Last week's question: Do you agree with the following statement: I believe that the NTA and the NPS will come to agreement on a fair contract before the current contract expires on August 31, 2027? This week's question: Many of you have attended open houses with members of the Newton School Committee and expressed your concern about the blistering pace, lack of educator voice, and poor rollout of initiatives. Do you agree with the following statement: Students in Newton would

Dear Colleagues, Today's Globe included the following article: "Recent contracts fuel teacher layoffs in Massachusetts." The argument of the piece is straightforwardly and unsubtly stated in the title. But if you want a more in your face version, the subtitle is: "For years, teacher unions fought for better pay and benefits. Now districts, including Boston, are planning layoffs." The authors cite four union presidents for rebuttal to their argument: Justin Brown, President of

Question of the Week Last week's question was quite involved: we shared extensive pro versus con information with you. Yet we had a good response rate, with 317 people responding to the question. Another marker of member engagement with the eBulletin: two weeks, 146 people clicked on the link to the elementary schedule presentation; this week, 109 did, with Please keep the engagement high as we close out the year over the next few weeks! Last week's question: Do you belie

Dear Colleagues, Thank you to all of you who answered the question of the week last week. Participation more than doubled from 160 votes cast on April 12 to 412 votes cast on May 3! A couple other markers of member engagement with the eBulletin: last week, 146 people clicked on the link to the elementary schedule presentation. Please keep the engagement high as we close out the year over the next few weeks! Question of the Week Last week's question: Have you participated i

Dear Colleagues, It has been a while. The last time I sent out an eBulletin was April 12th. As we enter into the home stretch of the year, I ask that you please answer the question of the day! The MailChimp platform has a number of ways for us to track how many people open the emails and click on links, but how many people answer the question of the day is our best barometer of how many people are engaging with the newsletter. And, to be honest, the low number of people who

Question of the Week (new) Last week's question: Do you plan on going to a Red Sox game at Fenway Park this year? This week's question: Have you participated in a negotiations focus group yet? YES NO Know Your Contract: Workers' Compensation Insurance (new) As you are probably aware, the City of Newton and the Newton Public Schools do not provide workers' compensation insurance for members of Units A - E. However, the NTA has won contract language that protects members in t

Question of the Week (new) Last week's question: Should the NTA endorse a statewide campaign by Massachusetts Families for Vaccines to support House bill 2554, which would remove the non-medical (religious) school vaccine exemption? This week's question: Should the NTA Negotiations Team prioritize raising the cap on sick days buy back, increasing longevity payments, or both? Context Sick days buy-back Most NTA members have hundreds of sick days remaining when they retire. T

Question of the Week (new) Last week's question: When do you think the snow will be melted, so that our lawns, sidewalks and streets will be clear? (Not the huge piles in parking lots.) This week's question: Should the NTA endorse a statewide campaign by Massachusetts Families for Vaccines to support House bill 2554, which would remove the non-medical (religious) school vaccine exemption? Background The Director of Massachusetts Families for Vaccines reached out to the NTA t

Question of the Week (new) Question from March 1: The Trump administration's decision to attack Iran along with Israel was a smart strategic move. Last week's question was controversial. I heard from a few members that they were worried that the NTA was planning to issue a statement or resolution on the war against Iran. Others expressed concern that by asking the question, the NTA was assuming a democratic, liberal, progressive, or leftist member bias. We have no plans to