Things We Think We Think

In no particular order...the following strike us as random thoughts. Some of this stuff is akin to peeling apart a grilled cheese sandwich...if you catch our drift.

• Rebound Effect. Bah!! There would be NO "rebound effect" (i.e., jump in tax levy) if the school district made PERMANENT cuts. Instead, they created a 1-year fix. Oh wait....sticking the appliance fees to the teachers and less frequent background checking will result in "permanent" savings of less than $20K on a $72M budget. Where are the permanent cuts?


• There is no "caste" system in state government; ALL employees are entitled to the same healthcare at the same costs. So why do we stick Local 60 members with such a disparate percentage of health and dental premium costs? Why don't Local 60 members have access to the "discount" given to SPEA, Admin, and Admin Support members who opt for a district [i.e., taxpayer] paid "Health Risk Assessment?


• While we're on the subject...what brainiac(s) wrote a FLAT FEE into the SPEA contract for the cost of their share of health insurance premiums? Everyone and their mother does this as a percentage! That way as the cost of premiums rises, then so does their share....instead of DECREASING! More to the point...why would ANY school board member support a contract that contains such a provision?


• With respect to the egg foo Sun Prairie resulting from the pool manager fiasco...has the board NOW figured out that running the recruitment process simultaneously to developing a firm job description and salary range is like sticking one's finger in a live socket? Come on people! This thing was doomed to failure because of the process the board allowed to be put into place. You got egg on your face? Well...you put it there.


• While we're on the subject of the Pool Manager....anyone else notice that it's been awfully quiet? Wouldn't you think someone would leap to accept what we're sure was a ridiculously inflated salary? Or....are the little birdies, that suggest maybe the "applicant" is playing us to parlay our offer into a higher increase from his/her current employer, correct?


• Last one on the pool manager...we promise! But did anyone notice how easy it was to recommend and then hire an additional--unnecessary--assistant principal for the high school in ONE open session board meeting, while hiring a pool manager for less than half the costs required not only an open board meeting but THREE closed sessions?


• Has anyone else noticed that having Terry Shimek as a board member gives the community a functional equivalent of only 6 board members when it comes to voting FOR any staff contracts (since his wife is a SPEA member)?


• Speaking of Shimek...why would having his wife as a SPEA member allow him to vote AGAINST any contract? Hmmm? Or is abstaining his way of keeping his derriere firmly on the fence on any "gorilla" issues?


• Anyone notice that Seabass is on a hot streak for attending board meetings?


• Back on the subject of contract negotiations. Why isn't there at least one "citizen representative" member of negotiation teams to...you know...maybe speak for the community?


• From the "If a tree fell in the forest and no one was there to hear it, does it make a sound" Department: why on earth was an Open House for this year's Home Construction completed home sent out to Key Communicators within mere hours of the "event"? Why was it not publicized anywhere else? BoardDocs? the district website? Wait...it COULD have been sent to that covert parent group unbeknownst to us. Why is it that despite hiring a "Communications Manager" for the district, the "Communications" remain pretty "TARFU"?
• $88,500 per year for an elementary school librarian? For a high school foreign language teacher? Hell! Even if they had a PhD! We're not calling these people out, but with all due respect, those wages are a tad inflated. Consider the following occupations whose MEAN salary in Wisconsin is less than $88,500: [1]Physician's Assistant ($87,000), [2] Biomedical Engineers ($83,000) [3]Veterinarians ($75,000), [4] Environmental Engineers ($73,000), [5] First Line Supervisors of Police/Detectives ($71,000). Check it out at the most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics Wage data for Wisconsin.
• Whis District Administrator Tim Culver referred to as "Doctor Culver"? He doesn't have an M.D. The recent State Journal article renewed our interest in this issue. One commenter opined, "A UW-Madison professor once told me only Ph.Ds with big egos to feed asked to be called "Doctor. "
• Speaking of Culver....how come he gets to snipe at residents after their 3 minutes is up, but residents don't get to respond back in kind? If the school board "can't" respond to residents' comments/questions...why should Culver? He doesn't speak for the board...does he?
• Amd one more gnawing Culver question. On April 26, 2010, he blogged, " A Rumor and 3 Realities It’s been suggested that I blog more frequently with “less length”. I’m going to give it a try. ". This was succeded by a blog on May 1. Since then? Zip. Zero. Zed. So much for trying. He must have taken Yoda up on his second option: "Do or do not. There is no try."

Enquiring minds are wondering...