All CASE members are invited to attend the Fall General Membership Meeting on Monday, November 4, 2024.
The Valley Inn
(Second Floor)
10501 Falls Rd
Timonium, MD 21093
4:00—5:00 Social Hour – Networking, Drinks, and Appetizers
5:00—5:30 General Meeting
5:30—6:30 Social Hour Extended
October 24, 2023
Good evening, Chairwoman Mrs. Lichter, Vice Chair Mrs. Harvey, Superintendent Dr. Rogers, and members of the board.
Thank you for letting me speak on behalf of CASE.
I’d like to speak to you tonight about the rights of transgender students and employees. The federal government, the Maryland state government, and the Baltimore County government all recognize transgender people as a protected class. An announcement from the pentagon stated the Defense Department proudly recognizes transgender and gender non-conforming people and their continued struggle for equality, security and dignity. “There is no place for violence and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, or expression.”
The American Medical Association Journal of Ethics states:
Transgender rights stem from human rights, i.e., those fundamental rights belonging to every person. Persons with either cisgender (in which assigned and experienced gender are the same) or transgender identities deserve to live and flourish in their communities—with freedom to learn, work, love, and play—and build lives connected with others at home, in the workplace, and in public settings without fear for their safety and survival. These deeply personal decisions are and should be the prerogative of the individual and deserve the law’s protection.
Research also shows that transgender children are put at higher risk of attempted suicide or mental health challenges when they face bullying, rejection, or denial of health care.
In previous BCPS board meetings there have been uninformed conversations about bathrooms and locker rooms. I suspect those arguments happen because the topic is easily distorted to become salacious by using outrageous examples that aren’t real and are designed to cause fear. The solutions to those questions have some simple and commonplace answers. Most public businesses have gender neutral bathroom options. BCPS schools and offices can easily do the same.
If the idea of transgender students and staff makes you uncomfortable, I encourage you to do some research and reading. No one is asking you to give up your beliefs and rights. What you are being asked to do is support the rights of others as a public official and leader.
I say all of this because I need you to know that your conversations and decisions in these board meetings matter. Your public comments can inspire the community to show compassion and understanding or they can inspire the community to continue the legacy of hate and discrimination. Your comments can inspire a child that feels alone and unsupported or your comments can reinforce their fear and isolation.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak.
—Billy Burke, Executive Director
September 26, 2023
Good evening, Chairwoman Mrs. Lichter, Vice Chair Mrs. Harvey, Superintendent Dr. Rogers, and members of the board.
Thank you for letting me speak on behalf of CASE.
This month BCPS and CASE began contract negotiations and budget conversations.
CASE’s priorities for negotiations remain firm. We ask for fair pay that addresses experience and inflation and general increases in what it costs to have appropriate food and housing. Experience is recognized through step increases. Combating inflation and the increases in basic consumer costs happens through a Cost-of-Living Adjustment.
Last week as part of the monthly union update meeting with Dr. Rogers and her staff, I asked for greater communication and transparency with the board, the county executive, and county council. Dr. Rogers spoke of regular, open communication with Baltimore County government, and I am encouraged by that.
You’ve heard me speak about this before. It is disappointing at best when the unions spend a year negotiating the terms of the contract and making suggestions for the budget only to find out that the county executive and the county council were not supportive of the ask. We need feedback and information on the state of the budget during the development of both the contracts and the budget. That would mean the unions need quarterly meetings with BCPS staff, the board, and Baltimore County government.
CASE’s priorities for the budget also remain firm. The staffing shortage remains the greatest stressor for teachers and administrators and staff. Please focus your budget discussions on strategies that address the staffing shortage. Strategies that address the staffing shortage naturally address hiring, retention, culture, and morale.
In the past I’ve spoken about the need for more resources in special education. We need to continue to try and staff elementary schools with IEP facilitators. The work-life balance of most assistant principals is non-existent. Assistant principals should be focused on instruction and student performance so there is a pipeline of people ready to lead schools. But assistant principals spend much of their time addressing student behavior, transportation, testing, and after school activities.
We need staffing strategies that support administrators with tasks not related to instruction so they can concentrate on being instructional leaders. Research tells us that teachers stay when they feel supported. We need to make sure administrators have the time and expertise to support.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak on behalf of CASE.
—Billy Burke, Executive Director
June 13, 2023
Good evening, Chairwoman Mrs. Lichter, Vice Chairwoman Mrs. Harvey, Superintendent Dr. Williams, and members of the board.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you on behalf of CASE.
I’d like to take a moment and celebrate the members of CASE. You have led schools, families, and students through another challenging and successful year. It is time to rest, rejuvenate, and find what inspires you. Summer school and the start of the new school year will be here before you know it.
Dr. Williams, on behalf of CASE, thank you for your service to Baltimore County.
Dr. Yarbrough, congratulations on your appointment. CASE looks forward to continuing meaningful collaboration.
As we move forward I would like to make the following recommendations.
As MOUs are created with each of the 5 bargaining units, each bargaining unit should review the MOU for impact to its members. MOUs should remain in draft form until a collaboratively designed implementation plan is in place that focuses on the unit that must implement the decision. A work group of end users must provide feedback on the decision before the MOU goes into effect. This process would ensure balance when attempting to improve working conditions.
My second recommendation is aligned to the budget process. This year to balance the budget a number of positions needed to be eliminated. CASE would recommend that the actual positions be listed and the people in the positions be notified as the budget is introduced. This would give the employees time to be placed in parallel positions when available as indicated in the Master Agreements or change their declarations of intent and/or look for another position within BCPS during the priority transfer process. It is hard to tell staff their position is eliminated. I get it. We hope that things will change, and they can stay. But we need to avoid delaying telling people their position is eliminated to give them maximum opportunity.
Finally, CASE is recommending that BCPS continue to improve its grow-your-own leadership programs. There is so much talent, years of experience, and dedication to BCPS within the organization. Let’s capitalize on that commitment.
I’d like to end by thanking the board and BCPS leadership for securing the step increase and COLA during negotiations. It is greatly appreciated.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak on behalf of CASE.
—Billy Burke, Executive Director
Here is the new CASE salary scale, which is effective beginning July 1, 2023.
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Hello CASE Members,
Happy June.
I attended less formal BCPS meetings this month. I spent the bulk of my time supporting members through investigations, performance concerns, and disciplinary actions. All three of those topics can feel like a punch in the gut. Through this support I’ve learned there is always room for growth, treat people with respect, investigations are sometimes an attempt to intimidate, and sometimes investigations lead to learning some new ways of behaving. We should have an in-person conversation about this at our next membership meeting. In the meantime, know what you stand for, set boundaries for how you will be treated, and examine how you treat others. Being a leader is hard. You will be criticized. Do what you know is right anyway. You inspire me.
The Board of Education and County Executive approved budget includes:
Vacation accrual caps will be suspended until December 31, 2023. Effective January 1, 2024, vacation accrual caps will be increased by five days for each bargaining unit. Any vacation days earned after the cap has been reached will be moved to rolled leave. Upon separation from BCPS, vacation will be paid in accordance with the negotiated master agreement towards retirement. (Repeated from April)
Self-love is a sincere acceptance of the past, an agreement to make the most of the present, and a willingness to allow the best to occur in the future.
—Yung Pueblo
You are not the darkness you endured. You are the light that refused to surrender.
—John Mark Green
Best regards,
Billy
Hello CASE Members,
It is hard to believe it is May 1. Hang in there. The end is in sight.
The Board of Education and County Executive approved budget includes:
The budget now goes to the County Council for approval.
Vacation accrual caps will be suspended until December 31, 2023. Effective January 1, 2024, vacation accrual caps will be increased by five days for each bargaining unit. Any vacation days earned after the cap has been reached will be moved to rolled leave. Upon separation from BCPS, vacation will be paid in accordance with the negotiated master agreement towards retirement.
A subgroup of CASE members will meet with the candidates for Superintendent on May 9. They will interview the candidates and provide feedback to the Board of Education. The names of the finalists will be confidential at this time. It is important to protect their identities as they pursue this opportunity. Candidates may not want their current districts to know that they are pursuing other opportunities until they identified as finalists. We will respect that request.
In an effort to be transparent—I was originally going to facilitate one of the candidate interview workgroups. Candidates have listed me as a reference. It has become a conflict of interest. The Board of Education will identify another facilitator. You will be well represented by several CASE members.
What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of a difference you want to make.
—Jane Goodall
Don’t wait for extraordinary opportunities. Seize common occasions and make them great.
—Orison Swett Marden
Best regards,
Billy
Hello CASE Members,
Happy Spring Break Eve. I hope you have plans to rest and rejuvenate.
The Board of Education approved budget includes:
The budget now goes to the County Executive and County Council for approval.
AFSCME employees were offered this option because during the early months of COVID they were denied the right to use their vacation because they were considered essential. So, when everyone was working from home, they still were required to go in and were not allowed to take vacation days. CASE employees didn’t have the same restrictions.
Although the deadline for using accrued vacation was extended for CASE members, I know many of you would like options besides the extra days moving to rolled leave. I continue to discuss with BCPS. The AFSCME payout and the use of accrued leave that was saved if we transitioned to pay in arrears are two different issues and are being discussed as such. There are still no plans or timeline for moving to pay in arrears.
Get out of your head and back on your feet. Remember who the hell you are. This means returning to your body because you are missing your life living in your thoughts. Feel the ground beneath your feet and start living. It’s time.
—J. Mike Fields
Best regards,
Billy
March 14, 2023
Dear Chairwoman Mrs. Lichter, Vice Chair Mrs. Harvey, Superintendent Dr. Williams, and Members of the Board,
Thank you for the opportunity to speak on behalf of CASE.
I’d like to speak to you tonight about two issues.
The first issue is the STAR ratings. It is important that we as educators are accountable for student learning, but I am concerned that the STAR system of ranking schools creates a confusing and misleading picture of what is happening in schools. Rating systems like STAR assume everyone comes to the table with the same resources and opportunities. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Variability is the norm. Students are different, and the challenges they face happen at the community, school, and family level.
It is important to remember that the STAR ratings are a snapshot in time. The rankings don’t explain where schools started and how schools and students have grown. And most importantly the STAR ratings don’t provide a corrective action plan for moving forward based on the individual and real challenges student, schools, and communities face. I’m not against accountability, but rating systems like STAR mislead the public into believing that one school is good, and one school is bad based on the ratings. As you visit schools, you will see excellence in schools with a one-star rating and you will see room for improvement in schools with a 5 star rating.
The second issue I’d like to bring to your attention is changes to COMAR when disciplining students with IEPs that have exhibited dangerous behavior like weapons possession and fighting. The law limits and prohibits the suspension and expulsion of students that exhibit dangerous behaviors if those behaviors are a manifestation of the student’s disabilities. The law limits the use of virtual learning for these students. What the law doesn’t do is provide direction and support as well as resources to schools and school districts in providing appropriate placements and supports for these students. Teachers and administrators feel unheard and under resourced when asking for support in providing an appropriate education for theses students. The current law makes students and staff feel unsafe.
I often hear board members say to staff, “How can we help?” This is how you can help. Lobby at the state and national levels for the resources and guidance needed to provide appropriate educational supports to students struggling with behavioral challenges. Ask for processes that are rigorous and funded, but streamlined to get students the supports they need quickly. It would be an important step in making schools safer. Just ask your child’s teacher. Just ask your children.
Thank you for your time.
—Billy Burke, Executive Director
Hello CASE Members,
A TABCO MOU is in place so that the pre and post observation conference should be held by the same administrator. This was published in the News Hub and the Principal’s Weekly Update. I was unaware of this MOU until it became an issue. I am not a BCPS employee, so I don’t get the news hub or weekly update. This MOU is in place until June 30, 2023. If you ever receive information you think I need to know please send it to me.
Action Requested:
If you have not sent the following email to the board of education, please consider doing so. If you have already sent an email, thank you! A recent board discussion revealed a request to remove stakeholders from the public comment portion of board meetings. Send the email to boe@bcps.org.
Dear Members of the BCPS Board of Education,
It is critical that CASE maintain its current ability to speak at board meetings as a stakeholder. We rely on the board to support us as leaders, and we need the ability to publicly communicate to you through our Executive Director. Thank you for your support. Thank you for your service to the staff, students, and community of BCPS.
Best regards,
CASE Member’s Name
Position
School or Office
I will be on vacation from March 22 to March 27.
We are still in the process of grieving the implementation of last year’s compensation package. I’m frustrated by the run around.
Quotes for February:
Best regards,
Billy