Statement by NEA-Alaska President Barb Angaiak on mass teacher firings in Rhode Island

Replacing an entire staff is the wrong solution. It will not improve student achievement. 

Statement by NEA-Alaska President Barb Angaiak
March 2, 2010

Instead of taking the most severe option possible, the school board and superintendent should be working with educators to make decisions based on what is best for students. Replacing an entire staff is the wrong solution. It will not improve student achievement.

UPDATE March 4, 2010:  Rhode Island school superintendent and teachers agree to resume talks.  A week after the mass firings at Central Falls High School, Supt. Frances Gallo accepted an olive branch extended by the teachers union and said she is willing to restart talks with the union.  http://www.projo.com/news/content/central_falls_compromise_03-04-10_U8HLCH9_v37.3a67531.html 

School board in Rhode Island fires all teachers at high school in impoverished district

The entire staff of 74 teachers and support professionals was fired from the troubled Central Falls High School.  The school serves 800 students in one of the most disadvantaged areas of the state.  Sixty-five percent of the students are Hispanic, and most speak English as a second language.  Median income of the community is $22,000. 

According to the NECAP results (New England Common Assessment Program), of the Central Falls High School students who participated in the assessments, 22% were identified with Limited English proficiency with English as their second language. Twenty-three percent had an IEP (individualized education plan designed for students with special needs), and 85% were classified as economically disadvantaged.

The demographics pose unique challenges for educators. According to school officials, half the students are failing every subject, with 55 percent skilled in reading and 7 percent proficient in math.  A spokesman for the local teachers union called the firings drastic and cited a 21 percent rise in reading scores and a 3 percent increase in math scores in the past two years.  The mass firings came after talks broke down between the superintendent and the union on strategies for school improvement.  The firings are slated to take effect at the end of the school year. 

NEA and AFT Issue Joint Statement Condemning Central Falls Administrators' Actions