Broward School District Could Lose $30 Million because of Fight with Union (FL)

June 21, 2011

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Already grappling with a $171 million
budget shortfall, the Broward County School District is poised to lose another
$30 million in federal funding because it can’t resolve a labor battle with the
teachers union.

To get the Race to the Top money,
which would be spread over three years, the two sides must reach an agreement
on a state-mandated teacher merit-pay plan due this month. But they’re already
blaming each other for losing the money.

Superintendent Jim Notter told board
members last week the district was a “half-step away” from securing the money
and the district is willing to talk.

“You do not have a barrier called
Jim Notter,” he said.

But Union President Pat Santeramo
fired back Friday, saying the district is willing to negotiate, but only on i ts
own terms. Union officials are refusing to sign off on Race to the Top without
first resolving the teachers’ salary negotiations, which are at impasse.

The district won’t agree to that, he
said.

“It’s really been on their backs
totally,” he said of the breakdown.

Florida won about $700 million in
Race to the Top money to pay for education reforms over four years, including
developing evaluation tools and providing merit-pay for teachers. Broward has
been working on its plan since September, but Santeramo said the union hasn’t
had any input.

Despite the lack of agreement,&#x0 A;district officials submitted their plan to the state by the June 1 deadline.
State officials will review that plan in the “next week or so,” a spokeswoman
from the Department of Education said.

But without union approval, Broward
could lose the money.

Standing in stark contrast is the
Miami-Dade School District, which agreed to a plan last month that allows some
teachers to earn up to $100,000 or more.

School districts statewide have to
create merit pay plans because of new legislation signed by Gov. Rick Scott
earlier this year. With Race to the Top, the districts would have help paying
for it.

“This is a shame that we’ll have to
do this without any money,” board member Robin Bartleman said last Tuesday.

Notter said more than half of the
Race to the Top money would go to teachers. Santeramo contends too much would
go to administrators and consultants. Broward received about $6,283,674 from
the program last year, which was used for technology and developing training.

The last contract that won approval
of Broward Teachers Union members was in 2008-09. The district has declared
impasse with the union in each of the last three years.