Public Perceptions of Teacher Unions

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%3Cp%3EFrom%20Small%20Newspaper%20Group%20--%20%20Neither%20Virginia%20nor%20Illinois%20employ%20investigators%20to%20follow%20up%20on%20reports%20of%20teacher%20misconduct%2C%20and%20tenured%20teachers%20who%20were%20hired%20in%20Illinois%20before%202004%20were%20not%20required%20to%20undergo%20a%20criminal%20background%20check.%3Cbr%20%2F%3E%0A%3Cblockquote%3E%26%23147%3B%26nbsp%3B%22I%20think%20if%20someone%20has%20been%20serving%20honorably%20in%20a%20school%20district%20for%2025%20or%2030%20years%20or%20even%20longer%20the%20idea%20that%20they%20should%20take%20time%20out%20their%20day%20to%20be%20fingerprinted%20doesn%27t%20make%20a%20lot%20sense%20from%20any%20perspective%2C%27%27%20said%20Charlie%20McBarron%2C%20spokesman%20for%20IEA.%26nbsp%3B%26%23148%3B%3C%2Fblockquote%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

%3Cp%3EFrom%20Small%20Newspaper%20Group%20--%20%20Stephen%20Wright%2C%20a%20tenured%20teacher%20at%20an%20Illinois%20school%2C%20lost%20his%20job%20after%20improperly%20touching%20and%20speaking%20to%20female%20students.%20%20But%20he%20didn%27t%20lose%20his%20teaching%20certificate%2C%20and%20was%20back%20teaching%20within%20the%20year.%3Cbr%20%2F%3E%0A%3Cblockquote%3E%26%23147%3B%26nbsp%3B%60When%20a%20school%20board%20decides%20to%20invest%20the%20staff%20time%20and%20money%20into%20firing%20a%20tenured%20teacher%2C%20we%20are%20usually%20talking%20about%20someone%20pretty%20bad%20at%20their%20job.%20The%20cases%20that%20come%20before%20a%20tenure%20hearing%20officer%20are%20almost%20always%20for%20those%20who%20are%20the%20worst%20in%20the%20profession%2C%27%27%20said%20Larry%20Janes%2C%20a%20former%20school%20superintendent%20and%20a%20consultant%20to%20the%20Illinois%20Principals%27%20Association.%26nbsp%3B%26%23148%3B%3C%2Fblockquote%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

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%3Cp%3EFrom%20Education%20Report%20--%20%20Michigan%20teacher%20union%20contracts%20are%20now%20available%20in%20an%20online%20database%20accessible%20to%20the%20public.%3Cbr%20%2F%3E%0A%3Cblockquote%3E%26%23147%3B%26nbsp%3B%22This%20database%20will%20serve%20several%20purposes%2C%22%20Olson%20continued.%20%22Analyzing%20other%20districts%26rsquo%3B%20contracts%20can%20help%20school%20leaders%20negotiate%20meaningful%20improvements%20to%20local%20policy.%20Direct%20access%20to%20contract%20language%20can%20help%20reporters%20trying%20to%20cut%20through%20the%20bargaining%20cross-fire.%20The%20contracts%20should%20also%20be%20interesting%20to%20Michigan%20taxpayers%2C%20since%20more%20than%20%2419%20billion%20was%20spent%20on%20Michigan%20K-12%20public%20schools%20last%20year.%22%26nbsp%3B%26%23148%3B%3C%2Fblockquote%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A