Johnny Cash and the Northwest Herald

McHenry County is lucky to have such a high caliber newspaper as The Northwest Herald.

Okay, maybe not.

My wife and I cancelled our subscription to The Northwest Herald a few years ago due to the fact that the paper lacks balance. And there have been some serious flaws in reporting over the years. Amateurish, actually.

When we got a call from them last year to renew our subscription for a 4 day delivery, including Sunday, for a one-time price of $20 or so, we decided to give them another try. After all, if they were offering a subscription like that they must be hurting for readers.

And we just wanted to help them out. We’re like that, you know.

Today, the editor of The Northwest Herald went on his usually tirade. He does that every week. And this time, it was against the teachers of District 26, of course.

Chris Krug likes to do that.

He took issue with the fact that several teachers attended the last board of education meeting wearing black. The headline states, “Back out on the blackout.” Then he goes on to ridicule those teachers for their choice of color, stating, “Teachers wearing black in support of the deal that has been imposed on them is as short sighted as….yada..yada..yada.”

Chris Krug, they were not wearing black in support of the deal. They were wearing black to show that they were not in support of the deal…because, it was not….a deal. A deal implies a mutually agreed upon outcome. The fact is, the board has refused to deal.

He didn’t tell you that, however.

In fact, there was much that Mr. Krug does not mention. Of course, he laments about teachers’ salaries. “No tears will be shed for someone who can’t get by on an average salary of $69,000 a year,” he writes.

But did he tell you that the Superintendent’s base salary of $147,000 is subject to possible increases based on CPI and another 4% a year extra if he meets performance goals?

No, he did not.

Did he mention that this Board of Education has a new budget that includes 2% more allocated to Administration this year?

No, he did not.

Did he mention that the teachers have offered to give up retirement bonuses and end of career bumps?

No, he did not.

Did he mention that teachers have offered to pay 30% more for health insurance?

No, he did not.

Most of the column, actually, was devoted to the lyrics of Johnny Cash’s familiar song, “Man in Black.” In fact, the entire song was reprinted there in the column, taking up perhaps 1/3 of the space.

See, that’s what happens when people have nothing to say. You see this much in high school writing, actually. Kids like to quote songs or a famous person to show that they know how to write and make a point. This happens often in The Northwest Herald.  And these are people who supposedly know something about journalism and the writing process.

Thanks Mr. Krug for showing us that you can Google Johnny Cash lyrics.

I can, too. In fact, maybe you should have used the lyrics for Cash’s song, “First Grade Old Maid Teacher.” I’m sure you could have worked that into your column in a “clever” way, too:

First grade old maid teacher

Getting' ready to go home

Thirty happy children

Once again are on their own

They climb aboard the school bus

She smiles and waves goodbye

But the first grade old maid teacher

Wants to cry

The fact is that The Northwest Herald has come down quite aggressively on just one side of this issue. Many of us were pleasantly surprised by Katie Anderson’s article of last week. That just doesn’t happen often in The Northwest Herald.

Perhaps Mr. Krug was on vacation that week.

No one here is saying that the teacher’s shouldn’t make concessions. I believe the teachers have to make some major concessions.

But the board has to meet them at the table and give some things up as well.

But that is not what they appear to be doing.  And that is something that The Northwest Herald should also be reporting.

But Chris Krug doesn’t want that side of the story to be told, apparently.

He would rather talk about Johnny Cash and teachers wearing black.

Open Letter to the Cary Community: Support Our Teachers

Dear friends and neighbors,

I speak to you today not as “Drew Madigan,” but as a concerned parent.  Even though I am a teacher in another district, my only skin in this game are my two boys who will be in the Cary schools for the most important developmental period of their lives.

Since beginning these rants and getting involved in this issue, I knew that I was putting myself out there.  I wasn’t sure it was even something I wanted to do at first.  However, the stakes were too high, in my opinion, to remain silent.  And so I began speaking up in a very public way.  Just in a matter of a week, this website has received over 2,200 hits.   I was no longer silent, watching from the sidelines.  If I were to take shots at public figures, I knew I should expect shots in return.  That is the nature of politics.  I have experienced this before several years ago when I publicly criticized a board member in District 214 who was bent on banning books.

Let me be clear:  I have nothing against members of the board personally.  Each of them have family and children as well. They, too, want what’s best for their families.   I question their decisions, however.  I question their ability to effectively run a school district.  I question that they have my children's best interest at heart.  I fear what may happen to this community as a result of their decisions.

Some people are angry, there is no doubt about that.  All you have to do is read the online comment sections of the newspaper.  The few who are the most vitriolic truly do not understand what is at stake.  This misguided anger is projected most fervently on those who teach our children, as if all of the problems this community faces are because of them and them alone.  The assumption is made that teachers have it easy.  That they are “greedy.” Several people have commented that teachers live a “lavish” lifestyle.  Really?  Come over to my $219,000 house if you believe that.  And that was before the housing market crashed.

The Cary teachers are just like you.  They live in the same kinds of houses that you live in.  The same neighborhoods.  The same community.  In fact, these are the people to whom we entrust our children every day.  Because they are teachers, we expect something more of them---perhaps more than we expect of our neighbors.  That is because they have taken on a very important job:  to teach our kids. But not just our kids, but our neighbors’ kids, too.   We praise our children when they do well, but sometimes forget all that went into making that child live up to his or her potential.

It is a job I love.  I know I am lucky each year when school starts to have those kids in my class.  And I consider it a challenge every year to try and reach them, to get them to better themselves and push themselves to the fullest extent of their ability.  Sometimes I’m successful.  Sometimes not.  But each year is a challenge to which I look forward. 

Most teachers will tell you the same thing: it’s not just a job.  It’s a passion.  It’s a calling.

But, in times like this, people so quickly dismiss that calling.  “Anyone can do that job,” they say.  Really?  These are the people who teach our children to count.  To read and write so that teachers like me, in later grades, can carry them elsewhere.  But it is these teachers who start that work.  They build the foundation.

We live in a middle class community.  With all of the comments that I have received over the last week, it really seems to me that some people are upset that teachers are members of the middle class.   If we want teachers to live in the same community then we must be willing to accept what it takes for that.  There are hard decisions that must be made, that is for sure.  The teachers must be willing to give some things up. 

And they have. 

At what point do we turn our backs on them and give into the desire to cast blame? Remember, what happens in the schools happens to all of us as a community.  Like it or not, our schools very much affect the value of our property.  Real estate agents will tell you that one of the biggest attractors to a community are the schools.  In markets like this we cannot let our schools fail.  We must ask ourselves:  do we really want a community that our teachers cannot afford to live in?

Because that is what is happening before our eyes.  By implementing their “last, best offer,” the board is forcing unprecedented terms upon our teachers.  Our neighbors.

If this is the type of community you want, by all means support the board.  But please don’t complain when the Cary school district becomes one of the obstacles to selling a house. 

In the next week, much is going to happen. I hope everything works out and my kids have an awesome year in school.  I hope that both sides are able to sit down at the negotiating table and work things out.  

But in order to do that, the board must be willing to give as well. 

In the end, the people who help our children learn to read, who push our children to take risks and strive to do their best in a classroom are not just any teachers.

They are our teachers.

And they deserve our support.

Sincerely,

Bruce David Janu

The Rant: Will the Board Accept the New Offer to Sit Down?

As most of you have heard by now, the Cary Educational Association has submitted another offer to the Board of Education.  As was abundantly clear on Monday, the teachers are still willing to sit down at the table.  The problem:  Is the Board of Education willing?  I am not too sure.  That is why we need to keep up the pressure.

Here is another edition of The Rant.  In this episode:  viewer mail, pseudonyms and the Community Engagement Committee meeting.



Let the board know that you want them to sit back down and work it out with the teachers. Before it is too late.

Drew Madigan Apologizes to District 26 Board of Ed

I have to say, I feel a little bad about what has been happening lately.  Due to some of my remarks in the last Cary News Update I feel the need to set the record straight by apologizing to the District 26 School Board.  That's right, you heard me correctly:  I, Drew Madigan, am going to apologize for fueling assumptions about some of the people on the board.  Apparently, there were some hard feelings (or hurt egos.  Don't know which).  I just want the board to restart the negotiation process.  Is that too much to ask for?

You can view that apology below.  Click here to read the press release.



Don't forget to attend the Community Engagement Committee meeting tonight at 6 pm at Cary Junior High and the Board of Education Meeting next Tuesday at 7 pm.