Forum scheduled to help teachers

A teachers’ group will hold a forum on July 29 to help prepare teachers for new classroom standards.

The gathering will be held at the Louisiana Resource Center for Educators, 5550 Florida Blvd.

It will be sponsored by the Associated Professional Educators of Louisiana, or A+PEL.

Registration begins at 8 a.m. The cost is $40.

More information is available at http://www.apeleducators.org/calendar.cfm.

The assistance is aimed at helping teachers prepare for new academic standards, called common core, that Louisiana and 44 other states plan to use starting in 2014.

Comments

1) Comment by Ohsofedup - 18/03/2013

A quick peek indicates that some of the unclassified salaries seem to proliferate in the Department of Education: • John White, Superintendent: $275,000; • Michael Rounds, Deputy Superintendent: $170,000; • Howard Drake and Gayle Sloan, Liaison Officers: $160,000 each; • Kerry Laster, Executive Officer: $155,000; • David Lefkowith, precise title still a mystery: $146,000; • Kunjan Narechania, Chief of Staff to John White: $145,000; • Gary Jones, Executive Officer: $145,000; • Deirdre Finn, part time PR Director (working from home in Tallahassee, FL.): $144,000; • James P. Wilson, Director (of what?): $142,000; • Melissa Stilley, Liaison Officer: $135,000; • Elizabeth Scioneaux, Deputy Superintendent: $132,800; • Debra Schum, Executive Officer: $132,000; • Hannah Dietsch, Assistant Superintendent (someone please explain the difference between an assistant superintendent and a deputy superintendent.): $130,000; • Nicholas Bolt, Deputy Chief of Staff (as opposed to assistant chief of staff): $105,000. Perhaps you may have noticed in that lengthy laundry list of high-paying position, there was not a single name followed by the title “Instructor” or any other title that would indicate classroom experience. But even with all the featherbedding at DOE, there’s one appointment in particular in the Division of Administration (DOA) that stands out as the poster child for Jindal cronyism.

2) Comment by teacherguy - 15/03/2013

I dropped A+PEL like a hot potato when I realized that they don't have a back bone when it comes to legislation, making a stand for what won't work, etc....here we see them charging teachers for something most teachers are going to be "paid" to suffer through by their districts. Way to raise the bar...I mean place the bar at the perfect neck line of teachers A+PEL...

3) Comment by Concerned_Parent - 14/03/2013

So teachers are expected to pay $40 to attend a class on mandated changes? There are so many things wrong with this new "reform"!