From the BCCT.
Candidates sign up to change government
By JAMES MCGINNIS
Bucks County Courier Times
Nine people in Bristol Township, among them a minister, a disabled veteran and leaders in the local Democratic and Republican clubs, believe they have new ideas on how to fix the township government.
All filed petitions this week with the county Board of Elections to sit on the Bristol Township Government Study Commission. Voters in the general election must decide whether to have a study commission and who will sit on it. Seven seats are open.
The candidates who want to be charged with considering a new plan of local government are: Cindy Peto, Anne Titus, Melvin Howard, Jack Baradzeij, Mike Slipp, Helen Cini, Janet Keyser, Bob Ausura and Councilman Don Mobley.
Many are regulars at town hall meetings, with the exception of Howard and Titus.
The first black person ever elected to a position in Bristol Township, Howard served on the board of commissioners in the 1980s. Since then, he said he got out of politics only to be drawn back in “as the township crumbled.” He's also a bishop with the People's Church of Christ on Durham Road.
“This township is falling apart and people can see that,” Howard said. “We need some kind of government system that brings back the accountability and maybe the best way to do that is to go back to the ward system with each official representing a certain area of town.”
Several candidates echoed support for a system of elected officials representing specific districts.
“I think we need some councilman dedicated to certain wards and also some councilman-at-large representing the whole town,” said Helen Cini, who is also a Bristol Township school board member. “There's an awful lot of problems in this town and I don't know that five council members can handle it all.”
As a longtime Republican and onetime chairman of the local GOP club, Baradzeij said the government structure should provide for at least one minority-party member in any chosen government.
Baradzeij ran several times for a council seat as a Republican candidate, but always lost.
“There are a number of people in this township who aren't represented because they're in the minority,” he said. “But I also believe we need to re-think the mayor position. Either we need a full-time mayor with more power or no mayor. The situation now doesn't work.”
Once a township commissioner, Slipp also had argued that some areas of the community are too often overlooked.
A regular at town meetings, he has served on the Pennsylvania State Democratic Committee, the county housing development corporation and the Penndel Mental Health Board. He ran for council in 2003, but lost to Councilman Don Lorady.
Nothing bars elected officials in Bristol Township from sitting on a government commission, and Mobley wants to do both.
After more than a decade of lawsuits and political attacks chiefly aimed at Mayor Sam Fenton, Mobley was appointed to the township council last year. Since his appointment, he has hotly criticized department heads for failure to respond to resident complaints and has argued for more open public records.
An accounts manager for the Bucks County Transportation Management Association, Peto became active in the township by raising money for playgrounds and fields in 2003.
Another name familiar to voters is Keyser. She's the longtime director of the Bristol Township Democratic Club and also heads the Lower Bucks County Joint Municipal Authority.
And anyone who watches or attends council meetings knows Ausura. A disabled Vietnam veteran, Ausura is a constant critic of the township government, speaking several times at almost every public meeting.
He also has volunteered his time to create electronic versions of township documents for easy access on the township Web site. More recently, he became a passionate advocate for the proposed skate park off Wistar Road near Five Points. He made PowerPoint presentations for the kids.
As the chief of staff for state Rep. Tony Melio, Titus is well-known to many in township government. Melio credits her for handling much of his constituent service. And he often jokes that he'd never get anything done without her.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Saturday, August 30, 2008
More Special Education Jousting
This is a pretty noteworthy story. It starts off in a routine way. Parents sue Northport, Michigan school district over the IEP for their special needs child.
Then it veers off into Wonderland:
1. The hearing has been going on since late October 2007;
2. The superintendent expected 47 witnesses and 600 pieces of evidence to be presented
3. The father of the student in question is a member of the school board of the district he's suing;
4. And the residents of the town are trying to recall him!
The town recalled the father from the school board this week. They didn't buy his idea that he was a watchdog over the school district.
This is a town of only 648 people! The school district serves 150 students! The entire budget is $3.5 million.
Here's the best part, and this should chill even the blood of our Cold-Miser Emperor: "In its 2007-08 budget, the Northport board originally set aside $5,000 for legal costs for the district. In early December it increased that amount to $280,000 and has budgeted $120,000 for the 2008-09 school year, most of which would be used in an appeal depending on how the administrative law judge rules.
The district’s liability insurance provider, SET/SEG, covered the district for the first $100,000 in costs related to suit, but further costs are the district’s responsibility."
That's the costs for one student's legal challenge. Ouch!
School Board Member Ousted Over Special Education Lawsuit
Those of you who have followed the blog for a while know that I've been mesmerized with the goings-on in a tiny Michigan town where a school board member was suing his own district over his son's individualized education program.
The case at the one-school, 150-student Northport district, dragged on for months and could cost the district $250,000 if it loses.
Now, the board member, Alan Woods, has been recalled, by a decisive 2-to-1 margin. Here's an article where both the recall initiator and Woods make their respective arguments. His argument that he is trying to be a watchdog over the district clearly did not resonate.
Woods said that the fact he's not in office any more won't stop his fight. A ruling on the case is expected in September.
Posted by Christina Samuels on August 29, 2008 2:26 PM
---------------------------------------------------------
Big Trouble in a Little District
A leisurely search through Topix led me to a fairly dry article about a Michigan family that is suing a school district over an individualized education dispute. Pretty routine, right?
But this caught my eye: "In its 2007-08 budget, the Northport board originally set aside $5,000 for legal costs for the district. In early December it increased that amount to $280,000 and has budgeted $120,000 for the 2008-09 school year, most of which would be used in an appeal depending on how the administrative law judge rules."
Wow! Sounds like things are getting a little out of hand, especially since the one-school district's budget is about $3.5 million in total. So I started reading back in the archives of the delightfully-titled Leelanau Enterprise and learned:
1. The hearing has been going on since late October 2007;
2. The superintendent expected 47 witnesses and 600 pieces of evidence to be presented (though I can't tell if that happened);
3. The father of the student in question is a member of the school board of the district he's suing;
4. And the residents of the town are trying to recall him!
That's got to make for some chilly school board meetings. Pretty exciting stuff for a town of 648 people. I'm riveted. Thank goodness the newspaper archives are free.
Posted by Christina Samuels on June 19, 2008 6:00 PM
Then it veers off into Wonderland:
1. The hearing has been going on since late October 2007;
2. The superintendent expected 47 witnesses and 600 pieces of evidence to be presented
3. The father of the student in question is a member of the school board of the district he's suing;
4. And the residents of the town are trying to recall him!
The town recalled the father from the school board this week. They didn't buy his idea that he was a watchdog over the school district.
This is a town of only 648 people! The school district serves 150 students! The entire budget is $3.5 million.
Here's the best part, and this should chill even the blood of our Cold-Miser Emperor: "In its 2007-08 budget, the Northport board originally set aside $5,000 for legal costs for the district. In early December it increased that amount to $280,000 and has budgeted $120,000 for the 2008-09 school year, most of which would be used in an appeal depending on how the administrative law judge rules.
The district’s liability insurance provider, SET/SEG, covered the district for the first $100,000 in costs related to suit, but further costs are the district’s responsibility."
That's the costs for one student's legal challenge. Ouch!
School Board Member Ousted Over Special Education Lawsuit
Those of you who have followed the blog for a while know that I've been mesmerized with the goings-on in a tiny Michigan town where a school board member was suing his own district over his son's individualized education program.
The case at the one-school, 150-student Northport district, dragged on for months and could cost the district $250,000 if it loses.
Now, the board member, Alan Woods, has been recalled, by a decisive 2-to-1 margin. Here's an article where both the recall initiator and Woods make their respective arguments. His argument that he is trying to be a watchdog over the district clearly did not resonate.
Woods said that the fact he's not in office any more won't stop his fight. A ruling on the case is expected in September.
Posted by Christina Samuels on August 29, 2008 2:26 PM
---------------------------------------------------------
Big Trouble in a Little District
A leisurely search through Topix led me to a fairly dry article about a Michigan family that is suing a school district over an individualized education dispute. Pretty routine, right?
But this caught my eye: "In its 2007-08 budget, the Northport board originally set aside $5,000 for legal costs for the district. In early December it increased that amount to $280,000 and has budgeted $120,000 for the 2008-09 school year, most of which would be used in an appeal depending on how the administrative law judge rules."
Wow! Sounds like things are getting a little out of hand, especially since the one-school district's budget is about $3.5 million in total. So I started reading back in the archives of the delightfully-titled Leelanau Enterprise and learned:
1. The hearing has been going on since late October 2007;
2. The superintendent expected 47 witnesses and 600 pieces of evidence to be presented (though I can't tell if that happened);
3. The father of the student in question is a member of the school board of the district he's suing;
4. And the residents of the town are trying to recall him!
That's got to make for some chilly school board meetings. Pretty exciting stuff for a town of 648 people. I'm riveted. Thank goodness the newspaper archives are free.
Posted by Christina Samuels on June 19, 2008 6:00 PM
Schools News Around the Blogosphere
Milwaukee Public Schools ordered to pay $450,000 in legal fees
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel
Milwaukee Public Schools must pay just more than $450,000 to the legal staff representing plaintiffs in a class-action suit over how the district serves students with special needs, a federal judge has ordered.
and Virginia this month.
[Moderator Note: Also check this previous post on the Milwaukee Public School special education lawsuit]
Texas Education Agency reviewing contract with Princeton Review testing company after security lapse
Dallas Morning News
By TERRENCE STUTZ
AUSTIN - Texas Education Agency officials are reviewing their new student data contract with the Princeton Review after the education testing company accidentally disclosed personal data and test scores of tens of thousands of students in Florida and Virginia this month.
[Moderator Note: This is why volunteers should not possess or review schools data]
"In mathematics, when you see what they are asked to do, there is so much vocabulary, so many concepts you have to get through language,"
Slumping math scores among middle school students prompt creative solutions
South CoastToday.com
With MCAS test results showing slumping middle school math performance across the state and SouthCoast, local school districts are finding creative ways to increase math instruction
Obama, the Next Education President?
Allen Jan Baird Ph.D.
Guest Columnist EducationNews.org
If Barack Obama is elected, what might we expect as he tries to become the new "education president"? It is important to understand that a President Obama would soon face the same school environment that previous education presidents have faced. According to data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), known as the "nation's report card", reading scores for nine, thirteen, and seventeen year olds are basically where there were in 1970, with less than one third currently reading at "proficiency levels".
Rick MacArthur: "You Can't Be President: The Outrageous Barriers to Democracy in America"
Democracy Now
As the Democratic National Convention begins in Denver, we speak to Harper's publisher Rick MacArthur on his new book You Can't Be President. MacArthur says that the popular notion that any American can become president only reinforces the "destructive national delusion that widespread, up-from-the-ground, truly popular democracy, both political and economic, really exists in America." To assume that, he says, is equal to believing that Santa Claus exists.
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel
Milwaukee Public Schools must pay just more than $450,000 to the legal staff representing plaintiffs in a class-action suit over how the district serves students with special needs, a federal judge has ordered.
and Virginia this month.
[Moderator Note: Also check this previous post on the Milwaukee Public School special education lawsuit]
Texas Education Agency reviewing contract with Princeton Review testing company after security lapse
Dallas Morning News
By TERRENCE STUTZ
AUSTIN - Texas Education Agency officials are reviewing their new student data contract with the Princeton Review after the education testing company accidentally disclosed personal data and test scores of tens of thousands of students in Florida and Virginia this month.
[Moderator Note: This is why volunteers should not possess or review schools data]
"In mathematics, when you see what they are asked to do, there is so much vocabulary, so many concepts you have to get through language,"
Slumping math scores among middle school students prompt creative solutions
South CoastToday.com
With MCAS test results showing slumping middle school math performance across the state and SouthCoast, local school districts are finding creative ways to increase math instruction
Obama, the Next Education President?
Allen Jan Baird Ph.D.
Guest Columnist EducationNews.org
If Barack Obama is elected, what might we expect as he tries to become the new "education president"? It is important to understand that a President Obama would soon face the same school environment that previous education presidents have faced. According to data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), known as the "nation's report card", reading scores for nine, thirteen, and seventeen year olds are basically where there were in 1970, with less than one third currently reading at "proficiency levels".
Rick MacArthur: "You Can't Be President: The Outrageous Barriers to Democracy in America"
Democracy Now
As the Democratic National Convention begins in Denver, we speak to Harper's publisher Rick MacArthur on his new book You Can't Be President. MacArthur says that the popular notion that any American can become president only reinforces the "destructive national delusion that widespread, up-from-the-ground, truly popular democracy, both political and economic, really exists in America." To assume that, he says, is equal to believing that Santa Claus exists.
Duquesne teachers to go on strike
From the Pittsburgh Tribune Review
Remember the Dusquesne district that was taken over in 2000? How are things going? Ummm...not so well.
The high school closed in 2007. The teachers are woefully underpaid. There's been five administrations in the seven years since state takeover.
Makes Morrisville look positively rock-solid by comparison.
Duquesne teachers to go on strike Tuesday
By Daveen Rae Kurutz
TRIBUNE-REVIEW, Saturday, August 30, 2008
Teachers in the Duquesne City School District will be on strike starting Tuesday morning.
The teachers' union informed the Allegheny Intermediate Unit, the governing body for the distressed district, in a letter Friday afternoon, said Pennsylvania State Education Association spokesman Butch Santicola.
"The salary offer was not adequate," he said. "Even our salary increase alone would keep them as the lowest-paid teachers in the county."
The average Duquesne teacher is paid about $44,000, while the average teacher salary in the county is more than $60,000, Santicola said.
Teachers initially were requesting a 22 percent increase but lowered their offer to 19 percent. The union was offered a 3 percent raise in a one-year contract but rejected it, said Bill Andrews, solicitor for the Allegheny Intermediate Unit.
The increase teachers are requesting is unrealistic, he said.
"It's ludicrous. This is a district that is under state control and beyond bankrupt. They're dealing with a tax base that frankly can't afford it."
Santicola said no negotiations are scheduled over the Labor Day weekend.
The district educates 520 students in kindergarten through eighth grade under a five-year agreement with the Allegheny Intermediate Unit and the Pennsylvania Department of Education that began in July 2007.
The troubled district was taken over by the state in 2000. Its high school was closed in June 2007, and students in grades 9-12 were sent to East Allegheny and West Mifflin Area schools. Those students will still have classes and transportation throughout the strike.
Extracurricular activities will be canceled during the strike. Parent updates will be posted at the elementary entrance to the school and available by calling 412-394-5505.
Santicola said the 49 teachers have worked under five administrations since 2000, something that continues to frustrate the staff.
"It's really important that everyone understands that this has happened, that has happened and a lot of different administrations have come through," Santicola said. "They've all come and gone, and no one has come in with a solution."
Andrews said students will still attend a full 180-day academic schedule and referred to the strike as a "disruption."
"This serves no useful purpose," Andrews said. "It's unnecessary, but it's their call, so be it."
In Armstrong County, the Apollo-Ridge School Board yesterday approved a five-year contact with teachers that gives them an average wage increase of 3.6 percent each year. The union voted to approve the contract earlier this week.
The contract eliminates the traditional indemnity health insurance option. Teachers will not have to pay health insurance premiums, but the out-of-pocket co-payments have increased.
Remember the Dusquesne district that was taken over in 2000? How are things going? Ummm...not so well.
The high school closed in 2007. The teachers are woefully underpaid. There's been five administrations in the seven years since state takeover.
Makes Morrisville look positively rock-solid by comparison.
Duquesne teachers to go on strike Tuesday
By Daveen Rae Kurutz
TRIBUNE-REVIEW, Saturday, August 30, 2008
Teachers in the Duquesne City School District will be on strike starting Tuesday morning.
The teachers' union informed the Allegheny Intermediate Unit, the governing body for the distressed district, in a letter Friday afternoon, said Pennsylvania State Education Association spokesman Butch Santicola.
"The salary offer was not adequate," he said. "Even our salary increase alone would keep them as the lowest-paid teachers in the county."
The average Duquesne teacher is paid about $44,000, while the average teacher salary in the county is more than $60,000, Santicola said.
Teachers initially were requesting a 22 percent increase but lowered their offer to 19 percent. The union was offered a 3 percent raise in a one-year contract but rejected it, said Bill Andrews, solicitor for the Allegheny Intermediate Unit.
The increase teachers are requesting is unrealistic, he said.
"It's ludicrous. This is a district that is under state control and beyond bankrupt. They're dealing with a tax base that frankly can't afford it."
Santicola said no negotiations are scheduled over the Labor Day weekend.
The district educates 520 students in kindergarten through eighth grade under a five-year agreement with the Allegheny Intermediate Unit and the Pennsylvania Department of Education that began in July 2007.
The troubled district was taken over by the state in 2000. Its high school was closed in June 2007, and students in grades 9-12 were sent to East Allegheny and West Mifflin Area schools. Those students will still have classes and transportation throughout the strike.
Extracurricular activities will be canceled during the strike. Parent updates will be posted at the elementary entrance to the school and available by calling 412-394-5505.
Santicola said the 49 teachers have worked under five administrations since 2000, something that continues to frustrate the staff.
"It's really important that everyone understands that this has happened, that has happened and a lot of different administrations have come through," Santicola said. "They've all come and gone, and no one has come in with a solution."
Andrews said students will still attend a full 180-day academic schedule and referred to the strike as a "disruption."
"This serves no useful purpose," Andrews said. "It's unnecessary, but it's their call, so be it."
In Armstrong County, the Apollo-Ridge School Board yesterday approved a five-year contact with teachers that gives them an average wage increase of 3.6 percent each year. The union voted to approve the contract earlier this week.
The contract eliminates the traditional indemnity health insurance option. Teachers will not have to pay health insurance premiums, but the out-of-pocket co-payments have increased.
Friday, August 29, 2008
Bristol Borough tentative 4-year agreement
From the BCCT
Teachers union gets first look at tentative 4-year agreement
The Bristol Borough Education Association will decide next week if it wants to ratify the contract.
By JOAN HELLYER
Association members will receive annual pay raises ranging between 3 percent and 3.5 percent over the course of a fouryear contract, according to a source familiar with the tentative labor deal.
The higher salary costs will be offset in part by the employees’ increased contributions to their health care costs according to the agreement reached Tuesday, said the source, who asked not to be identified.
In addition, the bargaining unit also agreed to move to a less expensive health care plan, the source said. The added contributions and less expensive plan could save the district hundreds of thousands of dollars, the source said.
Michael Girard, the union spokesman, and John Hill, the school board’s chief negotiator, declined Thursday to confirm any specifics of the agreement.
Both said they did not want to discuss the contract’s details until the BBEA and the school board ratify the deal.
If approved, the new agreement will replace the current pact that expires Sunday.
BBEA represents an estimated 90 teachers, guidance counselors, librarians, and school nurses.
Union members had their first look at the tentative agreement Thursday afternoon during a meeting at Bristol Borough Junior/Senior High School, Girard said.
They are scheduled to vote Sept. 2 on whether to ratify the deal, he said.
If the union approves the contract, the board will decide Sept. 4 whether it wants to ratify the labor agreement, Hill said.
Teachers union gets first look at tentative 4-year agreement
The Bristol Borough Education Association will decide next week if it wants to ratify the contract.
By JOAN HELLYER
Association members will receive annual pay raises ranging between 3 percent and 3.5 percent over the course of a fouryear contract, according to a source familiar with the tentative labor deal.
The higher salary costs will be offset in part by the employees’ increased contributions to their health care costs according to the agreement reached Tuesday, said the source, who asked not to be identified.
In addition, the bargaining unit also agreed to move to a less expensive health care plan, the source said. The added contributions and less expensive plan could save the district hundreds of thousands of dollars, the source said.
Michael Girard, the union spokesman, and John Hill, the school board’s chief negotiator, declined Thursday to confirm any specifics of the agreement.
Both said they did not want to discuss the contract’s details until the BBEA and the school board ratify the deal.
If approved, the new agreement will replace the current pact that expires Sunday.
BBEA represents an estimated 90 teachers, guidance counselors, librarians, and school nurses.
Union members had their first look at the tentative agreement Thursday afternoon during a meeting at Bristol Borough Junior/Senior High School, Girard said.
They are scheduled to vote Sept. 2 on whether to ratify the deal, he said.
If the union approves the contract, the board will decide Sept. 4 whether it wants to ratify the labor agreement, Hill said.
Friday Night Football
The BCCT reminds us that the MHS Bulldogs football season opener is tonight at 7:00 P.M.
MORRISVILLE VS. FLEETWOOD
Kickoff: 7 p.m. at Robert Morris Field, Morrisville Last year’s records: Morrisville, 3-9; Fleetwood, 1-9 What to watch: The Bulldogs are looking for contributions from sophomore QB Matt Cookson and junior RB Mike Jones. Fleetwood totaled 38 points in its final seven games in 2007. Prediction: The Bulldogs open with a big win. Morrisville, 28-6.
MORRISVILLE VS. FLEETWOOD
Kickoff: 7 p.m. at Robert Morris Field, Morrisville Last year’s records: Morrisville, 3-9; Fleetwood, 1-9 What to watch: The Bulldogs are looking for contributions from sophomore QB Matt Cookson and junior RB Mike Jones. Fleetwood totaled 38 points in its final seven games in 2007. Prediction: The Bulldogs open with a big win. Morrisville, 28-6.
Meet the new principal
From the BCCT
New principal in Morrisville
Morrisville Middle/High School will have a new principal this year.
William Ferrara will step up from his position as assistant principal at the school, replacing Melanie Gehrens. She retired from the position earlier this summer.
The district has not chosen a new assistant principal at this time. Ferrara expects to take on the challenge of both principal and assistant principal duties, starting immediately, with a salary of $98,000.
He has been with the district since November 2006.
The district also has a new temporary director of pupil personnel, Anthony J. Gesualdi. He has 30 years of education experience from the Pennsbury School District, as well as two years at the Bucks County Intermediate Unit No. 22. Most recently he worked in the Bristol Borough School District as director of special education. He temporarily replaces Kimberly Myers, who retired from Morrisville.
“There’s a shortage of special education supervisors lately,” said Gesualdi, who is happy to fill in while the district continues advertising to fill the position permanently.
Retired M.R. Reiter Elementary School principal Karen Huggins will be filling in as substitute principal for both Reiter and Grandview Elementary Schools while Kate Taylor is out on medical leave.
District schools open Sept. 3.
New principal in Morrisville
Morrisville Middle/High School will have a new principal this year.
William Ferrara will step up from his position as assistant principal at the school, replacing Melanie Gehrens. She retired from the position earlier this summer.
The district has not chosen a new assistant principal at this time. Ferrara expects to take on the challenge of both principal and assistant principal duties, starting immediately, with a salary of $98,000.
He has been with the district since November 2006.
The district also has a new temporary director of pupil personnel, Anthony J. Gesualdi. He has 30 years of education experience from the Pennsbury School District, as well as two years at the Bucks County Intermediate Unit No. 22. Most recently he worked in the Bristol Borough School District as director of special education. He temporarily replaces Kimberly Myers, who retired from Morrisville.
“There’s a shortage of special education supervisors lately,” said Gesualdi, who is happy to fill in while the district continues advertising to fill the position permanently.
Retired M.R. Reiter Elementary School principal Karen Huggins will be filling in as substitute principal for both Reiter and Grandview Elementary Schools while Kate Taylor is out on medical leave.
District schools open Sept. 3.
Seniors Say: Lower My Assessment!
From the BCCT:
Reassessment group seeks funds
The seniors are suing Bucks County to force reassessment. The county has said reassessment would cost upwards of $10 million and take years.
By JENNA PORTNOY
A group of seniors suing Bucks County to force a countywide reassessment have officially put out the collection plate.
“I think the point needs to be made, this is not a pipe dream,” said Janis Shuter, one of 25 residents of the Village at Flowers Mill, a Middletown age-restricted community, who attended a meeting Thursday night. “This is not a hopeless cause, but one thing we need to accomplish this is money.”
Legal fees have already cost the Committee for Equitable Reassessment in Bucks County about $70,000 in donations from hundreds of homeowners.
According to a projection by their attorney, Denis Dunn, the group needs at least $51,580 more to see the case to fruition. The estimate grows by $6,670 if Dunn completes eight remaining depositions.
The suit, which was filed in 2004 and is still in the discovery phase, was spearheaded by residents Joan and Sy Goldstein. The couple has written endless letters pleading for cash from their neighbors, residents in Shady Brook, also in Middletown, and Heritage Creek in Warwick as well as other individuals who have pitched in to finance the litigation.
“Without the funds we can’t do anything,” said Sy Goldstein, who produced an inch-thick stack of bills.
The Goldsteins, like many of their neighbors, realized the disparity in assessments when they sold their Levittown home in 2001 and bought a newly constructed home. Since then, tax bills have skyrocketed from $5,000 to roughly $7,500.
The inequitable bills are especially painful considering how few township and borough services age-restricted developments use, said Jon Sherman, who has lived in Shady Brook with his wife Harriet for six years. They pay for private trash collection, street maintenance and lighting and don’t have children to stress the school system; they use only the public library and fire and police services.
“What we’re really fighting for is for everyone to pay their fair share,” he said.
The last countywide property reassessment was in 1972. That means the owners of older homes in neighborhoods where sale prices have skyrocketed pay taxes based on assessments set decades ago, when sale prices were far lower than they are today.
Those who live in newly constructed homes — such as the residents suing for a reassessment — often have higher assessments and bear much more of the tax burden than their neighbors.
The state has a formula to account for the difference over time, but many residents believe too many years have passed to make it relevant. Homes are reassessed only when newly built or renovated.
The three-member Board of Assessment Appeals hears appeals from residents who made changes, like adding a room or finishing the basement, and objected to their increased assessment. Members are appointed by county commissioners.
The county has eschewed reassessment due, in part, to the expense and time it would take to re-evaluate the county’s 230,000 taxable parcels.
Guy Matthews, formerly county solicitor and now an assistant solicitor, has said the process could cost upwards of $10 million and take years. The new assessments could then grow out of whack in a relatively short time, he said.
Donations can be sent to CERBC at 314 Starflower Lane in Langhorne PA 19047.
Reassessment group seeks funds
The seniors are suing Bucks County to force reassessment. The county has said reassessment would cost upwards of $10 million and take years.
By JENNA PORTNOY
A group of seniors suing Bucks County to force a countywide reassessment have officially put out the collection plate.
“I think the point needs to be made, this is not a pipe dream,” said Janis Shuter, one of 25 residents of the Village at Flowers Mill, a Middletown age-restricted community, who attended a meeting Thursday night. “This is not a hopeless cause, but one thing we need to accomplish this is money.”
Legal fees have already cost the Committee for Equitable Reassessment in Bucks County about $70,000 in donations from hundreds of homeowners.
According to a projection by their attorney, Denis Dunn, the group needs at least $51,580 more to see the case to fruition. The estimate grows by $6,670 if Dunn completes eight remaining depositions.
The suit, which was filed in 2004 and is still in the discovery phase, was spearheaded by residents Joan and Sy Goldstein. The couple has written endless letters pleading for cash from their neighbors, residents in Shady Brook, also in Middletown, and Heritage Creek in Warwick as well as other individuals who have pitched in to finance the litigation.
“Without the funds we can’t do anything,” said Sy Goldstein, who produced an inch-thick stack of bills.
The Goldsteins, like many of their neighbors, realized the disparity in assessments when they sold their Levittown home in 2001 and bought a newly constructed home. Since then, tax bills have skyrocketed from $5,000 to roughly $7,500.
The inequitable bills are especially painful considering how few township and borough services age-restricted developments use, said Jon Sherman, who has lived in Shady Brook with his wife Harriet for six years. They pay for private trash collection, street maintenance and lighting and don’t have children to stress the school system; they use only the public library and fire and police services.
“What we’re really fighting for is for everyone to pay their fair share,” he said.
The last countywide property reassessment was in 1972. That means the owners of older homes in neighborhoods where sale prices have skyrocketed pay taxes based on assessments set decades ago, when sale prices were far lower than they are today.
Those who live in newly constructed homes — such as the residents suing for a reassessment — often have higher assessments and bear much more of the tax burden than their neighbors.
The state has a formula to account for the difference over time, but many residents believe too many years have passed to make it relevant. Homes are reassessed only when newly built or renovated.
The three-member Board of Assessment Appeals hears appeals from residents who made changes, like adding a room or finishing the basement, and objected to their increased assessment. Members are appointed by county commissioners.
The county has eschewed reassessment due, in part, to the expense and time it would take to re-evaluate the county’s 230,000 taxable parcels.
Guy Matthews, formerly county solicitor and now an assistant solicitor, has said the process could cost upwards of $10 million and take years. The new assessments could then grow out of whack in a relatively short time, he said.
Donations can be sent to CERBC at 314 Starflower Lane in Langhorne PA 19047.
More Stockham Lawsuit Info
From buckslocalnews.com
Posted on Wed, Aug 27, 2008
Developer sues Morrisville over strip club rejection
By Petra Chesner Schlatter
Stockham Interests, LLC, the developer, which proposed a gentleman's club in Morrisville Borough, has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia, claiming their First Amendment Rights have been violated.
Damages are being sought by Stockham Interests in excess of $75,000.
An application for a variance by Stockham Interests was unanimously denied by the Morrisville Zoning Hearing Board in May.
The property in question is the historic Stockham Building. The tall structure is located across the street from a statue of Robert Morris, financier of the American Revolution.
The Stockham Building is located at the corner of Bridge Street and Pennsylvania Avenue in the old business section. Morrisville leaders have been leading a revitalization of the area in recent years.
Morrisville Borough Council Solicitor James Downey said this week in an interview, "It's a little out there. The lawsuit alleges that they are precluded from putting up a gentleman's club."
The lawsuit says Stock-ham Interests "violated their First Amendment rights with inappropriate restrictions on adult entertainments," Downey said.
"Under Pennsylvania Law, the applicant has to prove hardship," Downey said. "They didn't appeal to the Bucks County Common Pleas Court.
Downey noted, "There is a gentleman's club right down the street." Downey stressed that the lawsuit states Stockham Interests was precluded from operating an adult entertainment facility.
Morrisville Borough has referred the case to its insurance carrier, Integrated Management in Chester Springs, Pa. for defense. The insurance carrier has referred the defense to a law firm.
Downey said Stockham Interests came to the zoning board and followed a procedure.
"In place of filing the appropriate process and procedure to appeal the denial to the Bucks County Court of Common Pleas, they filed a complaint in the U.S. Civil Court, claiming their civil rights were violated," said Downey.
Downey said the federal district court "moves pretty fast" and estimated a decision would be made in about six months.
"We all have rights, but we have a duty to respect the rights of others," Downey concluded. "But, they haven't done that."
Todd Colarusso, president of Stockham Interests, LLC of Princeton, N.J., said after the May meeting that he would appeal the decision in Bucks County Common Pleas Court. Instead, he went to the federal court.
Colarusso had threatened there will be a strip club as he stood outside on the steps of borough hall.
When the strip club variance application was denied by the Morrisville zoning board, residents said they were happy.
Residents, especially the clergy, voiced their opinion not to allow a burlesque-style theater with topless women in their town.
Colarusso had said during the hearing that he would drop his original application for a zoning variance to establish an adult club on the second floor of the building on the condition that the board allow a 1,000-square-foot hanging nylon sign for the west side of the building.
However, the board rejected that request. Colarusso said the sign would first be made available to tenants of the building, including a health club. He said the sign could be used by area businesses.
Pastor Gary Taylor of the 1st Baptist Church said he was concerned for the moral content of the sign and whether it could be controlled in the future.
Taylor said there would be adverse effects on the community because "Morrisville would be known for that particular establishment."
The applicant said he would not allow advertisements for alcohol, tobacco, condoms or abortion.
Posted on Wed, Aug 27, 2008
Developer sues Morrisville over strip club rejection
By Petra Chesner Schlatter
Stockham Interests, LLC, the developer, which proposed a gentleman's club in Morrisville Borough, has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia, claiming their First Amendment Rights have been violated.
Damages are being sought by Stockham Interests in excess of $75,000.
An application for a variance by Stockham Interests was unanimously denied by the Morrisville Zoning Hearing Board in May.
The property in question is the historic Stockham Building. The tall structure is located across the street from a statue of Robert Morris, financier of the American Revolution.
The Stockham Building is located at the corner of Bridge Street and Pennsylvania Avenue in the old business section. Morrisville leaders have been leading a revitalization of the area in recent years.
Morrisville Borough Council Solicitor James Downey said this week in an interview, "It's a little out there. The lawsuit alleges that they are precluded from putting up a gentleman's club."
The lawsuit says Stock-ham Interests "violated their First Amendment rights with inappropriate restrictions on adult entertainments," Downey said.
"Under Pennsylvania Law, the applicant has to prove hardship," Downey said. "They didn't appeal to the Bucks County Common Pleas Court.
Downey noted, "There is a gentleman's club right down the street." Downey stressed that the lawsuit states Stockham Interests was precluded from operating an adult entertainment facility.
Morrisville Borough has referred the case to its insurance carrier, Integrated Management in Chester Springs, Pa. for defense. The insurance carrier has referred the defense to a law firm.
Downey said Stockham Interests came to the zoning board and followed a procedure.
"In place of filing the appropriate process and procedure to appeal the denial to the Bucks County Court of Common Pleas, they filed a complaint in the U.S. Civil Court, claiming their civil rights were violated," said Downey.
Downey said the federal district court "moves pretty fast" and estimated a decision would be made in about six months.
"We all have rights, but we have a duty to respect the rights of others," Downey concluded. "But, they haven't done that."
Todd Colarusso, president of Stockham Interests, LLC of Princeton, N.J., said after the May meeting that he would appeal the decision in Bucks County Common Pleas Court. Instead, he went to the federal court.
Colarusso had threatened there will be a strip club as he stood outside on the steps of borough hall.
When the strip club variance application was denied by the Morrisville zoning board, residents said they were happy.
Residents, especially the clergy, voiced their opinion not to allow a burlesque-style theater with topless women in their town.
Colarusso had said during the hearing that he would drop his original application for a zoning variance to establish an adult club on the second floor of the building on the condition that the board allow a 1,000-square-foot hanging nylon sign for the west side of the building.
However, the board rejected that request. Colarusso said the sign would first be made available to tenants of the building, including a health club. He said the sign could be used by area businesses.
Pastor Gary Taylor of the 1st Baptist Church said he was concerned for the moral content of the sign and whether it could be controlled in the future.
Taylor said there would be adverse effects on the community because "Morrisville would be known for that particular establishment."
The applicant said he would not allow advertisements for alcohol, tobacco, condoms or abortion.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Plenty of ways to spend your Labor Day
From the BCCT.
Plenty of ways to spend your Labor Day
Three communities are marking the unofficial end of the summer on Labor Day with some partying.
Morrisville, Lower Makefield and the Venice Ashby section of Bristol Township have events planned for the entire day Monday.
Morrisville’s festivities jumpstart with the Morrisville Fire Co.’s 10K run in the morning.
The rest of the day will feature a car show on East Bridge Street, plenty of food vendors, games, live entertainment, arts and more.
The 10K Labor Day Run begins at 9 a.m. at Williamson Park on North Delmorr Avenue. Entry fees for the race are $25 in advance, or $30 on race day when registration will be held between 7 a.m. and 8:45 a.m. Registration forms can be obtained on the Web at www.morrisville98.com.
The car show begins at 10 a.m., and other planned events will be held throughout the day at Williamson Park on Delmorr Avenue. There will be a large inflatable slide and castle for the kids, face painting, a scavenger hunt, a visual arts program, bingo, live entertainment from the Daisy Jug Band and more. These events are free and open to the public. Food vendors will set up a food tent at Hogs and Rice motorcycle shop at Bridge Street and Delmorr Avenue.
Plenty of ways to spend your Labor Day
Three communities are marking the unofficial end of the summer on Labor Day with some partying.
Morrisville, Lower Makefield and the Venice Ashby section of Bristol Township have events planned for the entire day Monday.
Morrisville’s festivities jumpstart with the Morrisville Fire Co.’s 10K run in the morning.
The rest of the day will feature a car show on East Bridge Street, plenty of food vendors, games, live entertainment, arts and more.
The 10K Labor Day Run begins at 9 a.m. at Williamson Park on North Delmorr Avenue. Entry fees for the race are $25 in advance, or $30 on race day when registration will be held between 7 a.m. and 8:45 a.m. Registration forms can be obtained on the Web at www.morrisville98.com.
The car show begins at 10 a.m., and other planned events will be held throughout the day at Williamson Park on Delmorr Avenue. There will be a large inflatable slide and castle for the kids, face painting, a scavenger hunt, a visual arts program, bingo, live entertainment from the Daisy Jug Band and more. These events are free and open to the public. Food vendors will set up a food tent at Hogs and Rice motorcycle shop at Bridge Street and Delmorr Avenue.
Find other ways to run school
From the Standard Speaker, Hazleton, PA.
Teachers need licensing. Drivers do too. Elected positions? Not so much. Other than an age or residency requirement, just about anyone can be elected to anything. We can debate if John McCain is more experienced than Barack Obama, but what experience truly prepares anyone to sit in the Oval Office?
Are school board members qualified to be school board members? Should professional educators be running the schools, or is "civilian" control and oversight required? What would be the basic requirements to qualify someone to be an effective school board member? Are the "hard" skills like facilities management and effective budgeting the required core competencies, or is it the "soft" skills of negotiation and finesse that are required?
Find other ways to run school
Published: Wednesday, August 27, 2008 9:22 AM EDT
There is no question that under the current system, school board members in Pennsylvania need education. School districts are complex entities, with budgets running into the tens of millions and hundreds of millions of dollars. School operations include specialties in many different aspects of education, labor relations, law, construction management, logistics, business management, transportation and so on. Conscientious school board members often are overwhelmed not just by the workload, but by the complexity of the task. Those who are not so conscientious focus on the more readily understandable political elements of the position.
In Pennsylvania the qualifications to sit on a school board do not address the complexity of the job. The law requires candidates to be 18 or older, and a resident of the district for at least a year.
Moreover, the duties of school board members also are ill-defined. That’s why some members attempt to meddle in day-to-day district operations rather than to set the broad policies to be implemented by district professionals.
The school board structure itself is a vestige of the earliest days of public education, when each local school district truly was a distinct entity, often in an isolated community. Society has changed dramatically but the school board structure has not adapted.
School board competence is an issue across the nation, and there has been some experimentation. In a few jurisdictions, each school in a district operates as a charter school with an individual board. The function of the districtwide board is to approve and regulate the charters. In a few others, local jurisdictions establish qualifications and board members are appointed by mayors in accordance with those standards, usually through a screening commission.
Pennsylvania has a particular issue due to another vestige of an earlier era — vast, counterproductive fragmentation of local government. Pennsylvania has 501 school districts — most of them tiny. That ensures costly, redundant administration and small pools of potential school board candidates with a limited range of experiences.
Reform possibilities abound
Many reforms are possible:
--Consolidate small districts: Pennsylvanians elect multiple school boards in areas where one would be adequate. In addition to economies that would be realized, effective consolidation would create greater competition for school board seats and force candidates to rely on more than their local political base.
--Eliminate cross-filing: School board candidates are allowed to run on both major-party ballots under the amusing theory that doing so will eliminate politics as the driving force in school administration. In reality, it eliminates competition for school board seats, especially in jurisdictions where one party is dominant.
--Pay school directors: Conscientious school board service is time-consuming and demanding. Paying board members might produce more candidates with a wider range of experience and expertise.
--Set minimum standards: Magisterial district judges are not required to be lawyers, but they are required to take a course and to pass a test between their election and their service. School board members should be required to meet some basic requirements for service.
--Better define roles: School boards regularly hire superintendents at six-figure salaries and then prevent the superintendent from effectively using the knowledge and experience for which he was hired. The law should be rewritten to expressly preclude directors’ interference in day-to-day operations. That includes hiring of professional personnel other than the superintendent, which should be left to professionals.
The ultimate answer probably is a new school board structure that reflects modern circumstances. The Legislature should establish an independent commission to study that question, even as it tackles reforms to make the current system more effective.
Teachers need licensing. Drivers do too. Elected positions? Not so much. Other than an age or residency requirement, just about anyone can be elected to anything. We can debate if John McCain is more experienced than Barack Obama, but what experience truly prepares anyone to sit in the Oval Office?
Are school board members qualified to be school board members? Should professional educators be running the schools, or is "civilian" control and oversight required? What would be the basic requirements to qualify someone to be an effective school board member? Are the "hard" skills like facilities management and effective budgeting the required core competencies, or is it the "soft" skills of negotiation and finesse that are required?
Find other ways to run school
Published: Wednesday, August 27, 2008 9:22 AM EDT
There is no question that under the current system, school board members in Pennsylvania need education. School districts are complex entities, with budgets running into the tens of millions and hundreds of millions of dollars. School operations include specialties in many different aspects of education, labor relations, law, construction management, logistics, business management, transportation and so on. Conscientious school board members often are overwhelmed not just by the workload, but by the complexity of the task. Those who are not so conscientious focus on the more readily understandable political elements of the position.
In Pennsylvania the qualifications to sit on a school board do not address the complexity of the job. The law requires candidates to be 18 or older, and a resident of the district for at least a year.
Moreover, the duties of school board members also are ill-defined. That’s why some members attempt to meddle in day-to-day district operations rather than to set the broad policies to be implemented by district professionals.
The school board structure itself is a vestige of the earliest days of public education, when each local school district truly was a distinct entity, often in an isolated community. Society has changed dramatically but the school board structure has not adapted.
School board competence is an issue across the nation, and there has been some experimentation. In a few jurisdictions, each school in a district operates as a charter school with an individual board. The function of the districtwide board is to approve and regulate the charters. In a few others, local jurisdictions establish qualifications and board members are appointed by mayors in accordance with those standards, usually through a screening commission.
Pennsylvania has a particular issue due to another vestige of an earlier era — vast, counterproductive fragmentation of local government. Pennsylvania has 501 school districts — most of them tiny. That ensures costly, redundant administration and small pools of potential school board candidates with a limited range of experiences.
Reform possibilities abound
Many reforms are possible:
--Consolidate small districts: Pennsylvanians elect multiple school boards in areas where one would be adequate. In addition to economies that would be realized, effective consolidation would create greater competition for school board seats and force candidates to rely on more than their local political base.
--Eliminate cross-filing: School board candidates are allowed to run on both major-party ballots under the amusing theory that doing so will eliminate politics as the driving force in school administration. In reality, it eliminates competition for school board seats, especially in jurisdictions where one party is dominant.
--Pay school directors: Conscientious school board service is time-consuming and demanding. Paying board members might produce more candidates with a wider range of experience and expertise.
--Set minimum standards: Magisterial district judges are not required to be lawyers, but they are required to take a course and to pass a test between their election and their service. School board members should be required to meet some basic requirements for service.
--Better define roles: School boards regularly hire superintendents at six-figure salaries and then prevent the superintendent from effectively using the knowledge and experience for which he was hired. The law should be rewritten to expressly preclude directors’ interference in day-to-day operations. That includes hiring of professional personnel other than the superintendent, which should be left to professionals.
The ultimate answer probably is a new school board structure that reflects modern circumstances. The Legislature should establish an independent commission to study that question, even as it tackles reforms to make the current system more effective.
Test Revolt?
Central Bucks school district news, from the Intelligencer
Directors talk of state test revolt
By CHRISTINA KRISTOFIC
The Intelligencer
Everything about Tuesday night's school board meeting was pretty routine, including the school board's vote to approve the state testing schedule.
But the discussion school board members had before they approved the schedule was anything but routine.
School board members discussed protesting No Child Left Behind and the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment by refusing to administer the test to Central Bucks students. The discussion came soon after the state Department of Education decided to make schools administer the PSSA in May. School district administrators objected and the Department of Education retracted its order.
“What happens if we opt out of No Child Left Behind?” board Vice President Stephen Corr asked.
No one knew the answer.
Superintendent N. Robert Laws said the district would probably lose the $4 million in federal funding it gets each year, which adds up to only about 1.5 percent of the district's total budget.
“We can't do that,” Corr said. “But this is a total waste of our time. It seems more and more ridiculous.”
School board member Chris Asplen asked if Central Bucks students who are applying to colleges would suffer from not taking the PSSA.
Laws said he doesn't think colleges consider PSSA scores when they look at a student's application.
The PSSA is the state's tool for determining whether school districts are meeting the requirements of No Child Left Behind, Laws said. It's also the way the state measures Pennsylvania's 501 school districts against each other.
“Just for our own public relations, where we stand in the state appears good for us,” school board member Thomas Baldwin said. “If you don't have something else the state uses as a benchmark, where does that put us?”
Several school board members suggested getting other school districts in Southeastern Pennsylvania, which typically score well on the PSSA but get little state and federal funding, to join them in a protest of the state assessment test.
School board President Geryl McMullin said, “The people at the Department of Education are not in touch with reality.”
“We have to get serious,” she said. “I think what matters here is what we're doing to kids. We're taking away valuable instruction time ... it's absurd.”
Asplen said he thought a protest would mean a lot coming from Central Bucks.
“I think we'd be able to get other districts,” Corr said. “But we're too late in the cycle to stop that now.”
Corr suggested looking at the issue again next year.
Laws said he would study No Child Left Behind, the PSSA and the consequences for school districts that do not participate.
“Public education is a function of the state. I'm an officer of the state. I'm commissioned by the state. You're commissioned by the state. I don't know what the result of a mutiny is,” he said.
“The state takes over your school district,” Corr answered.
“But I thought they already did.”
Directors talk of state test revolt
By CHRISTINA KRISTOFIC
The Intelligencer
Everything about Tuesday night's school board meeting was pretty routine, including the school board's vote to approve the state testing schedule.
But the discussion school board members had before they approved the schedule was anything but routine.
School board members discussed protesting No Child Left Behind and the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment by refusing to administer the test to Central Bucks students. The discussion came soon after the state Department of Education decided to make schools administer the PSSA in May. School district administrators objected and the Department of Education retracted its order.
“What happens if we opt out of No Child Left Behind?” board Vice President Stephen Corr asked.
No one knew the answer.
Superintendent N. Robert Laws said the district would probably lose the $4 million in federal funding it gets each year, which adds up to only about 1.5 percent of the district's total budget.
“We can't do that,” Corr said. “But this is a total waste of our time. It seems more and more ridiculous.”
School board member Chris Asplen asked if Central Bucks students who are applying to colleges would suffer from not taking the PSSA.
Laws said he doesn't think colleges consider PSSA scores when they look at a student's application.
The PSSA is the state's tool for determining whether school districts are meeting the requirements of No Child Left Behind, Laws said. It's also the way the state measures Pennsylvania's 501 school districts against each other.
“Just for our own public relations, where we stand in the state appears good for us,” school board member Thomas Baldwin said. “If you don't have something else the state uses as a benchmark, where does that put us?”
Several school board members suggested getting other school districts in Southeastern Pennsylvania, which typically score well on the PSSA but get little state and federal funding, to join them in a protest of the state assessment test.
School board President Geryl McMullin said, “The people at the Department of Education are not in touch with reality.”
“We have to get serious,” she said. “I think what matters here is what we're doing to kids. We're taking away valuable instruction time ... it's absurd.”
Asplen said he thought a protest would mean a lot coming from Central Bucks.
“I think we'd be able to get other districts,” Corr said. “But we're too late in the cycle to stop that now.”
Corr suggested looking at the issue again next year.
Laws said he would study No Child Left Behind, the PSSA and the consequences for school districts that do not participate.
“Public education is a function of the state. I'm an officer of the state. I'm commissioned by the state. You're commissioned by the state. I don't know what the result of a mutiny is,” he said.
“The state takes over your school district,” Corr answered.
“But I thought they already did.”
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Meeting Reminder
From the BCCT
Morrisville School Board: 7:30 pm., large group instruction room of the Middle/Senior High School, 550 W. Palmer St. Agenda: lease agreement with Peirce College; set food service prices; set agreements with alternative schools; approve a grant; and other regular items of business. 215-736-2681.
Morrisville School Board: 7:30 pm., large group instruction room of the Middle/Senior High School, 550 W. Palmer St. Agenda: lease agreement with Peirce College; set food service prices; set agreements with alternative schools; approve a grant; and other regular items of business. 215-736-2681.
SAT Scores Remain at 10-Year Low
From TIME Magazine
SAT Scores Remain at 10-Year Low
Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2008 By AP/ALAN SCHER ZAGIER
For a second straight year, SAT scores for the most recent high school graduating class remained at the lowest level in nearly a decade, a trend attributed to a record number of students now taking the test.
The 1.52 million students who took the test is a slight increase from last year but a jump of nearly 30 percent over the past decade. Minority students accounted for 40 percent of test-takers, and 36 percent were the first in their families to attend college. Nearly one in seven had a low enough family income to take the test for free.
"More than ever, the SAT reflects the face of education in this country," said Gaston Caperton, president of the College Board, which owns the test and released the results Tuesday.
The class of 2008 scored an average of 515 out of a possible 800 points on the math section of the college entrance exam, a performance identical to graduating seniors in the previous year.
Scores in the critical reading component among last spring's high school seniors also held steady at 502, but the decline over time has been more dramatic: the past two years represent the lowest reading average since 1994, when graduating seniors scored 499.
By comparison, the highest average reading score in recent decades was 530 by the class of 1972, although that score dropped dramatically within five years to near present levels. The latest math average is just five points below the 35-year high of 520, reached three years ago.
Those historical highs are tempered by the test's more selective reach a generation ago, said Jim Hull, a policy analyst for the Center for Public Education, which is affiliated with the National School Boards Association.
"You only had the best of the best taking the test," he said. "The SAT has become far more inclusive."
Average scores also remained constant on the writing portion of the SAT, which was added to the entrance exam in 2006. For the second year in a row, the average score was 494 — a three-point drop from its debut year.
The writing test is still a work in progress, with many colleges waiting for several years of data before factoring that portion into admissions decisions.
But the College Board released data Tuesday suggesting that scores on the newest portion of the exam are the most accurate gauge of first-year success in college. Studies by the University of Georgia and the University of California support the group's findings, it reported.
Males on average scored four points higher than females on the reading section (504 vs. 500) and 33 points higher on the math test (533 vs. 500), but females on average outscored their counterparts on the writing test, 501 to 488.
Average ACT scores released earlier this month showed a slight decrease, for the class of 2008 — 21.1 compared to 21.2 a year ago, on a scale of 1 to 36. With 1.42 million test-takers, the rival exam still lags behind the more-entrenched SAT, but is growing at a faster rate.
That trend is only likely to continue, said SAT critic Bob Schaeffer of the National Center for Fair and Open Testing, who called the new three-part SAT a "flop." Nearly 800 colleges now consider the SAT an optional test for admissions, according to the group.
SAT Scores Remain at 10-Year Low
Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2008 By AP/ALAN SCHER ZAGIER
For a second straight year, SAT scores for the most recent high school graduating class remained at the lowest level in nearly a decade, a trend attributed to a record number of students now taking the test.
The 1.52 million students who took the test is a slight increase from last year but a jump of nearly 30 percent over the past decade. Minority students accounted for 40 percent of test-takers, and 36 percent were the first in their families to attend college. Nearly one in seven had a low enough family income to take the test for free.
"More than ever, the SAT reflects the face of education in this country," said Gaston Caperton, president of the College Board, which owns the test and released the results Tuesday.
The class of 2008 scored an average of 515 out of a possible 800 points on the math section of the college entrance exam, a performance identical to graduating seniors in the previous year.
Scores in the critical reading component among last spring's high school seniors also held steady at 502, but the decline over time has been more dramatic: the past two years represent the lowest reading average since 1994, when graduating seniors scored 499.
By comparison, the highest average reading score in recent decades was 530 by the class of 1972, although that score dropped dramatically within five years to near present levels. The latest math average is just five points below the 35-year high of 520, reached three years ago.
Those historical highs are tempered by the test's more selective reach a generation ago, said Jim Hull, a policy analyst for the Center for Public Education, which is affiliated with the National School Boards Association.
"You only had the best of the best taking the test," he said. "The SAT has become far more inclusive."
Average scores also remained constant on the writing portion of the SAT, which was added to the entrance exam in 2006. For the second year in a row, the average score was 494 — a three-point drop from its debut year.
The writing test is still a work in progress, with many colleges waiting for several years of data before factoring that portion into admissions decisions.
But the College Board released data Tuesday suggesting that scores on the newest portion of the exam are the most accurate gauge of first-year success in college. Studies by the University of Georgia and the University of California support the group's findings, it reported.
Males on average scored four points higher than females on the reading section (504 vs. 500) and 33 points higher on the math test (533 vs. 500), but females on average outscored their counterparts on the writing test, 501 to 488.
Average ACT scores released earlier this month showed a slight decrease, for the class of 2008 — 21.1 compared to 21.2 a year ago, on a scale of 1 to 36. With 1.42 million test-takers, the rival exam still lags behind the more-entrenched SAT, but is growing at a faster rate.
That trend is only likely to continue, said SAT critic Bob Schaeffer of the National Center for Fair and Open Testing, who called the new three-part SAT a "flop." Nearly 800 colleges now consider the SAT an optional test for admissions, according to the group.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Modular Rooms for Pennsbury
From the BCCT.
Supervisors approve modular classrooms
But one supervisor accused the Pennsbury School District of “crazy spending” and said they were unnecessary.
By CHRISTIAN MENNO
The Pennsbury School District hopes to have two modular classrooms for art and music classes up and running at Fallsington Elementary by mid-October.
The Falls supervisors last week approved, by a 3-2 vote, a land development waiver to install the structures, which will be transported from Oxford Valley Elementary.
Supervisors Robert Harvie, James Prokopiak and Jonathan Snipes voted in favor. Dorothy Vislosky and Phillip Szupka voted no.
The school district’s director of physical plant and facilities, Tom Gillette, said the installation would cost about $507,000. He called the modular classrooms a more cost-effective measure than a permanent addition to the school’s main building, which, he said, would cost upward of $1.5 million.
A covered walkway will connect the main building to the modular classrooms to protect students from the elements, Gillette added.
Though the modulars were used by Oxford Valley for 19 years, Gillette said their solid wood construction makes them as sturdy and durable as a house.
“I’d expect them to last a long, long time,” he said at the Aug. 19 Falls meeting.
Vislosky disputed the necessity of the modulars and chided the school board for what she called its “crazy spending.”
“I think the $500,000 price tag is insanity,” Vislosky said Monday. “The school administration and the school board better learn the difference between need and want. This is taxpayers’ money.”
On Monday, Gillette described the modulars’ cost as “barebones,” and said the extra space will allow for a “muchneeded” computer lab to be built in the school’s main building.
School board member Linda Palsky defended the project.
“We have people running classes in small cubby holes and sometimes doubling up,” she said Monday. “These classrooms will allow Fallsington to service its students in the proper way. This is not something we just came up with. This was part of a long-range plan to utilize our assets. I understand the concerns, but these modulars are absolutely necessary.”
Palsky, a member of the facilities committee, said the price was well within the normal range for such a job.
Prokopiak said he understands some taxpayers might oppose such additions, but the school district was well within its rights to develop its own land.
“As long as the project adheres to our ordinances and does not interfere with the health, safety and wellness of our residents, then it should be approved,” he said Monday. “If there were issues with, say, storm water management, then that would be different.
“The school district is telling us they need the space due to overcrowding and that this is the most cost-effective way to go about it. As long as they’ve met all the criteria, I felt I had to approve it.”
Supervisors approve modular classrooms
But one supervisor accused the Pennsbury School District of “crazy spending” and said they were unnecessary.
By CHRISTIAN MENNO
The Pennsbury School District hopes to have two modular classrooms for art and music classes up and running at Fallsington Elementary by mid-October.
The Falls supervisors last week approved, by a 3-2 vote, a land development waiver to install the structures, which will be transported from Oxford Valley Elementary.
Supervisors Robert Harvie, James Prokopiak and Jonathan Snipes voted in favor. Dorothy Vislosky and Phillip Szupka voted no.
The school district’s director of physical plant and facilities, Tom Gillette, said the installation would cost about $507,000. He called the modular classrooms a more cost-effective measure than a permanent addition to the school’s main building, which, he said, would cost upward of $1.5 million.
A covered walkway will connect the main building to the modular classrooms to protect students from the elements, Gillette added.
Though the modulars were used by Oxford Valley for 19 years, Gillette said their solid wood construction makes them as sturdy and durable as a house.
“I’d expect them to last a long, long time,” he said at the Aug. 19 Falls meeting.
Vislosky disputed the necessity of the modulars and chided the school board for what she called its “crazy spending.”
“I think the $500,000 price tag is insanity,” Vislosky said Monday. “The school administration and the school board better learn the difference between need and want. This is taxpayers’ money.”
On Monday, Gillette described the modulars’ cost as “barebones,” and said the extra space will allow for a “muchneeded” computer lab to be built in the school’s main building.
School board member Linda Palsky defended the project.
“We have people running classes in small cubby holes and sometimes doubling up,” she said Monday. “These classrooms will allow Fallsington to service its students in the proper way. This is not something we just came up with. This was part of a long-range plan to utilize our assets. I understand the concerns, but these modulars are absolutely necessary.”
Palsky, a member of the facilities committee, said the price was well within the normal range for such a job.
Prokopiak said he understands some taxpayers might oppose such additions, but the school district was well within its rights to develop its own land.
“As long as the project adheres to our ordinances and does not interfere with the health, safety and wellness of our residents, then it should be approved,” he said Monday. “If there were issues with, say, storm water management, then that would be different.
“The school district is telling us they need the space due to overcrowding and that this is the most cost-effective way to go about it. As long as they’ve met all the criteria, I felt I had to approve it.”
Scavenger Hunt!
From the BCCT.
Towns to host giant scavenger hunt
The event will showcase the “tremendous historic and cultural assets” of the boroughs.
By DANNY ADLER
A local revitalization effort will hold its first big event next month featuring the four Landmark Towns of Bucks County — Bristol, Morrisville, Yardley and New Hope.
The Landmark Towns, a project of the Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor, is preparing for a “ravenchase” — somewhat of a scavenger hunt using riddles, anagrams, puzzles, planted actors, gadgets and ciphers leading to a secret end location. The Great Delaware Canal Chase, a joint effort by Landmark Towns and Ravenchase Adventures, leads participants throughout the four towns by car to solve the codes and learn a bit about American history. Prizes will be awarded to the top three teams.
“We’re really hoping to attract visitors to the downtowns in the four communities through a really fun activity. Participants will most likely stop along the way and visit a retail store or restaurant that they may otherwise not have the opportunity to do,” said Donna Boone, Landmark Towns’ regional main street coordinator.
The event begins at 10 a.m. Sept. 13. Tickets are $50 per player or $150 per car (up to six people). For more information or to register for the event, visit www.ravenchase.com.
Landmark Towns is not using the event to raise funds, but to raise friends, Boone said. Any proceeds, which she said will be negligible after expenses, go directly to the event organizer at Ravenchase.
“We determined that it is more important at this time to raise awareness about the tremendous historic and cultural assets these communities have to offer,” Boone said.
The Landmark Towns of Bucks County initiative started several years ago trying to convince the waterfront boroughs of Bristol, Morrisville, Yardley and New Hope to sign on and commit to the project.
The hopes were to preserve each borough’s historic resources, enhance their local economies and brand the riverfront towns as destinations.
In more than two years, all four boroughs have committed to the project, and the state has chipped in money for transporta tion efforts to link the towns and to hire a regional coordinator.
Towns to host giant scavenger hunt
The event will showcase the “tremendous historic and cultural assets” of the boroughs.
By DANNY ADLER
A local revitalization effort will hold its first big event next month featuring the four Landmark Towns of Bucks County — Bristol, Morrisville, Yardley and New Hope.
The Landmark Towns, a project of the Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor, is preparing for a “ravenchase” — somewhat of a scavenger hunt using riddles, anagrams, puzzles, planted actors, gadgets and ciphers leading to a secret end location. The Great Delaware Canal Chase, a joint effort by Landmark Towns and Ravenchase Adventures, leads participants throughout the four towns by car to solve the codes and learn a bit about American history. Prizes will be awarded to the top three teams.
“We’re really hoping to attract visitors to the downtowns in the four communities through a really fun activity. Participants will most likely stop along the way and visit a retail store or restaurant that they may otherwise not have the opportunity to do,” said Donna Boone, Landmark Towns’ regional main street coordinator.
The event begins at 10 a.m. Sept. 13. Tickets are $50 per player or $150 per car (up to six people). For more information or to register for the event, visit www.ravenchase.com.
Landmark Towns is not using the event to raise funds, but to raise friends, Boone said. Any proceeds, which she said will be negligible after expenses, go directly to the event organizer at Ravenchase.
“We determined that it is more important at this time to raise awareness about the tremendous historic and cultural assets these communities have to offer,” Boone said.
The Landmark Towns of Bucks County initiative started several years ago trying to convince the waterfront boroughs of Bristol, Morrisville, Yardley and New Hope to sign on and commit to the project.
The hopes were to preserve each borough’s historic resources, enhance their local economies and brand the riverfront towns as destinations.
In more than two years, all four boroughs have committed to the project, and the state has chipped in money for transporta tion efforts to link the towns and to hire a regional coordinator.
BCTHS Budget Discussion Set
From the BCCT
Tech school to host funding discussion
Posted in News on Monday, August 25th, 2008 at 11:35 pm by Joan Hellyer
Area school district officials will meet with Bucks County Technical High School staff in September to examine how much it costs to educate each of the school’s students, BCTHS officials said tonight.
During the student-related cost review, officials will try to determine if changes need to be made to the funding formula used to operate the comprehensive technical high school off Wistar Road in Bristol Township.
Business managers, superintendents and joint school board members of the six sending districts are invited to attend the Sept. 17 discussion, said Administrative Director Scott Parks at the tech school’s joint board committee meeting tonight.
The business managers previously suggested the districts stop sharing special education costs, as they do now. Districts would pay for the often times costly special needs expenses based on actual student usage, the managers suggested.
But joint board committee members decided to look at all student-related costs before they make any changes to the funding formula.
The cost review originally was supposed to take place during the summer break, but could not be arranged because of scheduling conflicts, BCTHS officials said.
The Sept. 17 discussion begins at noon in the boardroom of the tech school that serves approximately 1,500 students from the Bensalem, Bristol, Bristol Township, Morrisville, Neshaminy and Pennsbury school districts.
Tech school to host funding discussion
Posted in News on Monday, August 25th, 2008 at 11:35 pm by Joan Hellyer
Area school district officials will meet with Bucks County Technical High School staff in September to examine how much it costs to educate each of the school’s students, BCTHS officials said tonight.
During the student-related cost review, officials will try to determine if changes need to be made to the funding formula used to operate the comprehensive technical high school off Wistar Road in Bristol Township.
Business managers, superintendents and joint school board members of the six sending districts are invited to attend the Sept. 17 discussion, said Administrative Director Scott Parks at the tech school’s joint board committee meeting tonight.
The business managers previously suggested the districts stop sharing special education costs, as they do now. Districts would pay for the often times costly special needs expenses based on actual student usage, the managers suggested.
But joint board committee members decided to look at all student-related costs before they make any changes to the funding formula.
The cost review originally was supposed to take place during the summer break, but could not be arranged because of scheduling conflicts, BCTHS officials said.
The Sept. 17 discussion begins at noon in the boardroom of the tech school that serves approximately 1,500 students from the Bensalem, Bristol, Bristol Township, Morrisville, Neshaminy and Pennsbury school districts.
Monday, August 25, 2008
Meeting Reminder
Don't forget that back-to-school starts Wednesday, as the cast of the hit TV show "Hellmann's Heroes" returns in their season premier.
The warm ups start at 6:30 as the Policy Committee will discuss um, ...policies.
The 2008-2009 season home opener starts at 7:30. There's been a few changes. Replacing the injured Kate Taylor in the elementary principal slot will be Karen Huggins. Replacing the departed Melanie Gehrens in the secondary principal role will be Willian Ferrara. A replacement for the departed Kim Myers at special ed has not been named. This will probably be the last chance to see the retiring Reba Dunford playing at home in the business administrator position.
NOTICE
Notice is hereby given that the School District of Borough of Morrisville, Morrisville, PA, will hold a Policy Committee meeting in the G-Hall conference room of the Morrisville Middle/Senior High School, 550 W. Palmer St., Morrisville, PA on Wednesday, August 27, 2008 at 6:30 pm. Various policies will be discussed.
Marlys Mihok, Secretary
1t August 24, 2008
The warm ups start at 6:30 as the Policy Committee will discuss um, ...policies.
The 2008-2009 season home opener starts at 7:30. There's been a few changes. Replacing the injured Kate Taylor in the elementary principal slot will be Karen Huggins. Replacing the departed Melanie Gehrens in the secondary principal role will be Willian Ferrara. A replacement for the departed Kim Myers at special ed has not been named. This will probably be the last chance to see the retiring Reba Dunford playing at home in the business administrator position.
NOTICE
Notice is hereby given that the School District of Borough of Morrisville, Morrisville, PA, will hold a Policy Committee meeting in the G-Hall conference room of the Morrisville Middle/Senior High School, 550 W. Palmer St., Morrisville, PA on Wednesday, August 27, 2008 at 6:30 pm. Various policies will be discussed.
Marlys Mihok, Secretary
1t August 24, 2008
More Student Testing
From the BCCT this morning.
I'm not necessarily against this idea, yet where does it end? Are the teachers, staff and administrators tested as well? Perhaps the school board should be as well. How about the parents? Should they all set an example?
“This is all about getting help. If we can save one or two kids ... what price do you want to put on a kid’s life?” Ask the Emperor and the Board of Selected Accomplices. They apparently have numbers on this topic.
The privacy issue looms large here as well. Who gets this information and how is it used?
The endpoint? Magic 8-ball says "ask again": “The success question is difficult to get a handle on.” If the question is that difficult to frame, the answer must be pretty impossible.
Do you trust the people in charge?
District considers drug testing
Central Bucks administrators plan to have more meetings with parents and students this fall to discuss a random testing program. Here’s a look at other schools in Pennsylvania that have similar programs.
By CHRISTINA KRISTOFIC
Central Bucks School District administrators are planning to meet with parents and students this fall to discuss a random student-drug testing program.
If district administrators decide to implement a drug-testing program, they won’t be the first in the state.
And they probably won’t be the last.
No state agency keeps track of how many of the state’s 501 school districts have student drug-testing programs, but the newspaper identified 12 school districts across the state, although none in Bucks or eastern Montgomery counties, that have programs in place. Some are new; some are several years old. Officials from only five districts responded to inquiries about their testing programs.
Officials at school districts with established programs said they have successfully reduced student drug use, even though they didn’t have much data to support the claim.
Others said they didn’t know if student drug use had dropped. But they thought the programs have effectively helped students who use drugs to get the counseling they need from school nurses and drug counselors and given students who don’t use drugs another way to say “no” to someone who offers drugs to them.
“There is a problem with drug use,” said Barbara Zimmerman, a member of the Hempfield school board in Lancaster County.
“Anybody in a school district that says they don’t have a drug problem is lying or they aren’t connected with reality. There’s drugs in schools. No matter what way you look at it. It might be on school grounds. It might be on the weekends.”
And Zimmerman, a registered nurse and nursing instructor at Millersville University, believes schools have the responsibility to help kids by testing them. She advocated for the program at Hempfield.
“What’s the difference from when the school nurse is screening your hearing, vision, height, weight? The same thing happens as if you fail your hearing test. What happens? You send a letter home and you’ve got to get a hearing test,” she said. “This is all about getting help. If we can save one or two kids ... what price do you want to put on a kid’s life?”
Asked if the program had reduced drug use at Hempfield in the three years that the district has had it, Zimmerman answered, “The success question is difficult to get a handle on.”
She acknowledged that much of the data school districts have is self-reported — student responses to statewide surveys about drug and alcohol use.
Fewer students at Hempfield have reported using drugs and alcohol, she said.
Zimmerman said she gives the high school students a written survey at the end of every school year, asking if they think there’s a drug problem at Hempfield, if they think the drug-testing program helps them say “no” to the peers and if they chose not to participate in extracurricular activities because of the drug-testing program.
The survey has a portion where students can write their own thoughts, and Zimmerman said most of the students have said they think the drug-testing program has helped curtail drug use at Hempfield.
“Are they saying it because they think they have to say it? Or are they saying it because it’s true?” she asked.
Gettysburg Area School District Superintendent William Hall said earlier this year that he didn’t know much about the success of the district’s drug-testing program because he’s still new to the district. The district has tested all student-athletes for three or four years, he said.
“We’re not seeing any alarming increases,” Hall said. “But I can’t say that we’re seeing any significant decreases, either.”
Solanco School District in southern Lancaster County has had a random student drug-testing program in place for several years. It received federal funding three years ago to pay for its program and has continued to fund the program out of its own budget for the last two years.
More than 60 percent of the middle and high school students were in the testing pool last year, and a “vast majority” of their tests came back negative for drug use, said district spokesman Keith Kaufman. Asked if the program has successfully reduced drug use at Solanco, Kaufman couldn’t really say.
“What the drug testing program does is that it gives our students another opportunity to say ‘no’ to drug use,” he said.
“If they’re getting any kind of peer pressure, they can say, ‘Listen, I want to be in the band. I want to be on the chess team. I want to be on the football team. I can’t risk it. I don’t want to lose my parking privileges.’ That’s a big one. Once students start driving, they don’t like the idea of going back to a school bus.”
And, when students test positive for drug use, they can get help from counselors.
Candis Finan, superintendent of Delaware Valley School District in Pike County, was able to provide a little more data about the success of her district’s drug-testing program.
Delaware Valley School District has had a student drug-testing program since 1998, shortly after a student was caught in the high school parking lot with heroin.
The school district has one of the most comprehensive student drug-testing programs of the school districts surveyed. Students in seventh through 12th grades who participate in extracurricular activities and students who drive to school must submit to drug testing.
All of the students who drive or participate in yearlong activities are tested at the beginning of the school year. Students who participate in seasonal activities are tested at the beginning of the season. And all of the students in the testing pool are tested randomly throughout the year.
Finan said the district tested 1,600 students in 2007-08 school year, and nine tested positive for drug use. The district tested 1,400 students in the 2006-07 school year, and four tested positive.
In all the years the district has had the drug-testing program, Finan said, only one student has ever tested positive a second time.
Finan said the students who participate in extracurricular activities and drive to school are the leaders of the school; and by their refusal to use drugs, they become role models for the others.
“I believe it works. I believe it is clearly a deterrent to student drug use,” Finan said.
“Is [drug use] going down? I wouldn’t have figures to support that. The students who wish to participate in activities clearly are not using drugs, I can tell you that.”
I'm not necessarily against this idea, yet where does it end? Are the teachers, staff and administrators tested as well? Perhaps the school board should be as well. How about the parents? Should they all set an example?
“This is all about getting help. If we can save one or two kids ... what price do you want to put on a kid’s life?” Ask the Emperor and the Board of Selected Accomplices. They apparently have numbers on this topic.
The privacy issue looms large here as well. Who gets this information and how is it used?
The endpoint? Magic 8-ball says "ask again": “The success question is difficult to get a handle on.” If the question is that difficult to frame, the answer must be pretty impossible.
Do you trust the people in charge?
District considers drug testing
Central Bucks administrators plan to have more meetings with parents and students this fall to discuss a random testing program. Here’s a look at other schools in Pennsylvania that have similar programs.
By CHRISTINA KRISTOFIC
Central Bucks School District administrators are planning to meet with parents and students this fall to discuss a random student-drug testing program.
If district administrators decide to implement a drug-testing program, they won’t be the first in the state.
And they probably won’t be the last.
No state agency keeps track of how many of the state’s 501 school districts have student drug-testing programs, but the newspaper identified 12 school districts across the state, although none in Bucks or eastern Montgomery counties, that have programs in place. Some are new; some are several years old. Officials from only five districts responded to inquiries about their testing programs.
Officials at school districts with established programs said they have successfully reduced student drug use, even though they didn’t have much data to support the claim.
Others said they didn’t know if student drug use had dropped. But they thought the programs have effectively helped students who use drugs to get the counseling they need from school nurses and drug counselors and given students who don’t use drugs another way to say “no” to someone who offers drugs to them.
“There is a problem with drug use,” said Barbara Zimmerman, a member of the Hempfield school board in Lancaster County.
“Anybody in a school district that says they don’t have a drug problem is lying or they aren’t connected with reality. There’s drugs in schools. No matter what way you look at it. It might be on school grounds. It might be on the weekends.”
And Zimmerman, a registered nurse and nursing instructor at Millersville University, believes schools have the responsibility to help kids by testing them. She advocated for the program at Hempfield.
“What’s the difference from when the school nurse is screening your hearing, vision, height, weight? The same thing happens as if you fail your hearing test. What happens? You send a letter home and you’ve got to get a hearing test,” she said. “This is all about getting help. If we can save one or two kids ... what price do you want to put on a kid’s life?”
Asked if the program had reduced drug use at Hempfield in the three years that the district has had it, Zimmerman answered, “The success question is difficult to get a handle on.”
She acknowledged that much of the data school districts have is self-reported — student responses to statewide surveys about drug and alcohol use.
Fewer students at Hempfield have reported using drugs and alcohol, she said.
Zimmerman said she gives the high school students a written survey at the end of every school year, asking if they think there’s a drug problem at Hempfield, if they think the drug-testing program helps them say “no” to the peers and if they chose not to participate in extracurricular activities because of the drug-testing program.
The survey has a portion where students can write their own thoughts, and Zimmerman said most of the students have said they think the drug-testing program has helped curtail drug use at Hempfield.
“Are they saying it because they think they have to say it? Or are they saying it because it’s true?” she asked.
Gettysburg Area School District Superintendent William Hall said earlier this year that he didn’t know much about the success of the district’s drug-testing program because he’s still new to the district. The district has tested all student-athletes for three or four years, he said.
“We’re not seeing any alarming increases,” Hall said. “But I can’t say that we’re seeing any significant decreases, either.”
Solanco School District in southern Lancaster County has had a random student drug-testing program in place for several years. It received federal funding three years ago to pay for its program and has continued to fund the program out of its own budget for the last two years.
More than 60 percent of the middle and high school students were in the testing pool last year, and a “vast majority” of their tests came back negative for drug use, said district spokesman Keith Kaufman. Asked if the program has successfully reduced drug use at Solanco, Kaufman couldn’t really say.
“What the drug testing program does is that it gives our students another opportunity to say ‘no’ to drug use,” he said.
“If they’re getting any kind of peer pressure, they can say, ‘Listen, I want to be in the band. I want to be on the chess team. I want to be on the football team. I can’t risk it. I don’t want to lose my parking privileges.’ That’s a big one. Once students start driving, they don’t like the idea of going back to a school bus.”
And, when students test positive for drug use, they can get help from counselors.
Candis Finan, superintendent of Delaware Valley School District in Pike County, was able to provide a little more data about the success of her district’s drug-testing program.
Delaware Valley School District has had a student drug-testing program since 1998, shortly after a student was caught in the high school parking lot with heroin.
The school district has one of the most comprehensive student drug-testing programs of the school districts surveyed. Students in seventh through 12th grades who participate in extracurricular activities and students who drive to school must submit to drug testing.
All of the students who drive or participate in yearlong activities are tested at the beginning of the school year. Students who participate in seasonal activities are tested at the beginning of the season. And all of the students in the testing pool are tested randomly throughout the year.
Finan said the district tested 1,600 students in 2007-08 school year, and nine tested positive for drug use. The district tested 1,400 students in the 2006-07 school year, and four tested positive.
In all the years the district has had the drug-testing program, Finan said, only one student has ever tested positive a second time.
Finan said the students who participate in extracurricular activities and drive to school are the leaders of the school; and by their refusal to use drugs, they become role models for the others.
“I believe it works. I believe it is clearly a deterrent to student drug use,” Finan said.
“Is [drug use] going down? I wouldn’t have figures to support that. The students who wish to participate in activities clearly are not using drugs, I can tell you that.”
Test Fatigue
From the BCCT this morning.
Schools blast state for PSSA changes
Testing will be done from April 15 to May 15, a time when juniors will be preparing for final exams and Advanced Placement tests.
By HILARY BENTMAN
On the eve of the new school year, some local administrators are positively reeling.
The source of their beef is a late announcement about a change to the testing dates for this year’s PSSA, which administrators said will wreak havoc with their already-established calendars and monopolize an entire month of instructional time at one of the most critical periods of the school year.
“It would be a lot of days lost in the fourth marking period,” said Council Rock Superintendent Mark Klein.
Each year, students are required to take the Pennsylvania System of School Assessments, which tests students in math, reading, writing and science. The math and reading tests are for students in third through eighth, and 11th grade. The science test is given to students in fourth, eighth and 11th grades. All are required under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. The goal is to have all children proficient by 2014.
The state also requires a writing test but that is not required by No Child Left Behind.
In previous years, these exams, which can last two to three hours a day, were spread out over several months, with test windows lasting several days at a time.
But the Pennsylvania Department of Education informed districts on Wednesday that the PSSAs will be given during a four-week window from April 15 to May 15, which the department said is being implemented upon the recommendation of educators surveyed around the state who thought this was less disruptive to learning.
“Educators wanted to see more time with kids in the classroom,” said PDE spokeswoman Sheila Ballen.
But shortly after the new schedule was released, the department began receiving calls from school administrators around the state upset with the move.
Council Rock administrators sent emails to the state education department and was prepared to join other Bucks County districts in sending a letter of protest to the PDE, Klein said.
On Friday, the schedule was removed from the department’s Web site and replaced with a note saying “COMING SOON: Stay Tuned for More Information on the 08-09 Testing Schedule.”
Ballen said the department would consider the administrators’ comments and “try to find a solution.”
“We truly hope they do so,” said Klein. “Otherwise it’s seven to 10 days of one marking period.”
A condensed four-week testing schedule fails to hit the mark for several reasons, said local school principals and superintendents.
For some students, particularly juniors who are tested in all four subject areas, it means they will be sitting for exams two or three days a week. Administrators are concerned they will lose what amounts to a month of productive instructional time during a period when they should be preparing for final exams and Advanced Placement tests.
Eleventh grade “is one of most crucial years for a high school student. They’re building up a transcript and getting their best foot out” for colleges, said Mario Galante, director of special services for the Quakertown School District. “It’s almost like an oxymoron. We have to get kids up to standards and they’re taking more instructional time away from kids.”
The Advanced Placement tests begin on May 5 and will overlap with the PSSA. Administered by the College Board, AP exams, which can award students college credit, must be given on specific days. The PSSAs are flexible and will have to be moved around to accommodate students.
Juniors will be pulled out of classes, interrupting not only their instructional time, but that of the sophomores, juniors and seniors who are in some of their classes, officials said.
Administrators worry about test exhaustion and question how effective students will perform on the PSSAs under this new set-up.
“It’s gone from bad to unconscionable,” said Souderton High School Principal Sam Varano. “Our 11th graders are going to think that testing is all that school is about.”
The state, he added, “has thrown high schools across the state off for a solid month. They couldn’t pick a four-week time period that was more crucial.”
Adding to their woes is the timing of the announcement.
Many school districts had already printed their calendars and were preparing to distribute them to parents.
The new testing dates means having to rework the schedules for everything from special school programs, to teacher inservice days, to community events. Families will also be unable to take trips during this time because students must be in school for the exams.
“We build everything around the PSSAs. Now I’m blown out of the water,” said Upper Moreland Superintendent Robert Milrod, who called the state irresponsible and said his initial reaction was to band together with other Montgomery County schools and draft a letter protesting the move.
Although the department of education said schools are always told that PSSA dates are tentative, “we were admittedly late in telling them (of the changes). We understand the schools’ concerns,” said Ballen, who said the PDE is hearing from
Education department officials had been waiting for the completion of contract negotiations with the test provider, DRC.
The Minnesota firm provides the state with its PSSA exams and was coming off a five-year contract. Ballen said the state could not announce the testing dates until the new contract was officially signed.
Varano acknowledged that the department indicated the schedule was tentative, but said “you don’t do anything this important on the eve of the school year.”
Schools blast state for PSSA changes
Testing will be done from April 15 to May 15, a time when juniors will be preparing for final exams and Advanced Placement tests.
By HILARY BENTMAN
On the eve of the new school year, some local administrators are positively reeling.
The source of their beef is a late announcement about a change to the testing dates for this year’s PSSA, which administrators said will wreak havoc with their already-established calendars and monopolize an entire month of instructional time at one of the most critical periods of the school year.
“It would be a lot of days lost in the fourth marking period,” said Council Rock Superintendent Mark Klein.
Each year, students are required to take the Pennsylvania System of School Assessments, which tests students in math, reading, writing and science. The math and reading tests are for students in third through eighth, and 11th grade. The science test is given to students in fourth, eighth and 11th grades. All are required under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. The goal is to have all children proficient by 2014.
The state also requires a writing test but that is not required by No Child Left Behind.
In previous years, these exams, which can last two to three hours a day, were spread out over several months, with test windows lasting several days at a time.
But the Pennsylvania Department of Education informed districts on Wednesday that the PSSAs will be given during a four-week window from April 15 to May 15, which the department said is being implemented upon the recommendation of educators surveyed around the state who thought this was less disruptive to learning.
“Educators wanted to see more time with kids in the classroom,” said PDE spokeswoman Sheila Ballen.
But shortly after the new schedule was released, the department began receiving calls from school administrators around the state upset with the move.
Council Rock administrators sent emails to the state education department and was prepared to join other Bucks County districts in sending a letter of protest to the PDE, Klein said.
On Friday, the schedule was removed from the department’s Web site and replaced with a note saying “COMING SOON: Stay Tuned for More Information on the 08-09 Testing Schedule.”
Ballen said the department would consider the administrators’ comments and “try to find a solution.”
“We truly hope they do so,” said Klein. “Otherwise it’s seven to 10 days of one marking period.”
A condensed four-week testing schedule fails to hit the mark for several reasons, said local school principals and superintendents.
For some students, particularly juniors who are tested in all four subject areas, it means they will be sitting for exams two or three days a week. Administrators are concerned they will lose what amounts to a month of productive instructional time during a period when they should be preparing for final exams and Advanced Placement tests.
Eleventh grade “is one of most crucial years for a high school student. They’re building up a transcript and getting their best foot out” for colleges, said Mario Galante, director of special services for the Quakertown School District. “It’s almost like an oxymoron. We have to get kids up to standards and they’re taking more instructional time away from kids.”
The Advanced Placement tests begin on May 5 and will overlap with the PSSA. Administered by the College Board, AP exams, which can award students college credit, must be given on specific days. The PSSAs are flexible and will have to be moved around to accommodate students.
Juniors will be pulled out of classes, interrupting not only their instructional time, but that of the sophomores, juniors and seniors who are in some of their classes, officials said.
Administrators worry about test exhaustion and question how effective students will perform on the PSSAs under this new set-up.
“It’s gone from bad to unconscionable,” said Souderton High School Principal Sam Varano. “Our 11th graders are going to think that testing is all that school is about.”
The state, he added, “has thrown high schools across the state off for a solid month. They couldn’t pick a four-week time period that was more crucial.”
Adding to their woes is the timing of the announcement.
Many school districts had already printed their calendars and were preparing to distribute them to parents.
The new testing dates means having to rework the schedules for everything from special school programs, to teacher inservice days, to community events. Families will also be unable to take trips during this time because students must be in school for the exams.
“We build everything around the PSSAs. Now I’m blown out of the water,” said Upper Moreland Superintendent Robert Milrod, who called the state irresponsible and said his initial reaction was to band together with other Montgomery County schools and draft a letter protesting the move.
Although the department of education said schools are always told that PSSA dates are tentative, “we were admittedly late in telling them (of the changes). We understand the schools’ concerns,” said Ballen, who said the PDE is hearing from
Education department officials had been waiting for the completion of contract negotiations with the test provider, DRC.
The Minnesota firm provides the state with its PSSA exams and was coming off a five-year contract. Ballen said the state could not announce the testing dates until the new contract was officially signed.
Varano acknowledged that the department indicated the schedule was tentative, but said “you don’t do anything this important on the eve of the school year.”
Education Policy: Obama and McCain
Barack Obama and John McCain will be opening up the 2008 installment of the quadrennial presidential follies shortly, and we will be treated to the spectacle of media frenzy over substance-less discussion, but education policy will be on the mind of the 44th President of the United States.
The Council for Exceptional Children has created a voter guide (pdf) that lists the education platforms of the presidential candidates.
EdWeek.org has a Campaign K-12 blog available to keep up to date.
The Council for Exceptional Children has created a voter guide (pdf) that lists the education platforms of the presidential candidates.
EdWeek.org has a Campaign K-12 blog available to keep up to date.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
New Pennsylvania Chapter 14 special education regulations
This link leads eventually to a law firm, so the usual caveats apply and this link is provided for information only. Take a look at the disclaimer on the SNAG page and assume that I am invoking the same limitations here.
No matter what the caveats, the new provisions they list did go into effect.
The new Pennsylvania Chapter 14 special education regulations became effective July 1, 2008, and we have summarized for parents the most relevant changes affecting children with disabilities.
No matter what the caveats, the new provisions they list did go into effect.
The new Pennsylvania Chapter 14 special education regulations became effective July 1, 2008, and we have summarized for parents the most relevant changes affecting children with disabilities.
Why Privacy is Important
Before we bog down in the "good people should be good custodians of private information" discussion of Morrisville's re-registration, let's consider why private information should remain private.
Take a look at the New York Times article below, citing the lame-duck Bush Administration's push to codify some of their excesses before being evicted in January 2009.
Imagine for just a minute that one of these nice people, who thought they were just being a good citizen, saw "something" that seemed to be not right. Before you could say, "Mrs Kravitz! What are you doing?", there's an FBI file folder with your name on it.
A good person, with good intentions, simply asked a question of the proper authorities, and the proverbial hell-bound road paving permanently tars and feathers an innocent person.
The accompanying editorial makes the case: "Opening the door to sweeping investigations of this kind would be an invitation to the government to spy on people based on their race, religion or political activities. Before Mr. Mukasey goes any further, Congress should insist that the guidelines be fully vetted, and it should make certain that they do not pose a further threat to Americans’ civil liberties."
There's some more discussion on this at slashdot.com. It's a brave new world, citizen, and resistance is futile.
Maybe we can spy on the special education families to "really" be sure that the kids need the help they receive at school. Maybe we can have school board members follow families around town to be sure that they "really" live in town. (Oops. My bad. That's already been done.)
Why shouldn't we want to know that the custodians of our information are definitively barred from unauthorized disclosure, with the appropriate penalties to apply if they fail in this? Imagine if the pharmacist at CVS mentioned openly to your neighbors that you're taking drug X for condition Y. There's laws governing that situation, and the Emperor and the Board of Selected Accomplices should similarly be held responsible for the responsible use of school data.
Are there any ACLU lawyers out there who would like some courtroom experience?
New Guidelines Would Give F.B.I. Broader Powers
By ERIC LICHTBLAU
Published: August 20, 2008
WASHINGTON — A Justice Department plan would loosen restrictions on the Federal Bureau of Investigation to allow agents to open a national security or criminal investigation against someone without any clear basis for suspicion, Democratic lawmakers briefed on the details said Wednesday.
The plan, which could be made public next month, has already generated intense interest and speculation. Little is known about its precise language, but civil liberties advocates say they fear it could give the government even broader license to open terrorism investigations.
Congressional staff members got a glimpse of some of the details in closed briefings this month, and four Democratic senators told Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey in a letter on Wednesday that they were troubled by what they heard.
The senators said the new guidelines would allow the F.B.I. to open an investigation of an American, conduct surveillance, pry into private records and take other investigative steps “without any basis for suspicion.” The plan “might permit an innocent American to be subjected to such intrusive surveillance based in part on race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, or on protected First Amendment activities,” the letter said. It was signed by Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island.
As the end of the Bush administration nears, the White House has been seeking to formalize in law and regulation some of the aggressive counterterrorism steps it has already taken in practice since the Sept. 11 attacks.
Congress overhauled the federal wiretapping law in July, for instance, and President Bush issued an executive order this month ratifying new roles for intelligence agencies. Other pending changes would also authorize greater sharing of intelligence information with the local police, a major push in the last seven years.
The Justice Department is already expecting criticism over the F.B.I. guidelines. In an effort to pre-empt critics, Mr. Mukasey gave a speech last week in Portland, Ore., describing the unfinished plan as an effort to “integrate more completely and harmonize the standards that apply to the F.B.I.’s activities.” Differing standards, he said, have caused confusion for field agents.
Mr. Mukasey emphasized that the F.B.I. would still need a “valid purpose” for an investigation, and that it could not be “simply based on somebody’s race, religion, or exercise of First Amendment rights.”
Rather than expanding government power, he said, “this document clarifies the rules by which the F.B.I. conducts its intelligence mission.”
In 2002, John Ashcroft, then the attorney general, allowed F.B.I. agents to visit public sites like mosques or monitor Web sites in the course of national security investigations. The next year, Mr. Bush issued guidelines allowing officials to use ethnicity or race in “narrow” circumstances to detect a terrorist threat.
The Democratic senators said the draft plan appeared to allow the F.B.I. to go even further in collecting information on Americans connected to “foreign intelligence” without any factual predicate. They also said there appeared to be few constraints on how the information would be shared with other agencies.
Michael German, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union and a former F.B.I. agent, said the plan appeared to open the door still further to the use of data-mining profiles in tracking terrorism.
“This seems to be based on the idea that the government can take a bunch of data and create a profile that can be used to identify future bad guys,” he said. “But that has not been demonstrated to be true anywhere else.”
The Justice Department said Wednesday that in light of requests from members of Congress for more information, Mr. Mukasey would agree not to sign the new guidelines before a Sept. 17 Congressional hearing.
---------------------------------
Editorial
A New Rush to Spy
Published: August 22, 2008
There is apparently no limit to the Bush administration’s desire to invade Americans’ privacy in the name of national security. According to members of Congress, Attorney General Michael Mukasey is preparing to give the F.B.I. broad new authority to investigate Americans — without any clear basis for suspicion that they are committing a crime.
Opening the door to sweeping investigations of this kind would be an invitation to the government to spy on people based on their race, religion or political activities. Before Mr. Mukasey goes any further, Congress should insist that the guidelines be fully vetted, and it should make certain that they do not pose a further threat to Americans’ civil liberties.
Mr. Mukasey has not revealed the new guidelines. But according to senators whose staff have been given limited briefings, the rules may also authorize the F.B.I. to use an array of problematic investigative techniques. Among these are pretext interviews, in which agents do not honestly represent themselves while questioning a subject’s neighbors and work colleagues.
Four Democratic Senators — Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, Richard Durbin of Illinois and Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts — have written to Mr. Mukasey and urged him not to sign the guidelines until they are publicly announced and national security and civil liberties experts have had a chance to analyze them.
We concur, and we would add that there should be full Congressional hearings so Americans can learn what new powers the government intends to take on.
The F.B.I. has a long history of abusing its authority to spy on domestic groups, including civil rights and anti-war activists, and there is a real danger that the new rules would revive those dark days.
Clearly, the Bush administration cannot be trusted to get the balance between law enforcement and civil liberties right. It has repeatedly engaged in improper and illegal domestic spying — notably in the National Security Agency’s warrantless eavesdropping program.
The F.B.I. and the White House no doubt want to push the changes through before a new president is elected. There is no reason to rush to adopt rules that have such important civil liberties implications.
Take a look at the New York Times article below, citing the lame-duck Bush Administration's push to codify some of their excesses before being evicted in January 2009.
Imagine for just a minute that one of these nice people, who thought they were just being a good citizen, saw "something" that seemed to be not right. Before you could say, "Mrs Kravitz! What are you doing?", there's an FBI file folder with your name on it.
A good person, with good intentions, simply asked a question of the proper authorities, and the proverbial hell-bound road paving permanently tars and feathers an innocent person.
The accompanying editorial makes the case: "Opening the door to sweeping investigations of this kind would be an invitation to the government to spy on people based on their race, religion or political activities. Before Mr. Mukasey goes any further, Congress should insist that the guidelines be fully vetted, and it should make certain that they do not pose a further threat to Americans’ civil liberties."
There's some more discussion on this at slashdot.com. It's a brave new world, citizen, and resistance is futile.
Maybe we can spy on the special education families to "really" be sure that the kids need the help they receive at school. Maybe we can have school board members follow families around town to be sure that they "really" live in town. (Oops. My bad. That's already been done.)
Why shouldn't we want to know that the custodians of our information are definitively barred from unauthorized disclosure, with the appropriate penalties to apply if they fail in this? Imagine if the pharmacist at CVS mentioned openly to your neighbors that you're taking drug X for condition Y. There's laws governing that situation, and the Emperor and the Board of Selected Accomplices should similarly be held responsible for the responsible use of school data.
Are there any ACLU lawyers out there who would like some courtroom experience?
New Guidelines Would Give F.B.I. Broader Powers
By ERIC LICHTBLAU
Published: August 20, 2008
WASHINGTON — A Justice Department plan would loosen restrictions on the Federal Bureau of Investigation to allow agents to open a national security or criminal investigation against someone without any clear basis for suspicion, Democratic lawmakers briefed on the details said Wednesday.
The plan, which could be made public next month, has already generated intense interest and speculation. Little is known about its precise language, but civil liberties advocates say they fear it could give the government even broader license to open terrorism investigations.
Congressional staff members got a glimpse of some of the details in closed briefings this month, and four Democratic senators told Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey in a letter on Wednesday that they were troubled by what they heard.
The senators said the new guidelines would allow the F.B.I. to open an investigation of an American, conduct surveillance, pry into private records and take other investigative steps “without any basis for suspicion.” The plan “might permit an innocent American to be subjected to such intrusive surveillance based in part on race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, or on protected First Amendment activities,” the letter said. It was signed by Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts and Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island.
As the end of the Bush administration nears, the White House has been seeking to formalize in law and regulation some of the aggressive counterterrorism steps it has already taken in practice since the Sept. 11 attacks.
Congress overhauled the federal wiretapping law in July, for instance, and President Bush issued an executive order this month ratifying new roles for intelligence agencies. Other pending changes would also authorize greater sharing of intelligence information with the local police, a major push in the last seven years.
The Justice Department is already expecting criticism over the F.B.I. guidelines. In an effort to pre-empt critics, Mr. Mukasey gave a speech last week in Portland, Ore., describing the unfinished plan as an effort to “integrate more completely and harmonize the standards that apply to the F.B.I.’s activities.” Differing standards, he said, have caused confusion for field agents.
Mr. Mukasey emphasized that the F.B.I. would still need a “valid purpose” for an investigation, and that it could not be “simply based on somebody’s race, religion, or exercise of First Amendment rights.”
Rather than expanding government power, he said, “this document clarifies the rules by which the F.B.I. conducts its intelligence mission.”
In 2002, John Ashcroft, then the attorney general, allowed F.B.I. agents to visit public sites like mosques or monitor Web sites in the course of national security investigations. The next year, Mr. Bush issued guidelines allowing officials to use ethnicity or race in “narrow” circumstances to detect a terrorist threat.
The Democratic senators said the draft plan appeared to allow the F.B.I. to go even further in collecting information on Americans connected to “foreign intelligence” without any factual predicate. They also said there appeared to be few constraints on how the information would be shared with other agencies.
Michael German, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union and a former F.B.I. agent, said the plan appeared to open the door still further to the use of data-mining profiles in tracking terrorism.
“This seems to be based on the idea that the government can take a bunch of data and create a profile that can be used to identify future bad guys,” he said. “But that has not been demonstrated to be true anywhere else.”
The Justice Department said Wednesday that in light of requests from members of Congress for more information, Mr. Mukasey would agree not to sign the new guidelines before a Sept. 17 Congressional hearing.
---------------------------------
Editorial
A New Rush to Spy
Published: August 22, 2008
There is apparently no limit to the Bush administration’s desire to invade Americans’ privacy in the name of national security. According to members of Congress, Attorney General Michael Mukasey is preparing to give the F.B.I. broad new authority to investigate Americans — without any clear basis for suspicion that they are committing a crime.
Opening the door to sweeping investigations of this kind would be an invitation to the government to spy on people based on their race, religion or political activities. Before Mr. Mukasey goes any further, Congress should insist that the guidelines be fully vetted, and it should make certain that they do not pose a further threat to Americans’ civil liberties.
Mr. Mukasey has not revealed the new guidelines. But according to senators whose staff have been given limited briefings, the rules may also authorize the F.B.I. to use an array of problematic investigative techniques. Among these are pretext interviews, in which agents do not honestly represent themselves while questioning a subject’s neighbors and work colleagues.
Four Democratic Senators — Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, Richard Durbin of Illinois and Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts — have written to Mr. Mukasey and urged him not to sign the guidelines until they are publicly announced and national security and civil liberties experts have had a chance to analyze them.
We concur, and we would add that there should be full Congressional hearings so Americans can learn what new powers the government intends to take on.
The F.B.I. has a long history of abusing its authority to spy on domestic groups, including civil rights and anti-war activists, and there is a real danger that the new rules would revive those dark days.
Clearly, the Bush administration cannot be trusted to get the balance between law enforcement and civil liberties right. It has repeatedly engaged in improper and illegal domestic spying — notably in the National Security Agency’s warrantless eavesdropping program.
The F.B.I. and the White House no doubt want to push the changes through before a new president is elected. There is no reason to rush to adopt rules that have such important civil liberties implications.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Let's Visit Sag Harbor
From the Sag Harbor (NY) Express. Ignore the specific references to people and places and concentrate on the meaning behind the words. There's apparently plenty of village idiots in charge. This plea could be equally applied to the Morrisville School District.
"The mission of our school has nothing to do with factions or special interests. It is the moral obligation of our community and our school district to provide our children with the best possible education and to do so in a sustainable fashion that takes into account the finite nature of our community’s resources. To find that sustainability will require a board of education that embraces community participation, and acts transparently and honestly. It also will require renewed commitment from the community."
"It is much easier for them to legitimize their beliefs to the community and rationalize them to themselves if our district, particularly Pierson Middle/High School, is perceived as mediocre and teachers and administrators are perceived as scoundrels."
Check out the part about the illegal monitoring of the special education costs too.
"Once again, according to the Express, Elena Loreto wondered if anyone was monitoring the number of special education students in the district which she said was high. As a former teacher, Ms. Loreto should know better. The classification of students is part of a comprehensive, deliberative process mandated by the state that includes health care, educational, and behavioral specialists, teachers, parents, the head of Pupil Personal Services and principals. Every recommendation of services for a student is review by the school board. There is absolutely nothing casual about this process. Would Ms. Loreto like to cap special education classification at a certain level and take away services from some of our most needy kids in an effort to save herself some money? If so, it reflects an attitude which is antithetical to the whole purpose of public education and the democratic principles at its foundation. It is the principle articulated by Dewey. We as a community have a responsibility to educate each and every student who walks through the door of our school irrespective of the baggage or disability that they carry with them."
Classic.
A democracy is more than a form of government; it is primarily a form of associative living -- John Dewey, 1916
John Dewey was “the most important advocate of participatory democracy; that is, of the belief that democracy as an ethical ideal calls upon men and women to build communities in which the necessary opportunities and resources are available for every individual to realize fully his or her particular capacities and powers through participation in political, social, and cultural life.” -- Robert Westbrook, 1991
America’s great philosopher and educator John Dewey believed that the essential element, the key to American democracy is education. He also believed that the stewardship of that education resided in “communities” which have the obligation to provide “the necessary opportunity and resources” to provide for that education. His philosophy was mirrored one hundred years ago in the words of Olivia Sage who spoke of our community’s obligation “as guardians of children to provide for the education of our children.”
Anyone in our community who believes in this collective commitment to our children and their education should be greatly concerned by the series of articles about our school that appeared in last week’s Express. Most troubling is the article titled “School Super Grilled” which described last week’s meeting of the Noyac Civic Council. Comments made by members of the Civic Council during their meeting are consistent with their concerted efforts to discredit the educational performance of children and our school district over a period of time. It has become obvious over time that their activity is not driven by a concern for our children or their education but instead by the immediate self-interest of reducing their own tax burden by cutting our school’s budget, increasing class size, cutting education programs, services and staff. It is much easier for them to legitimize their beliefs to the community and rationalize them to themselves if our district, particularly Pierson Middle/High School, is perceived as mediocre and teachers and administrators are perceived as scoundrels. The truth is, that Pierson by any meaningful, comprehensive assessment (which would include student performance on standardized tests) is the best secondary school on the East End. Moreover, Pierson has shown remarkable improvement over the last ten years.
In this context the Express’s article is illuminating.
According to the Express, one member of the Civic Council stated “I’ve been paying taxes here for 47 years. You don’t send your kids to Harvard or Brown…You’re a joke.” This statement is completely false. We send our students to the best schools in the country including Harvard, Brown, Cornell, Dartmouth, Middlebury, Bowdoin, Bard. In the discipline which I teach, the fine arts, we have an extraordinary record of placing our students at the finest professional schools in the country including the Chicago Art Institue, Rhode Island School of Design, Cooper Union, Cal Arts, The Boston Museum School, and Pratt Institute among others.
Patrick Witty asked if Advanced Placement courses were mandated by New York State. The answer of course is no. Was this a rhetorical question? Was Mr. Witty suggesting that we reduce our kids’ education opportunities to the minimum required by the state?
Once again, according to the Express, Elena Loreto wondered if anyone was monitoring the number of special education students in the district which she said was high. As a former teacher, Ms. Loreto should know better. The classification of students is part of a comprehensive, deliberative process mandated by the state that includes health care, educational, and behavioral specialists, teachers, parents, the head of Pupil Personal Services and principals. Every recommendation of services for a student is review by the school board. There is absolutely nothing casual about this process. Would Ms. Loreto like to cap special education classification at a certain level and take away services from some of our most needy kids in an effort to save herself some money? If so, it reflects an attitude which is antithetical to the whole purpose of public education and the democratic principles at its foundation. It is the principle articulated by Dewey. We as a community have a responsibility to educate each and every student who walks through the door of our school irrespective of the baggage or disability that they carry with them.
Finally, in the comments made by Ed Grohan at the Civic Council meeting there is a disconnect between perception, reality and the fundamental mission of our school. Mr. Grohan talks about district goals favoring teachers and administrators specifically that maintaining the current education program and talks about this leading to “stagnation.” Mr. Grohan as a teacher, a resident of Noyac with one child in our school and one that just graduated and is attending The School of Visual Arts in September, I assure you I have no interest in our school stagnating.
Ten years ago our community made a commitment to maintain a community based school, which would provide our children with a comprehensive, rich and textured education. This was the commitment at the foundation of the renovation and enlargement of Pierson High School. Over the years our faculty has been transformed by new, energetic and talented teachers. The curriculum has been in a constant state of development, improvement and change. The positions of assistant principals at the middle school and high school have allowed for hands on direct and daily contact for both students, parents and teachers with our administrators. They have improved the function of our school and provided invaluable service.
Ten years ago, many in our school and community felt that Pierson was second rate, incapable of competing with East Hampton or Southampton let alone the Ross School. Today Pierson has Intel science national semifinalists, students that save lives with lessons well learned in Sue Denis’s CPR classes, students passionate about math, history, literature, students who have exhibited remarkable and tangible achievement in music and art. We have former students attending the best universities and colleges in the country and serving with bravery in Iraq. Our staff includes a Harvard graduate, graduates from Columbia’s prestigious Teachers College, award winning coaches along with two Suffolk County Teachers of the Year.
This having been said, our school is far from perfect and it must be improved both in terms of its education program and fiscal accountability.
The mission of our school has nothing to do with factions or special interests. It is the moral obligation of our community and our school district to provide our children with the best possible education and to do so in a sustainable fashion that takes into account the finite nature of our community’s resources. To find that sustainability will require a board of education that embraces community participation, and acts transparently and honestly. It also will require renewed commitment form the community.
Sadly, the Noyac Civic Council, by their statements that act to obscure instead of illuminate, who continually and purposefully misrepresent the truth about our school and the performance of our children, who put their own petty self-interest before that of our community and our children, has done little to further the necessary discussion about our school.
"The mission of our school has nothing to do with factions or special interests. It is the moral obligation of our community and our school district to provide our children with the best possible education and to do so in a sustainable fashion that takes into account the finite nature of our community’s resources. To find that sustainability will require a board of education that embraces community participation, and acts transparently and honestly. It also will require renewed commitment from the community."
"It is much easier for them to legitimize their beliefs to the community and rationalize them to themselves if our district, particularly Pierson Middle/High School, is perceived as mediocre and teachers and administrators are perceived as scoundrels."
Check out the part about the illegal monitoring of the special education costs too.
"Once again, according to the Express, Elena Loreto wondered if anyone was monitoring the number of special education students in the district which she said was high. As a former teacher, Ms. Loreto should know better. The classification of students is part of a comprehensive, deliberative process mandated by the state that includes health care, educational, and behavioral specialists, teachers, parents, the head of Pupil Personal Services and principals. Every recommendation of services for a student is review by the school board. There is absolutely nothing casual about this process. Would Ms. Loreto like to cap special education classification at a certain level and take away services from some of our most needy kids in an effort to save herself some money? If so, it reflects an attitude which is antithetical to the whole purpose of public education and the democratic principles at its foundation. It is the principle articulated by Dewey. We as a community have a responsibility to educate each and every student who walks through the door of our school irrespective of the baggage or disability that they carry with them."
Classic.
A democracy is more than a form of government; it is primarily a form of associative living -- John Dewey, 1916
John Dewey was “the most important advocate of participatory democracy; that is, of the belief that democracy as an ethical ideal calls upon men and women to build communities in which the necessary opportunities and resources are available for every individual to realize fully his or her particular capacities and powers through participation in political, social, and cultural life.” -- Robert Westbrook, 1991
America’s great philosopher and educator John Dewey believed that the essential element, the key to American democracy is education. He also believed that the stewardship of that education resided in “communities” which have the obligation to provide “the necessary opportunity and resources” to provide for that education. His philosophy was mirrored one hundred years ago in the words of Olivia Sage who spoke of our community’s obligation “as guardians of children to provide for the education of our children.”
Anyone in our community who believes in this collective commitment to our children and their education should be greatly concerned by the series of articles about our school that appeared in last week’s Express. Most troubling is the article titled “School Super Grilled” which described last week’s meeting of the Noyac Civic Council. Comments made by members of the Civic Council during their meeting are consistent with their concerted efforts to discredit the educational performance of children and our school district over a period of time. It has become obvious over time that their activity is not driven by a concern for our children or their education but instead by the immediate self-interest of reducing their own tax burden by cutting our school’s budget, increasing class size, cutting education programs, services and staff. It is much easier for them to legitimize their beliefs to the community and rationalize them to themselves if our district, particularly Pierson Middle/High School, is perceived as mediocre and teachers and administrators are perceived as scoundrels. The truth is, that Pierson by any meaningful, comprehensive assessment (which would include student performance on standardized tests) is the best secondary school on the East End. Moreover, Pierson has shown remarkable improvement over the last ten years.
In this context the Express’s article is illuminating.
According to the Express, one member of the Civic Council stated “I’ve been paying taxes here for 47 years. You don’t send your kids to Harvard or Brown…You’re a joke.” This statement is completely false. We send our students to the best schools in the country including Harvard, Brown, Cornell, Dartmouth, Middlebury, Bowdoin, Bard. In the discipline which I teach, the fine arts, we have an extraordinary record of placing our students at the finest professional schools in the country including the Chicago Art Institue, Rhode Island School of Design, Cooper Union, Cal Arts, The Boston Museum School, and Pratt Institute among others.
Patrick Witty asked if Advanced Placement courses were mandated by New York State. The answer of course is no. Was this a rhetorical question? Was Mr. Witty suggesting that we reduce our kids’ education opportunities to the minimum required by the state?
Once again, according to the Express, Elena Loreto wondered if anyone was monitoring the number of special education students in the district which she said was high. As a former teacher, Ms. Loreto should know better. The classification of students is part of a comprehensive, deliberative process mandated by the state that includes health care, educational, and behavioral specialists, teachers, parents, the head of Pupil Personal Services and principals. Every recommendation of services for a student is review by the school board. There is absolutely nothing casual about this process. Would Ms. Loreto like to cap special education classification at a certain level and take away services from some of our most needy kids in an effort to save herself some money? If so, it reflects an attitude which is antithetical to the whole purpose of public education and the democratic principles at its foundation. It is the principle articulated by Dewey. We as a community have a responsibility to educate each and every student who walks through the door of our school irrespective of the baggage or disability that they carry with them.
Finally, in the comments made by Ed Grohan at the Civic Council meeting there is a disconnect between perception, reality and the fundamental mission of our school. Mr. Grohan talks about district goals favoring teachers and administrators specifically that maintaining the current education program and talks about this leading to “stagnation.” Mr. Grohan as a teacher, a resident of Noyac with one child in our school and one that just graduated and is attending The School of Visual Arts in September, I assure you I have no interest in our school stagnating.
Ten years ago our community made a commitment to maintain a community based school, which would provide our children with a comprehensive, rich and textured education. This was the commitment at the foundation of the renovation and enlargement of Pierson High School. Over the years our faculty has been transformed by new, energetic and talented teachers. The curriculum has been in a constant state of development, improvement and change. The positions of assistant principals at the middle school and high school have allowed for hands on direct and daily contact for both students, parents and teachers with our administrators. They have improved the function of our school and provided invaluable service.
Ten years ago, many in our school and community felt that Pierson was second rate, incapable of competing with East Hampton or Southampton let alone the Ross School. Today Pierson has Intel science national semifinalists, students that save lives with lessons well learned in Sue Denis’s CPR classes, students passionate about math, history, literature, students who have exhibited remarkable and tangible achievement in music and art. We have former students attending the best universities and colleges in the country and serving with bravery in Iraq. Our staff includes a Harvard graduate, graduates from Columbia’s prestigious Teachers College, award winning coaches along with two Suffolk County Teachers of the Year.
This having been said, our school is far from perfect and it must be improved both in terms of its education program and fiscal accountability.
The mission of our school has nothing to do with factions or special interests. It is the moral obligation of our community and our school district to provide our children with the best possible education and to do so in a sustainable fashion that takes into account the finite nature of our community’s resources. To find that sustainability will require a board of education that embraces community participation, and acts transparently and honestly. It also will require renewed commitment form the community.
Sadly, the Noyac Civic Council, by their statements that act to obscure instead of illuminate, who continually and purposefully misrepresent the truth about our school and the performance of our children, who put their own petty self-interest before that of our community and our children, has done little to further the necessary discussion about our school.
Schools News Around the Blogosphere
Schools on a shoestring: Specialized programs cut to the core
Orlando Sentinel
Students across Central Florida will learn a brutal lesson in economics when the new school year starts next week. For years, school leaders juggled their budgets to prevent the state's chronic money woes from creeping into the classroom. But they're out of options now and scaling back popular programs for gifted students and troubled kids.
Opinion: We can learn from special schools
The Age
JULIA Gillard has called for a "raging debate" about how our education system compares to the best in the world, how to ensure that every school is a great school, and how to ensure every child gets an excellent education.
ACT scores show 3 in 4 need some remedial help for college
USA Today
Average scores on the ACT college entrance exam dipped slightly for the high school class of 2008 as the number of students taking the exam jumped by 9% compared to last year. This year's results, released Wednesday, reveal that more than three in four test-takers will likely need remedial help in at least one subject to succeed in college.
Even the SPED kids outperformed black students.
S.F.'s black students lag far behind whites
San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco schools earned bragging rights on state standardized tests again this year - performing better than the state as a whole across every grade in both math and English - but any celebration was clouded by the subpar proficiency of the district's African American students, who continued to fall further behind their peers.
Could bumpy economy lead to slumping education?
USA Today
By Libby Quaid, Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Harder times and higher fuel prices are following kids back to school this fall. Children will walk farther to the bus stop, pay more for lunch, study from old textbooks, even wear last year's clothes. Field trips? Forget about it.
Homeschoolers Threaten Our Cultural Comfort
Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, Tupelo, Ms.
You see them at the grocery, or in a discount store.
It's a big family by today's standards - "just like stair steps," as the old folks say. Freshly scrubbed boys with neatly trimmed hair and girls with braids, in clean but unfashionable clothes follow mom through the store as she fills her no-frills shopping list.
Orlando Sentinel
Students across Central Florida will learn a brutal lesson in economics when the new school year starts next week. For years, school leaders juggled their budgets to prevent the state's chronic money woes from creeping into the classroom. But they're out of options now and scaling back popular programs for gifted students and troubled kids.
Opinion: We can learn from special schools
The Age
JULIA Gillard has called for a "raging debate" about how our education system compares to the best in the world, how to ensure that every school is a great school, and how to ensure every child gets an excellent education.
ACT scores show 3 in 4 need some remedial help for college
USA Today
Average scores on the ACT college entrance exam dipped slightly for the high school class of 2008 as the number of students taking the exam jumped by 9% compared to last year. This year's results, released Wednesday, reveal that more than three in four test-takers will likely need remedial help in at least one subject to succeed in college.
Even the SPED kids outperformed black students.
S.F.'s black students lag far behind whites
San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco schools earned bragging rights on state standardized tests again this year - performing better than the state as a whole across every grade in both math and English - but any celebration was clouded by the subpar proficiency of the district's African American students, who continued to fall further behind their peers.
Could bumpy economy lead to slumping education?
USA Today
By Libby Quaid, Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Harder times and higher fuel prices are following kids back to school this fall. Children will walk farther to the bus stop, pay more for lunch, study from old textbooks, even wear last year's clothes. Field trips? Forget about it.
Homeschoolers Threaten Our Cultural Comfort
Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, Tupelo, Ms.
You see them at the grocery, or in a discount store.
It's a big family by today's standards - "just like stair steps," as the old folks say. Freshly scrubbed boys with neatly trimmed hair and girls with braids, in clean but unfashionable clothes follow mom through the store as she fills her no-frills shopping list.
Morrisville celebrates '1776'
From the Trenton Times. Don't forget the show tonight at the Williamson Park pavilion at 8 P.M..
History at home: Morrisville celebrates '1776' By ANITA DONOVAN
Friday, August 22, 2008
July 1776 was hot and humid in the Delaware Valley. In Philadelphia, the Continental Congress, approximately 40 representatives of the 13 rebellious colonies, sat debating submission or revolution, while war already raged from Boston and New York to South Carolina. The supporters of independence -- the argumentative Boston attorney John Adams, Virginia's shy but articulate Thomas Jefferson and Philadelphia's resident genius Benjamin Franklin -- urged the adoption of a "declaration" of separation from Great Britain, while John Dickinson of Pennsylvania, and southern slave holders Joseph Hewes and Edward Rutledge demurred. The rest of the delegates hung suspended in perplexity, while Gen. George Washington conducted what already looked like a losing battle.
We know the outcome of the Congress, but the Declaration did not make independence happen overnight. Six months later, in an already venerable settlement on the Delaware River, Robert Morris, a financier of the revolution, lent his rural mansion Summerseat to Washington to serve as the jumping off place for the December 1776 sneak attack against the British at Trenton.
This weekend, Morrisville Borough, named for Morris in 1804, honors its singular role in America's birth with two free performances of Sherman Edwards and Peter Stone's musical reenactment of that fateful July, "1776." Presented by Morrisville's resident theater company, Actors' NET of Bucks County, the show will take place at 8 p.m. today and tomorrow at the riverfront's Williamson Park.
"You could say that '1776' is our signature show," says NET managing director Joe Doyle, who plays John Adams in the production.
"This is the sixth time we have staged '1776.' We've done three productions indoors at the Heritage Center, our first one outdoors in Williamson Park in summer 2004 -- in conjunction with 'The Man Who Bought a Country,' my own historical musical about Robert Morris," says Doyle. "Then we staged a production at the Washington Crossing Open Air Theatre in 2005. We took a break from history last year, doing 'You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown' in the park. But now we're back to '1776' at Williamson."
As in the past, the Morrisville Borough Council is sponsoring this production. Doyle admits it isn't easy taking the show outside and breaking it down after each performance. In the past, the Actors' NET crew hauled light and sound equipment from their theater opposite the Park. This year, they were able to borrow sound gear from the borough and lights from area producer Joe Martin.
"The vast majority of our cast this year are repeaters from past runs of the show," says director Cheryl Doyle, "making it quite easy to reassemble."
Mary Liz Ivins portrays Abigail Adams, singing the beautiful love song "Till Then" with husband John. Jim Petro plays Jefferson and Kyla Marie Mostello, as Martha Jefferson, is thrilled when her husband "plays the violin."
The performers are just as enthusiastic about the sixth performance of their roles as they were for the first several.
"There are a few roles that I don't mind doing endlessly," says Steve Lobis, playing the obdurate Pennsylvania delegate Dickinson, "and this is one of them." To him, "1776" is a wonderful combination of fact and entertainment.
"Peter Stone's book may take some artistic license with historic detail, but I find the accuracy of facts and quotes is quite impressive," he notes. "It's a great treat for those of us who love both musical theater and history."
Marco Newton, who has portrayed the crusty custodian An drew McNair in all six productions, also loves doing the show. His character is primarily comical, but he represents the common man amongst the high profile delegates making the big decisions.
"The words and delivery are branded on my consciousness. For me, it seems like the history lesson a kid would prefer over a boring lecture. The way '1776' is presented makes kids interested in the past in a way they never would ordinarily be.
"From the play, we realize our founding fathers had personalities, issues, libidos, egos -- they weren't just men in funny wigs, as they are usually portrayed."
For Doyle, the role of Adams brings together the historic and the personal.'Honestly, from the first time I read the script. Mr. Adams spoke to me. I strongly identify with his personality -- flaws and all," says Doyle, who also has served for several years as an interpreter of the Adams persona for Philadelphia's American Historical Theatre. "I understand what it is to be pushy, headstrong and passionate over something I fervently believe in, so when people react adversely, like Adams, I feel misunderstood."
Although the script jokes that Adams is "obnoxious and disliked," history shows he was highly respected by his peers.
Apparently, Doyle's perception of Adams comes across to the audience. While speaking as Adams at an AHT forum, Doyle was approached by newly naturalized citizens who thanked him -- as if he really was Adams -- for what the Founding Fathers did to create and secure our nation.
"You can't help being moved when something like that happens. All you can do is tell them -- as Adams might have -- that it was an honor to perform these duties."
Probably Doyle's favorite compliment came from a youngster who saw "1776" and solemnly announced that he planned to grow up to be "like John Adams."
"The most memorable of all our shows was July 4, 2004," recalls Doyle. At one point, Adams sings jubilantly about the future of America. "Just as I sang the line, 'I see fireworks, I see the pageantry, the pomp and parade,' from across the river in Trenton the sky was suddenly illuminated by fireworks -- as if on cue. An amazing moment. Or, as John Adams would say,'Incredible!"'
The show is appropriate for all ages. Playgoers may bring blankets or chairs or sit on bleachers. Free parking is on site and along the riverfront.
History at home: Morrisville celebrates '1776' By ANITA DONOVAN
Friday, August 22, 2008
July 1776 was hot and humid in the Delaware Valley. In Philadelphia, the Continental Congress, approximately 40 representatives of the 13 rebellious colonies, sat debating submission or revolution, while war already raged from Boston and New York to South Carolina. The supporters of independence -- the argumentative Boston attorney John Adams, Virginia's shy but articulate Thomas Jefferson and Philadelphia's resident genius Benjamin Franklin -- urged the adoption of a "declaration" of separation from Great Britain, while John Dickinson of Pennsylvania, and southern slave holders Joseph Hewes and Edward Rutledge demurred. The rest of the delegates hung suspended in perplexity, while Gen. George Washington conducted what already looked like a losing battle.
We know the outcome of the Congress, but the Declaration did not make independence happen overnight. Six months later, in an already venerable settlement on the Delaware River, Robert Morris, a financier of the revolution, lent his rural mansion Summerseat to Washington to serve as the jumping off place for the December 1776 sneak attack against the British at Trenton.
This weekend, Morrisville Borough, named for Morris in 1804, honors its singular role in America's birth with two free performances of Sherman Edwards and Peter Stone's musical reenactment of that fateful July, "1776." Presented by Morrisville's resident theater company, Actors' NET of Bucks County, the show will take place at 8 p.m. today and tomorrow at the riverfront's Williamson Park.
"You could say that '1776' is our signature show," says NET managing director Joe Doyle, who plays John Adams in the production.
"This is the sixth time we have staged '1776.' We've done three productions indoors at the Heritage Center, our first one outdoors in Williamson Park in summer 2004 -- in conjunction with 'The Man Who Bought a Country,' my own historical musical about Robert Morris," says Doyle. "Then we staged a production at the Washington Crossing Open Air Theatre in 2005. We took a break from history last year, doing 'You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown' in the park. But now we're back to '1776' at Williamson."
As in the past, the Morrisville Borough Council is sponsoring this production. Doyle admits it isn't easy taking the show outside and breaking it down after each performance. In the past, the Actors' NET crew hauled light and sound equipment from their theater opposite the Park. This year, they were able to borrow sound gear from the borough and lights from area producer Joe Martin.
"The vast majority of our cast this year are repeaters from past runs of the show," says director Cheryl Doyle, "making it quite easy to reassemble."
Mary Liz Ivins portrays Abigail Adams, singing the beautiful love song "Till Then" with husband John. Jim Petro plays Jefferson and Kyla Marie Mostello, as Martha Jefferson, is thrilled when her husband "plays the violin."
The performers are just as enthusiastic about the sixth performance of their roles as they were for the first several.
"There are a few roles that I don't mind doing endlessly," says Steve Lobis, playing the obdurate Pennsylvania delegate Dickinson, "and this is one of them." To him, "1776" is a wonderful combination of fact and entertainment.
"Peter Stone's book may take some artistic license with historic detail, but I find the accuracy of facts and quotes is quite impressive," he notes. "It's a great treat for those of us who love both musical theater and history."
Marco Newton, who has portrayed the crusty custodian An drew McNair in all six productions, also loves doing the show. His character is primarily comical, but he represents the common man amongst the high profile delegates making the big decisions.
"The words and delivery are branded on my consciousness. For me, it seems like the history lesson a kid would prefer over a boring lecture. The way '1776' is presented makes kids interested in the past in a way they never would ordinarily be.
"From the play, we realize our founding fathers had personalities, issues, libidos, egos -- they weren't just men in funny wigs, as they are usually portrayed."
For Doyle, the role of Adams brings together the historic and the personal.'Honestly, from the first time I read the script. Mr. Adams spoke to me. I strongly identify with his personality -- flaws and all," says Doyle, who also has served for several years as an interpreter of the Adams persona for Philadelphia's American Historical Theatre. "I understand what it is to be pushy, headstrong and passionate over something I fervently believe in, so when people react adversely, like Adams, I feel misunderstood."
Although the script jokes that Adams is "obnoxious and disliked," history shows he was highly respected by his peers.
Apparently, Doyle's perception of Adams comes across to the audience. While speaking as Adams at an AHT forum, Doyle was approached by newly naturalized citizens who thanked him -- as if he really was Adams -- for what the Founding Fathers did to create and secure our nation.
"You can't help being moved when something like that happens. All you can do is tell them -- as Adams might have -- that it was an honor to perform these duties."
Probably Doyle's favorite compliment came from a youngster who saw "1776" and solemnly announced that he planned to grow up to be "like John Adams."
"The most memorable of all our shows was July 4, 2004," recalls Doyle. At one point, Adams sings jubilantly about the future of America. "Just as I sang the line, 'I see fireworks, I see the pageantry, the pomp and parade,' from across the river in Trenton the sky was suddenly illuminated by fireworks -- as if on cue. An amazing moment. Or, as John Adams would say,'Incredible!"'
The show is appropriate for all ages. Playgoers may bring blankets or chairs or sit on bleachers. Free parking is on site and along the riverfront.
Friday, August 22, 2008
A Pennsylvania School Report Card
The conservative Commonwealth Foundation assesses the PSSA and Pennsylvania student performance.
I see a lot of the Stop the School thinking in this report. That doesn't make it bad. It's nice to know where the mindset comes from.
It's also not meant to be another opportunity to cry wolf about the failures of the Morrisville school district. Feel free to address the tax inequities and failures of state testing where they belong: Harrisburg. Don't penalize Morrisville and its students and residents.
A Pennsylvania School Report Card: How the Commonwealth’s Public Schools Stack Up to the Rest of the Nation
Author: David V. Anderson
Executive Summary
Politicians and school officials frequently point to student performance on state tests as a primary measure of the quality of public education. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Education, the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) “is a standards based criterion-referenced assessment used to measure a student’s attainment of the academic standards while also determining the degree to which school programs enable students to attain proficiency of the standards.”
Unfortunately, exams such as the PSSA fail to adequately inform parents, teachers, and the taxpaying public about the quality of their schools. Indeed, a comparison between Pennsylvania’s achievement test results with those reported by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) shows that the PSSA significantly inflates the numbers of public school pupils who are deemed to be performing at or above grade level.
With few exceptions, schools are engaged in massive social promotion of children who are not academically proficient. Even the very best schools promote upwards of 10% of their children to levels for which they are not prepared. In the worst schools, more than 95% are improperly promoted, based on the NAEP standard of proficiency.
The PSSA reports, on average, 1.82 times the percentage of students “proficient” in reading and math as does the NAEP. With an 82% test inflation, Pennsylvania falls just below the median of the 50 states test standards. Pennsylvania’s reported proficiencies seem to foster a complacent attitude among stakeholders in Pennsylvania’s public schools. Were more accurate comparisons available, parents, school officials, politicians, and taxpayers might be more alarmed and seek stronger remedies. In cases where the proficiencies reported by the PSSA are in the 80% to 90% range, they are seen as a matter of pride, yet the equivalent NAEP scale proficiencies—a range of 50% to 60% proficient—are troubling.
This policy brief used a mapping procedure to convert PSSA test results into ones consistent with the NAEP. This provides stakeholders with more realistic performance results. They are, however, also more alarming.
I see a lot of the Stop the School thinking in this report. That doesn't make it bad. It's nice to know where the mindset comes from.
It's also not meant to be another opportunity to cry wolf about the failures of the Morrisville school district. Feel free to address the tax inequities and failures of state testing where they belong: Harrisburg. Don't penalize Morrisville and its students and residents.
A Pennsylvania School Report Card: How the Commonwealth’s Public Schools Stack Up to the Rest of the Nation
Author: David V. Anderson
Executive Summary
Politicians and school officials frequently point to student performance on state tests as a primary measure of the quality of public education. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Education, the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA) “is a standards based criterion-referenced assessment used to measure a student’s attainment of the academic standards while also determining the degree to which school programs enable students to attain proficiency of the standards.”
Unfortunately, exams such as the PSSA fail to adequately inform parents, teachers, and the taxpaying public about the quality of their schools. Indeed, a comparison between Pennsylvania’s achievement test results with those reported by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) shows that the PSSA significantly inflates the numbers of public school pupils who are deemed to be performing at or above grade level.
With few exceptions, schools are engaged in massive social promotion of children who are not academically proficient. Even the very best schools promote upwards of 10% of their children to levels for which they are not prepared. In the worst schools, more than 95% are improperly promoted, based on the NAEP standard of proficiency.
The PSSA reports, on average, 1.82 times the percentage of students “proficient” in reading and math as does the NAEP. With an 82% test inflation, Pennsylvania falls just below the median of the 50 states test standards. Pennsylvania’s reported proficiencies seem to foster a complacent attitude among stakeholders in Pennsylvania’s public schools. Were more accurate comparisons available, parents, school officials, politicians, and taxpayers might be more alarmed and seek stronger remedies. In cases where the proficiencies reported by the PSSA are in the 80% to 90% range, they are seen as a matter of pride, yet the equivalent NAEP scale proficiencies—a range of 50% to 60% proficient—are troubling.
This policy brief used a mapping procedure to convert PSSA test results into ones consistent with the NAEP. This provides stakeholders with more realistic performance results. They are, however, also more alarming.
Borough Arts and Events Calendar
Next up in Morrisville's summer-long celebration:
Friday, August 22nd, and Saturday, August 23rd
The "Heritage Theater" presents "1776"
Raindate is August 24th
Williamson Park Stage Pavilion
Info call Joe or Cheryl Doyle @ 215-295-8181
No charge for this event
More info: visit www.actorsnetbucks.org
On deck:
Saturday, August 30th
Come tap your feet to the tunes of the "Tri-County Band"
Williamson Park Stage 6-8pm
Bring a blanket or chair
No charge for this event
Friday, August 22nd, and Saturday, August 23rd
The "Heritage Theater" presents "1776"
Raindate is August 24th
Williamson Park Stage Pavilion
Info call Joe or Cheryl Doyle @ 215-295-8181
No charge for this event
More info: visit www.actorsnetbucks.org
On deck:
Saturday, August 30th
Come tap your feet to the tunes of the "Tri-County Band"
Williamson Park Stage 6-8pm
Bring a blanket or chair
No charge for this event
Archdiocese seeks aid for special ed
From the Intelligencer.
Archdiocese seeks aid for special ed
By DOM COSENTINO, The Intelligencer
Funding for special education programs are a problem for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, an administrator of the archdiocese said Wednesday at a state House Republican committee hearing in Upper Moreland.
Ellen Wedermeyer, the archdiocese's assistant superintendent for special education, said the archdiocese's tuition rate only covers 20 percent of what it actually costs to educate a special needs child at any one of its five schools of special education and eight additional programs for students with learning disabilities.
Wedermeyer also said enrollment in the archdiocese's learning disability program at the elementary level has increased 20 percent in the last year, with several locations full and a wait list for the upcoming school year.
“If we are unable to locate a new funding stream to aid in paying our operating expenses,” she said, “the futures of the five schools of special education are in jeopardy.”
Wedermeyer and others addressed the House Republican Policy Committee at a hearing co-chaired by state Rep. Thomas P. Murt, an Eastern Montgomery County Republican, at St. David Parish, which is home to Our Lady of Confidence Day School, an archdiocesean school that serves students with developmental or intellectual disabilities.
The state has already established an Educational Improvement Tax Credit, which effectively allows businesses to pay part of their state business taxes through state-certified, nonprofit scholarship organizations such as the archdiocese's Business Leadership Organized for Catholic Schools.
BLOCS can benefit special education students, but there is no special tax credit program specifically set aside for those students, according to testimony offered by Andrew T. Lefebvre, the executive director of the school-choice coalition REACH.
Murt, an Archbishop Wood graduate, said it was too soon to tell how the testimony would be utilized as part of any legislation. The General Assembly is on recess until Sept. 15, and a pair of bills — one in the House and one in the Senate — that would address special education services for non-public schools have been pending since last summer.
“We could decide,” Murt said, “if we want to use (Wednesday's testimony) to support the legislation that's pending now, or if other changes need to be made.”
Archdiocese seeks aid for special ed
By DOM COSENTINO, The Intelligencer
Funding for special education programs are a problem for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, an administrator of the archdiocese said Wednesday at a state House Republican committee hearing in Upper Moreland.
Ellen Wedermeyer, the archdiocese's assistant superintendent for special education, said the archdiocese's tuition rate only covers 20 percent of what it actually costs to educate a special needs child at any one of its five schools of special education and eight additional programs for students with learning disabilities.
Wedermeyer also said enrollment in the archdiocese's learning disability program at the elementary level has increased 20 percent in the last year, with several locations full and a wait list for the upcoming school year.
“If we are unable to locate a new funding stream to aid in paying our operating expenses,” she said, “the futures of the five schools of special education are in jeopardy.”
Wedermeyer and others addressed the House Republican Policy Committee at a hearing co-chaired by state Rep. Thomas P. Murt, an Eastern Montgomery County Republican, at St. David Parish, which is home to Our Lady of Confidence Day School, an archdiocesean school that serves students with developmental or intellectual disabilities.
The state has already established an Educational Improvement Tax Credit, which effectively allows businesses to pay part of their state business taxes through state-certified, nonprofit scholarship organizations such as the archdiocese's Business Leadership Organized for Catholic Schools.
BLOCS can benefit special education students, but there is no special tax credit program specifically set aside for those students, according to testimony offered by Andrew T. Lefebvre, the executive director of the school-choice coalition REACH.
Murt, an Archbishop Wood graduate, said it was too soon to tell how the testimony would be utilized as part of any legislation. The General Assembly is on recess until Sept. 15, and a pair of bills — one in the House and one in the Senate — that would address special education services for non-public schools have been pending since last summer.
“We could decide,” Murt said, “if we want to use (Wednesday's testimony) to support the legislation that's pending now, or if other changes need to be made.”
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