Public School Employees of Washington
Annual Convention
Kennewick
Three Rivers Convention Center
July 24, 2009

Thank you Judi (Owens) for your kind introduction. And thank you, George (Dockins) for stepping in as executive director since Randy Dorn decided to join us in Olympia.

I’m also pleased to see Andy Stern (president of SEIU International) with us.  I know you came out from D.C. to escape the heat and humidity, right Andy?  I understand it’s been both hot and wet in D.C. this week, while it’s been just hot here in the Tri Cities.  But this is a much drier heat, and I am proud to say that the Tri Cities is a very beautiful and livable part of our state.  It is also one of the bright spots in our state and national economy – the economy here is humming along a little better than almost everywhere else, especially with the stimulus money for Hanford cleanup. That’s good locally and good for our state.  

Andy, I hope you are able to stick around for the big unlimited hydroplane races here on the Columbia today and over the weekend. In fact, if attendance seems a little light at the conference I’d sure look down at the river for the missing attendees – and you all have my permission for whatever it’s worth to play a little “hydroplane hooky” to go watch the big boats. In fact I may hang around awhile myself for that. 

I must comment on my good friend and the main reason I am here today, Ehren Flygare government relations guy or lobbyist.  Now I don’t know if he is worth a darn as a lobbyist, but I can tell you this guy is a dead eye with a bow and arrow.

Actually I can tell you how he is as a lobbyist, in fact it his constant emphasis on the importance you are to education that I quickly accepted the invitation when he called me yesterday.  I must say that I have, by far, more meetings with members of your organization and briefings on PSE issues than I do with any of the hundreds of organizations out there lobbying Olympia and it is because of my friend Ehren.

If I seem a bit rambling in my remarks today, it is because I literally didn’t know that I would be with you until shortly before I came into the office yesterday.  I know the governor was planning to be here, but when the White House calls … the answer is often very clear as today’s bright sunshine.

In fact this is the governor’s second trip to D.C. this week.  She was there earlier to testify before a Senate subcommittee on green jobs.  She is there today to meet with President Obama and with Education Secretary Arne (ARNIE) Duncan to discuss the details of the details of the Department of Education’s new “Race to the Top” competitive grants program, which will provide $4.35 billion in stimulus money as state incentives to improve education quality and results. Hopefully Washington will get its share of this money. The first of these funds will be allocated this fall and then in the spring.

So luckily you have me in her stead. I am always pleased to be here because Public School Employees are truly the ones who make a difference in our schools.

Let me tell you a quick story.   You’ve heard the expression putting lipstick on a pig? Well, a middle school here in the Tri Cities was having a problem in one of its restrooms with girls smearing lipstick on a mirror.  Seems these girls would put their lipstick on, then for whatever reason press their lips to the mirror and leave a sticky impression.  And of course, who would have to clean it up?  You all know who gets that job.  So after a few days of this the school custodian by the name of Tom Smith had an idea. He asked the vice principal to call some of the suspect girls in to the restroom.  “Tommy, show these girls how difficult it is to clean this lipstick off the mirrors,” he said.

“Why actually, it isn’t that difficult at all,” the custodian replied.  He took his squeegee, dipped it into the nearest toilet, and wiped the impressions clean.  As you might imagine, there was never a problem with lipstick on the mirrors at that school ever again. 

Okay, maybe that story isn’t quite true, in fact it’s a variant of a story we got off the Internet. But what is true, and very real, is my earlier statement that you all are making an incredible difference in our state.  I know this from personal experience.

You see I make visits to between 15 and 25 schools every year to present my “Strategies for Youth” program.  In a nutshell, Linda and I have done these programs for many years to connect with kids.  I learned a long time ago that you don’t connect with kids by showing up in a suit and talking about what you do – our programs use music, computers, projection equipment and an interactive quiz show format to help me spread messages about bullying, respect, diversity and substance abuse. 

The kids always have a good time, as do I.  But as you can imagine there is always a lot of equipment to set up, lighting to take care of, and things that need to be moved around.  You can see where I am going with this.  

It is crystal clear to me whenever I go to these schools that the entire school relies heavily on its classified staff.  Whenever I ask a teacher, principal, kid or whomever for something they always say I need to talk to Frank the custodian – and they are right. 

Not only is it Frank the custodian who is helpful, it is also Gretchen the teacher’s aide,  Bill the campus security guy,  Phyllis the technologist, Jane the bus driver, Maryanne the office secretary, Pat the food service worker and so on.  It is the Public School Employees who truly know what is going on, and are integral to the operation and success of any school – you all are the backbone of your schools.

Together, you represent 27,000 members in 175 school districts across Washington. That is quite a team. And whatever you are doing, you seem to be doing it well.

One thing I’ve noticed that is different today than it was when I was going to school is that the kids really seem to know the classified staff.  I never knew my custodian and the only reason I knew the lunch lady is because she would yell at me.  But today I see the classified staff interacting with the kids like never before, and they truly have their respect and attention.

Why this is, I am not sure, but it may have something to do with increasing demands of education and the size of the classroom plus in many cases problems or challenges at home. The custodian, office worker or instructional aide is relied upon to step in, to be a friendly presence and even a role model.  

I understand there have been instances when a popular custodian or other classified staff has been asked to be a featured speaker at commencement ceremonies. That would be unheard of not too many years ago.  Like I say, you are the ones making a difference.

So now more than ever we as lawmakers and policy-setters need to understand and appreciate your role in our schools, and how we can support your efforts to improve education in our schools.

Thank you all for your support of education reform this past legislative session.   With your support the legislature was able to pass Engrossed Substitute House Bill 2261, which constitutes an action plan for the future of Washington’s school system and provides a new definition of basic education.  This legislation calls for increased instructional hours, improved transportation opportunities to get to and from school, all-day kindergarten for at-risk kids as well as additional programs for highly capable students by the year 2018.

It also sets out new funding formulas, which I know is especially important to you all who get the majority of your funding through local levies.

I look forward to the implementation of these measures.  Meanwhile, we have had to address our funding crisis.

This recession we are in has forced all us to make decisions that nobody would have dreamed we would do.  That includes our businesses, banks, non-profits and families. And of course for our state budget it represented a $9 billion shortfall. The options were untenable - cut education, social services, corrections or health care. No one was left immune from feeling the pain, including many of you in this room. 

As the governor points out, the facts speak for themselves: To make up for reduced funding, our state’s insurance plan for low-income people, Basic Health, will increase the average monthly premium it charges by 70 percent.

Our K-12 and university students will be sitting in larger classes next year and tuition will be an even greater strain for our students. Citizens will show up at our emergency rooms only to find long waiting lines as people go there to get their routine health care.  People are hurting and perhaps no one sees this hurt as much as you all do, for it is often reflected in the eyes and actions of the students in our schools. Thank you for being there for them.

The governor has expressed her disappointment repeatedly that time ran out on the session before the Legislature could adopt an idea she received from school employees - that was to allow school districts with already voter-approved levies to be able to collect $68 million above their lids.  I know many of you were disappointed about the governor’s veto of the early learning provisions, but it was an overall win for funding education as well as the vital services provided by classified employees.

These issues will no doubt come up when the legislature meets again.

Meanwhile, thousands of public sector employees face layoffs in our state or are taking furloughs just to help us make ends meet. That includes thousands of classified staff and teachers who are getting their layoff notices.

Managing our way through this crisis will challenge us like never before.

But we will get through it, and we’ll do it together. I truly believe that we will come out of this Great Recession stronger than ever. We just need to be able to maintain our focus on the economy, building new jobs and looking for new markets, especially overseas. I think we are already turning the corner. And once we get through it all, we can continue to build on the many accomplishments we have been able to mark in recent years.  

Governor Gregoire, had she been here, would have reminded you of some of the great things our state has been able to accomplish over the first term of her administration before the faltering economy hit us all like a train out of control.

Working with key stakeholders and the Legislature, the governor was able to reinstate full funding for Initiatives 728 and 732.  Over that same period, K-12 spending increased by 29 percent.  And for the first time in decades we took a major step in closing the gap in salaries for teachers and classified personnel across the state.

Through her leadership we were able to make an investment in education of an additional $3 billion on a $10.6 billion base.

The governor was also able to make some innovative changes through Washington Learns. In just one legislative session, 2006, we created the Department of Early Learning and the public private partnership of Thrive by Five, making Washington the talk of the country in early childhood education.

And we did so knowing that our kids need to be ready to learn when they walk in the doors of your kindergarten classes.

We began implementing all-day kindergarten starting with the schools with the highest poverty rates. With early childhood education and all-day kindergarten we know we can give all students a great beginning toward their education.

Together we have made changes that count and record investments in education over the past four years. That’s real progress.

So that is today. What is tomorrow? We continue to close the gaps between dreams and reality and do those things that will keep us stepping up the ladder toward world class. We continue to look for and invest in opportunities for our children through parent, teacher, public school employee and community partnerships that will produce the best and brightest.  

And to do this we continue to solicit and act on ideas from all sectors of education – from the superintendent to the teacher to the secretary to the janitor in the hall – each has significant contributions to make and all need to be heard.

Let me finish with this thought.  Where would we be without you?

Many of the thousands of kids whose only breakfast they would get is the one served at school would go hungry because there wouldn’t be someone there to prepare and serve it.

With thousands of kids walking to school because their parents can’t or won’t drive them we would be faced with so many dangerous situations from traffic and predators that many of our kids would be injured and sadly lost to us. 

Hundreds and hundreds just would not get to school and receive the education that they deserve.

Our schools would not be as clean and in as good repair without the experienced and trained personal that keep them operating. 

Kids could not get individual help as often as they need it in the classroom because that extra person would not be there.

Simply put you are an integral and incredibly important part of the education of our kids that we could not do without.  So thank you for what you do for all of us in the great state of Washington

Have a great conference.