Many responded to need
I think about how very lucky we were that no one was lost in the fire at The Heritage. The list is endless of a community that came together in time of need, from 911 emergency management to the city police who worked so wonderfully and feverishly to get the people out, to Myron Nypaver’s leadership with the finest firemen anywhere, the ambulance people who cared for the seniors, those at the fire station who comforted the seniors until Red Cross could set up a shelter to Sister Jean Marie, a true angel whose help and concern for the seniors included feeding 259 meals and letting the Red Cross use the facility. Karen Sidor, our nurse, handled the many problems with medical, medications, oxygen needs. All the volunteers gave of themselves, 525 hours of service to date and still counting. Jackie Albert, Fayette County Mental Health assisted and counseled the fire victims; Commissioner Vince Vicities showed support by visiting the shelter; the people and businesses donated clothes, money, etc.; Madeline Sloboda and Tammy Knouse of Fayette County Community Action, whose assistance can’t be measured, placed and assisted the victims.
Our community came together and it makes me proud and humble to know so many people care. There is much work to do yet. This incident has been a wake up call to all. I thank God for leading us in this troubled world.
This disaster has made me aware of many caring people in this community and has enabled me to make new friends. I thank the many pastoral people who gave of themselves and for God for allowing me to be part of the team effort and the wonderful senior citizen victims who toughed it out.
Jim Lingo, volunteer disaster coordinator, American Red Cross Fayette County
Reason behind early retirement
The state’s economy is lagging, and Pennsylvania is facing a multi-million dollar budget deficit. As legislators and political parties, we need to set aside our prejudices and old, fixed positions to look for the most intelligent way to manage the commonwealth ship into smoother waters.
That is why I introduced House Bill 130 that would allow eligible teachers and state employees with at least 30 years on the job to opt for full retirement instead of the usual requirement of 35 years.
The measure, which has 67 co-sponsors from both parties, would provide early retirement windows in fiscal years 2003-04 and 2004-05. It has the support of PSEA, AFT, AFSCME, PSUU and SEIU.
In the long run, early retirement programs cost about as much as they save. But in the short run, they offer significant cash flow savings to the affected employment units, such as local school districts, by substitution of younger, lower-paid personnel for those taking early retirement. The additional cost of the early retirement can be amortized over a longer time period.
There is a misconception that a “30-and-out” window would cause problems for school districts because of a perceived shortage of teachers.
Quite simply, that is not the case. In fact, the number of new teachers currently prepared each year is more than enough to satisfy this demand. The national Center for Education Reform cites a 1999 study that found 20,000 certified teachers graduating in Pennsylvania each year – even though there were only about 5,000 teacher openings.
Even U.S. Education Secretary Rod Paige was quoted in a September 2002 USA Today article as saying the nation’s teacher shortage is a contrived one.
“I don’t subscribe to the idea that there is a shortage of teachers. I think there are some systems that block people out of the teaching profession who would be wonderful teachers,” he said.
The problem isn’t so much that we’re making too few teachers, according to professor Richard Ingersoll, an educational sociologist at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education.
Rather, the problem is there are too many teachers prematurely leaving. Ingersoll’s findings were published in the fall 2001 issue of the American Educational Research Journal. The overall turnover accounted for by retirement is relatively minor when compared to that resulting from other causes, such as teacher job dissatisfaction and teachers seeking better jobs or other careers, Ingersoll said.
A report earlier this year by the National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future said about one-third of teachers quit during their first three years on the job and almost half leave within five years. Poor working conditions drive most of them away. And poor, predominantly minority schools are being hit the worst.
This fact provides yet another reason why Pennsylvania must correct the school-funding situation, but that is a topic for another day.
I do not want to give false hope to older teachers and state workers that passing this early retirement legislation will be easy. It will be difficult, at the very least. But it’s a cause that is worth fighting.
State Rep. Peter J. Daley
D-Washington/Fayette