Letter to the Editor: Candidate Kelley Opens Up on Ideas for School Board

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To say that this race for School Board has been interesting would be a very big understatement. I have been labeled in the Letter to the Editor section of the Ozaukee Press as being simpleminded and not having any intelligent, forward-thinking ideas.  Because I dare question the benefit package of the teachers means I do not like teachers and I want to lower the quality of education in the System.  In any campaign, you have to expect that the other side is going to come out against your position on the issues and your public statements. This is fine with me, but I only wish that they would fight this campaign with the truth. The Letter to the Editor section is a wonderful public service that the Press provides to its reading public. They cannot be held responsible for the contents of the letters. 

There are many half truths printed and some statements made just to muddy up the water.  On March 8, it was stated that, "our district has created an educational environment that draws the best teachers from around the nation." 

Of all the applications that the district has processed this year, I wonder just how many were from an area within 100 miles, the rest of Wisconsin or any other state. It would be interesting to find out the facts. 

There were two letters that reported that I said I don’t care if we hire the best teachers. 

This was said in a discussion where someone said the best teachers would only come to a district that had high wages and benefits. And, I did say I did not care if we did not hire the “best” teachers because there are many qualified teachers out there that would like to work here. As an example, are all of the teachers in our district the “best” teachers in Ozaukee County or are they “highly qualified” teachers who have done a great job for our district and will continue to do so in the future? 

Another person wrote, "after incessant harassment from about 50 community members (including some death threats), the school board decided not to honor the two-year agreement it had tentatively agreed to with the teachers union." 

I was at that meeting on 4/11/11 and there were about 300 people there for an open board meeting.  Many expressed their disapproval of sections of the contract and they were adamant about not extending the contract. There were no death threats made and there were no reports of any death threats in the paper in the following weeks that I saw. . 

Although the Press cannot control the content of the Letters to the Editor they can control the contents of the Editorial. Again in the March 8 paper, the editorial talked about the election "in which three candidates are running on a single issue — cutting teacher compensation." This is not true. All three of us have stated in the forum and in interviews with Mr. Schanen IV that there were other issues that we were concerned with, and I believe they were printed in the Press.  I was the only one that was making the development of the Teachers Handbook an issue.  In the interviews, I said that I thought the teachers had what I would call a Cadillac Benefit package and that I questioned if several of the benefits should even be in the package.  This editorial also stated that "the U.S. ranks below most developed countries in teacher pay. American teachers earn less than 60 percent of the average pay for college educated workers."

I was told that the average pay for our teachers is about $54,000. This would mean that the college educated workers in the private sector in Ozaukee County are making $90,000 or higher. 

In the next paragraph it stated that "American students are lagging in achievement behind those of a number of other countries.  A common denominator in many of those countries is that teaching is an honored profession that demands more from its members than in the U.S., but more generously rewards its best practitioners." 

As I read this I think the editor is saying that these other countries make their teacher do more and for that they are paid more.  I wonder if this means that maybe they ask their teachers to work more than 190 days a year.  Personally, I think that teaching is a very special profession that requires a special type of person to succeed — but I think the same can be said for other professions, too.

Instead of comparing our district to other developed countries I think that the Ozaukee Press could best serve our community if they would compare the Mequon-Thiensville, Cedarburg, Grafton and Port Washington-Saukville School Districts to each other. This comparison should cover the number of students, wages and benefits of the teachers and an evaluation of their performance. This evaluation could be based on any common test that they all take such as the WKCE. This comparison would really be meaningful if they could include the private schools in the area. 

Now, let me tell you where I stand on the issues. 

This will be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. 

My main concern will always be the students. I will fight just as hard as anyone on the School Board to not only maintain our current system but also to improve it.  My first priority, if I am elected, is to acquaint myself with the workings of the schools, district office and the School Board so I will be able to make informed decisions on the board’s business.  

For the last few months I have attended every School Board and committee meeting to help me understand how the system works.  If I succeed in winning one of the seats on April 3, I want to be able to hit the ground running after I am sworn in.

My second priority, at this point of time, is the development of the Teacher Handbook. The Board has appointed a committee of employees to help the Board with this development. I think they should also appoint a committee of tax payers who do not have any direct ties, other than children in the schools, with the district to help in this development. I am happy to report that the board has made some changes to the benefit package that have been questioned in this campaign and have some others that are under consideration.  One such benefit is the Cash in Lieu benefit. This is where the district pays an employee not to take the health insurance plan. In 2010-2011 school year, the district paid 61 employees (21.5% of the total employees) a total of $357,067.81 for this benefit.  The administration tries to make the case that this saves the district money, but in the end they admit that they really do not know if it does or not.  This benefit carries over to the retirement plan with one little addition.  If, for whatever reason, the employee is ineligible for the plan they will still pay the employee not to take the plan that he/she cannot take even if they wanted to. I hope that is clear. I do not know if these changes have been made because of this campaign, but I can only hope that this campaign played a small part in these changes — which would prove that a conservative can work with the current Board.  It could prove to be to the board’s advantage to have a conservative point of view expressed in some of their deliberations.

Another benefit that has not been fully discussed yet is the Prescription Drug Program. This program is shown as a three tier program. This is true if you are talking about the number of tiers for which there is a charge to the employee.  There is really a fourth tier, which happens to be free to the employees.  These are referred to as value drugs. The other thing that is unusual about this program is the program pays for some over the counter drugs and, like the Milwaukee Public School System, the drugs Cialis and Viagra are covered.  It would be interesting to know how much money our insurance paid out for each of the four tiers.

I am very interested in making sure our students are taught problem solving techniques, logical thinking — or maybe it could best be described as good old common sense. Although many high schools push their students towards a college education, I feel strongly that college is not the proper path for every student after graduation — so I will support a very strong program for students going directly into the work force or into tech school after graduation. 

Technology is another area that I will support. It hurts me to see some of these little kids go by the house with their big back pack on. The technology is available to put the text books on a Kindle type of a device.

Teacher evaluations are now being studied and I am sure that this will require some new computer software systems. I have spent a lot of years in the computer business and there is one rule that I believe in when you talk about buying technology — if you can’t cost justify it then you don’t buy it.

One question that I have been asked often and for which I have a very simple answer is what sets me apart from the other candidates.  The answer is my conservative beliefs and my wide range of work experiences.  for a detailed list of my work experiences.  In my 52 years in the work force, I am very proud that I have only worked for six different companies.  There is nothing better than getting up each morning and going to work at a job that you love to do. Work is not the proper word to describe it.    

In closing, let me say once again that I will work very hard with the rest of the board members to maintain and/or improve the programs offered by the .  I am respectfully asking for your support and vote in the upcoming School Board election.  Listed below is my phone number and e-mail address.  Please contact me if you have any questions that you would like me to answer.

Earl Kelley
262-268-1618
rkelley5@wi.rr.com