United Teacher for the latest news: www.utla.net LAUSD adult schools: Where principals rule In the absence of contract rights, favoritism reigns. By Natasha Urias Los Angeles Technology Center ‘When new teachers asker how they cen work more hows in adult schools, 1 {ell them to ask the principal. Actually {suggest they compliment, cjele, and charm the prindpal, because that's the fonly way they ate going #9 get maze hours Th adult schools, teachers have no staffing matrix apeled out in the UTLALAUSD contract, unlike the K- 12 schools, We may informally request a different assignment and more hours, but there kno guarantee hae we ill set them. They often go to teachers with loss seniority ane experience, because ‘these decisions ae subject to the whim ofthe prinepal ‘This meus in a huge disparity in Income for adult school teachers, a ty based not on years served of leel of education, but on whem the principal or assistant principal likes best The more the principal kes you, the more you eam. That's becuse Slaffing is Gone behind closed doors Administrators never post a. matrix. Teachers assume, until fold otherwise, that they have the same hours and classes for each semester. In fact, [have lkncnen many adult school eachers who dla’ find out what they were teaching ‘until a fee days before their lass was Supposed to start ‘The nimber of hours you receive is Sepeched became shel chad deed ers are paid hourly. A new adult school teacher ually start out teaching one dass at ten hours a week, When new fdasses become available, the princ pal frequently sas the class through tword-of-mouth or picks someane they favor. New teachers initially assigned ten hours a week who have this per sonal connection quickly find them- selves teaching 30 owes 8 week within onthe of their azsval, tapling thei quash administrative assignments feel very fortunate to have tenure at 20 hours a week. am guaranteed those hour, Yet even tenured tickers find themaetees frustented withthe system. We see teachers with less seniority and experience pass us in income. OF the nine teachers at my school who have ‘more than 30 hours a woek,fvestarted ater [did and only wo are tenured. Sill Lam ene of the lucky ones, The tenure proces, which for adult school For the past flve years, no adult od teacher has boon able to achieve pormanent status and somo somblanco of job sccurty. Most adult ‘school teachers have no guarantee of classé they want, schedules they want, or even whether or not they will have a job next year. Even when new positions are posted and applications acepted, the appear fnce ofa process can be deceiving. The Four sted on the posting can increase ramaticelly depending on the princ pal. One teacher st my school took an foutof classroom advisor poston that ‘vas posted at five hours a eek. WHEhin ‘months, this position had ineessed to som than 20 hours a week, By pie ing together various funding sour © administrators can give 40 hours a week to any inexperienced teacher they aver. That's double what the aver: age adult school teacher makes. On, ‘ison: shtealiina ‘timation: oustanding teachers involved an application, test, and interview, wae closed in 2003, Por the past five years no acl ed teacher ‘has boun able fo achieve permanent ta fs and some semblance of job sect. So most adult school teachers ave na uarante of clases they want, sched tls they want, o even whether or not they wil have a job next year They cortinly have no guarantee that lo” tly and hard work wall get them ahead in the Division of Adult Education in LAUSD. What [and other adult school teach- ers want isan equitable, far and trans pomul-tialibag praising So-thel oi October 17, 2008 teachers have the opportunity to make ‘decent ving. We want a proces that limite the avbittary selection process controlled by the pritdpal. We want what our KC12 counterparts have, $0 that adult school teachershaveasystem ofr and procedures, nota system of ‘avoritam and eronyisen. Ure totes at the Los Argues Tecknlogy Conte, one of LAUSD 33 ull sols ond occupational centers thi serve more than #20000 students yer. ‘We want to hear from you ‘We woloome submissions to “Speaking Out” and in Your Own lords," which are open forums for memter opinions on timely top- ies. "Speaking Out” and "in Your ‘Own Words" state the opinion of their authors and do nat necesst iy reflect the postion of UTLA, ts ‘officers, or UNITED TEACHER, By mal: Eto, UNTED TEACHER, 8803 Wishire Bid, By fax: (213) 487-2329 By emall: UTnewspeper@uia.net