Roles and Responsibilities of WTU Elected Positions

Building Representative - The essential backbone of the WTU.

• Ideally first point of contact in all schools for issues that are arising 
  • Chairs and works with SCAC to try and resolve larger/ongoing issues with contract enforcement with school-based administration 
  • Works with LSAT around broader policies & budget  
  • Sets up the Student Behavior Management Committee 
  • Sets up the Morning Block Team 

• Grievance Handling 
  • Step 1 Stage 1 with principal – on most widespread school-based issues can happen with support of Organizer as needed. 
  • Largely what already is done with SCAC, can just draft the written grievance and submit in writing if deciding to file 
  • WTU grievance specialists and/or organizers will promote regular trainings and templates on most common grievances (virtual and asynchronous)
  • Organizers/Grievance Specialists/Elected WTU Leadership can support as needed 
  • Step 1 Stage 2 grievance with IS – Organizers will work with Building Reps to coach in how to approach meetings with Instructional Superintendents. WTU Elected leadership can sit in as needed upon request. 

• Building Union Power
  • Work with the organizer and collaborate with each other to improve upon best practices for strengthening union solidarity, holding effective chapter meetings, organizing strategies to win on issues in your school  

• Run the Union 
  • WTU Representative Assemblies will become places with a lot more business to conduct. Directly weigh in and direct where union resources are spent 

• WTU Bylaws: 
  • A. To report actions of the Chapter to the Union and actions of the Union to the Chapter. 
  • B. To conduct elections in the Chapter which shall be by secret ballot. 
  • C. To keep a current file of names and addresses and telephone numbers of the Chapter members and transmit such information to the Union office. 
  • D. To collect and transmit membership forms and dues to the Union office and to keep a record of such transactions. 
  • E. To enforce the provisions of the Agreement. 
  • F. To serve as chairman of the School Chapter Advisory Committee. 
  • G. To report results of meetings between the School Chapter Advisory Committee and the Administrator of the school to the School Chapter. 
  • H. To hold monthly Chapter meetings. 

School Chapter Advisory Committee (SCAC) Members - SCAC committees meet with building supervisors once a month to discuss instructional issues, school policy and questions pertaining to the implementation of the WTU-DCPS collective bargaining agreement. [SEE ARTICLE 9, WTU-DCPS CONTRACT]. SCACs consist of not more than seven (7) members of the Union in each school, school administrative unit, or school functional unit. There shall be only one School Chapter Advisory Committee in each school, school administrative unit, or school functional unit regardless of the number of bargaining units represented by the Union, except where there is more than one supervisor.

Local School Advisory Team (LSAT) Members - An LSAT is a consensus group of administrators, parents, teachers, support staff, union representative, community representative and students who are elected and/or appointed to advise on matters of local school policy including but not limited to the Annual School Budget.

Personnel Committee (PC) Members - Personnel Committee Members interview and recommend all candidates for any vacant positions at the school except the position of principal. They also meet to discuss any excessing decisions that need to be made based on the WTU Contractual Excessing policy. The members of the Personnel Committee will include: the administrator or his/her designee; the WTU Building Representative or his/her designee; the department head or grade level chairperson from the department or grade level affected by the vacancy (or his/her designee), or a member of the appropriate non-Teacher employee group (e.g., custodians, paraprofessionals); at least one additional Teacher, but not more than (4), elected by the WTU chapter at the school; and a parent of a current student mutually selected by both WTU Building Representative and the Supervisor.

Delegates to Representative Assembly - The general governing body of the WTU shall be the Representative Assembly. Delegates to this Assembly shall consist of members of the WTU who are elected by the members at their schools. Delegates to the Representative Assembly shall be apportioned on the basis of one for every twenty-five members or major portion thereof, with not less than one representative per building.

The WTU also elects members to serve as delegates and as members of the Elections Committee for the American Federation of Teachers Convention and as Delegates to the Maryland / DC AFL-CIO Convention.