COMMUNITY BRIEFS
By Daily Press staff
The majority of area teachers have put their confidence back into their union leader. Harry M. Keiley, president of the Santa Monica-Malibu Classroom Teachers Association, was re-elected to his post on May 15, marking the end of a 10-day election.
More than 85 percent of teachers in Santa Monica Malibu-Unified School District cast their votes, electing Keiley to the head of the union for his fourth consecutive two-year term. Keiley won by what has been described as a mandate, securing more than 76 percent of teacher votes, officials said.
“The election results validate our team’s endeavors over the past six years,”Keiley said. “I look forward to continuing the important work of standing up for students, teachers and public education.”
The first order of business for the union head will be the upcoming contract negotiations this summer. Keiley said he is pleased to have the full support of the union going into the talks, and that he hopes to build on past agreements.
“We’ve done so much these last few years,” Keiley said. “Protecting teachers’ jobs, keeping class sizes low during times of massive cutbacks and ensuring that our teachers received affordable health insurance. Now we want to guarantee that teachers are able to keep up with the cost of living, so they can afford to live comfortably in the districts in which they teach.”
The union’s board will have a new member in Sarah Braff, a teacher at Will Rogers, who will take over as vice president.
“As a teacher, I know how important our health benefits have been to all of our members and their families,” Braff said. “I know we will be working hard to ensure that all of our district’s teachers are able to keep with up with the rising costs of living.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 31, 2006. Read the original PDF.