News: Do'ers Profile
Doug Provencio

• Name and profession: Doug Provencio, K-12 substitute teacher

• NEA Local affiliate: Oakland (California) Education Association/CTA

• Positions: President of the NEA Substitute Teachers Caucus, OEA executive board member, and building rep

• Latest accomplishment: By networking through the Internet, Provencio and other members of the Substitute Teachers Caucus have built an organization that's "growing by leaps and bounds." They're also using the Web to extend solidarity to fellow substitutes across the country, help them organize in the face of isolation and even disrespect, and compile information on the common problems subs face and the solutions they devise.

  "Many districts maintain that they pay 'extravagant' daily wages," notes Provencio, "but it has now become easy for subs to use county-wide Web sites to prove how many districts pay more than, say, $100 per day.

  "The misuse of substitutes as replacements for permanent classroom teachers or of temp agencies to hire substitutes are unhealthy trends for both subs and schools," Provencio stresses. "The Web has info on collective bargaining language that can stop management from buying into these trends.

  "Subs really want better professional development," the caucus leader adds. "Now we can go online to learn about the states that are starting in-service programs specifically for us, as well as to find a profusion of curriculum Web sites. Our caucus database on these issues has a ways to go, but it's come quite far in the past three years."

• Positions: "More and more substitute teachers are unionizing, which helps improve the pay and working conditions needed to end widespread sub shortages. But we bring more than just warm bodies to schools and dues money to local Associations. Many of us--students and retirees--will be or have been in a regular permanent classroom career. Others of us are artists, writers, parents, technology experts, and community residents. We bring a new and enriching perspective to classes we visit.

  "Moreover, subs make great phonebankers. We practice our telephone skills getting our assignments and talking to teachers about what will or did happen in their classroom. In these times of attacks on public education, teachers need all the friends we can get--especially when there are more educators who should join our local Associations."

To contact Doug Provencio, send an E-mail message to HeyMrPro@aol.com.