If you are not a FULL member of PFTCE, please consider joining NOW! YOU are the Union, and your support is so very important as we face the district during these tough times. Believe me when I tell you…the district knows who supports the Union cause, and who doesn’t. DISTRICT ADMINISTRATORS WANT THE UNION TO BE WEAK! When those we represent are NOT FULL Members, they see it as a weakness!
Fill out a Membership application TODAY!
We are pleased to announce the appointment of Michael Fried to the PFTCE Executive Board as a Vice President-at-Large. Michael has been a Paraeducator with Portland Public Schools since 1999, working with students in the lifeskills classroom at Cleveland High School for the last eight years. Please join me in welcoming Michael to the Board! We look forward to working with him as we build a stronger Union!
Join us at BESC (501 N. Dixon- 1 block north of Broadway, near the Coliseum) on Monday, April 26th at 6 pm, as we rally in support of our PFTCE brothers and sisters that will been so badly affected by the re-alignment of both the ESL and SPED departments!
I hope to see HUNDREDS of you at Monday’s Rally at the School Board (6 PM)! This could be the most important Union action undertaken by PFTCE in years. The media will be there to cover the High School redesign presentation, and our presence will be KNOWN, and our voices will be HEARD! Remember the old adage…“There IS strength in NUMBERS!”
Please copy and distribute our Rally flyer, and make certain that the teaching staff, and other classified employees in your building, particularly those in SPED and ESL, receive copies. We would love to have them join us!
Oregon AFL-CIO President Tom Chamberlain will be attending our rally, and will speak to the School Board. He will address the issues of a Fair Living Wage. We are delighted that he will be a part of this action!
Don’t forget…parking will be limited on Monday evening. Plan on carpooling, or, better yet, take the Tri-Met bus or MAX! Come early! We’ll hope for sunshine, but if it’s raining, be sure to dress appropriately, and bring umbrellas. Our informational picketing will take us out into the open as we march in front of BESC!
Please join us for this afternoon’s meeting to discuss the cuts being made to PFTCE Classified Employees, and brainstorm ways to resolve this matter.
We will be gathering at the PAT OFFICES (not PFTCE!), located at 345 NE 8th, in Portland. The PAT office is four blocks west of Benson High School, behind Franz Bakery and Vic Alphonso Cadillac. The meeting will begin at 4:30 pm. Bring your co-workers!
Also, here is a flyer regarding the Rally at next week’s Monday School Board meeting. If you are a SPED paraeducator, please make certain that the classroom teacher with whom you work receives a flyer, as well!
Please read this important PFTCE Newsletter that explores the proposed 2010-11 school year cuts to our classified personnel that will be devastating. Be sure to read Belinda’s “Open Letter to Carole Smith”, as she details for her how these cuts will affect everyone’s lives. There is also information about the up-coming PARA and EA meeting about these cuts, as well as a School Board Rally, both events will take place this month. Be sure to stay informed and attend these crucial meetings!
The most recent addition of the PFTCE Profile is now available on the web and currently en-route to your work site via the PONY. Please take a moment to read this issue as it contains important information about the up-coming Spring Classified Connections, a Bargaining Update and much more!
Please join us for the bi-monthly PFTCE Membership Meeting on Wednesday, March 3rd, from 5:30-7:30, at MARYSVILLE SCHOOL (at Rose City Park School). The address is 2334 NE 57th (97213), just two blocks south of Sandy Blvd. (Please note: PFTCE members should use the staff parking lot at the north end of the school. The entrance to Marysville @ Rose City Park is off of the parking lot. The front door on NE 57th is locked.)
The evening’s agenda will include:
- The nomination of candidates for PFTCE Executive Board. The following positions are open for nominations:
- A visit from Susan Miller, of AFT-Oregon.
- Two proposed alterations to the PFTCE Constitution and By Laws will be presented and read at this meeting.
We look forward to seeing you there!
On behalf of the PFTCE Executive Board, and the staff of PFTCE, we would like to wish you a “Happy Classified Employees Week” !
We send a heartfelt thanks to each of you for your remarkable dedication to our schools and the children for whom you provide a positive educational experience. We appreciate you for all you do! Portland Public Schools is fortunate to have such wonderful, devoted workers in their employ, and we salute you.
The PFTCE “Alice Fay” Scholarship is named after now-retired paraeducator, Alice Fay, who served on the PFTCE Board for several years, and acted as the Scholarship Chairperson prior to her retirement in 2008. The scholarship is awarded each year to the child, or grandchild, of a PPS Classified Employee, who must be a FULL member of PFTCE. To access the forms please go the the scholarship page linked above.
The newest edition of the PFTCE newsletter is available on the web and is currently en-route to your job location via the PONY! Please be sure to take a moment to read this newsletter, as there is important information about new Fair Share rates and well as the spring E-Board election.