This blog is designed to give readers a glimpse of our editorial-page operation and how we make our decisions. We’ll let you know who we’re meeting with, what they’re telling us, what events and issues we’re looking at. We’ll also pass on information and observations that may not make our print editions. In addition to the editorial board members who post on this blog, the board includes Publisher David Zeeck, Executive Editor Karen Peterson and Managing Editor Dale Phelps.
Editorial board bloggers
Editorial page editor Patrick O’Callahan oversees the online and printed opinion sections of The News Tribune. He came to The News Tribune in 1987 and has worked at Washington newspapers since 1979. E-mail him at patrick.ocallahan@thenewstribune.com
Editorial writer Cheryl Tucker, in addition to writing commentary, manages the daily production of the editorial and op-ed pages and edits letters to the editor. She began her journalism career in 1974 at a Virginia newspaper and came to The News Tribune in 1978. E-mail her at cheryl.tucker@thenewstribune.com.
Editorial writer Kim Bradford manages the online opinion section of The News Tribune and writes commentary. She joined The News Tribune in 2005 after working 11 years at newspapers in Washington and Maryland. E-mail her at kim.bradford@thenewstribune.com.
Guest bloggers
Editor emeritus David Seago retired from The News Tribune in 2008 after 41 years at The News Tribune. E-mail him at sds99@harbornet.com.
Richard Davis’ column on state politics frequently runs in the print edition of The News Tribune. He was president of the Washington Research Council, a statewide think tank, from 1986 through 2006. Currently, as a principal with The Simeon Partnership, Inc. he coordinates the activities of the Washington Alliance for a Competitive Economy, a business coalition founded by the Research Council, the Association of Washington Business and the Washington Roundtable.
Karen Irwin of University Place, a mother of four, has been a frequent contributor to The News Tribune's print editions. She has also written for Seattle's Child, Puget Sound Parent, the Tacoma Weekly, the Fayetteville Observer Times and the political blog Right Meets Left. She graduated from California Lutheran University with a degree in English literature and is currently working toward a history degree.
Michael Allen, professor of history at the University of Washington Tacoma, was born and raised in Ellensburg. He served with the U.S. Marines in Vietnam from 1969-70. He has written five books, including the prize-winning "Patriot's History of the United States: From Columbus' Great Discovery to the War on Terror," "Rodeo Cowboys in the North American Imagination" and "Western Rivermen, 1763-1861: Ohio and Mississippi Boatmen and the Myth of the Alligator Horse." Allen lives in Tacoma and Ellensburg and has three children.
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The loss of a $13.2 million grant intended to bolster math and science education in Washington has us concerned, especially since it appears that the state's rigid collective bargaining laws are to blame.
We often check with folks with whom we disagree in case there is information we haven't considered. Today I e-mailed Rich Wood, spokesman for the state teachers union, who is in Spokane at the annual convention where members are gearing up for a no-confidence vote in state schools chief Terry Bergeson.
Here was his response:
I think the criticism is misguided and inaccurate. NMSI was unwilling to compromise on the teacher pay issue and pulled the money. It wasn't that our locals "rejected" the grant program. Our teachers in Seattle, Spokane and elsewhere worked hard to make it work. They spent a lot of time and effort. It's inaccurate when people suggest otherwise. They really tried to collaborate, despite the way it's being portrayed. Everyone needs to work together to improve student achievement. But flexibility is needed.
I don't know any other profession or industry where an outside, private group is allowed to pay another employer's employees based on their behavior. ... Whether or not tying teacher compensation directly to student test scores is a good idea, the underlying issue is local decision-making. Talk to the districts...it wasn't just the association that had issues with the conditions of the grant money.
The teachers are the ones in the classroom working with kids. They should have an appropriate role in determining what works and what is appropriate. Why does Exxon know better than the teachers in the classroom? We trust them to teach our kids, but not to be involved in these decisions? Our members at several schools wanted to direct the bonus money to professional development, but NMSI wouldn't allow it. I haven't heard anyone involved directly blame collective bargaining.
COMMENTS:
The inflexible collective bargaining agreements in this state are an atrocity that citizen taxpayers cannot afford any longer.
Oh, and by the way, contributors like Bill & Melinda Gates, Michael Dell, and Exxon DO know better than our teachers concerning the quailty of math and science education our children are receiving in public schools because that is where there applicant pool originates. Unlike public schools, these people understand how to operate for a profit, which includes competition among teh best educated workers available and incentivizing performance. No wonder more and more science and technology based companies are outsourcing jobs - the best educated students are not in the United States.
Yes, we all have teachers unions and their arrogant policies to thank for that.
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