benefits for NOT teaching a single child, ever?

            Maybe the AVTimes should run that article, those salaries as is mine are public record.

          • Mr. Quigely,
            NOT a PETA member?? With no dog in this fight, your opinion just became economically and intellectually worthless. Since you have no real stake in our conditions, you don’t walk the walk so to speak, then perhaps you should stick to things relevent in your own profession.

            Just the fact that you ARE NOT A PETA member makes you out to be one of the most pretentious and inconsiderate bloggers on this site.

            First walk in my shoes, then try to tell me whats important to me…you are dangerously out of touch sir!

          • Actually Tom you’re wrong again…that’s the joy of a site that allows anonymity…you have no idea what door I sit behind.

          • Posted by Hugo Estrada
            I wish my salary was that high. Do a little more research. The association reimburses the district for my cost. CTA reimburses the district for our CTA directors. No tax dollars.
            I’ve always encourage those members not satisfied to run for office, speak up, but more importantly, vote.

      • Angel, “everyone who does evil will not come into the light for fear their deeds shall be exposed,” does this quote describe your life?

          • Cast that first stone Anhel, you sound like a man of profound faith and goodness and entitlement. I am done here, posting anything to you nuts is useless.

  2. PSD had a Board meeting today @8 AM . The closed session agenda was for Gallizzi’s evaluation. What do you all think….raise???

    • Quigley? Your school board schedules retreats at 8am all the time, I have sat through a few. Maybe you should take the time to sit through a couple of them too so that instead of dumping worthless rhetoric on this site, you could say something positive. Also I am amazed that you teachers all got your salaries and furlough days restored and you’re still complaining. I work for a municipal government and have a furlough every other Friday. I would be happy to have even half of them back. You and your fellow teachers sound like whiners. Shame on all of you for acting like entitled children.

      Oh and I seem to remember this Nancy Smith character. You teachers didn’t like her much either when she cut your year round programs and class size reduction. I remember because my sons were in junior high. Funny how you all turned that around. What have you been promised? More money? Seems awfully fishy to me.

      • Mr. Tejada, the concern for me is next year. I would rather go back to the table and take some cuts this year to even out the losses set to start next year. That is the point that is seemingly glossed over by many. We cannot do that without going back to negotiate. We have already been furloughed two days, why not apply them to next year’s projected deficit instead of tacking them onto the end of the current school year, when students will already be out of school?

        • Natalie, while a good off-the-cuff suggestion, my bet would be because to do so would effect our service year for STRS. You really can’t mess around too much with the length of service without directly affecting teacher’s retirements. Particularly those that want to retire in 2014. And haven’t we been told that next year’s deficit will be substantially mitigated by the current carryover and unrestricted new local funding. Seems to me everyone just keeps making issues out of non issues. Really, the “sky isn’t falling” and we will be okay.

          • Jan, thank you for your response. I have not understood that the deficit will be mitigated by the end of the year, but with everything as up-in-the air as it is I truly hope you are right. I also appreciate your explanation as to a possible reasoning (i.e., retirement credit). It is the first time, after asking the question for the last few weeks, that anyone has actually responded with a plausible explanation. The back-and-forth, up-and-down is becoming exhausting and I appreciate your comment very much. I just wish we weren’t in this mess to begin with and pray that cooler heads will (eventually) prevail. Still, facing those huge imposed cuts is daunting at best and is horrible to have to worry about until the end of this current year.

      • @Phililpe, If you read the agenda on the PSD website there is no mention of a “retreat”. However, #13 clearly reads Superintendent Evaluation which usually equates to $$….just sayin, past practice! This is why I asked….did you sit at this one? Did you read the agenda?

          • No sir, I apologize, I did not sit at this meeting as I had to be at work I assume like you. I did however read the agenda and nothing seemed to be secretive or unusual, and there wasn’t any mention of negotiations with the superintendent regarding his contract. I like to try to believe that most people have the best intentions, and that includes your board and your union. I also apologize for not responding in a timely fashion to your post as I was out of town for a week, I drive a long haul truck for LA City.

      • Philipe, has it even crossed your mind they schedule these “Special” Board Meetings at times when the majority of individuals cannot attend because they are working. They know what they are doing. They do not want the public’s attendance at certain Board meetings. I called Los Angeles County Office of Education and Special Board Meetings are supposed to be called for emergencies. Not for trying to restrict the public and employees from attending.

        So for Superintendent of The Year…it is O.K. to schedule at a regular Board Meeting for the photo opp. While mandating…yes mandating employee attendance well before the Board Meeting, assigning them to occupy the front row, stand and clap? This is a real perceived threat to employees. They were lucky the Superintendent was not forcing them this time to bring their checkbooks in to write a check either for a candidate, an organization he supports or to buy a table for some event. Employees feel that their employment is being threatened. This is always being done. What type of public school district in this state is allowed to get away with this?

        But for the Superintendent’s evaluation, where people could address the Board, you deliberately schedule it for a “Special” Board Meeting (by the way this is not an emergency) at 8:00 a.m. Well let me take the emergency part back…it is an emergency for them to get it done with as little input and controversy as possible.

        Something is definitely wrong when this is allowed to be done.

        • Please Mr. Angel I am not directly involved in scheduling anything as your statement suggests…”you deliberately schedule it for a “Special” Board Meeting,” and I hope that was just a mistake with your speech.

          I have been reading the posts above and I agree, I don’t have a dog in this fight as I am not a teacher or an employee, and so I will simply choose to continue to read these posts without posting. I think everyone knows my opinion, and that is quite simply that everyone needs to behave themselves, teachers in particular. But like I said, I’m not tied to this fight and so I say fare well and good luck.

  3. So, PETA is once again acting like terrorists and distributing the home addresses and phone numbers of board members and their families publicly. Even the address and phone number of the ex-wife and daughter of a board member. What they are doing amounts to terrorism, as some of their less stable members have made scenes in board meetings, and its my information that there have been a few incidents at these people’s homes.
    The PETA Facebook page has been an interesting read, as PETA has been accused recently of endangering the safety of a board members child with some of their antics.
    and yes, PETA endorsed Nancy Smith. Nancy Smith of the video camera in female teachers classrooms, pedaphiles on the payroll, and lots of other monkey business (and yes, she laid off teachers too).
    Don’t watch the PETA clips of school board meetings where they point to “rude” behavior from the board president (where she asks them to behave, or reminds them of the time limits for speakers) see if they’ll post the video of the teachers acting out badly in the meetings.
    Oh, and how do I feel about the district parking trucks in front of the district office when the teachers wanted to come out and “support” their negotiators? The district can park their trucks anywhere they like, they were not doing anything illegal.

    • Um, correct me if I am wrong, but wasn’t there a Special Education female staff member arrested for commuting lewd acts with a minor just last year? Nancy Smith may not be perfect, but she is a change, has a vested interest in the district and may have learned from past errors. At this point, what’s the worst she could do, impose a contract? Oh wait, that has already been done!

      I do agree with you on one point. BOTH sides should control themselves more and behave more professionally. The actions and reactions on both sides of the fence and egos from extremists in both camps have gotten us to this point. Maybe if BOTH sides cooled off and apologized we could get this train back in track.

      • Ms. Ynocente, did you miss the whole terrorism comment? You really only seem interested in pointing fingers and making excuses. I read through all of your posts, and they all seem to have one common theme…excuses and finger pointing. Based upon your last comment it doesn’t sound like you’ve even been a teacher long enough to put yourself in a position to speak for everyone else.

        As for handing out people’s personal information, while that may seem like something you can gloss over with a glib comment and another accusation, it’s not. Something like that in this day and age is dangerous and reprehensible irresponsible. As an organization you should be condemning tactics like those, not making excuses for them. How would you feel if your board gave your home number and address to every angry parent? How would you feel if those angry parents showed up at your home unannounced after dark?

        I read a post a few items down that said you should just stop posting and do your job. Good advice.

        • I agree with Ms. Hunter. Ms. Ynocente, you are embarrassing your profession by using very faulty logic, being glib and accusatory, and behaving like you have the right to be condescending. You may be bright, but I promise you there are far brighter, more accomplished people reading these posts. It’s time for you to just stop. You’re not helping your profession, in fact I agree with Ms. Hunter’s comment about turning your address and every like minded teachers address over to the parents of the kids they fail to educate. And no I have not spent any time in your class to see how you teach, I’m just fascinated that with your attitude you still have a job. Entitled children sounds about right.

          • I’m honestly astounded by some of these teachers and their attitudes. It’s very entitled.
            They have screamed for months about the Superintendents salary, which is in the median for the state, even though the Superintendent runs the 4th largest elementary district in the state.
            What they consistently fail to recognize is that this same super presided over a district that for a decade, was also the fastest growing district statewide.
            When the recession hit, and all other districts of comparable size were laying people off, this Super saved their jobs. Was it easy to do? I’m sure it wasn’t. Does it mean it might take longer for them to be in a solid position? Probably yes.
            Instead these teachers have acted like spoiled kids, attacking the very people who SAVED their jobs.
            and to “Angel”, PETA has been after some of these board members trying to remove them for a while. Last time, you even managed to get 1 of your own elected, but not Nancy Smith, you know better. Lots of teachers in the district remember her and don’t understand why she got endorsed. She was a terror and left a mess in her wake.
            People need to stop looking at the propaganda, and really look at what this district has done the last several years in difficult economic times. I like unions. I belong to a very good one and am grateful for what they do for us. BUT, if my leadership led this kind of personal war against my bosses, I’d be mad as hell.

          • Ms. Hunter and Mr. Walters,

            What exactly have I said that would be considered to be “glib”, demonstrate a “use of faulty logic” and an throwing nothing but “accusations” while calling me a “terrorist”? I have stated that I do not condone the all the actions on either side, so let me be more explicit: I do not agree with publishing home addresses and personal phone numbers of the board members, superintendent, or anyone else for that matter. I have even stated that to PETA representatives publicly. I don’t call their homes or encourage anyone else to do the same. I wouldn’t want it done to me, and, as such, I don’t to it to others.

            Let me also respond to the fact that I did not directly address the “terroristic threats” accusation directed at me be S. Strom, Ms. Hunter, and yourself, Mr. Walters. I am not a terrorist and calling me such is a prime example of the faulty logic you claim I use. You three are likening me to an extremist who will intimidate and physically harm another to further his or her own agenda. I have done none of that. Just because I belong to a union doesn’t mean that I condone everything they do, just as someone who is Muslim or Christian doesn’t condone what extremists in their religious associations do. I ask you to pull out specific comments I have made which reflect the glibness, excuse-making, accusatory, and condescending you purport me to have engaged in. I would like a chance to better state my position and clarify my point, removing such language that would cause people to infer that those traits are an indication of my personality and character.

            Mr. Walters, how have I been condescending? I speak based on my experiences in teaching and respond based on my personal experiences, as both the child of two teachers and now as a teacher myself. I have only responded to individuals who have attacked me via name-calling and finger-pointing. The responses I have made were done to eliminate misconceptions and untrue generalizations made by individuals speaking out about subjects they have no actual knowledge of. Again, you (collectively) have completely ignored my point and decided to diminish the teacher and call into question my intelligence and employability. Teachers want to see negotiations happen. We don’t want to have money given back only to take that plus even more next year. Is it logically to do so? What about my attitude demonstrates that I am “an entitled child”. What you accuse me of is exactly what you are doing yourselves, Mr. Walters and Ms. Hunter. We should be able to agree to disagree without being disrespectful to one another, but you both have taken the situation to a new low. “People far brighter and more accomplished”, is not condescending at all, is it? If you would even try to see anything from an opposing point of view and empathize, you may be a little less quick to espouse your condescending and belittling comments. Have a peaceful day, and I pray that none of you are put in the position all employees and board members find themselves in at this time.

    • S. Strom, you wouldn’t happen to be a former second grade teacher from the Eastside Union School District, would you? The name you used made me think of a teacher that I knew when I was a student out there and that I used to help from time to time in the multipurpose room out at EES in the early nineties.

  4. Gallizzi & Corrales wrote a letter to the community that is posted on the PSD Website at palmdalesd.org….click on the envelope. Can’t figure out these two knuckleheads! What an embarrassment to this district!

  5. To s. strom,

    Could you please explain your accusations? Terrorists holding students and schools hostage? It seems more like name-calling and uniformed rhetoric than any sort of reasonable statement. All 900-plus of us are aware of our position in the state and how fortunate we have been not to have taken furloughs and cuts while continuing to give our students an excellent education. Wouldn’t the lack if furloughs and cuts have to do with rhe numbers provided by the District Office and reductions forced upon classified staff and not by the teacher’s union?

    What we are asking for is a FAIRLY NEGOTIATED contract, not raises and avoiding cuts. What we are working under is a one-sided, arbitrarily enforced contract that is being shoved down our throats. The superintendent and 80% of the school board rammed these working conditions through and within three weeks are patting themselves on the backs and telling us they are restoring things that never needed to go away. In addition, they are not even taking into consideration next year; another nine furlough days AND an additional 8.4% salary reduction, plus increased health care cost. Why did we go to fact-finding only to have every single one if those suggestions completely ignored? What was the point? The teachers want to go back to the table to negotiate a fair contract for all parties involved. It is completely short-sighted and irresponsible to restore this year only to take huge cuts next year; both sides should be back at the table hammering out a deal that will even out the losses, but that isn’t even an option right now. Send us back to the table, negotiate, and teach our students that it is imperative to make informed decisions, that negotiations lead to compromise, and that compromises require that both sides give and take, not that one side takes it all and gives two-thirds of it back and expects the other to trip over itself in gratitude.

    • What you want is for the district to cave, whether they can afford to or not.
      The district is in the unenviable position of having to balance a budget, more than 80% of which is already tied up in teacher salary and benefits. At a time when other districts were laying off teachers, PSD did NOT. Something that gets lost in all of this is part of the reason salaries froze was so teachers could keep their jobs.. but now thats a bad thing?
      Maybe you guys want to go back to the days of Nancy Smith, when the economy tanked, teachers lost their jobs. Thats fact.
      I am interested in this because both my sister and niece teach in PSD, my niece was hired by this Superintendent. I love my sister and my niece very much, I think they should make a whole lot more money for what they do, but until the state gives districts more money to pay teachers with, its not likely to happen.
      With so much budget already going to teacher and salary benefits, what little is left has got to go to maintain schools.
      Instead the union has chosen to attack the guy who kept them employed while most other districts were letting people go, really horrible personal attacks that add nothing to any effort to negotiate.
      So yes, you are holding our students hostage when you want to take what little is already left for them.
      A fairly negotiated contract would require 2 sides willing to negotiate. What we’ve seen instead if PETA and/or those that claim to be PETA supporters all over every list, blog, news outlet in the Valley launching intensely personal attacks against the Superintendent and school board members, and anyone who even dares to question the PETA position. There is no room to negotiate with people who only want to attack.

      • I don’t think that there is anyone who doesn’t recognize that the economy has been bad for the last few years and that it hasn’t affected the PSD. This happens periodically and people have to work through the problems. Your idea of how this has been done in the past is totally bogus. When the economy was bad in the early 2000s, the PSD did issue potential lay off notices, but they worked through the bad situation by the superintendent, board and unions coming up with an early retirement program that prevented almost all of the layoffs. That is how a good board expects the district to handle problems, not to punish teachers and classified because of disagreements. PSD is receiving the highest level of funding per student in the A V with the new funding formula. The superintendent and the PSD board imposed these cuts when they knew it would not be necessary. If according to the superintendent and Ms. Corrales “they always knew it would be restored”, then why not wait a couple of months instead of creating this nasty situation and stressing out so many employees?

        • and PSD teachers are already the highest in salary and benefits.
          I love how you coach your comment that PSD managed to avoid “almost all the layoffs” in the early 2000’s. ALMOST all means 85 teachers lost their jobs.. Thats fact. Sorry if its inconvenient. and it happened under Nancy Smith. We could talk about the myriad of other issues that happened under Smith, but I’m sure most of that will come out as election season heats up.
          PSD, like every other district, city, or agency, has to come up with a budget every year based on known income, not a funding formula that is in the works at the state level or even promised money.
          A “good board” balances its budget, on time, every year, and then adjusts its budget if adjustments are necessary. That’s what happened here. It wasn’t “found” money, it was money not in their formula when they started that became avaliable later.
          Lets be clear, its PETA all over every blog, facebook page, forum in the AV posting personal and nasty things, I haven’t seen any school people doing that.
          and here’s the ugly part that PETA isn’t talking about in public- What they really want, when you actually talk to the teachers, is not only what you see here, but also closure of the Aerospace academy and the firing of the guy that kept them all empoloyed, not “almost all” of them but all of them. PSD even continued to hire teachers through the recession..
          we won’t even touch the ugly, homophobic things that have been said on this website and other forums that show just how ugly and personal PETA has made this.
          PETA is making a big mistake, because only about half of their teachers even live in PSD. They have a very bad record of getting people elected to their board, and have aggressively alienated not just the existing board, but a lot of parents in their district that make no where close to what these teachers make.
          People wait in line to get their kids into the Aerospace academy.. I wonder how those east side parents are going to feel about that school going away?
          Bottom line, and most teachers will admit to this, just ask them.. This is being blown up because its an election year and PETA wants a board that will make stronger concessions to the union. But parents need to ask themselves if that is in the students best interest, or if more than 80% of the PSD budget tied up in Salary and benefits is what the district can afford to pay out.
          Be real people, less than 20% of the PSD budget goes to things other than teacher salary. That includes maintenance, books, infrastructure support, transportation. So, when you wonder why the schools can’t buy a lot of supplies, or the schools drinking fountains don’t work, or the schools are in disrepair, you already have your answer, and it has nothing to do with the Superintendents salary, which is median for the state.

          • It was neither found money nor unexpected money. According to a statement from the superintendent, it was 3.5 million dollars owed to us by the other districts in the Antelope Valley for educating their special needs students at schools such as Yellen. Our district decided to collect that money after the contract was imposed, knowing that there was an outstanding balance due to us while claiming an inability to pay.

            The superintendent’s salary is the leading salary in the Antelope Valley, and as well-published, our community is not within the median when it comes to the socioeconomic status.

            Could you also explain where you pulled your information from regarding how my district is the highest paid in the valley? Now that the cap and is in, we have dropped to the bottom.

            Were you aware all the other school districts reinstated their proposed furlough days and rescinded employee layoffs within days of the money being released using the new LCFF, yet Palmdale did not and instead chose to impose a contract? Even when PETA drastically changed its offer, the District chose to impose the only offer it ever presented. A “good board” would ask questions and attend the negotiations sessions as they had been invited and send both sides back to the table until a compromise was made by both sides.

          • Measure DD was passed by the Palmdale voters for facilities improvements, was it not? Teachers buy supplies for their classrooms, many times into the hundreds and thousands of dollars. I am sure your sister and niece have told you this as well.

            As far as some of your other comments regarding homophobic slurs and such, just exactly where are you getting your information from? Are there public blogs where teachers voice their frustrations with misinformation and lies? Yes. But homophobic slurs? Really? With such a diverse student, staff, teacher, and family life as you find in our school district, I cannot believe that those slurs would be written.

            You seem to believe that all the venom is coming from the teachers and the superintendent and the board are blameless. What about the day that district parked all of its trucks in front of the D.O. when teachers went to support negotiators? What about the manner in which the board president and other members of the board scoffed and spoke disrespectfully to parents and teachers alike at a meeting? What about the fact that the superintendent and board president imposed a contract and then openly stated that “they knew the money would come in all along”? What about the fact the board president stated that she didn’t really support charter schools, but is in every photo opportunity at the Guidance Charter Schools? Have you read some of the emails sent to teachers from the superintendent that show he is out of touch with his teachers? Is it correct that the superintendent blames this situation of the teachers, stating the Valley Press that “we could have kept four furlough days last year to help with the current situation” when that was not even an option presented to us? Is it responsible that the days chosen closed the schools two days prior to classes starting and canceled BOTH parent conference days, and the board did not question why both? were taken Is it responsible, or even ethical, to use the district’s EdConnect line to call parents and read a statement from his perspective regarding teacher negotiations, and then only read it in English in a community of learners that has a very high Spanish-speaking population?

            I do not want to see the Aerospace Academy close or the Guidance Charter School either; I have friends working at both places and I would not want to see them lose their jobs. Teachers were hired during the recession because so many students enrolled that the ADA and class ratios demanded it. Teachers lost their jobs and positions when numbers dropped. Right now, at the school of choice in which I work, there are classes sitting with over forty students in each room.

            Please do speak for me or any of my colleagues in regards to what we want. Read the neutral fact finder’s report and what she predicted has now come to fruition. The trust that at one time existed between the certificated and classified staff, administration, leadership and school board is completely broken. Why would we trust the school board when a minimum of 40% are in picture after picture with the superintendent outside of PSD functions? The fact is the fact finder’s report and suggestions were completely ignored and there is still a drastic cut looming in the future that cannot be avoided because the contract was imposed. Why are we not back at the table to work on easing the impending cuts for next year? You are correct when you stated in another post that both sides need to be willing to negotiate. PETA wanted to wait until the May revise; the D.O. wanted 18 furlough days, 12% salary reduction AND a $15,500 cap (with contingency language regarding furloughs and salaries); we went to impasse and fact-finding and went back to the table with a
            drastically different offer, including a cap as recommended by the fact finder, even when the new funding was released giving our district an additional $429 per pupil; the district did not change its position AT ALL. It is a slap in the face to be told that no money is available and within three weeks of the imposed contract to be told that money is available, but we still are going to ignore the draconian cuts set to be put into motion next year.

          • Storm, you are not telling the truth, 85 teachers did not lose their jobs. That is a lie. You appear to be throwing “dung” to see what sticks, just to try to create controversy and take away from the real issues. You also seem to forget that the three Board members up for reelection, were put there by the backing of PETA and that is the only reason they were elected at the time. But as often happens, you believe in certain individuals and they either change because of greed or they finally show their true colors. We as voters believe now, that it is time for a much needed change of the Board and Superintendent.

            It is more than obvious that if the finance department of any organization cannot keep track of what is owed to them, everyone loses and those individuals need to be fired. When it continues to happens again and again and again, you have incompetent people working for you who need to be dismissed. The buck stops with the superintendent in this case who has allowed this to continue to happen. Therefore, the Board should have cleaned house and since they do not have the guts to fix this enormous problem, they need to be voted out and replaced. How can you think it is O.K. that millions of dollars are being spent on attorney fees every year, frivolous spending of remodeling a Board room at the tune of $500,000 when all that was needed to be replaced was the carpet, additional district vehicles that were not needed, paying the Superintendent Medicare portion and pension portion that should be his own darn responsibility, not our taxpayers dollars. Your employer nor mine pays for our portion of Medicare or pension. The majority of the working class people have to pay their own. You honestly can say there is nothing wrong with this factual occurrence?

            Teachers have not asked for raises in seven years because they preferred to keep their benefits. Because of the District’s financial blunders time and time again, they kept helping out the District by taking cuts in their benefits for at least two to three years straight. This means saving PSD money. Then after the fact they found money, but did not reinstate those benefits. They have kept taking and taking from employees. Teachers are not to blame here, it is the mismanagement of this school district and that needs to be changed. Come November it will change. These incumbents do not have the backing any longer of either union, nor staff and parents see what has happened.

    • I have been watching all of these comments with both amazement and concern. Amazement that teachers who get raises every time they complete college credits or move down a few spaces in seniority forget that they get raises. Any change in salary, any change that increases a person’s pay, is a raise, and teachers get them regularly. They just want every single tax paying citizen to believe they don’t. As for benefits, I pay for mine and my family’s and they aren’t even half as good as whta the teachers complain about. Take a look at the PSD web site and see what teachers get and you’ll think twice about listening to the lies of their leaders.
      As for Mr. Estrada, he couldn’t tell the truth if it hit him like a train. He is one very deluded and angry man who loves attention and wants to rally the Hispanic community around him so that he can feel important. I have personally met this guy and the first thing he said was that he was the PETA president, not with humility, but more like look at how important I am. Big shot? Big shots don’t make politics personal like this small time thug. And if the teachers in Palmdale believe that he is working in their best interest, they are just as deluded and arrogant as he is.

      • Oh and one more thing for you greedy selfish bloggers. I work 260 days a year and make $43,000. Teachers work 180, and average $70,000. I work 10 hours a day and commute for 3. They work 6, maybe 7 if they hang around to grade papers. I pay $630 a month for my family’s health benefits, they pay $0. My copay at the doctor ia $40, their’s is $20. So lets’ see, they work less than half of what I work for almost twice as much, and they have some of the worst success records of any profession. If doctors failed as many patients as teachers fail to educate kids they would lose their license to practice. But all you teachers ever do is say that California isn’t funded as much as other states and if you had more money you’d do a better job. If your doctor held you hostage like that, would you find another doctor? You’re no professional educators, just more public servants feeding off my tax dollars and complaining about not getting more and more and more for your failures. Strike and bankrupt yourselves. Selfish.

        • You are not informed if you think the average teacher in PSD makes $70,000. The earliest a teacher makes $70,000 at a regular school is after 75 units after their four year college degree AND 11 years of satisfactory teaching experience. Go to the PSD website, look under Human Resources, at the Jack O’Connell- 184 days pay scale. that is the pay scale most teachers in PSD work under.
          Also almost all teachers are paying toward their benefits, along with a co-pay and deductible.

          • Bubba, thanks for the info on how to access the PSD Human Resources. The #’s will surprise many who are posting on this site.

        • While I can understand your frustration with the information you are using, your argument is unfounded. I make only $7,000 more annually than you do at the end of a four-year college education, a fifth year of credentialing courses, $2000 in competency tests, intern training and 2 years of additional required BTSA training, and 8 years in the profession. Should all of these cuts be triggered next year, you and I will be making the same amount of money and possibly be paying the same amount of insurance. I commute to work as well, though most likely not as far as you may need to. Our financial situations are not that far off. I also pay for my medical; the district paid PPO includes a $60.00 copay and prescriptions for $25.00 and $50.00 per person. All but one plan include deductibles and every plan has a copay. I am not sure where you are pulling your numbers from, but they are not a reflection of my position.

          The problem incurred with your analogy of a teacher and a doctor does not work, as does comparing any profession to that of a teacher’s. No other profession depends on 25 to 40 other individuals and a multiple-choice test score to determine his or her personal and professional worth. When we are in the classroom we wear many hats and battle a multitude of societal issues in ways that no other profession has to deal with.

          I think that you have missed the entire point of many teachers: we are not asking for raises, we are not asking for extras; we are still facing drastic cuts next year because we are unable negotiate and ease the cuts due to the imposed contract. We offered six days and a 16,7500 dollar cap with a 50/50 split (as suggested by the neutral mediator), only to be told it wasn’t good enough and a contract was imposed that set a lower hard cap, 18 furlough days and an additional 12.2% reduction in salary. Within three weeks of that decision, everything but the cap was returned this year, while still facing a looming 9 furlough days and an additional 8.4% salary reduction next year. Now, how selfish are teachers? Unless the two sides go back to the table to fix this issue, those of us who aren’t already bankrupt will be so soon.

          • I didn’t say PSD teacher, I did say teacher. The federal government statistics list teachers as one of the highest paid professions nationwide. Now I also said that you work a 180 day year. Even at your merger salary of $50k a year you still make nearly $300 a day for just 6 hours of work. Even using the new PETA math that’s $50 an hour. If I was paid the way you are, and “disrespected” to the tune of just $50 an hour, my annual salary would be over $130k. But remember I work nearly twice the number of days you do and almost twice as long per day. And yes “Angel” I chose my career just like the very ungrateful teachers have chosen theirs, the jobs by the way that they still all have. Amazingly.

            Disrespect? I have read through posts here for the past several months and have heard only teachers disrespecting their employers. In my profession I would have already lost my job 50 times for the nonsense you people spout on about. You dare to take a job and a budget crisis that everyone with a brain knows starts with us taxpayers and ends with the state not funding the things it should fund, and blame that on the school district.

            Normally I would have said that you are all just frightened. Frightened by the changes lower wages may bring or the changes different insurance may bring, or by how those things may reflect on your family. But you have all become so mean and ugly and greedy sounding. Everyone, even your bosses are frightened by the same things you are. Even people like your superintendent who makes a very good salary is probably frightened by the recession and money problems and the lack of respect you all have been showing him. Whatever happened to “do unto other as you would have them do unto you?”

            Oh and I apologize for the ineffective analogy. I was aiming for something I hoped everyone would get but I see you point. But I disagree that your profession is unlike any other in that it relies of 40 other people and a multiple choice test to determine professional worth. I am not a teacher but my job seems pretty similar except for a couple of components. On any given day there may be up to 40 people in my battle group. As we leave the safety of our base it is my job to educate the new guys to the ways of the battlefield. I am their sergeant and responsible not just for their ability to read and write but for their ability to stay alive. I have lost a few in my career as I’m sure you have. But that’s not the point. The point is that your profession doesn’t have it bad. You have very good and stable, paying jobs, that you love to do. The problem is that you have let the naysayers and complainers in your ranks and they want drama and turmoil.
            Be happy that you have a job. Don’t abuse that right to speak your mind by letting the brain in your fanny take over. From the looks of things that’s what your Mr. Estrada seems to do a lot. The night I met him my daughter was attending a board meeting in your district. Her school and her class had really worked hard to put on their best show. We arrived a little late and attempted to get seats for my wife and children, but I was content to stand. The teachers in the audience were so rude and angry that my daughter began crying saying she didn’t want to stay. She said that she had heard a male teacher speaking with another teacher about making threats. She thought she wasn’t safe. My daughter is six. At first I was angry, but now I’m just disappointed at what I saw and what I have been reading. Your Mr. Estrada made it even worse when he began speaking to the board as if they were his subordinates. He then went on to make wild accusations and ranted and raved about his personal finances.

            I understand that you are all very proud of your accomplishments and your profession. It’s a big deal to get a college degree, I have a bachelors in physiology and a masters in nursing with an emphasis in battlefield trauma. I’m proud too, but never out loud and never boastful.

            I hope all of you find a way to work out your difference with common sense and judgement, and you do so with some recollection of the Christian norms this country was founded on. Right now none of you are acting very professional, and certainly you aren’t even considering anything close to Christian values.

        • Average 70,000?? Where?!? I need to move. I’ve been teaching here for five years and I have a Masters yet I still don’t even make 50,000. LAUSD pays their teachers about 10,000 more per year.

          • Oh and I’d like to meet a teacher that only works 6 hours a day 180 days a year. My day at work starts at 7:30 and ends at its earliest at 4:00. Most days I work through my lunch break. My summers are usually spent planning as well as my weekends. I also owe about 50,000 dollars in student loans. I understand that it was my choice to further my education but otherwise Inwould have been stuck on the pays scale. It’s a catch 21 if you ask me.

      • I am very proud to represent the Palmdale Elementary Teachers Association and humbled every time they re-elect me. If I have met you, I would love to know your real name. Interesting how you complain about personal attacks but don’t think twice about making statements about me.
        Your information is obviously influence by the powers that be. My information is public an you can contact me to discuss any points you think we should consider.
        Yes, I am angry that we are lied to time and time again. You say we didn’t suffer lay offs. Well PSD has laid off teachers due to our increased class size. We were the first district to stop the 20-1 class size, overcrowding our younger students and laying off teachers. Every time we increased class size, some one lost their job.
        Again, Devonte, I will always be proud to represent my colleagues.
        You like others are attacking the person instead of addressing the issues. Go ahead and attack me while you ignore the facts or contact me and we can clarify them.

        • Why would you allege that I am not using my “real” name? Does everyone you encounter lie? I have certainly heard so much conflicting information here, that it’s pretty obvious someone in your ranks is not being honest. I am not important enough in the great scheme of things to even know “the powers that be.” Your ego is gigantic.

          And Mr. Estrada, don’t be so boastful of being elected over and over. Sometimes folks don’t know what they have in an elected official and the elect out of ignorance.

          You have met me, and I you, but I doubt that I am imoptant enough to remember. Your antics in that one board meeting were enough to tell me all I need to know about your leadership. You are not a leader of men, you are a man who loves attention and strives to get it any way you can.

          And, just because I comment on public issues doesn’t mean I have any intention or need to meet directly with you to discuss your side. I honestly don’t care about your opinion. And I haven’t attacked anyone, just statements, and the fact that the poor behavior of your teachers reflected badly on my daughter’s experience, and left me disgusted with all of you.

          • Mr. Devonte,

            I want to respond to several of your comments directed at me. I was taught as a Christian that when you have a problem with someone, you should address it with them. I agree with you on some points that you made and disagree with others.

            To begin with, I was not at the board meeting that you and your family attended, but I do agree with you that the behavior of the adults in the situation was deplorable and, as educators, those individuals should have controlled their emotions in front of parents. The actions took away from a night that should have been a beautiful memory and the situation that occurred took away from the hard work put forth by the teachers and your daughter and her classmates. You, the other students and their families, as well the teachers who put together the performance, deserve an apology from those teachers involved in the events of that night. I am sure that you would agree that in your line of work, which I infer is military, that you have colleagues whose actions, behaviors and statements make you cringe and are offended by the public when it ridicules and is insensitive to you and those of you who have done nothing wrong, as well as finding it completely unfair and unjustified to lump you into part of that rogue group. I do not agree with everything my colleagues have done nor will do in the future and am opening myself up to criticism by saying this publically.

            When it comes to disrespectful comments “made by teachers”, can you identify those individuals? I am one of the only PSD teachers responding using my real name, because I was taught that unless I am willing to put my name to my comments, my statements are worthless. I will admit to stating the superintendent used Machiavellian tactics to get what he wanted (a hard cap) and that 80% of the board was completely irresponsible in imposing a contract instead of sending us back to negotiate. The disrespectful actions that I speak of are parking trucks in front of the District Office on a day when teachers were going to use their right to peacefully demonstrate and support the negotiation teams, taking away our teacher preparation days and locking us out of the classrooms two days before school started, and using the district-sponsored EdConnect service to call parents and speak negatively about teachers on Back-to-School Night, effectively intimidating parents, insinuating that teachers were going to create such havoc that it would be unwise to visit the schools. Union business is not to conducted during school hours and district supplies are not to be used for union business, so why the double standard when the superintendent and board president use the district website and district supplies to perpetuate their twisted version of the facts? The powers-that-be who are involved may be very nice and wonderful people in the private sector, but publically, they appear to be more concerned with politics than dedicated to education and creating a positive working environment and are making irresponsible choices when it comes to the current situation.

            In regards to my statement regarding my education and training: those statements were not meant to be pretentious nor boastful. I was merely trying to share with you what it takes to become a professional educator. Your statements, as well as many others in this section and previous articles, have diminished my profession and what I do. I take offense to comments that I just “work 6, maybe 7 hours a day if they stick around to grade papers.” I was the child of two teachers and we were rarely home before 6:00 at night (and school started at 8:00, and they were required to be on campus fifteen minutes before that) and Sundays after church were often spent preparing for the next week or more grades and reports while my brother and I sat and watched football and finished our homework. While I may be required to 6 be in my classroom for six hours a day, my contract has a clause that states that I will preform “other duties as assigned.” I have weekly staff meeting and unpaid extra duty hours to plan with my team for the week to come; IEPs held before and after school lengthen my day and any before/after school classes that I teach (often times unpaid, between two and six hours a week), plus participation in committees (also unpaid), and grading papers on a nightly basis (often close to two, if not three hours, not just one hour). On parent conference days and Back-to-School Night, such as the one that was just held on Wednesday, my work day runs more like 10 to 11 hours a day. Again, none of what I am writing is meant to sound arrogant; I am just trying to inform you as to what my job truly entails. I ask that you not diminish my profession nor reinforce the erroneous assumption that I “don’t have it bad”

          • I apologize, Mr. Devonte. I have a few more concerns with your perspective that I would like to discuss with you and I hit the reply button before I finished.

            I love my job and don’t know what I would do if I were not a teacher. That said, I hate the political aspects of the career and being toyed with, treated with disregard and disrespect by my employer, and called names by the public. I did not chose my profession to become wealthy in the material sense, but in the personal sense; every child I work with shapes me into becoming a better, more compassionate individual, just as I hope that the lessons I taught them will give them the skills they need to achieve their dreams. I, like you, chose my profession because the benefits far outweigh the drawbacks.

            You also state that you “have not attacked anyone” and I again beg to differ. You have called ALL teachers “selfish”, “ungrateful”, to “be happy that you have a job”, and told me directly to not “abuse that right to speak your mind by letting the brain in your fanny take over” as well as insinuating that I am boastful and proud, and that you are “disgusted with us all.” Those sound like rather harsh criticisms and name-calling, do they not? In related posts I have been told to “shut up and do my job” and been called “greedy” and a “whiner”. These statements are a far cry from the Christian norms that our country was founded upon.

            In regards to salary, I am astounded that the federal government purports such a high median income. Most teachers in other states make about $30,000; California is one of the better-paid states due to government funding. My partner teacher has 24 years of teaching experience and less than the figure quoted, as well as others with Master’s degrees and double-digit teaching experience while my recently-retired parents took over 20 years and many professional development courses to reach the level you cited in another local school district. Could that number be a reflection of public, private, and college/university professors or actual pay plus benefits/retirement contributions? It is an interesting point that I need to further investigate. However, if you are going to address this plight of the PSD teachers, you should use the district-published facts and figures, not the national average. In response to your statement that you do not agree with the fact that you are amazed “that teachers who get raises every time they complete college credits or move down a few spaces in seniority forget that they get raises. Any change in salary, any change that increases a person’s pay, is a raise, and teachers get them regularly”, are you aware that the superintendent of this school district also has received a raise (or “step-and-column”) for every year that he has served as leader of this district? Do you feel the same way about his salary advancements, in addition to the perks he gets in his attorney-negotiated contract?

            While you say I have a stable job, I agree that my job is more stable than, say, a retail position, but not as stable as other public servants (firefighters, police officers, doctors, nurses, paramedics, etc.). At any given point in time I could be involuntarily transferred, RIF’d and have no job anywhere, and should I have the misfortune of other teachers in this district and across the country to make my current administrator unhappy, I could be written up for numerous infractions that will be placed in my personnel file and could hurt any aspirations of career advancement – just as people in your line of work, and employees in a myriad of other fields face.

            In conclusion, I do agree with you that this mess is caused by a lack of basic respect and desire to treat one another with dignity. I do not turn a blind-eye to the fact that in previous negotiations the District spent down some of its reserves to avoid cuts, but I am not ignorant of the fact that the classified staff has taken cut after cut (including furlough days) because they do not have the power to fight back and fight for fair treatment. Christ taught us to love our neighbors as ourselves and that our actions should be a beacon of light unto the world. Yet, there is room for righteous anger and indignation; even Christ became angry when he saw his Father’s house being used as a market. A lie of omission is still a lie, the twisting of the facts to fit one’s political agenda is still the perpetuation of a lie. I do not believe I have twisted anything here, and if I am ill-informed then I would like to have the truth laid out. Yes, we The lack of integrity and personal attacks is disrespectful. The words you used, had they been directed at you and your colleagues, would they be considered Christian? Had the statements you made come from the lips of your children, would they be considered kind? Lumping me and all other teachers is unfair and un-Christ-like as well; it is the same as saying all Spanish-speakers are illegal immigrants, all teenagers are jerks, all politicians are crooked, all police officers are corrupt, all lawyers are ambulance chasers; the actions of a few should not determine the value and integrity of the whole. Let us all hope and pray that all parties involved fight for the truth and begin to rebuild the tragic situation our school district finds itself in.

    • Grow up Ms. Ynocente, your union leaders were given pleanty of chances to negotiate, but according to one of your own members, they refused to submit any dilligent offers. Stall, stall, and stall was their tactic, and when that didn’t work they all showed up and stomped their feet at board meetings like spoiled children. I personally saw the disrespect directed at the PSD board, but never saw it the oter way around except for their borad president asking your teachers to behave. If children in your classes behaved like that, you’d all storm the office demanding their expulsions.

      So, you have your salary restored, and your work year restored, and now all you have to complain about is a cap on your benefit package (which by the way everyone who works in the real world has)and the sense that you feel “disrespected.” So grow up. Stop acting like spoiled children. You work for the taxpayers, and you get paid on my dime, act like an adult and do your job, and stop hurting kids with your antics.

      • Oh and DD was not passed by the “taxpayers” to fund supplies in your classroom. Read the bond, educate yourself, then feel free to spout off. Until then you’re just wasting precious space and that good old 1st amendment by not having a clue what you’re talking about. Like I said, you all need to grow up, we the people, the taxpaying public, the one’s who approve or deny those tax dollars that fund your paychecks, are watching.

        • Mr. Halleran, you have completely ignored the looming cuts set to take place next year due to a non-negotiated, imposed contract. Why give it back only to take it all away again plus even more? You have completely disregarded anything I have written and done nothing but call me a spoiled brat. I have always paid for my benefits and as a taxpayer, I pay my own salary as well, do I not? Students do behave like those teachers have and are not suspended and expulsions are up to the board. Children learn from their elders; name-calling and creating faulty generalizations are childish and all you have done in your post. I also stated that I did not attend that meeting and that I di not condone that sort of mob mentality. I apologize for incorrectly speaking on the bond measure; I do not live in Palmdale and was merely asking for clarification based on the information presented to the teachers. You are absolutely correct; we should all investigate all sides of the argument before speaking.

          • Ms. Ynocente,

            How in the world do you pay for your own salary? Are you really that uninformed, that you believe that you are given a salary by taxpayers, and that salary has taxes deducted (usually about 18% fed and state) and that somehow that 18% reproduces to become 100% and then is redistributed back to you as a paycheck?

            God forbid you are actually teaching our children that kind of seriously faulty math. Here is how it really works Ms. Ynocente: You go to college, usually with some kind of goverment subsidy (sometimes very small)that reduces your tuition. That subsidy is in the form of a Pell Grant of some other grant and is 100% tax subsidized. You have paid none of that money yet. You take out student loans, for which you receive 100% of your tuition over your time in college (4-6 years) only to have to pay that back over 10-30 years. That 100% is also tax payer money and even though you pay it back with interest, it would be like you writing a personal check for $100,000 and then waiting 10 or more years to get it back. Following so far?

            Now, once you graduate, you find a school district that you like, interview and if successful you get to have a job. Every month you get a paycheck. That paycheck is also 100% tax payer subsidized. You don’t ever pay any part of your own salary. Your taxes, the ones that come from your paycheck are used for other govenment subsidized programs, not (an I repeat not) ever for paying you back. How rediculous is it to even suggest that you pay your own salary? I can surmise from that statement that you have about as much understanding of your employer’s budget as you do your paycheck. If that’s the case, shame on you for lecturing me. Being intentionally ignorant is no better than being intentionally disingenuous. Educators do have a responsibility to be at least a little educated.

          • You pay your own salary? Are you kidding? You pay at most 17% in taxes every month, and somehow that 17% magically multiplies and becomes 100% of your salary?

            You pay 0% of your salary. Nothing. Fact is, unless you own a home in California, and are paying tax on your property, you aren’t even making a noticable cointribution to your peer’s salary. I can’t even believe that someone as educated as you profess to be could ever make a statement so uninformed.

            What kind of logic is that exactly? You collect a salary of $50,000 a year (by your own statements) enhanced by another $15,500 for benefits. You get taxed on “part” of it and even if you are single and own nothing, probably only pay about 6-7% of “real” money back to the state. The state then uses that money to subsidize some other program, not your salary and not back to you at full value of $50,000. If that were the case, paying taxes would be the best investment strategy on the planet.

            I hope you don’t teach math.

          • To begin with, Ms. Granger, I did not state that I “pay 100% of my salary”. That statement in and off itself is ridiculous and only serves to prove that no matter what I say you will disagree with me because I am nothing but, as I can only infer from your comments, an ignorant member of the villainous group known as the Palmdale Elementaey School’s Teacher’s Association, so any point I have to make will have no value to either you are Mr. Halleran at all.

            Again, based on inference, both you and Mr. Halleran have made the argument that the taxes I pay to the federal and state government at a combined rate of 31% of my salary are miraculously NOT applied to the the government divisions that pay various jobs, including that of a public school teacher; only your taxes pay my salary. Where then, do my tax dollars and those tax dollars of the hundreds of thosands of public school teachers in California and across the nation, go to, if not to the same divisions as your tax dollars.

            Now, Mr. Halleran, let me educate you. I did not apply or ever receive any form of government assistance in the form of a Pell grant or student loans. I carried a full load of hours and worked my way through college. Do not assume anything about me; you know what they say about the word “assume”.

            In addition, as you seem to belittle my knowledge of my pay, let me let you in on another facet of my circumstances. I was a member of the classified staff and elected to stay with PERS, the PUBLIC EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT SYSTEM, rather than going into the privatized STRS. Money taken out of my check goes to Social Security, Medicare, and the retirement of all California employees drawing their retirement pensions and checks from CalPERS.

            In summation Mr. Halleran and Ms. Granger, you still have completely ignored anything I have had to say and have only berated and belittled me directly. The problem with the educational system is not the teacher; it is the society’s lack of respect for education, and de facto, the educator. Maybe if politicians stayed out of the classroom and people like the two of you stepped in to teach and do what we do you would be more reticent than to spew your uniformed rhetoric. I have not once called either of you names or questioned your intelligence or level of education, but the two of you have attacked me. Now, who needs to “grow up”?

        • In addition, Mr. Halleran, I did not state that Measure DD was meant to go to buying classroom supplies; I stated it was to go to “facilities improvements”, of which classroom supplies do not fall under. The comment made in regards to school supplies was in response to a comment made by “s. strom” in regards to his/her understanding of the budget, making claim that the reason drinking fountains aren’t repaired, books and supplies are not available is due to teachers salaries. Please read the entire comment instead of picking and choosing bits and pieces to edit my statements to fit your point of view and disregard for my position. Otherwise, as you so eloquently stated, “you’re just wasting precious space and that good ol’ 1st amendment by not having a clue what your talking about.”

          I also suggest you read the letters published on the PSD website, the fact finders report, and noticing some glaring omissions made by the District and Board President. Again, we want to be back at the table to mitigate the looming additional 8.4% salary reduction and additional nine (non-paid) furlough days.

          • Again Ms. Ynocente, those of us that do pay your salary and the salary of every single one of your peers are watching. Education at best has failed our children for decades and we are beginning to feel the generational decline that you and those like you have “engineered” into place. Our society is failing, people are behaving like they are out of their minds, and they are doing so and then making excuses for their behavior. For the sake of the society and your future, just do your job. Do it right, be smart about it, and stop the rediculous rhetoric. The educated, the intelligent, the sophisticated part of this society isn’t fooled by the nonsense. And even though we now represent a huge minority, we still command a lot of attention and power. We are watching.

          • And why is it that “education has failed our children”? What have I “engineered” into place? It was not the teacher, but the politician, who put into place the idea of a standardized test to determine the level of achievement and mastery, tests and proficiency levels that vary from state to state and legislation that demanded all children be proficient or advanced regardless of learning disabilities and various rates of learning and development. I can educate a child, teach and reteach until the concept is mastered, but once those children leave the classroom I have no control over their home lives. I do not control whether or not education is supported or valued in the home, the social media left checked or unchecked in the hands of children, or the pressure of social promotion in the educational system…all of which are issues dictated by those who are not teachers. The lack of value and respect you hold for educators and schools is a reflection of society’s complacency and taking for granted the right for every child to receive an education. It is easy to criticize when you are not willing to do the job yourself and have no idea how politicized and business-oriented education has become. I love teaching, but I hate the politics. Teaching isn’t about numbers, it is about growth and learning; don’t blame teachers for society’s lack of judgement and control, take issue with a society that glorifies reality stars and revers athletes, a society that places more value on “might makes right” and “preemptive strikes”, and individuals who sling mud and pass judgements before studying someone else’s pint of view. Teachers fight all of these battles, only to hear individuals such as yourself, who don’t appear to have any actual involvement in the classroom, criticize us and tell us we are not doing our jobs. If you are not in my classroom, have no actual knowledge of what I do, then how can you assume that I am not “doing my job”? What are you personally doing to battle the “generational decline”?

            Are all teachers great? No. Neither are all cops, firefighters, grocers, stockers, or human beings. That doesn’t mean that all teachers are failures. We all have a responsibility to our society and are all to blame for the mess we are facing, yourself included. So what is it that I am not doing, in your opinion, that has “engineered” the disintegration of societal mores and values and what are your directives as to how I should better do my job?

          • Toúche, Natalie.
            “Education at best has failed our children” ??? There you go, wanting to lay the blame on everyone else but yourself. What’s wrong with YOU? Can’t help your children with their homework? Show them where to find the information they need? Oh, I’m sorry, you work, so you don’t feel it’s your responsibility. If you feel that badly about the school system, maybe it’s “the system” that isn’t working, not the teachers.
            We’ve had 3 children pass through the PSD…with flying colors. Nothing wrong with the majority of our teachers…only the parenting, or, lack of it. We need more involved mothers and fathers or guardians.
            I feel sorry for teachers dealing with, much less trying to TEACH, the children of dysfunctional and broken families all day long.
            I dare who hasn’t taught to try it. HAH! Talk about adults acting inappropriately…I would pay to watch that!

    • Mr. Estrada, if this kind of behavior, and the personal nature of the public attacks on the superintendent and boats, are your idea of using pressure in negotiations, then you are a terrorist, and our children are the hostages. It leaves me feeling no confidence in Union leadership locally. As am almost lifelong Union member, I’m disgusted by what I see.

      • This name calling is doing nothing to solve a problem and people need to be careful with the use of the word terrorist. No one is committing any acts of terrorism and no children are being held hostage. Let’s move to constructive ideas instead of name calling.

        • Histroy Buff,

          Thank you so much for your input. It is nice to see someone else thinks that name-calling an utter waste of time. What suggestions would you have? Emotions are running so high on both sides, an outside perspective would be greatly appreciated. Would you consider addressing the board?

          • I think that from reading this blog, it is obvious that the employees have no trust in the current school board or administration. In order to move forward, there needs to be trust in the budget numbers given and the need for salary and benefits changes before the discussions are going to be able to move in a positive direction. After so many times that the district has “found money”, there is no trust in the numbers. Without that trust, all the two sides do is side swipe because if you can’t trust the numbers, you can’t come to a legitimate compromise that people view as fair. If I thought it would do any good, I would address the board. I am afraid we will have to wait and see what happens in the school board elections.

      • I have not made any personal attacks on board members or Mr. Gallizzi. My lively hood and that of my colleagues are what I am defending. I have not made any personal attacks about anyone’s personal life. It is their professional integrity and questionably accounting practices that need to be addressed.
        Your choice of words “terrorist” and “hostage” I guess are ok to use against a teacher.
        What you see are labor actions which are the only tools we have left when we are unilaterally imposed.
        We don’t like what is going on either but all of this could have been avoided if the numbers were accurate since December.

        • Lies, lies and more lies. PETA’s Facebook page is full of nothing but personal attacks, and who controls that Facebook page Mr. Estrada? Free speech is one thing, but calling personal attacks a “labor action” is total BS. And, at this point you probably want to get rid of your school board because you and your fist thumpers likely have burned all your bridges with them.

          So just keep telling lies Mr. Estrada, eventually everyone who behaves badly gets caught. You’ve just been lucky so far that none of your followers have taken the time to remember how horrible Ms. Smith was as a superintendent. Remember the hidden cameras disguised as smoke detectors in the female teachers classrooms? That was Ms. Smith. Remember the layoffs because of the huge debt she created? Smith again. She has so many skeletons in her closet she is her own haunted house.

          You should also be happy nobody has taken the time to google your name…

          • Good one Tammy, a lot of us remember Mr. Estrada’s not so positive news headlines, what else is he hiding?

  7. I heard that Gallizi put up his house for sale and Corrales is looking for a new job. Feel the pressure much? Good on you PSD teachers!

  9. There may not be a ‘magic bullet’ next year if you read the news article. Therefore, you need a new Board of Trustees who will handle the future. Sandi and Carol are nice people, but sometimes that isn’t enough. We cannot face the future with the SAME old people in office. Jim Ledford, Sandi, and Carol have served us well. Let us move on with the future with new people in positions of responsibility and stop the bickering between the union and management. God Bless all.

    • These PETA people have the best benefits in the AV bar none, yet they want even more. That does not wash with the taxpayers and they know it.

      • I think you are the one that needs the reality check. What would you say and do without an increase in salary for 7 years.

        • You are aware that Psd is the 4th largest district in the state, and managed to get through the recession without laying off any teachers? They managed to do that while dealing with massive budget cuts, which is remarkable. Maybe you should look at the belt tightening that happened in the districts of comparable size, where people not only had their salary cut, but lost jobs as well.
          In the real world, most people are grateful if they stayed employed these last 5 or 6 years, but the bottom line is that when schools see their budgets cut, the focus needs to be on preserving student resources, not raises for teachers.

          • If you go to the CDE website, you will see that PSD is not even in the top 25 in size in CA. PSD may be 4th among ELEMENTARY school districts. Teachers did not lose their jobs during the last six years because teachers changed their benefits to save the district money and received no raise since 2007.

        • I spent 37 years as a teacher, and had a salary increase every three years. That increase was written into my contract, and everyone else got them too. Every now and then the state would put extra money into education and we’d all get state raises as well. But that didn’t happen very often. Just the nature of the profession. But I was sure happy when that step raise came every through. People complaining they don’t get raises when the really do sounds a little dishonest to me. And ya’ll should be happy you have benefits, I paid for mine for evry one of my 37 years.

    • Clean the slate and watch for breaking news. Gallizzi will have to come clean with the mismanagement, and then hopefully step down. I’m confident that several employees who have been a part of this disaster will go as well.

    • The article is only Gallizzi & Corrales version. It would appear that you may be attending their lunches and eating their BS.

  10. @Angel you obviously know the exact shenanigans of PSD and their mismanagement. It will be the voting population that has the power to remove at least 3 of these clowns. So, my suggestion is to find out how to get the info to all the residents in 93550 & 93551 for the Nov.5th election. Gallizzi probably already has a game plan which hopefully is submitting his resignation…the man has burned to many bridges and he knows it! As for Green…can you say PSD? Not worth your time…stop taking the bait!

  11. You heard of the expression LOL? This means laughing out loud to the comments made by Gallizzi & Corrales, lol to apply to them should be LIAR OH LIARS

  12. The Palmdale Elementary Teachers Association predicted this outcome. We knew the district was hiding money or manipulating to seem like the deficit was bigger than it was. We do not trust the accounting or projection practices of the current administration. During this negotiating cycle they “found” $8 million. After imposing these unnecessary cuts they find more money. This is evidence of the lack of integrity incumbents have. “They knew this all along” yet they cut out two teacher preparation days unnecessarily. “They knew this all along” yet our current salaries reflect the cuts. “They knew this all along” yet they cut our benefits again using lies. Although the furlough days may have been restored, August 8th and 9th are long gone and our teachers and community began the school year under stress and uncertainty due to the boards irresponsible actions.
    In short, we told you they were lying.

    • I agree with you brother!! I must confess, at first I was a little skeptical because I thought the teachers were being whiny. But after loosely watching this thing play out, something else is afoot. The district is shady and the teachers and students are paying the price! Having no children in the school system, I always glaze over the school district board categories on my ballot. But I will be paying attention and voting accordingly this year.

    • Why doesn’t PETA pay for a page in the newspapers and tell the public, what is really the truth point by point? The article in the AV Press was self serving for the school district. Do not let the public believe what was in today’s article in the AV Press. That will cause damage to PETA’s cause if they let it go.

      • They won’t pay for a page in the paper because that would just make matters even worse. Their leadership has spent a lot of time weaving disinformation for the public. Putting it out there for all to see would open them up to a lot of scrutiny, and the public would call BS when they see it. Ask yourself why the union is wasting so much time doing nothing positive for its teachers. Why haven’t they apologized for their outlandish behavior, promised to behave, and started to negotiate for things that matter? Out of touch is what you are Mr. Angel.

    • This new information is a result of a reality of budget, that Hugo Estrada (the head of the teachers association) would rather use to continue the misinformation (that seems to be his mode of operation) rather than close the deal with the sitting board members. Why should the Palmdale taxpayers continue to be held hostage by a group that enjoys the best benefit package in the Antelope Valley. They have run out of reasons to be against the incumbents that have held the line against and thus protected our position in favor of the taxpayers that have said enough is enough.

      • You seem to forget that the reason that benefit package is because they gave up raises for seven years to have them. It was not because they were given freely by the Board. They gave up more than anyone else in order to have them. You have misinformation.

        • The best benefit package in the entire AV is the Palmdale school district teachers.

          • Have you seen Gallizzi’s salary and benefit package? It would want make you love him more….

        • Raises? In this economy? Who gets raises without first reducing the labor force? Seven years of raises? Has there been sustainable money for seven years? Who does this kind of faulty math? I hope to God you are not a teacher responsible for educating our children.

    • Best benefit package in the Antelope Valley for teachers is the Palmdale school district.

    • We the people are starting to see this. Keep being factual. Vote for Smith, Carrillo & Ricks this November and help the District (students, parents community and all employees) recouped their faith, trust and morale!

      • Parents just want the teachers to do their job. Quit holding them hostage along with the kids.

      • Are you kidding me? vote for Smith? Is the PETA memory that bad? A PSD under Smith these last few years would have balanced the Budget by firing teachers. . The the 85 she got rid of during her tenure as superintendent. A District run by these 3 would be bankrupt in no time.
        PETA apparently negotiates like terrorists, taking b hostages, making threats, taking it as personal as possible. Voters aren’t going to react well to that.

        • You do not know what you are talking about. Instead of throwing out accusations back that up with facts. Teachers never went into fact finding under Smith. Money did not reappear time and time again, after the fact. I looked into what Smith made and Gallizzi make double, plus gets his Medicare paid in full by us taxpayers and his pension that should be his responsibility not ours.

          The slate that PETA has running in November is what is going to save Palmdale School District. Corrales, Stanford and Ferrin will be gone and so will Gallizzi. Teachers, classified staff and parents will help restore PSD for their students and community while feeling respected by their employer.

          People are working hard to make this a reality. Stay strong, unite and make your goal a reality.

          • Strom & Green are baiters…nothing more….not worth responding to. The public and anyone involved know the
            truth/facts including Gallizzi and his posse. It’s just a matter of time…patience is a virtue! STAY UNITED!!

          • I’m a baiter because I don’t walk in lock step with the union that has the best benefit package in the AV, yet asks for even more?

            I’m a baiter because I understand how budgets work, and how schools are funded, so I’m not surprised when districts end up with more money than they originally budgeted for. Your union knows how it happens too, but they sure weaponize it and make it sound like something its not. Wake up people, the money comes from the STATE, and the district can’t count certain funds in the budget until they actually HAVE it to count.

            Anyone not walking in lock step with PETA is “bad”, right? Bullying, personal attacks, publishing home addresses, and otherwise acting like thugs is just part of the new PETA negotiating platform.

            So, what happens if your candidates all lose? How, with how badly thyis situation has blown up, and how personal PETA has made it, how do you negotiate then? And why would they want to negotiate?
            PETA doesn’t exactly have a history of being able to elect candidates in Palmdale….

      • We The People…are watching you the teachers fail at your jobs for decades. We took our eyes off you for a while, but we the people are back, and we the people pay your salary. Choose wisely what you say, else you sound ignorant.

    • You make it sound like you negotiators didn’t pick those furlough days. Well they did. Stop telling lies Mr. Estrada. Liars always get caught.

      • You are right, the truth always comes to light. However, it is my understanding that the furlough days WERE CHOSEN by the District. As we are currently working under an imposed contract, one that was the District’s “last, best offer”, those days were listed in the District’s proposal; PETA negotiators and their proposals were completely ignored in regards to our current situation. If I am incorrect, please direct me to your sources so that I may be more informed.

        As we are speaking of the lack of honesty, can you shed any light on when we will be going back to the table? According to a joint communique from our board president and the superintendent, the “District has informed PETA that it is willing to continue negotiations.” Yet, we have no date as of the end of school on Friday afternoon.

        • I wouldn’t have any idea when you and your district are going to being negotiating. I would bet that all of the misinformation and rhetoric being sullied about by your union isn’t helping motivate the process.

          From what I have read, and from what some of your fellow teachers have said is that your union did nothing to negotiate on your behalf All they did was create a lot of anger and resentment among your own ranks and among their bosses. I have seen the “final offer” as well as the “trigger” language, and it looks from my perspective that your bosses did a better job of negotiating for you than your union did.

          As for furlough days, my teacher friends say that of those two days you usually get at most two afternoon’s to prep your classrooms. The rest of the time is spent in training that most of you complain about anyway. So you lost out on two days of training you don’t usually want, but that you seem to be getting paid back for. As for prepping your rooms, professionals understand that the word “professional” means sometimes working without direct compensation. A professional knows that he or she gets pais for their service based upon a salary. Refusing to prep your rooms for our children seemed desperate and childinsh.

          Maybe you should ask one of your “bosses” that you love to insult how your furlough days came about, then ask your union. The truth is out there.

          • The District is just as culpable of twisting the truth as you claim PETA to be. What misinformation has PETA given out, Ms. Granger? The District has completely forgotten to share with the public the 8.4% salary reduction and additional nine furlough days for next year. It appears that the District is also using district materials such as EdConnect to further their version of the facts. Like I stated earlier, I don’t agree with everything that has been done on either side, but less so with an impose contract based on magically-appearing funding after claiming an inability to pay and a complete disregard for the suggestions made by the neutral fact finder.

            You have a knack for making assumptions and directing them at me. What have I personally said that insults my “bosses”. That they twist information and lie by omission, that they are fiscally irresponsible to return within 21 days what they claimed did not exist, while later admitting publicly that they knew the money was always on its way? The truth hurts, but a hurtful truth is not synonymous with an insult. You also assume that I never take work home, plan before and after school, and worked the week following the end of the last school year to pack, move, unpack and set up my own room on my own time (which, in case you didn’t understand, I did do all of those things). Maybe your friends who are teachers complain about the start up days, but I and my colleagues at my site do not and we use iur time constructively. The overgeneralizations rampant in your comment are insulting, and do not reflect my experiences. The fact is we were locked out of our sites – teachers, administrators, secretaries, custodians, and aides – only to be told the following week, “oops, sorry, we got the ‘unexpected money that we were expecting'”. Even if teachers wanted to be there, they couldn’t.

            Should I sound arrogant or self-righteous to you, so be it. It is not my intention, but I feel a great sense of indignation when people who have “friends who are teachers” but never stepped a foot into the classroom except as a student diminish what I do, hope that I “don’t teach math”, and provide opinions with no facts to back them up (except for what their “friends have told them”). Realize that when you say “you”, Ms. Granger in response to something I have written, it appears to be directed at me personally and has not been interpreted as the collective “you”. I respond directly to you, Ms. Granger, as well as Mr. Halleran, Devonte, and the individuals who hide behind made up names, based on my knowledge of the facts. I am not a union lap-dog, whether any of you that I have addressed choose to believe me or not. I have not once called any of you names or made generalized, unfounded statements, but all of you have attacked me, called me names, and twisted my words to berate me and spout rhetoric that is based on a superficial glance and half-told truths. What does it matter to any of you what happens to me or my colleagues? I would walk a mile in your shoes before trying to tell you about your lives and sources of income; unfortunately, none if you are willing to do the same. You, and I say that collectively, have chosen to ignore the facts and gleefully take me to task when you appear to have no proverbial “dog in the fight.” I understand I have opened myself up to criticism from colleagues and the public alike to the statements I have made and the arguments I have used; I am not playing the victim. I only ask that you place yourself in my position and then consider the circumstances before you, collectively, make statements telling me how to do my job and what kind of educator I am.

  13. I think the 2 named persons in the article began to feel the burn…
    I commend the accomplishment, but at the end of the day, it just means that things went back to the way they were and SHOULD always have been.
    Cutting education is such an uneducated form of budgeting. It’s a deliberate dumbing down of our future generations. Something I don’t think Gallizzi and Corrales used as a basis of this restoration. I think it was more of a save face tactic than genuine concern.

    • At the end if the day, it is worse because the teachers benefits have been severely cut. When spend so much money on fact finding if the school district was not going to follow the recommendations of the fact finder, if the District was going to impose on the teachers worse cuts this year and next for the teachers.? It appears to me that someone or the powers that be wanted to hit teachers over the head for sticking up for themselves, so they gave them a much lower benefit cap then the arbitrator even recommended. For Gallizzi and the Board members to do that was a slap in their face. How disrespectful, these hard working educators are nit ignorant of stupid.

      Does anyone know about unions? If the District went into fact finding knowing that there was truly money, can’t the teachers/union file an unfair?
      This smells like the school district did not negotiate truthfully or in good faith.

      Money has be “found” after the fact…hum…how convenient. Within the last couple of months over 10 Million dollars has been found. Someone or more than a couple of someone’s need to loose their job, because they are incompetent and obviously it continues to occur. The Board should be extremely embarrassed. Then again the buck stops with the superintendent and the Board.

        • You are the one who needs the reality check. You know nothing. These people have given up much to have what they deserve over the years. They have bargained in good faith, they have made concessions also over the years to help the District save money, but the District has continually given false budget information without restoring what they have given up in benefits based on inadequate information. When they should have restored to them what they gave up based on the District actually finding time and time again monies supposedly lost. You cannot continue to say “oops we found money again, but we are not going to give back what you gave us based on the wrong information we gave you”. When money is found it needs to be negotiated as to how that money goes back, not arbitrarily decide where and how it will go back without renegotiating it. That is the way it works. If so much money has been found, then there are individuals at the school district who are not doing their jobs correctly. There is a lot of incompetence, that needs to be corrected with those individuals losing their jobs. And hire individuals who are competent in doing the job correctly. Ultimately the superintendent and board are responsible for those blunders. No one believes the officialsm of the PSD anymore because this has occurred continually. Enough is enough. Trust has been lost.

          It is time for a change of the guards come November!

    • Reality is the State produced more money and that was passed on to the teachers as promised. The voters know this so why don”t you.

      • If you know where it is, please let us know. I personally would like to share your information with all teachers.

      • Because the voters don’t have access to the PSD’s budgeting ledgers nor the access to a recently uncovered 10 million. Yes, the voters are aware of the school funding passed on Jerry Brown’s bill but that does not give any of the voters direct access to how a given school district manages the allotted funds. Seems like you’re the cover up.

  14. Reduce taxpayer dollars on EBT and Section 8 allowing more teachers to educate kids not to be future Welfare recipients.Not the other way around. Simple.

    • It is not over yet. There are still benefit issues that need to be brought back to the table. Gallizzi got the cap he wanted. Teachers will still have to pay thousands of dollars more a year. They are still losing. Plus next year’s pay cuts are still there based on what I have read. Teachers need to continue moving forward.

        • Again because instead of taking raises, they preferred to keep these benefits and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. They did not get raises in seven years in order to keep the good benefits for their families. The employees have continually done there part, while later realizing that all of the correct dollar amounts were not given.

          There was no need to hire so much extra staff at the District office; no need to incur in expenses to change the logo of the District, do a $500,000 remolding of the Board Room, no need for taxpayers to have to pay Gallizzis portion of his Medicare and his portion of his pension, while he has had his salary increase addendum after addendum. No need to pay deputies to be around every event he feels intimidated with, no Ned to pay $900/he for an attorney to sit in on negotiations for 3 days = $77750. Some seek the through the public records act, total legal fees spent with the same firm who sat in negotiations sin Gallizzis been superintendent. You will be astonished to find out the total is in the millions. Have the Board give up their benefits, not their pathetic $29. Have them give up their medical $15550 each…do the math.

          No more putting PSD’s problems on the employees, parents and students backs.

          Get these people out in November. Corrales, Stanford and Jeff Ferrin. Hopefully Gallizzi will fall soon right after the election.

          • You keep saying the parents and kids are with you,they are not. Demand better leadership and that will restore faith with the voters.Getting the union puppets elected to do your bidding will only bankrupt the district and the voters know it. Wake up!

          • Not even all the teachers are “with” PETA, but they can’t speak out because PETA has created such a hostile work environment for anyone that questions their tactics. Administration definitely isn’t with them either. Students and parents are going to be subject to classroom politics from teachers who should be teaching during school hours. . That won’t go over well.

          • Again, where are you getting this information? PETA is the only one creating a hostile work environment? The yo-yo, string-pulling of budgets has nothing to do with it? Starting the year locked out for two days has nothing to do with it? The lack of respect given to teachers has nothing to do with it but increased expectations has? Regardless of the situation, my loyalty lies to my profession, my students and their families. You may have an understanding of budgets, but you certainly do not have an understanding of teachers.