Arbor Park District 145 Teachers Are Worth A New Contract

OAK FOREST, IL — The Arbor Park Middle School teachers were out there Tuesday, bright and early, all wearing blue shirts to show their alliance, trying to get their message out. They carried signs in front of Arbor Park Middle School that read messages like “We love our Students” and “Teaching Is a Work of Heart.” Cars passing by, honked their support as the teachers cheered back in a showing of solidarity.

Arbor Park School District 145 is comprised of four schools — Arbor Park Middle School (fifth though eighth Grade), Scarlet Oak School (third and fourth grade), Morton Gingerwood School (first and second grade) and Kimberly Heights (pre-K and kindergarten) — services more than 1,200 Oak Forest and Tinley Park students and employs approximately 80 teachers, according to online sources.

So what is going on with our beloved teachers, and why are they out in front of the schools?

The teachers of District 145 are working without a contract. They have been in negotiations since February with the administration, and the two sides have not come up with a compromise. The teachers are trying to rally support from the community and let the parents and residents of Oak Forest and Tinley Park know what is going on. Informational picketing is not a strike, but it can be an effective tool to gain support from a community when union negotiations have stalled.

The details of the negotiations cannot be discussed, but Travis DeYoung, a special education teacher for five years at Arbor Park Middle School, is passionate about this mission.

“We are trying to negotiate a fair contract for the teachers of our district,” DeYoung said.

He is a building representative for the union, Arbor Park Education Association, which is a local union through the Illinois Education Association whose mission is to effect excellence and equity in public education and to be an advocacy organization for all public education employees.

The teachers of our Oak Forest school district are loved in this community, and parents are stepping up to help with their mission. Stephanie Roque is a Teacher's Aide in the district, but more importantly, she is parent of two kids in the district. She, along with Aimee Kelly, a parent of three children in the district, has started a face book group, Parents of Arbor Park 145, to rally parent support and try to answer questions.

They wanted a place where parents can come together and organize their support of the teacher’s ongoing struggle to get a fair contract. They are holding a meeting from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 19, at Faith United Presbyterian Church, 6200 167th St., Tinley Park, which is open to the public to organize and answer questions.

According to the online source, Illinois Report Card, teachers in District 145 are paid considerably less than comparable schools in Illinois. Teachers in District 145 are paid about 20 percent less than most teachers in Illinois, which is surprising, when you take into account the high real estate taxes in Oak Forest.

This is shocking and appalling to many residents of Oak forest, since they have one of the highest tax rates in the area in comparison to surrounding communities with a bulk going to schools. It is unimaginable to many Arbor Park parents and home owners to find out that the teachers are not being paid their fair share.

The district has seen a huge exit by long standing and loved teachers in the past few years. Teachers are leaving the district for more lucrative offers by other schools. Although there is no official source, it has been reported that as high as 30% of long-term teachers have left the district because they are not getting the compensations offered by other schools.

Tina Zeigler, who has been a fifth-grade teacher for the past 25 years in the district is also vice president of the union said, “Teachers are out here this morning to make the community aware that we would just like a fair contract.” It seems that this is all the teachers want. And parents agree.

It is hard for me — as a parent of three children who has gone through Arbor Park District 145, paid my fair share of taxes and lived here for 18 years — to know that the district is just letting long term, loved, wonderful teachers go. Shame on the administration and Board of Education of 145 for not compensating them and keeping them here in Oak Forest where they have an impact on our kids.

All three of my children have been shaped, loved and taught be many of these teachers who have now left the district, and I am saddened for the up and coming kids who will not get a chance to be impressed by their presence in our schools. I am hoping that the district comes to their senses and meets the teachers' requests for a decent and just contract before more teachers leave.

Teachers are so important for the shaping of our children. Many times, teachers' importance is dismissed by the administration of schools that think that they can replace long-term teachers easily with another that will take less money for the difficult and important job that they do.

I feel that it is imperative for our children and our community to retain these important role models in our children’s lives. Researchers say that it is not the ability to teach that makes a teacher great, but the power to influence a child's destiny. I think that is invaluable.

This what the administration sent me:

The Board and Administration are committed to and focused on a positive and fair settlement that is best for the district taxpayers and students and has been throughout our negotiations. We’re hoping for a fast, fair and positive contract that boosts our teacher’s salaries and makes our district attractive to new teachers while keeping us fiscally solvent. The Board of Education will not make a financial misstep and risk repeating the huge deficit issues of 2008. Also, the Board of Education and the Administration love our teachers! Our goal is a well-balanced educational program for our students but there are a lot of pieces that have to come together to ensure the best for our community.

Photos By Melanie Gangolf | Patch Mayor