Out of My League

I have a handful of blogs that I read religiously routinely. I was checking out http://principalspage.com/theblog/index.php?/archives/163-THE-PERFECT-SCHOOL..html the other day and the title hit me. The Perfect School. We, the royal we of all of us who think we know something about nothing, think we could create the perfect school if just given the permission.

Go read what he has to say… and come back here… I’ll wait… no really… I’ll still be here… go on…

Wow… you are a slow reader… what took so long?

Having worked in the real world before getting into education… I am an expert on what we have and don’t have in education. My belief about school is very simple…

School should be free for all those who attend… you need something… you get it… we pay.

Let that eat at you… soak it in… level the playing field… open the doors… fan yourself… ready? okay…

Usually when I roll that out I’m talking about the kids. You want to play baseball… here is a hat, jersey, glove, bat, pants, spikes, and a ball. Everything you need we will provide. This time I’m not just talking about the kids. I’m talking about the workers… the teachers… the administrators… the custodians…

Let’s chat about Google… you know who (what) I’m talking about… you know you googled yourself… admit it… it’s the first step. When I google me I find that I write this blog… and I am a pretty famous minor league baseball player… I think the two fit nicely…

Back to Google. If you were to work at Google you could get…

Health and wellness*

• Medical Insurance: 3 Carriers
• Dental Insurance
• Vision Insurance
• Flex Spending Account Plan
• EAP – Employee Assistance Program – Services for employees and their dependents include free short-term counseling, legal consultations, financial counseling, child care referrals and pet care referrals.
• Life and AD&D Insurance – Automatic coverage at 2 times annual salary.
• Voluntary Life Insurance – Option to purchase additional life insurance.
• Short Term & Long Term Disability – Short Term Disability Insurance coverage provided at 75% of salary.Long Term Disability coverage provided at 66 2/3% of salary once Short Term disability is exhausted.
• Business Travel Accident Insurance – Automatic coverage at 2 times annual salary.

That enough… that’s not it…

Retirement and savings*

• Google 401(k) Plan
  Employees may contribute up to 60% and receive a Google match of up to the greater of (a) 100% of your contribution up to $2,500 or (b) 50% of your contribution per year with no vesting schedule! We offer a variety of investment options to choose from, through Vanguard, our 401(k) Plan Administrator. To help you with those tough investment decisions, employees can access Financial Engines to receive personalized investment advice.
• 529 College Savings Plan
  This plan provides employees with a way to save money for post-secondary education.

Time away*

• Vacation
  

  1st year 15 days

  4th year 20 days

  6th year 25 days

• Holidays
  12 paid holidays (sick days taken as necessary) 
• Maternity Benefits
  up to 18 weeks off at approximately 100% pay
• Parental Leave (for non-primary caregivers)
  up to 7 weeks off at approximately 100% pay
• Take-Out Benefit
  To help make things easier, new moms and dads are able to expense up to $500 for take-out meals during the first 3 months that they are home with their new baby.

Benefits … beyond the basics*

• Tuition Reimbursement
  We’ll help you pursue further education that’s relevant to what you do. You must receive grades of “B” or better. Why a “B” or better? Because we said so. Tuition reimbursement is $8000 per calendar year.
• Employee Referral Program
  Good people know other good people. Our best employees have been hired through referrals. Google encourages you to recommend candidates for opportunities here and will award you a bonus if your referral accepts our offer and remains employed for at least 60 days.
• Back-Up Child Care
  As a California employee, when your regularly scheduled child care falls through Google will provide you with 5 free days of child care per year through Children’s Creative Learning Center (CCLC). 13 Bay Area locations serving ages 6 weeks – 12 years.
• Gift Matching Program
  Google matches contributions of up to $3000 per year from eligible employees to non-profit organizations. Bolstering employee contributions to worthy causes with matching gifts doesn’t just mean helping hundreds of organizations, both locally and globally; it’s also a tangible expression. We want Googlers to get involved – and the company is right behind you.
• Adoption Assistance
  Google assists our employees by offering financial assistance in the adoption of a child. We’ll reimburse you up to $5000 to use towards legal expenses, adoption agencies or other adoption professional fees. Parental leave and take-out benefit also apply. See Time Away.

Benefits … way beyond the basics*

• Food
  Hungry? Check out our free lunch and dinner – our gourmet chefs create a wide variety of healthy and delicious meals every day. Got the munchies? Google also offers snacks to help satisfy you in between meals. 
• On-site Doctor
  At Google headquarters in Mountain View, California you have the convenience of seeing a doctor on-site. 
• Shuttle Service
  Google is pleased to provide its Mountain View employees with free shuttles to several San Francisco, East Bay and South Bay locations.
• Financial Planning Classes
  Google provides objective and conflict-free financial education classes. The courses are comprehensive and cover a variety of financial topics.
• Other On-Site Services
  At Google headquarters in Mountain View, there’s on-site oil change, car wash, dry cleaning, massage therapy, gym, hair stylist, fitness classes and bike repair.
• Other Great Benefits
  Ski trip, company movie day, summer picnic, Halloween & holiday party, health fair, quarterly group offsites, credit union, sauna, roller hockey, outdoor volleyball court, discounts for products and local attractions. 

Okay… so I got a little carried away. Google is doing what I think we should be doing in education. Not just doing for the staff… some of this would be great… some of this would keep the good ones from going into the private sector.

If we are going to transform education… we have to truly transform it… attract the best and the brightest… change it for the better…

Free pencils for everyone!

Why does it happen? You are sitting at a great place, enjoying a great meal, and always enjoying great company, and then it happens. One of your kids spills something.

If records are kept in the spill department, the raining world champion is my oldest son, Drew. Not once… not twice… but three times.

My oldest brother Gary and his “girlfriend” (I put that in quotations just in case Big Daddy is reading this… and believe me… that is a blog in itself) had gone to Colorado for vacation. The problem was his car became unusable during the trip. My Dad called me and asked if I would mind going to get him. I could take his conversion van and take the kids… and my wife… and his credit card.

Being the devoted son and brother that I am I said yes. Picked up the van (and the credit card) and headed northwest. It took us two days to get there… and what an adventure.

At our first stop, a pleasant restaurant in Wichita Falls, Drew ordered a soft drink and a hamburger. Within minutes of the meal being ordered and the drinks being served, it happened. Drew knocked over his drink.

The waitress was so happy to replace it. After being embarrassed at his clumsiness, he proceeded to take great care in nursing his drink… for about two minutes… then it happened again. Drew knocked this one over as well. The next drink came with a lid.

We traveled on, stopping in a town just inside the border of Colorado from New Mexico. It was late and we were all road weary… and hungry.

We checked into a motel and then tried out one of the local establishments. After placing our orders (Drew ordered a hamburger) and getting our drinks… it happened for the third time that day. Drew knocked over his drink. The next one… and all subsequent drinks on the trip had mandatory lids.

Fast forward about eight years. Last night we were eating dinner and my middle son, Tyler (12), knocked over his drink. We chuckled… because every time someone in our party knocks over a drink… we are reminded of the trifecta that Drew completed.

What made it so special last night was that the waiter cleaned up the mess… brought a replacement for Tyler… a regular sized glass… with a lid and a straw.

I know you had to be there… but it was funny… very funny… and the waiters tip was increased appropriately.