PROVIDENCE – Approximately three dozen members of the Providence Teachers Union who work in the Providence Public School District’s central office at 797 Westminster St. received Wednesday displacement notices from the district.
PPSD spokesperson Laura Hart said Thursday in an email to PBN that the members may be displaced as part of a “future reorganization.” Per the union contract, displacement notices were to be issued by Wednesday to allow PPSD to have the “flexibility to make decisions in the future,” Hart said.
Hart said the displacements are not layoffs and tenured union members will “still be employed within the district next year,” but their duties and job titles may change as part of the reorganization. Details of a reorganization plan are expected to be finalized in the spring, Hart said, which will focus on providing “as many resources as possible to schools.”
Members who received notices can take part in the district’s hiring process that starts Friday, Hart said. It gives internal candidates the option to apply for open positions before they are made public.
Providence Teachers Union President Maribeth K. Calabro was not immediately available for comment Thursday.
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on Twitter at @James_Bessette.
