Cutting adult education teachers. Does this make sense?
Here is a piece that will run on Monday’s education op-ed page by an instructor at DeKalb Technical College. Like many of his colleagues, Janusz Maciuba is getting his teaching hours cut.
Maciuba raises good questions about the impact of this decision not only the livelihood of instructors, but on students. He also questions that financial underpinnings of this decision since new instructors have to be hired for the classes, which will be still be offered. My concern is that there doesn’t seem to be any cost-savings to this plan.
To be clear what we are talking about: (Thanks to a poster for this summation.)
TCSG Office of Adult Education, which is largely funded through federal appropriations for programs like GED and ESL. Your comments and those of some others make it read like he’s one of the instructors for the 190,000 students in technical education certificate, diploma or degree program. Technical education credit programs, which this instructor does not teach, are funded through the state budget and college tuition. Changes to his position and hours are probably due to changes in the flow of federal money into this program.
Enjoy:
By Janusz Maciuba
I checked my mailbox at DeKalb Technical College last month, and found a memo that cut my hours by 55 percent.
The new fiat from the Technical College System of Georgia limits the number of hours that a part-time employee can work to less than 20 hours a week. Previously, this 19.5 hour limit was invoked for retired teachers who were collecting a state pension, as a safeguard against double-dipping.
I now teach an English as a Second Language class in the mornings, three days a week; that’s 12 hours. I also teach an evening ESL class, three days a week; that’s nine hours.
And, depending on the volume of papers, I grade GED essays on Monday and Friday mornings; that’s six hours a week.
Under the new rules, I cannot teach both classes at DeKalb Tech because that would be 21 hours.Until I read further down the memo, my first thought was that I could make up some hours by reading more GED essays.
But, no; I cannot teach at DeKalb Tech and also work for another entity within the TCSG. I cannot work at another technical college or for any state agency. So, I can only teach the morning classes for 12 hours. Goodbye to 15 hours of work and pay.This edict will affect an estimated 50 fellow workers: ESL and GED teachers and support staff at DeKalb Tech. I don’t know the individual impact to my fellow workers of losing pay but I have to find another job and many of my colleagues will have to do the same. These are people who have given, and give daily, more than the usual measure of devotion to their students; who have had one 50 cent increase in 10 years; who work at home and before and after class; who have the experience to know the right hammer to drive in a single nail of knowledge; and who are now so arbitrarily disenfranchised.
Our dedicated students at the Doraville campus where I work, travel to school, some from as far away as Lithonia, Duluth, Marietta, College Park and Lilburn, some taking two buses, a train and almost three hours to get to school.
Some come to the morning class after working all night, most of the evening students after working a full day. They so eager to learn, they put the students I taught in high school and middle school to shame. Don’t they deserve the best teachers?
I have had the immigrant experience twice, once in England and again in the United States, and English is my second language, so I understand what ESL students need.
My classes get grammar, writing, reading and conversation but also lessons in American culture. Beside English, I am fluent in Polish, which helps with Russian students, and remember a bit of French, so that I can speak to students from Haiti, Congo, and other Francophone countries.
I have an academic degree in English and a vocational master’s in English Instruction and yet, even with this ideal combination of education, it seems that I can be replaced by a new hire with no experience. How will this help the mission of the college? The students?
I might understand this policy, if some money were saved. But new people will have to be hired, while all those people experienced in teaching and administration will vanish from the classrooms and offices.
And, once again, through the state, we will hear the slap-slap-slap of Bozo shoes, as Georgia races against Alabama and Mississippi for last place in every educational measure.
–From Maureen Downey, for the AJC Get Schooled blog
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45 comments Add your comment
TW
March 6th, 2011
11:17 am
Janusz – bum deal for sure.
Keep in mind that a fruitful system of education goes against the interests of those who financed our current leadership’s ascent to power.
Keeping education’s reputation in the gutter is vital when prioritizing toys over books.
Dr. Craig Spinks/ Augusta
March 6th, 2011
11:31 am
If there were financial incentives for the TCSG when its GED and ESOL students passed their respective, independently-administered competency exams, the TCSG might be more sensitive to the needs of these students and their teachers.
catlady
March 6th, 2011
11:33 am
Is it only the ESOL and remedial classes that are being cut, or all 49%ers?
Jean
March 6th, 2011
11:40 am
Due to decisions made by the President and Provost at the school where I teach part-time ( I am a retired teacher), I can no longer teach part-time at all. Now they are using ‘Emporium” style classes of 100 students who will do all of their work and instruction 3 days a week for 50 min ONLINE. This makes no sense to me at all. How can the one person that is in the room with these students do what I did even when my classes had 45 students? Our post-secondary system is not going to improve graduation rates with this poilicy. To the writer of the article, I can feel your pain and I hope that you get another job. Good luck and God bless.
Fred
March 6th, 2011
12:10 pm
What I cannot understand is the fact that Technical Colleges in Georgia have enjoyed RECORD enrollment for the past 3 years, with increases in student body nearly every quarter.
NWGA teacher
March 6th, 2011
12:41 pm
If the future depends on education, then Georgia is looking toward a bleak future.
www.honeyfern.org
March 6th, 2011
12:42 pm
Nobody is immune to cuts. Many school systems ahve done this already with their own part-time people.
I think there will be severe ramifications as a result of this. It’s just a waiting game to see what (and who) is hit the hardest.
teacher&mom
March 6th, 2011
1:04 pm
I have a family member who teaches at a technical college. Technical colleges are not treated well in this state. They are basically given crumbs — compared to the the University system.
Dr. Craig Spinks/ Augusta
March 6th, 2011
1:22 pm
Fred,
Don’t our technical colleges receive money for enrolling students, not for graduating ones who meet industry and academic standards?
Jennifer
March 6th, 2011
1:24 pm
Technical colleges – cut. Gwinnett land deals- cut. Doesn’t seem fair does it ? Students are far too often found holding the short end of the stick in all that pertains to education.
http://www.ajc.com/news/gwinnett/land-flips-sting-taxpayers-862007.html
The rest of the story
March 6th, 2011
1:53 pm
The people in charge of the budget just don’t get it. They want to balance the budget by cutting employees. Unemployment is hire in GA than the national average, so it’s not like they can find another job. They will file for unemployment–still out of the budget, just a different name. It’s going to cost the same to let them work or pay them unemployment. It makes more sense to let them work and be contributing members to the economy.
GA EDU Example
March 6th, 2011
2:09 pm
@ The rest of the story – FYI it is higher NOT hire.
Terd Fergesun
March 6th, 2011
2:19 pm
Hey Tech Teachers, do like the Wisconsin teachers and call in sick. Maybe 13 or 14 dem senators will leave the state for you until you don’t have to take a cut. Yeah, that will work just like it is there.
oldtimer
March 6th, 2011
2:51 pm
Retired teachers who worked parttime in elementary schools for tutoring are gone too…
Curious One
March 6th, 2011
2:53 pm
Techical Schools in Georgia have experienced “unnatural” and runaway growth due to HOPE and zero accountabilty and very little to do with kids, all of sudden, wanting to become educated and trained. This applies to lots of the 34 colleges in the state system – equally but with minimum accountability.
Go Figure
March 6th, 2011
3:30 pm
I guess the powers that are have a priority other than educmakashun. Real stoopid. I thought that the guverment said jobs inkreasd last munth. Is somebody playing with the truth? I do not see it getting any better anywhere even though I read in the papers that it is getting better.
redhousecat
March 6th, 2011
3:31 pm
looks like the author will need to find another job altogether or simply deal with the cuts. Just because he/she happens to be a tech school instructor does not immune him/her from the backlash of an poor economy. Many other Americans in other fields have faced the same fate.
Perhaps the author could find another career path and use the teaching skills as a backup.
Rayd8ng
March 6th, 2011
3:43 pm
CuriousOne,
You need to get your facts straight before making the above statement. I do not know why you think that the Technical College System of Georgia is held to zero accountability, We have to account for graduates and for leavers. We also have to track down the students (leavers) and get information from them as to why they left and what they are planning to do. So before you make statements that we have minimum accountablility, why don’t you contact our state office and speak to Commissioner Jackson. He will give you the correct information.
Also, for many of our programs that have program accreditation, we HAVE to account for attrition and retention within our programs. We are accountable for students that take certification tests and if they pass or fail. We have benchmarks that must be met and when they are not met, we have to justify our methods of instruction, etc.
Our system has seen growth because of people with loss of jobs and they need a new career. Our education is less expensive than the Board of Regents. We educate our students and get them into the workforce. We have seen a great increase because of the downturn of the economy so many of our students are unemployed and trying to make a living for themselves and their families and becoming productive members of the community.
If they are going to cut something, cut the profits or bonuses that are given to merchants that sell winning lottery tickets and the lottery office itself. Why cut education when we are already holding up the other 49 states when some of the fat and gravy can be cut elsewhere.
catlady
March 6th, 2011
4:15 pm
What I have a hard time reconciling is gutting (not a misprint) education but allowing those Gwinnett land deals, hiring more and more at higher and higher salaries at the local and state BOEs/DOE, and other such wastes.
If we were serious about education, we would cut non-education functions first, and those who do not work with kids 8 hours per day. Put our money on academic instruction, not on things that, while desirable, don’t directly contribute to Johnny learning to read.
jm
March 6th, 2011
4:40 pm
Yes, it makes sense!
Old Gray Citizen
March 6th, 2011
4:54 pm
When will the Republicans learn that we actually LIKE and NEED some of the things government provides? The challenge will be distinguishing between the important and the unimportant. So far, Gov Deal doesn’t seem very astute – nor does our wonderful legislature.
A Conservative Voice
March 6th, 2011
5:59 pm
Janusz Maciuba is getting his teaching hours cut.
Welcome to the real world, Janusz…..rules is rules. You should have known them going in……I mean, you are a teacher!!!!!
Sam Jones
March 6th, 2011
6:12 pm
Maureen: The instructor writing this works under the TCSG Office of Adult Education, which is largely funded through federal appropriations for programs like GED and ESL. Your comments and those of some others make it read like he’s one of the instructors for the 190,000 students in technical education certificate, diploma or degree program. Technical education credit programs, which this instructor does not teach, are funded through the state budget and college tuition. Changes to his position and hours are probably due to changes in the flow of federal money into this program.
Maureen Downey
March 6th, 2011
6:27 pm
@Sam, I have added your comment to the entry so everyone is clear. My issue is simply that this doesn’t seem to be a real cost-savings plan if, in fact, the classes still need to be taught. For me, the issue is running off people only to have to hire others.
Maureen
irisheyes
March 6th, 2011
6:28 pm
My reading comprehension skills may be poor, since I am ONLY a teacher, but it seems they’re cutting instructor hours, but not the classes. What it looks like is they’re cutting the hours of the experienced instructors to hire newer instructors (probably at a lower rate) while still charging the students the same amount of money. I can see his frustration.
Toto: Exposing naked body scanners...
March 6th, 2011
6:44 pm
The issue here seems to be reducing services for immigrants. When America was “rich” and the fiat money bubble had not yet popped, we were very generous to the multitudes of immigrants who came here to take advantage of our many free social services and education. Well, the tide has changed. New immigrants are taxing our already emptied government funds and compete with the natives for jobs and tax dollars. Why should they now come here and expect FREE language lessons or the HOPE scholarship when there isn’t enough to go around? If they can’t speak English, then they shouldn’t come here, or they should pay for their own private language lessons. We’ve got to start cutting somewhere, and I don’t have a problem with this.
Atlanta mom
March 6th, 2011
8:04 pm
If indeed they are going to continue with the classes, it may be a “retirement fund” issue. Less than 20 hours a week may make the employee part time and not eligible for retirement funding.
Lee
March 6th, 2011
8:33 pm
@Atlanta Mom is probably on the right track. The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) has some stipulations regarding part time employees. I think the cut off is 1000 hours worked per year (which comes out to about 20 hours per week). In addition, Obamacare (you know, the 1200+ pages of legislation that no one read until passed) has some language as to when an employer must provide health care.
Janusz Maciuba
March 6th, 2011
9:34 pm
I enjoyed reading all of your comments. Just a few points.
There are no illegal immigrants in the Tech College ESL programs; Georgia House Bill 2, which went into effect in January 2010, made all of them disappear from the free classes supported by state funds. DeKalb Tech will still teach illegals for cash money; churches and libraries continue to have free classes.
And, of course, they are still welcome to pick peanuts, peaches, and Vidalia onions. Right? And work as contractors in construction and landscaping, making money for the wide boys.
I suppose that I should have contacted a labor lawyer to check on Georgia’s conditions of employment before I started teaching two nights a week. The magic number quoted was always under 29.5 hours a week.
I don’t collect a pension now and will work until I keel over into the chalk dust.
Toto: Exposing naked body scanners...
March 6th, 2011
10:28 pm
Why should taxpayers fund ESL for legal immigrants? In the past, we did not do so. The early immigrants took responsibility to learn English themselves. In this time of economic hardship, ESL has LOW priority. If churches want to voluntarily provide this service at their own expense, that is fine with me. Now that China has all our money, perhaps Americans can emigrate there for a free lunch. Mandarin, anyone?
Janusz Maciuba
March 6th, 2011
10:59 pm
Toto — why are you on this blog? The purpose of educating immigrants is so that they see the value of education and pass it on to their children, that they rise to their full potential, and that they become intelligent voters capable of critical thinking. The stories of immigrants contributing to American society are numerous. Let me just leave you with one: the atom bomb could have been introduced by Hitler or Stalin, but, right or wrong, it was made here with the help of numerous refugees from Europe.
Don’t you have some ruby slippers to pee on?
Toto: Exposing naked body scanners...
March 6th, 2011
11:17 pm
Do you mean Einstein? The one who already spoke English and left all his scientific papers to Israel?
PMS1
March 7th, 2011
8:37 am
Fellow citizens, I hope you will take note of the attitude and language of this so-called instructor. Obviously, they are not supportive of the First Amendment when it is speech they don’t like. This individual is using this blog to make a plea for our tax dollars for dubious purposes. They are obviously not of the professional caliber worthy of teaching our students.
“Toto — why are you on this blog?”
“Don’t you have some ruby slippers to pee on?”
disclaimer:
http://seankerrigan.com/us-government-software-creates-fake-people-on-social-networks-to-promote-propaganda/
Susie
March 7th, 2011
11:00 am
Rayd* Curious One is correct….Tech schools benefited more from HOPE than any college ever hoped to benefit–no limits on the amount of HOPE $$ a student could get. . Student grade requirements were lower and, until a year or two ago, a student could go from one program to another to another to another without ever having to get a job.
I taught at a tech school and heard students discussing what they were going to do after this certificate was earned. NONE of them were planning on working and why would they….Pell, HOPE, entitlements…..they would lose money if they went to work. Students would go from the LPN program to the cosmetology program to the diesel mechanics program to whatever to whatever.
The legislature finally cut the endless HOPE for these students, so maybe they are actually getting out and working. I certainly hope so.
I taught in a tech school several years ago and was told if the students showed up and tried that they could not be given anything other than a passing grade. The president of the school told me so himself.
Tech school educations are great…when they are truly earned. Unfortunately, due to the $$ the schools receive for these students…too many of the students are not qualified to pick up garbage when they finish.
Or at least this has been my experience. I am sure others have had better experiences…at least I hope so.
Neil Murray
March 7th, 2011
11:56 am
Could accreditation be an issue here? I have little experience with SACS, but in my dealings with Middle States (up north), I found a concern on the accreditors’ part that community colleges were using too many part-time teachers as a cost-saving measure. They had a point: a college does not function well without a core of fully involved full-time teachers. On the other hand, paying part-timers peanuts makes it seem that the full-timers are profiting at the expense of the part-timers. Or should we think of part-timers similarly to the way we think of volunteers at hospitals, museums, gardens and zoos? (Disclosure: I am now, in my retirement, teaching college part-time; before retirement, I taught college full-time.)
Tech Ed Instructor
March 7th, 2011
5:52 pm
I teach at a technical college in the TCSG. To clarify some points:
Part-time instructors are not allowed to teach more than 29 hours and do not receive benefits.
There is a cap on the number of hours HOPE will cover so students are limited as to how many hours they can attempt on HOPE’s dime. This is to prevent students from staying in school indefinitely, but there are some students who receive the Pell Grant (federally funded and needs based) who withdraw after the quarter begins and they have received their check. However, students must maintain an adequate GPA to continue receiving Pell money so even that trick has its limit.
Technical Colleges are held accountable in four areas: enrollment, retention, completion and job placement.
Most instructors (full and part time) work far beyond the number of hours they are contracted and paid for. And we have taken our economic lumps over the last few years as well (furloughs, no raises, paying more for our benefits, etc.).
We routinely get students who are NOT prepared for college-level work. To be specific, many of our students can neither write complete, grammatically correct sentences, nor do basic math. Yet, we are expected to transform these students into employees suited for today’s workforce and technology, while suffering repeated budget cuts (6-10% over the last few years).
Ask yourself this: do you want a healthcare provider who can’t accurately measure the meds they’re about to inject into you? We can’t train them for this kind of job if they haven’t learned the basics in K-12.
If you want better educated students (as I do), you need to hold your elected officials accountable. Education is always one of the first areas cut when the economy falls on hard times. That needs to change. We also need to ensure that the money designated for education is well spent. I can’t tell you how many unnecessary buidling renovations I’ve seen when the money was sorely needed elsewhere.
And just as importantly, you need to support the K-12 teachers who are increasingly expected to do more and more for less and less. They routinely deal with disruptive and sometimes violent behavior, not only from students, but often from parents as well!
Toto: Exposing naked body scanners...
March 8th, 2011
1:03 am
And about those ruby slippers…..
If you had read the book, you would know that they were SILVER. The populists (silverites) wanted the U.S. to coin silver to get around the stranglehold the banksters had on the gold (yellow brick road) so they could pay off their debts. OZ refers to oz., the measure for silver. The Wicked Witch of the East was the banking cartels.
One of Hollywood’s most revealing speeches:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8y6DJAeolo&feature=related
Janusz Maciuba
March 8th, 2011
8:31 am
I remember the”cross of gold” from my high school history class but what did the flying monkeys represent?
Janusz Maciuba
March 8th, 2011
8:35 am
Tech Ed Instructor: you nailed it. Letting politicians decide educational policy is like letting a bunch of 3 year-olds paint your car.
Toto: Exposing naked body scanners...
March 8th, 2011
1:21 pm
Here’s a possibility:
“The Winged Monkeys
Littlefield suggests that the Flying Monkeys represent the Indians of the Great Plains. According to Gretchen Ritter, “The story’s Flying Monkeys accord to contemporary images of Native Americans who banished from the northern woods and placed under authoritarian rule in the West.”
Here’s an overview of the WIZARD OF OZ symbolism:
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Banks/Wizard_of_Oz_parable.html
Toto: Exposing naked body scanners...
March 8th, 2011
1:41 pm
@JM
“Letting politicians decide educational policy is like letting a bunch of 3 year-olds paint your car.”
This is an interesting statement, and completely against the Constitution. First, I would challenge that compulsory schooling itself is Unconstitutional. But,since the reality is that a compulsory attendance/education law has been added into the Georgia law code, let me remind you that unlike legal private education, government schools are paid for by forced taxation. As such, the way the people maintain influence over how that money is spent, is by elected officials. If the elected officials behave, as you say, like 3 year olds, then it is because the voters have allowed it! Our Constitutional government was never designed to micromanage an individual’s education. That is why public education is not mandated in the Constitution. But, because parents became lazy, and often wanted the government to tell others to do what they wanted them to do(educate their children), the population fell into the public school trap. There will always be controversy, corruption, and trampling upon the rights and faith of individuals. Individuals, such as yourself, will always want a bigger share of the tax pie, at the expense of others. That’s why I home school. I actually pay for my children’s education. And my taxes also support your job. Your appreciation for America and those who pay your way is overwhelming! You deserve all the cuts you get.
Janusz Maciuba
March 8th, 2011
4:12 pm
Kevin, what is the frequency?
Ole Guy
March 8th, 2011
4:30 pm
Stand by one! Let me understand the American scheme…immigrant comes, VOLUNTARILY, to the Red White and Blue. No one twisted his/her arm nor marched him/her, at the point of sharpened popsicle sticks, across the Rio Grande. While, on one hand, said immigrant wanted to come to this Great Country, the very same immigrant never considered the somewhat important aspect of speaking the same language as that of his/her future neighbors and employers. So what’s the answer? Our elected “leaders” respond with “Oh, we’ll pay for your schooling…we’ll feed you, we’ll burp you, etc…AND THE AMERICAN TAXPAYER WILL FOOT THE BILL, SMILING ALL THE WAY”!
Over the years, I’ve found myself in a number of countries, some of which I would just as soon pretend never existed. IN ALL CASES, long before packing my duffle bags, I made sure I could order a beer, ask directions, and ask questions which were just as likely as not to earn either a scornful glance or a slap on the face.
Why the difference? Why do those, in the global community, feel like they can freely cross our borders and receive everything that’s not nailed down?
Janusz Maciuba
March 10th, 2011
4:19 pm
The first memo was rescinded on Monday night. The second memo promises a review of all positions. The workers are happy.
Janusz Maciuba
March 10th, 2011
10:18 pm
Today we could fill out requests to work at other places.