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WOW---80% statewide school budget passage rate yesterday! We could not be prouder of the hard work and grassroots community organizing each of you did to produce this result.

We said that getting a high percentage of school budgets passed was our # 1 priority. You proved that when we set a goal, focus our organizational energies on it and work together in a unified and cohesive manner---REALLY GOOD STUFF HAPPENS!!!

Thanks and congratulations to all!

Vince Giordano

Medicare Part D Information from Ray Sabin, NJREA Health Benefits Committee

In my capacity as liaison to your county organization from the NJREA Health Benefits Committee, I'm providing the following information pertaining to our RX benefit: the enrollment of Medicare retirees in the Medco Medicare Prescription Plan, including the automatic enrollment of the Medicare retirees in Medicare Part D.

May I emphasize, "for most retirees it will be a seamless transition and therefore most of the issues raised in the Medco letter will not impact you. It is important to understand that while the correspondence from Medco indicates that members are not obligated to join the Medco Medicare Prescription Plan, if a retiree decides not to join, they will lose their prescription drug coverage with the School Employees' Health Benefits Program."

Welcome to the BCREA web site. We are hopeful that our retired educators will find this site useful and informative. We would like to extend an invitation to you to help make this site your site by contributing suggestions, asking questions and offering your opinions on both site content and issues you feel should be addressed. Contact us.

We encourage you to stay informed and connected through unified membership in NJREA / BCREA.

The BCREA Fall Luncheon & Meeting was held on Thurs., Oct. 13 at Charley's Other Brother.

156 members attended the event. President Jackie McNaughton conducted the business meeting, followed by guest speakers Wendall Steinhauer, NJEA Vice President; Roe Jankowski, NJREA President; Mary Steinhauer, BCEA President;

Patrick Byrne, TD Bank; Marybeth Beichert, NJEA government relations and Susan Vigilante-Williams, retired teacher and guest speaker.

The raffle winner was Charles Dashiell, Jr.

At the business meeting Patrick Byrne from TD Bank announced that the BCREA will be entering the Affinity Members Program which will help to raise money for theBCREA. Once a BCREA member becomes part of the Affinity Program, TD Bank will make an annual contribution to the BCREA based on the average balance in all members accounts. Members personal accounts are not affected in any way. More information will follow.

NJEA Vice President, Wendall Steinhauer discussed with the membership that in the upcoming election it is recommended to withhold your vote rather than vote for a non-endorsed NJEA candidate. Members should vote for candidates on the local level and in this way we will send a message that our membership has an influence on lection outcomes.

The BCREA Spring Luncheon & Meetig will be held on May 8, 2012. So mark your calendar.

HOT TOPICS

NJEA joins other public employee unions in a lawsuit against the state of New Jersey concerning the pension and healthcare laws enacted in June. Check the NJEA website to understand the lawsuit and its impact on members.

READ info at NJEA

New Legislative Districts resulting from census

redistricting. VIEW HERE

An opinion poll taken reflects that most are satisfied with NJ public schools. READ MORE

The American Institutes for Research seeks retired teachers as data collectors. READ MORE.

SEE WHAT NEW JERSEY KIDS AND FAMILIES HAVE TO SAY ABOUT CURRENT ISSUES. READ MORE.

Free legal advice for Burlington County Seniors. Read the following for more information.

Governor Christie signed a bill allowing districts, municipalities, or voters to opt to move the annual school election to the general election in November. This action eliminates the vote on school budgets for such districts, except for separate proposals to spend above the cap—i.e., if the proposed budget is at or below cap, then there will be no public vote on the budget. READ MORE.

Burlington County College Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) is seeking retired teachers to help tutor students from the developmental classes at BCC. The need is particularly critical in Math, but English and Reading tutors are equally needed. Volunteers have flexibility regarding their schedule and choice of campus (Mt. Laurel or Pemberton).

If you are interested in volunteering, or learning how you can positively impact the professional future of Burlington County students, please contact:

Karen Bennett at (609) 894-9311 x 1498, or

kbennett@bcc.edu.

To join RSVP (it is free!), you can apply on-line at:

http://staff.bcc.edu/rsvp/application.asp

Do you have a grandchild, niece, nephew, or neighbor looking for money for college? We may have the answer for you. Applications are now available for the BCREA scholarship, Robert M. Oberholser Scholarship. APPLICATION DEADLINE IS MARCH 30, 2012.

HELP SUPPORT OUR SCHOLARSHIP

In order to support this scholarship BCREA has become a member of the Affinity Program at TD Bank. This program will enable TD Bank to make annual contributions to the BCREA Affinity account based on the average balance of our members' accounts. Accounts eligible for the Affinity Program are checking, savings, money markets, certificates of deposit and IRA's. This is an easy way for you to contribute to the scholarship fund without doing anything except enrolling in the program. You may contribute to only one Affinity account and you can become a contributor by stopping at any branch of TD Bank and talk to a Customer Service Representative or calling the Rancocas Branch of TD Bank at 609-518-1805. Be sure to use the following account code to get faster service. The BCREA Affinity account code is A3159. Thank you in advance for your help to this worthwhile cause.

The Museum Pass program is a service provided by the Burlington County Library System that enables customers to visit several area museums and gardens. It’s a great way for friends and families to enjoy education, cultural enrichment and fun. This service is sponsored by the Friends of the Burlington County Library, Inc. READ MORE