{"id":48634,"date":"2017-01-29T13:15:18","date_gmt":"2017-01-29T13:15:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/viconsortium.com\/?p=48634"},"modified":"2017-01-29T13:20:35","modified_gmt":"2017-01-29T13:20:35","slug":"st-thomas-st-john-district-aft-join-st-croix-protest-monday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/wp.viconsortium.com\/?p=48634","title":{"rendered":"St. Thomas-St. John District AFT To Join St. Croix In Protest On Monday"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>ST. THOMAS &#8212; The St. Thomas-St. John District American Federation of Teachers union members <span style=\"color: #3366ff;\"><a style=\"color: #3366ff;\" href=\"https:\/\/viconsortium.com\/virgin-islands-2\/st-croix-federation-teachers-set-protest-csted-govt-house-monday\/\" target=\"_blank\">will join their St. Croix counterparts<\/a><\/span> on Monday for simultaneous protests, with the St. Croix event taking place at Government House in Christiansted from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., while the St. Thomas protest happens at the same time outside the Legislature.<\/p>\n<p>The protests fall on the day of Governor Kenneth Mapp&#8217;s State of the Territory Address, set to take place in the Earl B. Ottley Legislative Hall.<\/p>\n<p>A subtitle of the release reads, \u201cVI Education in Crisis\u201d. The release then lists a myriad of issues (updated in a newer press release) that AFT has identified as affecting education in the territory. They include the following:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The Department of Education\u2019s budget is grossly underfunded. Educator resources are severely limited. Schools do not have sufficient textbooks, teachers\u2019 manuals, other supplies and equipment. (e.g., copy paper, printers, copiers, computers, smart boards &amp; replacement parts, etc.)<\/li>\n<li>Students\u2019 learning and AFT members\u2019 working environments present disturbingly serious health and safety issues in crumbling facilities, (e.g., broken PA systems, mold and rodent infestations, etc.<\/li>\n<li>The DOE procurement process to acquire necessary supplies, materials and services is cumbersome.<\/li>\n<li>The temperature in our classrooms is unbearable, dangerous and not conducive to teaching and learning. Schools should be properly retrofitted to accommodate the badly needed air conditioning units that are in all government offices.<\/li>\n<li>The\u00a0 Teacher\u00a0 Evaluation\u00a0 System\u00a0 takes\u00a0 valuable\u00a0 time\u00a0 away\u00a0 from\u00a0 planning\u00a0 and\u00a0 instruction\u00a0 and our infrastructure and lack of resources do not support it.<\/li>\n<li>Too many initiatives are impossible to adequately implement due to the lack of resources and support systems. There are too many demands and AFT members are incredibly overworked.<\/li>\n<li>Educators have no autonomy in the classroom. The educational system operates on a top-down paradigm; teachers have no voice. The DOE has lost its way.<\/li>\n<li>Caring,\u00a0 certified\u00a0\u00a0 and\u00a0 competent\u00a0\u00a0 educators\u00a0 and\u00a0\u00a0 support\u00a0 staff\u00a0 are\u00a0 leaving\u00a0 the\u00a0 profession\u00a0\u00a0 due\u00a0 \u00a0to noncompetitive wages, insufficient resources, and hazardous facilities. Instructional time and the safety of our students are being compromised due to insufficient staff.<\/li>\n<li>There\u00a0 is an\u00a0 abundance\u00a0 of unresolved\u00a0 grievances\u00a0 with\u00a0 the Office\u00a0 of Collective\u00a0 Bargaining\u00a0 as it systematically fails to act on member complaints and contract violations.<\/li>\n<li>32nd Legislature of the V.I., Committee on Education members along with the Education Commissioner are considering hiring virtual teachers. This physically removes teachers from classrooms while virtual teaching does not work for all students.<\/li>\n<li>Education is not a priority in the Virgin Islands.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Many of the grievances will sure to be challenged by the Mapp administration along with the Department of Education, but the list includes a number of issues that teachers and residents alike have long complained about.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>ST. THOMAS &#8212; The St. Thomas-St. John District American Federation of Teachers union members will join their St. Croix counterparts on Monday for simultaneous protests, with the St. Croix event taking place at Government House in Christiansted from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., while the St. Thomas protest happens at the same time outside the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":38062,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1078,191,147],"tags":[4076,121],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>St. Thomas-St. John District AFT To Join St. Croix In Protest On Monday - V.I. 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