Oxford
teachers admit letter was a mistake
Some parents Wrongly Notified.
Students' Thanksgiving parties still on. Letter called
"misunderstanding."
Tuesday, November 22, 2005 • BY LYNN
OLANOFF • The Express-Times
OXFORD TOWNSHIP| A letter sent home by
the Oxford Education Association canceling students'
Thanksgiving festivities was a mistake and was not meant to
be part of the association's protest about members' expired
contract, the association president said Monday.
The association had considered canceling
the holiday parties as part of its effort to bring attention
to the expired contract but decided against it, Stacy
Drechsel said.
"We discussed it but it wasn't going to
be followed through on," Drechsel said Monday as she and
other association members handed out fliers about their
expired contract outside Oxford Central School.
Still, some letters were sent home with
students Friday. The letters were sent only to a "very small
population," Drechsel said, who were immediately contacted
to let them know that the parties were not
canceled.
"All parents were called within an hour
of that saying it was a misunderstanding," she
said.
Most parents were understanding, she
said.
Dawn Hiltner, a spokeswoman for the New
Jersey Education Association, said she had never heard of an
education association canceling holiday parties as part of a
contract protest. Such a thing could lessen support for the
association's cause, Hiltner said, saying she understood why
the Oxford Education Association did not go through with the
parties' cancellation.
The NJEA worked with the Oxford Education
Association on its main effort to bring attention to
members' expired contracts: the fliers handed out at
parent-teacher conferences Friday, Monday and today. The
teachers have also placed windshield visors saying "settle
now" on their cars to bring attention to their
cause.
The fliers detail the many volunteer
activities the teachers perform such as meeting with parents
after school and planning class trips and how the teachers
are the lowest paid in Warren County.
Oxford's average salary of $43,862 is
almost comparable to the starting salary in Phillipsburg,
which at $43,030 is the county's highest, Hiltner
said.
"An average salary in Oxford Township is
a starting salary in Phillipsburg," she said. "They're all
educated professionals and they should be treated as
such."
The Oxford Education Association says the
low salaries have caused the district to lose teachers to
higher-paying districts.
Association members would not say Monday
exactly what they are seeking in their contract, except that
they want a fair settlement that will raise their low
salaries. Association members will meet with the board of
education again in two weeks when members are hopeful for an
agreement, Drechsel said.
This is the second fall Oxford teachers
have been working under an expired contract, though members
and the board of education agreed to a minor salary
settlement in May for that school year.
Special education teacher Sharon Winston
said the teachers have been flexible in negotiations, even
giving up their discount prescriptions two years
ago.
"We were nice and we didn't get
anything," Winston said.
Board of education President William Ryan
and Chief School Administrator Dennis Wolf did not return
calls for comment Monday.
Reporter Lynn Olanoff can be reached at 908-475-8044 or by
e-mail at lolanoff@express-times.com.
© 2005 The Express-Times. Used with
permission.
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