By Chris BLUME

Members of the Glendale Unified School District board of education heard concerns from the GTA at the Nov. 3 meeting.

The meeting started off with Clark Magnet High School’s Associated Student Body President Dveen Babaian leading the Pledge of Allegiance. In front of his parents, ASB advisor, and principal, the board afterward recognized him for his service as ASB president.

Glendale Teachers Association President Tami Carlson then took the podium, speaking on behalf of many teachers in the area who have been mandated by the district to become certified in cross cultural language and academic development, or CLAD. Carlson said that many teachers are unsure about the requirements and consequences and asked for clarification of the terms of the new edict, and more time for teachers to fulfill the requirement. The main complaint, she said, is that many teachers are expected to attend classes for 16 hours during the week. It was later explained that many teachers who were not certified had several opportunities over the years to obtain CLAD certification. Additionally it was explained that teachers without the certification opened the district to litigation.

The delays in contract negotiations between the board and the GTA were brought to the forefront by GTA VP Alicia Harris and GUSD Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources John Garcia. Both Harris and Garcia spoke about the delays in negotiations as the most recent meeting took place on June 22. While both were quick to assure the board that they were eager to resume negotiations, they both also spent a good deal of time explaining how the other side was causing the delay.

Later the board went into open discussion. Topics included revisions of the middle school and high school social science course of study, the retirement of several teachers and several expulsions.

The meeting closed with members sharing with the board their various activities within the district since their last meeting.

The next meeting of the board of education will be on Nov. 17, and will be open to the public starting at 4:00 p.m.

For those who can’t attend, regular board meetings are televised live and replayed on Charter Cable Channel 15 or AT&T U-verse GREG-tv. Replays are shown on Wednesdays and Saturdays at 7 p.m. and Fridays at 10 a.m.