Gratton for Mt. Abe School Board

This is a final plea for the voters of Starksboro to vote for me David Gratton on Tuesday, March 1^st for the Mt. Abe School Board. I believe that my experience studying education in college, the opportunities that I have had to observe schools in other districts, and my experience working as an Educational Assistant in the high school have given me a unique perspective on educational theory and what it is really like in the classroom. I am also a parent that wants my daughters to have the best education possible but, I pay taxes just like everyone else and I understand that we cannot keep throwing money at a problem, like raising the test scores. I know that we cannot keep raising taxes in these economic conditions. I was on track to become a high school social studies teacher and would have been student teaching this semester if I would not have decided that education may not be the best employment choice like it was when I started college five years ago. I am currently seeking employment, but would love to be involved in education in some way. 

As I have stated earlier, I believe that there is a substantial amount of money to be save in our schools by district wide as well as county wide consolidation. The main way that this would save money is by combining the administrative functions of the schools in a district, or county, in a single supervisory district. I think that by administering schools more efficiently, is one of our biggest opportunities for savings but, it may also be one of the most contentious. There is a real fear of the loss of local control, the loss of town identity, and the loss of a tradition that we will need to discuss. Personally I feel the benefits out-weigh the drawbacks.

As we heard at Town Meeting today, the future of how education is delivered is undergoing another radical shift. I do not know how much longer students will have to sit in a windowless classroom studying facts that the students cannot see how will ever relate to their lives. I went to a college that had a student directed curriculum and my daughter is in the Pathways Program at Mt. Abe that functions under the same student centered educational approach. I am a believer in this method of education and would like do what I can do to see it become the normal educational experience rather than the alternative.

I believe that when two sides have to negotiate a contract they need to have some realistic expectations. I believe that both sides need to negotiate fairly. I feel that the board’s decision to impose was a draconian measure. I also feel that the teachers are not being realistic if they want to keep their Cadillac health plan and want to keep their step increases. There just is not enough money to pay for it all. I am not saying that the teachers should give in but they should keep their step raise and pay the 20 percent for their insurance or give up the step raise and keep the 10 percent contribution level. To me this is an acceptable compromise. I fault the board for going after a large number of contentious issues such as health care pay raises and step increases as being nonnegotiable. I do not think this kind of take it or leave it attitude is the way to conduct a fair negotiation session. 

I feel teachers today are underpaid, unappreciated, and are under attack because they belong to the strongest union left in the country today. It seems that everything the teachers are being put through today is what I went through when I worked in manufacturing from the 1980’s through the early 2000’s. After watching what is going on in Wisconsin, I am even more convinced this is more of an attack on the middle-class. With that said; if I am elected, I promise that I will do what is best for the students and the teachers in the most fiscally responsible way for the taxpayers. I believe that Mt. Abe is going in the right direction and we need to consider how our decisions affect the progress we are making. I think that we as a state need to look at the money we take from Washington a little closer and really understand how much the money we get for signing up for these programs are really costing us. Reading, Math, and Behavioral specialists are great when we are not paying their salaries but when we are obligated to pay for their positions for a number of years after the money has run out is just a way of Washington passing on unfunded mandates to communities. As far as I am concerned, if the state or federal government requires our schools to do something over and above educating our kids, they better have the money to pay for it. I would love it if the state would determine what a good education is and then determine what that education would really cost. Vermonter’s used to be able to educate their kids without the Federal Government telling them how to do it and without requiring people to file reams of mandatory paperwork back to the government. I think that it is still possible to do this and would love a chance to have a hand in guiding some of the change that is coming. I would also like to be in a position to ask some of the tough questions that I have and I am sure that you the voters and consumers of education will have. 

Thanks for your consideration.

Check out all of my posts at my Blog: http://grattonforschoolboard.blogspot.com/

A Real Place to Save Money!!!

Consolidation

I believe that the real way to save money in education in Vermont today is not only district wide consolidation but county wide consolidation a fair amount of money goes to running the supervisory district. Multiply that times the number of supervisory districts (4) in Addison County and we are talking about quite a bit of money. Why should the residents pay for this duplication of services? 

Right now in ANSEU we have 5 bus contracts, 5 teachers’ contracts and 2 or 3 different food contracts. The residents of Addison County are paying 4 Superintendents and Assistant Superintendents along with the staff in each office. 

If we look at how things “work in the real world” there are plenty of examples of how large corporations use mergers and take overs to cut administrative costs by eliminating positions that are duplicated at their headquarters. That would mean that we could eliminate 3 of the highest paid positions in a school district, the Superintendent. Now add to that the power of a large county wide district to negotiate things like a single bus contract, a single teachers contract, a single food service contract, or even the leverage a combined district would have to negotiate their health care costs.

But what about local control you ask? I feel that with good communication between a board member and his or hers constituents, there would be no real loss of local control. If the goal is to save money, I feel we have a golden opportunity to do so. 

If I were elected to the school board I would pursue consolidation. I would seek to engage help from our State Representatives and State Senators to make it happen. The Education Commissioner has recommended this to control education costs however, it seems like there has been very little movement in that direction. I would like to be a factor in bringing consolidation to not only Addison Northeast but to Addison County as a whole.

Dave

Independent Fact Finding

I posted these two posts on Front Porch Forum in response to criticism by a School Board Member about the independent fact finders report. Why would a professional fact finder put their reputation on the line to benefit the ANSEU teachers union?

I have had an opportunity to read the report from the independent fact finder. While it did favor the teachers 90 percent of the time, the report explained both side positions and I feel did an excellent job explaining why she decided the way she did. With the school board coming out on the losing side, I can understand where the board would say the report was biased.
While I do not know how one becomes an independent fact finder, I find it hard to believe that one would risk their reputation by submitting a report that was biased and risk their position as an independent fact finder.
Why hasn't the fact finders report been made public for everyone to see?

Someone was kind enough to forward this link to me from the ANSEU web site that contains the fact finders report for all to read. I think that in order to understand both sides of an issue you should have as much information as possible and this contains a fair bit of information and background info that everyone on both sides of the issue should be aware of.

The report is available at:  http://www.mtabe.k12.vt.us/anesu/

Look down at the bottom of the page under "Teacher/Board Negotiations-- Fact Finder's report"

About Me

My name is David Gratton. I have lived on Big Hollow Rd. for 18 years. I live with my wife Wendy and two daughters: Ashley and Hannah. Ashley is a junior at Mount Abe and Hannah is a 5^th grader at Robinson.

Wendy and I

I have done many things throughout my life for work including maintenance technician, heating plant operator, snowboard instructor, and Educational Assistant in the High School Special Education Department. I have been actively involved volunteering at Robinson in a number of capacities over the years including as a snowboard instructor for the Robinson After School Ski and Ride program at Cochran’s, and as a volunteer educator in the Four-Winds program for several years. I also reestablished the Mt. Abe Bolton afterschool program.

Hannah and Ashley

$-Winds Puppet Show

While working full time the last five years I have earned and Associates degree in Education from CCV and obtained a degree in Cultural, Historical, and Social Studies from Union Institute and University in Montpelier. I majored in education, history and environmental studies at Union where I developed a great interest in environmental history. Having also studied education I have had the opportunity to focus on education policy and the history of educational policy and law that has led to the current educational system we have today.

Rotting Logs Workshop

For the last two and a half years I have had the great pleasure of working as an Educational Assistant in the Special Education Department at Mount Abraham High School. This, along with my experience while studying education at college has given me a unique perspective of how education works in the classroom.

One thing that bothered me about how educational policy was taught is that there is no cost accountability applied to any kind of strategy. Nobody asks the question: How does this affect the taxpayers?

What about: What do we really need to give our kids a quality education?

Or: Is the administrative structure in the district, county, and state the most efficient way to be spending our limited education funds?

In my next posts I will give you an idea of where I stand on what I feel are the most important issues facing the education system today and how I feel we should become active in shaping a meaningful change in that system.

Welcome!!!

I was asked to create a website to give the voters of Starksboro a chance to get to know me and the positions that I have on the issues that affect education today. I will be updating this blog regularly so check back often and feel free to leave a question or comment.
Dave