This week has been very trying on me. I had two after school functions that I had to take part in until 8 pm both last night and tonight. I found out today that all my hard work for this masters degree will not give me the raise as it is stated in our pay scale, because our district will not have the money to pay me for it after the budget cuts take effect. I have been counting on that raise to cover the cost of the tuition I borrowed for this degree.
What I learned this week:
Leadership matters. Good leaders do what is in the best interest of the majority and take the time to really figure out what that is. They don't decide what is best based on their particular beliefs, they take into account all facets of an issue. The Republicans did not do that. They did not take into consideration the hundreds of thousands of public employees that they would be financially devastating with this bill. All they see is the bottom line. There are people attached to this, not just money. And what about the children. Is anyone thinking about what is best for our kids?? People don't understand how much money it takes to run a school.
System-wide changes need to be done in a systematic matter, which careful planning. Had our government worked together, bipartisan, to come up with realistic, effective, and revolutionary ways to save money and generate new income for our state, we would be in a lot better shape and our state would not be literally torn in two. I think the simulation game we played in class made this so much clearer to me.
The change game was somewhat frustrating, but in the end, my team, who was so fabulous, figured out that the key to successful change is communication and collaboration.
Hi Sarah,
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry you've had such a crummy week. I think there's a lot of the same sentiments going around and you bring up a very, very good point...good leaders work collaboratively to make a systemic change. That certainly didn't happen when the governor and his team decided to make decisions. They didn't talk, they didn't listen and they didn't take into account the amount of strife their changes would have of others in the system. It's bound to fail, if our class and our readings are correct. I wish I could see the future and see how this change will effect our system. These are uncertain times, for sure.
Hang in there. We're all in this together!
Mary
Sarah, I can relate to your frustrations with not being on the receiving end of what was originally expected monetarily-wise at the outset of this program. I feel that too large of a percentage of the public, or at least some of the publicized public, feel teachers make too much money, don't work for three months of the year, and basically have a cheesecake-walk of a job...I'm beyond frustrated and sadly realize that unless drastic changes occur in the next year, I will have to leave the profession I love in search of something I can support my family on. It's heart-breaking. I try to hang onto the positive and find hope in people that are speaking out against Walker who at face-value have nothing to lose, like a lawyer my husband spoke with Friday evening at my son's hitting lesson who's been to the Capitol numerous times to protest.
ReplyDeleteI love your comment regarding our government working together in bipartisan, revolutionary ways to solve our state's budget problems. I too wonder if anyone has taken into consideration what is best for our students. Class size does matter. Funding does matter. Extra-curricular activities and non-academic classes like band, art, etc. do matter.
I hope this week is better for you than last Sarah.
thanks ladies! I am hoping this week is better, too. My husband and I decided I'd give it one more year before making a decision about changing careers.
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