Last night the board OK'd the closing of Elmhurst and Pleasant Center schools. The decision to close them was actually made four years ago by Wendy's Yellow Ribbon Task Force. Elmhurst was only taken off the table to minimize signatures on blue petitions in the remonstrance. Pleasant Center would already be closed if the bond issue had succeeded. Nothing anyone said in the recent public meetings to keep the schools open would have made any difference. People just got to vent but if they believed anyone on the board was listening with an open mind they were sadly mistaken. Actually either school could have been closed at any time after FWCS lost the petition drive, saving the taxpayers $2 million/yr. But the budget cuts gave her the political cover she needed to actually proceed. Fiscal responsibility hinges on having a good story tell angry parents.
The district will lose 91 teaching positions as well because the teachers union was unwilling to make any salary or health benefit concessions (concessions the rest of us have had to make in the recession) that would have saved fellow teachers' jobs. Retirements and turnover may reduce actual layoffs but that won't help kids in the classrooms.
Contrary to the bluster from Wendy and a board president who talked about the same "Magic" in the three "LEAD" schools as at Elmhurst, this district is in deep trouble. If you want to get another perspective on their situation read retired FWCS teacher Anne Rickert's guest column in yesterday's Sentinel. Her assessment is right on the money.
news-sentinel.com/apps/pcbs.dll/article?AID=/20100322/EDITORIAL/3220328
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The supreme court outlawed compulsory busing a few years ago in a case against Louisville public schools. Busing within FWCS is supposedly all voluntary and the racial balance program is being continued at the insistence of the aministration.
What I've heard is that Wendy refuses to give up the program. Some black leaders want to go back to neighborhood schools but they won't fight her on it. That's word of mouth but it makes sense. If black kids were heavily concentrated in any of our schools it would be very obvious how badly they were doing. Like in Gary where the district is 97% black. Spreading them around makes the problem less obvious, although it has done nothing to narrow the achievement gap.
The magnet schools may also be keeping middle class parents in the district longer. She can't afford to lose the better students who are now keeping the averages up. But we're losing 450 white kids a year, so at best she's only slowing down the flight.
I don't know what you're referring to with "special needs kids".
The problem with the present school board is that they spend way too much time telling each other how hard they work or how willing they are to make the hard decisions. Mark, what have you done that is so exceptional? You and your cohorts pass the buck and say everything that Dr. Robinson wants to hear. I love how you script the questions you are going to ask. What is funny is that sometimes you still screw it up.
I also have to say that your shot at Al Jacquay was uncalled-for. What you failed to tell the audience is that step increases were going to be added for six administrators. Teachers did not have any steps added to their pay scale. Since you have the mike all of the time it will be hard to get the community to understand the difference. Thanks for painting all teachers out to be against the community and for themselves. Maybe a better name for teachers would be GiaQuinta. No, that is not right, teachers give back to the community and most have scruples.
Finally, we will know if there is any community interest or involvement in the running of FWCS in November. If you, or any of your cronies, win election to the school board we will know that education is dead in Fort Wayne.
My previous blog was directed towards Benedict, I mean Mark GiaQuinta.
MY BOLD PREDICTION
I predict that Wayne High School will be down to 800 students within five years. The school board fails to realize that until they address the problems in the earlier grades the high schools will continue to suffer. Parents will only take so much before they leave the district in pursuit of better education. Why the board doesn't end social promotion and go back to community schools is beyond me?
Those people living on the north part of Fort Wayne should also realize that Dr. Robinson is going to "fix" your schools next. Elmhurst is only the beginning.
Did I miss part of the televised school board meeting? Did they show the vote for the new FWEA contract? How did Mitch Sheppard and Pamela Martin-Diaz vote?
So now they are taking money from the Capital Improvements Fund to go into the General Fund. Does that make sense?
Disgusted - They've been taking money from the capital fund to pay for racial balance for twenty years. Over $100 million in all. Most of it has gone for teacher salaries so it's not a total loss but it was money that could have been used for the buildings.
So now you could say, they are taking money from the Racial Balance Fund to pay for the new raises.
Disgusted-
You could say that. What they should do is ask the voters to approve extra funding for the general fund to pay for those "racial balance" teachers and start spending capital fund money on buildings, for which it was intended. But that would amount to a referendum on "racial balance". which they would probably lose.
Mitch and Pamela voted for the raises. The board has an agreement to vote unanimously on everything to demonstrate their unity. Remember that in November.
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