The Bluffer - Red Bluff, CA
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/118237
���Oz The Great and Powerful��� Easter Traditions -Page 4 -Page 3 Volume CXIV Issue 11 March 22, 2013 Serving Red Bluff High School since 1901 Pink Slips Cut Cut PILE UP cut here Laurel Shoop & Marissa Chase Editors-in-Chief ���It���s never good for an organization to lose good people, only because there is no funding or enrollment,��� stated Principal Patrick Gleason, when asked about the current issue of multiple staff cuts taking place at Red Bluff High. On March 5, 28 pink slips were distributed throughout the teachers and staff members. There were two types of notices handed out- Reductions in Force (RIF) and precautionary notices. These pink slips have different meanings- RIF���s being a notice of a part or full time layoff, and precautionary slips being a warning of a possible reassignment or layoff due to another teacher that has seniority. Who receives a pink slip depends soley on how long the teacher has taught compared to the rest of the teachers in that section, and what the teachers have credentials to teach. In addition, declining enrollment and funding has played a part in the increase in pink slips, because the number of sections of a subject needed alters the amount of staff needed. With all of these cuts and layoff warnings taking place, many staff members, students, and families are left with a mixture of unsettling emotions and one question- Why? The reasons for the pink slip overload are as follows: Declining enrollment, declining funding, and ROP (CTE) classes going through changes in requirements. Because all CTE classes are required to update their standards and curriculum, they have to get reapproved by the county, and therefor received a RIF notice. However, after the CTE classes are updated and approved, they will recieve a rescindent notice, which takes away the previously administered pink slip, and allows the class to resume. As of March 20, there have already been 12 rescindent notices distributed. The layoffs have affected the overall morale of the school and added mounds of tension, stress, and anger to staff members and their families. ���Our district has operated more like a family than an institution. From our perspective as educators, it���s a rough process,��� said Gleason. On March 7, California Teacher���s Association (CTA) held a meeting for all the teachers that received pink slips with the attorney that represnts CTA, Don Sclke. From there, they are now able to fill out a Lawyer Teacher Consulting Form and schedule a meeting with him to discuss their rights and possible hearings. ���Our district has operated more like a family than an institution. From out perspective as educators, it���s a rough process.��� -Patrick Gleason Spring Break Friday, March 29, will be a minimum day and marks the beginning of spring break. Students will be released from school at 12:05pm, and buses leave at 12:10. Break will be a little over a week long, and school resumes on Monday, April 8. ���...the needs of the students are substantial and we need to support teachers in their effort to reach all students at RBHS so that all students are successful.��� -Lisa Escobar Black Light Dance The annual Black Light Dance will be held at 7pm, April 12. This anticipated dance is for students of all grade-levels, and will be the final dance of the year for anyone not attending or invited to prom. Students are encouraged to wear bright, neon, colors or white to the Black Light dance.