Do you see a need for a teachers union?

Jim Grabusky: That’s a very interesting question which I really can’t address because we don’t have the power to disband or change it. There are definitely good parts to it, but it’s something you have to really understand in order to work with.

Jeffrey Dimmig: I think we absolutely need teachers unions. That’s an import part of the process. Our union has been quite responsive to us. The school code and state union controls a lot of what happens and put pressure on things that occur. We need them, but we could use some more flexibility. There’s going to be a lot on the line here. Hopefully they can give, so we can give back.

William Lycett: What concerns me more about unions is the leadership of a union that doesn’t necessarily have the best interests of the members in mind and they have their own personal agenda. I grew up in Western PA, my step-father lost his job in the early ‘80s working for a steel plant that was shut down. There needs to be kind of a cohesive idea of how the representative parties want to be represented and an agreement. I think everybody should be moving toward objectives for a union and for the school district in this case, that better the students. When there’s personal agendas that get in the way, it’s a world of concern.

John Quigley: I don’t know how to answer that. At one point it was a necessary evil. I’ve never questioned the need for it. That’s not even something that could be considered. It’s here. I’ve always been uncomfortable during contract negotiations. We never talk with teachers at a local level, but with a representative. That’s one of the things I uncomfortable with but I would never advocate the disband of the union.

Corrine A. Gunkle: First of all, I don’t think it’s my choice whether we have a teacher’s union or not. That’s something the teachers choose. I will say I grew up in a coal and steel town in Ohio and I’m very, very much aware of the history of where unions came from and why we have them. I mean there’s plenty of stories, way back, in those West Virginia coal mines to be able to know why that was put in place. So, knowing what the history of them is I certainly understand what they brought. I understand they brought up workers. I understand they brought up safety in the workplace. Many, many other things so I think there is definitely value in the unions.  So, do they need to change?  I think that they need to change. I don’t think I have the power to change them, I mean, I don’t have the power to eliminate them, and I don’t know that I really want to eliminate them, but I do think that they need to change.

Editor’s Note: Answers have been edited for clarity and grammar. Content has remained unchanged.