I just finished reading a Dallas ISD Blog regarding their new grade policy. It is appalling, on so many levels, that a school district would subject teachers, students, parents, administrators, and a community to such a grade policy. It allows for work to be turned in after deadlines (Why bother having one?), tests to be re-taken for higher scores (Why not just take tests over and over and over and over until someone finally hits the mark? [Insert sarcasm]), no grade lower than a 50 to be given (Oh, heck, just give half the class a score of 150 and the other half a 50; that way, they’ll all average to 100, right? Or did I once fail math? No worries; I can still make change…) and teachers will be spending 90% of their time dealing with the lower 10% students (”I got a zero and then they called my parents and I was allowed to get a 50.”).

Here are the links:

Letter from Chief Academic Officer, Teaching and Learning, to Parents (Word file)

DallasNews story

PK-12 Guidelines for Grading (PDF file)

It is widely known, within the world of management, that truly poor managers will spend 90% of their time trying to “performance manage” the 10% lower performers usually resulting in a poor result. It is also widely known that a (Good to…) Great manager will reverse that number and spend 90% of their time with their top 90% performers and achieve top results. The other 10% usually performance manages themselves out of a job, as long as the (Good to…) Great manager uses fair management practices and always, always creates and uses a paper trail.

I can totally see where one might think that giving a “failing” kid another chance might get or keep them engaged and might improve parent involvement. The DISD process certainly forces parents into the loop and holds them somewhat accountable for what is going on with their “failing” kids.

But what happens to the regular performers? What happens to the over-achieving, stellar performers? Where is their incentive? I don’t see one listed in any of those stories/policies.

It makes me wonder what the “drop-out” profile will look like in a few years under such a grading system. I can hear it now, “So what if I try? Nobody else does and look at their grades. They are still passing…”

I don’t really think that engaged kids will think that way because they aren’t thinking that way in the first place. But I do believe that this autocratic grading process will penalize all of us in a way that creates a certain 10% nation solution. I’m already working with high school grads that struggle to read. I don’t see how this grade policy will actually work to reinforce a love of learning. I see it as exactly the opposite with a side benefit of rewarding procrastination, apathy, and mediocrity. I also see teachers revolting under the weight of the creation of a police state within their profession. It’s bad enough they must deal with NCLB, AYP, and testing, testing, testing.

Kind of makes our lil’ ol’ GradeGate (subscription required) look trivial, eh?  My take on GradeGate.

Hat tip to NewMexiKen. Thanks for the great link!

    A new School Year!!

Here we go…  School starts (for the most part) tomorrow and we couldn’t be more excited.  We have a new superintendent, a new principal, a new vice-principal, and new teachers.  Also, there is supposed to be a new parent/school/educator communication system put in sometime this year.  AND… supposedly, APS will be working on improving their website.  Hallelujah!!   (Of course, I’ll believe that when I see it.)

I was looking around on our school’s website (which was slightly updated last Friday) and found a fifth grade teacher and her classroom website and, let me tell you; she really has it goin’ on.  I was secretly praying that our fifth grader would be in her class.  My prayers worked!  I’m very excited he will be in a classroom where the educator clearly knows how to work and consistently takes advantage of the tools provided.  It is obvious that she works very hard to maintain her website as well as communicate with the kids and parents.  I only wish all educators would/could/should (be able to) do the same.  Thank you, Carolyn!

(Dear Educators: if you would like for me to feature your classroom website, please email me!)

Here’s the link to Ms. Aparici’s 5th grade class website  Has she got it goin’ on, or what!  Thrilled we are…

Here’s what’s to come at APS:

• ParentLink

• APS Perspective  (PDF file): read through this and you can gain a perspective on the new District Goals and other pertinent items.

• I tried to link “School Matters”, which is a newsletter to the community that is similar to APS Perspective but the link is broken.  *sigh*  It pretty much said the same thing as the Perspective (which is the employee newsletter) but had some added tips for parents.  Hello… APS!

• If you go to the APS website and click on “Give APS Feedback”, you can tell APS and the BOE (Board of Education) what you think about adapting/adopting athletics, parents, and spectator Codes of Conduct.  Now’s your chance… Get over there and tell ‘em what you think.  It will save you lots of eyerolling in the long run.

There’s lots more to come and info coming in like torrential, monsoonal rains.

Stay tuned… I’ve been really, really busy but now have more time increase my involvement and report back to you.  Please feel free to comment, suggest, drop a line.  (My email address is natalieb39 AT G M A I L dot COM)

And, I missed you, too.

P.S.  To whomever changed the dress code: I really wish you would have told us about this at the end of LAST YEAR!  We’d already bought the boys a bunch of cargo pants (which, by the way, last longer and are much more durable than those crappy “school pants”) and now, since we took all of the tags off and purchased them over two months ago, we can’t even return them.  This cost us a pretty penny and we don’t have that kind of money.  Please communicate these types of changes SOONER!  Thank you.

/rant

P.P.S.  I found a backdoor link to School Matters.  There ya go.  It seems there are some problems with the translator APS is using and this should also be in Spanish.  If I find it, I will post it.  In the meantime, you can still click on the translator link on this page.  (Just above the technorati link.)

  … A going away party for Beth Everitt at the last Board of Education meeting.

It was a nice little soiree with a sweet video, lots of people commenting (including yours truly) about their memories of working with Beth, music, and a nice spread of “Southern” finger-food. There were several emotional moments and I was quite moved by all of it. I got up to speak and told of my first encounter with Beth and how I really wanted to be mad and not like her. Of course, that didn’t happen because she is a very welcoming and open person and she immediately disarmed me and took care of my issues. I wanted to say more about how she inspired me to become involved in working with APS to improve communication (and so much more) but I got sidetracked when speaking about the first time she met our boys. I then became a puddle of gooey emotions, because she was so fantastic with the boys, and couldn’t continue my little speech. Eh. When you get me going about the boys, well, let me just say that I can become speechless when overcome by emotion. You might want to remember that if you are ever looking for a way to shut me up.

Anyway, I wished her all the best and thanked her for all of her help. I’ve been both supportive and critical of the things that have happened within APS over the last two years but, I have to say that I’ve always appreciated Beth’s communications with me and all of her help in taking care of our situations at our school and with the bus company. I only wish we could have done more to fix that danged website. That was, after all, my first objective. Someday… it will change. I hope.

The superintendent search is still continuing. The processes are being refined, as we roll through the holidays, and I’m looking forward to the next phases of the search. The 27 member search committee will soon be reviewing the applications provided by the search firm. They will then review and recommend the best candidates from those applications. I’m hoping the next step will be for the board to interview the top candidates and then the cream o’ the crop candidates will have an opportunity to answer interview questions in front of a public audience. This will give everyone a chance to hear their answers, see how they perform under pressure, and will give everyone a first glance at, potentially, their next superintendent of schools. As I said, this process is still being ironed out between the board, the committees, and the search firm. It’s all looking very good from my vantage point.  The order of how and when the candidates are interviewed may change but it’s on track to happen, whatever process they decide.  The BOE is really doing a fantastic job of keeping everything open and appropriate. I commend them on all of their efforts.  They have all invested quite a lot of time, commitment, thought, and sensitivity into everything they’ve done.  They also have a very talented and commited support staff working quite diligently (as in, eating, sleeping, and breathing the entire processes) to make this happen.  Good job, everyone!

I am currently in the process of writing first-draft interview questions that may or may not be used in this process. I’m going for “specific and measurable” types of questions taken directly from the community input information that was compiled and formed into the recruitment form completed by the search firm. The recruitment form is on the APS website (under superintendent search) if you’d like to take a look at it. The candidates won’t have much time to answer the questions so it is best that they are succinct and relate directly to the specifics of what our community is looking for in a superintendent.

We don’t reconvene until after the holidays but I will do my best, despite these very busy times, to keep everyone informed. January will be a very busy and crucial month to the superintendent search as we will finally get down to dealing in actual candidates.

Exciting stuff!

Stayed tuned…

  … WSTBOED?  (What Should the Board of Education Do?) 

I just read through “7th Annual Salary Survey: A look at compensation for six key positions.” by Alan Dessoff, a writer for District Administration: A magazine for K-12 education leaders. I was putting together commentary regarding the $260,000 salary proposed by the superintendent search firm hired by our board of education. In all actuality, I was trying to figure out how they came to that number but instead found this article and the 2006 annual salary survey. There is some fascinating information tucked within both of these articles and I highly recommend everyone read them.

I admit that I do not have the knowledge or background in knowing what to pay a superintendent of schools and this is exactly why I went looking for information. For the life of me, I cannot figure out how this search firm came to recommend such a hefty (approximately 26% or $67k increase) salary for this districts’ next superintendent. If you look at the information (Source: Educational Research Service) from the 2006 survey, you’ll see that, by community type, the average salary for a large urban district is $187, 924. That’s not too far off the 193k mark (Beth Everitt’s salary) and because we are in the top 50 large urban schools designation (I believe we are currently ranked at #32), it is understandable that the main administrator would be earning close to this amount.

Even if you look at it from the 2007 survey information, and take into consideration the per-student expenditures, the size of enrollment, and the latest information on community type, that still averages out to just over 200k. Still, given our districts’ complexities, the community’s stance on APS, the lack of qualified potential candidates, the amount of superintendent openings across the nation; does this actually warrant an almost 70k increase over the mean salary?

Maybe.

It just seems like an awful lot of money when you take into consideration associate superintendent salaries, principal salaries, and teacher salaries. It feels like sticker-shock and is terribly difficult to condone given the current state of the district and the current state of the districts’ budget. It seems the demand for qualified superintendent candidates is huge which, in any market/business, can create a higher dollar value. Still, I’m not sold on the fact that someone able to command a higher wage is actually going to be the best qualified candidate. I’m betting this will eventually cause the board to lean a little further into a local potential candidate.

According to both surveys, it’s not about the money but rather about the ability to create a positive change and be part of something noble. That is, until NCLB came along and made it so difficult for anyone in the business of education to do their job. NCLB is starting to feel like a tax break for the rich (as prescribed by GW) for those about to become wealthy in the over-300k-superintendent-club. There are comparisons to CEO’s and other business leaders but it’s still a given that by working within a public school system, you just shouldn’t be in it for the money. Where have I heard that before? Oh, yeah; retail businesses, restaurant businesses, customer service businesses have all been described in that way. Strange comparisons but, then, considering everything I’ve heard about what people want in this position, it truly is about customer (public) service.

So, what am I trying to say? I know it sounds quite wishy-washy but the reality is, we may have to suck it up, get over ourselves, and pay out the nose for a “qualified” candidate or hedge our bets on a potentially less qualified (superintendent experienced) but better adapted to our political environment and “culturally competent” … local.

I know that sounds like settling for the lesser of the two, but, really, you do get what you pay for in this environment. And there are no guarantees that an “outsider” will be effective and a good fit for our community.

It’s a risk and a cost, no matter how you slice it.

 … some models, modalities, and modicums of modifiers for us to use and/or watch out for in the search for a new superintendent of Albuquerque Public Schools.

Once again, I’ve been reading about other school districts and their processes for finding a qualified superintendent. Most recently, I’ve been reading Aiken County School District and their process to fill the position. I’ve been following this because Beth Everitt had applied and is now considered their number one pick. Their school board will make their final vote tonight but I did happen to notice an informal survey on the local newspaper’s website. Out of 119 votes, Beth had just 17, versus the two local boys at 27 and an overwhelming 73 votes for Frank Roberson; the only African American candidate.

There is a lot of controversy surrounding each of these candidates. We know all of Beth’s controversies and they’ve definitely been brought to light in Aiken County newspapers. It is interesting to read about the other two candidates and some of the political jockeying since Dr. Linda Eldridge (current and outgoing superintendent) decided to retire. “Retire” seems to be an interesting way for superintendents to “move on” and find other work. That’s what happens when you are tenured enough to “retire” and then take another job. Nice work if you can get it…

Anyway, the other two final candidates are both locally grown educators/administrators. Dr. David Mathis worked for Edgefield County School District (a much smaller district of just less than 5,000 students and 300 teachers) for 27 years before becoming an Associate Superintendent for Aiken County Schools in 2006. Dr. Frank Roberson has 27 years in with the Aiken County School District but left in 2006 after a very public dispute with Dr. Eldridge. He left to become an associate superintendent with Edgefield, verbally agreed to become the interim (and eventual permanent) superintendent of Edgefield but, once the Aiken position opened, reneged on his verbal agreement citing family reasons.

The NAACP has pushed hard for Dr. Roberson to be the appointment of the school board because there has been a tremendous amount of controversy surrounding the number of African Americans in positions of leadership in the Aiken County School District.

On the face of all things, each of them looks great… on paper.

Blah, blah, blah… this all sounds so incredibly familiar; simply insert different names, races, controversies, and AYP scores. None of the schools any of these candidates have managed have met AYP but all of them have scored above average with state stats.

So, why am I even bringing this up? Well, I have to say that I am a bit surprised at Beth’s choice to go to Aiken. She says she wants to be closer to her mom and sister but, whatever; she also said she and her husband want to travel (and possibly work) abroad. Who knows why anyone does anything but I do find it interesting that she applied for a school district that is so clearly embroiled in tough racial issues and educational challenges albeit a much, much smaller district to manage. Maybe that’s a comfort zone for her but her reasons are her own and, really, none of my danged business.

Also, I’ve been reading about the processes that Aiken has gone through in taking community input and creating a profile for choosing the best candidate for the job. It is interesting to watch the commentaries of local versus out of state candidates and to watch the lack of actual community involvement other than newspaper articles and the pining of the NAACP. The really vocal members of the community are making decisions for everyone (per usual) and the school board is taking a lot of heat (per usual).

Are you watching and listening Albuquerque Board of Education? Are you learning from this? I hope so; from what I’ve seen from both boards of education, ours is really doing a terrific job of including the community, attempting to take in and validate all input, create a job description/evaluation, and listen. It is just so ironic to be watching Beth go through all of this and it will be interesting to see how that community welcomes her because, yes, she is their final candidate and, although the vote takes place tonight, it should be noted that Beth is the only candidate that has actually been in a negotiation process with the Aiken Board of Education. I’m pretty sure she’ll be their next superintendent of schools from everything I’ve been reading.

I wish her luck and hope she’s happy wherever she lands.

I’ve been reading several school district’s processes and results for finding a new superintendent and I sure hope our school board is watching and learning, as well. There are many lessons to be learned, flexibilities to employ, and propositions to be carried out for possibility.

Aiken had a 21 members, board appointed search committee. We have a 27 members, board appointed search committee. Aiken did community meetings for community input. We did 13 community meetings for community input. Unfortunately, the results of that community input were the same for both school districts: dismally attended. However, here in ABQ, we had rousing conversations and wonderful input from clearly committed individuals from business, parent, tax payer, and educator communities. The most astounding part of the community input process was the amount of involvement from student leaders with over 2,000 surveys submitted. They really put the adults to shame. Plus, the board of education approved Research and Polling, Inc. to do a household survey that provided a tremendous amount of information about the community, district, and potential future of APS. From my perspective as a parent and the chair of the community involvement committee, I think the board has done a tremendous job in putting this out into the community and keeping the process open.

In looking at and comparing all of this, I can still say that finding a qualified and effective (”… Saint…” as one community member put it at one of our meetings) superintendent candidate is still, pretty much, a crap-shoot. It’s kind of like that old saying, “One man’s trash is another’s treasure.” And, don’t misunderstand me, I do not mean to disparage Beth Everitt; not in any way. She may be perfectly suited to take on a much smaller school district and do a terrific job. But, as findings have indicated, she did an overall good job for APS and also had many failings; after all, she’s only human… with a doctorate and tons of really great experience in dealing with controversy.

It all comes down to whom will be the best fit for the community. Will that person be a member of the local community or someone from outside? This is currently an issue for our board of education and they’d better come to some form of agreement on being open to all candidates. Otherwise, this division of the board will skew the process for the search committee and they will have a political and community nightmare on their hands.

We need unity, not division, and regardless of where each of the board members personally stands on local versus non-local, they can still issue their vote after the search committee presents the candidate finalists. They need to be united in the face of the candidate process and be open to all candidates with the best qualifications in order to find the best fit. The only choice to make is to have excellent interviews that truly probe into the interests and reasons why particular candidates want to be here and feel they are capable of making positive changes. (Yes; that was a not-so-cleverly disguised, “willingness and ability to do the job” idiom.) Also, these candidates would be wise to know exactly what the community is looking for and our search committee needs to probe into how these candidates have demonstrated these qualifications in their previous positions. These interview questions/answers need to be specific and measurable.

I just hope we don’t go down the road of purporting that the best candidate should be African American, Hispanic, Spanish, Caucasian, Asian, Persian, or, as indicated by the New Mexico tourism department: alien. Have fun with that distinction!

Although, at this point, we could use a little Ripley Action or even, dare I say, a little Alien Action in the district ‘cause this is truly an acid test. I just hope it doesn’t turn into a Timothy Leary experience.

Stay turned on and tuned in: do it for the dropouts, if nothing else.

P.S.  I embedded that NM tourism ad with the hopes that potential candidates have, at the very least, a sense of humor!

 … A Tea Party Idea…

There is an article in today’s Journal about homes purchased in 2006 and the subsequent rise in property taxes (as a result of an increase in the assessed value) beyond a 3% assessment value cap. A big chunk of the increase is due to the increase in tax percentage for Albuquerque Public Schools from a $351 million dollar bond issue (for new school construction and building maintenance) passed in September of 2006. I haven’t received my property tax bill yet so I went online and got the numbers.

My property taxes have gone up a whopping 37.35% on the whole and the biggest chunk is a 47.62% monetary increase for Albuquerque Public Schools. Now, of course, this is to build new schools (they are sorely needed on the Westside, in particular) and for “building maintenance.”

Let’s see what I’m getting for my whopping 47.62%:

A new high school on the Westside. Granted, our kids won’t be in high school until 2012, but, hey, it’ll be there and will probably be just as over-crowded as Cibola High School with its 3,000, or so, students.

A new high school on the southwest mesa. Nice school. Our kids won’t be going there.

At the start of school, the air conditioning (aka “swamp cooling”) wasn’t working properly. It took them weeks to get it fixed but by then the temps had dropped. Kids were being sent home sick because of the heat.

Huge controversy about an alternative high school being moved onto our elementary school campus. Sure, they moved the portables, built a fence, put in a new, paved road to the high school, but they didn’t tell anyone before they did it. I don’t have a problem with those kids being so close to our school because I now understand why APS did it, who those kids are, the reputation of the principal, and the safeguards that were put together to keep the little ones separated from the handful of students trying to get their lives back on track. I do have a problem with APS’ “go ahead and do it and ask for forgiveness later” attitude about it. Would I have protested it if I had known ahead of time? “Protest” is a strong word. I am sure I would have asked questions about the process and definitely would have wanted to know how close the school would be, what steps/measures would be taken to ensure the high school kids wouldn’t affect the little kids, and, now that I’ve driven down Western Trail at the same time these kids are getting out of school, I would have definitely mentioned that teenagers in cars next to an elementary school is an accident waiting to happen. Those kids speed out of the parking lot, show-off, and are a menace on the road. That is, if you happen to be behind, in front, or alongside them while driving. These problems need to be addressed, which I’ve tried to do with my principal, to no avail. To. No. Avail. This is what I’m talkin’ about…

Okay, there are lots of other construction projects going on at many, many schools and all of this is a good thing. I’d like to think that my taxes are going toward improving schools and while construction is part of it, let’s take a look at what other things my taxes have bought me, so far this year:

Scandals. Too many to list… again…

Our youngest is in special education. He’s autistic with a myriad of other “special” needs. His new teacher was a first year, regular education teacher, who “lost” him twice because she hadn’t read his IEP which noted that he needed to be with someone at all times. We just worked things out with her, including his homework, classroom instruction, disciplinary procedures, whom to call, and a preliminary IEP when…

Without any notification, our youngest suddenly had a new teacher. I don’t know if ya’ll know anything about autism but a very important aspect of someone with autism is to live within strict routines. Any upset of routines are cause for breakdown, set-backs, and chaos. Yet, suddenly, youngest has a new teacher and how did we find this out? Our older boys told us. Not the principal, not the assistant principal (she was already gone but we didn’t know this yet), and not from his current teacher or the Special Ed office. We were wondering why the little guy was pitching a fit every morning and wouldn’t get on the bus. He kept saying, “I dun wanna!” when we asked him to get on the bus and go to school. He wasn’t like that all year, last year, and actually loved going to school. Oh, how things had changed!

The loss of both the school principal and assistant principal. I just recently found out about this as it started out as a rumor until I finally got in touch with the principal (who, once again, hadn’t been returning my calls) and he confirmed that the assistant principal was gone and that he, too, would be leaving at the end of November. No communication… no new principal in the works… but, yes, there’s a new assistant principal and it would be a “good idea” for me to introduce myself to her, considering all of the issues we’ve had with the school, special ed., and the buses. Uh-huh.

Long conversations with educators, not just at our school, but at several schools, based on my involvement with APS, about the future of APS, their concerns, and the worst morale (Who can blame them?) I’ve ever encountered in a school district. These are people who genuinely care about our kids and their futures, their careers and future, and the future of, not just APS, but of education as a whole.

So, there you have it in a nutshell: just a few of the things I personally paid for through my increased property taxes. I now understand, just a little more personally, exactly what it means when someone says, “Let’s get down to brass taxes.” (Or, brass tacks, if you’re a stickler for phrases.)

I’m pretty sure people pay attention to what’s going on with their property taxes, sales tax, income tax, etc… If they paid as much attention to what’s really going on with our schools, our children’s’ education, the morale of teachers/principals/everyone within the educational system, they might actually demand some changes. I know I have.

To. No. Avail. Frustrating doesn’t even begin to describe my personal feelings about what is going on with public education in the city of Albuquerque.

“Never give up; never surrender!” is a silly little catch phrase from a silly little movie called, “Galaxy Quest.” The premise of this movie is that a bunch of actors play space heroes on a television program (ala Star Trek) and are beamed up by real aliens who have emulated everything they saw on the “history newsreels” and now need the space heroes to help them deal with a nasty alien attempting to kill them all. The actor/captain eventually acts like a real leader versus a washed-up, drunken actor, and saves the day.  Eh.  I digress…

My point, and I do have one, is that it’s going to take more than a new superintendent to create significant change within APS. It’s going to take everyone paying attention to what they are paying for and the results of those investments. Yes; education is an investment. I guess you can buy leadership but that doesn’t guarantee leadership or improved education results. My property taxes, sales taxes, lottery results, legislative financing, grants, and every other way a school district can procure monies, is everyone’s business when it involves public schools. There are over 90,000 kids whose future depends on those monies and I want to be sure we are all getting our money’s worth.

One way or another, it’s up to you and me to get involved and demand better.

Never give up; never surrender.

Just pay your bill and be sure you know what you’re getting out of it. If you don’t like it, you can always throw a small tea party by going to Board of Education meetings, pressuring your city councilor, pressuring the mayor, pressuring the superintendent of schools, and, for God’s sake, VOTE!

By the way, my APS tax amount is 49.7% higher this year than in 2005. The incline is steady but the results have only gotten worse. Wouldn’t you be piping-hot mad or at least spurred into action? Less than .1% of the city population has given their input into the characteristics, qualifications, and priorities they’d like to see in the next superintendent. A whopping (hint of sarcasm here) 9.5% of registered voters approved the $351 million bond issue.

Yep. You get what you pay for and you get what others will choose for you through apathy. Our schools need the taxes to build new and fix old schools. That’s the price of growth. What’s it going to cost you to be involved to ensure money goes to the right places, leadership is at the helm, and the school board actually listens to an increasingly involved community?

Priceless.

There is an article in today’s Albuquerque Journal regarding sexual misconduct allegations involving APS school employees that caught my I-Spy-Eye. Just yesterday, I read this AP article regarding sexual misconduct, sexual predators, sexual opportunists in our schools, and how state laws, schools, unions, deal with these matters. It seems this is a nation-wide problem that has far-reaching consequences.

In today’s Journal article, it talks about how APS has now implemented a one-time training session for new employees on the district’s code of conduct, including how and when to handle reporting suspicions of student abuse. This is great but it would seem everyone at APS would benefit from going through a training session on how to identify and report potential issues of abuse. It is also reported that the district is considering doing random background checks of employees which is within their legal authority and can have considerable costs associated with it.

It seems that, after an employee is hired and they’ve had their initial FBI background check, the employee is then required to report any criminal misconduct they have been charged, and/or convicted of while in employ of APS schools. This is a pretty common policy, as far as I can tell, from having read this type of information from other school districts across the nation. Random background checks can serve to catch those whom have not reported their criminal activities but does nothing if said person was accused but not charged, has had charges dropped, or was allowed to simply leave quietly.

In reading a recent AP report about how teacher’s disciplinary systems (”Teacher’s Discipline System Can Protect Offenders” Houston Chronicle), it documented how difficult it is to obtain information about school employees that have had trouble in other states and/or school districts. Here is part of the article:

Yet an official bulletin from California’s Commission on Teacher Credentialing reported only that Rucker’s teaching credential was revoked for misconduct under broad sections of state law that cover everything from theft to murder. The AP’s review found dozens of similar cases, often involving pleas of no contest, a common legal agreement that allows one to avoid a trial or civil liability, but still leads to conviction. California law also bars the credentialing commission from revealing the reason teachers who plead no contest lose their licenses.

It’s a dangerous loophole, says Assemblyman Todd Spitzer, a Republican from Orange County.

“There is the possibility that one of these people could move to another jurisdiction, most likely another state, and you wouldn’t be able to find out their history,” says Spitzer, a former prosecutor and high school English teacher.

Here’s how it can happen: California submits information on teachers who lose their licenses to a national database. But because of California’s law, the state only provides limited details. So officials in another state may find out that someone they want to hire had a problem in California, but it’s nearly impossible for them to learn more from education records. In some cases, school officials have only a one-year window to access California disciplinary records.

That came into play in 2002, after California granted a probationary license to Craig Kinder. He’d been forced out of a suburban St. Louis district amid accusations that he’d touched students inappropriately.

Kinder was acquitted on criminal charges - but California officials gave him a license only on the condition that he tell prospective employers about his past.

He didn’t do that when he applied at California’s Newport-Mesa Unified School District.And by the time district officials figured out he’d lied, the state - and the very California agency that required Kinder to disclose his history - had sealed his disciplinary records.

That made it tough to fire Kinder, says Lorri McCune, then the district’s assistant superintendent of human resources.

“This to me was a gross miscarriage of their responsibility,” McCune says. “We had basically no recourse, which really made me sick.”

Kinder eventually voluntarily surrendered his California license in 2003, after the Newport-Mesa district spent hundreds of thousands of dollars trying to force him out.

Now, consider the current case against substitute teacher, Robert Ashley, the man accused of “up-skirting” little girls in his classroom and now an admitted pedophile. The sheriff’s department found information that he was a teacher in California and may have been a substitute in Nevada and Colorado. (From Tribune: “Sub accused of voyeurism led classes at three city schools”)

What information could APS have had about this man if there was something recorded in his previous personnel files? Any schools considering hiring him would have difficulty accessing previous disciplinary actions and/or acquittals when you take into consideration all of the confidentiality laws throughout the nation. Did Ashley actually have an FBI background check and what did that look like? Of course, we’ll never know because that is a personnel issue for APS. It could very well be that there were no “red flags” or any other indicators considering how much he’s moved around and how suspicious behaviors are reported.

Ashley is just one of potentially many predators who know how to circumvent the system and continued preying upon our children through lack of solid policies/practices, national information registries, and open sharing of complete personnel files. Even more importantly, the processes in which these types of crimes are (or are not) reported, confidentiality laws, and bargaining agreements, have all contributed to a lack of information for schools to make good hiring decisions.

I was talking to my principal about this situation and he remarked that he’d never had a background check done on him in all of his years of working for APS. Now, I love my principal and find him to be a man of integrity, smart, and truly all about the kids. I would never think… Not in a million years… Not my principal…

In no way, shape, or form am I suggesting that my principal is a potential abuser but I am saying that it is this type of attitude that can lead to those who are potential abusers to work the system. This is where we all get caught up in emotion and opportunists are allowed to weasel their way into the system. It is unfortunate but a reality of the world we live in. The mere mention of possibility is enough for any educator to become extremely fearful for their job, livelihood, and reputation. Rightly so as there are so many perpetrators out there tarnishing this profession which only helps to continue these “shrouds of secrecy.”  I have a terrific relationship with my principal and spend a lot of time at the school.  But you just never know for sure and ensuring that we’ve done everything we can to protect someone like my wonderful principal from accusations is as important as protecting our kids against those that slip through the system.

I would hope that all APS employees are (now) given an opportunity to go through a background check, if only to keep themselves safe against accusations and/or suspicions. I know that’s a hefty cost but I do feel it should be a consideration of safety for the employees, the kids, and peace of mind for parents.

I think APS is doing the right thing but I also think it’s not enough. Once again, it comes down to having solid policies in place that not only protect our kids from those who have learned how to work around the system but that also protects our teachers (and other school employees) from being falsely accused and carrying that stigma with them wherever they go. Laws and policies must be written to keep these groups from harm but close the gap on those opportunists that find the loop holes, circumvent the system, and use this system to terrorize/abuse our children and create blight on a very noble profession.

I work in retail management and I’ve had to have a background check for every position I’ve ever held. It only makes sense that this is part of the hiring process and an ongoing requirement of the job. It’s sad, really, to have to even think like this but it’s about protecting the “good guys” and our kids. I’d rather take a proactive stance than be sorry in the long run because the “bad guys” are moving around and hiding within the very system meant to keep them from perpetuating their criminal behaviors.

On a personal note: I can remember being in the 7th grade at Madison Jr. High and walking between buildings on my way home from school. I heard someone whistle and turned to look; there stood a construction worker, eyeing me and motioning me toward him. He’d been working on one of the buildings and was standing in the doorway, pants unzipped, holding and stroking himself while smiling at me. It scared me so I ran. I ran all the way home and once I got there, I sat down and ran through my mind what I’d just saw. I was both repulsed and titillated by it. I was also 13 years old and didn’t know what to make of my feelings. I never told my mom what happened because of my conflicted feelings.

Now, as an adult, I completely understand what was happening and it scares me to think there are other kids out there who may have similar experiences but don’t run away in fear. God only knows what could happen. As parents, it’s tough enough to keep our kids safe within home environments without having to worry about what’s happening within our schools. I think Marty Esquivel is on to something about checking out construction workers (or anyone else working on school grounds, for that matter) for keeping our kids safe. It’s interesting to note that parent volunteers have to go through a background check in order to be around the kids. I’m pretty sure the same should be required of anyone working on/near/for a school. Last year, the city provided a grant so parents (or other volunteers required to have a background check) wouldn’t have to pay for the cost. I’m not sure but I think that grant has run out which, if true, is unfortunate as most parents can’t afford the $38, or so, bucks to go through the check.

Just something to think about… And from my perspective, something to do about.

It’s not just in our schools. This is a national problem. We need to do everything we can, as a society, as a nation, as a community, to keep our kids and our school employees safe from the opportunists and sicko’s of the world. It’s a tough job and I’m glad to see that APS is taking a few steps in the right direction to train, direct, and counsel within our schools. We need to broaden the scope of law to allow for better reporting to allow our schools to hire and follow-up in all aspects of hiring policies. True enough that it’s a difficult process to recruit and hire good, qualified applicants but these extra steps are necessary.

From today’s Journal article:

Teachers union president Ellen Bernstein wondered how much the random checks would help the district catch pedophiles with clean records.
“I don’t know that it would help,” she said, “but I don’t think that it would hurt.”

“When these accusations occurred,” said Rickman, speaking from a teacher’s perspective, “it’s one of those things that makes you wonder if you’re doing the right thing.”
Bernstein described the workshop as a chance for staff to get their questions answered about everything from proper behavior to the recourse of the accused.
“The safety of the student is paramount,” she said. “The No. 2 thing, of course, is the career of the teacher, and people are innocent until proven guilty, so it’s a very difficult balancing act.”

It definitely is a very difficult balancing act and it will take all of us to tip the scales in our favor, and in the favor of keeping our kids and the “good guys” safe.Contact your local legislator, senator, city representative, and let them know how important this matter is and request they begin looking at our state laws as well as national laws to strengthen those governing information release and reporting requirements toward teacher licensing laws, reporting of criminal convictions, as well as employee confidentiality rights.

Other interesting links:

Teachers and Trash Education

Series done by the Houston Chronicle:

Count of Educator sexual misconduct took months

Texas ranks 2nd in teachers sanctioned for sexual misconduct

Remembering that Texas is a death penalty state, it hasn’t seemed to have changed their ranking.

And in Chicago…

And in Louisiana…

And in Washington…

And in Colorado… (which has shared a particular teacher with New Mexico)

And in Utah…

And in Oregon… (This article is long and has an annoying request if you try to go to the second page… fill it in and read the entire article… it’s worth it.)

And on the flipside… is THIS what we’re headed toward?  I hope not…

Fear is a great motivator but let’s all hope that fear doesn’t keep people from going into the teaching profession.  Between NCLB, AYP, and all of the restrictions put on teachers these days, they certainly don’t need this kind of pressure when trying to simply do their jobs: teaching our kids.

… My Family; I’d almost forgotten what they look like… 

The series of public meetings for community input for the APS superintendent search have now concluded. We are now in the process of pulling together our community’s input and forming a cohesive interview criterion of the qualifications and characteristics everyone has suggested they want in our next superintendent of Albuquerque Public Schools. This process is almost as daunting as attending all of those meetings! We have some help from Research and Polling and will submit our report to the school board in a few weeks. Regardless of the amount of work ahead… this is an exciting process!

I was cruising the internet this afternoon and came across an article published and copyrighted by the Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB) that has some interesting information. (I only mention the published and copyrighted part so I can actually use it legally, here.)

What I find most interesting about it is that it talks about the right things to do and things a school board, the community, and the media should avoid in order to have appropriate roles when making a selection as well as (potentially) better success in finding, matching, and hiring a new superintendent.

I have watched members of our school board go to great lengths to take information from our community. They decided to create (my) a committee to gather public input. They’ve also created a 27 member superintendent search committee and went to great lengths to have appropriate community representation on this committee. They’ve hired a reputable search firm. They have a sense of urgency but, at the same time, want to do this lil’ thing called, “Superintendent Search” correctly and effectively.  So, even it if takes a little longer and gets behind deadline, they are committed to their process and will, hopefully, not make any knee-jerk reactions in the hiring process.

I hope everyone reads through the suggestions below and takes them to heart regarding this entire process. I hope the media is reading this and stops all the sensational reporting and works with the board so we, a.) don’t lose any candidates; b.) don’t create a popularity contest; c.) allow the board and the committee to do their jobs and not impede that process through sensational journalism. I hope the community can gain some level of trust that the board is taking every measure to involve our community appropriately AND will make the best possible decision. I hope to God that it actually pans out because we can’t have another Brad Allison or poor pick or bad-fit.

The one thing I can say is, “They really are listening and paying attention to our community.” I know this from the inside looking out and I’m as skeptical as they come (from a parent/community member perspective) when it comes to trusting our board of education collectively. I really, really hope that certain “special interest groups” don’t try to take over the process because they, a.) want to split the district; b.) are still mad about something that happened two days/weeks/months/years/decades ago; c.) just can’t get over their own “specialness” to see that this is about ALL kids.

We heard some really great stuff from concerned people within our community. We heard some great ideas, appropriate concerns, heartfelt hopes, thoughtful priorities, and a desire for positive change. This was uplifting and positive and I came away from each meeting with a deeper respect of and love for the diversity within our community.  Man, we’ve really got some great people working for APS… I met teachers, principals, custodians, EA’s, a lunch-lady, Special Ed teachers, administrators, and, I’ve gotta tell ya; they were fantastic!  And to my Venti, Soy, Latte’ buddy… you bet I’ll be by to talk with you… as soon as I can.  :)  I really enjoyed our conversations both within this process and after.  Some of the most interesting conversations were had either before or after the meetings.  I wish more parents would get out and meet their teachers, principals, etc… they are simply some of the most dedicated, wonderful human beings to walk this earth.

The one thing that really disappointed me was the low turn-out. But… never mind that… we put it out there, it was in the media, throughout the schools, printed on flyers, on the website, here on this blog, on other blogs, and talked about throughout our community. For those who attended: THANK YOU! Ya’ll ROCK! For those who did not… I just don’t want to hear you complaining about a danged thing when it comes down to it. Mmm…K?

And now we are on to the interview criteria and selection process. I’m just going to keep saying… “I hope…” when I preface anything in regards to our superintendent search. Hope is all we have today… And very soon we may actually have the opportunity to swivel on this pivot and create something different.

Before I leave you with the IASB article, I give you one of my favorite quotes:

“We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.”

Albert Einstein

Indeed, dear Sir; indeed.

(Here is the link to the IASB website.)

Here is the article:

HIRING A NEW SUPERINTENDENT–SOME APPROPRIATE ROLES

There are appropriate roles for citizens and news media in the hiring of a new school district superintendent. There also are some inappropriate roles that can make selection of a new superintendent a school board nightmare.

The problems arise when: interest groups publicly demand to interview candidates for the job and to express their opinions as to who should be hired, and/or the identities of candidates are leaked to the news media. The first problem is sure to discourage serious candidates and likely to result in a mismatch between the superintendent and the school board. (If the board expects the new superintendent to be accountable to the board, then the board must do the hiring, not the teachers union, business community or local television station.)

The second problem creates embarrassment for candidates who had been getting along fine with their current employers and is likely to result in withdrawals, not to mention a reduced pool of candidates the next time that school board goes looking for a superintendent.

To prevent such situations from arising, a school board that is about to launch a superintendent search must clearly establish its role as the employer. School boards are elected to represent the public, and one of their most important jobs is to employ a superintendent. Interviewing finalists and selecting the one who best meets the school district’s needs is the job of the school board. Activities that are appropriate to an election have no place in the selection of an educational leader for the school district.

It is not appropriate, for example, for a school board to present candidates to the public and make a selection on the basis of a popularity poll. News media representatives who advocate public forums evaluating candidates confuse election campaigns with the employment process.

By the same token, news media representatives who treat candidates for the superintendency like public celebrities create a reputation for their school districts that discourages successful administrators from becoming candidates.

To accommodate those eager for involvement and preclude unreasonable demands, the school board should establish procedures for ascertaining the views of the community in establishing qualifications and standards for the superintendency.

There are many ways to seek these views, including surveys, committees, public hearings, and just generally listening to what people say they would like in a new superintendent. Newspapers and broadcast media can play a key role by encouraging interested people to speak up and publicizing different points of view as to what the district needs.

However, public discussion of what the district needs in a superintendent must come long before the pool of applicants is narrowed down to a few finalists. Identifying desired qualifications and characteristics should be an initial step, for this information plays an important part of the board’s advertising to solicit candidates. During the final stages of the selection process, there probably are key persons in any community that a prospective superintendent might want or need to meet.

Matching a superintendent with a community is usually a two-way sales situation, so the community must sell itself to the candidate as well as vice versa. A school board might arrange for two or three finalists to meet key school-community leaders.

A school board might also provide a public explanation of the consequences of inappropriate procedures. A mismatch between the job and the person ultimately hired results when candidates receive a distorted picture of who the employer is. And when news reporters use personal contacts to learn the identities of candidates for the superintendency and publicize their names and their current employers, candidates become leery of applying for the job–including perhaps the very one who would have been best for the district.

Some employing school boards are aware that their superintendents are pursuing other jobs, some are not. School boards usually must promise anonymity to candidates or advise candidates from the outset that anonymity cannot be guaranteed. School boards that cannot guarantee anonymity will receive fewer applications and have fewer candidates from which to choose a new superintendent. A school board that promises anonymity and doesn’t deliver it sends an unpleasant message that reaches prospective candidates everywhere.

School boards, community leaders and news media should work together in their appropriate roles in seeking the very best educational leader for their schools.

… Your last chances to attend community input meetings for the superintendent search…

Here are the days, dates, and venues:

Community Meetings

Saturday, October 13 – 11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Valley High School, Performing. Arts Center, 1505 Candelaria Rd. NW

*A sign language interpreter will be available if requested at least 48 hours in advance of a scheduled meeting. Call 880-3739.

* Spanish language interpreters will be available at all community meetings.

APS Employees Meetings

Thursday, October 11 – 4:00-5:30 p.m. Highland High School, Performing Arts Center, 4700 Coal Ave. SE

Saturday, October 13 – 9:00-10:30 a.m., Valley High School, Performing Arts Center, 1505 Candelaria Rd. NW

You may also go to the APS website,  or to the Superintendent Search link  for more information.  Once on the Supertindent Search page, you need to scroll down and click on the survey link (which currently shows in Spanish but there is a drop-down box that allows you to choose English/Spanish on the actual page.)Deadline to submit the survey is Friday, Oct. 12. More details about the APS superintendent search process, timelines, and other information are available at this website.If you have comments or questions about the APS superintendent search,please contact the APS Board of Education:Phone: 880-3739 Fax: 872-8864e-mail: suptsearch@aps.edu

If you haven’t had a chance to attend a meeting… please stop by and give us your input.  We’ve had educators, administrators, janitors, parents, business people/leaders, community groups, students, concerned taxpayers, retired educators, and all kinds of folks give us some terrific information about what they’d like in our next superintendent.  Thanks to everyone who took the time to come to the meetings and be such a crucial part to the entire superintendent search process!

This information will be used to create interview criteria for the actual superintendent search committee and the search firm.

Stop by… this is a pivotal time within the directions of APS.  Let your voice be heard!  Especially you EDUCATORS!  We need to hear from more of you!

Thanks!

… More Superintendent Search Meeting News… 

We are now about half-way through the three week meeting process and have gathered some terrific information regarding the characteristics, qualifications, and skills our community would like in the next superintendent of Albuquerque Public Schools.

Thank you to all of the people who took time out of their busy lives to attend these meetings and provide input. We’ve seen parents, principals, students, educators, concerned taxpayers, business people, political leaders, legislators, and administrators. They all had great input from many different perspectives.

There are still several meetings scheduled for those desiring to have a voice in providing input toward the interview/selection process of the next superintendent.

This Thursday, October 4th, we are hosting a meeting for members of the business community at Barelas Community Center (801 Barelas Rd. SW) from 7:30AM to 9:00AM. Stop by and have coffee before you head into the office.

Also, we will be hosting two meetings for parents, students, educators, and community members this Saturday, October 6th.

The first meeting will be at Manzano High School Performing Arts Center (12200 Lomas Blvd. NE) from 9:30AM to 11:00AM.

The second meeting will be at McKinley Community Center (3401 Monroe NE) from 1:00PM to 2:30PM  

Stop by after Balloon Fiesta, before the soccer game, after work, before work, or whatever it is you do on a Saturday. It could even be a great excuse to have to get out of mowing the lawn or doing laundry. Why do you think I’m on this committee? Just another reason to get out of cleaning the garage… and have a voice in the superintendent selection! We all have very busy lives. Considering all of the concerns, hopes/dreams, frustrations, and all of the positive things that are happening out there in our schools (that we just don’t hear about often enough), this is our chance, as a community, to turn this thing called Albuquerque Public Schools around.  Here’s an article from the Journal that is one of those positive things going on at an Albuquerque Public School:  Unique Reading Program Drawing Attention