Editor,
My name is Darryl Burton and I’ve been a special education teacher at the Madera County Superintendent of Schools (MCSOS) for eight years.
For the last four years, I’ve served as the CTA Chapter President of the Madera County Office of Education Teacher Association (MCOETA). It is in this capacity that I’ve had the pleasure of working with Lisa Edelheit, who was our primary contact staff with the CTA.
Lisa is someone who cares deeply about people. I’ve seen her repeatedly go above and beyond in supporting individual teachers who are continually faced with navigating the myriad flaws present in the public education system.
When it came to addressing issues from unsafe classrooms, to student misconduct, to administrative failure and even down to salary negotiations, Lisa has been there to help us to improve the working lives of teachers.
There have been countless late night union meetings where Lisa insisted on staying with us to do the necessary work and get the job done. No excuses.
Lisa is a true leader. I do not say that lightly, as I am known for being a vocal critic of those I perceive to be weak leaders. Lisa has proven herself time and time again in helping us to organize, raising our spirits when morale was low, and helping us with important legal and contractual information when we were ignorant of the bureaucratic processes that often define public education in California.
I have developed into a strong advocate and leader of teachers myself due in no small part to Lisa’s influence. I miss working with her, but I recognize that she is called to even greater acts of service.
I have no doubt that she will make an excellent county supervisor for Mariposa. Lisa possesses a rare combination of traits that make her unique in my opinion: She is possessed of enormous inner strength, demonstrates unapologetic assertiveness, and is more than willing to challenge flawed systems. This is counter-balanced by her patience, empathy and genuine love of people.
Mariposa County would be truly fortunate to have her as a county supervisor. We certainly miss her as a union leader and advocate for teachers.
If you have any further questions about my experience with Lisa, I’m more than happy to be of assistance with any follow up questions you might have. Thank you for taking the time to read my letter.
Sincerely,
Darryl Burton
CTA Chapter President – MCOETA
Univ. Notre Dame, Class of 2005
Raymond
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