Good Morning and Welcome Back!
I hope you have had a restful and relaxing summer! I have 2 items for you this morning, please read the explanation for both.
REA’s 21-22 Operating Budget: Each September Rep council votes on an operating budget for REA for the school year. Since this vote is done by Rep Council only, in the past it may not have made it’s way to the membership at large. In a continued effort to improve transparency and keep the lines of communication open, I am sending it out to the membership to review. Additionally, there are financial changes in the Constitution and By-Laws and this will show that these have been adequately budgeted for. If you have any questions or concerns, please do NOT email me directly. These questions or concerns should be brought to your building level Reps to discuss at our September 9th Rep Council meeting. Some important pieces of information to consider when reviewing the budget.21-22 Budget – updated.xlsx – Sheet1
a. We always base our numbers off of 1,000 members. Last year our membership was at 1,174 which has allowed a surplus to our “income” above what is listed on our budget
b. Some areas where you will see an increase to the budget: “Member Welfare” since Covid we have seen an increased number in loss to our members and their families, we want to make sure we are able to honor each of those; “Social” as we move back in to a more normal way of doing things, we are hoping to see an increase in participation to our social events; “Scholarship” there are proposed changes to our Constitution and By-Laws to increase the amount and award of our REA scholarship.
c. Area of decrease: “Office Expenses” During my time as your president I have consistently tried to work on trimming our Association expenses to continue to keep our local dues consistent.
d. Grievance and Negotiations: Whenever a grievance is moved up to the arbitration level, we as an Association must split the cost with the district. On average an arbitration costs between $6,000-$10,000. We want to be prepared for this move back to in-person instruction and the several resignations and changes to our administration.
Constitution and By-Law Revisions: The C&BL committee met this summer to make revisions to our current C&BL. Some highlights of those revisions are as follows; a new executive board position to represent our members who fall under the 83-1 evaluation form, an online voting option for Executive board and delegate elections, additional dependent scholarship and increase to the monetary amount. Per the C&BL a building vote will be held 2 weeks after the revisions are posted, or the week of September 6th. More information will be coming from your building rep(s) in the upcoming weeks. All revisions are listed in red. C&BL Revisions
Quote of the week: “One of my wise teachers told me, ‘There is only on thing evil cannot stand and that is forgiveness.'” – Fred Rogers
Be Well,
Rebecca