Saucon Valley School District Meets Over Uncertain Start To The...

We begin, with a back-to-school cliffhanger in the Saucon Valley School District.

[school]

greedy pigs still fits

[sauconstudent11]

As a student at the school district i fully understand where all of these parents are coming from. Alot of students think the same way any think that the board should pull this offer off the table and make it lower. We need to set an example to everyone, we cannot let the Teachers Association push us around they might work for the government but we pay the taxes that give them jobs. the Board is giving too much to the teachers and they are still wanting to take more. Take what they are giving you and RUN. Lets hope you make the right decision.

[jones]

It sure is a goos sign. I think they meant to spell goose. Thats what the taxpayer is trying to prevent, Getting goosed .

Saucon Student, I don't think the teachers work for the government. Greed has broken many large unions but non as large as the psea and the money backing them. Under any other circumstances the greed shown by the teachers to the people paying their way, they would have been fired and replaced.

The psea has billions and they don't want to lose any of it or give any of the goose back that lays their golden eggs away.

Too bad Puerta can't just come out with it and say Saucon Valley is the test case to break the strangle hold the teachers and the union have on the hard working people that pay all of them. Unfortunately thats not what the outcome will be.(money will talk)

[Time to finish this]

In the Morning Call this morning, Puerta is quoted as saying that there may be some room for "tweaking" certain things. If he is sincere about this, then both sides need to get off their butts and try negotiating again! Stop the "pigheadedness" (literally) and finish this! I, as a taxpayer, am fed up with the whole thing!

[Jay]

The way I see it is like all of the others. Parents and students. GREED. There are alot of unemployed people wishing that they had a job. The teachers have no contract ? Fine!Fire them NOW ! I'm sure there are teachers out there that would love to go back to work and fill their positions.

[Bill]

IT's time to show the teachers that taxpayers are not going to take it any more. If they cannot accept the fact that for once in their career's they are not going to strike gold, then tough luck; fire all of them.

[Lou]

Look at the economy. Teachers in other districts are loosing their jobs. From what I understand Saucon has the highest paid teachers in the Lehigh Valley. I'm sure an unemployed teacher would love a job. Stop being greedy, wake up and smell the coffee.

[Dennis]

My kids are out of school but those teachers better wake up especially the union president. We are not going to stand for it anymore and I back the school board up. Fire them all and hire new teachers who want to work.

[USPOSTAL SYSTEM]

im willing to bet that there are many qualified unemployed teachers out there that could/would fill these positions...

[Bethlehem Guy]

Come on, these teachers make more than enough money and pay less in healthcare and have all this time off, which can be said of many teachers, but Saucon valley is especially well compensated. I don't know the legalities with unions and all but perhaps the board should consider replacing staff at the lowest seniority with recently let go staff from the Bethlehem School District's cuts that happened last week, there are probably 30 teachers out of work. Then as the cuts go up the ladder, once the $70,000 a year teachers start getting replaced I bet this contract dispute would be settled really quick.

[jones]

When I worked for a union the contract ended and we hit the bricks til we took a pay cut and paid more for medical benefits.

These leeches have been working for more than a year under the old contract and won't settle because they will make less money and have to give some concessions back. How stupid are the administrators to keep letting the teachers work under an old contract . Maybe stupid enough to let it go on for another year.

Fire them all now before school starts and start interviewing for new teachers.

The teachers have been the stupid ones and keep shooting themselves in the foot. It makes me wonder if their aim isn't that good.

[jones]

The board wants the final say for the extra classes that teachers take.

The board is consistently not getting what we need in these extra teachers courses and what we pay for them.

Just a little correction board. You're not paying for any extra courses the teachers take, the taxpayer is carrying their full load of extra's that have been added on over the years . Your school tax pays, not the board.

[jones]

On reading a little further Puerta states some of the Masters and Doctorate courses don't meet the standards for being paid extra By being called a Master in your field of education , or a Doctor ?

Instead of just throwing these statements out let us who are paying for these cyber degrees see how and where the teachers are getting them.

What the hells been going on? Who tells the teachers take these courses , turn them in to the board and you automatically climb the money ladder.

[DETROIT]

CONTACT MICHIGAN THERE ARE HUNDREDS OF TEACHERS WHO HAVE LOST JOBS! IM SURE THEY WOULD WORK FOR ALOT LESS WITHOUT A UNION AND DO A FAR MUCH BETTER JOB! APPRECIATE WHAT YOU HAVE BEFORE YOUR GREED TAKES WHAT YOU DID HAVE.

[JAG]

Pigs get fed, hogs get slaughtered. It seems to be about time to open up the cattle shutes and let them stroll to their impending doom. The offers on the table seem to have been quite lucrative and they should have just been satisfied with being pigs and life would have gone on. It's time to stop redrawing the line in the sand and man the battle front.

[mom of three SV students]

I attended last nights school board mtg. According to what they said they are not permitted to just fire and replace the teachers. They need to have taught in SV with-in the last year. Sadly that doesn't give enough teachers. We have loved our SV teachers, but come on let's read the headlines and see that others are getting no increases, losing jobs and still paying their health care and NO continuing education reimbursements. I don't want to have to cover the cost of their getting a Masters or Doctorate. Teachers please get your union reps to talk to the school board contacts and get this resolved. Thank you.

[SVP]

One of my serious concerns regarding teachers (in all school districts) is the poor quality "graduate" classes they take. As an example I personally know a teacher (NOT a Saucon teacher) that had a "graduate" class which consisted of visiting a science museum in NYC for the day. Anyone who has taken a real graduate class and/or earned a Masters or Doctorate understands the rigorous challenge of these programs. Teachers Masters and Doctorate programs are a joke. They insult not only students but the teachers themselves.

[jones]

mom of three SV students wrote:

I attended last nights school board mtg. According to what they said they are not permitted to just fire and replace the teachers. They need to have taught in SV with-in the last year. Sadly that doesn't give enough teachers. We have loved our SV teachers, but come on let's read the headlines and see that others are getting no increases, losing jobs and still paying their health care and NO continuing education reimbursements. I don't want to have to cover the cost of their getting a Masters or Doctorate. Teachers please get your union reps to talk to the school board contacts and get this resolved. Thank you.

Who doesn't permit them to be fired ?

What are they going to do call in the National guard. This is America, Being held hostage by a Union with large amounts of money doesn't qualify to never being replaced.

I'd like to here Puerta's explanation of why the teachers can't be fired .Just saying they can't be fired doesn't cut it.

Quit crying for the teachers and don't believe every thing Puerta tells you without an explanation.

Nothing is carved in stone.

[Levy]

To answer your question, anyone who is certified as a teacher HAS to take continuing education classes at the Masters or Doctorate level. I am not a teacher so i dont know how many they have to take, but they have to have so many hours of classes to remain certified. Just some FYI

mom of three SV students wrote:

I attended last nights school board mtg. According to what they said they are not permitted to just fire and replace the teachers. They need to have taught in SV with-in the last year. Sadly that doesn't give enough teachers. We have loved our SV teachers, but come on let's read the headlines and see that others are getting no increases, losing jobs and still paying their health care and NO continuing education reimbursements. I don't want to have to cover the cost of their getting a Masters or Doctorate. Teachers please get your union reps to talk to the school board contacts and get this resolved. Thank you.

[Suzy]

Teachers, budgets, courses, etc. What really counts are the students. The students are the ones that are getting hurt. While everyone is busy hashing this out, the students are not getting their education. What is really more important?