Our hearts and thoughts go out to the many students, fellow educators and families impacted by the fires that raged through California. In the Santa Rosa area alone, nearly 40 CTA members have lost their homes, with over 100 members losing their homes in several Northern California counties. In addition to Grants from CTA’s Disaster Relief Fund, and support for policy-holders from CTA’s endorsed insurance company, California Casualty, the Santa Rosa Teachers Association has started a YouCaring Fund, which has generated nearly $33,000 to date, and the Redwood Service Center Council has started a GoFundMe page with a goal of $20,000.

The CTA Board of Directors will award Incentive Grants for attendance at the following statewide conferences:

Grants will also be offered for the summer conferences. Look for information about the Presidents Conference and Summer Institute in April 2018.

To apply for an incentive grant online visit www.CTAGo.org/grants.

Minority Incentive Grants – Minority members are defined as belonging to one of the following racial-ethnic groups:  African American; American Indian/Alaska Native; Asian; Hispanic; Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander or Multi-ethnic.  These grants are offered to encourage minority leadership within the Association.

Small Chapter Incentive Grants will be awarded to small chapters with a unit size of 100 or fewer members or 200 or fewer members for Issues Conference.  Unit size is defined as the number of persons who are represented for purposes of collective bargaining. The chapter membership may be less than the unit size.

Special Small Chapter Full Incentive Grants will be offered for Issues Conference participants from chapters with a unit size of 25 or fewer members.  In addition to the conference fee and covered transportation costs, this grant pays for substitute cost for release time and housing based on two conference participants per room.

Special Under-Represented Groups (White Male, and Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual or Transgender) Grants will be offered for Equity and Human Rights Conference participants.

New Member Grants will be awarded to applicants who are within their first 5 years of CTA membership.

Again, to learn more about CTA Conferences and grants, go to www.CTAGo.org.

Should you have any questions regarding the online application process for the incentive grants, please call the CTA Conference Coordination Center at 650-552-5355.

ISP committee MOU

By Kris Ruby and originally posted at observer.com

Workplace etiquette has always been a nebulous, confusing social territory even before the days of social media. Professional boundaries and personal boundaries of behavior are very different. Social media further blurs the line between the two, making it harder than ever to know the appropriate social cues and responses.

If you worry that you’re making gaffes with social media that could cost you your job, you could be right.

Here are 10 workplace etiquette social media blunders to avoid:

1. Posting photos during business hours

There is nothing wrong with posting endless photos of your baby or your dog in private, but steer clear of posting all of this during business hours. After you have posted the 500^th photo of your baby, your employer may begin to question what your top priority is. Of course, not every post should be about work; balance is essential.

2. Friending co-workers you don’t know

The basic rule is this: online boundaries should be a reflection of offline boundaries. If you try to cross one of those lines on the web, it could potentially lead to an uncomfortable situation.

3. Not understanding how each social media network works

LinkedIn is the best social media platform for connecting with colleagues and staying in touch. However, it should not be used the same way Facebook or Twitter is used. Your LinkedIn connections want to see work anniversaries, business blogs and press mentions. They don’t want to see party photos or personal content. If you’re going to be on the social media sites, follow the rules for what is socially (and professionally) acceptable to post on each one.

4. Being overly personal on social media

This is perhaps the biggest workplace blunder I hear people complain about behind co-workers backs. The people who work with you do not want to hear an endless saga from you about your failed marriage or your financial woes. It makes them see you in a different light. Eventually, they will unfollow you on Facebook because it’s nicer than unfriending you altogether. Therapists are for venting, not Facebook.

5. Not being discreet about your Facebook groups

Joining groups on Facebook is one of the primary reasons people like to use it. However, most people don’t realize that your groups can often be visible to your Facebook friends. If you don’t want your co-workers to see that you’re part of the Overeaters Anonymous Facebook group, you may want to consider joining other groups. Even if you’re able to successfully hide your groups, when someone goes to join a group, it will still tell them which of their friends are in that group. Additionally, anyone in the group can screenshot your private posts in the group, which can leak out beyond social media.

6. Mis-using live stories

This pertains to Facebook Live, Snapchat, and Instagram Live. All are these are great if you want to embrace live sharing. However, if you start watching a previous co-workers Instagram Live story, remember that they can see who is watching them. At some point, it begins to look stalker-ish if you watch peoples stories that you had a bad relationship with. The same is true for any of the live sharing social media sites. When you look at an Instagram photo, no one can tell unless you like it. When you look at an Instagram story, the poster knows who is watching.

7. Breaking dinner table rules

Just like your mother said, you should never discuss politics, sex, or religion at the dinner table. These rules apply to the office, and, if your boss or co-workers can see your posts, that means they also apply on social media. We don’t always think about what we are doing when we comment on someone else’s political post online. But if those posts are in public, you could end up regretting it the next day when someone screenshots it and uses it against you. In today’s divisive political climate, the wrong political remark could cost you your job.

8. Not filtering your posts

On Facebook, you can filter your posts, and on Google Plus, you can add people to different Circles. These systems allow you to only share content with certain people in your life. Filters allow you to share things with family or friends that you aren’t comfortable sharing with your co-workers. If you aren’t using filters, groups, and circles, you are publicly posting everything.

9. Sharing without reading

How often do you re-share a video or an article without actually watching or reading the entire thing?

Our online profiles are curated reflections of our personalities. But while we are busy skimming content and re-sharing what we think reflects our views, we can sometimes miss key details. For example, you might share an article because you like the headline—but later you find out the headline is misleading and the content does not represent your feelings at all. Always read or watch content in full before you share it so that you are clear on what you are endorsing.

10. Not checking up on what your friends and family are posting

Finally, you aren’t the only one who can destroy your professional reputation; friends and family can too if they are indiscreet with their tagging. Adjust your settings so that people need to ask your permission before they tag you. Your boss may have very different political views than your mom does, so keep them separate to be safe.

Social media should tell a story about you that you would be comfortable sharing with your boss. Regularly post updates that help to cultivate a story of professional dedication and success, and avoid sharing content that tells a story you don’t want bosses, co-workers or headhunters to hear.

Kris Ruby is the CEO of Ruby Media Group, a Public Relations and Social Media Agency. Kris Ruby is a frequent on air TV contributor and speaks on social media, tech trends and crisis communications. For more information, visit rubymediagroup.com or www.krisruby.com