The Facts About the Diocese of
Scranton’s Teacher Staffing Policy
The Diocese of Scranton’s Strategic Plan for
its Catholic schools is designed to preserve
and advance Catholic education in the 21st
century. As the implementation of this plan
moves forward, we recently announced the
teacher staffing for the new Catholic school
systems in Lackawanna-Wayne and Luzerne
Counties.
Much of the reaction to the staffing changes
has been negative and even alarmist. A lot
of this criticism has not been based on the
facts, and some of the statements that have
been made are simply inaccurate.
Before addressing this criticism, we would
like to emphasize that the Diocese does
indeed recognize and appreciate all of the
dedicated teachers in our Catholic schools
and the work they have done over the years
to educate their students while instilling
in them the virtues of our faith.
The Strategic Plan for our Catholic schools
is a major restructuring that involves
closing schools and consolidating resources.
The need for fewer faculty means that some
of our current teachers will not have a
position next year. This is certainly
unfortunate, but it is unavoidable.
In the Lackawanna-Wayne System, all
elementary and high school teachers who meet
the eligibility criteria will be retained,
except those who are only in their first
year. The same applies for elementary
teachers in the Luzerne County System. In
the case of Holy Redeemer High School –
which consolidates four high schools into
one – there are simply not enough positions
for all of these teachers. Obviously, this
causes distress.
We have tried diligently to develop a fair
and just staffing policy. And we did this
with input from the teachers. Beginning on
November 20, 2006, we conducted a total of
10 meetings that included sessions with
union representatives, two teacher
representatives from each school, and women
religious from the schools. This dialogue
has been instrumental in assisting with the
formulation of the policy that was used to
determine eligibility and the teachers who
would have positions in the new systems.
For example, one option that was discussed
early in the process was a staffing model
whereby every teacher would have to re-apply
for a position. The teacher representatives
absolutely rejected this option, and the
Diocese respected their opinion. They were
strongly in favor of using seniority and
certification as the primary criteria and,
again, the Diocese respected their opinion.
These representatives were chosen by their
peers, and they were encouraged to keep
their colleagues informed as the policy was
being discussed and developed during this
collaborative process. Furthermore, we
consulted with legal counsel to ensure that
everyone’s rights would be preserved.
The participants at these meetings were very
respectful and professional throughout the
process. While everyone did not agree on
every aspect of how the schools should be
staffed, there was consensus that
eligibility for teaching positions in each
county system would be based on the
following criteria:
-
Seniority based on years of continuous service in the
Diocese of Scranton. Seniority will
apply to positions in a given
geographical system (not across
systems), within secondary and
elementary systems, and within specific
fields of competence. This follows the
recommendation of the Strategic Plan
developed by Meitler Consultants, Inc.
-
Religion Certification in fulfillment with Diocesan
Policy #212, which states that all
teachers have six years from their date
of hire to complete six required
theological courses offered by the
Diocesan Pastoral Formation Institute.
-
State Certification: permanent certification (LEVEL II
certificate) is required after three
years of successful teaching (the state
may extend this period to six years) in
a particular subject area, along with
completion of specific coursework
required by the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania.
-
Pastor’s Letter confirming that the teacher is a
practicing Catholic and in full
communion with the Church. If not
Catholic, the teacher must have a letter
from the appropriate representative of
his/her faith tradition. (This policy
has been in effect for many years.)
All of these criteria must be fulfilled and
verified by August 2007. The verification
process is being performed now by school
principals.
When the Diocesan Human Resources Director
met with teacher representatives on April
30, he distributed the preliminary seniority
lists for the new Catholic school systems in
Lackawanna-Wayne and Luzerne Counties. He
announced at the meeting that these were in
fact “preliminary” lists, and he asked the
teacher representatives to inform him,
either at the meeting or in the days
following, about any discrepancies or
information that would have a bearing on the
lists. He did in fact receive such
information that very afternoon, and further
points continue to be brought to his
attention regarding some individuals and the
aforementioned criteria. Therefore, as was
expected, the process to verify and revise
the seniority lists continues.
We would like to clarify, in particular, how
the policy deals with teachers on the high
school level. The number of positions is
based on the preliminary course
registrations for next year. For example,
the number of students registered for a
particular course will determine the number
of teachers needed who are certified in that
particular discipline. Those who are
certified will be ranked according to their
seniority.
We did make a distinction between teaching
at the K-8 and 9-12 levels, and the
seniority lists were separated accordingly.
Although not everyone may recognize or agree
with this distinction, it is generally
accepted educational practice. The vast
majority of our teachers are not adversely
affected by this distinction.
It is true that a small number of teachers
with many years of service may not have a
position, only because there are other
teachers who have even more seniority at
their level and in the discipline in which
they are certified. It has nothing to do
with their salary, whether they are
affiliated with a union, or any other
factor.
All eligible teachers may not necessarily be
guaranteed their current grade level or
current location, but they will be offered a
position within their respective systems.
We sincerely wish we could offer some kind
of severance pay to the teachers who will
not have a position. Unfortunately, the
Diocese cannot afford to do this because:
·
Current operating deficit of Diocesan
administrative offices = more than $1.3
million.
·
Total outstanding loans due from parishes
and schools as of Dec. 31= $28,584,866. Of
this total, $12,936,290 is owed by
“financially troubled” parishes and schools.
·
Estimated operating deficits at schools =
$3,263,285
·
Necessary capital improvements and
technology upgrades at schools = $3.1
million to $3.8 million, including:
--Holy Redeemer High School (current
Bishop Hoban campus) = $1.6 million for new
heating/air conditioning system
--Good Shepherd Academy (current Bishop
O’Reilly campus) = $800,000 to $1 million to
replace two boilers and other miscellaneous
refurbishing
--Acquisition of interactive computerized
blackboards, known as “Smartboards,” in
classrooms = $400,000 to $500,000.
Installation will begin at the junior high
and high schools and will be incorporated
into all classrooms eventually.
--Acquisition of the Hunter System
administrative software that will enable
parents to access grades and assignments
from their home computers = $200,000.
--Estimated costs of $300,000 to $500,000
for expenses such as new uniforms for sports
teams, cheerleaders and bands; logos;
painting gyms and fields; and other
miscellaneous costs.
Finally, it has been suggested that we
should have delivered the news about who
would not have a position in a different
way. On April 30, concurrent with the
Diocesan Human Resources Director’s meeting
with the teacher representatives, every
principal received a copy of their
respective seniority list via email and the
principals were asked to review the lists
with their teachers.
It is important to note that the principals
represent the Diocese and the Bishop in
their school communities. Contrary to
accusations that we used a callous and
“faceless” approach, asking the principals
to talk to their own faculty was intended to
make this process as personal as possible
given the challenging task of communicating
with more than 500 teachers at 30 different
sites all at the same time.
Teaching in a Catholic school is more than a
form of livelihood – it is a vocation. It is
unfortunate that some of our teachers will
not be able to continue this mission of
service with us, and we are truly sorry for
the pain and disappointment that this has
caused. There is no perfect way to present
this kind of news.
We can only hope that everyone recognizes
that difficult decisions must be made in
order to reach our ultimate goal to preserve
and advance Catholic education in the
Diocese of Scranton.
James Burke
Joseph Casciano
Diocesan Director of Human
Resources Diocesan Secretary
for Catholic Education
