The governor recently signed HB 98 - Capital Outlay Funding Modifications. This bill allows school districts with fewer than 2500 students to use capital funds for maintenance and operations. This is good for those small districts that have lots of money sitting in their capital fund, because they have no need for new buildings, and not as much money on an ongoing basis in their maintenance and operation fund.
The governor also signed SB 206 - Labor Organization Provisions in Teacher Contracts. This bill says that teachers can drop their Association membership and stop having payroll deduction of dues at any time by writing to the District. Because this is current practice, whether that notification be in writing to JEA or JSD, this does not affect what we already do.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Request from Lily Eskelsen
This is a personal request to all NEA/UEA/JEA members from NEA VP Lily Eskelsen. See Ruel Eskelsen's obituary.
"My Dear, Dear Friends,
"The outpouring of love and kindness overwhelms me and my family. You did not know that my gentle Ruel suffered depression to the point that finally he could not think through the pain. I found him when it was too late when I came home from work on Friday. It has taken me these days with my son, Jeremy, and my sisters and brothers and our Mom to work through what happened. There are, of course, no answers when there is the darkness of mental illness. Ruel did not decide to end his life. The mental illness took my sweet husband away.
"I have had so many of you ask what you can do. I woke up at 3am this morning thinking of a way that only you can help. I need you to write a letter.
"Our second son, Jared, is in prison for theft. We adopted Jared when he was only 4 and he was already being treated for conduct disorders. Jared is not violent, but throughout his life his has acted out of anger for the abandonment, neglect and abuse he suffered in this early years. He steals. But I have always known him to be kind and generous and he was very, very close to his father. He called us twice a week just to hear a friendly voice, and he loved talking to Ruel about the latest book he was reading. He was hysterical when I had to tell him that his father was gone.
"Jared is not allowed to go to the memorial service on Saturday in Salt Lake City. He has not reached a level where he is allowed such a privilege. I am not angry. I want you to know that the Utah Education Association made personal appeals to the Governor and that the NEA made personal appeals to Senator Hatch and Congressman Matheson. I want you to know that the Governor, the Senator and the Congressman all put aside partisanship and generously tried whatever they could do to help. I am grateful to them all for the attempt. But the law could not be put aside, and I accept that.
"But you know that my friend, Dennis, is always asking us: When someone says, 'no', what can we do without anyone’s permission? In this case, we can show Jared that he is not alone. Not really. I am asking anyone with a pen and a piece of paper to write my little boy a short note telling him that they know he loved his Dad and that his Dad loved him. He loved going to his basketball games and he loved taking him camping and finding constellations of stars, all of us lying on the trampoline looking up at the night sky from the backyard, and he loved cooking dinner for him, even the time it upset Jared that he was making a ham stir fry and Jared cried because he thought he was cooking a 'hamster' fry.
"I write to Jared three times a week. Imagine if he got thousands of letters, all reminding him that he is loved. Jared may not receive any cards with glitter, glue or objects taped on. A simple card or better yet, a note, would make him feel the love that he will not be able to feel personally on Saturday. We are having the service video-taped, and I promised him that when he is out, our family will all sit together and watch it with him so that we can laugh and cry and hug. This is a great comfort to him.
"When his birth mother died he was 3, his foster family did not take him to the funeral. He talked about that when he was older. For a long time, he thought it meant she wasn’t really dead and that we were hiding it from him. It will be so hard for him to miss this service, and he understands that there are consequences for the action that put him in jail. He takes responsibility for that and does not blame anyone but himself. But this pain is bad enough. I don’t think I could bear it without all the arms that have held me in these last days. He has no one to hold him while his brother and I prepare things here. I wanted him to feel arms holding him, and now I want to do the next best thing. I want each of you to hold him in your love for me and for Ruel, and he will feel it as each letter comes in.
"Will you do this for me?
"You can reach him at:
Jared Eskelsen
Inmate #42555. Offender #141478
Utah State Prison
P. O. Box 250
Draper, Utah 84020
"Be sure that if you send a card, it has no glitter or glue. Please do this kind thing to bring some peace to a child who has had precious little peace in his life. And please pass this on to any other person who might help.
"I love you all,
Lily Eskelsen"
"My Dear, Dear Friends,
"The outpouring of love and kindness overwhelms me and my family. You did not know that my gentle Ruel suffered depression to the point that finally he could not think through the pain. I found him when it was too late when I came home from work on Friday. It has taken me these days with my son, Jeremy, and my sisters and brothers and our Mom to work through what happened. There are, of course, no answers when there is the darkness of mental illness. Ruel did not decide to end his life. The mental illness took my sweet husband away.
"I have had so many of you ask what you can do. I woke up at 3am this morning thinking of a way that only you can help. I need you to write a letter.
"Our second son, Jared, is in prison for theft. We adopted Jared when he was only 4 and he was already being treated for conduct disorders. Jared is not violent, but throughout his life his has acted out of anger for the abandonment, neglect and abuse he suffered in this early years. He steals. But I have always known him to be kind and generous and he was very, very close to his father. He called us twice a week just to hear a friendly voice, and he loved talking to Ruel about the latest book he was reading. He was hysterical when I had to tell him that his father was gone.
"Jared is not allowed to go to the memorial service on Saturday in Salt Lake City. He has not reached a level where he is allowed such a privilege. I am not angry. I want you to know that the Utah Education Association made personal appeals to the Governor and that the NEA made personal appeals to Senator Hatch and Congressman Matheson. I want you to know that the Governor, the Senator and the Congressman all put aside partisanship and generously tried whatever they could do to help. I am grateful to them all for the attempt. But the law could not be put aside, and I accept that.
"But you know that my friend, Dennis, is always asking us: When someone says, 'no', what can we do without anyone’s permission? In this case, we can show Jared that he is not alone. Not really. I am asking anyone with a pen and a piece of paper to write my little boy a short note telling him that they know he loved his Dad and that his Dad loved him. He loved going to his basketball games and he loved taking him camping and finding constellations of stars, all of us lying on the trampoline looking up at the night sky from the backyard, and he loved cooking dinner for him, even the time it upset Jared that he was making a ham stir fry and Jared cried because he thought he was cooking a 'hamster' fry.
"I write to Jared three times a week. Imagine if he got thousands of letters, all reminding him that he is loved. Jared may not receive any cards with glitter, glue or objects taped on. A simple card or better yet, a note, would make him feel the love that he will not be able to feel personally on Saturday. We are having the service video-taped, and I promised him that when he is out, our family will all sit together and watch it with him so that we can laugh and cry and hug. This is a great comfort to him.
"When his birth mother died he was 3, his foster family did not take him to the funeral. He talked about that when he was older. For a long time, he thought it meant she wasn’t really dead and that we were hiding it from him. It will be so hard for him to miss this service, and he understands that there are consequences for the action that put him in jail. He takes responsibility for that and does not blame anyone but himself. But this pain is bad enough. I don’t think I could bear it without all the arms that have held me in these last days. He has no one to hold him while his brother and I prepare things here. I wanted him to feel arms holding him, and now I want to do the next best thing. I want each of you to hold him in your love for me and for Ruel, and he will feel it as each letter comes in.
"Will you do this for me?
"You can reach him at:
Jared Eskelsen
Inmate #42555. Offender #141478
Utah State Prison
P. O. Box 250
Draper, Utah 84020
"Be sure that if you send a card, it has no glitter or glue. Please do this kind thing to bring some peace to a child who has had precious little peace in his life. And please pass this on to any other person who might help.
"I love you all,
Lily Eskelsen"
Monday, March 21, 2011
"We Are One" Rally
The "We Are One" Rally will be held Saturday, April 2 from 11:00 to 1:00 at the Utah State Capitol. UEA and other labor unions are sponsoring the event in commemoration of the assasination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on April 4, 1968.
Lily Eskelsen's Husband Passed Away
Ruel Eskelsen's obituary is included here.
"Ruel J. Eskelsen was born June 18, 1954, in Durango, Colorado, to Quinn and Ruth Eskelsen of Brigham City. He died in Washington, D.C. on March 18, 2011. He lived a life full of love. He was a devoted husband to his wife of 38 years, Lily Eskelsen, and a generous and kind father to their two sons.
"Ruel loved books and jazz and hiking everywhere, but especially in our national parks. He earned a bachelor's degree in Political Science from the University of Utah and received his master's degree in Library Science from Emporia State University in Kansas. He was proud to be a veteran of the U.S. Army and was an active member of the Unitarian Church.
"He is survived by his wife, Lily, their sons, Jeremy (Mike Hargreaves) Eskelsen and Jared Eskelsen, his father, Quinn M. Eskelsen, his brothers, David (Carla) Eskelsen, Doug Eskelsen, his sister, Amy (Don Standing) Eskelsen, and his grandchildren Quentin Smith and Nikita Eskelsen. There will be a celebration of the life of Ruel J. Eskelsen on Saturday, March 26, 2011 at 11:00 a.m. at the First Unitarian Church, 596 South 1300 East, Salt Lake City, Utah. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the teacher scholarship fund endowed by Ruel and Lily, "Maestros Para Los Niños", made payable to the University of Utah."
Sympathy cards may also be sent to Lily and Ruel’s chidren:
Jeremy Eskelsen
Mark Hargreaves
2906 Ash Point Dr
Eagle Mountain, UT 84005
Jared Eskelsen
Inmate #42555
Utah State Prison
PO Box 250
Draper, UT 84020
"Ruel J. Eskelsen was born June 18, 1954, in Durango, Colorado, to Quinn and Ruth Eskelsen of Brigham City. He died in Washington, D.C. on March 18, 2011. He lived a life full of love. He was a devoted husband to his wife of 38 years, Lily Eskelsen, and a generous and kind father to their two sons.
"Ruel loved books and jazz and hiking everywhere, but especially in our national parks. He earned a bachelor's degree in Political Science from the University of Utah and received his master's degree in Library Science from Emporia State University in Kansas. He was proud to be a veteran of the U.S. Army and was an active member of the Unitarian Church.
"He is survived by his wife, Lily, their sons, Jeremy (Mike Hargreaves) Eskelsen and Jared Eskelsen, his father, Quinn M. Eskelsen, his brothers, David (Carla) Eskelsen, Doug Eskelsen, his sister, Amy (Don Standing) Eskelsen, and his grandchildren Quentin Smith and Nikita Eskelsen. There will be a celebration of the life of Ruel J. Eskelsen on Saturday, March 26, 2011 at 11:00 a.m. at the First Unitarian Church, 596 South 1300 East, Salt Lake City, Utah. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the teacher scholarship fund endowed by Ruel and Lily, "Maestros Para Los Niños", made payable to the University of Utah."
Sympathy cards may also be sent to Lily and Ruel’s chidren:
Jeremy Eskelsen
Mark Hargreaves
2906 Ash Point Dr
Eagle Mountain, UT 84005
Jared Eskelsen
Inmate #42555
Utah State Prison
PO Box 250
Draper, UT 84020
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Legislative Council (AR) Meeting
We had a great meeting last night! We reviewed what happened at the legislature, see UEA Under the Dome for a summary. We heard speeches from candidates for JEA and UEA offices.
NEA State Director: Sue Dickey, Robin Frodge (recommended by AR's)
Jordan UniServ Representative to UEA Board of Directors: Kevin Ball, Melissa Brown
Middle School Representative to JEA Executive Board: Lauren Flygare
High School representative to JEA Executive Board: Debbie Brown, Jack Duffy
JEA ballots are due Thursday, March 24 at 5:00. UEA Elections will open April 8.
NEA State Director: Sue Dickey, Robin Frodge (recommended by AR's)
Jordan UniServ Representative to UEA Board of Directors: Kevin Ball, Melissa Brown
Middle School Representative to JEA Executive Board: Lauren Flygare
High School representative to JEA Executive Board: Debbie Brown, Jack Duffy
JEA ballots are due Thursday, March 24 at 5:00. UEA Elections will open April 8.
Japan Relief through NEA
On March 11, Japan was hit with one of the strongest earthquakes in recorded history, soon followed by a massive tsunami. As all of us have seen in the news, the death and destruction have been enormous. During this time of crisis, NEA is working with Education International (EI) to establish a Solidarity Fund that will assist our colleagues at the Japan Teachers Union (JTU).
EI reports that the prefectures of Miyagi, Iwate, and Fukushima have suffered great damage. In addition to the immediate humanitarian needs around shelter and medical care, there will be longer-term needs around rebuilding communities and schools.
NEA is participating in the EI Solidarity Fund, which support education union members who are negatively impacted by natural and man-made disasters.
To donate, checks should be made out to the National Education Association, with “Japan Earthquake Solidarity Fund” in the memo line.
Checks can be mailed to:
Japan Earthquake Solidarity Fund
National Education Association
1201 16th Street NW, Suite 614
Washington DC 20036
All donations will be directed to EI to provide assistance in Japan. Thank you, in advance, for your generosity and good will.
EI reports that the prefectures of Miyagi, Iwate, and Fukushima have suffered great damage. In addition to the immediate humanitarian needs around shelter and medical care, there will be longer-term needs around rebuilding communities and schools.
NEA is participating in the EI Solidarity Fund, which support education union members who are negatively impacted by natural and man-made disasters.
To donate, checks should be made out to the National Education Association, with “Japan Earthquake Solidarity Fund” in the memo line.
Checks can be mailed to:
Japan Earthquake Solidarity Fund
National Education Association
1201 16th Street NW, Suite 614
Washington DC 20036
All donations will be directed to EI to provide assistance in Japan. Thank you, in advance, for your generosity and good will.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Educator Day on the Hill Thanks!
I want to say thanks to all those who attended Educator Day on the Hill. You were instrumental in helping legislators see the need to fund new student growth. You also helped prevent some bills from passing that would have further hurt public education.
Teachers who attended, to my knowledge. If I left you out, let me know, and I'll add your name to the list.
From left to right: Melinda Mansouri, Linda White, Debbie Atwood, Marva Bennett, Ginnie Raiser, and Karen Brown talking to Representative Merlynn Newbold. In the upper right corner, Mallory Meyer, Jannifer Young, and I are talking to Representative Susan Duckworth.
The March 4 group: Jannifer Young, Jennifer Boehme, Debbie Atwood, Mallory Meyer, Karen Brown, Vivian Gubler, Ginnie Raiser, Robin Frodge, Melinda Mansouri, and Linda White.
Teachers who attended, to my knowledge. If I left you out, let me know, and I'll add your name to the list.
- Pat Raymond, Valley
- Margaret Pratt, Bingham
- Michelle Jorgensen, Mountain Shadows
- Robin Frodge, West Jordan High (twice)
- Andria Robb, West Jordan High
- Jack Duffy, West Jordan High
- Jim Jaramillo, West Jordan High
- Melinda Mansouri, Bingham
- Marva Bennett, Bingham
- Mallory Meyer, Sunset Ridge
- Jannifer Young, Elk Ridge
- Ginnie Raiser, Mountain Shadows
- Karen Brown, Bluffdale
- Debbie Atwood, Falcon Ridge
- Vivan Gubler, Rosamond
- Linda White, Rosamond
- Susan Tolman, Jordan Hills
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