Congratulations to Our New Executive Director,

DeeAnn Flaherty!

DeeAnn currently is the senior UniServ Director at JCTA and has advocated for our members for 9 ½ years. She is a graduate of the University of Louisville and the University of Dayton School of Law. DeeAnn says that she is ready to hit the ground running, and on August 1, 2009 she will take on the position of JCTA’s Executive Director. Please join us in this exciting time as we welcome DeeAnn into this new role.

Do you use or know of any great online teacher resources? If so, send them to us. We’re compiling as many as we can to fill out our teacher resources page on our website. Please email the address of your online teacher resource to Erin Houston (erin.houston@jcta.org) so that it can be included in our list. Thank you!

Sick Leave Bank Changes

Please be advised that there have been several changes made to the JCTA Sick Leave Bank.  The Bank could no longer be sustained under the previous rules and guidelines, so necessary adjustments were made in order to protect the soundness of the Bank.  First and foremost, we must reiterate that the Bank was NEVER intended to provide “day for day” compensation to applicants.  The Sick Leave Bank Committee will NOT grant 100% of the requested days indicated on the Sick Leave Bank application.  Additionally, the purpose of the Bank is to provide assistance to a member in need of compensation during a catastrophic illness or following a catastrophic accident that requires extensive absence from work.  It is not and cannot be used to cover ordinary maternity leave absences, days missed for colds, etc.  The Bank has also limited the number of days which can be granted to a member making requests of the Bank during a school year to twenty (20) days per school year.  The Committee has discretion to grant more days to a member in a given school year for extenuating circumstances.  While we understand that some members may have multiple issues that arise over the years, the Bank has also set a limit of fifty (50) days as the number of days that can be granted to any member in a 5-year period.  Finally, any member submitting an application to the Sick Leave Bank MUST include a statement from a licensed medical physician that clearly spells out the member’s illness or situation. 

Over the years, the usage of the JCTA Sick Leave Bank has increased exponentially, and we feel a strong obligation to maintain its viability.  We are confident that the changes made will go a long way in helping us to accomplish our goal.