Steve Drott of Woods Cross High School is a winner of the "Excellence in Teaching Award" and will be honored at the "Superstars in Education" Awards Celebration on October 14. Each winner receives $1,000 courtesy of Bill and Pat Child.
There is no cost to attend the Superstars Celebration this year, so everyone is invited to attend the awards celebration at 4:30 p.m. (reception begins at 4 p.m.), at the South Towne Exposition Center, Hall 4.
Here is an excerpt from the nomination submitted by a fellow teacher.
Steve Drott brings science to life, literally, for his students, many of whom have never before seen the living creatures swimming around them. Kids who have hated academic classes, seen no use for science, or appeared to have no interest in learning, thrive when they enter "Otis's Fish Shack," as the sign on his classroom door reads. Lectures are fascinating, assignments are accessible, and attendance is high. Steve's enthusiasm for his subject and his acceptance of his students, no matter their skill levels, make him one of Woods Cross High School's most beloved teachers.
So, imagine the shock and distress that spread through his students, his volleyball and softball players, and the faculty when it was discovered that Steve had multiple myeloma, a cancer that infects the bone marrow. In the two years since his diagnosis, Steve has been in several comas, has had his kidneys shut down, and has missed weeks of school. His immune system is compromised; he has had to keep a perimeter around himself to prevent students from passing on their colds and flu, and he has had hand sanitizers installed for students to use when entering his room. He goes for chemotherapy every Wednesday, but has learned to manage the ups and downs that are part of the treatment, as he hopes for a remission that so far has not come.
Yet, if he can move, Steve is at school. Steve is smiling. Steve is a living testament to looking for the positive. Steve goes on. He talks openly to his students about what he is going through, and finds teaching moments based on his own current experiences, whatever they might be. He is a hero and a role model at a time when kids need heroes and role models.
Friday, October 1, 2010
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Update on Federal Money
The DEA and District negotiations teams are meeting today to explore options regarding the recent funding from the federal government. There is still some concern that the legislature is not acting quickly enough to send the money through to the school districts. Members are encouraged to contact legislators to ask that a special session be scheduled as soon as possible to allow districts to start appropriating the money to schools and classrooms.
Please click this link to access contact information and a sample letter.
Please click this link to access contact information and a sample letter.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Utah Approved for Federal Jobs Bill Money
Follow this link to read an article posted on the SL Tribune's web page just after noon today.
Read the Article
Read the Article
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Free Magazines from NEA Member Benefits
To thank you for being an NEA member, you can sign up for a free magazine subscription. Click here to be directed to the on-line sign up page.
Friday, September 3, 2010
UEA Urges State Leaders to Use Federal Education Money ASAP
Funds will immediately help students and the economy
Jordan School District cut nearly 200 education support jobs, including many special education aides who serve students with special needs.
Canyons and Millard School Districts eliminated five days of student instruction from their school calendars.
Davis School District increased its class sizes, already among the nation's largest, by an average of one student per class.
These are just of few of the budget cuts local school boards could reverse with $101 million provided by the Education Jobs Fund of 2010 recently passed by Congress. But a letter sent to school districts from Utah legislative leaders suggests this federal funding should be delayed until the Utah State Legislature has a chance to deliberate.
"The children of a recession deserve the same educational opportunities as the children of prosperity," said UEA President Sharon Gallagher-Fishbaugh. "Each day we delay getting this money into our classrooms is a day lost in a child's education."
"The reality is we need this money now...for our students and for our economy. I am disappointed to hear some state leaders suggest we delay getting this money to the schools where it is so desperately needed. This funding will go to urban and rural school districts and help stimulate Utah's economy."
Of the $26 billion included in the Education Jobs Fund of 2010 passed by Congress, about $101 million will come to Utah. It has been estimated that 150,000 education jobs nationwide - more than 1,700 in Utah - can be saved as a result of this bill. Governors wishing to apply for the funds have a September 9, 2010 deadline, but the U.S. Department of Education is encouraging them to be prompt so monies can be used to get people back to work as soon as possible.
"We encourage the legislature to avoid micromanagement and allow local school boards to use the education jobs funds as Congress intended," said Gallagher-Fishbaugh. Under the provisions of the bill, funds can be used to recall teachers and other building-level employees, reinstate lost instructional days or other days lost to funding cuts, and to maintain step increases on employee salary schedules.
Jordan School District cut nearly 200 education support jobs, including many special education aides who serve students with special needs.
Canyons and Millard School Districts eliminated five days of student instruction from their school calendars.
Davis School District increased its class sizes, already among the nation's largest, by an average of one student per class.
These are just of few of the budget cuts local school boards could reverse with $101 million provided by the Education Jobs Fund of 2010 recently passed by Congress. But a letter sent to school districts from Utah legislative leaders suggests this federal funding should be delayed until the Utah State Legislature has a chance to deliberate.
"The children of a recession deserve the same educational opportunities as the children of prosperity," said UEA President Sharon Gallagher-Fishbaugh. "Each day we delay getting this money into our classrooms is a day lost in a child's education."
"The reality is we need this money now...for our students and for our economy. I am disappointed to hear some state leaders suggest we delay getting this money to the schools where it is so desperately needed. This funding will go to urban and rural school districts and help stimulate Utah's economy."
Of the $26 billion included in the Education Jobs Fund of 2010 passed by Congress, about $101 million will come to Utah. It has been estimated that 150,000 education jobs nationwide - more than 1,700 in Utah - can be saved as a result of this bill. Governors wishing to apply for the funds have a September 9, 2010 deadline, but the U.S. Department of Education is encouraging them to be prompt so monies can be used to get people back to work as soon as possible.
"We encourage the legislature to avoid micromanagement and allow local school boards to use the education jobs funds as Congress intended," said Gallagher-Fishbaugh. Under the provisions of the bill, funds can be used to recall teachers and other building-level employees, reinstate lost instructional days or other days lost to funding cuts, and to maintain step increases on employee salary schedules.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Class Size Matters
The following is an op-ed piece which was sent to the newspaper agencies.
August 25, 2010
Before anyone gets too excited with former Florida Governor Jeb Bush's education reform plans, it would be wise to do some research.
You will hear the argument that education needs to be run like a business. Mr. Bush, himself, will state this very thing. I am continually amazed that conversations surrounding our children turn into nothing more than a numbers game.
There is a false analogy between education and business. You cannot fix education by applying the principles of business, organization, management, law, and marketing or by developing a data-collection system to incentivize the workforce-principals, teachers, and students-with rewards and sanctions.
Diane Ravitch, former assistant secretary of education under former President George H.W. Bush, once espoused the very tenets of Governor Bush's education reform ideas. She writes, "I began seeing like a state, looking at schools and teachers and students from an altitude of 20,000 feet and seeing them as objects to be moved around by big ideas and great plans."
Through her extensive research on the ideas of choice and accountability, she has concluded that curriculum and instruction are far more important. She states that decisions about schools should be left up to the educators, not politicians or businessmen.
As far as grading schools is concerned, Dr. Ravitch points out, "It is harmful to stigmatize a complex institution with a letter grade, just as it would be ridiculous to send a child home with a report card that contained only a single letter grade to summarize her performance in all her various courses and programs."
Class size doesn't matter! Tell that to Bonnie, a teacher in Alpine who has 42 fourth graders, or Cathy, a sixth-grade teacher in Salt Lake with 38 students. Teaching 28 second graders with a literacy range of non-English speaking to sixth grade reading ability is not only difficult but extremely complex. Class size does matter! Parents know it. Teachers know it.
Parents also know that a quality education consists of more than standardized tests. The citizens of Utah want their children to have a broad, rich curriculum which prepares them for the 21st Century workforce. After all, the children of today will be taking care of those of us who are making critical education decisions for future generations.
Sharon Gallagher-Fishbaugh
M.A., N.B.C.T
UEA President
August 25, 2010
Before anyone gets too excited with former Florida Governor Jeb Bush's education reform plans, it would be wise to do some research.
You will hear the argument that education needs to be run like a business. Mr. Bush, himself, will state this very thing. I am continually amazed that conversations surrounding our children turn into nothing more than a numbers game.
There is a false analogy between education and business. You cannot fix education by applying the principles of business, organization, management, law, and marketing or by developing a data-collection system to incentivize the workforce-principals, teachers, and students-with rewards and sanctions.
Diane Ravitch, former assistant secretary of education under former President George H.W. Bush, once espoused the very tenets of Governor Bush's education reform ideas. She writes, "I began seeing like a state, looking at schools and teachers and students from an altitude of 20,000 feet and seeing them as objects to be moved around by big ideas and great plans."
Through her extensive research on the ideas of choice and accountability, she has concluded that curriculum and instruction are far more important. She states that decisions about schools should be left up to the educators, not politicians or businessmen.
As far as grading schools is concerned, Dr. Ravitch points out, "It is harmful to stigmatize a complex institution with a letter grade, just as it would be ridiculous to send a child home with a report card that contained only a single letter grade to summarize her performance in all her various courses and programs."
Class size doesn't matter! Tell that to Bonnie, a teacher in Alpine who has 42 fourth graders, or Cathy, a sixth-grade teacher in Salt Lake with 38 students. Teaching 28 second graders with a literacy range of non-English speaking to sixth grade reading ability is not only difficult but extremely complex. Class size does matter! Parents know it. Teachers know it.
Parents also know that a quality education consists of more than standardized tests. The citizens of Utah want their children to have a broad, rich curriculum which prepares them for the 21st Century workforce. After all, the children of today will be taking care of those of us who are making critical education decisions for future generations.
Sharon Gallagher-Fishbaugh
M.A., N.B.C.T
UEA President
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