The Superintendent's Substitute Teacher Program (Super Sub) allows assistant principals, principals, the superintendent, and certified central office staff members to serve as substitute teachers once each semester. Immediate benefits of the program include improvement in teacher morale, cost savings, and development by administrators of a clearer…

In a model of nonadversarial bargaining, 62 percent of the school district's applicable income is earmarked for salaries and benefits. To settle nonmonetary issues, administrators and union representatives meet in a loosely structured council. (MLF)

Describes a teacher "remediation" plan created by the superintendent and the local teacher union. (IRT)

Informal negotiations over teacher contracts serve to create an atmosphere of trust and to focus settlements on items of major concern. This article gives guidelines established during such a "nonnegotiation" process in Coldwater (Michigan). (Author/WD)

Presents evidence to demonstrate that accountability (1) is developing into something it was never meant to be; (2) can mean more freedom for school boards, superintendents, principals, and teachers; and (3) can place extra pressures on board members. (Author/JF)

Substitutes might never be as good as regular teachers, but they still can provide high-quality instruction. Suggestions include meeting with them as a group twice a year, principal and peer support, and development workshops specifically for substitutes. (TE)

In Whithall (Michigan) schools, a teacher representative is included on the superintendent's administrative cabinet. Teacher participation has improved internal communication, aided in a campaign for a tax millage increase, and helped solve problems with teacher transfers. (MLF)

Dismissing a teacher for insubordination is usually acceptable to the courts when the teacher willfully defies reasonable and specific regulations and orders despite repeated and clear directives that such behavior must cease. (PGD)

Charges that laziness and indifference among some teachers are due to unions and that recent declines in the quality of education are due to unprofessional teachers are unfounded. School board and administrator leadership and responsibility, including higher teacher wages and mutual respect between administration and the teacher union, are needed.…

A checklist for school boards is based on interviews with 26 school teachers who were asked what gift they would give their fellow teachers. Almost all the presents the teachers cited involved conditions that would make the teachers better professionals and their students more successful. (MLF)

Describes a New York State school district program that has been successful for the past 20 years. The school board, administrators, and union leaders meet monthly and discuss items not subject to contract negotiations. A close positive relationship has evolved from the meetings. (MD)

Describes how a New York school district developed a way to successfully settle contracts with teachers using a joint committee of the parties involved rather than professional negotiators. (MD)

While a shift to cooperative employment is happening in some business segments, there is little chance of such a shift taking place in school labor relations. (MD/DCS)

A major cause of the decline in student achievement is the lag time between the rise of teacher unionism and the more recent rise of effective school management. Recommendations for improving educational quality include administrator leadership and refusal to be intimidated by unions, concentration on teaching the basics, and testing newly…

Describes strategies used over a four-year period to reduce teacher absenteeism. These include notifying school board of absentee rates, tying attendance to teacher evaluation, requiring administrative approval for personal leave near weekends, and a cash bonus for good attendance. (TE)