West Virginia American Federation of Teachers Story Archives

Salango Endorsed By WV-AFT, Calls On Justice To Outline Plans For Federal Dollars In Public Schools

West Virginia gubernatorial hopeful Ben Salango, a Democrat, joined members of the state’s American Federation of Teachers and AFL-CIO chapters Monday to call on Gov. Jim Justice to outline how he intends to use federal money to help public schools open safely this fall.

Justice has made it clear he wants West Virginia’s public schools to reopen on Sept. 8 for 180 instructional days, and if possible, to be open, in full, to in-person learning. The West Virginia Department of Education has provided each of West Virginia’s 55 counties with a toolkit on recommendations for reopening and health guidelines.

On Monday, gubernatorial candidate Salango urged Justice to clarify how federal dollars will be used for schools at a press conference hosted by the West Virginia chapter of the AFT.

“If we don’t take proper steps now and plan, our schools are going to be a breeding ground for COVID-19,” Salango said. “We’ve got to make sure that we are protecting our children.”

Salango said he’s supportive of in-person school in the fall. He pointed to ways federal dollars could be used to pay for things like temperature scanners, healthcare professionals, revamping schools’ ventilation systems and purchasing sanitation products.

Salango also said $80 million would provide each student in West Virginia with an iPad that has cellular connectivity.

At the press conference, he urged Justice to pull this money from the federal CARES Act.

According to the West Virginia Department of Education, West Virginia received more than $1 billion in CARES Act funds. From that, West Virginia’s elementary and secondary education received $86.6 million in a fund called the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSERF), earmarked to address the needs brought on by COVID-19.

Ninety percent of this appropriation is directly distributed to school districts in West Virginia to use at their discretion, while the other 10 percent is retained by the Department of Education to address emergency needs.

In Monday’s virtual press briefing with the governor, Justice announced that an additional $94 million in federal monies would be distributed to all of West Virginia’s public schools. But he said this money is separate from the CARES Act funds.

“It doesn’t have anything to do with our CARES Act at all,” Justice said. “[It] has nothing to do with that, but they got $94 million right now to be able to use … with COVID related issues for K-12.”

At the press conference with Salango, both the West Virginia AFT and the AFL-CIO officially endorsed Salango for governor of West Virginia.

Both unions have been critical of Justice’s handling of public education issues in the past.

March 7, 1990: Public School Teachers Strike

On March 7, 1990, thousands of West Virginia public school teachers—involving 47 of the state’s 55 counties—began an 11-day strike. They were protesting what were then among the lowest salaries in the nation. Timed to coincide with the end of the legislative session, it was the first statewide teachers’ strike in West Virginia history.

The work stoppage occurred after the teachers failed to agree on a new pay package with the governor’s office and legislature. The strike ended on March 17, when House Speaker Chuck Chambers, Senate President Keith Burdette, and teachers’ union leaders reached a settlement. The legislative leaders—with the support of Governor Gaston Caperton—agreed to improve teachers’ pay and to develop short-term and long-term plans for public education.

Governor Caperton initiated a series of town-hall-style meetings across the state to discuss the future of education, and, in August, the legislature met in special session to address the issue.

Over the next three years, teachers’ salaries were increased, faculty senates were established in each school, and new teacher training and support programs were developed to promote better classroom instruction.

W.Va. Supreme Court to Decide if RESAs Can Hire Teachers

The Monongalia County Board of Education is asking the state school board to join them in the appeal of a lawsuit that said the county could not allocate funds to their regional education office to hire classroom teachers at hourly rates.

The West Virginia chapter of the American Federation of Teachers filed the lawsuit in 2011 claiming the county board was circumventing state hiring practices by using its RESA, or Regional Educational Service Agency, to hire interventionists, certified classroom teachers who are shared between classrooms and schools working one-on-one with low performing students.

Monongalia County Superintendent Frank Devono told members of the West Virginia Board of Education Thursday the county employees 26 interventionists who focus on the bottom 25 percent of students in the county. These professionals were hired through the RESA at an hourly rate and without state benefits.

The total budget spent on the positions, Devono said, is $500,000, and most positions are filled by retirees. Should the practice of hiring at that hourly rate be discontinued, Devono said the county would only be able to afford 9 interventionists at that funding level.

Earlier this year, a Monongalia County Circuit Judge ruled in favor of the AFT saying the continuation of the practice could undermine the entire hiring system for classroom teachers as defined in state code.

Teachers hired to work as interventionists, along with being hourly and without benefits, are not subject to state hiring practices, which include using a weighted system to ensure the most qualified teacher is placed in the classroom, and do not fall under the state’s official teacher evaluation procedures.

“In the decision the judge determined that if regulation is read to permit the hiring of classroom teachers by a RESA the statutory provisions governing the hiring and employment of classroom teachers in this state would be virtually eviscerated,” Christine Campbell, president of the WV-AFT told the board Thursday.

Mon County, however, is now appealing that decision to the West Virginia Supreme Court and is asking the West Virginia Board of Education to join them in the appeal by filing an amicus brief.

“It’s for other parties to say, wait a second, this could affect us or affect our interests in a way that perhaps the parties that are in the law suit aren’t advancing as well as we can,” attorney Howard Seufer explained to board members. Seufer is representing the county in the lawsuit.

The board voted Thursday to grant Board President Mike Green and the board’s attorney the authority to choose whether or not to draft the brief. Green said after the meeting he had not decided whether or not to join Mon County in the case.

Should Green chose to draft such a brief, it is due to the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals in October. Seufer estimated oral arguments could be scheduled for January should the court not decide the case on filings alone.