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."
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46 comments:
Didn't someone post a while ago that the BOE of our county would become the laughing stock of the state? At the time I didn't agree with the poster, but now it seems to be true.
We are drawing the attention of outsiders and they see that we have a rogue BOE. Maybe the growth issues will self resolve - I sure as hell wouldn't move into the mess.
My questions are this -- will the task force be using the flip charts from Andy Sachs to get started? How much did those two waste of time sessions with Andy Sachs costs us?
My one comment would be to analyze the objectivity and independence of any appointed committee. For example, who decided the makeup of the committee? There are pretty strong opinions on the matter of merger and depending on who is on this committee, a pre-ordained outcome may be the result. It would be all too easy to appoint or invite people with a specific agenda to make recommendations to the BOE such that the BOE can then hide behind these "independent suggestions".
Yeah, that makes living in Orange County really sad! Used to be that people wanted to live in this county because of the school system.
Just a few years ago, we were looking at moving into a new house and one of the stipulations was that we had to live in Orange County, once again because of the school. Too bad we put those stipulations on ourselves because houses in neighboring counties were cheaper plus there was less taxes... now we are stuck in Orange County with a sub-standard school system and a bunch of idiots that serve on the BOE!
Hopefully the county manager is paying close attention to this before the BOE lands the county in a lawsuit.
We need to issue an ultimatum to the Board: end the merger talks immediately, or else. They have dragged both the HES and CES families thru the mud the last 7 months while the Gang of 6 (minus Al, of course) have been promoting an exercise of futility. They have promoted stress and anger among the parents.
Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones. I imagine if we placed the microscope on their personal lifes, they would not be all that relaxed.
The frightening thing is that Dennis quoted Kennedy when making his excuses for using race as the factor for deciding who goes where. It is so telling that Kennedy wrote,
"Crude measures of this sort [as illustrated in this case] threaten to reduce children to racial chits valued and traded according to one school's supply and another's demand."
Dennis finds in that statement an excuse, let alone a compelling reason, to tell children where they can and cannot go to school based on the color of their skin.
Amazing. He thinks by persisting in this action he is thumbing his nose at the "Bush Supreme Court". All he is doing is digging a grave for our school system and thumbing his nose at parents.
The BoE is supposed to elect new chair and vice-chair Monday night. Look for more of the same if Dennis maintains his chairmanship. How many more times will he get it wrong before the rest of the Board elects someone who gets it right?
So we all know that Liz Brown and Dennis Whitling are bad school board members (to put it mildly). But what about the rest of the board?
Please do not forget about the 2006 School Board election. The ONLY thing those who ran (Ted Triebel, Ann Medenblick, Susan Hallman, and Debbie Piscateli) had to do was NOT COME IN LAST PLACE. The 2006 election was hardly a contest and look what we got stuck with.
Candidates. We need more candidates, more choices. Then we need to work hard to make everyone aware how terrible Dennis Whitling and Liz Brown actually are when they run for re-election. I would start with some of those videos.
Wouldn't ssurprise me a bit if they put Liz as chair just to show that they can.
Remember- they are idiots. (except Al of course) Al needs to be chair- he's the only one who has any common sense or comapssion for students and parents of HES and CES!
"Remember- they are idiots."
So, Ted, Anne, Susan, Debbie, Dennis and Liz and are all idiots?!
Comments like this aren't getting us anywhere. Why don't we start a brainstorming session here in oder to help them come up with some new ideas! Of course, I am still with Al, the best idea is to help the children where they are, period.
But they are idiots. You can't sugarcoat what they did to our families. The browning of america statement made by Ted is stupid. Liz, well, nough' said. Dennis? This was his plan. Debbie? Hmmm, playing the race game looks good to me. Anne? Susan? Obviously they are out of their league because they refuse to speak.
The plan is dead, and they are too stupid to admit that it ain't happening.
I totally agree. The Board needs to learn from their mistakes. If the Board wants to prove that they are not stupid, they need to call off the merger immediately.
It's going to get very nasty soon if they don't call off the merger...soon.
"Comments like this aren't getting us anywhere".
It's not about wanting to get us somewhere. It's about the cruelty the board has done to the families of CES and HES. CES and HES has been unfairly stereotyped by Debbie, Dennis, Ted, and Liz. Susan and Anne can't speak up. Al has got our backs, but I imagine his patience is running thin.
It's hard to tell if they are idiots, not knowing them outside of their roles as Board members. However, if their actions on the Board represents their lifes, they are bumbling idiots.
BTW, it's going to get real nasty soon. The Board members better make sure they don't have too many skeletons in their closets.
The board members are not a bunch of "idiots". If you take the time to talk to them outside of the board room, you would see that they are very intellegent, kind people. They have a very difficult situation on their hands that has been overlooked or ignored for many years. The imbalance is real and should be addressed.
The board has the heat underneath them and something needs to be done to correct the imbalances in the schools.
Merger is definitely not the way, but what is the answer?
The Durham Herald ran an article today on Terry Williams who runs the Black Parent Forum in Durham. Her organization is aimed at helping increase minority enrollment in private and independent schools (which have a large percentage of white students even in Durham where there is a large black population that could be enrolled). According to the article, she provides information to parents on the schools as well as how to apply and receive financial assistance. I bet she has some wonderful ideas on how HES can recruit minority students, whether they are from Central or throughout the county. I bet she has a good understanding of what keeps families from applying and what we can do to change that. I know that HES parents and staff would love to see a more diverse school, regardless of test scores, SES, or the other issues raised by the merger. Contacting her may be a way to get started on creating that environment. A more diverse school community can only help the students and may even prevent future talks of dismantling HES. Anyone know how we can go about getting her to speak to the school board,HES,Central office,etc about the work she's done? Perhaps the new school board committee would be willing to hear her if she's willing to come.
They are idiots! When someone can't recognize, with countless documents (in writing), that what they are proposing is not going to work and they still continue to do exactly what they are doing, then they are idiots.
They don't have common enough sense to see outside of the box and come up with something that will work for the students at CES, then YES, they are idiots. Not to mention they have a disregard to all the parents that are involved.
They would have merged this year if it were up to people like you who do not have a backbone and just want to wait around and see if they will do the right thing. You just sit back quietly while strangers decide the outcome of your child. I WILL NOT do that.
Tonight at the board meeting, the board is supposed to approve the members of the new task force. I can't seem to get the list off of the boe's website. Does anyone know yet who has been chosen for this new task force?
Thanks Stevie for actively looking into options for our problem with SES imbalance at HES. Your approach is absolutely the direction we parents need to take. Lets use our energy for a positive outcome instead of being stuck in the throws of anger and hatred.
There are a lot of us here that are NOT sitting quietly, but are also not resorting to libelous statements and character defamation. I think we need concentrate more on the facts before we all wind up in a court room.
"They would have merged this year if it were up to people like you who do not have a backbone and just want to wait around and see if they will do the right thing. You just sit back quietly while strangers decide the outcome of your child. I WILL NOT do that."
Nothing like some ignorant character assassination. It's time for people to make a moral decision and choose to be professional and respectful. This ugly, sloppy comment is what forms the public's opinion about HES parents. After reading this comment I formed the opinion of some spoiled, mean-spirited, 14 year old brat blogging on this site.
Not exactly what HES parents need...
"Thanks Stevie for actively looking into options for our problem with SES imbalance at HES."
Is HES SES balance the "problem?" I don't think so. I think the problem is that there are failing children at ALL OC schools. That problem should be addressed first, unless you are on Liz Brown's side and don't care about test scores.
I think diversity is very important and should be a reflection of the world in which we live, but educating a failing child of any race or color should always be top priority.
Why don't we stop worrying about how we can get more minorities at HES and start thinking about how we can help the kids that are failing! We are wasting precious time.
"Is HES SES balance the "problem?""
HES SES balance is "a" problem. HES has a lot to offer all children in Orange County. By adding more lower SES children to HES, you will be helping the district as a whole.
Now is the time to prove that HES is the best. Our schedule, dedicated staff, and abundance of volunteers all contribute to our success. We need to show the rest of the district that we can continue to be a successful school and have a diverse population at the same time.
HES should be known as an open, welcoming community of learning.
All the negativity needs to be left at the door.
You want to talk about test scores, check out HES's scores from last year. All but one subgroup's scores dropped significantly. HES is no longer the best school, in regards to scores, Cameron Park is and they do it with a SES balanced population.
All this negativity is dragging down our teachers and students.
5:59am poster:
Can you please tell me where I can see the scores for this year? NC school report cards has not published them yet and we are almost through 2007.
Please post a web address that these scores may be reviewed.
Okay, we have a new superintendent, a new chair and a new session starting. How can we use this energy to get on a positive path? I think the new super and chair will be key to our success.
To create a plan, we need to identify the problems. If we broaden the scope, it would be:
1-CES has too many FRL kids
2-HES has too few FRL kids
3-Both schools are in a bad neighborhood, but HES is a pseudo magnet so it is at capacity. CES needs a specialty or a "draw" to get more non FRL kids into the neighborhood.
4-Efland Cheeks is in the same boat as CES, but is remote so the population won't change. How can they succeed with FRL kids?
5-What is Cameron Park doing to succeed despite a higher FRL population?
What are the other issues?
What are some models of success that have been used in the nation that have successfully overcome FRL barriers to academic achievement? I heard of one on the radio that required parents to read to each child for 20 minutes every single night. Huge impact. What else can we get on the table.
Can we have screen names so we can converse, but remain anonymous?
I'll be Tinkerbell Mom!
Please don't think I disregard the importance of test scores. Regardless of the criticism of No Child Left Behind, parents shouldn't have to settle for a school that consistently fails to meet federal guidelines. If I read a current article that proposes or demonstrates a solution to failing test scores I will certainly post that information here.
However, the article I saw was on increasing minority enrollment and SES balance at schools similar to HES. You may believe that diversity and a "middle class school" is important for children to succeed in school and in life. You may believe that diversity and a "middle class school" is important to prevent future attempts to dismantle HES as it currently exists. Either way, the school board and the parents (myself included) appear to be at a loss as to how to attract more diverse applicants to HES. Terry Williams or other members of the Black Parent Forum may have some real, practical advice for us.
I am in support of Stevie's idea. If Terry Williams can help us increase the balance, then why not ask for some pointers?
Here is how I feel - prepare for some cages to be rattled.
I do not care how black or white a child is. I also do not care how poor or affluent a child's family is. The only thing I care about for my child's classmates are 1-Social graces/manners/exposure to bad language, etc. and 2-The disruption of the learning environment.
He/she can be the whitest and wealthiest kid on the block, but if the child is using bad language, disrupting class and talking about inappropriate subjects, then I will home school.
Apparently HES has been sheltered from some children who are behavior problems. So what has been done in other areas of the nation to get the children who aren't aware of middle class values up to speed? And don't waste you time typing that this is judgmental. Our society values behavior and some children aren't taught this at home. All children need to learn etiquette and apparently that is no longer taught at home.
I had a (non FRL) child in my kid's class last year accurately describe torture to me. A very YOUNG child. If that is what is in store for me, I'm outta here. If we can increase our population of FRL kids and maintain high values, sign me up. I think statistically there is a correlation between poor kids and behavior problems. That is my concern.
Tinkerbell Mom
http://abcs.ncpublicschools.org/abcs/abcVol1List.jsp?pYear=2006-2007&pSchName=orange&Submit22=GO
Here is the link to the NC Department of Public Instruction's
2006-2007
ABC's Accountability Model for
Orange County Schools
If you want to access the scores for any school you need to go to the NC Department of Public Instruction website at www.ncpublicschools.org. You can click on the ABCs link and get the cummulative score for the entire school. If you want the scores for specific subgroups, you have to go to the Accountability Services atwww.ncpublicschools.org/accountability/reporting/leaperformancearchive. If this address doesn't work, you can access it through doing a little searching on the NC Department of Public Instruction website.
http://disag.ncpublicschools.org/2007/app/disag/disag-public.cgi
This address will get you directly to the HES scores
Sorry. The last address is not directly accessible.
If you search on the NC DPI site you can find the scores from the subgroups through the Accountability Services Department.
http://disag.ncpublicschools.org/2007
This address does work and will lead you to the address mentioned earlier.
While you're looking at HES and CES scores...take a look at Cameron Park's scores and note the significant improvement from last year. What they are doing is working--what is it? Are they really a math and science magnet doing more than the NC course of instruction requires and that is raising the math scores? Is their school improvement plan a model for all the declining elementary schools. Forget merger, Mississippi's modified year round calendar or plan B -- and follow a success story right here in our back yards.
Why is the principal at CES on the task force? If she is the problem, I don't see any of her teachers addressing it on the task force.
Cameron Park's demographics changed when redistricting occurred in 2006. There appears to be a direct correlation: as the economically disadvantaged percentages decreased, average scores increased. Affluent neighborhoods such as Churton Grove and portions of Fox Hill Farm were redistricted from Pathways' district to Cameron Park's district in 2006.
All of Cameron Park's teachers are dedicated. They believe in placing all of the children's interests before their own self-interest. Also, the parents take an active role in their kid's education.
CES has a choice: status quo or make a commitment for their children.
It may be best for the Board to shake up CES's faculty next year. There may be some bad attitudes that need make way for teacher's who will strive for improvement in the classroom.
I feel like there is something that doesn't add up.
The BOE says that CES is drowning b/c these FRL kids are so hard to teach [earlier blogs about hunger, no eye glasses, they don't get to the doctor, they don't have the family infrastructure, etc.]
Then we have CES parents upset b/c they have been totally slammed by the BOE for being poor and too stupid to know what is best for their own children.
The principal and staff are reputed to be wonderful, yet a CES parent who is now at HES says she was discouraged from going to HES by some staff members at CES. Why??
Whatever the truth is, some of the CES kids have already exhibited behavior problems at Cameron and HES. So if CES has a majority of kids who are like this, they will not pass until something is done to address classroom behavior and support for education at home.
What we need for the task force to do is research models of success for low income kids. I feel like CES has battened down the hatches and is very wary of outsiders now. Who could blame them though?
Anyway, Cameron's scores are good and I wonder if it is b/c of all of the homework. They work those kids - even in kindergarten. Is that the answer? I hope there is another way b/c homework to that extent burns kids out!
Look what I found in the news today:
http://www.heraldsun.com/durham/4-887595.cfm?
http://www.heraldsun.com/durham/4-887614.cfm
The first is an article on how the YMCA paired up with a church organization to provide tutoring and social support to struggling students in Durham.
The second is about HillRAP, the Hill Center's Reading Acheivement Program thhat helped Durham students raise reading and math scores.
Both of these programs cost but can't the federal money Central receives be used for these type of programs?
How do we get information to the School Board and Central parents about these local, successful programs? Is it really effective to stand up and speak for 3 minutes at the board meetings? How can we get follow-up on our suggestions? Can this info be given to the subcommittee that has been formed? How?
I would love to see us use local successful programs rather than try to reinvent the wheel but I don't have the time to research programs or knowledge of the system to get this info to the right people. Maybe someone who reads this blog does :)
The proposed merger would at least incorporate some accountability within CES. Right now, the teachers at CES are not being held accountable for the test scores.
The task force needs to focus on why CES did not make AYP. Teachers have an important role, and a message needs to be sent that Orange County will not accept mediocrity.
The CES teachers may be considering a mass exodus from the school next year. It's hard to work in the shadow of HES.
RE: the new heading by Mr. Scott: "the Board has given a hand-picked "Task Force" only one month to make the decision for them." How do you get that the task force was hand-picked? The parents who are on it and the teachers who are on it VOLUNTEERED to be members of it. You need to get over yourself!! For someone who is supposedly so educated and "up on things" you are showing a somewhat backwards attitude. Yet again, give the Orange County Schools some credit - or (please!) exercise your right to home-school your child.
Who do you think you are to tell Mr. Scott to home school because he has had an opinion? I think it's great that someone has challenged the school board- it is his right, you know? CES needs attention, not a merger!
Where did you see this article that you mentioned that was from Mr. Scott or is it fabricated? If there is one, I would truly love to read it and you must too since I have seen the same anonymous poster encourage Mr. Scott to home school his son several times and each one was just as derogatory as this one was.
Furthermore, do you know that Mr. Scott did not volunteer to be on this committee? I am sure of the volunteers- there were more than two- so, they were hand picked- I would say.
The Board picked the two Board members for the Task Force, the Board picked the OCS Administration members for the Task Force, the Board picked the administrators from each school for the Task Force (principals), the Board decided which parents and teachers would be eligible for the Task Force (SIT members).
That sounds like a hand picked Task Force to me too.
Allan,
I am so sorry you had to read the anonymous posting of 10/18 @9:41. Although you have set a high standard for yourself, some of these postings are full of hatred and bitterness, with a touch of jealousy.
re: 10/18 @12:50 - My source is the blue box Mr. Scott writes at the heading of his blog. It is his blog and he is entitled to his opinion; however, I am not "mean spirited" in pointing out his untrue statement that the task force is "hand-picked." I am merely asking him to be fair to those people (teachers and parents)who volunteered their time to be on the task force.
re:10/18 @ 7:37: "hatred and bitterness"???? What in my comment was hateful and bitter? I am only requesting that Mr. Scott be fair to the parents and teachers who volunteered to be on the task force. I don't see how anything in that is hateful or bitter. Maybe you need to reread some of the other posts - including yours.
Question: "What in my comment was hateful and bitter? I am only requesting that Mr. Scott be fair to the parents and teachers who volunteered to be on the task force."
Answer: "You need to get over yourself!! For someone who is supposedly so educated and "up on things" you are showing a somewhat backwards attitude. Yet again, give the Orange County Schools some credit - or (please!) exercise your right to home-school your child."
Don't you have some merger plans with Liz to attend?
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