The president welcomes new and returning staff to the new school year. Officers are introduced and building representatives are listed. The negotiations team is working on a new contract package for staff ratification. A new state law requires recertification coursework if certification lapses, and staff members in each building can help with recertification. The IFT website provides legislative updates and opportunities to get involved. Changes to the evaluation system include a new rating and name changes required by PERA, while full Danielson implementation is delayed a year for staff education.

1. WOODLAND UNITED
V O L U M E 1 1 I S S U E 1 S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 2
President’s Message
Welcome Back returning staff. I hope you had a fun and relaxing summer! I’d like to
INSIDE extend a special Woodland welcome to our new staff members who have just joined the
T HI S Woodland family! I hope your year is off to a wonderful start!
I S S UE : I had the great pleasure of stopping at each building a couple of weeks ago to welcome
everyone back. For those that I missed, this newsletter will update you on important
information that you may have missed.
First and foremost, I want to take this opportunity to introduce my fellow officers, which I
inadvertently forgot to do at each building I visited. Each of our officers are here to serve
President’s 1 you. They work very hard to make sure your voices are heard and supported. I’m
Message honored to work with such a wonderful group.
Sharon Anday (Middle School) Vice-President for Certified Staff
Leslie Newman (Elementary East) Vice-President for Support Staff
Judy Ryan (Middle School) Secretary/Treasurer
Negotiations 2
Update Each building has 2 certified representatives and one support staff representative from
each side:
Middle School Matt Lakemacher (certified) James Silasiri (certified)
Joanna Wolk (certified) Rick Haines (certified)
Recertification 2 Claudia Michaels (support) Rene McCullum (support)
Intermediate Karen Barrett (certified) Bridget Hengels (certified)
Jennifer Silasiri (certified) Patrick Castello (certified)
Mary Pelletteire (support) TBA due to personnel change
Elementary West Neva Cosmos (certified) Darlene Lipczynski (certified)
Legislation 2 Linda Titus (support)
Elementary East Shelly Carlson (certified) Carrie Cross (certified)
Barb Nettnin (support)
Primary Katie Jones (certified) Julie Schalk (certified)
Barb Simon (support)
Evaluations 2 ESC Lisa Gjelsten
There are also two at-large certified representatives: Kerry Winson from Elementary East
and Judy Ryan from Middle School, and one at-large support representative: Paula
Fallucca. Finally, we have two representatives from the transportation department: Tim
Bagby and Julie Lucarelli.

2. VOLUME 11 ISSUE 1 PAGE 2
Negotiations Update
Your negotiation team continues to work hard to bring forth the best possible package to the
staff for ratification. The negotiation team has set up 7 weekly meetings with the Board
starting August 29th. The team is unable to provide details in the updates, as many items that
might be part of the final package could be contingent upon each other. While the team is
unable to provide specific details, please know that your voices have been heard.
Recertification
There is a new law that would require an individual to complete nine semester hours of
coursework if he or she lets her recertification lapse. I strongly encourage all staff members
to check on their certification. Simple log onto the ISBE website through the Wildcat
Website. After you log into your account, you can view when your certification is due for
renewal. Each building has a staff member who is part of the Professional Developmental
Certification Committee (PDCC) to help staff members with the recertification process.
The staff members who are part of the committee and can help are Katie Jones and Annette McCafferty at
Primary, Linda Ufheil at Elementary West, Kerry Winston at Elementary East, Jerilynn Steele at
Intermediate, and Jaclyn Beegun at Middle.
Legislation
Please note that the IFT website is a great resource as a way to stay informed about what is happening in
Springfield. The website’s, http://ift-aft.org, many links include “hot topics”, “legislative update”, and
“take action”. The site also has an “Action Center” to help move the Union’s agenda forward by allowing
you to participate in IFT Legislative Action Campaigns. I would encourage everyone to log onto the
website and spend some time exploring all it has to offer.
Evaluations
The major change that is taking place with this year’s evaluation, 2012-2013, is the addition of the 4th
rating, “Needs Improvement” to the district’s existing rubric. Also, the “Satisfactory” rating will now be
called “Proficient”. These changes are reflected in the rubric attached to the Evaluation
Plan that was passed out during the beginning of the year institute days. This change
was required by the state as part of PERA (Performance Evaluation Reform Act).
The implementation of the Charlotte Danielson model won’t occur until next year, 2013-
2014. This decision is the result of the administration recognizing and agreeing with the
Union’s position that the implementation process was going too fast. This choice also
allows the evaluation committee, comprised of staff and administration, to use this year
to educate the staff about the Charlotte Danielson model, so that the staff can be more informed and
thoroughly understand the district’s expectations.
GO TO THE IFT WEBSITE TO STAY INFORMED
ABOUT WHAT IS HAPPENING IN SPRINGFIELD.
WWW.IFT-AFT.ORG