For the past couple years, you can find my family on most Friday nights at Macaroni Grill for Happy Hour. This tradition started one night when the families from my daughter’s soccer team were looking for a place to go for dinner after a Friday night practice, because no one felt like going home to cook dinner. We all landed at, what all the kids now lovingly call, Mac and Cheese Grill.

This tradition is something her soccer team has continued all these Friday’s later. It’s where we continue to meet with families who no longer play on her soccer team and get to know new families who join each year.

This past weekend was no exception.

Because I’m a teacher, as are several other parents, the conversation often turns to education. This weekend turned to teacher salary and the raises districts all over Orange County are negotiating for teachers this year.

From our hour-long conversation, one comment from a parent stuck with me. He was arguing the merits of teacher raises and amid his many cogent arguments mentioned, “We need to pay well so we can get good teachers.”

This idea has been percolating now for a few days. It’s a ubiquitous line bantered about any time teacher salary is discussed. I began to wonder this weekend -- what do we mean by “good” and is this argument true?

Let’s start with “good.” What do we mean by a “good” teacher? Sure, teachers have a set of teaching standards by which they are evaluated, the CSTP (California Standards for the Teaching Profession). But how do these standards translate to the day-in and day-out in the classroom?

In addition to the standards, I might argue a “good” teacher must, first-and-foremost, love kids. More money doesn’t change this. I might also add a “good” teacher must love their content. More money doesn’t change this, either. From an administrative perspective, a “good” teacher might mean the teacher is coachable. Does more money change or influence this? I think not.

I challenge you to think about what you think makes for a “good” teacher and ask yourself if more money changes any of those key traits.

During this Friday night’s discussion, we tried to equate teaching and teacher salaries to what I call the “real world.” It felt like an exercise in futility. Industry is driven by results -- you perform, get performance reviews, and earn performance increases, or you get fired.  Unfortunately, education isn’t driven by results; both “good” and bad teachers are contractually paid the same. Should ALL teachers be rewarded with an 8 or 10 percent pay increase this year -- just because?

Let’s go back to my friend’s claim that “We need to pay well so we can get good teachers.” I’m going to disagree. Don’t get me wrong. I’m a teacher and would love a big raise, but I think his claim is a fallacy.

I argue that teachers teach because they are called to it. Most teachers are teachers because it’s their passion, because to become a teacher isn’t easy. It’s not a profession that you can just fall into. To earn a credential requires lots of jumping through hoops; it’s an intentional decision. And we don’t have a teacher shortage in California, so many young people are already deciding to teach. Why is this? Could it be that teaching offers something no other career can? Something more than money can buy? How about benefits. Job security. Holiday breaks. Step raises year-over-year regardless performance. Stipends for work above and beyond the contract day. A quality of life that contractually requires a teacher to work only 185 out of 365 days of every year.

Again, don’t get me wrong. I love teachers, and a “good” one can inspire kids to greatness. But I’m not sure pay is the answer to ensuring our kids get one of the “good” ones.

What I wish is that more parents demanded results. What I wish is that more parents spoke up about teachers who cause detriment to our kids. What I wish is that more parents got involved in more ways than just writing more checks.

What I wish is that some of that money going to raises was spent on kids, because, let’s not forget, that’s the business we’re in.
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I don’t claim to know or have a silver bullet for “good” teaching, but I do know that money isn’t the answer. ​

This week our neighborhood newspaper, The News Enterprise, will be publishing responses from each of the school board candidates to the same three questions. In case you don't receive the paper, I want to make sure everyone has the opportunity to see where I stand. All I ask this year is that votes are cast and based in facts. Ask the tough questions, hear each candidates' answers, and make a decision based on the direction in which you'd like to see our board move. We haven't had an election for a school board seat since 2006, as no one has challenged the incumbents in the last three elections. 

With our district facing unprecedented changes the next four years - new funding formulas, new curriculum and new technology - we need a leader on the board who can take us into the future, rather than continuing to live in the past.

Listed below are The News Enterprise questions and my answers.

How would you describe an effective school board member?

An effective school board member must act responsibly within the law and in the best interest of all stake holders to ensure fiscal stability, academic fidelity, effective policy, and community involvement. Trustees must be available to all members of the community – those with and without children – to build a school that graduates responsible young adults who have learned to teach, give back, and contribute. Our board needs to reflect the needs of the community, while maintaining a balance between those needs and those of the student. School board members are called "Trustees" for a reason: they are being "trusted" with the future of the community – our most precious commodity – the children.  

What are you top priorities for the next four years?

Curriculum.
The academic growth of the district has been stagnant for the past five years, Common Core is not commonplace in all classrooms across all grade levels, writing has been forgotten, and almost 50% of our children are not participating in AP courses, because the achievement gap is insurmountable. Curriculum needs to be a top priority – and a teacher needs to lead the charge.

Safety. 
Alleviating traffic congestion in our neighborhoods needs to be a top priority of the next school board. Alongside easing the traffic woes, the next safety steps need to include training students in Bully Prevention and online e-reputation responsibility, reducing drug and alcohol abuse, and ensuring all students are safe in all dark corners of every campus. Additionally, research shows uniforms to be a great safety measure; therefore, an initiative in dress code reform K-12 needs to be discussed. 

Equity.   
I want to see inter-district transfer students, 35% of our district's current enrollment, dramatically decreased immediately, so our own in-district kids are given first, top priority for academics, arts, athletics and activities. I also want reform and transparency in all fundraising. I will also argue it's time all students – disenfranchised, EL, GATE – in LAUSD receive the same opportunities, regardless the school, leadership or classroom teacher. 

Do you have any specific changes you¹d like to make in the District?

I am a teacher, so my specialty is culture and curriculum. I will focus on what matters most for our kids: academics. Our district likes to celebrate the successes, but neglects to publicize its failures. My first academic change will be to increase the writing, depth and complexity in all courses, because there is no excuse for having only increased ELA proficiency 5% in the last six years. Additionally, our district needs to train all teachers and departments in the power of vertical alignment to ensure access to and success in AP courses, rather than accepting the fact that we are still graduating 44% of our students without an AP experience – one of the most significant measures of college success. Finally, we need to update our signature practices to embrace Common Core and 21st century education, especially since 28% of our students have not completed A-G college entrance requirements upon graduation, leaving them under-prepared for college and career opportunities. 

I have many more ideas for supporting kids, teachers and administrators, all while embracing what makes Los Al great. It's time to shake things up. 

In the words of Mark Twain, "Politicians and diapers must be changed often, and for the same reason."

Vote informed!

When I was a kid, fundraising consisted of one big fundraiser for the year: magazines, candy, wrapping paper, or some type of product I tried to peddle to my parents, relatives, neighbors and friends’ parents. No one wanted anything I was selling, but everyone bought something. They didn’t mind participating in the fundraiser; it was once a year and enabled them to contribute to my personal goals of earning one of dozens of prizes for selling more items than my friends. I don’t know where this money went. In fact, when I think back, I’m not sure even my parents knew. Everyone just purchased a tin of chocolate covered peanuts, and we all moved on.  Until the carnival when we played Cake Walk, Put the Ball in the Milk Container, Goldfish Ping Pong Ball, and Dunk Tank. I can’t be sure, but I’d bet these were all PTA initiatives organized by parent volunteers at individual schools in order to pay for end-of-year barbeques, school-branded pencils, and teacher appreciation. But this was it – the extent of the monies requested of my parents.

Fundraising as it exists in education today doesn’t resemble this innocent memory of mine. Rather, fundraising of the 21st century feels like a mandate. I receive dozens of, what I’ll call opportunities, to “maximize financial resources.” I say mandate, because I am being asked in almost every communication that comes from the district, in extremely aggressive language, to send in money. These requests ask me to:

• pay for my child’s absence ($40/day)
• donate to the district’s educational foundation per-family an on-going amount every month ($25/month)
• purchase school supplies – that my children can’t put their names on, because they get pooled in the classroom ($100/year)
• buy tickets to my individual school’s foundation’s fundraising auction ($75/ticket)
• buy donated products and services, parking spaces, and “fund the need” initiatives at the auction ($1000/year)
• buy tickets to the annual high school booster clubs’ community event ($45/ticket)
• sell products for PTA at each of my child’s school ($50/year)
• offset the cost of buses for field trips ($20/year)
• eat at local restaurants so some percentage of proceeds go back to the school ($30/night per event)
• pay for entry in the school district’s annual Fun Run ($35/registrant)
• attend summer enrichment programs ($175/class)
• become a member of PTA – for which rewards are given when there is 100% parent participation in the classroom ($10/parent per school)
  

I know this looks like a long list, but I can guarantee you it’s not an exhaustive list. I’m sure I’ve left off multiple “opportunities.” I get more than a little frustrated, so I decided to take a look at what I could potentially have spent last year, using my own family of four as my model (2 adults and 2 children) - $3,390. And I don’t have kids in high school sports, activities or arts yet!

I’m going to project a little here and make some additional assumptions about number of students and families. In a district of 10,000 children, let’s assume 5,000 families (2 kids per family) participate in half of what is being requested. The potential total amount of money collected in one school year - $8.4 million.

Could that possibly be true? As a community we raise millions of dollars for our schools? That’s an astronomical amount of money! So here’s my question … Where does all the money go?

• Is all that additional money necessary for a high-quality public education in today’s society?
  
• Is all that money being divided equitably among all schools in the district?
  
• Can every penny be accounted for?
  
• Is empirical data readily available to the community, showing how my child’s educational experience has been enriched?
  

These questions need answers. That’s where I come in.

Let me help streamline our community efforts to build great Los Al schools with reasonable fundraising requests and equitable allocation of that money for all students … that doesn’t break the bank!

Couldn’t we all use a little raise?