Went to the Winter’s Branch bike trail meeting last night. Interesting feedback from residents. Also, Osbourn wins against Battlefield!
Went to the Winter’s Branch bike trail meeting last night. Interesting feedback from residents. Also, Osbourn wins against Battlefield!
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October 7, 2011 at 2:41 pm
I know I’m preaching to the choir but I want to keep this in fine focus: The schools, the schools, the schools, the schools, the schools, the schools, the….
We must do everything we can to remove the scarlet letter on our City’s forehead, and I do not feel that everyone is focused on it as they should be. This really is an emergency.
October 8, 2011 at 7:52 am
http://www.roanoke.com/editorials/wb/299359
Virginia decoded?
October 8, 2011 at 9:34 pm
Virginia Decoded: wish the project well as it tries to make sense of a Victorian Code and place it into American Standard English (ASE). Maybe next will be come up with a format for formal resoloutions without the continued “Whereas…” and “Whereas”…
Would make readings much more simpler if organized in ASE 🙂
October 9, 2011 at 2:00 pm
According to a recent MJM article 3 MCPS are above capacity. Yet, numerous homes are being built in the city (single family, townhome and condo’s). Many of these new residents will have or plan to have children attending our schools. I hope the City and the School Board have a plan for this growth because all the PR in the world will not help an overcrowded school system with performance issues. Should these homes NOT sell as planned the City will face a different set of problems. Manassas City will be burdened with numerous vacant homes and shops and/or unfinished projects. I fully support economic growth as long as there is a reasonable demand for it. Given that the economy is shaky, home sales are slow and the city already has a number of vacant stores I question the demand for all this development.
October 9, 2011 at 10:52 pm
Back to the schools:
I’m quite frankly hoping that someone here or elsewhere will speak up about the core of a plan to improve the schools, most especially regarding OHS. Not chatter around the edges of a solution, but frank talk about a core solution. If there is good news hiding someplace, now is the time to reveal it. If there is a solid idea to be implemented, then it is time to reveal that. From a citizen perspective, I’m hearing silence. Since I cannot perceive any reason why a real solution would be kept secret, I naturally conclude that those directly charged with charged with providing well performing schools have no solution to offer.
When as now our HS is no longer accredited, it’s not a matter of debating what success looks like. We have a real emergency situation that requires constant attention until the patient recovers; the doctor needs to be sitting bedside until this happens.
Is there a doctor in the house or is nobody home?
October 10, 2011 at 4:20 pm
Rich,
One school board member said he could spend an entire night talking about the positives of the school system. One said we should just mislead parents who use the internet to compare school systems. In other words, they have nothing to point to that is positive about the school system. It’s all about what excuse they can come up with.
October 10, 2011 at 4:52 pm
Yes, COM, you are correct that there are pleanty of negatives one can point to. I need to believe there is more than one person in a leadership position who is willing to speak up with a vision, or to say so if there is no vision. Other than chats with Andy, the silence from others has been deafening.
One would assume that there would be meeting upon meeting until this is addressed. We are in an all hands on deck situation with noone on deck. I really can’t believe this.
October 10, 2011 at 6:23 pm
I’ll tell you how much the leadership cares…… They care so much that they have to be FOIA’d to answer a simple question since they ignore questions posed in emails
I asked two simple questions one of which was what is your email address so I wouldn’t have to
use the form on the website.
The only person I have ever received a response from has been Pam Sebesky.
If a school board member doesn’t have the time to acknowledge they have received your email one would think they don’t have time to resolve the issues facing our schools.
I hope that this situation changes because there are people out there that can and will help if they are treated with respect.
October 10, 2011 at 6:27 pm
It is with true frustration that I posted the above comment. I also debated whether post it at all. In all honesty people need to know what is going on so that the school leadership will have to be accountable to the public.
October 10, 2011 at 6:41 pm
I’d be equally happy to hear from the Council or the Board on this critically important issue. If there is a more important issue than the accredidation of OHS I don’t know what it is. I appreciate the argument that having to resort to FOIA to get basic info is disappointing (and perhaps indicative of other problems), but I don’t want to get sidetracked. What is the big picture solution? Where are our elected officials on this?
October 11, 2011 at 4:33 am
Rich
I’m hoping that with a new principal at OHS things will change.
I was a substitute at OHS for three years and you wouldn’t begin to believe what I saw going on there.
Most teachers are very good but there are some that have NO business being in a classroom.
There was very little disipline at OHS an attendance policy that allows kids to skip school without anything being done.
The reason I mentioned the school board members not answering emails, which actually does show where part of the problem is, would be the fact that they need parent involvement and will not get it by ignoring their constituents.
October 11, 2011 at 6:37 am
Rich,
It does seem as if too many in the school system would rather not be bothered to have to talk about the negatives, and would rather just focus on made up rah rah PC feel good BS. Salad bars, etc.
October 11, 2011 at 7:48 am
My initial school blog on this open thread was on October 7. It is now October 11. It is incredible that not a single official has responded with a single update, a single observation, a single suggestion, regarding the biggest black eye Manassas has ever had, an unaccredited high school. Politicians’ voices were never in short supply when the issue was a sexy shop on Battle street, but when they are most needed they are sure hiding now.
Come on local elected pols, say what you think: Smaller classes? Finding star teachers from other jurisdictions and paying them bonuses to come here? Longer school days?Anything so long as it doesn’t cost anything? What are you pushing for? Solely Pope’s problem? What? [PS- we citizens know that you are reading this.]
October 11, 2011 at 10:42 am
I just wrote to the Council and to the School Board and urge others to do the same.
October 11, 2011 at 12:10 pm
I can tell you that there is work going on around re-chartering the Education Forward committee. This is the first step in moving this forward. Might it happen faster? It might. Appointing committees and whatnot falls to the Mayor and the Chair. I know they have talked about it but that’s all I know. I’ll see if I can’t find out more.
October 11, 2011 at 1:08 pm
https://p1pe.doe.virginia.gov/reportcard/report.do?division143&schoolName=1839
October 11, 2011 at 1:33 pm
My guess, from reading the DOE web info, is that OHS missed
being fully accredited due to a graduation rate issue. Part of that
may be the students who briefly enter OHS and then suddenly leave
without a forwarding address. The state counts them as ours and
charges them to us as drop-outs even if they have been gone for years .
The only way to remove them from our books is to get official notice
from another school district that they have entered that system.
Very often that doesn’t happen.
(Note: This is my best guess. As of this afternoon, I have heard nothing
from MCPS on why OHS wasn’t fully accredited.)
October 11, 2011 at 2:12 pm
Steve, I completely believe you and appreciate your honesty. I cannot fathom why that communication has not occurred.
Rhetorical question (not directed at Steve): Has noone asked? Has noone on Counsel picked up the telephone and asked what’s up with this?
This is truly shocking.
October 11, 2011 at 4:30 pm
Steve,
That can work both ways. We can pick up a student in their Sr year, and they can graduate from our school. I have heard the same line from many others connected to the school system, but to me it’s just a weak excuse. The most recent numbers I’m aware of is 75% overall with illegals, sorry, ESL students at about 45%. That’s one of the lowest in the area, so again, why are other schools not affected by those students that leave early, etc? See how easy it is to discount that excuse. I’m not singling you out, just the idea you believe might be the cause.
October 11, 2011 at 9:10 pm
Rich,
A decent explanation and a sound analysis would be nice to have concerning OHS current status, but I would caution people not to overreact. First, give the new sheriff in town an opportunity to make a difference. Second, don’t underestimate some of the talent on the staff now. The most urgent issue now, as far as I’m concerned as a parent, is to insure that the students at Osbourn have a conducive environment for learning. On that score, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by some actions and attitudes I’ve seen by staff and students.
So yeah, loss of accreditation is a big issue, but I think it would be a big mistake to fill Principal Werner’s schedule right now with endless hair pulling and meetings about that issue while he is fully engaged in changing the culture and learning environment at Osbourn right now, and believe me, he and his staff are engaged in that task, I’ve seen it, and I appreciate what he is trying to do.
October 11, 2011 at 9:26 pm
Doug, not a bad point. The new Principal does need time to get grounded. And my younger son too is a student at Osbourn, happy, on a varsity team, and doing well academically. And I like the teachers there. But there is nevertheless a serious problem to be solved.
My concern is that our political leaders appear to have been taken completely by surprise and haven’t been speaking up, at least publically. So my point is that it is a definite emergency that does not seem to be treated as one. It’s almost as though we’ve just figured out there is a problem and we are just starting to seek a solution. As I noted, how can we have ended up with an unaccredited high school and not have seen it coming?
October 11, 2011 at 9:45 pm
@Steve, with regards to the premise about the students who leave, and no answer comes if they are picked up by another school division impacting the graduation rate factor…..data on that report card does not support the premise. Looking at School Year 2010-2011:
Total 12th Grade was 427.
Advanced Diploma was 219 students; GED was 12; Special Diploma was 19; Standard Diploma was 172 giving a total receiving some form of Virginia School Completion/Graduation Certificate of 404.
427 minus 404 Certificates/Diplomas = 23 Students unaccounted for which could be within the Dropout Total for the year which was not available on the report.
So, looking at the Dropout Students for prior year, there was a total of 79….and when looking at the 12th grade numbers similar to the year I wrote above, that year had 16 students in the Graduate/Certificate numbers who could not be accounted for. But, since Dropouts are not broken out by grade, odds are there is where they are.
Since the numbers who graduate/certified does look like making progress, what is NOT in the report is the “dinger” which may be a contributing factor to OHS not making AYP and the reason of graduation rate – Virginia also tracks and evaluates based on “On Time Graduation Rate”. You have to dig deeper in to Virginia Dept of Educ to find that little tidbit. Available on the Cohort Reports:
http://www.doe.virginia.gov/statistics_reports/graduation_completion/cohort_reports/index.shtml
October 11, 2011 at 9:56 pm
@Rich….about not having seen it coming. Me thinks too much watching “Accreditation Status” while turning a blind eye to the “AYP Status”. Yeah, one is State-level, and one is Fed, but evaluation in the big computer in Richmond takes in both. I posted in another part about the JLARC Report on school spending, and it does discuss both requirements.
What really disturbs me is the warning bell sounded across the three years on the report Steve linked to: the scores in History, Science & Mathmetics are falling every year. Those are three indicators something is not stewing right in the pot.
October 11, 2011 at 10:33 pm
That’s what I like about Ray: Not an elected official yet, through sound analytics, first out of the box with a potential answer. Man, Ray can dig.
To others: Is Ray correct? Is his answer a starting point for continued analysis? Let’s keep this moving.
Ray, you are King for a day. What’s the next step?
October 11, 2011 at 11:49 pm
So many flaws. Where to start? At the top, I suppose. Our school board is front and center when it comes to authorizing solutions. Unfortunately it seems that most listen naively and follow blindly the person they put in charge. I believe nothing positive can be achieved as long as our superintendent and her assistant remain.
Time and time again there have been excuses without merit (Our ESL and Free/Reduced populations mirror Manassas Park) and finger pointing without data (claims that “Staffing” in MCPS is inadequate) to using unsuccessful approaches (parallel block) and unproven programs (Steps to Literacy).
Parent participation, “committees”, focus groups, etc. are not REALLY what our school officials want. They hand-pick “Parent-puppets” to serve on or lead committees to yield the result officials
want (See Delphi Effect).
Let’s ask about Surveys prepared, collected and shared with ALL the citizens and preformed by a neutral 3rd party (does one exist?). Questions like “How many parents have needed to pay for private tutoring?”. “How did the Governors school city students enjoy their experience?” (I want to hear from ALL of them). “How many citizens would like an INDEPENDENT AUDIT of MCPS’ books? (Me!)
Anyone know how the recent (State) Title One audit went for our schools? Anyone want to share their thoughts on denying our kids and only offering SES? Anyone want to require school board members to take a test about where to find the answers to these questions and more? What’s our policy on restraint and seclusion? (We don’t have one, that means you can’t). Does anyone honestly think that more $$ is going to make any of this go away? PR would be propaganda – good news speaks for itself (and most of it is promoted by the parents).
We need new (accountable) leadership NOW.
October 12, 2011 at 12:02 am
Regarding SES, I forgot to put in School Choice. Yes, finally something (bare minimum & only through a last minute waiver) is being done about AYP failure. Regulations were not followed (but when are they ever REALLY followed), however it must now be addressed. NCLB has many negatives but also some positives. Not passing SOLs? Really? A failure to learn is a failure to teach (let the good ones teach & the bad ones go) and take your MAP testing with you.
October 12, 2011 at 10:56 am
Ray said:
“What really disturbs me is the warning bell sounded across the three years on the report Steve linked to: the scores in History, Science & Mathmetics are falling every year.”
Science went up. 83 /81/85
The provisional accreditation given Osbourn requires an academic review. Note the requirement for parental involvement. I suspect the Oct 1st date was not met or waived. If met, then I guess some parents were in the loop while others were not, unless of course parental input was requested to be waived by ….?
See DOE word doc p.61-62.
http://www.doe.virginia.gov/boe/accreditation/index.shtml
Regulations Establishing the Standards For Accrediting Public Schools in Virginia (Word)– Effective August 31, 2011
October 12, 2011 at 11:03 am
I don’t pretend to know what the problem is or how to fix it. But I do know we need folks with proven expertise in education and education administration intimately involved in this inquiry and solution. Our political leaders are neeeded to initiate a clear process and push for a resolution. These are distinctly separate but closely related roles.
This needs to begin without delay. If formal committee mechanisms are standing in the way of a prompt beginning, then we must figure out a way to work through them. The kitchen is on fire and we cannot allow bureaucratic structures to stand in the way of the buckets.
October 12, 2011 at 11:43 am
@Doug…good catch. Serves me right for not enlarging the size of the PDF doc on my monitor 🙂
FIVE YEAR FORECAST ANALYSIS: City Council has a worksession tonight; 6p.m. in the Second Floor Conference Room. Agenda on the website only has a one-pager, with nothing else. Looking at last Finance Committee notes, our excellent (and I do mean excellent) Finance Chief Pat Weiler gave the Council a couple of scenarios to pick from. Guess this is another “stay tuned”.
October 13, 2011 at 12:04 pm
On-time Graduation Rate for the City: 77.2%
http://www2.insidenova.com/news/2011/oct/13/prince-william-county-exceeds-state-time-graduatio-ar-1379774/
Looks like my posting above about the “dinger” finally made the papers.
October 13, 2011 at 7:47 pm
Community Partners Launch Backpack Snack Attack
Weekend Meal Pack Program to support MCPS on Nov. 4
During this time of unprecedented need in our community, we are working to increase nutritious meal availability to allow our children every opportunity to be healthy and eager learners.
Five community partners are teaming with Manassas City Public Schools to launch a “Backpack Snack Attack” program that will provide up to 4,400 weekend meal packs for selected elementary students starting Nov. 4. The packs promote healthy eating and provide a much needed source of nutrition for students on weekends when school meals are not available.
Trinity Episcopal Church successfully partnered on a pilot with MCPS in Spring 2011 by providing 1,100 weekend meals over 12 weeks. Harris Teeter also donated funds. The weekend meal pack program is patterned after similar programs in Herndon, Fairfax and Blacksburg, Va.
“The parents are grateful, the students say thank you, and the teachers are seeing a difference in the classroom,” reported MCPS Supervisor of Administrative Services Sandy Thompson, R.N., M.S.N., to the School Board on June 14. “Our community partners are providing a creative solution that addresses both food insecurity and childhood obesity. These aren’t Vienna sausages and cracker packs. We are excited by their commitment to continue to provide nutritious food while expanding the program to reach more students.”
MCPS Director of Food & Nutrition Cecily Anthony researched a food list for the partners that downplays sugar, fat and salt while boosting protein. Each food pack contains individually sized, ready to eat (including microwavable) food items that don’t require refrigeration for a total of two breakfasts, two lunches, two dinners and two snacks per weekend. Donated items may include:
• Hormel Kid’s Kitchen – Chicken or Spaghetti (7 ¾ oz)
• Campbell E-Z Open Soups – Chicken Noodle, Chicken & Rice or Cream of Chicken (7.25 oz)
• Campbell Soups – Cream of Mushroom, Cream of Tomato or Vegetable Beef (7.25 oz)
• Dole Cups/Fruit Bowls – Diced Peaches, Mandarin Orange, Mixed Fruit, Pineapple or Tropical Fruit (4 oz)
• Seedless Raisins in Individual Boxes
• General Mills Cereal Bowl Packs – Kix, Cheerios or Rice Chex (8 oz)
• Quaker Apple Cinnamon TO GO Oatmeal Cereal (Bowl Pack – 2 oz)
• Quaker Chewy Chocolate Granola Bars
• Silk Vanilla or Chocolate Soy Milk (Shelf-stable) sip box (8.25 oz)
• Juicy Juice 100% Juice Sip Boxes – Orange, Grape or Fruit Punch (6 oz)
Packs cost $9.50 each, and will be assembled weekly by members of the Metz National Junior Honor Society and OHS Key Club, and distributed to schools by C.A.S.E. (Community and School Engagement Council) members. Joining Trinity Episcopal are community partners Grace United Methodist Church, Upper Room Christian Cathedral, the Manassas Chapters of Beta Sigma Phi Sorority and Wellington Community Homeowners Association. Contributions are welcome. Please contact the community partner of your choice to donate, or contact Cindy Brookshire at 703-361-6941 or brookshire1014@verizon.net for more information.
October 14, 2011 at 9:34 am
http://www.manassascity.org/index.aspx?nid=1136
FYI
Steve
October 14, 2011 at 9:56 am
http://www.manassas.patch.com/articles/5th-annual-childrens-health-festival
FYI
Steve
October 14, 2011 at 11:12 am
Rich,
Just to get on your nerves more, since I believe when you call out your fellow citizens to grab the pitchforks and torches you should identify the right castle, you said:
” Those who need to fix the problem presumately know the correct terms and will not be confused by my error.”
I’m not sure that those who need to fix the problem are either cognizant or willing to acknowledge the problem.
This is on the MCPS site right now:
“All Manassas City Public Schools are Fully Accredited by the State of Virginia”
http://www.manassas.k12.va.us/education/components/scrapbook/default.php?sectiondetailid=13213&
I don’t see how that could be a true statement, unless some magical waiver/secret full accrediatation was granted OHS, not mentioned in VA DOE guidelines.
I doubt Osbourn’s provisional accreditation is as big a problem as some may think, it appears as much as a statistical abberation due to busy work by the VA DOE bureaucrats as it is a problem that will need addressing, not to mention recognition, by our own educrats. The most glaring problem in OHS report card is the failure rate of students with Limited English Proficiency. Functionally and structurally that has to be one of the biggest problems facing the school.
Here are the steps required to address the accreditation problem :
http://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?000+reg+8VAC20-131-310
October 14, 2011 at 4:34 pm
In our weekly packets delivered today, there is a letter from
Dr. Pope on the OHS accreditation queston. Dated 10-14-2011,
she writes, in part:
“This year the Virginia Board of Education added an additional
accreditation requirement for high schools. They have determined
that a high school must have graduates and completers to earn
85 points in order to be classified as fully accredited. Completers
include those who earned a GED, IEP diploma, or certificate of completion.
Osbourn High School earned 80 points and was designated as
provisionally accredited due to this factor only.
…. of the 67 students identified as dropouts, 41 or 61% of the group
were Limited English Proficient, 32 or 48% of the group were in the school
division two years or less. Only 9 students identified as dropouts were
even enrolled last year and of those, three were new to the high school.”
October 14, 2011 at 8:14 pm
Thanks for the update Councilman. It might be interesting to know a little more about what/who initiated the the reformulation in Richmond, but the core of the problem most likely rests in the very problem Dr Werner & OHS staff are tasked with improving – the school’s learning environment. High dropout numbers/ extended graduating times are not that surprising in a school that had some of the problems Osbourn recently had. So, again as far as OHS is concerned, let’s see what new management can do.
Councilman does Dr.Pope go into any of the steps that MCPS will have to comply with in order for the school to be Fully Accredited? It appeared to me that the required steps are a little more ambiguous than what is reguired of a school that needed remedial work in Math and English. Ambiguity could be a good thing, or a bad thing.
October 14, 2011 at 11:13 pm
EDUCATION FORWARD COMMITTEE meeting
Monday, October 17 at 5:30
City Hall – 2nd floor conference room
October 15, 2011 at 6:05 am
“What are we doing to address these challenges?
Last year, we began to work on specific plans to get LEP students on
a track to graduate and this effort has intensified this year. This year
we have added a resource block during which time students can seek
additional assistance. Students who are doing poorly in core classes
at the end of first semester will be withdrawn from an elective, assigned
a resource block and given additional assistance. . Our attendance officer
and police officer are making home visits to engage families in helping us
get their students to school. We continue to take at least 25 students and
their families to court each year over attendance issues.
Other Facts about the 2011 Cohort
– 2 students were expelled
– 5 were incarcerated in the past three years
– 3 of the SPED students were enrolled for less than one year
– Only 9 students were enrolled in the 2010-2011 school year and 3 of
those entered that year. Everyone else has been out of the school
division for a t least one year.”
From Dr. Pope letter to Manassas City Council and School Board 10-14-2011
October 15, 2011 at 8:34 am
http://hamptonroads.com/2011/10/virginias-budget-dance-continues
Sadly, it looks like the Gov. and GA will continue the gimmick of dumping state
fiscal responsibilities onto Virginia’s local governments and then slapping
themselves on the back for “cutting” the state budget.
October 15, 2011 at 9:58 am
Perhaps we should be addressing the issue of WHY students don’t want to be at school? Perhaps referring the students when they are/were there to appropriate services (Counselors, Child Find, school psychologists, or school social workers) would prevent absenteeism in the first place? Is there documentation of a continuum of interventions? RTI comes to mind right away and I cannot find district-wide policy to address our RTI framework.
In addition, it is common practice for students to be secluded when behaviors occur rather that exploring the behavior in the first place. Not only is this disturbing for the student and their families (if they know), it is disturbing for all others who are aware of the practice.
SPED students have the option of staying in school to receive “services” until they age out and according to Dr. Pope MCPS goes “above and beyond” when it comes to Special Ed. Why would these students ever want to leave?
October 15, 2011 at 10:07 am
Fiscal responsibility is in the hands of the school board and city council. Specific suggestions have been made time and time again with regard to the schools on how to reallocate funds to better reflect the needs of ALL our students. More $ will never be the answer because those in charge of the funds are not held accountable for what they do with those funds. The school board has been given specific examples and questions to ask and still has not been done. When will we stop giving MCPS (staff) a blank check?
October 15, 2011 at 11:28 am
I don’t know if the absentee program has changed but students used to have be absent 15 consecutive days before the school could do anything to make students go to school.
Boy let me tell you the kids know how to work that one. they will skip school 14 days go back one or two and then start all over. It was a joke.
I hope things have changed with this.
October 15, 2011 at 3:23 pm
I’ve haven’t weighted in this topic since as many of you know, I’ve here to entertain myself, offer a different opinion on things, and not really to have and back and forth debates (in that order) but the topic of special education has again come up.
Let me just first that I agree with much of what Mr./Ms. Tenacity as written so far. I do think many of questions good ones that I think inspire some thoughts in people. However, I do have an objection to what he/she wrote on special education. Granted he/she doesn’t go as far as others in suggesting we waste money in even having a special education, but I will say he/she’s oversimplifying the issue.
As some know, I’m a former special education student myself and I didn’t leave until the end of my Junior Year at OHS and that was only after I had made it known I didn’t believe I required an IEP anymore ad (2) I went through testing to show to the school people I had overcome my disability enough to no longer require. I don’t other many other experiences, but in my experience, once I had an IEP, it seemed like it was basically assumed I would have it during my entire time in the school system and it just change to reflect what was still needed and what was no longer needed. I’m sure my 11th Grade IEP was much thinner then my previous IEPs since pretty everything was written out by that point. However, all the accommodations and services (note that I didn’t put services in quotes since I know they’re real things like the speech and physical therapies I had) I received had to proven necessarily. Accommodations and services aren’t free handouts that you get for no reason and that automatically give you passing grades. Even with a disability you have to still yourself and earn the A in a class like everyone else.
I also remind everyone we’re dealing Federal Law here. Here’s a US DOE FAQ on the matter: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/504faq.html. The disabilities aren’t called “life impairments” for nothing. That alone should answer why so many keep their accommodations and/or services their whole time in our school system: It’s because they have disabilities that will affect their ability to function in daily life for entire life and will always need accommodations and/or services. It’s not laziness, it’s not trying to unfairly get benefits, or anything else along those lines. A better question is why I had to declare I didn’t need an IEP, or potions thereof, instead of the school people coming to those conclusions by themselves or why I had argue to be put in Algebra I instead that Algebra I Part I/Part II. The way I remember it is that I had to declare when I didn’t what something in the IEP anymore instead of the school people ever suggesting that might be needed anymore. I might be remembering incorrectly though.
Now I’d to break my rule on debating for once. This is the second time I’ve seen criticism of special education by posters so I want to know: What are you people out there in internet land thinking leads to these wrong ideas about special education? Come on, share. I really what to know. My dad on here as well so we can address your thoughts. Come on, share, it’ll be fun.
October 15, 2011 at 6:07 pm
In my opinion, schools should not have to make kids/parents go to school. If the graduation/absenteeism problem is w/the LEP population?) then there are certain positions within the school district and city government for this sort of thing. Much money has been received and put toward this population and I think the “community liasons” should be tasked to do what they were hired to do. HOWEVER, if you take a look at ALL the data on the VA DOE website, you may come away with more questions than answers……
October 15, 2011 at 6:13 pm
I have to say that I think that the SpEd department/philosophies have changed for the worse since you attended. If you’d like specific examples, I’d be happy to share privately. I am THRILLED that you are speaking out and are an awesome role model and perhaps my limited comments were not perceived appropriately? Thus is the nature of writing, rather than speaking. All of what you have shared is to be commended and celebrated.
October 15, 2011 at 9:14 pm
A few more facts about the cohort:
Graduation: Drop out: LT Absent:
MCPS – 77.2 13. 21
Man Park – 84.8 8.1 0
PWC – 88.1 7.2 11
FFX – 91.4 5.9 0
Loudon – 95.3 2.6 15
Economic Disadvantaged: LEP:
MCPS: 2.08 3.56
Man Park: 2.05 4.56
Fairfax had 1 HS in provisional status: Woodson Adult High School (Not Woodson High)
PWC (Garfield & Freedom)
Loudon, Arlington, Alexandria had 1
Only 2% of VA HS schools are in this position and I believe we only have 1 HS in the city.
October 15, 2011 at 9:24 pm
Andrew,
I read my comments again and believe that you thought my question,”Why would anyone want leave?” was serious. I was being completely sarcastic. Kids should be happy and progressing in school and many are not. Especially our SpEd, twice exceptional (which are NOT in our Gifted Program for the most part) and the unidentified/under identified. IMHO these are the most vulnerable and exploited. Our Medicaid reimbursement funds come to us and right into a GENERAL FUND. Who know where that $ is going? The “services” was in quotes because I cringe to call them that. What are students are provided today is maybe 10% of what they NEED and even then, the quality and consistency varies greatly. Parents are fighting for services and MCPS continues to tell everyone that their kids are fine, are progressing, are doing well. We know otherwise and have outside data to show it. MCPS is fighting the data requirement on every level in all departments.
October 16, 2011 at 8:25 pm
Is it any wonder why we have half the population not paying taxes and wanting more handouts? If we are proving meals as referenced above. Why are we enrolled in the free lunch program? Wow its just amazing how libs love to pass out the free stuff paid by the very people they call racist and bigots. A good racket for sure. But I suppose when they see people coming into their slums to paint and cut grass these kids do not see anything wrong with getting free food.
October 17, 2011 at 9:27 am
COM,
So I guess you’re a no to volunteer for the next big initiative: Tuck Them In At Night?
There’s a lot of talk here about unfunded mandates, the objection to which I share, be they state or federal, but how about community organizations’ mandates passed on to the larger community? Can that be a subject of discussion without calling those who bring up the costs : cold hearted racists? I doubt it, people who are bent on being self-proclaimed real world saints don’t like their sainthood messed with.
By the way those costs are not limited to monetary costs, they include the health, education and physical well-being of other members of the community.
October 22, 2011 at 2:08 pm
Doug,
LOL. It’s easy to come up with ways to spend other people’s money, on the same people who are always the subject of assistence. With all the money, time, effort, etc being spent on the same people time and time again, you would think it might have had an impact already. Shoot, do you think I just pointed out another dirty little secret? LOL.