Entering the Last Few Weeks of This Unprecedented Year

Greetings NEA-Jurupa Family,

I hope this email finds you doing well (or at least OK) as we enter the last few weeks of this unprecedented school year. The work that you are doing is truly incredible. I know that you are working harder than ever and are more than rising up to the challenge. For that, you are truly appreciated, EACH AND EVERY DAY!!! And again, I can’t thank you enough for your grace, kindness, patience, and understanding.

I wanted to take this opportunity to share with you some pertinent information and upcoming events. My apologies in advance for the long email, but it’s extremely important to keep you informed.

Monday, May 11th: JUSD Virtual School Board Meeting at 6:00 pm. Link will be sent on Monday for any of you who would like to “watch”.
Wednesday, May 13th: NEA-Jurupa Virtual Representative Council Meeting at 3:00 pm. Agenda will be sent on Monday. Meeting link will be sent on Wednesday to site reps/alternates with all meeting materials.
Wednesday, May 13th: California Day of the Teacher! ALL OF OUR MEMBERS DESERVE RECOGNITION EACH AND EVERY DAY!

SUPPORT FOR OUR MEMBERS:
Our hearts go out to our members, Laura and Mark Gonzales, from West Riverside Elementary. During this crisis, they received a devastating diagnosis for their young daughter, who is also a student in the district. Please consider donating to the Meal Train or GoFundMe to support them during this time. Additionally, if you are able, please consider donating a Sick Day to Laura, so that she can care for her daughter. You can use the same form that you would use to donate to the Catastrophic Leave Bank. I know that the love and support of their fellow members would mean the world to them.

NEXT YEAR:
There are a multitude of questions related to closing out this school year and how things are going to be handled next year. Unfortunately, at this time, we still don’t have answers. The district is still working through staffing ratios/student enrollment numbers to determine where transfers/reassignments may be necessary. Also, they are trying to figure out ways within the public health guidelines to allow safe access to sites before the end of the year.

Additionally, the CDE and Governor’s office are working on some potential “plans” and having several different working groups to address the opening of schools. After certain decisions are made at the state, it will ultimately be up to the local districts to decide how things will look. At this time no one knows what reopening of schools is going to look like. Please remembers that any impacts to our work year, working conditions, salary, health and welfare benefits, safety, etc. are subject to negotiations. Sometimes rumors go around about next year, unless the communications come directly from me or the district, please treat them as such.

BUDGET:

The state is currently looking at a $54.3 Billion deficit. Next week the Governor will release the May Revise (which gives a current snapshot of the state’s budget). Because of the decrease in tax revenues and the extension of the tax filing deadline, we won’t have a real picture of the state’s revenues until August. Needless to say, the budget numbers will be in constant flux for the foreseeable future.

All educational groups nationwide including certificated and classified associations, administration, and school boards are pushing for additional Education Stabilization and E-Rate monies from the Federal Government in order to help school districts remain solvent in upcoming year. There are ways that you can help! You can do this by calling 1-855-977-1770 and being directly connected to your member of Congress or by clicking here. Each and every contact is imperative. Please consider taking a few minutes to call or send a letter to your representative. Here is CTA’s letter of support for these funding mechanisms.

COMMUNICATION:
District updates and information is sent out regularly. Not all district communications directly apply to our members. I recommend that you check the district website and/or social media accounts for the most up-to-date information. I will continue to send out twice weekly (if not more frequently) communications as well.

CATASTROPHIC LEAVE BANK:

Communications will be coming out soon regarding enrollment and our MOU from last year. The MOU language is pictured below for reference. If you are currently in the Catastrophic Leave Bank, a day will automatically be deducted next year. If you donated this year, you will automatically grandfathered in. If you would still like to donate for this year, here is the form.

403B OPTIONS:

Many of you may be considering opening a 403B supplemental retirement plan during open enrollment. The vendors offered are not the only options available to members. There are many resources to help you understand what’s available for Your Retirement Journey. You can get information about CALSTRS here.

OPPORTUNITIES:

The California Department of Education is creating a Social and Emotional Learning Workgroup. Here is the application for anyone who is interested.

CTA continues to offer live and archived professional development opportunities for members.

Virtual Pass

Equality vs. Equity Webinar

On-Going Trainings

I’ll leave this VERY long email with some positivity and humor: