No gifts for teachers in Alabama

[minnieluvzmickey]

Because of a new state ethics law in Alabama teachers are not allowed to receive gifts from students. I am a teacher and we can lose our certificate for accepting a Christmas gift from a child. I have 4 children and I always try to do something nice for their teachers. You can give a card, baked goods or items for the classroom but nothing of monetary value for the teacher her/himself.

 

[DawnM]

There are other professions where monetary gifts are not allowed. I don't see this as a negative at all.

If X parent feels he gave X's teacher a really nice gift and "deserves" something in return for X's little snowflake, that gift isn't exactly a "gift" but a bribe.

It is also tough for those parents who may not have the funds to give something nice or of monetary value to the teacher.

I personally would much rather have a nice card thanking me than a nice gift from a student. In fact, I still HAVE some cards I received, but most gifts are long gone.

Dawn

 

[maggiew]

When I gave out teacher gifts, I always gave something that could be used either for the classroom or for their own personal enjoyment - like a Target Gift card or a Barnes and Noble Gift Card. I left it up to the teacher to decide the best way to use it.

I wonder if you would be allowed to give a gift card for B&N and say "buy a book for the classroom" or something like that.

Maggie

 

[minnieluvzmickey]

There are other professions where monetary gifts are not allowed. I don't see this as a negative at all.

If X parent feels he gave X's teacher a really nice gift and "deserves" something in return for X's little snowflake, that gift isn't exactly a "gift" but a bribe.

It is also tough for those parents who may not have the funds to give something nice or of monetary value to the teacher.

I personally would much rather have a nice card thanking me than a nice gift from a student. In fact, I still HAVE some cards I received, but most gifts are long gone.

Dawn

I would never expect anything in return from a gift that I gave to a teacher. I love receiving cards and notes from parents and children and have saved them all through my 19 years of teaching. I teach in the inner city and hardly ever receive gifts from my students. I would much rather give them a gift than receive one from them. The issue for me is why is the state allowed to tell me who I can and can't give a gift to? If I want to give a gift to my child's teacher to show her how appreciative I am of her why shouldn't I be able to and why does the government get to tell me what I can give?

 

[Ariel8676]

Oh come on giving a gift to a teacher is not a bribe and i wouldn't think that a teacher would even think that. I think its a nice gesture to recognize the people who are with my children for 7 hours a day.
Also kids love giving their teachers a small gift, it makes them feel good (especially when they are young).
I think its just crazy..almost as crazy as the email i got from my kids' school about birthdays in school. They dont want the kids to bring in small snacks anymore, they want them to "bring in a book and read to the class, and maybe the class can sing Happy Birthday"..really???

 

[Kellydelly]

If I want to give a gift to my child's teacher to show her how appreciative I am of her why shouldn't I be able to and why does the government get to tell me what I can give?

You seem more upset that you aren't going to get any good gifts than what you are allowed to give to your kids' teachers .

 

[RitaE]

It isn't that strange for an employer to restrict whether or not their employees can receive gifts in the professional environment. It is especially not that strange for a public employee to be prevented from accepting gifts. When my husband worked for the government he had to refuse many gifts from contractors etc. I can't see that Teachers should be any different.

But to answer your question - the government isn't telling you that you can't give a gift. They are telling their employee that they are not allowed to accept gifts at the workplace and if they do there will be consequences.

I can only speak from personal experience but frankly the teacher gift giving did get out of hand at my children's school - way out of hand. From some of the stories I've seen here, our school wasn't alone. Our school did away with it years ago and instead has a holiday-wide charity drive. It is much nicer and more appropriate. The kids do still swap cards with each other and the teachers. Sometimes a bit of candy. Then at the year end teacher appreciation luncheon the Parents Association makes a school gift to honor the teachers.

There are also numerous opportunities for students (and families) to purchase and donate to the school "In Honor of" favorite teachers. The will put a small card inside a school library book or an announcement in the newsletter or whatever else is appropriate.

"Donated to _______ school in honor of Mrs. _____ in recognition for her valued service to our students." It's a great way to show appreciation.

 

[HsvTeacher]

I would never expect anything in return from a gift that I gave to a teacher. I love receiving cards and notes from parents and children and have saved them all through my 19 years of teaching. I teach in the inner city and hardly ever receive gifts from my students. I would much rather give them a gift than receive one from them. The issue for me is why is the state allowed to tell me who I can and can't give a gift to? If I want to give a gift to my child's teacher to show her how appreciative I am of her why shouldn't I be able to and why does the government get to tell me what I can give?

Unfortunately, we got caught up in the mess. It was originally intended toward high school and college athletics, but we were included in the group, too.

Every article mentions that teachers having been receiving turkeys and hams, and the legislators wanted to put a stop to it. Funny, in 16 years of teaching, I have never received either of those.

Personally, I don't care either way, but we have a lot of irate parents who don't want our legislators telling them what they can and cannot gift.

You seem more upset that you aren't going to get any good gifts than what you are allowed to give to your kids' teachers .

I completely disagree. The OP said she taught in a low-income area and hardly ever received gifts. She seems upset that she won't be able to show appreciation to her own children's teachers.

 

[KennesawNemo]

This is not related to the topic but I want to know if it's weired.

DS's teacher send an email to all parents requesting all the kids bring in a card for the teacher's assistant's HALF birthday.

Then couple weeks late, I got another email from one of the classroom parents requesting all kids bring in a card another for the teacher's HALF birthday.

The teacher also puts both HALF birthdays in the weekly newsletter.

Honestly, making a card is not too much trouble and DS enjoys doing that. While I haven't relized previously that both half birthdays falls in this month, I've prepared GC as Christmas gifts for both of them. However, for the teacher to ask for a card and a HALF birthday card, is very weird to me.

 

[kiddo76]

I would never expect anything in return from a gift that I gave to a teacher. I love receiving cards and notes from parents and children and have saved them all through my 19 years of teaching. I teach in the inner city and hardly ever receive gifts from my students. I would much rather give them a gift than receive one from them. The issue for me is why is the state allowed to tell me who I can and can't give a gift to? If I want to give a gift to my child's teacher to show her how appreciative I am of her why shouldn't I be able to and why does the government get to tell me what I can give?

The government isn’t telling you what you can give, it’s telling its employees what they can receive, which, as their employer, is well within their rights. Our municipal employees are not allowed to receive any personal gifts at all in order to eliminate the appearance of impropriety. They are only allowed to accept gifts of nonmonetary value that are meant for the whole office, such as baked goods and candy.

If you would like to still give gifts to your children’s teachers, I would suggest choosing a gift that falls within the new guidelines so as not to put the teacher in an awkward position.

 

[kmcford]

I find it silly and ridiculous. There are very, very few teachers that would take a Christmas present as a bribe. Come on! Are we really going to write a law for the few teachers out there? We give Christmas bonuses to all kinds of people (hairdressers, housekeepers, etc) and we are worried about giving a teacher a $10 gift certificate.

Taking time to legislate this is a total waste of taxpapers money. Why don't they spend the time tackling real problems instead of wasting time on made up problems.

 

[minnieluvzmickey]

I completely disagree. The OP said she taught in a low-income area and hardly ever received gifts. She seems upset that she won't be able to show appreciation to her own children's teachers.

Thank you! I rarely receive gifts from my students and have no problem with that. I think my favorite gift from one of my students was a ceramic shark that came from the dollar tree. He was so proud to give it to me and I still keep it in my room to this day and think of him often.

I just think the new law is a little ridiculous but I will abide by the rules. I was thinking of giving the teacher's of my own children a homecooked meal for one night, or a gift card to a teacher's supply store, their schools already participate in giving to toys for tots.

Any other ideas?

 

[minnieluvzmickey]

I find it silly and ridiculous. There are very, very few teachers that would take a Christmas present as a bribe. Come on! Are we really going to write a law for the few teachers out there? We give Christmas bonuses to all kinds of people (hairdressers, housekeepers, etc) and we are worried about giving a teacher a $10 gift certificate.

Taking time to legislate this is a total waste of taxpapers money. Why don't they spend the time tackling real problems instead of wasting time on made up problems.

 

[marthachick]

Every article mentions that teachers having been receiving turkeys and hams, and the legislators wanted to put a stop to it. Funny, in 16 years of teaching, I have never received either of those.

NOT a teacher here, but I would almost bet my next paycheck that the legislators can receive gifts with no problems!

 

[kiddo76]

NOT a teacher here, but I would almost bet my next paycheck that the legislators can receive gifts with no problems!

The law the OP is talking about is actually a law aimed at all public employees and officials and does not single out teachers.

 

[RitaE]

NOT a teacher here, but I would almost bet my next paycheck that the legislators can receive gifts with no problems!

I don't know. Reading it the main thrust of the ethics law seems to be curbing lobbyist "gifts" to lawmakers and public officials. Public Employees (ie Teachers) are kind of a side effect.

This isn't anything new or unusual, Federal employees have long been limited as far as what they can legally accept as gifts.

 

[mrsklamc]

You seem more upset that you aren't going to get any good gifts than what you are allowed to give to your kids' teachers .

Based on what? She only even mentioned that she is a teacher in the context of knowing what the potential punishment is...All of her statements very much centered around wanting to GIVE, not receive.

 

[jacksmomma]

This is insane! If I want to give my child's teacher a gift for HER because she gives so much of herself to my child's class there is no reason why I should not be allowed to do that.

As far as the half birthday, I do think that is a little odd. The only thing I could see explaining that is if your child is younger and they are trying to understand concepts like half, whole, etc.

 

[bella77]

Does this also mean that I can't give a gift card to the lady who delivers the mail? Would she fall under the same guidelines?

 

[mrsklamc]

Does this also mean that I can't give a gift card to the lady who delivers the mail? Would she fall under the same guidelines?

Actually mail carriers haven't technically been allowed to accept gifts for a long time.