Chester Upland teachers to work without pay

UPDATE: Thursday January 5, 2012 at 1:20 p.m.

John Kopp, City of Chester reporter for the Delaware County Daily Times reports the following items via Twitter @DT_JohnKopp:

State Sen. Jeffrey Piccola is calling on PA Secretary of Education Tomalis to declare Chester Upland SD a district in financial distress.

Senator Piccola also asks Secretary Tomalis to consider implementing a board of control to manage CUSD's finances; threatens to hold public hearings.

CUSD board president Wanda Mann were copied on the letter sent by Senator Piccola to Secretary Tomalis.

Posted: Wed, Jan. 4, 2012, 6:17 PM

Chester Upland teachers to work without pay

By Dan Hardy, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER

The Chester Upland School District, running out of money, will not be able to pay its staff after Wednesday, but teachers and support staff there say they will keep working without pay.

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/breaking/20120104_Chester_Upland_teachers_to_work_without_pay.html

CUSD employees ‘won’t walk away from children’

Published: Thursday, January 05, 2012

Delco Times By JOHN KOPP, jkopp@delcotimes.com

Two Chester Upland School District employee unions announced Wednesday they will continue working as long as possible if the district fails to meet its payroll.

http://www.delcotimes.com/articles/2012/01/05/news/doc4f05222660ac7348426470.txt?viewmode=fullstory

Chester Upland teachers, support staff pledge to work for delayed pay during school district’s financial crisis

PSEA: (CHESTER, Pa., Jan. 4, 2012) – After a meeting yesterday to discuss the Chester Upland School District’s looming financial crisis, leaders of the school district’s employee associations said that they plan to continue working as long as they are able, even if the school district fails to meet payroll later this month.

PSEA Press Release: http://www.psea.org/general.aspx?id=8978

Interesting connection here - Joe Watkins, who is cited in the following article as the spokesman for Vahan Gureghian's Chester Community Charter School is also the Chairman of Pennsylvania's Students First PAC, the PAC that contributed over $6.66 million to support pro-voucher candidates last year.

http://www.studentsfirstpa.com/chairmans_message.html

Chester Community Charter School Sues School District, State Over Funding

December 30, 2011 7:59 AM

CBS Philly.com By David Madden

CHESTER, Pa. (CBS) – One of the two charter schools in Chester has filed suit in Commonwealth Court, seeking millions of dollars it insists is owed to them, either by the Chester-Upland School District or the Pennsylvania Department of Education.

http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2011/12/30/chester-community-charter-school-sues-chester-upland-school-district-pennsylvania-department-of-education-over-funding/