Community

1 month ago

The PTHEA Executive Board sent this letter to the membership this afternoon.

Please share.

#unity #respect #professionalism

#parsippany #teachers #students #parents ...

Likes: 85
Shares: 25
Comments: 23

Now that's how you write a letter! Well done!

I hope you all wore mumus to work!

Well stated! As a colleague from another district we applaud you for standing strong.

Awesome letter!! The Board of Ed and the superintendent should be that professional! Instead of attacking the educators of this fine district they should be putting their efforts into trying to come up with a way to settle this contract without insulting your needs anymore! Hold your heads high and stay strong! #settlefornothing leasthanyoudeserve

We stand behind you, the schools don’t get such praise because of her, and she should be grateful for all you do!

A beautiful letter speaking from someone who bases their worth on their look I thank you from the bottom of my heart these are definitely unprecedented times.

We support our Parsippany teachers!

Well said and keep up the amazing work both for the district students and for the employees that rely on this team for battling against this terrible process that has gone on too long

Really surprised by that nasty mumu letter. My son is in the district pre-k now and starting kindergarten next year. It's unsettling how easy those insults came out of a Supt's mouth. Another question ------- does the Supt have the same contract as the actual teachers do? Or does she negotiate her own contract separately?

Bravo! I applaud every one of the PTHEA, the teachers!!!the backbone of our community who are basically nurturing, inspiring and instructing OUR future! The language in that letter from the supt. Was offensive and deplorable. #not1daymore #givetheteacherswhattheywant

Well done. You all are owed a serious apology....

Me Tuesday night grading papers .... RESPECT2TEACHERS

Well done PTHEA! As a husband of a teacher in district and a teacher myself I am with you all 100%.

well done.

Loved this response! Good work.

Nice. That they recognized how upsetting that memo was.

barbara needs 2 apologize

Excellent!

👏🏼👍🏼

👏👏👏

GO PTHEA

1 month ago

This was the only message we received from our Superintendent during Teacher Appreciation Week.

Please share.

#respect #appreciated #teacherappreciation

#faircontract #nocontract #stillworking #alwayscaring

#parents #students #parsippany #morriscounty #newjersey ...

Likes: 27
Shares: 101
Comments: 85

Does this superintendent think that the situation is funny? PTHEA is not breaking their existing contract. Rather than be recognized for ALL of the ABOVE AND BEYOND her staff does daily, as these actions demonstrate, you are attacked with a sarcastic, patronizing letter that serves to threaten you into going above and beyond without compensation for it. I think you should follow suit and treat the situation as professionally as she has. #MumuNation

Not only is that an insulting and disrespectful letter to our wonderful teachers, but also poorly written. Yikes. Maybe this writer should stay for the entirety of a negotiating session or hope competent board members get voted in, then things might get cleared up. They should all be ashamed of how they've treated / attempted (and failed) to villainize the most valuable members of our community. #supporttheteachers

Not too much appreciation seen here. Sad

Wow. That’s rude. I can see she really supports the teachers and staff. Not.

Pathetic and insulting in far too many ways. Everyone should rock the mumu, including the male educators, until a public apology is released.

Unfortunate.

Disgraceful. Our teachers deserve better because they are the best. I taught at CMS for 23 yrs and was a building rep and NEVER were we exposed to such a horrible lack of support . Not only should the superintendent be admonished so too should the board. I urge all citizens of Parsippany to get active and vote out this Board of Education. Some of these members have remained in power for far too long. Unless the citizens get involved, they have only themselves to blame. Our teachers deserve better.

Adding insult to injury releasing this teacher appreciation week. Tacky condescending and frankly appalling. I am embarrassed for our district and feel for our teachers whom we appreciate so much. Sending love to all of our teachers from a MTS parent. I’ll be sure to write my 4th letter in the span of 2 months...

It is obvious from the tone of the letter that the leader of the district does not support her staff. Maybe the problem is not the teachers but the senior administration and the members of the Board of Education should maybe look for someone who can actually lead and not just dictate.

I taught in Parsippany for 39 years. I went through a strike in the 70’s as well as many contentious contract negotiations. Through it all we never received a letter like this. The lack of respect is unbelievable.

Teachers work harder than anyone. The superintendent should walk a day in their shoes, and learn how to be professional.

Obviously. Point made on both sides. As I am retiring this year, I feel sad we are not able to negotiate on stronger ground. My colleagues And I have never diminished the care we put in daily to creating exciting lessons and teaching our children. That is our job and we do it 100%. What we have held back on is what we have always done ABOVE AND BEYOND. That's all that is missing, and it shows. It shows because our ABOVE AND BEYOND is so much that it has made a difference in our students lives. But it's the many things we do on our own time taking away from our own families outside of work and our regularly scheduled duties. If we can negotiate a contract fair to our professional level , the above and beyond activities will return in a heartbeat. Do not think for one minute that it doesn't bother us that it's the only way we can make our stand. But rest assured that each and every day we were in our classrooms teaching our hearts out. That will never change.

I am appalled by the unprofessionalism of this letter from the superintendent. As an alum, I am immensely grateful for the many kind and generous teachers that guided me though.

I suggest that as a state we should pick a day that all of us wear mumus and send photos to her along to the news

In addition to the condescending tone, the whole construct of the memo is extremely unprofessional. Im new to the district and my daughter is attending Littleton elementary. Her teacher has been extremely accommodating and helpful. Teachers should not be on the receiving end of this highly inappropriate communication. Those individuals in question should have been dealt with on a case by case basis. A more appropriate approach would have been an expression of gratitude for the hard work teachers put in daily despite their lack of contract.

The entire situation is embarrassing no? Superintendents writing snarky letters and teachers are talking about their contracts and finances with students and parents? Awful! And the public is caught in the middle watching it unfold live time.....smh

Wow how rude and condescending!! Teachers salaries and contracts are public knowledge!! I'm sure she and her 190k salary don't worry about paying bills as much as our educators do

No one should be discussing any of the particulars of contract negotiations or finances with students or parents. Put out a general update and be professional. The fact that Dr. Sargent felt the need to write this letter is appalling!!! I have negotiated a union contract and you are being unprofessional by publishing this communication. She is your boss, an open letter is much more lenient then if she went to each school and disciplined each person speaking to students about such inappropriate topics. Everyone in the public sector is making sacrifices and salaries are lower then before the Governor decided we all had to pay into our pension and healthcare.

Wow this is ridiculous. Not only is this so petty of her to write, but she's acting as if the community has no right to know that the teachers that are responsible for educating their children are being expected to provide such a crucial service for even less.

I am blown away by this. As an educator and parent of an incoming kindergarten student, I find this bizarrely aggressive approach from leadership to be extremely appalling. I support the PTHEA!!

I’d say this woman is a bully. Talk about unprofessional. As a retired PTH teacher I know how hard working and generous these teachers are. I have also experienced first hand how they are disrespected on a daily basis by our board of education and the administration. Obviously this woman does not know jack about what reality is for a teacher - ridiculous demands with an unappreciative level of payment. Open your eyes Dr Sargent. -shame on you. The teachers in Parsippany deserve so much better.

What if the conversation isn't about money but explaining to students that they are only working to their contract and not above and beyond because they are not paid for the things they do for free? Many students do not understand that teachers do things for them, such as writing letters of recommendation for college, because they care about their future not because they are paid a "bonus" for all the extra work they do. This can be misunderstood and communicated differently to parents by the time students get home for the day. As a former PTHEA member, I worked with EXTREMELY professional teachers and I can't imagine many teachers acting the way the superintendent is describing. I can tell you there are MANY teachers who work above and beyond their contract because they care about students but when it has taken so many negotiations to try to come to a fair contract, the teachers have to do something. In this case, they are working to their contract hours and only what is expected of them from what the contract says. This isn't the first time Parsippany-Troy Hills Education Association has gone through this situation. They are consistently fighting for a fair contract each time the contract expires while going above and beyond to help their students learn in their classrooms and throughout the school day. Even if they sign the contract tomorrow, the contract is backdated to when the previous one expired which means they MAY have one year of no negotiations before they have to go back and fight for a fair contract... This superintendent should be ashamed of herself for the tone and demeanor of the letter. I hope news stations hear about this!

As a retired teacher from Parsippany I am appalled. In almost 35 years of teaching I. Ever received a letter like this. A superintendent should support her staff

Wow

Wow, this is a superintendent of schools? She should be released of her duties as superintendent. What a horrible letter.

1 month ago

Please see the attached message regarding the band and Memorial Day weekend.

#nocontract #stillworking ...

Likes: 99
Shares: 43
Comments: 24

This sad. Teachers are some of the most important people in the community. They are responsible for helping to shape the future of our children. There efforts are rewarded with substandard pay. I know the chose to go into the field knowing this, but it seems that the people responsible for paying them have so little respect for what they do.

I totally back this decision. If we really want to see the bands there I would put it together and help the leadership to try and get it together but that defeats the purpose of this protest. Yes I’m upset I won’t see my band this year but I’m more passionate about getting the teachers compensation that they have deserved for a long time.

I am sure this will go over like a lead balloon but I need to ask.......How much $ are we talking about? How much has the health insurance gone up for teachers? What are the percentages of their salaries paying into their health insurance? Have they been getting raises or cost of living raises? How does it compare with the rest of us? Let me say this very clearly, I am a HUGE fan of teachers..... They have a tough job and they have to deal with so many different obstacles and personalities and I certainly wouldn't want to do their job. This being said, everyone I know is struggling with the costs of healthcare and not one person I know ( educated or not) is getting paid what they are actually worth. So many people are not receiving the cost of living increase every year and a few have had to forfeit a percentage of their salaries just to keep their jobs.... Many people walk into their occupations totally accepting that there may be additional hours to be put in even though they are salary and most people take a job fully acknowledging that there is a salary cap. Again I ask, how does the amount of $ the teachers are putting into their healthcare costs compare with the rest of the population? Is it an unreasonable amount? We are currently receiving emails, fliers and Social Media posts almost daily from the PTHEA and the BOE both giving their own version of these #'s. All I know is (as a tax payer whose property tax pays almost 70% to the schools) that holding kids and their activities hostage because of money is inappropriate. If there isn't enough $ in the budget or if there is a higher priority for that $ then the BOE has to prove that. In addition, teachers need to know that they took this job because they love kids and if money is now their driving factor I am sure that there are other teachers who love kids just as much and they would kill to have the opportunity to teach for less then these teachers already have now..... This is a horrible situation as a taxpayer. We put in so much $ and we are not in control of how we would like it spent and now our kids are in a game of tug of war......

Why wasn't this a problem 1 month ago when the band teachers took the marching band to Walt Disney World? Why was it ok for these teachers to travel, outside of contract, over a thousand miles away for a few days, But it is not ok for them to spend a few hours in OUR town participating in a civic event to honor the memory of those who gave their Lives to our Nation?

Two words. Job Action. Months of failed negotiations solved with one job action day in Jersey City. Don’t let the BOE push teachers around. Don’t forget, the school system is nothing without the hard working teachers, paras, all association staff. Stay unified. Stay strong. Fight back PTHEA!

So according to the Sept 13, 2018 Board of Ed minutes, an Assistant Band Director at the HS level is paid a stipend of $6,038. Over 10 months, that grants a gross amount of $150.95 per week for said person. And below is the detailed description on the District Website regarding responsibilities. Just the facts.... sharepoint.pthsd.k12.nj.us/community/Job%20Descriptions/Marching%20Band%20Director%209-24-09.pdf

🤘 PTHEA. Teachers have been expected to do extra curricular activities for too long without proper compensation. If they want to expect extra, they can expect to pay extra.

Next Board meeting is May 30th 7pm at Parsippany High School for those hoping to make a difference.

Update: Staff members were directed by the superintendent to attend the parade. They are doing so.

Sad still no contract but you kept saying it’s about the kids. I know a few that are about the kids but not all.

Absolutely what needs to happen. Unfortunately this is what it’s come to.

Maybe this will open the Boards eyes and they will do the right thing!

You got to do what you got to do! 👏🏼 Hopefully this helps get things rolling in the right direction and fast

Totally understood!

#solidarity from Dover

Good for you! The Board disrespects you by not giving you what you deserve? This is what happens. #support

Absolutely agree.

Everyone should go to the parade wearing mumus.

Back u 100%

👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

Support the PTHEA!

RESPECT2TEACHERS 🙌🏼.... time is now ... Not1MoreDay

👚👚👚👚👚👚👚

1 month ago

We ask to be treated like respected professionals. We ask for good faith negotiations.

Even a county average salary increase would still hurt nearly 300 of our most senior and experienced teachers in this district. More needs to be done because these teachers have seen a consistent decrease in take-home pay for the last 8 years. We do more, get more experience, and consistently take home less and less compensation. To prevent this, we need the Board to agree to adjust the insurance contribution rates for our members. The Board is empowered and legally allowed to do so. The cost would be minuscule. In a budget of $157 million, what we ask would amount to an increase of less than 0.3%. The board has rejected all our proposals to modify this percentage to allow an increase in take-home pay for our members.

*We have been unable to convince the Board with logic, emotional appeals, and statistical truths. We have no other choice but to refrain from doing the dozens and dozens of things that we do above and beyond our compensated duties. We are not going to volunteer our services to do extra work without compensation. We are not going to run or attend events beyond our duties. This is not a radical idea. We know that the students will be hurt by this – and it sickens us that the Board has forced us into this position. We have no choice. We cannot allow our own children and families to be hurt any longer.*

If this angers or bothers you, please write to the Board, or attend meetings. We need your help. We need a change. ...

Likes: 71
Shares: 79
Comments: 24

Stand strong and above all stand united! If u don’t have unity u have nothing its time the newer teachers and the veteran teachers who aren’t getting it join the rest of u who are working so hard to get things done. There is much more power in numbers and the BOE AND central office staff need to start appreciating all u do as educators of the best students in what was once the finest districts in which to be a part of as educators!#staystrong!

It is beyond me why the BOE hasn’t given contracts yet! #notonedaymore

This is ridiculous!!! The BOE needs to do something!!! Enough is enough

Crazy high taxes is causing a squeeze.... and the school administrators are wrongly taking it out on the teachers when it’s them who need to cut back. Why does a superintendent get $180,000 plus a year with a $50,000 bonus? For what? It’s the top that needs to be trimmed, not the teachers.

I know that there are parents who are ticked off that teachers won’t be doing those extras but, that last line says it all. “We cannot allow our own children and families to be hurt any longer”. People tend to forget that teachers have a life outside the classroom!

I'm frustrated and upset that it is taking so long to come to a settlement!! Teachers, I am so proud of you for standing together and doing what is right for your students. Be proud of yourselves for being professional!! We support you all the way!!

Time for Parsippany residents to run for the board and replace those who have been on the board too long. It is unfair to ask teachers to pay more into their health benefits and not have their raise cover the increase. What about the administrators? Did their raises go totally to their health benefits with nothing left over? I think not.

Insane... sadly, this is happening in many districts. Parents need to go to the board meetings and speak on behalf of the teachers... Community support makes a huge difference...

The BOE needs to stop making directors of each teaching subject. Instead they need to pay the teachers who are the ones who actually work!!!!! So unfair!

Hello, I have an honest question on how the gross increase is calculated. Is it fair to estimate a 20 year veteran teacher could earn $80,000-$85,000. Is the 3% raise figured into the Step 16 increase or it is applied directly to the total? TY!

I’m sure not one of those board members would stand for this treatment from their employers. So.........

I said at that one board meeting on camera I’m horrible at math but even I can see it doesn’t add up #givetheteacherswhattheywant

I’m not surprised by the data! Plus state mandates have increased our workload ... double whammy !

Just so I'm getting the facts straight: You're paying 29% of your premiums?

Your anger is more than justfied and they've left you with no choice but to take action!

What is wrong with the BOE? Do what is right!

How sad this is

Unbelievable

#notonedaymore

#Respect2Teachers🍎....

Jonathan Richard

Keep fighting. You deserve more!!!!!! Gene Madden

Parsippany BOE would like to blame the teachers. Push back. Is the PTHEA responding to this letter sent to parents?? track.spe.schoolmessenger.com/f/a/EYefYlIov3jxYzSys_ei6g~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRewGvgP0R1aHR0cHM6Ly9tc2cuc...

Parsippany-Troy Hills Education Association is at Jay Webber’s Legislative Offices.

1 month ago

Would have loved to have a conversation with Jay Webber or his staff but no one was in the office. We need Chapter 78 Relief.

New Jersey Education Association

Morris County Council of Education Associations (MCCEA)

#FixTheUnfairness #RedForEd #WeAreWorthIt ...

Likes: 67
Shares: 7
Comments: 6

You guys deserve what you ask for - we have to put our money where our mouths are - education is very important - have to support it or else.............

remember that when election day comes around in November. There are new candidates running against Jay Webber and Betty Lou DeCroce who want to make a difference and who support the teachers and what they're fighting for! There will also be BOE elections in November if you're not happy with your boards and want to make some changes.

Thank you, everyone!

I spy Gene Madden