Welcome!
Welcome to the SDEA-Retired website! It has been a long time in coming and we are grateful to SDEA staff for helping us achieve a long-time goal. Our motto is “Lifetime Learners… Lifetime Professionals”. SDEA-Retired is unified with CTA/NEA-Retired. SDEA/CTA/NEA-Retired is an active, influential lobby in the state for education issues, and especially for retirement and health concerns. Over the last several years, your association advocates have successfully lobbied to increase CALSTRS benefits for current members. On the local level, SDEA-R is a watchdog for retiree issues and a place where retired educators can come together socially and educationally.
We invite all certificated education employees to join our organization by completing the application on this website. Please see the calendar of events so you can plan to join us for camaraderie as well as for pertinent information. Registration forms for upcoming events are also on this website. The SDEA-R Executive Committee hopes to see you at one our future events. If we do not have your email address, please send it to Norma Heeter at heet2@san.rr.com.
—Norma J. Heeter, SDEA-R President
SDEA-Retired Elections
San Diego Education Association will be holding the election for the officers of the Executive Committee at the April 5, 2010 general
membership meeting at the 94th Aero Squadron Restaurant. The Election Candidate Search Committee has completed its work. The following people are candidates for the positions. Members will still have an opportunity to nominate from the floor at the meeting.
- President: Norma Heeter
- Vice-President: Ellie Cole
- Secretary: Karen Pearce
- Treasurer: Barbara Jenkins
- SDEA Council Representatives (2): Alice Fierke, Sandy Ambrosi, Tim Jenkins
- Alternate to Council Representative: Joan Robinson
Please send in your reservation for the April luncheon ASAP and participate in the election process (scroll down the “Resources” section below to download the luncheon form).
Rally Update
Fellow SDEA-R Members:
Thanks to those 8-10 retirees who were able to come out on such short notice and support the active SDEA members at their Feb. 9 rally at the Ed Center. Despite the rain, there was a large number of SDEA members and CSEA members present. Camille Zombro, SDEA President, recognized the presence of retirees in her final words of appreciation to all who attended. We are very appreciative of that. Camille also let it be known that SDEA and CSEA will be back to each school board meeting until a contract is reached. The next school board meeting is Feb. 23, so if you can pencil that in on your calendars and go to the meeting to show SDEA-R support, please do so. It is a candle light vigil from 5:30-6:30 p.m. If you can make a name tag identifying yourself as SDEA-Retired and wear red that would alert SDEA members to your presence.
Marc Capitelli, SDEA VP and Bargaining Chair, believes that the District responded to the last rally in that they removed the 8% pay cut from their next proposal.
I was interviewed at the rally by SDEA staff member, Erin Clark, so check out the SDEA website in coming weeks to see the footage.
As retirees we continue to support public school education, public school employees and most of all, public school children.
TOGETHER WE CAN!
—Norma J. Heeter, SDEA-R President
Walking Tour
SDEA-R is taking a walking tour through the historic Gaslamp Quarter on Tuesday, April 27, 2010 at 10:00 a.m., so please arrive by 9:45 a.m.! The guide(s) will vividly recreate the late 1800’s, when the city near the waterfront fell into disrepair and the “Stingaree” district flourished. The tour highlights the largest collection of restored
Victorian style commercial buildings on the west coast, and an eclectic array of architectural styles. As we admire the architecture, we’ll discover the haunts of famous former resident, Wyatt Earp, learn about the marketing secrets of the naughty ladies of the Stingaree, and the significance of the colored marbles.
The only tour to include admission to . . .
While most homes are historic for only one person or event, the William Heath Davis House has a myriad of historic events and people in its past. Our group will learn about pre-civil war military officers, San Diego founder Alonzo Horton and why it’s called the William Heath Davis House but William Heath Davis never lived in it! They will discover why the entire home (and nine others) were shipped to San Diego from Maine in 1850, why it was once considered the “county hospital” and learn why the owners lived in the house until 1981 without electricity! Each room is decorated to represent a different period in the life of this engaging historic home.
The tour leaves at 10:00 a.m. from the William Heath Davis House at 410 Island Avenue (4th and Island), ending at the Old Spaghetti Factory if you wish. Please RSVP to Ellie Cole at 858-273-2500 or email her at ecole4280@yahoo.com by April 20, 2010, if you plan to attend. Participants will pay the $10.00 at the start of the tour. If you plan to eat lunch at the Old Spaghetti Factory, too, please let Ellie know for reservation purposes. Each person will be responsible for their own food orders at the restaurant.
Suggestions for parking include parking near Petco Park for $3.00 or taking the trolley from places like Old Town would be good. Car pooling with other retirees would also be good.
Trolley information: Trolley website: www.sdmts.com and go to the trolley information. East County can take the Orange Line. The Blue Line from Old Town works, but you have to transfer at Santa Fe Depot, walk across the street, and take the Orange Line that says Convention Center. You get off at the Gaslamp stop. If you take the Green Line, you can transfer to the Blue Line at Old Town and then to the Orange Line.
Recognition
On behalf of its members, the SDEA-R Executive Committee presented a plaque of appreciation to Marc Capitell, SDEA Vice-President, for his continuing support of SDEA-R members and their issues.
SDEA-R/SDEA Victory: Repealing the Two-Percent Fee
In May of 2009, the San Diego Education Association Vice President Marc Capitelli overheard a conversation that the San Diego Unified School District was going to start charging retirees a 2 percent fee on their premiums for servicing their benefits, effective July 1, 2009. Marc Capitelli forwarded this information to the SDEA-R President, Norma Heeter, who began a two-month campaign to get the 2 percent removed. SDEA-R immediately went into action seeking assistance from SDEA and retired members. SDEA-R emailed and sent letters to the SDUSD School Board members and addressed the Board of Education on June 9, 2009, pointing out that the fee was unilaterally imposed without being taken to the bargaining table. Not only were current retirees affected, but so were the 600-plus educators who had just taken the SERP retirement option with no knowledge of the coming imposed fee, as well as all future SDEA retirees. In addition, Norma Heeter pointed out that retirees deserve this retiree service after serving the District, and a beginning date of July 1 did not give retirees time to plan. SDEA-R also notified the other SDUSD unions of this imposed fee.
SDEA Executive Director Steve Johnson took the issue to the joint Contract Administration Committee and the bargaining table. He took the position that there is no indication that there was ever any intent on either party in the SDUSD/SDEA contract language to charge a fee for servicing the benefits. Discussions with the district attorney led SDEA to believe the fee would be rescinded. However, it was not until after the district sent letters dated June 22, 2009 to retirees informing them of the 2 percent fee being added to their premiums that word finally came that the imposed fee had, in fact, been rescinded. TOGETHER WE DID, SDEA and SDEA-R!
SDEA-R Executive Committee
Elected Positions:
Norma J. Heeter President heet2@san.rr.com 858-485-9888
Ellie Cole Vice President ecole4280@yahoo.com
Ann Norman Secretary annabel1947@yahoo.com
Barbara Jenkins Treasurer barjenk@gmail.com
Alice Fierke SDEA Council Rep. alicespiration@aol.com
Tim Jenkins SDEA Council Rep. ctaneaj@pacbell.net
Joan Robinson SDEA Council Rep. Alternate
Appointed Positions:
Judy Thomas SDEA-R Liaison to the Joint Health and Welfare Benefits Committee
Karen Pearce SDEA-R Alternate Liaison to the Joint Health and Welfare Benefits Committee