Earlier this week, word that 35 FAMU DRS teachers were "laid off" caused panic and anger across Rattler Country.Yesterday, the FAMU administration offered a clarification. DRS did not eliminate any positions or terminate any teachers. It simply informed 35 "visiting" faculty members that their contracts had expired.
FAMU DRS Superintendent Ronald Holmes plans to issue letters to all 35 men and women by the end of the week, encouraging them to apply for teaching positions in the fall.
“We have asked Dr. Holmes to move quickly to advertise the vacancies that exist,” said Provost Cynthia Hughes Harris. “We must do what is in the best interest of FAMU-DRS while having compassion for the students we serve.”
Holmes sent letters to 35 non-permanent “visiting” teachers Tuesday, reminding them of the expiration of their contracts. According to Holmes, this step expedites the process to secure more “regular” contracts for DRS faculty, which could lead to permanent contracts.
Each member receiving a letter had a visiting contract, which was time limited and most were for ten months. Based on the current collective bargaining agreement, visiting teachers do not earn credit toward permanent status whereas regular teachers earn such credit. At the completion of three years in a credit earning status, teachers may be granted permanent contracts.
“These contracts expired by virtue of their own terms,” Holmes said. “We want our faculty to feel secure in their positions and we are encouraging the visiting faculty members to apply for the vacant positions.” Holmes said that he plans to advertise and have these positions filled.
“We are going to hire regular faculty to prepare our students to perform competitively,” said Holmes. “We seek to balance our faculty with more regular contracts than visiting contracts at least that is our goal. I am looking forward to the 2009-2010 school year where we are expecting enrollment to increase and additional revenue to be generated.”
The school also plans to offer an SAT academy taught by Kaplan Testing Service at no cost to FAMU-DRS students. In addition, the school will offer advance placement courses for all secondary students in all core areas and credit retrieval/recovery courses online.
Yeah. Right. All this after the teachers have panicked about not having jobs next year. Class Act, I say. The University has never, ever treated its DRS or collegiate faculty with respect. Disrespect is easy to thrust about when those making the big decisions are six-figure salaried people. It's all the little people who get caught in the shuffle.
ReplyDeletecorrection on my ^^ post:
ReplyDelete"It's always the little people..."
This is nothing more than propaganda. After the article hit the news the other day they come up with this spin to make the situation look better than it is.
ReplyDeleteYou have to ask yourself how long did folks know that these 35 people were not in compliance? Or todays Tallahassee Democrat article that says that 31% of the classes were taught by teachers that were not considered highly qualified by the State?
Before you know it, the administrators are gonna have to teach the classes too at the rate this is going...
The Administrators are not Qualified but they didn't tell that???
ReplyDeleteMost folk are missing the boat on this.
ReplyDeleteOur kids and institution is being challenged and we need a plan to fight the challenges and the challengers
Regardless of the status of teachers certification, Dr. Holmes or his admistrations credentials we need to rally for the sake of the kids
If FAMU DRS faculty were unhappy or mistreated why didn't they take their well qualified asses on to greener pastures???
ReplyDeleteWhy would they stick around on contracts where they were basically "permanent substitute" teachers all this time???
Let's face it, these teachers were failing our students.
I need to go talk to these TV executives about making a reality show on FAMU cause to anyone not associated with the school it would be really funny and entertaining with plenty of drama at all times..
ReplyDelete11:46, the teachers at FAMU-DRS were not "failing our students." What role did parents play in assisting the teachers in the classroom. It's very easy to sit back, as you apparently are doing, and blame someone else. While there may be circumstances where instruction was sub-par, I don't think that it was the teachers who were solely responsible. Parents expect teachers to be mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, doctors, counselors, friends, pediatricians, preachers, disciplinarians, and everything in-between. Plus Teach. Students come from all type of households and environments and bring all kinds of experiences to the table. Everything ailment that occurs in a classroom cannot be blamed on "the teacher."
ReplyDeleteFYI for Everyone: Dr. Bill Tucker, former FAMUFF union prez (and professor of chemistry) has written a very straightforward article obout James Ammons' recent bonus.
ReplyDeleteTallahassee Democrat (tdo.com), 6/4/09. The article is a "My View" column.
As always, he calls it right.
2:14 pm,
ReplyDeleteIf its not the FAMU DRS teachers, then why are students at Nims Middle, Rickards H.S., and Bond able to show improvement over the same period?? The FAMU students come from similar, if not better, family backgrounds.
I have no idea, 5:46, but I still contend that it's not entirely the fault of the teachers. Did you read my full post? Dang.
ReplyDeleteReading is fundamental.
ReplyDelete7:25 pm,
ReplyDeleteConsider that FAMU DRS isn't a exactly a public school, but a "school of choice" in that parents made a choice to send their child there it stands to reason that parental participation would be better than traditional public schools.
More truth comes out. The United Faculty of Florida teachers union has come out and declared that there may have been problems with the way this was handled. Another major screw up has happened that probably could have been avoided with some diligence?
ReplyDelete6/04/2009 5:46 PM
ReplyDeleteIt's not fair to compare the accomplishments of those schools to DRS's. Sure, many of the students look the same and very very well could come from the same "households," but we can't ignore the resources those public schools have accessed to.
I imagine there are teachers at DRS (and really at all schools) who underperform. However, it's never fair to put the blame on the teachers nor the students. It's usually a combination of both and definitely some other factors. In fact, I would argue that those teachers have performed admirably over the years given the lack of support they have received over the last twenty years. Let's face it, they have been asked to prepare today's students for the challenges of tomorrow using limited resources.
I have always taken issue with the way FAMU administrations and College of Education deans have not made that school a top priority. It's a shame. And so we now blame the teachers--convenient targets.
Disclaimer: And no, I have never taught at DRS, nor have I ever dated an employee at the school. LOL!