Dear Editor:
Giving our teachers a fair and equitable contract earlier this week, Bayonne took a major step towards supporting a strong education system by giving their teachers a fair and equitable contract. After four years, many teachers feel that they are finally getting the respect they deserve. Unfortunately, the school district leadership in Jersey City does not show the same, if any, respect and appreciation towards their teachers.
Last week, the Board of Education published a letter in an attempt to claim that our teachers are focused on a contract rather than educating our children. As a parent leader in my school, I can state that every teacher has been working throughout the summer to prepare to educate every child in their classroom. Most, if not all, parents think highly of their child’s teacher and they will state that the teachers deserve respect and appreciation for what they do. While the district claims that there are budget restraints, they do not mention to parents or the public that they are wasting funds on services and third party vendors and cutting funds from educational services for our children (i.e., special education services, bilingual services). The Board of Education recently approved a $4 million dollar contract for a third party vendor that provided poor services for our children. However, they complain about giving a fair and equitable contract for our teachers, the backbone of our school district. Our teachers in Jersey City are the reason that our schools receive awards, grants, and national recognition. They are the reason that many of our children get scholarships and are recruited to top quality colleges and universities throughout the country. The teachers are the reason that our children come home every night with a passion and yearning to learn more about everything. Rather than showing them disrespect, let’s stop with the rhetoric and negative comments and give them the fair and equitable contract that they deserve.
Joel Torres