McHenry County Blog

How would you like to be paid double time to meet with a child and his parents after school?

If you're an elementary school teacher in Huntley School District 158, that is what would happen if the school board agrees to the teacher union's request.

Grade school teachers in the Huntley school district want their work day with students limited to 4 1/2 hours per day.

That's it.

Unless you taxpayers are willing to pay double time.

No lunch room supervision.

No helping kids get on the right bus.

The “for the kids” slogan touted by the B.E.S.T. political action committee 55-cent tax hike referendum supporters will have to be changed next time to


Somehow I don't think that will have the same ring as "For the Children."

Instead of "For the Kids," they want


The Huntley Education Association made this crystal clear in their contract proposal:

"Teacher contact time with students at the Elementary level will be a maximum of 270 minutes/day per teacher within the published school attendance hours."

What about helping students before or after school?

Not unless it's within the 4 1/2 hours per day of teacher contact time with students.

How about supervising students before school or after school, like walking them out to the bus?

The answer is, "No," according to the union's proposed contract.

Unless you double our rate of pay for the time.

"Teachers are not to supervise students prior to the start of the student day or after the end of the student day.”

Elementary teachers want double time compensation for any student contact time over 4 1/2 hours per day.

"Any contact time scheduled over the maximum of 270 minutes per teacher must be agreed to by mutual consent and paid at the pro rata amount of the teacher's salary."

In other words, they get paid for being there without students and again because they are in contact with students.

Huntley High school teachers would be responsible for teaching a maximum of 235 minutes per day.

That's five minutes shy of 4 hours.

Huntley Middle School teachers would get one individual planning period and one "team" planning period every day.

Why teachers would want to get paid for "team" meetings while those in the private sector dread once a week staff meetings as a necessary waste of time is a mystery to me.

When I taught state and local government at Harper and Rockford College, the first time around was difficult because I had to draft notes. I guess teachers would call them lesson plans. It was a breeze after that first time.

Teachers have to "collaborate" (discuss) new plans with their team members on a daily basis. I can only wonder why.

Huntley middle school teachers would be eligible to be assigned "up to 300 minutes of student contact time per day" under the teachers' proposed contract.

When a class in the elementary schools has a reading specialist teacher in the class room, along with the regular classroom teacher, both teachers would be getting credit for "teacher student contact time."

Supervising a study hall is considered "teacher student contract time."

The Huntley teachers' union has also proposed working 3 fewer days, 180 in all.

If the elementary school teachers had 4 1/2 hours of student contact time per day, that would be 810 hours per school year.

A typical work year is over 2000 hours. That's 8 hours a day, 50 weeks a year. Two weeks of vacation.

With the salary schedule Huntley teachers have proposed, some grade school teachers would be pulling down $100 per hour (or more) for each hour they have contact with students.

That includes supervising kindergarten nap time.

How would you characterize Huntley's grade school teachers' being willing to be with students for 4½ hours per day without getting paid double time for "Extra Duty?”

The last school board majority gave the high school teachers fewer work hours per day in the existing contract.

Now, it seems to be the elementary teachers turn.

A big raise for doing less work.

Try that on your boss .

Tell me how it works out for you.

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Cars of teachers packed the Huntley School District 158 parking lot last Monday night as district and union teacher contract proposals were revealed.

The middle photo is of Huntley school district teachers at the 2006 meeting at which the contract was expected to be signed.

At the bottom is newly hired Superintendent John Burkey telling teacher union leaders that their 5.75 % and 6.75% pay hike contract in 2006 would not be approved at that night's meeting. Pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.

Labels: BEST, Huntley Education Association, Huntley School District 158