Unified voice

Feisty crowd opposes private contracts

February 17, 2006

JOEL DAVIDSON/Frontiersman reporter

MAT-SU - After hours of impassioned, even tearful, public testimony, hundreds of Mat-Su Borough School District custodians and their supporters issued a large disapproving groan when the Mat-Su School Board ultimately voted to postpone a final decision on whether to cut more than 100 custodian positions.

The regular school board meeting was moved to the Palmer High School gymnasium to accommodate the more than 700 people who packed the building in opposition to the school district's plans to eliminate public custodians from their budget in favor of awarding a private contract to NANA Management Services for custodial and light maintenance duties in area schools.

The meeting was long on emotional pleas from union members, teachers, students and parents who didn't want to see school district custodians lose good-paying public jobs and benefits packages to a private company.

One after another, people stepped to the microphone to make statements against the district's plan. They praised the valued custodians as mentors, coaches, even parent-like figures who provide role models for young students. Others suggested that by contracting with a private company, the district might end up allowing criminals and sexual predators to stalk school hallways.

&#8220It is about the children,” said former district mechanic Richard Byrnes, who lost his job last week as part of another cost-saving measure by the school district.

Byrnes argued that it takes a massive machine to educate children.

&#8220By removing parts of the machine, it no longer works properly,” he said. &#8220Let's keep this machine running as well as it has in the past.”

Others claimed that NANA employees wouldn't be as loyal to area schools, just punching in and out without investing extra effort.

NANA Management area supervisor Darin Hargraves disagreed.

&#8220In reality, what we heard was a lot of emotion tonight,” he said. &#8220We work for Providence Hospital, the [Ted Stevens Anchorage International] Airport, and the Alaska Native Medical Center, and we are very concerned about our employees. Our program is as good or better than anyone else on the market in the private industry.”

Since 1999, NANA has performed custodial and light maintenance services for the Sitka School District, which just recently renewed its contract with the company.

As far as claims that custodians would lose their jobs, Hargraves said he'd hopes to see 100 percent of the district's custodians work for NANA.

&#8220These people are valued in this community,” he said. &#8220That is why we'd like to see them make the transition.”

Several custodians, however, claimed they'd be paid less to do the same job with NANA, a prospect they couldn't accept.

But the school district claims the move to privatization is necessary in order to maintain quality teachers and classroom environments, while dealing with increased cost to retirement benefits, salaries and health-care costs. In a letter passed out at the meeting, district officials claimed Mat-Su schools would save $1.5 million in &#8220hard” dollar savings, while gaining greater supervision of workers, better cleaning equipment and computerized monthly reports on school cleanliness.

On top of these benefits, Hargraves said the district will realize safer, cleaner schools.

&#8220The reality is, this district will get more cleaning hours over the course of the school year than they get today.”

When public testimony finally concluded, however, school board members were still unsure how to vote and decided to postpone any action until their March 1 meeting. Member Pat Purcell said she wanted more time to review the district's proposed budget for next year to see if there might be other areas to cut.

Member Dan Contini, who initially moved to postpone the vote, said he wanted to see if the Mat-Su Borough and the state Legislature were willing to add to education funding, thereby allowing the district to possibly keep its custodians.

&#8220I hope the people who talked about going to the state Legislature and to the borough will actually talk to them to see if there is more money available,” he said. &#8220If there's not more money, then we'll have to go ahead and make the cuts.”

School Board President Sarah Welton, along with board members Linda Menard and Rob Wells, opposed postponing the vote but lost out to members Larry DeVilbiss, Cheryl Turner, Pat Purcell and Dan Contini.

&#8220I think that is heartbreaking to everyone who came tonight,” said Menard, who along with DeVilbiss attended the meeting via teleconference. &#8220We are the elected officials, and we have to step up to the plate and vote this thing up or down.”

Classified Employees Association President Ron Rucker represents the more than 100 custodians whose jobs are threatened. Rucker was largely responsible for orchestrating the large turnout Wednesday night.

After the meeting he paused from stacking folding chairs to comment on the school board decision to postpone the fate of his union members.

&#8220I'm relieved that they didn't approve the NANA contract, but we still have a lot of work to do,” Rucker said. &#8220We are still in there, so now we have to go find the money. We believe the borough is going to come through; we believe the state is going to come through.”

Will the next school board meeting need to be in the gymnasium? Rucker thought so.

&#8220We will be here again,” he said, &#8220so most likely we'll need to meet in the gym.”

Contact Joel Davidson at

352-2266 or joel.davidson@

frontiersman.com.