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Oct 9, 2008 5:21 pm US/Central
More DISD 'Pink Slips' Go Out
DALLAS (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ―
There were more layoffs Thursday in the Dallas Independent School District. This time the pink slips were handed out to non-contract employees.
In all, 250 positions were eliminated from the ranks of clerks, teacher's aids and office managers. Since 100 or so of those positions were already vacant, there were actually only about 150 people who were let go.
More layoffs are still expected and teacher positions are expected to be the most affected. Those layoffs will come next week.
Board members were still in session Thursday afternoon, having just learned the state is still looking over their shoulders at how they're handling an $84 million deficit.
Board members are concerned that some audits designed to avoid any other surprises are spread over three years.
'What's gonna happen in the interim? [What are we going to] have in place to make sure that things are still being done properly in the interim?" asked DISD Trustee Lew Blackburn. "We can't wait until three years down the road to see if it's working," he said.
Among the some 150 people let go Thursday there was a mix of those fired and others who chose early retirement instead. Susan Keener fell into the latter group. After 30 years of teaching, 24 of those at the DISD, she elected to retire. "I'm lucky enough where I can go and it won't affect my life in an adverse way," she said.
Keener brought her paperwork to turn into the district human development agency, which is their version of human resources. She'll be paid a few months, and then says she'll probably look for work out of state.
Keener, who for the past six years has been a reading coach, said today's events haven't really sunk in. "I don't think it's hit me yet that this is my last day of 30 years in teaching," she said.
More than 500 contract teaching jobs are on the line next week.
DISD teachers have until Friday to decide whether to follow people like Keener and retire or roll the dice to see if they'll be fired outright.
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