Florida Times-Union (Jacksonville, FL)

							 Florida Times-Union (Jacksonville, FL)

                        July 16, 2002 Tuesday, City Edition

SECTION: METRO; Pg. B-1

LENGTH: 896 words

HEADLINE: Board reviews teacher transfers     Duval chair urges limits at
 schools with shortages

BYLINE: Laura Diamond, Times-Union staff writer

 BODY:
    As the first day of schools    approaches, some Duval County principals
find
themselves short on teachers.

    The School Board allows teachers to voluntarily transfer to another
 school. But the transfers are often uneven, with most teachers leaving
 schools on the Northside and Northwest Jacksonville, board Chairman Jimmie
Johnson said.

    Principals at these schools then must scramble to hire new, and often
inexperienced, teachers. In some cases students are taught by substitutes
for
the first few months of class.

    To prevent this from happening in the future, Johnson drafted a proposal
that would not allow teachers to receive a voluntary transfer from a
 school that has a shortage of greater than 5 percent.

    The change would have to be discussed during contract negotiations
between
the School Board and the teachers' union. It is too late to be negotiated
into this year's contract, but if the board approves the measure tonight it
could be done next year.

    'What   folk need to understand is that I am not against the transfer
policy, I   just want to promote stability,' Johnson said. 'It is all in the
interests   of the youngsters being served at each school. These youngsters
need
stability   and we should give it to them.'

    Terrie Brady, president of Duval Teachers United, was out of town
attending a conference and could not be reached for comment.

    Board members will have their first chance tonight to discuss the item,
but
Vice Chairwoman Kris Barnes called it a good idea.

    'We need to do something to keep these people in the schools longer,'
Barnes said. 'I think we will need to do other things beyond this, but this
is a
good place to start.'

   Board member Linda Sparks was unsure if she would support the proposal.

    'We need to do whatever is in the best interest of the student, but we
must
balance it with job satisfaction for teachers, ' Sparks said. 'We are facing
a
critical shortage of teachers and some are very frustrated. We cannot
ignore
their concerns.'

   Some principals said they would favor a change in policy.

    The change would allow families to get to know the teachers and become
more comfortable with the school, said Maralouise Snyder, principal at John
E.
Ford Elementary School.

    'It would be nice for all the children to get to know the different
 teachers and look forward to having certain teachers when they get
older,'
Snyder said. 'While that happens in some schools, it doesn't happen in all
of
them.'

    Snyder said the change would allow her to become more familiar with her
 teachers and evaluate their strengths. She could then move teachers to
different grade levels or subject areas where they would help students the
most.

    Johnson said it's crucial for principals on the Northside to be able to
make
those kinds of decisions because students there typically have the greatest
needs. Many of the students come from low-income homes and enter school
lacking certain basic skills.

    'The schools with the most need are always in a flux of training the
inexperienced teacher, ' said Johnson, a former principal. 'The sharing of
 teacher attrition should be shared at all schools. Right now, the same
 schools are bearing all the burden and it must stop.' Staff writer Laura
Diamond can be reached at (904) 359-4351 or ldiamond@jacksonville.com.