Yes, those of us who don't accept being spoon fed. As far as the repetitive nature of my points and questions, I did email every member of the school board. No useful response, no data provided. What are they trying to keep hidden? One would think that if the board had relevant, comparative data, they'd have slapped me silly with it, if only just to shut me up. The refusal tells me that they have little to show to support the change. Relevant, comparative data. Evidence based outcomes. NOT anecdotal evidence that shows improvement and regression in the base schools.
They county HAS been open. They have given ALL of the evidence they have and it is up to the parents and the teachers to give their input on whether or not it is enough. If people say they think it is a good idea with the facts that have been given, that is their right. Just like it is their right to turn down the proposal because of lack of information. Just because they haven't given you the facts that you want to see, doesn't mean they are being underhanded or hiding data. All of the meetings they have had have been to gather and disseminate information. As of now, it doesn't look like cleveland will be moving forward with the schedule because its stakeholders didn't support it. They might revisit it next year when they have more data, and there is nothing wrong with that.
yes they would begin in late july but they would get out of school the same day as traditioanl schools do, and yes clevlend and glendale kenly are the only 2 schools right now who need more iformation etc b4 moving forward. As 19 out of the 22 elementary schools staff have agreed to gather more information and are talking with more parents as the interest is more in those schools then clevland/glendale at this point in time
Where does it say Cleveland wanted more information, I thought they just said "No". Is this an attempt to put a positive spin on their reponse? Where will this information be gotten from in the next year, when there really is no data or information available now? The only data is from two failing schools that have only been using the calendar for a few years, and the improvements did not "stick" after the first year. Where is the control in this experiment? Why I don't think our votes/feelings will count - http://www.theherald-nc.com/2011/03/09/17830/superintendent-makes-best-guess.html Really? What parents? That's not the impression I have gotten. This is pretty disturbing as well - So, in summary (for me anyhow). There is no data, no money, and teachers/TA's will be losing their jobs. The school wishes to operate on a psuedo year round calendar. You will have the option for free remediation if your child needs it (and you can provide transportation) or you can pay for enrichment (and provide transportation) on top of child care costs for the remainder of the day. It sounds to me as if we lose teachers and TA's, possibly even our Honor Schools of Excellence around here will need a program such as this to make sure they continue to be Honor Schools of Excellence with larger class sizes. It also sounds like the school is going into the daycare business (in light of these upcoming cuts) under the guise of "remediation" and "enrichment" which really translates to nice buzz words for "review", or "OK, who did not absorb this last week when I was teaching it to 30 kids of five different intelligence levels?" And lastly You can lower the thermostat in the winter, we can wear sweatshirts - but how are you going to pay the bill with full attendance in July/August? Just some things that made me go Hmmmmm....
Oh Cleo....such logic, which apparently scares the bejesus out of some. Keep fighting the good fight. Polenta Elementary presentation tonight. I will tape record it. Webbie and I are trying to figure out how to digitalize this (I have a Jurassic era cassette recorder) to provide as a sound file for folks who are unable to make it to the presentation.
i can only imagine that those parents who were ok with closing the aig center either don't utilize it, or were presented with some sort of base school replacement plan. if you use it, you're only going to be willing to give it up if you feel comfortable with what they're going to do at your base school to make up for it.
I do think that it is a shame that parents at Cleveland Elementary, West View Elementary, and Glendale/Kenly Elementary schools will not be able to voice their opinions in a parent survey because the teachers were not open to the idea. I know of at least one parent from one of these schools that was very interested in this calendar but did not get to express their interest because it was voted down by the teachers at the school. It has been stated previously on this thread that some parents are interested in the August 25 school start date law being repealed. I just can’t really see that big of a difference in an early August school start date and July 28. Maybe this is one way for Johnston County to get around the August 25 school start date law and set their own school calendar for the elementary schools at least. Why the early August school start date worked for the High Schools previously but the July 28 start date would not work for the High Schools now is puzzling. The High Schools would be able to finish their semester break prior to Christmas on the modified calendar. My child goes to one of the schools that many of these posters like to refer to as "failing schools." We love this calendar. It’s great that our kids finish their assessments prior to Christmas break. Our elementary school is not tied to those two crazy workdays in January just after the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. This calendar works for our family and will be even better when more day care/camp options are available in Johnston County because more of the elementary schools have changed calendars.
Another way Polenta is saving money is having the kids eat in the dark,have the lights in the hallway turned off and asking teachers to turn one of the lights off. Makes sense to me?! But lets run the a/c in the hottest month of the year with 1,000 kids going in and out of the building. Also wonder if the lights will be on as they install the 8 new smart boards?
Legal to use an old tape cassette recorder or legal to tape the meeting? I use the equipment I have, if that was the question asked. If not, why would a person not be able to tape record a public meeting? Discussion of expenditure of public tax funds at a pubic school seems to be one of those occasions to which no one should object. I emailed the principal at PES a few days ago to ask for permission to do so. Webbie has indicated some interest in digitalizing the sound file of this to allow other folks who did not attend to listen in to what was said. I would imagine that would depend on the sound quality. It's also possible to transcribe the tape. Given that a few here think my posts are too frequent and epic, I'm sure that they would complain about the bandwidth being used for it. FWIW, there was a Q&A session following the presentation. In earlier communications I interpreted that the idea of a Q&A was nixxed, and the impression was left that no questions from the audience that had not been submitted prior to the meeting would be answered. I hope that interested parties who might have attended if they had been able to ask questions didn't choose to miss the meeting because they felt their concerns would not be heard.
A point that the principal expressed was the increased teacher retention at his school. PES has a 98% retention, so I'm unsure as to how this proposed calendar will affect that. Unsure if the 2% included teachers who retired. If so, I'm unsure as to how one could possibly retain a teacher who has paid his or her dues long enough to retire. Perhaps the lousy economy and the poor jobs market was a factor in teachers staying. According to the info from Dr Croom, quoted earlier, " Last December, the DPI estimated that a 5-percent cut in state funding would mean the loss of 99 teachers and about 140 teacher assistants in Johnston County. A 10-percent cut would cost abut 120 teachers and 280 teacher assistants their jobs. Croom said his staff are also calculating what he called a worst-case scenario - a state cut of 13 to 15 percent. " If the perception among the staff is that this process is going forward come Hell or High Water, and they want to keep their jobs, that also might have induced some teacher votes. I'm saying that this is a possibility.
A couple of parents asked what if they wanted to transfer to a school that is not on that calendar. The boilerplate response was that parents will have the same options as currently available to them under School Board policy. What wasn't spelled out is what happens if more families want to transfer into a school that is already capped? That is going to be the crux of the matter. The number of families given at PES is 825. Surveys indicating interest in adoption or not go out to the families on the 16th, and must be returned by Mar 23. One question is why the votes from the teachers were sealed and sent to the board, and the votes of parent surveys will be counted at the school.
Wow, one whole family? I have a question about the YMCA and other after school programs though - ones that only cater to After School and SOS. These programs are generally staffed with HS students, are you willing to trade in an energetic, ambitious student on their way to a career in ECE for somebody just looking for a job? Just some food for thought.
Yep, in NC - as long as one person knows. I recorded ours tonight, just for my own information so I can follow up. I don't know shorthand.
That was my understanding, they can apply but..... doesn't mean you will necessarily get what you want - esp when a school already has "cottages" parked on the back lot. lol And FWIW, I trust my school more than I do the school board.
