The downside of sitting in front of a computer and writing about your opinions is that you sometimes wonder if anyone out there agrees with you.
While I greatly appreciate the comments people post in response to what I write, it is very rewarding to read articles of support from those not wrapped up in this mess. And, it is particularly rewarding when they refer to what I write in their articles.
In a recent article on the North Carolina Education Alliance website, Kristen Blair writes about the widening use of socioeconomic status in student assignment. In her article, Ms. Blair highlights the ongoing merger battle in Orange County as an example of "heavy-handed student assignment policies" and specifically calls out Liz Brown for her dismissal of CES student performance as unimportant to her.
"In North Carolina, the Orange County School Board has proposed merging two elementary schools – high-performing Hillsborough Elementary and poor-performing Central Elementary – to rectify socioeconomic imbalance. Board member Liz Brown has indicated that achieving full economic (and racial) integration for Central’s students is far more important than boosting their achievement. Indeed, last week she expressed a shocking disregard for performance outcomes, saying, “Whether or not Central is passing or failing its End-of-Grade tests doesn’t matter to me.” Fortunately, performance matters to sensible county parents, who have worked to table the merger while a committee evaluates other options."
Now that the Orange County Board of Education has decided to abdicate its responsibility for setting policy to a "Task Force" dominated by parents, administrators and teachers, maybe the key message of Ms. Blair's article will get through.
"In the end, if research on school choice teaches us anything, it’s this: when it comes to picking the best schools for students, parents just may know a thing or two after all."
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Friday, September 21, 2007
A parting shot
I guess Orange County Board of Education member Liz Brown's tendency to ignore her responsibilities to the Board didn't escape Orange County School Superintendent Shirley Carraway's attention either.
In the Durham Herald Sun's "Peeling the Orange" section, comes this little tidbit:
"The Orange County school board meeting Monday was Shirley Carraway's last as district superintendent. Chairman Dennis Whitling thanked Carraway for her years of service and noted that it was her last official meeting of the board.
That's when Carraway chimed in, 'And I didn't miss a single meeting,' she said, adding that she should receive a perfect attendance award."
Too bad our elected officials aren't as omnipresent as Dr. Carraway. We can only hope that Liz Brown will be "retiring" from her role in our schools soon too.
In the Durham Herald Sun's "Peeling the Orange" section, comes this little tidbit:
"The Orange County school board meeting Monday was Shirley Carraway's last as district superintendent. Chairman Dennis Whitling thanked Carraway for her years of service and noted that it was her last official meeting of the board.
That's when Carraway chimed in, 'And I didn't miss a single meeting,' she said, adding that she should receive a perfect attendance award."
Too bad our elected officials aren't as omnipresent as Dr. Carraway. We can only hope that Liz Brown will be "retiring" from her role in our schools soon too.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
A blast from the past
Earlier today I published an anonymous comment that claimed Liz Brown had been prosecuted for removing the campaign signs of another candidate during her 2004 run for the Board of Education. This was the first time I delayed posting a comment until I could do more research.
As it turns out, a simple Google search showed that the poster was correct. According to the June 9, 2004 issue of the News of Orange County, while running for her seat on the Board, Liz was tried in Orange County District Court on a charge of maliciously removing the campaign signs of Hillsborough Town Board candidate Paul Newton in the days leading up to the 2003 general election.
Although she admitted removing the campaign signs from the road in front of Grady Brown Elementary School, she said it was because the signs posed a "safety hazard" by blocking drivers' views
"Judge Buckner said Brown did not act 'maliciously or wantonly' when she removed the sign," and, thus, found her not guilty.
During my search, I came across a number of postings from about the same time relating to the Board of Education campaign and the push to merge the Chapel Hill-Carrboro and Orange County school systems that foreshadowed the situation we face today. From a June 14, 2004 posting on OrangePolitics.org:
"We need to take a real close look at all of the candidates that are running for the Orange County School Board and we would quickly find out that we have a major liar amongst them in the person of Liz Brown. Brown has now gone on record saying that she is not in favor of School merger and that is certainly the biggest lie I have heard in a long time. The records clearly show that Liz Brown is one of the foremost advocates of School merger in the entire county. Brown was very vocal at all of the public hearings on Merger and participated in many Pro merger activites.
How can we possibly vote for a woman who now claims that she is not in favor of School merger yet the truth is that her sole purpose is to dismantle the very school system that she’s running for a seat on."
I guess three years has not tempered Liz's divisive personality one little bit.
As it turns out, a simple Google search showed that the poster was correct. According to the June 9, 2004 issue of the News of Orange County, while running for her seat on the Board, Liz was tried in Orange County District Court on a charge of maliciously removing the campaign signs of Hillsborough Town Board candidate Paul Newton in the days leading up to the 2003 general election.
Although she admitted removing the campaign signs from the road in front of Grady Brown Elementary School, she said it was because the signs posed a "safety hazard" by blocking drivers' views
"Judge Buckner said Brown did not act 'maliciously or wantonly' when she removed the sign," and, thus, found her not guilty.
During my search, I came across a number of postings from about the same time relating to the Board of Education campaign and the push to merge the Chapel Hill-Carrboro and Orange County school systems that foreshadowed the situation we face today. From a June 14, 2004 posting on OrangePolitics.org:
"We need to take a real close look at all of the candidates that are running for the Orange County School Board and we would quickly find out that we have a major liar amongst them in the person of Liz Brown. Brown has now gone on record saying that she is not in favor of School merger and that is certainly the biggest lie I have heard in a long time. The records clearly show that Liz Brown is one of the foremost advocates of School merger in the entire county. Brown was very vocal at all of the public hearings on Merger and participated in many Pro merger activites.
How can we possibly vote for a woman who now claims that she is not in favor of School merger yet the truth is that her sole purpose is to dismantle the very school system that she’s running for a seat on."
I guess three years has not tempered Liz's divisive personality one little bit.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
The law of the land
While I was unable to personally attend last night's Orange County Board of Education meeting, it was reported by someone present that Liz Brown again began advocating for assigning children to some Orange County schools based exclusively on their race.
When I posted the video of her describing her plan, I wrote that Liz has "either a profound ignorance of educational law, or a philosophical disdain for decisions of the US Supreme Court." However, it now appears that she only has disdain for Court decisions that do not reflect the "deep inside" morals she wants to impose upon others.
During last night's meeting, Liz inevitably turned the discussion of feedback received on the Board's "community listening" tour to the topic of her race-based school assignment plan. It seems that someone on the Board had the audacity to point out the illegality of using race in school assignment, only to have Liz quickly turn upon them. In response to another Board member's refusal to discuss a plan that clearly falls outside the law, Liz shot back "Brown vs. Board of Education is still the law of the land!"
Yes, it is.
And, even though you may disagree with it, so is Parents vs. Seattle. The two are not mutually exclusive. The US Supreme Court's decision from June clearly states that you "simply can't consider race in deciding which school kids go to" - whether it is forbidding African American kids from attending high school in Little Rock, or banning white kids from Hillsborough Elementary.
As if the Justices foresaw Liz's willingness to bend words to her liking, the Court provided Orange County with some clarity in terminology around the issue facing its schools. Comments in brackets are mine alone, as is the bold text for emphasis:
"Because this Court has authorized and required race-based remedial measures to address de jure segregation, it is important to define segregation clearly and to distinguish it from racial imbalance.
In the context of public schooling, segregation is the deliberate operation of a school system to 'carry out a governmental policy to separate pupils in schools solely on the basis of race.' In Brown, this Court declared that segregation was unconstitutional under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
Racial imbalance is the failure of a school district’s individual schools to match or approximate the demographic makeup of the student population at large. Racial imbalance is not segregation. Although presently observed racial imbalance might result from past de jure segregation, racial imbalance can also result from any number of innocent private decisions, including voluntary housing choices [or parental choice of a preferred academic calendar].
However, racial imbalance without intentional state action to separate the races does not amount to segregation. To raise the specter of resegregation to defend these programs is to ignore the meaning of the word."
Whether you like it or not, "the law of the land" says you cannot assign students to public schools based on some concept of "racial balance." Until a higher power gets this point through to Liz Brown's closed mind, she will keep dividing our community and the struggling children of Orange County will continue to be failed by the people elected to help them succeed.
Finally, it sounds like the Court is prophetically warning Orange County about Liz Brown, "if our history has taught us anything, it has taught us to beware of elites bearing racial theories."
When I posted the video of her describing her plan, I wrote that Liz has "either a profound ignorance of educational law, or a philosophical disdain for decisions of the US Supreme Court." However, it now appears that she only has disdain for Court decisions that do not reflect the "deep inside" morals she wants to impose upon others.
During last night's meeting, Liz inevitably turned the discussion of feedback received on the Board's "community listening" tour to the topic of her race-based school assignment plan. It seems that someone on the Board had the audacity to point out the illegality of using race in school assignment, only to have Liz quickly turn upon them. In response to another Board member's refusal to discuss a plan that clearly falls outside the law, Liz shot back "Brown vs. Board of Education is still the law of the land!"
Yes, it is.
And, even though you may disagree with it, so is Parents vs. Seattle. The two are not mutually exclusive. The US Supreme Court's decision from June clearly states that you "simply can't consider race in deciding which school kids go to" - whether it is forbidding African American kids from attending high school in Little Rock, or banning white kids from Hillsborough Elementary.
As if the Justices foresaw Liz's willingness to bend words to her liking, the Court provided Orange County with some clarity in terminology around the issue facing its schools. Comments in brackets are mine alone, as is the bold text for emphasis:
"Because this Court has authorized and required race-based remedial measures to address de jure segregation, it is important to define segregation clearly and to distinguish it from racial imbalance.
In the context of public schooling, segregation is the deliberate operation of a school system to 'carry out a governmental policy to separate pupils in schools solely on the basis of race.' In Brown, this Court declared that segregation was unconstitutional under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
Racial imbalance is the failure of a school district’s individual schools to match or approximate the demographic makeup of the student population at large. Racial imbalance is not segregation. Although presently observed racial imbalance might result from past de jure segregation, racial imbalance can also result from any number of innocent private decisions, including voluntary housing choices [or parental choice of a preferred academic calendar].
However, racial imbalance without intentional state action to separate the races does not amount to segregation. To raise the specter of resegregation to defend these programs is to ignore the meaning of the word."
Whether you like it or not, "the law of the land" says you cannot assign students to public schools based on some concept of "racial balance." Until a higher power gets this point through to Liz Brown's closed mind, she will keep dividing our community and the struggling children of Orange County will continue to be failed by the people elected to help them succeed.
Finally, it sounds like the Court is prophetically warning Orange County about Liz Brown, "if our history has taught us anything, it has taught us to beware of elites bearing racial theories."
Two is greater than one
I am now going to do something I have never done before on this blog - I am going to post an entire article from another author.
Today's edition of The Daily Tar Heel includes an editorial that perfectly communicates what the Orange County Board of Education appears not to have heard even after three "community listening sessions."
The DTH piece is so totally relevant that I do not feel the need to comment further:
Two is greater than one
Merger of elementary schools is not the county's best bet
by Editorial Board
The Orange County Board of Education is faced with a dilemma: It has two schools in close proximity with vastly different academic performances.
After the second question-and-answer session Thursday night about a proposed merger of Hillsborough and Central elementary schools, the county's next step is still up in the air.
Merging the elementary schools is unnecessary and potentially detrimental to both; instead, Orange County should focus its resources on improving Central. [Bold added by me.]
A big motivating factor behind the merger has been Central's failure to meet Adequate Yearly Progress requirements the past two years.
But there's also a socioeconomic divide, typically measured by the number of students receiving free and reduced lunch.
At Hillsborough, only 14 percent of students receive free and reduced lunch, significantly lower than the district average of 38 percent. At Central, though, about 70 percent of students are in the program.
[My note: These are old numbers. Last February the numbers were 14% and 61% respectively. With so many students opting out of CES this Fall, the current FRL numbers are unclear.]
The merger would send kindergarten through second grade to Central, while third through fifth grades would be at Hillsborough.
Merging the schools would do nothing more than bring both schools closer to the middle of the pack academically. Teachers would teach toward the median performance range, leaving the lower aptitude students struggling with the work level while the higher-aptitude children are twiddling their thumbs.
The BOE should focus on improving Central while maintaining the same high quality that already exists at Hillsborough.
This option best serves the needs of every student in the school district.
In addition, merging the schools would not be an easy transition for the students, parents or faculty at either school, and the overhead costs associated with switching schools are funds that would be better used put into improving Central.
It also won't be as simple as switching Central to a year-round schedule like Hillsborough; too many other factors affect a school's performance.
The county needs to look into the allocation of funds between the two schools, the level of teaching at each elementary school and perhaps even the stigma associated with attending the so-called "lower" of the two schools.
Orange County shouldn't move the Central students when it would be less costly and more effective just to help them where they are.
Leave it to a truly disinterested third party to see things so clearly. Thank you DTH.
Today's edition of The Daily Tar Heel includes an editorial that perfectly communicates what the Orange County Board of Education appears not to have heard even after three "community listening sessions."
The DTH piece is so totally relevant that I do not feel the need to comment further:
Two is greater than one
Merger of elementary schools is not the county's best bet
by Editorial Board
The Orange County Board of Education is faced with a dilemma: It has two schools in close proximity with vastly different academic performances.
After the second question-and-answer session Thursday night about a proposed merger of Hillsborough and Central elementary schools, the county's next step is still up in the air.
Merging the elementary schools is unnecessary and potentially detrimental to both; instead, Orange County should focus its resources on improving Central. [Bold added by me.]
A big motivating factor behind the merger has been Central's failure to meet Adequate Yearly Progress requirements the past two years.
But there's also a socioeconomic divide, typically measured by the number of students receiving free and reduced lunch.
At Hillsborough, only 14 percent of students receive free and reduced lunch, significantly lower than the district average of 38 percent. At Central, though, about 70 percent of students are in the program.
[My note: These are old numbers. Last February the numbers were 14% and 61% respectively. With so many students opting out of CES this Fall, the current FRL numbers are unclear.]
The merger would send kindergarten through second grade to Central, while third through fifth grades would be at Hillsborough.
Merging the schools would do nothing more than bring both schools closer to the middle of the pack academically. Teachers would teach toward the median performance range, leaving the lower aptitude students struggling with the work level while the higher-aptitude children are twiddling their thumbs.
The BOE should focus on improving Central while maintaining the same high quality that already exists at Hillsborough.
This option best serves the needs of every student in the school district.
In addition, merging the schools would not be an easy transition for the students, parents or faculty at either school, and the overhead costs associated with switching schools are funds that would be better used put into improving Central.
It also won't be as simple as switching Central to a year-round schedule like Hillsborough; too many other factors affect a school's performance.
The county needs to look into the allocation of funds between the two schools, the level of teaching at each elementary school and perhaps even the stigma associated with attending the so-called "lower" of the two schools.
Orange County shouldn't move the Central students when it would be less costly and more effective just to help them where they are.
Leave it to a truly disinterested third party to see things so clearly. Thank you DTH.
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Can we talk honestly now?
"When facts and logic fail, a scoundrel resorts to character assassination" - Larry Huss
Shortly after it became clear that HES parents were going to actively resist any plan to merge Central and Hillsborough Elementary schools, one vocal supporter of the plan sought to minimize resistance by labeling its opponents as "elitist," while others hurled accusations of racism.
While this tactic of race- and class-baiting served to silence some of the less vocal merger opponents, it had a disastrously chilling effect on the discussion of options for providing programs and services to the struggling children at CES.
In his letter to the editor of The News of Orange County this past April, CES parent Brad Davis relayed the content of an email he received from Board member Al Hartkopf. According to Mr. Davis, Al said:
“The advantage we have at this time is that we have identified children who are being underserved. We know where they are. Why would we make any move to obfuscate the clarity of that picture? Why do we not simply deliver to these children what they need? My answer is that we should do exactly that and nothing else.”
Based on Al's suggestion to increase the resources available to struggling children at CES, Mr. Davis accused him of elitism and of being a segregationist. Mr. Davis went on to imply that without a merger his "very privileged" child "from an educated, affluent situation" would have to transfer out of CES "to succeed, at her highest potential."
At the Orange County Board of Education's "listening session" his past Thursday evening, a parent pointed out that the Board was focusing exclusively on the "quick fix" of merging the two schools. She then asked why the Board had not developed plans that would allow it to target struggling students at the schools they currently attend.
She felt that this approach would have the benefit of allowing the Board to address problems at other schools that fail to make AYP in the future [like New Hope Elementary?] that cannot feasibly be merged with higher performing schools.
For anyone who has felt the sting of being unfairly labeled, the answer was quite clear:
Thankfully, a number of CES parents spoke up in support of Al's ideas, and told him that merely being called a racist by someone with an obvious agenda does not make it true.
With another false argument out of the way, maybe now we can have a real discussion of how best to help the struggling children at all our schools - without the "hyperbole" and name calling.
Shortly after it became clear that HES parents were going to actively resist any plan to merge Central and Hillsborough Elementary schools, one vocal supporter of the plan sought to minimize resistance by labeling its opponents as "elitist," while others hurled accusations of racism.
While this tactic of race- and class-baiting served to silence some of the less vocal merger opponents, it had a disastrously chilling effect on the discussion of options for providing programs and services to the struggling children at CES.
In his letter to the editor of The News of Orange County this past April, CES parent Brad Davis relayed the content of an email he received from Board member Al Hartkopf. According to Mr. Davis, Al said:
“The advantage we have at this time is that we have identified children who are being underserved. We know where they are. Why would we make any move to obfuscate the clarity of that picture? Why do we not simply deliver to these children what they need? My answer is that we should do exactly that and nothing else.”
Based on Al's suggestion to increase the resources available to struggling children at CES, Mr. Davis accused him of elitism and of being a segregationist. Mr. Davis went on to imply that without a merger his "very privileged" child "from an educated, affluent situation" would have to transfer out of CES "to succeed, at her highest potential."
At the Orange County Board of Education's "listening session" his past Thursday evening, a parent pointed out that the Board was focusing exclusively on the "quick fix" of merging the two schools. She then asked why the Board had not developed plans that would allow it to target struggling students at the schools they currently attend.
She felt that this approach would have the benefit of allowing the Board to address problems at other schools that fail to make AYP in the future [like New Hope Elementary?] that cannot feasibly be merged with higher performing schools.
For anyone who has felt the sting of being unfairly labeled, the answer was quite clear:
Thankfully, a number of CES parents spoke up in support of Al's ideas, and told him that merely being called a racist by someone with an obvious agenda does not make it true.
With another false argument out of the way, maybe now we can have a real discussion of how best to help the struggling children at all our schools - without the "hyperbole" and name calling.
Did you get the memo?
This past June, the US Supreme Court handed down a decision in the case of two school districts that had been using race as a factor in assigning students to specific schools.
According to the court, the use of race in student assignment is unconstitutional.
In describing the impact of the decision, CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin said, "What this court said was even though only a few slots were determined by race, that's too many. You just simply can't consider race in deciding which school kids go to."
While the Court's decision received massive press coverage, and has been frequently compared to the landmark 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision, the word appears to have never made down as far as Orange County Board of Education Member Liz Brown.
Perhaps, if she had bothered to attend even a single Board meeting between June and September, she would have heard something about this development. But since she obviously places such a low importance on her responsibilities to the children of Orange County, it is not surprising that she is blissfully ignorant of the law.
This ignorance was on full display this past Thursday night, as Liz proposed a plan for "balancing" Hillsborough Elementary School that would "cap the enrollment of white students" until there are "enough minorities" enrolled.
In Liz Brown's plan, "a lot of you" would be denied enrollment at HES, unless you win a "lottery" held among only white children. This is a clear violation of the Supreme Court's decision, and would be destined to land the Orange County Board of Education in federal court.
Watch for yourself.
Should someone with either a profound ignorance of educational law, or a philosophical disdain for decisions of the US Supreme Court, really be responsible for setting educational policy in Orange County?
According to the court, the use of race in student assignment is unconstitutional.
In describing the impact of the decision, CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin said, "What this court said was even though only a few slots were determined by race, that's too many. You just simply can't consider race in deciding which school kids go to."
While the Court's decision received massive press coverage, and has been frequently compared to the landmark 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision, the word appears to have never made down as far as Orange County Board of Education Member Liz Brown.
Perhaps, if she had bothered to attend even a single Board meeting between June and September, she would have heard something about this development. But since she obviously places such a low importance on her responsibilities to the children of Orange County, it is not surprising that she is blissfully ignorant of the law.
This ignorance was on full display this past Thursday night, as Liz proposed a plan for "balancing" Hillsborough Elementary School that would "cap the enrollment of white students" until there are "enough minorities" enrolled.
In Liz Brown's plan, "a lot of you" would be denied enrollment at HES, unless you win a "lottery" held among only white children. This is a clear violation of the Supreme Court's decision, and would be destined to land the Orange County Board of Education in federal court.
Watch for yourself.
Should someone with either a profound ignorance of educational law, or a philosophical disdain for decisions of the US Supreme Court, really be responsible for setting educational policy in Orange County?
Thursday, September 13, 2007
The Return of Liz Brown
Liz Brown made one of her rare appearances at an Orange County Board of Education event earlier this evening. Her presence alone is so rare an event that it warrants comment, but in classic Liz Brown style, she succeeded in being divisive by just being herself.
The occasion Liz chose to grace with her "moraler-than-thou" presence was the Board's last scheduled "community listening session" on the merger of Central and Hillsborough Elementary Schools.
During last Thursday's "listening session" at CES, I wondered why Liz chose not to attend after reappearing from a nearly three-month hiatus from her Board responsibilities. I guess I now understand.
At CES, her message might have yielded something more than the stunned silence she received this evening at HES. She publicly confirmed what I have been saying for 6 months - the academic performance of children at CES (and presumably at HES) "doesn't matter at all" to her.
In her eyes, the Orange County Board of Education is simply a tool to impose her "deep inside" moral views on the parents, children and citizens of Orange County - whether they agree with them or not also "doesn't matter at all."
Thankfully, the parents of Orange County aren't stupid and, as one CES parent noticed, she was creating a racial issue where none existed.
Don't just believe me. Watch her yourself.
The occasion Liz chose to grace with her "moraler-than-thou" presence was the Board's last scheduled "community listening session" on the merger of Central and Hillsborough Elementary Schools.
During last Thursday's "listening session" at CES, I wondered why Liz chose not to attend after reappearing from a nearly three-month hiatus from her Board responsibilities. I guess I now understand.
At CES, her message might have yielded something more than the stunned silence she received this evening at HES. She publicly confirmed what I have been saying for 6 months - the academic performance of children at CES (and presumably at HES) "doesn't matter at all" to her.
In her eyes, the Orange County Board of Education is simply a tool to impose her "deep inside" moral views on the parents, children and citizens of Orange County - whether they agree with them or not also "doesn't matter at all."
Thankfully, the parents of Orange County aren't stupid and, as one CES parent noticed, she was creating a racial issue where none existed.
Don't just believe me. Watch her yourself.
Liz, maybe you should have taken tonight off too.
What are your plans for tonight?
While it may look like they are guest starring on an episode of "Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?" (hint: the answer is no), members of the Orange County Board of Education will actually be holding the second of their "community listening sessions" at HES this evening at 7:00 pm.
Just like on that popular show, tonight the Board will be asked a number of seemingly simple questions but, try as they might, will be unable to provide answers.
After spending last Thursday evening trying unsuccessfully to convince CES parents and staff to support the merger being forced upon them by the Board, attention will now turn to parents and staff at HES.
After listening to CES parents speak out against the merger for over two hours without hearing anything about a "plan B" from the Board, I was reminded of an old George Will line about the three biggest lies in the world. One of which is, "I am from the government and I'm here to help you." For some reason I always thought the government (especially local government) was supposed to represent the people and not dictate to them.
While I think the Board was genuinely surprised by the overwhelmingly negative reaction Dennis Whitling's "Big Plan" received at CES, there should be no delusions about what to expect tonight. I will be attending this meeting, and I have personally invited a few people from last Thursday's meeting to attend as well. It should be an interesting show.
While the plot may look familiar, it should at least be better than an Ugly Betty rerun.
What: Orange County Board of Education "Listening Session" on CES/HES Merger
When: Thursday, September 13, 2007 @ 7:00pm
Where: Hillsborough Elementary School
Just like on that popular show, tonight the Board will be asked a number of seemingly simple questions but, try as they might, will be unable to provide answers.
After spending last Thursday evening trying unsuccessfully to convince CES parents and staff to support the merger being forced upon them by the Board, attention will now turn to parents and staff at HES.
After listening to CES parents speak out against the merger for over two hours without hearing anything about a "plan B" from the Board, I was reminded of an old George Will line about the three biggest lies in the world. One of which is, "I am from the government and I'm here to help you." For some reason I always thought the government (especially local government) was supposed to represent the people and not dictate to them.
While I think the Board was genuinely surprised by the overwhelmingly negative reaction Dennis Whitling's "Big Plan" received at CES, there should be no delusions about what to expect tonight. I will be attending this meeting, and I have personally invited a few people from last Thursday's meeting to attend as well. It should be an interesting show.
While the plot may look familiar, it should at least be better than an Ugly Betty rerun.
What: Orange County Board of Education "Listening Session" on CES/HES Merger
When: Thursday, September 13, 2007 @ 7:00pm
Where: Hillsborough Elementary School
Friday, September 7, 2007
A night well spent
I had the very good fortune of being in town last night and decided to attend the Orange County Board of Education's "community listening session" at Central Elementary.
I was pleased to see that the number of people in attendance exceeded the school's expectations, as people stood around the walls and additional chairs had to be brought into the room as the crowd grew. The large turnout brought out some very pointed questions for the Board and extended the meeting past its scheduled two hours.
I am not too sure how much the Board actually listened to what the parents had to say, but they sure got an ear full. For my part, it was very refreshing to have the prevailing "us vs. them" illusion shattered.
Among the group, there seemed to be very little animosity toward HES parents even though outspoken CES parent Brad Davis seemed determined to drum some up by repeatedly interrupting other speakers and beating the same dead horse about HES draining away affluent kids who should be forced to stay at CES.
The message from the overwhelming majority of CES parents and teachers came through loud and clear: They do not support Dennis Whitling's "Big Plan" to merge CES and HES.
Given that the door is still open for any CES student to immediately transfer to HES under NCLB, the parents who chose to keep their kids at CES said they want nothing to do with a year-round calendar - "modified" or otherwise.
After the meeting, I was concerned that my feelings on this matter might cloud my perception of what was said, and I decided to wait before writing anything about the meeting. But, that concern was erased this morning when I read the media accounts of last night's event from the Raleigh News & Observer, the Durham Herald Sun and The Daily Tar Heel.
The Durham Herald Sun reported on what I felt was the meeting's pivotal moment: Dennis Whitling asked the audience, by a show of hands, to decide between two options: "'If choice is between balancing this school and the traditional school, who would rather have [socioeconomic] balance and go to a year-round than go to traditional?'" I only saw two hands raised in support of "balancing" the school, and the Herald Sun reporter saw the same thing. "One parent asked for a show of hands for the number of people who would prefer a traditional calendar. Nearly all in attendance raised their hands. "
The evening was filled with poignant, emotional comments from CES parents about how well their children have performed at the school, in many cases after struggling in a year-round school, ringing endorsements of CES's teachers and staff - many of whom attended the meeting - and pleas for the Board to not make the proposed changes.
But, the most direct and to the point comment came from a CES parent after out-going superintendent Shirley Carraway announced the great strides CES made in meeting its growth goals on the latest state ABC scores.
The Daily Tar Heel captured the moment of clarity perfectly: "Parent Christy Baylor cited those reforms that have increased scores and growth at Central as a reason to quell the merger movement.
'What we're doing is working - why scramble it all up? Why scramble the students all up if what's happening here is working?'"
That's a good question, and the answer is one HES parents have known for almost 7 months: It's not about teaching our children!
From the very moment Shirley Carraway presented a proposed merger to the Board, this has always been about hiding the children who are struggling, and most at risk, within the statistical averages of a combined school.
The Board has latched onto this idea as a "quick fix" to avoid what the district's Director of Elementary Instruction, Mary Alice Yarbrough, kept referring to as federal "sanctions" during last night's meeting.
In fact, it wasn't until May of this year - three months into the process - that the Board actually decided what problem they wanted the merger to fix. That is when "balanced schools" became the Board's mantra, only now replaced by Dennis Whitling's newest term - "middle class schools."
Seeing little support from parents at either school, the Board committed to coming up with a "Plan B", ignored up until this point, and communicating that plan to parents in time for binding decision letters to go out in December.
The Board will hold another "community listening session" at HES next Thursday at 7:00 and everyone is welcome to attend and voice their opinions regardless of where your children go to school.
I was pleased to see that the number of people in attendance exceeded the school's expectations, as people stood around the walls and additional chairs had to be brought into the room as the crowd grew. The large turnout brought out some very pointed questions for the Board and extended the meeting past its scheduled two hours.
I am not too sure how much the Board actually listened to what the parents had to say, but they sure got an ear full. For my part, it was very refreshing to have the prevailing "us vs. them" illusion shattered.
Among the group, there seemed to be very little animosity toward HES parents even though outspoken CES parent Brad Davis seemed determined to drum some up by repeatedly interrupting other speakers and beating the same dead horse about HES draining away affluent kids who should be forced to stay at CES.
The message from the overwhelming majority of CES parents and teachers came through loud and clear: They do not support Dennis Whitling's "Big Plan" to merge CES and HES.
Given that the door is still open for any CES student to immediately transfer to HES under NCLB, the parents who chose to keep their kids at CES said they want nothing to do with a year-round calendar - "modified" or otherwise.
After the meeting, I was concerned that my feelings on this matter might cloud my perception of what was said, and I decided to wait before writing anything about the meeting. But, that concern was erased this morning when I read the media accounts of last night's event from the Raleigh News & Observer, the Durham Herald Sun and The Daily Tar Heel.
The Durham Herald Sun reported on what I felt was the meeting's pivotal moment: Dennis Whitling asked the audience, by a show of hands, to decide between two options: "'If choice is between balancing this school and the traditional school, who would rather have [socioeconomic] balance and go to a year-round than go to traditional?'" I only saw two hands raised in support of "balancing" the school, and the Herald Sun reporter saw the same thing. "One parent asked for a show of hands for the number of people who would prefer a traditional calendar. Nearly all in attendance raised their hands. "
The evening was filled with poignant, emotional comments from CES parents about how well their children have performed at the school, in many cases after struggling in a year-round school, ringing endorsements of CES's teachers and staff - many of whom attended the meeting - and pleas for the Board to not make the proposed changes.
But, the most direct and to the point comment came from a CES parent after out-going superintendent Shirley Carraway announced the great strides CES made in meeting its growth goals on the latest state ABC scores.
The Daily Tar Heel captured the moment of clarity perfectly: "Parent Christy Baylor cited those reforms that have increased scores and growth at Central as a reason to quell the merger movement.
'What we're doing is working - why scramble it all up? Why scramble the students all up if what's happening here is working?'"
That's a good question, and the answer is one HES parents have known for almost 7 months: It's not about teaching our children!
From the very moment Shirley Carraway presented a proposed merger to the Board, this has always been about hiding the children who are struggling, and most at risk, within the statistical averages of a combined school.
The Board has latched onto this idea as a "quick fix" to avoid what the district's Director of Elementary Instruction, Mary Alice Yarbrough, kept referring to as federal "sanctions" during last night's meeting.
In fact, it wasn't until May of this year - three months into the process - that the Board actually decided what problem they wanted the merger to fix. That is when "balanced schools" became the Board's mantra, only now replaced by Dennis Whitling's newest term - "middle class schools."
Seeing little support from parents at either school, the Board committed to coming up with a "Plan B", ignored up until this point, and communicating that plan to parents in time for binding decision letters to go out in December.
The Board will hold another "community listening session" at HES next Thursday at 7:00 and everyone is welcome to attend and voice their opinions regardless of where your children go to school.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
My bad
I have written here before that I am perfectly willing to admit when I make a mistake or to acknowledge when I don't know something. And, this is one of those times.
When I read yesterday's Daily Tar Heel article about Tuesday's Board meeting, I misinterpreted the following quote attributed to Liz Brown:
"So it's costing $1,000 a student," Brown said. "That was an expensive decision."
Given Liz's apparent distain for Orange County parents, I naturally jumped to the conclusion that she was criticizing the CES and ECES parents for deciding to send their children to HES rather than stay at the "failing" schools the Board had assigned to them. It would have been par for the course, but, as it turns out, I was wrong.
Based on a fuller quote provided in today's Durham Herald Sun, it appears that Liz was not being critical of parents at all (there is a first for everything) but was aiming her barbs at her fellow Board members.
"'It was an expensive decision, I think -- I don't know if I would have gone for that,' said Elizabeth Brown, referring to the board's decision to include Hillsborough Elementary as a designated school for transfers."
This greater context puts the quote in an entirely different light and begs a new question: How is it possible that "The motion to add Hillsborough Elementary as a choice option for both Central and Efland-Cheeks Elementary was unanimously approved" by the Board, when its most vocal member would not have supported such an "expensive decision"?
Could it be that a wide-eyed Liz Brown was misled into believing that including the choice of HES would come without the additional costs? In the Herald Sun article, associate superintendent Denise Morton is quoted as saying, "When the board approved Hillsborough as a school of choice, the board knew then there will be some added costs." Then, that can't be it. But, what could it be?
Oh yeah ... now I remember. Liz did not attend a single public Board meeting for over 11 weeks. That is almost three months!
The reason she never voiced her opposition to allowing parents from the two lowest performing schools in the district to send their children to the highest performing school was because she didn't even bother to show up for the discussion.
Yet, now that she has again chosen to grace the Board with her presence, she has the audacity and arrogance to criticize those who took their often thankless responsibilities seriously.
So, in the interest of fostering civility amongst the Board, I would like to recommend a new rule for Board members:
If you don't bother to show up for nearly three months, you don't get to criticize the decisions made by those who came to work.
I'll bet that is one motion that won't pass unanimously.
When I read yesterday's Daily Tar Heel article about Tuesday's Board meeting, I misinterpreted the following quote attributed to Liz Brown:
"So it's costing $1,000 a student," Brown said. "That was an expensive decision."
Given Liz's apparent distain for Orange County parents, I naturally jumped to the conclusion that she was criticizing the CES and ECES parents for deciding to send their children to HES rather than stay at the "failing" schools the Board had assigned to them. It would have been par for the course, but, as it turns out, I was wrong.
Based on a fuller quote provided in today's Durham Herald Sun, it appears that Liz was not being critical of parents at all (there is a first for everything) but was aiming her barbs at her fellow Board members.
"'It was an expensive decision, I think -- I don't know if I would have gone for that,' said Elizabeth Brown, referring to the board's decision to include Hillsborough Elementary as a designated school for transfers."
This greater context puts the quote in an entirely different light and begs a new question: How is it possible that "The motion to add Hillsborough Elementary as a choice option for both Central and Efland-Cheeks Elementary was unanimously approved" by the Board, when its most vocal member would not have supported such an "expensive decision"?
Could it be that a wide-eyed Liz Brown was misled into believing that including the choice of HES would come without the additional costs? In the Herald Sun article, associate superintendent Denise Morton is quoted as saying, "When the board approved Hillsborough as a school of choice, the board knew then there will be some added costs." Then, that can't be it. But, what could it be?
Oh yeah ... now I remember. Liz did not attend a single public Board meeting for over 11 weeks. That is almost three months!
The reason she never voiced her opposition to allowing parents from the two lowest performing schools in the district to send their children to the highest performing school was because she didn't even bother to show up for the discussion.
Yet, now that she has again chosen to grace the Board with her presence, she has the audacity and arrogance to criticize those who took their often thankless responsibilities seriously.
So, in the interest of fostering civility amongst the Board, I would like to recommend a new rule for Board members:
If you don't bother to show up for nearly three months, you don't get to criticize the decisions made by those who came to work.
I'll bet that is one motion that won't pass unanimously.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
92 going once ... going twice, do I hear 100?
This is beginning to look like eBay as more and more parents place bids by opting out of the district's two lowest performing elementary schools.
On August 20th, we had "more than 80" students opting out of CES and ECES. By the next day, the number had risen to 83. The Daily Tar Heel reports that "Ninety-two students took advantage of the transfer option." [Note: Sept. 6, the Durham Herald Sun reported the number to be 91 transfer students]
With the door still open for parents wanting to opt out of CES and ECES, can 100 be far behind?
I am sure that this level of parental support for school choice has come as an absolute shock to the Orange County Board of Education and to the district staff. Based on a Vanderbilt University study that found only 1.6% of parents opt out of their local school when it enters Title 1 School Improvement status, the Board and staff probably expected only 12 children to be attending new schools this fall. Funny how those pesky parents can mess up the best laid plans.
Based on enrollment numbers from this past February (CES=300, ECES=439) it turns out that Orange County parents are 8 times more likely to embrace school choice.
In fact, if you include the children zoned to CES and ECES but already attending HES and those previously granted transfers to other district schools, over 35% of students in those zones now attend schools their parents chose for them!
This should serve as a clear message to the Orange County Board of Education:
Orange County parents want school choice!
And, if they have to wait for their child's current school to be labeled "failing" in order to get those choices, so be it. So, when that door opens up at New Hope Elementary next summer, don't be surprised when a lot more parents walk out.
To those CES or ECES parents still unsure about what to do, don't hesitate to sieze this opportunity to provide the best possible situation for your child.
While I don't know about the parents at the four traditional calendar schools, the HES family has already welcomed many of your child's former classmates with open arms, and there is still room for yours.
On August 20th, we had "more than 80" students opting out of CES and ECES. By the next day, the number had risen to 83. The Daily Tar Heel reports that "Ninety-two students took advantage of the transfer option." [Note: Sept. 6, the Durham Herald Sun reported the number to be 91 transfer students]
With the door still open for parents wanting to opt out of CES and ECES, can 100 be far behind?
I am sure that this level of parental support for school choice has come as an absolute shock to the Orange County Board of Education and to the district staff. Based on a Vanderbilt University study that found only 1.6% of parents opt out of their local school when it enters Title 1 School Improvement status, the Board and staff probably expected only 12 children to be attending new schools this fall. Funny how those pesky parents can mess up the best laid plans.
Based on enrollment numbers from this past February (CES=300, ECES=439) it turns out that Orange County parents are 8 times more likely to embrace school choice.
In fact, if you include the children zoned to CES and ECES but already attending HES and those previously granted transfers to other district schools, over 35% of students in those zones now attend schools their parents chose for them!
This should serve as a clear message to the Orange County Board of Education:
Orange County parents want school choice!
And, if they have to wait for their child's current school to be labeled "failing" in order to get those choices, so be it. So, when that door opens up at New Hope Elementary next summer, don't be surprised when a lot more parents walk out.
To those CES or ECES parents still unsure about what to do, don't hesitate to sieze this opportunity to provide the best possible situation for your child.
While I don't know about the parents at the four traditional calendar schools, the HES family has already welcomed many of your child's former classmates with open arms, and there is still room for yours.
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Put away the dogs ...
... stop printing those "missing" posters and cancel the call back to Nancy Grace.
Liz Brown has been found! (Not that any parents were actually looking for her) And, she turned up in the most unlikely of places - at an actual Board of Education meeting.
While some might find that a logical place for an elected Board member to be, that has not been the case for over two months. Liz Brown has been AWOL since June 18th, all the while collecting the guaranteed payday she helped create for herself this past spring.
Given the recent neglect of her responsibilities, her reappearance at Board meetings appears to have been as negative a development for the other Board members as it was to the pesky parents who insist on attending Board meetings. From what I hear, Liz took a public verbal lashing from Ted Triebel over her inexcusable abandonment of the Board for over two months.
But before you start to speculate that she used her time away to reflect on why she is such a bitterly divisive force in the community, what she brought tonight was vintage Liz Brown.
According to The Daily Tar Heel, during her first meeting back she both alienated other Board members and fought to reduce the educational options open to parents with children in the county's two lowest performing elementary schools. That is quite a night's work.
In Liz's unique self-important arrogance, she claimed to be the "only school board member who persistently fights for more funding." This comment even seemed to provoke her philosophical siamese twin, Dennis Whitling, into a response of "extreme offense" at her assertion. I guess absence doesn't always make the heart grow fonder.
Liz was also the only Board member who wanted to slam the door on parents seeking to exercise their right to school choice under Title 1 of No Child Left Behind. Over her self-righteous singular dissent, the Board rightly agreed to keep the door open for parents wishing to opt-out of either CES or ECES.
Parents currently zoned to CES and ECES now have until Sept. 30 to exercise their transfer options. Parents moving into the two schools' zones will be able to transfer out between Jan. 2nd and Jan. 14th, 2008.
Liz Brown has been found! (Not that any parents were actually looking for her) And, she turned up in the most unlikely of places - at an actual Board of Education meeting.
While some might find that a logical place for an elected Board member to be, that has not been the case for over two months. Liz Brown has been AWOL since June 18th, all the while collecting the guaranteed payday she helped create for herself this past spring.
Given the recent neglect of her responsibilities, her reappearance at Board meetings appears to have been as negative a development for the other Board members as it was to the pesky parents who insist on attending Board meetings. From what I hear, Liz took a public verbal lashing from Ted Triebel over her inexcusable abandonment of the Board for over two months.
But before you start to speculate that she used her time away to reflect on why she is such a bitterly divisive force in the community, what she brought tonight was vintage Liz Brown.
According to The Daily Tar Heel, during her first meeting back she both alienated other Board members and fought to reduce the educational options open to parents with children in the county's two lowest performing elementary schools. That is quite a night's work.
In Liz's unique self-important arrogance, she claimed to be the "only school board member who persistently fights for more funding." This comment even seemed to provoke her philosophical siamese twin, Dennis Whitling, into a response of "extreme offense" at her assertion. I guess absence doesn't always make the heart grow fonder.
Liz was also the only Board member who wanted to slam the door on parents seeking to exercise their right to school choice under Title 1 of No Child Left Behind. Over her self-righteous singular dissent, the Board rightly agreed to keep the door open for parents wishing to opt-out of either CES or ECES.
Parents currently zoned to CES and ECES now have until Sept. 30 to exercise their transfer options. Parents moving into the two schools' zones will be able to transfer out between Jan. 2nd and Jan. 14th, 2008.
Mr. Rhodes' Neighborhood
According to the Raleigh News & Observer, the Orange County Board of Education has named a new Superintendent to replace the "retiring" Shirley Carraway.
"Patrick Rhodes, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction for Durham Public Schools, will replace current Superintendent Shirley Carraway.
Rhodes worked in Orange County schools as a principal, assistant principal, high school science teacher, basketball coach, and technology director before going to Durham schools.
He worked in Durham for nine years. There he earned regional principal of the year honors in 2004 while leading Riverside High School, and served as the district's high school coordinator until he took his current position two years ago. "
Welcome back to Orange County Mr. Rhodes, but be sure to leave your "initiatives and ideas" back in Durham. Your new staff doesn't want them.
"Patrick Rhodes, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction for Durham Public Schools, will replace current Superintendent Shirley Carraway.
Rhodes worked in Orange County schools as a principal, assistant principal, high school science teacher, basketball coach, and technology director before going to Durham schools.
He worked in Durham for nine years. There he earned regional principal of the year honors in 2004 while leading Riverside High School, and served as the district's high school coordinator until he took his current position two years ago. "
Welcome back to Orange County Mr. Rhodes, but be sure to leave your "initiatives and ideas" back in Durham. Your new staff doesn't want them.
Saturday, September 1, 2007
A new episode or just a rerun?
From the Orange County Schools website:
If you already witnessed Dennis' dancing skills, you can be sure that Ted Triebel will be reading from a new script for this performance.
SPECIAL MEETING NOTICE
The Orange County Schools Board of Education will be holding a special meeting on Thursday, September 6, 2007 at 7:00 p.m. at
Even though this meeting is being held at Central Elementary School, and they appear to be interested in only "concerns and questions from the Central Elementary School community," it is open to everyone.
If you missed the "question and evasion" session at HES this past Tuesday, this would be a great chance to watch Dennis Whitling audition for "Dancing with the Stars" as he works hard to avoid actually answering any questions from the parents he supposedly serves.If you already witnessed Dennis' dancing skills, you can be sure that Ted Triebel will be reading from a new script for this performance.
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