Petition Drives Explained to Building ARs

At the monthly AR meetings for building reps in Farmington on Monday and Tuesday, Vik Arnold explained the Utahns for Ethical Government initiative drive. Vik is a former DEA President and Uniserv Director as well as the former Director of Government Relations for the UEA. Fair Boundaries spokesman Randy Miller also explained their initiative to the reps. Both Vik and Randy expressed that they believe the initiatives are vital to the future and true representative government in Utah.

Your DEA Executive Board supports both the Government Ethics Reform and the Fair Boundaries initiatives. Both groups are currently seeking signatures. DEA building reps will be bringing petitions back to the schools this week for staff members to sign. Please remember to conduct these drives outside of contract times - at lunch and before and after school. You can also contact DEA to obtain packets to circulate in your communities and to volunteer to help gather signatures at community events, grocery stores, etc.

For more information you can visit these web sites.

http://www.utahnsforethicalgovernment.org/

http://www.fairboundaries.org/

Stuart Wins Grand Prize at UEA Convention

Linda (Tommy) Stuart was the winner of the Bose Wave music system during the UEA Convention. DEA President Susan Firmage presented her with the prize during the Representative Council Meeting on Monday, October 12.

Funding for Instructional Leaders and 6.4 Hours of Prep Time

We have worked out the details for two great programs DEA has negotiated for the benefit of teachers.

Principals will be receiving information today regarding the money for Instructional Leaders set aside during negotiations last spring. The JSSC will need to meet to determine how the money will be used in each school. Watch for information from your Principal, JSSC Chair or DEA Association Rep. Since the Quality Teaching Block Grant was not funded by the legislature, this benefit will need to be revisited during negotiations next spring.

Principals will also be contacting teachers regarding the payroll procedures for reporting the 6.4 hours of teacher prep time outside of contract hours. This is an ongoing provision in our negotiated agreement. Those hours must be worked before the end of October and will be reported in November for payroll. Probably most of you have already gone well beyond that number of hours beyond contract time.

Dee Burningham Receives UEA Honor Roll Award

During the "Superstars in Education" awards banquet last Thursday, former DEA Executive Director Dee Burningham was awarded the UEA Honor Roll award by Mark Mickelsen, UEA Executive Director. Dee has committed his professional and personal life to supporting public schools and teachers. Following his work as Executive Director of the DEA, he worked as Director of Government Relations at UEA. Since retiring he has continued to be involved in politics. His current interest is the Utahns for Ethical Government petition initiative which he is helping to promote throughout the state.

Meet Executive Board Member Yvonne Speckman

"I am in my 14th year teaching for Davis School District. I teach a 5/6 split class at Layton Elementary. I have been an association member since college and feel strongly that being a member of our professional organization is one of the best things that a teacher can do when they enter this profession. I wanted to be more involved in the association because I see how important it is to be involved. I have valued my time on the executive board and look forward to serving all members of the association in the future."


Yvonne represents the central area of the district. Her contact schools are Adams Elementary, Layton Elementary, Lincoln Elementary, Mountain View Elementary, North Layton Junior High, Northridge High, and South Weber Elementary.

You can email Yvonne at yspeckman@dsdmail.net

This Week at DEA

Last week was an exciting week at the UEA Convention. This week members head back to classrooms and schools with renewed energy and commitment to the education of the young people of Utah. We hope your fall break was refreshing and productive.

DEA Officers, Board Members and Uniserv Directors are attending as many district bond meetings as possible. If you have not attended a meeting at your school, listen for details or check the school district web site to find more information about the upcoming bond election. In addition, there are meetings this week for Smaller Learning Communities, Board of Education, District Insurance Committee and District Leadership that Susan, Don, Joel and Pat will be attending along with a variety of other political and planning meetings. Watch this blog for information as the week progresses.

Convention Countdown!

3 Days to the UEA Convention!

This year’s convention offers something for everyone.

Of personal and professional interest: There are sessions on identity theft, managing personal finances, Praxis preparation, trends and the future of education in Utah, how the UEA is transforming itself in order to better advocate for our members and for public education and a variety of exhibitors’ displays and booths. In addition, there are keynote sessions on the future of public education and on effectively managing your classroom.

Topics specifically for secondary educators: Sessions on writing in subject areas and how to evaluate writing, special education interventions, decoding strategies for building literacy, using digital stories, technology tools, classroom management, elements of effective instruction, interventions for English language learners, using social networking sites, a variety of teacher resources for secondary, and tips and shortcuts for secondary educators.

Topics specifically for elementary educators: Tips and shortcuts, classroom management, Digital resources and other technology, writing strategies, physical education activities for winter, science, math, social studies, music and the arts in the elementary grades, behavior and classroom management.

See you there!

Kim Campbell
UEA President