Columnist Jon Ralston: State teachers’ union trying to boost its image

Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2001 | 9:44 a.m.

Jon Ralston hosts the public affairs program "Face to Face" on Las Vegas ONE and also publishes the Ralston Report. His column for the Sun appears on Sundays and Wednesdays. Ralston can be reached at 870-7997 or through e-mail at ralston@vegas.com

IF YOU DON'T count Gov. Kenny Guinn's "Don't blame me for the energy crisis, I'm a conservationist" TV ads, they might well be the first campaign commercials of the new cycle.

The state teachers' union today unleashes a six-figure TV buy designed to establish the Nevada State Education Association as the leader in improving the state's schools. The campaign comes, not coincidentally, on the eve of a debate over education funding. Well, at least I think there's an incipient debate over education funding. After all, that is what the governor, the gamers, the Chamber of Commerce and the Gang of 63 promised us, right?

And none of those have ever made a promise they couldn't -- or didn't intend to -- keep, n-est-ce-pas?

The union folks know that their critics either see them -- or conveniently portray them -- as advocates not for kids, but for higher paychecks.

Class-size reduction? Just a ploy to guarantee more union members, not to improve student performance. Increasing the per-pupil expenditure to somewhere near the national average? Just a means to build up the pot of cash available for teachers, not to get more textbooks and crayons.

You've heard the knocks. And so have the NSEA leaders.

So they have produced a couple of TV spots -- and one has a Spanish version -- touting how they care about the "value of a quality education."

They will begin airing today mostly on local newscasts at a fairly high frequency for the next couple of weeks -- and perhaps beyond, depending on the reaction.

One ad clicks through a variety of educators talking about how the legacy they want to leave is about preparing kids for the future. The other commercial begins by saying, "For more than 100 years, one organization has met the challenge of our kids' education, one organization had stood for quality and demanded that politicians pay attention to the needs of our kids." Any guess which organization the ad refers to? The spot concludes by declaring the group will "lead the way" for the next century to ensure that so-called quality education.

All of the spots end with this line, meant to emphasize the righteousness of the cause: "Any questions?"

As a matter of fact, yes, I have a few.

First, what do the teachers hope to accomplish? I'd guess there are three goals. One, the ad campaign is designed to enhance the union's image. Two, they hope it will boost membership morale. And, three, the campaign positions the NSEA as the prime voice for education funding. Or so the teachers hope.

Second, does this mean the union believes this putative tax colloquy actually will occur? I still think the NSEA types are being, of all things, Reaganesque here. That is, they are employing a "trust but verify" approach. If the debate does take place, they want to be a major player. And if it doesn't, they want to establish credibility for their next step if nothing comes of the chattering: another business tax initiative. As one teachers' union insider put it: "The default position is to do a referendum unless something happens."

Third, how will the public and the political class react to this campaign?

My guess is the ads won't have much impact unless they are part of an elongated, if even intermittent, attempt to create an image foundation for the union. But if the spots run for awhile and keep repeating the message -- union good, loves kids -- it may help.

As for the other competing forces and the politicians, my guess is legislators will wonder why the union is spending money on this rather than campaign contributions (that's as far as their vision stretches on many topics), the governor will probably wonder why any ads for education don't have him in there (I don't think he's a member) and the chamber will probably start airing commercials detailing its commitment to funding education (that should be a short campaign).

One last question, and this one isn't for the teachers but for the man who went from embracing deregulation to becoming the new conservation spokesman:

The teachers can claim to lead on this issue, but only one man, as I've said before, can stop the initiative process from infecting important governmental decisions, just as only one person can truly helm what so far seems to be a mythical tax discussion.

Any idea who that might be, governor?