Teachers Make Agonizing Decision to Quit Volunteer Job She Loves

By Terry Lawler

It was one of the most difficult decisions Linda McManus ever had to make. After more than 10 years of volunteering as coach of the Irish Dance Troupe at Kenosha’s Tremper High School, would she – could she – give up this educational activity she loved so much to join her teachers’ union colleagues and take a stand against unfair treatment by the school board and state officials?

“I absolutely hated to do it, but I had to do it,” McManus said. “Some people don’t understand it, but I did it for the kids. If this state and this district continue to treat their teachers with disrespect, our educational system is going to decay. And that’s going to hurt all the kids for years to come.”

McManus made the painful decision last fall and informed the school district she would be joining her Kenosha Education Association colleagues in “working to the contract,” which meant she would only perform duties specifically required by the contract. The union had asked its members to participate in the job action after teachers were given a contract offer that would have frozen their salaries in the first year and meant wage rollbacks in the second. That was on top of eight years of restrictive contracts under the Qualified Economic Offer law, which precludes teachers from bargaining a fair contract.

This year, KEA members decided they had had enough and it was time to take a stand.

"If this state and this district continue to treat their teachers with disrespect, our educational system is going to decay. And that’s going to hurt all the kids for years to come." ------------ Linda McManus

With few other options available to them, KEA members decided to engage in a “work to contract” job action. Because teachers routinely engage in so many voluntary activities, the job action was affecting many events, including the district’s highly acclaimed “Ye Olde Englisshe Christmasse Feaste.”

A joint production of the choir departments of Kenosha’s Tremper and Bradford High Schools, the “Feaste” is a multi-course banquet that features a madrigal choir and includes entertainment by jesters, tumblers, fencers, Irish dancers, bagpipers, jugglers, and much more. Guests at the Feaste enjoy 2½ hours of food and entertainment. This extravaganza is the result of thousands of hours of preparation and rehearsal put in by students, teachers, and volunteers from the community. A tradition in Kenosha for more than 25 years, the Feaste regularly seats at its head table many dignitaries such as former Wisconsin Senator William Proxmire and Russia’s deputy minister for culture.

The atmosphere was not very festive last September, however, when rehearsals began. Growing animosity over the unsettled teachers contract was taking its toll on students, parents and teachers, including McManus.

All of the students who participate do so under the direction of an adult, and nearly all the adults involved were Kenosha teachers who were putting in unpaid, voluntary time. Teacher advisers were given an honorarium of two Feaste tickets, but were otherwise uncompensated. This year, most of the advisers – although they had participated willingly for many years – chose to withhold their voluntary services. A few other advisers felt they could not bring themselves to cancel the event.

Although McManus modestly says her role was “not an important one in the big scheme of things,” she is “proud of the work I’ve done in that capacity, and I’m proud of my dancers.”

So it was especially heartbreaking for McManus when she was informed by one of her dancers – not by administration – that the district had found someone else to serve as their adviser. Another Tremper staff member, whose daughter was part of the Irish Dancers, agreed to take her place, not as a teacher, but as a parent adviser. Consequently, McManus – whose previous decision to not serve was limited to this year – resigned permanently as Irish Dancer adviser.

In a letter to the superintendent and school board, McManus wrote, “Although I understand that the events of this school year have created painful, difficult situations for all of us … I want to remind all of you that teachers who give from their hearts need to feel respected and appreciated.”

The other advisers who chose to work to the contract echoed McManus’ comments. They, too, made decisions they knew were true to their principles but could strain relationships. Despite many decades of Feaste involvement, they felt their action was the only way to make a statement to the community.

The Feaste had its usual four performances last December. There were a few differences from previous performances. There were no fencers; their adviser chose to work to contract. Familiar faces were missing in some of the dramatic roles that had been performed by teachers. Still, it went on.

But beneath the golden glitter of the performances lies a core of lead.

Eight years of fighting for a fair contract under a repressive law is taking its toll in many ways. It has driven a wedge between teachers and school boards. It has divided the public. Professional relationships have become strained. Some personal relationships have been forever damaged.

Above all, it is causing the fabric of a district – the cooperative spirit and mutual respect of parents, citizens and teachers such as McManus – to unravel.

Terry Lawler is a recently
retired Kenosha teacher.

Posted March 14, 2002