Julie Shankle and the TTA Seek to Maintain Control of the School Board
Julie Shankle – Torrance Teacher Association President
Torrance Teacher Association (TTA) President Julie Shankle’s name will not be on the ballot in the upcoming School Board election, but it might as well be. Make no mistake, a vote for Don Lee or Terry Ragins is a vote for Julie Shankle and the TTA.
Bolstered by a war chest accumulated through forced union dues, the TTA has poured hefty sums into the School Board race. The incumbents have used that money to churn out lawn signs and a steady stream of mailers nearly all of which have prominently featured Julie Shankle.
Julie Shankle has been more visible than the incumbent candidates themselves constantly posting on social media and even somehow managing to be highlighted in a recent Daily Breeze article about the candidates.
I thought my opponents in the School Board race would be the other candidates, not the TTA. I was naïve. As the son of a teacher, and someone that has had nothing but good things to say about teachers in the district, I actually even thought that the TTA and I would be natural allies in the fight to ensure our kids are the top priority. I was wrong.
As evidenced by my platform, I got into this race because I saw big issues within the District that concerned me. Our current Board is accused of entering into illegal contracts and is currently fighting a lawsuit that could return $109 Million to the District instead of keeping it in the pockets of the bond contractors. The victims of the wrestling coach are claiming the District knew about complaints against this coach and turned a blind eye. Kids were also seriously injured in an unprotected crosswalk and the District’s emergency response tools failed in the wake of the Exxon explosion contributing to it taking an hour for many school sites to shelter-in-place. I thought the TTA and I would be on the same side on these issues. I was foolish.
I wanted to work together to address these concerns and bring about positive changes for our kids, instead the TTA has made me their primary target and fought me every step of the way.
During one forum, they messaged out on Facebook, “Fireworks are already flying with Paulson calling us (TTA) a union special interest who doesn’t represent kids”. That is not what I said and I have the audio recording to prove it.
In another post they accused me of using, “ugly innuendo, name calling, and fear mongering.” They also insinuated that instead of seeking input from stakeholder groups that I have rained innuendo and insults at them to score cheap political points and that I failed to “acknowledge that our teachers and our union work hard for the children in Torrance, and that children ARE our special interest.”
Later I saw another Facebook post from TTA displaying uniformed police officers shutting down a union meeting and insinuating that my successful election would result in similar chaos. Frustrated by this barrage of attacks, that I felt were either outright false or completely unfair, I fought back.
I commented on the TTA Facebook page noting that TTA’s own ethical guidelines state that the “educator shall not in an application for a professional position deliberately make a false statement … and shall not misrepresent his/her qualifications.”
I then inquired how TTA reconciled its purported belief in their ethical values with their support of a candidate who apparently has no problem making false statements about his accomplishments. This was after Don Lee put out a mailer falsely claiming that he implemented a program to fingerprint all campus visitors and that he is the only candidate endorsed by the Republican party.
TTA promptly deleted my comment. I then wrote another asking why they deleted my comment and wondering what happened to the principles of academic freedom (which the TTA defined in their questionnaire as the allowance to ask questions, and to communicate ideas/facts, even if unpopular, without being targeted for retaliation or censorship) they supposedly espouse.
TTA’s response to that was to quickly delete the comment and ban me from their Facebook page so I would not be able to ask any more such questions. This despite the fact that I have welcomed Julie Shankle to comment on my Torrance Town Hall page and allowed her to do so on numerous occasions without censorship.
TTA has extolled their members to talk to their parents, family, friends, and neighbors to spread the word and “send a message to the challengers that vision and ideas matter.”
I ask the voters what vision and ideas have the incumbents offered? The incumbents have no websites and no platforms. How would you know what their ideas were, even if they had any? Terry Ragins Facebook page is actually littered with little more than selfies in front of school sites. What type of vision and ideas does that represent?
The incumbents have let the TTA do all the talking for them during this campaign. Why would that change if they got elected again?
Julie Shankle is not on the ballot, has no kids in Torrance schools, and does not even live in Torrance. Yet, she and the TTA are spending a lot of money in a bid to control our schools. Why?
This Tuesday voters in Torrance will determine if they want to allow Julie Shankle and the TTA to maintain control of our schools and how the District allocates hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars.
What will they decide?
Right on, I wonder what the incumbents promised TTA? The district is about to receive a one time payment of $10 million I wonder how much of it will actually make it to the classroom and the kids and how much will actually be a TTA payback.
Torrance voters better wake up! How many more children need to be touched inappropriately before we bring a change to this district!
TTA leaders at the last Rep Council said they wanted the $10 million added back into the district’s general fund to be used over time to help fund classroom programs. They did not ask for any special uses for the money. The reps reporting said they feel that this money should not be used as one time money to buy one time things. I’m sure if you asked TTA leaders, they would tell you what they said to the district with regards to this money.
It’s about time someone exposed the TTA! Thank you again, Clint!
Funny. You say Julie Shankle isn’t on the ballot, but you have put her there. Since when did this election become about her instead of your ideas?
One of my ideas is that if the TTA really wants to help our students that they should donate their PAC money to our schools instead of wasting it on an endless stream of campaign signs and mailers. Our schools could use that money a lot more than Don Lee and Terry Ragins.
Teachers donate over $10,000 dollars a year out of their pockets to fund scholarships for students, buy backpacks and school supplies, and fund other local student centered charities. Our teachers do a lot on behalf of our students–even use PAC dollars to ensure class size reduction, as well as recruitment and retention of highly effective teachers. Now you want them to fund fixing the schools and paying the salaries of their colleagues?
What I am saying is that an endless supply of expensive lawn signs and mailers may not be the best use of hard earned teacher dollars. Look Julie Shankle, I’ve allowed you and your TTA cohorts to post several comments on this thread under the guise of anonymity. How about you come on out of the shadows and answer the question I originally posed on your FB page which is how you justify supporting a candidate that has falsified his accomplishments in an effort to get re-elected. Your own ethical guidelines repudiate such conduct and I’m sure the TTA wouldn’t support such behavior, right?
Funny how you think anyone who sets the record straight must be Julie or Amy. There are 1,200 teachers who work in Torrance. There are many of us who donate to the scholarship fund. I’ll ask TTA Leaders if they purchased lawn signs. I have a good idea that they didn’t purchase them. I received one postcard from TTA. You’ve received more?
While you are it TTA, you can also tell us how you justify deleting respectfully crafted differing viewpoints on your TTA page when you supposedly advocate on behalf of academic freedom.
I’m a teacher. Every year I get a form from TTA saying I can opt out of my dues going to politics. How is this a “war chest from forced union dues”? My elected leaders aren’t forcing me. They are asking me. They ask me every year whether $5 from my dues can be shifted to the local PAC or whether it should stay in the general fund. That is hardly forced dues. The reason TTA has a “war chest” is because no endorsement was made in 2013. Have you even asked them about how they raise PAC funds? Or do you have another source that is more informed than the TTA on how they raise PAC funds?
I suggest you read this link below for where I am getting some of my information about teacher dues. https://www.cir-usa.org/cases/friedrichs-v-california-teachers-association-et-al/
This link refers to the “Hudson Notice” that is sent out to every non union member annually (I’ve seen the notice my friend gets every year). My friend told me that every non union member is given the opportunity to get back a portion of their fees that is a differing amount each year. PAC dues are different though. Any member (not non member who isn’t paying PAC dues anyway) can opt out of PAC dues by signing CTA’s blue card (readily available at the TTA office) and can opt out of local PAC dues by filling out the annual opt out form sent to every member every year. Teachers are given this information, and if they don’t understand them or know about them, then all they need to do is ask. That is how I found out. I asked someone at the TTA office.
I spoke to a friend who told me that the opt out of the PAC dues is very onerous and that doing so comes with repercussions such as losing the right to vote at meetings. My friend also told me that teachers feel pressured to toe the union line and fear losing their jobs if they voice an opinion contrary to what the union wants.
How does a member lose voting rights? Oh, wait. They don’t. It simply isn’t true. Non members cannot vote for representatives or on action items put before the elected bodies, but they do vote on ratifying the contract–all bargaining unit members (members and non members in the unit) vote on the contract. This is simple Rodda Act. Only elected representatives can vote at rep councils, but any member can attend–even those that do not contribute to the PAC. Why don’t you ask members of the TTA board how many contribute to CTA’s or NEA’s PACs. It is a nonpartisan/bipartisan body. You might be surprised.
Good luck, Clint. The Torrance Way seems to have infected everything in this corrupt city.
If union dues are not forced then why is the case Rebecca Friedrich vs. CTA in front of the US Supreme Court with a decision expect some time in 2016? This case is all about the union political dues that members need to pay to the CTA (California Teachers Assoc.) and are about $350 a year. When Friedrich opted not to pay the political dues she lost all power to vote on CTA matters. The TTA is deceiving you once again with their $5 a month political dues so you don’t look at the $350 that goes to their state parent the CTA which supports the Democrats almost 100% even though some teachers may be Republicans, Libertarians, Peace & Freedom, Green Party etc. The teachers are forced to pay for political causes they don’t support. BTW did the Torrance teachers have a district wide vote on which two candidates to support or was it like it shows on the TTA facebook page that Julie and her board made the decision for their fellow teachers? This isn’t democracy but a dictatorship.
Nice article Clint. I don’t think everyone gets it, though. Julie/TTA should at least come out and reply for the actions on FB. At least to say that they don’t like opposing viewpoints – or whatever the reasons are.
I think there is an option to ‘not’ contribute, but you pretty much have to be in lock-step with them if they are watching. Wearing the ‘color-of-the-day’ shirt, etc. is one way they send the message to the kids/families.
That monetary contribution is nothing compared to getting votes that will guarantee a salary raise down the road.
On twitter, TTA said that teachers requested they take down the posts as they found them negative. There are options to not contribute to political action at both the local and state level. There is a blue card teachers can fill out to have their CTA dues go to general fund use only/no political action. TTA has a check off every year for the same purpose.
Send me those requests TTA received to take down the posts as I would love to see what teachers were complaining. I bet their names were Julie Shankle and Amy Irwin (TTA President and PAC chair).
Yes TTA has “blue cards” for members to request that their dues not go to CTA/NEA, TTA PAC or both! I know because I exercise my blue card rights.
That is an astonishing admission Amy Irwin. I can’t believe TTA’s PAC Chair doesn’t even contribute to the PAC. I wonder how your fellow teachers that do contribute to the PAC would feel about that.
We will be watching and reporting back. They may just do the same thing as for the public use of the pool!
Break the stronghold before all choke to death.
If TTA and TUSD really cared for our kids they wouldn’t keep pervert teachers sitting in the classroom !
Victory will be with “We the People” the voters and citizens of the Shool District the ones who know right from wrong, the ones whose eyes are hopefully Polarized on putting new faces on this school board people who will act responsible, and be accountable and will think of the taxpayers of Torrance when making decisions and put themselves in their places first and foremost. Next, as residents of the city hopefully they can correct the shortcomings of the present board and student theats and actions that have occurred on their watch. Voters should not forget when the polls open on Tuesday, this is the time to take a stand and show the power and the will of “We the People! Vote Tuesday Nov 3rd for Clint Paulson, and G. Rick Marshall the only way to get Torrance School Board back the way it used to be!
I was surprised to see so much money being spent to defend a couple of seats. Unions do very often dictate politics but in today’s social environment, I believe everyone has the power to prevail over Union backed candidates. That goes for every election. The power is still in the hands of the voters. I truly believe that.
Yes both TTA and SEIU have contributed on this election! Don’t you wonder why!! Shouldn’t be about who is better qualified for the position? We have seen the track record of the incumbents why are the unions still backing them up? Let’s change that on Nov 3rd and put the power back on the people and the parents and not on those bought by the unions!