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Sep 1, 2006 8:41 pm US/Mountain
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Teachers Hit The Streets To Get Students In Class
by Anna Alejo
DENVER (CBS4) ―
Denver Public Schools teachers were preparing to start seeking out students to encourage them to get to class. Under a tentative contract agreement, teacher pay this year will hinge on how many new students enroll in the district.
Smedley Elementary teachers have been going door to door for years and said it helps get students to school and also buy into success.
Superintendent Michael Bennet made a personal visit to a displaced Manual High junior who was preparing to get a job instead of return to school.
It's the type of personal contact teachers' union leaders are promoting in order to boost enrollment in DPS.
"Through phone calls, through personal visits to homes, encouraging parents to come into the schools as well, we need to be trying all of those different approaches to make sure that we are reaching out and trying to bring kids back into the district," said Kim Ursetta with the Denver Classroom Teachers Association.
Superintendent Bennet applauded the teachers support for going into the community to market the schools.
"Their willingness to have that conversation and to be able to say 'you know what, we've got a stake in this as well for our membership and for the future of DPS and for our kids,'" Bennet said.
West High School teachers already have a plan to walk their neighborhoods after the school lost a magnet program and 300 students this fall.
"I'm sure that might be a lot to ask for some but I do think that teachers realize our jobs are dependent on being able to serve students and we can only serve them if they're here," said JoAnne Pagliasotti, a teacher.
"If I can get a kid in to get educated on my own time I think that's fine," said Alan Dominguez, a teacher. "I think that's a worthy investment of my time."
If the school district is able to boost enrollment this fall by 1,000 students, teachers with 13 years of experience or about 1/3 of the workforce, will be eligible for a permanent salary boost of nearly $1,300.
The tentative union contract also encourages teams of teachers to design their dream schools. DPS is hoping to start 20 such schools in existing buildings next fall.
Teachers will vote by September 11 whether to ratify or reject the agreement.
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