Thanks to the emailer who wanted to remind us all about the Jazz Fest THIS AFTERNOON from 3-8 at Williamson Park.
Come on out and join the fun!
Annual jazz festival arrives in Morrisville
Friday, July 18, 2008
The fifth annual Morrisville Jazz Festival will take place 3 to 9 p.m. Sunday at Williamson Park on Route 32 in Morrisville, Pa.
The lineup will feature Ella Ganht, the Donna Antonow Trio, the Arpeggio Jazz Ensemble, Eric Mintel and the Midnight Sun Orchestra.
The Philadelphia-based Ganht is a singer and multi-instrumentalist who has been performing professionally since she was a teen. Among other things, she is vocalist for the Philadelphia Legends of Jazz Orchestra, which is directed by her husband, Leon Mitchell. Ganht's debut CD is "Immaculate Union."
The Arpeggio Jazz Ensemble has been playing around Philadelphia since its formation in 1979. It was founded by Warren Oree, an acoustic bassist, producer and composer who continued to lead the band in the late 1990s.
The group embraces a variety of acoustic and electric jazz styles -- often combining them with African and Middle Eastern music -- and has dabbled a bit in R&B.
New Jersey native Antonow began playing the piano at an early age and cites such influences as Bill Evans, Wynton Kelly, Jimmy Rowles and Red Garland.
She studied voice with Dita Delman, of the New York City Opera and, while studying at William Paterson College, played with such notables as drummer Carl Allen, and saxophonist Bill Evans. She notes Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder and Donnie Hathaway as vocal influences.
Local pianist Mintel formed the Eric Mintel Quartet in 1993 to perform original jazz compositions and new interpretations of the American song book.
Also a composer of orchestral music, Mintel performed his composition "Millennium Suite" for jazz quartet and orchestra with the Riverside Symphonia.
The quartet's most recent CD is "Times Change," which among other things includes interpretations of compositions made popular by famed pianist Dave Brubeck.
The Midnight Sun Orchestra is a 17-piece local band that plays monthly at the Havana nightclub in New Hope, Pa.
The festival is free.
In advance of the festival, there will be a concert 6 p.m. tomorrow by the Monday Blues Band, a 16-piece orchestra that specializes in big band music.
For information, call (215) 295-8181.
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Math Wars
I know more than a few parents who have fought this battle
Frustrated parents sneak 'old math' to kids
NEW YORK (AP) -- On an occasional evening at the kitchen table in Brooklyn, New York, Victoria Morey has been known to sit down with her 9-year-old son and do something she's not supposed to.
Brigitta Stone struggles to help Gillian with homework but doesn't want to confuse her with old math methods.
"I am a rebel," confessed this mother of two.
And just what is this subversive act in which Morey engages -- with a child, yet?
Long division.
Yes, Morey teaches her son, who'll enter fifth grade in the fall, how to divide the old-fashioned way -- you know, with descending columns of numbers, subtracting all the way down. It's a formula that works, and she finds it quick, reliable, even soothing. So, she says, does her son.
But in his fourth-grade class, long division wasn't on the agenda. As many parents across the country know, this and some other familiar formulas have been supplanted in an increasing number of schools by concept-based curricula aiming to teach the ideas behind mathematics rather than rote procedures.
They call it the Math Wars: The debate, at times acrimonious, over which way is best to teach kids math. In its most black-and-white form, it pits schools hoping to prepare kids for a new world against reluctant parents who feel that the traditional way is best and that their kids are being shortchanged.
But there are lots of parents who fall into a grayer area: They're willing to accept that their kids are learning things differently. They just want to be able to help them with their homework. And very often, they can't.
"Sometimes I'll meet up with another parent, and we'll say, 'What WAS that homework last night?' " said Birgitta Stone, whose daughter, Gillian, is entering third grade in Ridgefield, Connecticut, next month. "Sometimes I can't even understand the instructions."
Funny, perhaps, but also a little sad. "It's frustrating," Stone said. "You want to help them. And sometimes I can't help her at all."
Still, Stone agrees that kids should be thinking differently about math. And so she doesn't interfere by teaching her kid the old ways. "I don't want to confuse her," she said.
Morey, on the other hand, feels no guilt. She says her son was relieved to learn long division. "He wants a quick and easy way to get the right answer," she said. "Luckily, he had a fabulous teacher who said long division wasn't in her plan, but we were free to do what we wanted at home."
And as for the concepts-before-procedure argument, she quipped: "Would you want to go to a doctor who's learned about the concepts but never done the surgery? Would you want your doctor to say, 'I had the right idea when I removed your appendix, though I took out the wrong one?' "
Such reasoning is not unfamiliar to Pat Cooney. As the math coordinator for six public schools in Ridgefield, which over the past two years have implemented the Growing in Math curriculum, she's seen a lot of angry parents.
"I had one parent who was probably as angry as a parent could be," Cooney said. "I've had irate phone calls. Some think we're giving the kids misinformation. They think we're not doing our jobs."
One problem, Cooney says, is that parents remember math as offering only one way to solve a problem.
"We're saying that there's more than one way," Cooney said. "The outcome will be the same, but how we get there will be different."
Thus, when a parent is asked to multiply 88 by 5, we'll do it with pen and paper, multiplying 8 by 5 and carrying over the 4, etc. But a child today might reason that 5 is half of 10, and 88 times 10 is 880, so 88 times 5 is half of that, 440 -- poof, no pen, no paper.
"The traditional way is really a shortcut," Cooney said. "We want kids to be so confident with numbers that it becomes intuitive."
As for parents, Cooney hopes that if they're teaching kids at home, at least it won't be "let me show you how you really do it," she said. She's spending the rest of her summer working on plans for more family nights at school, to better explain the system.
The "Math Wars" have been playing out since at least 1989, when the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics issued a document recommending concept-based teaching -- which was, the group says, distorted by critics and "exaggerated in every direction."
"Our position is that math ought to be reasonable and kids ought to be able to make sense of it," saidHank Kepner, president of the council and a teacher for the past 45 years.
The problem, he says, is that "a lot of adults view math as a cut-and-dried thing, not a method of reasoning." As for parents enforcing their own methods on kids, "You don't want a kid pitted between parent and teacher," he said. "I would hope there would be an open conversation, involving the teacher." But ultimately, "the more adults a kid sees talking about math, the better."
Sam Pennell, 10, of Brooklyn, hears about math a lot: His dad, Mark, is an architect, and father and son have been known to discuss the volumes of cylinders to be filled with concrete. "He understands the concept of pi," Mark Pennell said of his son. "He doesn't question it too much."
Since Sam is good at math, his father supplements his classroom work with, for example, the old way of multiplying 175 times 142. "I'm doing this to broaden his perspective, to keep him from getting bored," Pennell said. He thinks Sam could be challenged more at school but otherwise isn't hugely bothered by the concept-based curriculum.
His wife, though, finds it mystifying. A writer with degrees from Barnard and Stanford, she still finds herself flummoxed by her son's schoolwork.
"There never seems to be any explanation in the workbooks," Allison Pennell said. "And there's no textbook to refer to." Her son doesn't usually need her help, but when he does, she said, "I'm such a numbskull. I don't think I could pass fourth-grade math."
For teacher Melissa Hedges, a longtime elementary school teacher in Milwaukee, the key is to keep the lines of communication open.
"I'll ask parents to sit down and really have their child walk through what they're doing and why they're doing it," Hedges said. "Even if it's messy. The beauty in math comes from getting involved, knowing what you're doing and why, exploring big ideas."
Remember, Hedges said, "in the end, we're all after the same thing. Sometimes it's easy to lose that focus."
Frustrated parents sneak 'old math' to kids
NEW YORK (AP) -- On an occasional evening at the kitchen table in Brooklyn, New York, Victoria Morey has been known to sit down with her 9-year-old son and do something she's not supposed to.
Brigitta Stone struggles to help Gillian with homework but doesn't want to confuse her with old math methods.
"I am a rebel," confessed this mother of two.
And just what is this subversive act in which Morey engages -- with a child, yet?
Long division.
Yes, Morey teaches her son, who'll enter fifth grade in the fall, how to divide the old-fashioned way -- you know, with descending columns of numbers, subtracting all the way down. It's a formula that works, and she finds it quick, reliable, even soothing. So, she says, does her son.
But in his fourth-grade class, long division wasn't on the agenda. As many parents across the country know, this and some other familiar formulas have been supplanted in an increasing number of schools by concept-based curricula aiming to teach the ideas behind mathematics rather than rote procedures.
They call it the Math Wars: The debate, at times acrimonious, over which way is best to teach kids math. In its most black-and-white form, it pits schools hoping to prepare kids for a new world against reluctant parents who feel that the traditional way is best and that their kids are being shortchanged.
But there are lots of parents who fall into a grayer area: They're willing to accept that their kids are learning things differently. They just want to be able to help them with their homework. And very often, they can't.
"Sometimes I'll meet up with another parent, and we'll say, 'What WAS that homework last night?' " said Birgitta Stone, whose daughter, Gillian, is entering third grade in Ridgefield, Connecticut, next month. "Sometimes I can't even understand the instructions."
Funny, perhaps, but also a little sad. "It's frustrating," Stone said. "You want to help them. And sometimes I can't help her at all."
Still, Stone agrees that kids should be thinking differently about math. And so she doesn't interfere by teaching her kid the old ways. "I don't want to confuse her," she said.
Morey, on the other hand, feels no guilt. She says her son was relieved to learn long division. "He wants a quick and easy way to get the right answer," she said. "Luckily, he had a fabulous teacher who said long division wasn't in her plan, but we were free to do what we wanted at home."
And as for the concepts-before-procedure argument, she quipped: "Would you want to go to a doctor who's learned about the concepts but never done the surgery? Would you want your doctor to say, 'I had the right idea when I removed your appendix, though I took out the wrong one?' "
Such reasoning is not unfamiliar to Pat Cooney. As the math coordinator for six public schools in Ridgefield, which over the past two years have implemented the Growing in Math curriculum, she's seen a lot of angry parents.
"I had one parent who was probably as angry as a parent could be," Cooney said. "I've had irate phone calls. Some think we're giving the kids misinformation. They think we're not doing our jobs."
One problem, Cooney says, is that parents remember math as offering only one way to solve a problem.
"We're saying that there's more than one way," Cooney said. "The outcome will be the same, but how we get there will be different."
Thus, when a parent is asked to multiply 88 by 5, we'll do it with pen and paper, multiplying 8 by 5 and carrying over the 4, etc. But a child today might reason that 5 is half of 10, and 88 times 10 is 880, so 88 times 5 is half of that, 440 -- poof, no pen, no paper.
"The traditional way is really a shortcut," Cooney said. "We want kids to be so confident with numbers that it becomes intuitive."
As for parents, Cooney hopes that if they're teaching kids at home, at least it won't be "let me show you how you really do it," she said. She's spending the rest of her summer working on plans for more family nights at school, to better explain the system.
The "Math Wars" have been playing out since at least 1989, when the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics issued a document recommending concept-based teaching -- which was, the group says, distorted by critics and "exaggerated in every direction."
"Our position is that math ought to be reasonable and kids ought to be able to make sense of it," saidHank Kepner, president of the council and a teacher for the past 45 years.
The problem, he says, is that "a lot of adults view math as a cut-and-dried thing, not a method of reasoning." As for parents enforcing their own methods on kids, "You don't want a kid pitted between parent and teacher," he said. "I would hope there would be an open conversation, involving the teacher." But ultimately, "the more adults a kid sees talking about math, the better."
Sam Pennell, 10, of Brooklyn, hears about math a lot: His dad, Mark, is an architect, and father and son have been known to discuss the volumes of cylinders to be filled with concrete. "He understands the concept of pi," Mark Pennell said of his son. "He doesn't question it too much."
Since Sam is good at math, his father supplements his classroom work with, for example, the old way of multiplying 175 times 142. "I'm doing this to broaden his perspective, to keep him from getting bored," Pennell said. He thinks Sam could be challenged more at school but otherwise isn't hugely bothered by the concept-based curriculum.
His wife, though, finds it mystifying. A writer with degrees from Barnard and Stanford, she still finds herself flummoxed by her son's schoolwork.
"There never seems to be any explanation in the workbooks," Allison Pennell said. "And there's no textbook to refer to." Her son doesn't usually need her help, but when he does, she said, "I'm such a numbskull. I don't think I could pass fourth-grade math."
For teacher Melissa Hedges, a longtime elementary school teacher in Milwaukee, the key is to keep the lines of communication open.
"I'll ask parents to sit down and really have their child walk through what they're doing and why they're doing it," Hedges said. "Even if it's messy. The beauty in math comes from getting involved, knowing what you're doing and why, exploring big ideas."
Remember, Hedges said, "in the end, we're all after the same thing. Sometimes it's easy to lose that focus."
Special Meeting Recap
From the BCCT
District takes steps toward restoring schools
By MANASEE WAGH
After several decades, it’s time to initiate serious updates in Morrisville schools, say area residents.
The school board recently voted 7-1 to start preliminary work to replace the boilers in the high school building and Grandview Elementary.
Some school board members and residents call it the first step toward restoring the schools, which have been in need of repairs for years.
“This is the beginning of something. People should applaud this beginning,” said resident Sharon Hughes.
The district will use Vitetta, a Philadelphia-based architectural and engineering corporation, to begin assessing the work necessary to replace the boilers, as well as looking into two new burners for the elementary school.
Morrisville residents have been calling for a plan to get the deteriorating high school and both elementaries in better shape since the current board canceled plans to build a consolidated K-12 school.
But there’s a problem with taking action on the boilers now, the board minority said.
Evaluating the needs of two schools, designing a custom boiler for each and completing installation could take six months. That would put the project’s conclusion well into the heating season, according to Tim Lastichen, district facilities director.
The price tag for the boilers alone is more than $100,000, not counting the labor and any expenses that could crop up along the way, he said at the Tuesday board meeting.
Some residents and the board minority complained this is a poor time to start an expensive project without a long-term restoration plan that would take the schools’ many other problems into account.
In May, the board voted to hire Wick Fisher White, an engineering firm, to do a $30,000 study of the work needed at the high school and two elementaries. The next step was to advertise for several companies to do that work.
On June, 12 companies submitted proposals to work on all three school buildings. Bill Hellmann, the board president, later cut that down to five and removed M. R. Reiter from the equation without consulting the rest of the board, said board member Robin Reithmeyer at Tuesday’s board meeting.
She voted against going forward on the boiler replacements without a plan that included all three schools.
However, some board members and residents attending the meeting thought it was a bad idea to wait any longer.
“The reason for moving forward is to address an important item,” said board member Brenda Worob, referring to the boilers.
Plus, part of the original $30 million bond that the previous board borrowed to fund a consolidated school needs to be spent soon, Hellmann said.
Board member William Farrell suggested the district not delay the boiler project just because it would take a long time. Maybe the district wouldn’t complete it in time for this year’s cold season, but at least the preparation work would be done, he said.
As for the second elementary school, M. R. Reiter, Lastichen didn’t think it was worth investing in a new boiler, though residents complained that it was too cold for comfort there during the winter.
“Reiter’s so bad, I think it should be bulldozed. I wouldn’t spend money on it,” Lastichen said during the meeting.
M.R. Reiter’s future is still up in the air.
In May, Hellmann unveiled a tentative plan to save money by combining the schools somehow, but no clear action has been taken in that direction yet.
A temporary fix for providing heat in the winter may be to bring modular heaters into Reiter and the other schools, said board member John Buckman.
The district will hold a community action plan meeting at 7 p.m. July 22, in the LGI room of the high school to discuss the boilers and other issues. Residents are encouraged to participate.
District takes steps toward restoring schools
By MANASEE WAGH
After several decades, it’s time to initiate serious updates in Morrisville schools, say area residents.
The school board recently voted 7-1 to start preliminary work to replace the boilers in the high school building and Grandview Elementary.
Some school board members and residents call it the first step toward restoring the schools, which have been in need of repairs for years.
“This is the beginning of something. People should applaud this beginning,” said resident Sharon Hughes.
The district will use Vitetta, a Philadelphia-based architectural and engineering corporation, to begin assessing the work necessary to replace the boilers, as well as looking into two new burners for the elementary school.
Morrisville residents have been calling for a plan to get the deteriorating high school and both elementaries in better shape since the current board canceled plans to build a consolidated K-12 school.
But there’s a problem with taking action on the boilers now, the board minority said.
Evaluating the needs of two schools, designing a custom boiler for each and completing installation could take six months. That would put the project’s conclusion well into the heating season, according to Tim Lastichen, district facilities director.
The price tag for the boilers alone is more than $100,000, not counting the labor and any expenses that could crop up along the way, he said at the Tuesday board meeting.
Some residents and the board minority complained this is a poor time to start an expensive project without a long-term restoration plan that would take the schools’ many other problems into account.
In May, the board voted to hire Wick Fisher White, an engineering firm, to do a $30,000 study of the work needed at the high school and two elementaries. The next step was to advertise for several companies to do that work.
On June, 12 companies submitted proposals to work on all three school buildings. Bill Hellmann, the board president, later cut that down to five and removed M. R. Reiter from the equation without consulting the rest of the board, said board member Robin Reithmeyer at Tuesday’s board meeting.
She voted against going forward on the boiler replacements without a plan that included all three schools.
However, some board members and residents attending the meeting thought it was a bad idea to wait any longer.
“The reason for moving forward is to address an important item,” said board member Brenda Worob, referring to the boilers.
Plus, part of the original $30 million bond that the previous board borrowed to fund a consolidated school needs to be spent soon, Hellmann said.
Board member William Farrell suggested the district not delay the boiler project just because it would take a long time. Maybe the district wouldn’t complete it in time for this year’s cold season, but at least the preparation work would be done, he said.
As for the second elementary school, M. R. Reiter, Lastichen didn’t think it was worth investing in a new boiler, though residents complained that it was too cold for comfort there during the winter.
“Reiter’s so bad, I think it should be bulldozed. I wouldn’t spend money on it,” Lastichen said during the meeting.
M.R. Reiter’s future is still up in the air.
In May, Hellmann unveiled a tentative plan to save money by combining the schools somehow, but no clear action has been taken in that direction yet.
A temporary fix for providing heat in the winter may be to bring modular heaters into Reiter and the other schools, said board member John Buckman.
The district will hold a community action plan meeting at 7 p.m. July 22, in the LGI room of the high school to discuss the boilers and other issues. Residents are encouraged to participate.
Schools News Around the Blogosphere
Economy takes toll on education funding
National Public Radio
By Larry Abrahmson
Education budgets are getting hit by higher costs for fuel and food, and by lower tax revenues due to the real estate downturn. School budgets often take a slap when the economy sputters, as it's doing now. But some states are trying to protect schools from lousy economic conditions.
The Great Crisis in Workforce Skills Debate
Tom Sticht, Columnist EducationNews.org
In June 2008 a National Commission on Adult Literacy presented the final report of a two year study of the skills of the American workforce and the demands for skills in the workplace. Entitled "Reach Higher, America:
Overcoming Crisis in the U.S. Workforce", the report states "Almost a decade into the 21st Century, America faces a choice: We can invest in the basic education and skills of our workforce and remain competitive in today's global economy, or we can continue to overlook glaring evidence of a national crisis and move further down the path to decline."
Student Gains in Privately Managed Philadelphia Schools - Nearly Double Those in District Schools
State Tests Show Increases in Student Achievement at EdisonLearning Schools in both Reading & Math
School test scores recently released by the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment reveal that schools partnering with private education management organizations (EMO's) - including EdisonLearning - showed greater gains in student achievement than the schools operated by the Philadelphia School District.
"a warehouse for children of color."
HISD urged to reconsider alternative schools deal
Houston Chronicle
Ex-official blasts management of alternative schools
The Houston school board must decide next month whether to continue working with the private company that runs the district's two schools for students with serious discipline problems.
Disrupting Class may offer best hope for U.S. schools
Houston Chronicle
Surprise No. 1: America's public schools are actually improving, average scores inching upward despite increased numbers of immigrant and often poorly prepared children.
Teachers 'fear' smart students
The Age
An advocate says schools need special strategies for the gifted. TOO many teachers fear having very bright students in class because they feel ill-equipped to deal with them, according to a visiting campaigner on gifted children.
Calm Down or Else
New York Times
By BENEDICT CAREY
Unable to handle behavior disorders, many schools use forcible restraint. Is it abuse? The children return from school confused, scared and sometimes with bruises on their wrists, arms or face. Many won't talk about what happened, or simply can't, because they are unable to communicate easily, if at all.
National Public Radio
By Larry Abrahmson
Education budgets are getting hit by higher costs for fuel and food, and by lower tax revenues due to the real estate downturn. School budgets often take a slap when the economy sputters, as it's doing now. But some states are trying to protect schools from lousy economic conditions.
The Great Crisis in Workforce Skills Debate
Tom Sticht, Columnist EducationNews.org
In June 2008 a National Commission on Adult Literacy presented the final report of a two year study of the skills of the American workforce and the demands for skills in the workplace. Entitled "Reach Higher, America:
Overcoming Crisis in the U.S. Workforce", the report states "Almost a decade into the 21st Century, America faces a choice: We can invest in the basic education and skills of our workforce and remain competitive in today's global economy, or we can continue to overlook glaring evidence of a national crisis and move further down the path to decline."
Student Gains in Privately Managed Philadelphia Schools - Nearly Double Those in District Schools
State Tests Show Increases in Student Achievement at EdisonLearning Schools in both Reading & Math
School test scores recently released by the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment reveal that schools partnering with private education management organizations (EMO's) - including EdisonLearning - showed greater gains in student achievement than the schools operated by the Philadelphia School District.
"a warehouse for children of color."
HISD urged to reconsider alternative schools deal
Houston Chronicle
Ex-official blasts management of alternative schools
The Houston school board must decide next month whether to continue working with the private company that runs the district's two schools for students with serious discipline problems.
Disrupting Class may offer best hope for U.S. schools
Houston Chronicle
Surprise No. 1: America's public schools are actually improving, average scores inching upward despite increased numbers of immigrant and often poorly prepared children.
Teachers 'fear' smart students
The Age
An advocate says schools need special strategies for the gifted. TOO many teachers fear having very bright students in class because they feel ill-equipped to deal with them, according to a visiting campaigner on gifted children.
Calm Down or Else
New York Times
By BENEDICT CAREY
Unable to handle behavior disorders, many schools use forcible restraint. Is it abuse? The children return from school confused, scared and sometimes with bruises on their wrists, arms or face. Many won't talk about what happened, or simply can't, because they are unable to communicate easily, if at all.
Friday, July 18, 2008
BCCT Slams Bristol Twp Board
Editorial from the BCCT this morning. They make the rhetorical statement, "Board should have sought an authoritative opinion before writing a check."
The Emperor can spend as he pleases and the opinions are as authoritative as he deems at the time. He used a contractor-admitted cursory building review to authorize building repair work that wasn't even completely necessary.
Then there's the line, "Answering questions in a public forum tends to have a purifying effect." It does, and it works in both directions. The BOARD needs to respond to the same questions and have the same accountability to the public.
Burning tax money?
Board should have sought an authoritative opinion before writing a check.
Since when does the Bristol Township school board have money to burn?
Board members voted this week to spend $90,000 for a union contractor to paint various parts of three schools — and have it done before classes begin in September. The about face decision followed last month’s vote against outsourcing the painting work after a representative for the district’s in-house maintenance workers told select board members that the guys on the payroll could get the job done.
What happened?
Apparently, board members opposed to paying a contractor were convinced that the inhouse crew of 21 covering 13 schools couldn’t get the job done before September. That maintenance workers were unable to complete last year’s summer projects list offers some reason to question the behind-the scenes assurance and, perhaps, evidence that the board made the right decision. Still, a spokesman for the maintenance workers said the in-house crew could handle it.
In the interest of accuracy and full disclosure, the board should have required the maintenance boss to sit before the full board at a regular meeting attended by citizens and say definitively if the in-house workers could get the job done or not. Answering questions in a public forum tends to have a purifying effect.
That’s the least the board should have done before voting to spend 90 grand on work the district might have been able to do at no additional cost to taxpayers.
The Emperor can spend as he pleases and the opinions are as authoritative as he deems at the time. He used a contractor-admitted cursory building review to authorize building repair work that wasn't even completely necessary.
Then there's the line, "Answering questions in a public forum tends to have a purifying effect." It does, and it works in both directions. The BOARD needs to respond to the same questions and have the same accountability to the public.
Burning tax money?
Board should have sought an authoritative opinion before writing a check.
Since when does the Bristol Township school board have money to burn?
Board members voted this week to spend $90,000 for a union contractor to paint various parts of three schools — and have it done before classes begin in September. The about face decision followed last month’s vote against outsourcing the painting work after a representative for the district’s in-house maintenance workers told select board members that the guys on the payroll could get the job done.
What happened?
Apparently, board members opposed to paying a contractor were convinced that the inhouse crew of 21 covering 13 schools couldn’t get the job done before September. That maintenance workers were unable to complete last year’s summer projects list offers some reason to question the behind-the scenes assurance and, perhaps, evidence that the board made the right decision. Still, a spokesman for the maintenance workers said the in-house crew could handle it.
In the interest of accuracy and full disclosure, the board should have required the maintenance boss to sit before the full board at a regular meeting attended by citizens and say definitively if the in-house workers could get the job done or not. Answering questions in a public forum tends to have a purifying effect.
That’s the least the board should have done before voting to spend 90 grand on work the district might have been able to do at no additional cost to taxpayers.
Centennial Rebukes Their President/Emperor Trainee
Sheep on the Centennial board? Perhaps not. "...board members expressed concern that Monaghan made the directive without the issue first being considered by the full board. 'He has no authority to do that. He should know that just because you are president doesn’t mean you can do things unilaterally. You have no more power than other board members,' Vice President Cynthia Mueller said."
On our board, those same complaints go unheeded and unchecked. The Emperor continues his autocratic rule out of his personal accounting offices, inviting only a few sheepish cronies to share information at his pleasure and whim.
Added signs questioned
The full board never discussed including 30 advertising signs in its zoning board application for a scoreboard at Claude Lodge Field, officials said.
By JOAN HELLYER
Centennial school board members want to know why their board president allegedly directed a district employee to make an addition to a zoning board application without their knowledge.
The application is for the new Coca-Cola scoreboard at Claude Lodge Field behind William Tennent High School in Warminster.
Without the other school directors’ knowledge, board President Michael Monaghan allegedly told Centennial Director of Facilities Vic Lasher to add 30 signs for Tennent’s baseball field to the application.
Some board members said they learned of the addition during a recent Rotary meeting, when Monaghan discussed the advertising signs. They brought it up during the board’s operations committee meeting Tuesday night.
“It’s embarrassing that we did not know about the signs,” board member Jane Schrader Lynch said.
Monaghan didn’t attend the committee meeting because he was representing the district at the Bucks County Schools Intermediate Unit #22 meeting in Doylestown.
The Courier Times was unsuccessful this week in its attempts to reach Monaghan for comment despite calls made to his Warminster home and messages sent to his district e-mail address.
Board members said their first concern is that the addition to the application might jeopardize approval of the 36-foot-by-24-foot Coca-Cola scoreboard. It’s scheduled to be installed in the newly renovated sports facility Aug. 15.
In addition, board members expressed concern that Monaghan made the directive without the issue first being considered by the full board.
“He has no authority to do that. He should know that just because you are president doesn’t mean you can do things unilaterally. You have no more power than other board members,” Vice President Cynthia Mueller said.
Board members Joseph Simpson and Thomas Reinboth said they didn’t want to discuss the issue any further until they had a chance to hear from Monaghan.
The school directors expect to discuss the signs again during an Aug. 11 finance committee meeting, Mueller said. At that time, they’ll decide whether to direct Lasher to remove the signs from the application before district officials seek the Warminster zoning board’s approval for the scoreboard on Aug. 13, she said.
On our board, those same complaints go unheeded and unchecked. The Emperor continues his autocratic rule out of his personal accounting offices, inviting only a few sheepish cronies to share information at his pleasure and whim.
Added signs questioned
The full board never discussed including 30 advertising signs in its zoning board application for a scoreboard at Claude Lodge Field, officials said.
By JOAN HELLYER
Centennial school board members want to know why their board president allegedly directed a district employee to make an addition to a zoning board application without their knowledge.
The application is for the new Coca-Cola scoreboard at Claude Lodge Field behind William Tennent High School in Warminster.
Without the other school directors’ knowledge, board President Michael Monaghan allegedly told Centennial Director of Facilities Vic Lasher to add 30 signs for Tennent’s baseball field to the application.
Some board members said they learned of the addition during a recent Rotary meeting, when Monaghan discussed the advertising signs. They brought it up during the board’s operations committee meeting Tuesday night.
“It’s embarrassing that we did not know about the signs,” board member Jane Schrader Lynch said.
Monaghan didn’t attend the committee meeting because he was representing the district at the Bucks County Schools Intermediate Unit #22 meeting in Doylestown.
The Courier Times was unsuccessful this week in its attempts to reach Monaghan for comment despite calls made to his Warminster home and messages sent to his district e-mail address.
Board members said their first concern is that the addition to the application might jeopardize approval of the 36-foot-by-24-foot Coca-Cola scoreboard. It’s scheduled to be installed in the newly renovated sports facility Aug. 15.
In addition, board members expressed concern that Monaghan made the directive without the issue first being considered by the full board.
“He has no authority to do that. He should know that just because you are president doesn’t mean you can do things unilaterally. You have no more power than other board members,” Vice President Cynthia Mueller said.
Board members Joseph Simpson and Thomas Reinboth said they didn’t want to discuss the issue any further until they had a chance to hear from Monaghan.
The school directors expect to discuss the signs again during an Aug. 11 finance committee meeting, Mueller said. At that time, they’ll decide whether to direct Lasher to remove the signs from the application before district officials seek the Warminster zoning board’s approval for the scoreboard on Aug. 13, she said.
School districts aren’t cutting summer programs
From the BCCT today.
School districts aren’t cutting summer programs
Across the country school districts are cutting them to save money, but not in Bucks.
FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS
From coast to coast, tough financial conditions are forcing school districts and nonprofit groups to cut back on summer programs that are widely viewed as invaluable to both struggling and superior students.
But in Bucks, many district administrators on Wednesday said their summer programs and camps are running as scheduled with stable enrollment figures.
The casualties elsewhere include enrichment programs offering Mandarin and dance — as well as remedial programs in basic subjects designed to help children from low-income and disadvantaged homes avoid the so-called “summer slide” that often undermines their academic progress.
“Summer is a time when affluent kids advance and low-income kids suffer huge setbacks,” said Ron Fairchild, executive director of Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Summer Learning. “If kids aren’t engaged in ongoing learning activities, they lose ground academically.”
Fairchild also noted that summer programs are a source of free or low-cost meals for many disadvantaged children — meaning that cutbacks can have consequences for nutrition as well as learning.
Across the country, thousands of students are affected by cutbacks, ranging from Bethel, Conn., which axed its kindergarten summer program, to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, which is dropping summer school for elementary and middle school students.
Schools in Bucks County, though, reported that they’re hosting their usual number of summer courses and camps. In fact, Bensalem added a middle school level summer program to its agenda, officials said.
Bristol Township, Centennial, Council Rock, Morrisville, Neshaminy and Pennsbury school district officials also said they haven’t canceled any classes due to budget constraints. And although enrollment has slightly decreased in some schools, including in Bensalem and Neshaminy, other programs in those districts have attracted stable registration numbers, administrators said.
Several schools in Bucks County made cuts elsewhere in their budgets to save such programs. For example, officials closed Neshaminy Middle School to save money.
Other states, such as Florida and California, are making widespread cuts as a result of severe state budget woes.
In the city of Santa Rosa, Calif., about 1,580 high school students took summer school classes last year, but fewer than 300 will do so this year, according to Arlen Agapinan, the school district’s director of curriculum for secondary schools.
Trying to slash more than $2 million from its budget, the district is giving priority this summer to students needing help passing the high school exit exam and to seniors needing five or fewer credits to earn a diploma. That means no enrichment courses in subjects like Mandarin or creative writing — and none of the accelerated classes, which in the past had enabled good students to enhance their transcripts.
“We want to help everybody, but we’re handcuffed by the budget,” Agapinan said.
In Florida’s Bevard County, home to the Kennedy Space Center, the school district cut all of its free summer enrichment programs, which last year served some 1,700 students and included a popular course in criminal investigations. A few fee-based programs remain, but otherwise the summer session is focused almost entirely on remedial work for students who fared poorly on the state’s Comprehensive Assessment Test.
School districts aren’t cutting summer programs
Across the country school districts are cutting them to save money, but not in Bucks.
FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS
From coast to coast, tough financial conditions are forcing school districts and nonprofit groups to cut back on summer programs that are widely viewed as invaluable to both struggling and superior students.
But in Bucks, many district administrators on Wednesday said their summer programs and camps are running as scheduled with stable enrollment figures.
The casualties elsewhere include enrichment programs offering Mandarin and dance — as well as remedial programs in basic subjects designed to help children from low-income and disadvantaged homes avoid the so-called “summer slide” that often undermines their academic progress.
“Summer is a time when affluent kids advance and low-income kids suffer huge setbacks,” said Ron Fairchild, executive director of Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Summer Learning. “If kids aren’t engaged in ongoing learning activities, they lose ground academically.”
Fairchild also noted that summer programs are a source of free or low-cost meals for many disadvantaged children — meaning that cutbacks can have consequences for nutrition as well as learning.
Across the country, thousands of students are affected by cutbacks, ranging from Bethel, Conn., which axed its kindergarten summer program, to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, which is dropping summer school for elementary and middle school students.
Schools in Bucks County, though, reported that they’re hosting their usual number of summer courses and camps. In fact, Bensalem added a middle school level summer program to its agenda, officials said.
Bristol Township, Centennial, Council Rock, Morrisville, Neshaminy and Pennsbury school district officials also said they haven’t canceled any classes due to budget constraints. And although enrollment has slightly decreased in some schools, including in Bensalem and Neshaminy, other programs in those districts have attracted stable registration numbers, administrators said.
Several schools in Bucks County made cuts elsewhere in their budgets to save such programs. For example, officials closed Neshaminy Middle School to save money.
Other states, such as Florida and California, are making widespread cuts as a result of severe state budget woes.
In the city of Santa Rosa, Calif., about 1,580 high school students took summer school classes last year, but fewer than 300 will do so this year, according to Arlen Agapinan, the school district’s director of curriculum for secondary schools.
Trying to slash more than $2 million from its budget, the district is giving priority this summer to students needing help passing the high school exit exam and to seniors needing five or fewer credits to earn a diploma. That means no enrichment courses in subjects like Mandarin or creative writing — and none of the accelerated classes, which in the past had enabled good students to enhance their transcripts.
“We want to help everybody, but we’re handcuffed by the budget,” Agapinan said.
In Florida’s Bevard County, home to the Kennedy Space Center, the school district cut all of its free summer enrichment programs, which last year served some 1,700 students and included a popular course in criminal investigations. A few fee-based programs remain, but otherwise the summer session is focused almost entirely on remedial work for students who fared poorly on the state’s Comprehensive Assessment Test.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Mandela: His 8 Lessons of Leadership
From TIME Magazine. Eight great leadership lessons from former political prisoner and South African President Nelson Mandela.
- Courage is not the absence of fear — it's inspiring others to move beyond it
- Lead from the front — but don't leave your base behind
- Lead from the back — and let others believe they are in front
- Know your enemy — and learn about his favorite sport
- Keep your friends close — and your rivals even closer
- Appearances matter — and remember to smile
- Nothing is black or white
- Quitting is leading too
Jazz in the Park Sunday
Don't forget the Jazz in the Park on Sunday July 20
Jazz in the park
Posted Wednesday, July 16th, 2008 at 8:32 pm by Andy Vineberg, Courier Times entertainment writer
Talented Philadelphia vocalist Ella Gahnt highlights the 5th annual Morrisville Jazz Festival, scheduled for 3-9 p.m. Sunday at Williamson Park on Delmorr Ave. in Morrisville. Admission is free.
Gahnt has performed in prestigious jazz venues throughout the city and region. You can listen to her sing on her 2006 album of jazz standards, “By Request.”
Also performing Sunday are the Donna Antonow Trio, Arpeggio Jazz Ensemble, the Eric Mintel Quartet and Midnight Sun Orchestra. For more information, call 215-295-8181 or visit www.morrisvillejazzfest.com.
Jazz in the park
Posted Wednesday, July 16th, 2008 at 8:32 pm by Andy Vineberg, Courier Times entertainment writer
Talented Philadelphia vocalist Ella Gahnt highlights the 5th annual Morrisville Jazz Festival, scheduled for 3-9 p.m. Sunday at Williamson Park on Delmorr Ave. in Morrisville. Admission is free.
Gahnt has performed in prestigious jazz venues throughout the city and region. You can listen to her sing on her 2006 album of jazz standards, “By Request.”
Also performing Sunday are the Donna Antonow Trio, Arpeggio Jazz Ensemble, the Eric Mintel Quartet and Midnight Sun Orchestra. For more information, call 215-295-8181 or visit www.morrisvillejazzfest.com.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
All Star Break
Following last night's marathon All-Star Game in the Bronx, attention shifts crosstown to Queens, where Shea Stadium will be hosting the Piano Man for two concerts.
What does this have to do with education? Nothing, other than to show what can be accomplished with eager students, dedicated teachers, and a great community.
Tell me you didn't think that was awesome!
What does this have to do with education? Nothing, other than to show what can be accomplished with eager students, dedicated teachers, and a great community.
Tell me you didn't think that was awesome!
How Do you Make an Emperor Talk?
Answer: By the book
OK. It's not anywhere near the standard criteria for a joke, but thanks to the emailer who sent this link to the public records access board policy. It even has the handy-dandy request form attached. We can lift up the rock that the Emperor seems to like to hide under.
I came across the following, which brought to mind some interesting questions.
http://www.mv.org/files/70807/Microsoft%20Word%20-%206704%20APPR%203-29-06.pdf
Public records policy
“The Board recognizes that individual Board members have no right greater than that of the general public to obtain public information from the District. The possibility exists that a Board member may need information for research that is not relevant to current Board business. Understanding that Board members must respect the time constraints of District staff, the information will be distributed to the Board member within three (3) business days. All other Board members will be notified of the request and distribution and may request that copies be provided to then entire Board.”
It seems that, from time to time, Mr. Hellmann has gathered information and the rest of the board is not aware that he has done so. Is it possible that the administrative office is not, or has been directed to not, provide the rest of the board with notification when he requests public information under this policy?
Further, I read the following:
“All audio and video tapes of public Board meetings will be destroyed in August each year, prior to the start of the next academic year, upon approval of the minutes for the last Board meeting in the previous academic year.”
I was unaware of this portion of the policy. I can understand the need to conserve storage space by not having volumes of audio and video. However, I would think that, as part of the public record, these should be kept for a minimum of 7 years. Further, with today’s technology, they could easily be digitized and stored on the districts computer storage for little or no cost (as well as be available for distribution at no cost). Has anyone considered this? Is anyone concerned with the loss of nuanced public records that have not been fully transcribed ?
OK. It's not anywhere near the standard criteria for a joke, but thanks to the emailer who sent this link to the public records access board policy. It even has the handy-dandy request form attached. We can lift up the rock that the Emperor seems to like to hide under.
I came across the following, which brought to mind some interesting questions.
http://www.mv.org/files/70807/Microsoft%20Word%20-%206704%20APPR%203-29-06.pdf
Public records policy
“The Board recognizes that individual Board members have no right greater than that of the general public to obtain public information from the District. The possibility exists that a Board member may need information for research that is not relevant to current Board business. Understanding that Board members must respect the time constraints of District staff, the information will be distributed to the Board member within three (3) business days. All other Board members will be notified of the request and distribution and may request that copies be provided to then entire Board.”
It seems that, from time to time, Mr. Hellmann has gathered information and the rest of the board is not aware that he has done so. Is it possible that the administrative office is not, or has been directed to not, provide the rest of the board with notification when he requests public information under this policy?
Further, I read the following:
“All audio and video tapes of public Board meetings will be destroyed in August each year, prior to the start of the next academic year, upon approval of the minutes for the last Board meeting in the previous academic year.”
I was unaware of this portion of the policy. I can understand the need to conserve storage space by not having volumes of audio and video. However, I would think that, as part of the public record, these should be kept for a minimum of 7 years. Further, with today’s technology, they could easily be digitized and stored on the districts computer storage for little or no cost (as well as be available for distribution at no cost). Has anyone considered this? Is anyone concerned with the loss of nuanced public records that have not been fully transcribed ?
Special Meeting Recap
It seems like things were Morrisville-style quiet last night. Does anyone else want to chime in?
To all readers of the blog,
During the public comment portion of the special school board meeting, a particularly vocal board supporter decided to not address his comments to us but rather to turn towards those he disagreed with (myself included) and address us. I found this disappointing and infuriating since none of the comments I made during my three minutes addressed him or board supporters, only the board and Mr. Hellmann. I interrupted his public comments to insist that he address the board, not us.
He didn't like this, and neither did a woman who thought video-taping my displeasure might have a shaming or calming effect. It had neither. I gave her video camera the DeNiro "two fingers from my eyes to yours" hoping she'd stop filming me. This didn't happen. I flipped her the middle finger.
Unfortunately, this was seen by one of the board members who publicly chastised me.
I'm sorry if my behavior embarrassed anyone who would consider me friend. I crossed a line that shouldn't be crossed. I'm sorry.
I'm not sure how I'll respond when someone decides to videotape me without my permission but I won't do that again.
John Ceneviva Jr.
To all readers of the blog,
During the public comment portion of the special school board meeting, a particularly vocal board supporter decided to not address his comments to us but rather to turn towards those he disagreed with (myself included) and address us. I found this disappointing and infuriating since none of the comments I made during my three minutes addressed him or board supporters, only the board and Mr. Hellmann. I interrupted his public comments to insist that he address the board, not us.
He didn't like this, and neither did a woman who thought video-taping my displeasure might have a shaming or calming effect. It had neither. I gave her video camera the DeNiro "two fingers from my eyes to yours" hoping she'd stop filming me. This didn't happen. I flipped her the middle finger.
Unfortunately, this was seen by one of the board members who publicly chastised me.
I'm sorry if my behavior embarrassed anyone who would consider me friend. I crossed a line that shouldn't be crossed. I'm sorry.
I'm not sure how I'll respond when someone decides to videotape me without my permission but I won't do that again.
John Ceneviva Jr.
Rendell vetoes bans on real-estate tax appeals
From the Inquirer
Rendell vetoes bans on real-estate tax appeals
By Anthony R. Wood Posted on Tue, Jul. 15, 2008
Inquirer Staff Writer
Two bills that school officials say would have meant tax increases and millions in lost revenue in their districts were vetoed yesterday by Gov. Rendell.
Rendell said in his veto message that he wanted to see a major change in state law that would force counties to reassess real estate more frequently.
Under current law, counties have to assess all real estate parcels at the same time, and are forbidden from raising values on individual properties except in the cases of new homes or significant renovations.
However, a little-known provision gives school districts - the beneficiaries of most of the property-tax money - and towns the option of appealing individual assessments that they view as too low. The House and Senate bills that Rendell vetoed would have ended that practice.
Some tax experts argue that the practice is unconstitutional because it essentially allows schools and towns the right to engage in selective "spot assessments."
School officials counter that when property owners are underassessed - especially owners of pricey commercial real estate - homeowners end up subsidizing them. Since counties can go decades without reassessments, the inequities persist for decades as well.
"We don't have a remedy if we can't appeal," said Raymond Wendolowski, a solicitor for the Wilkes-Barre School District, which recently gained about $21 million in a settlement with the Mohegan Sun casino.
In a memo he sent to Rendell asking the governor to veto the bills, he pointed out that Luzerne County had not reassessed in more than 40 years.
Daniel C. Rudderow, a consultant with Keystone Realty Advisers in Haddonfield, which has lobbied against the bills, proposed that the bills could be amended to protect homeowners from spot assessments.
It is not known how many districts have used the "reverse appeal" option, but several in the Philadelphia area have. They include the Springfield Township district in Delaware County, which recently won a major increase after it filed appeals on stores in Springfield Mall.
In his veto message, Rendell noted that the reverse appeal was immensely popular in Schuylkill County, where more than 3,000 appeals have been filed in the last three years.
Rendell said the real problem was a law that allows counties to wait indefinitely between politically unpopular reassessments. He challenged the legislature to come up with a "long-term solution to this problem - the passage of legislation that would compel regular assessments."
Rendell vetoes bans on real-estate tax appeals
By Anthony R. Wood Posted on Tue, Jul. 15, 2008
Inquirer Staff Writer
Two bills that school officials say would have meant tax increases and millions in lost revenue in their districts were vetoed yesterday by Gov. Rendell.
Rendell said in his veto message that he wanted to see a major change in state law that would force counties to reassess real estate more frequently.
Under current law, counties have to assess all real estate parcels at the same time, and are forbidden from raising values on individual properties except in the cases of new homes or significant renovations.
However, a little-known provision gives school districts - the beneficiaries of most of the property-tax money - and towns the option of appealing individual assessments that they view as too low. The House and Senate bills that Rendell vetoed would have ended that practice.
Some tax experts argue that the practice is unconstitutional because it essentially allows schools and towns the right to engage in selective "spot assessments."
School officials counter that when property owners are underassessed - especially owners of pricey commercial real estate - homeowners end up subsidizing them. Since counties can go decades without reassessments, the inequities persist for decades as well.
"We don't have a remedy if we can't appeal," said Raymond Wendolowski, a solicitor for the Wilkes-Barre School District, which recently gained about $21 million in a settlement with the Mohegan Sun casino.
In a memo he sent to Rendell asking the governor to veto the bills, he pointed out that Luzerne County had not reassessed in more than 40 years.
Daniel C. Rudderow, a consultant with Keystone Realty Advisers in Haddonfield, which has lobbied against the bills, proposed that the bills could be amended to protect homeowners from spot assessments.
It is not known how many districts have used the "reverse appeal" option, but several in the Philadelphia area have. They include the Springfield Township district in Delaware County, which recently won a major increase after it filed appeals on stores in Springfield Mall.
In his veto message, Rendell noted that the reverse appeal was immensely popular in Schuylkill County, where more than 3,000 appeals have been filed in the last three years.
Rendell said the real problem was a law that allows counties to wait indefinitely between politically unpopular reassessments. He challenged the legislature to come up with a "long-term solution to this problem - the passage of legislation that would compel regular assessments."
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Parents At Disadvantage In Current Special Ed Appeals System
Thanks to the emailer who sent me this. Check out the Action Alert link, where you can contact your state representative and senator.
Action Alert
Assign Burden of Proof in IDEA Disputes to School District
Parents At Disadvantage In Current System
The U.S Supreme Court decision in Schaffer vs. Weast determined that, unless state rules indicate otherwise, the party "seeking relief" has the burden of proof in IDEA due process proceedings. The Court acknowledged that school districts have a natural advantage over parents in such disputes, particularly when it comes to resources. Prior to this court decision, Pennsylvania school districts had the burden of proof, regardless of who requested the due process hearing. Therefore, it was the obligation of the district to present its case first. Such an allocation of the burden made sense, as it is the school district that has the duty to provide FAPE (free and appropriate public education) in the least restrictive environment. Moreover, it is practical, productive, time-saving, and cost-minimizing to have the school district (which has the easiest access to the student's records and the teachers and experts that work with the child daily) to testify first at the hearing. A large percentage of parents are unrepresented during due process hearings.
Action Alert
Assign Burden of Proof in IDEA Disputes to School District
Parents At Disadvantage In Current System
The U.S Supreme Court decision in Schaffer vs. Weast determined that, unless state rules indicate otherwise, the party "seeking relief" has the burden of proof in IDEA due process proceedings. The Court acknowledged that school districts have a natural advantage over parents in such disputes, particularly when it comes to resources. Prior to this court decision, Pennsylvania school districts had the burden of proof, regardless of who requested the due process hearing. Therefore, it was the obligation of the district to present its case first. Such an allocation of the burden made sense, as it is the school district that has the duty to provide FAPE (free and appropriate public education) in the least restrictive environment. Moreover, it is practical, productive, time-saving, and cost-minimizing to have the school district (which has the easiest access to the student's records and the teachers and experts that work with the child daily) to testify first at the hearing. A large percentage of parents are unrepresented during due process hearings.
With the U.S. Supreme Court decision, parents were placed at a disadvantage. Pennsylvania has no statute or regulation that assigns the burden of proof to school districts. Few parents go into this process with the resources or knowledge to properly present their child's case against seasoned professionals and bureaucrats representing school districts.
The Arc urges passage of legislation that places the burden of proof in special education matters onto school districts rather than parents. House Bill 2438 has been introduced by House Speaker Dennis O'Brien, and Senate Education Committee Chairman James Rhoades has introduced Senate Bill 1414, both of which would assign the burden of proof in IDEA disputes to the school district and not the parent. The only exception would be if the parent has unilaterally chosen a private school placement, which usually means a segregated setting. The legislation also requires school districts to complete special education evaluations within 60 calendar days year round (Chapter 14 regulations exempt summer months from the count).
Members of both the state Senate and House of Representatives should be urged to cosponsor these pieces of legislation right away and work to pass one of the bills before the end of the 2008 legislative session.
Greenland: Do You Want the Good News or the Bad News?
Here's an update on the beleaguered Greenland Arkansas school district.
July 10: Fundraiser anchors efforts to keep Greenland School District independent
The Board of Education set a lofty goal to raise $ 321, 000 in donations or pledges by Sunday afternoon in its efforts to convince the state the district shouldn't be annexed due to financial shortcomings. A major piece of the fundraising will be the "Save the School" fundraiser [Ed Note: Nice name!] planned for Saturday on the school campus. The district is also asking for pledges in hopes that getting as close to the number as possible will convince the Arkansas State Board of Education not to annex Greenland to another system.
July 12: TIMELINE: Greenland's Financial Woes
July 12: Optimism The Word For Greenland Residents
Mounds of clothing and boxes filled with everything from puzzles to a pair of rubber boots is the last-ditch effort to save the Greenland School District. Optimism is the word for many in Greenland in the face of Monday's decision by the state Board of Education which could force a neighboring school district, such as Fayetteville, to swallow Greenland's. The rummage sale and auctions at the school's campus are all supporters have left to erase the district's negative balance of some $400,000.
Then came the decision from the state board of education yesterday: The Arkansas State Board of Education spared the Greenland School District from annexation and instead opted to place the district under state control for the foreseeable future Monday. Education Commissioner Ken James said he would formally notify the Greenland Board of Education of the decision by letter, which is standard procedure in a takeover. He will give the board reports on district progress with improving its financial situation every three months. He will appoint his own superintendent and dismiss the school board as part of the change, he said. The board voted 5-0 to defer annexation and assume control of the district.
July 10: Fundraiser anchors efforts to keep Greenland School District independent
The Board of Education set a lofty goal to raise $ 321, 000 in donations or pledges by Sunday afternoon in its efforts to convince the state the district shouldn't be annexed due to financial shortcomings. A major piece of the fundraising will be the "Save the School" fundraiser [Ed Note: Nice name!] planned for Saturday on the school campus. The district is also asking for pledges in hopes that getting as close to the number as possible will convince the Arkansas State Board of Education not to annex Greenland to another system.
July 12: TIMELINE: Greenland's Financial Woes
July 12: Optimism The Word For Greenland Residents
Mounds of clothing and boxes filled with everything from puzzles to a pair of rubber boots is the last-ditch effort to save the Greenland School District. Optimism is the word for many in Greenland in the face of Monday's decision by the state Board of Education which could force a neighboring school district, such as Fayetteville, to swallow Greenland's. The rummage sale and auctions at the school's campus are all supporters have left to erase the district's negative balance of some $400,000.
Then came the decision from the state board of education yesterday: The Arkansas State Board of Education spared the Greenland School District from annexation and instead opted to place the district under state control for the foreseeable future Monday. Education Commissioner Ken James said he would formally notify the Greenland Board of Education of the decision by letter, which is standard procedure in a takeover. He will give the board reports on district progress with improving its financial situation every three months. He will appoint his own superintendent and dismiss the school board as part of the change, he said. The board voted 5-0 to defer annexation and assume control of the district.
Earned Income Tax?
Maybe so in Newtown Township. “In this unstable economy, it’s going to concern people,” he said. “I just think there is a negative mindset that will make people apprehensive and vote it down.” Stop by Morrisville. We have a beautiful vista of a magnificent negative mindset.
Board mulls tax hike
Supervisors would use the extra funds to purchase open space.
By CHRISTIAN MENNO
An earned income tax increase could be on the way for Newtown Township.
A public hearing on the increase, which would be used to fund open space, will be on the board of supervisors’ July 23 agenda.
The board last week voted 3-2 to hold the public hearing, which is required to get a tax referendum on the ballot in November. Supervisors Phillip Calabro and Jerry Schenkman voted against the move.
If approved at the polls, the tax hike wouldn’t take effect until an ordinance is enacted. And that, the board members said, wouldn’t happen until land is purchased. The increased part of the tax would remain in effect only until the necessary funds are raised to pay for the purchase, officials said.
“The solicitor will present the board with four different tax percentages, up to a .25 percent increase,” Supervisor Michael Gallagher said. “It will probably be closer to .1 percent, which would generate about $1.1 million.”
Working residents and non-residents employed in the township already pay a 1 percent EIT, split between the Council Rock School District and the township. If a .1 percent increase is approved by voters, the school district would continue to receive its .5 percent, while the township’s portion would increase to .6 percent.
About 41 percent of the increased revenue would come from non-residents, said Gallagher, citing the township’s most recent budget report. According to the census, 18,206 people live in the township. Data wasn’t available on how many people work in the township.
With the average income of township residents at approximately $34,335, according to the 2000 census, a .1 percent EIT hike would cost the average resident $34.34 per year, boosting the total paid to the township to $206.01. That would make the total EIT $377.69 for the average resident.
Proponents of the EIT increase say it’s better than a property tax hike.
Calabro said his problem is not with the tax hike, but the timing.
“In this unstable economy, it’s going to concern people,” he said. “I just think there is a negative mindset that will make people apprehensive and vote it down.”
That would set the open space progress back, perhaps another two years, he said, noting a similar open space referendum was defeated eight years ago during a decidedly positive economic period.
Open space supporter and resident Sue Beasley agreed.
“Let’s just get over the economic crisis and then go forward from there,” she said. “I would just hate to see another referendum defeated. It would send a terrible message that Newtown residents don’t care about this issue.”
Supervisor Robert Ciervo said the timing is right.
“I think this is the exact time with real estate being at its lowest level and only about to go up,” he said. “We know the parcels available and which ones we want to be protected. We can’t wait on this, because two years from now, they most likely won’t be available.”
Board Chairman Robert Jirele cited the Melsky tract as an example of a piece of property that could have been preserved as open space but has since been sold and developed.
If the tax referendum fails in November, Jirele said that alternative revenue streams and potential purchases would be cautiously explored to preserve open space.
Jeffrey Marshall, a resident and vice president of Resource Protection of the Heritage Conservancy group, said hesitation would prove costly.
“We don’t know if the economy is going to be better in six months or a year,” he said. “It’s better to be ahead of the curve instead of behind. Because once it’s gone, it’s gone.”
Board mulls tax hike
Supervisors would use the extra funds to purchase open space.
By CHRISTIAN MENNO
An earned income tax increase could be on the way for Newtown Township.
A public hearing on the increase, which would be used to fund open space, will be on the board of supervisors’ July 23 agenda.
The board last week voted 3-2 to hold the public hearing, which is required to get a tax referendum on the ballot in November. Supervisors Phillip Calabro and Jerry Schenkman voted against the move.
If approved at the polls, the tax hike wouldn’t take effect until an ordinance is enacted. And that, the board members said, wouldn’t happen until land is purchased. The increased part of the tax would remain in effect only until the necessary funds are raised to pay for the purchase, officials said.
“The solicitor will present the board with four different tax percentages, up to a .25 percent increase,” Supervisor Michael Gallagher said. “It will probably be closer to .1 percent, which would generate about $1.1 million.”
Working residents and non-residents employed in the township already pay a 1 percent EIT, split between the Council Rock School District and the township. If a .1 percent increase is approved by voters, the school district would continue to receive its .5 percent, while the township’s portion would increase to .6 percent.
About 41 percent of the increased revenue would come from non-residents, said Gallagher, citing the township’s most recent budget report. According to the census, 18,206 people live in the township. Data wasn’t available on how many people work in the township.
With the average income of township residents at approximately $34,335, according to the 2000 census, a .1 percent EIT hike would cost the average resident $34.34 per year, boosting the total paid to the township to $206.01. That would make the total EIT $377.69 for the average resident.
Proponents of the EIT increase say it’s better than a property tax hike.
Calabro said his problem is not with the tax hike, but the timing.
“In this unstable economy, it’s going to concern people,” he said. “I just think there is a negative mindset that will make people apprehensive and vote it down.”
That would set the open space progress back, perhaps another two years, he said, noting a similar open space referendum was defeated eight years ago during a decidedly positive economic period.
Open space supporter and resident Sue Beasley agreed.
“Let’s just get over the economic crisis and then go forward from there,” she said. “I would just hate to see another referendum defeated. It would send a terrible message that Newtown residents don’t care about this issue.”
Supervisor Robert Ciervo said the timing is right.
“I think this is the exact time with real estate being at its lowest level and only about to go up,” he said. “We know the parcels available and which ones we want to be protected. We can’t wait on this, because two years from now, they most likely won’t be available.”
Board Chairman Robert Jirele cited the Melsky tract as an example of a piece of property that could have been preserved as open space but has since been sold and developed.
If the tax referendum fails in November, Jirele said that alternative revenue streams and potential purchases would be cautiously explored to preserve open space.
Jeffrey Marshall, a resident and vice president of Resource Protection of the Heritage Conservancy group, said hesitation would prove costly.
“We don’t know if the economy is going to be better in six months or a year,” he said. “It’s better to be ahead of the curve instead of behind. Because once it’s gone, it’s gone.”
Constitutional Convention?
From the BCCT. “How can the commonwealth keep up with today’s changing world if we are still living by guidelines set in the 1800s?” The U.S. Constitution was last done in 1787. When we follow its rules, we seem to do just fine.
Then there's an editorial where the BCCT agrees with the concept.
A call made to overhaul constitution
Two Bucks lawmakers say it’s time for a constitutional convention. Pennsylvania is operating under guidelines set in the 1800s.
By JAMES MCGINNIS
Two Bucks County lawmakers are calling for changes to the state’s Constitution to bring about “true reform.”
State Reps. Chris King, D-142, and John Galloway, D-140, said they want a voter referendum on the ballot in November. If approved by voters, a constitutional convention could convene in December.
Each senatorial district would send three convention delegates who are elected by the general public.
In a bill introduced in the House July 4, Galloway and King estimated the convention would need a budget of at least $20 million. No one currently holding state office could sit on the convention, according to the bill.
Galloway and King introduced a similar bill in March 2007. But that bill never made it to the House floor.
The last time the Pennsylvania Constitution was given a “comprehensive look” Ulysses Grant was in the White House, Galloway said.
“One could not imagine a company conducting over $50 billion worth of business and employing 55,000 workers would not routinely review and update its strategic plan,” Galloway said. “How can the commonwealth keep up with today’s changing world if we are still living by guidelines set in the 1800s?”
“The need for a state constitutional convention is clear and convincing,” King said. “Many of our freshman colleagues in the House were elected to bring reform to Pennsylvania. A citizens’ constitutional convention is the most important reform this commonwealth could undertake.”
---------------------------
Broken system
The state Legislature is a dysfunctional body in need of repair. Citizens should be entrusted to fix it.
Anybody who’s watched the goings-on in Harrisburg for a few years or even a few days knows that often there’s not much going on. Not much we can call progress. There’s plenty of politics and all sorts of chicanery as recent indictments indicate. But there’s little progress on issues that really matter to people.
Property taxes, for example. Lawmakers have been trying for decades to do something about this unfair and increasingly costly means of paying for our schools. After numerous false starts and two alleged reform laws, not much has changed. Lawmakers talk about change constantly, but most don’t have the guts or the moxie to support the real thing.
Then there’s redistricting, the census-dictated process of reshaping legislative districts to reflect population shifts. Legislative leaders have turned this into a jigsaw puzzle contest.
In an effort to protect incumbents, far-flung neighborhoods sometimes stretching from one county to another are drafted into a district to pack in as many Democratic or Republican voters as possible. This highly political process makes it virtually impossible to defeat incumbents, depriving the Legislature of much needed independent voices with new ideas.
One of the few new ideas to come out of Harrisburg belongs to state Reps. John Galloway and Chris King, freshman Democrats from Falls and Middletown respectively. The two reformers have introduced legislation to place a referendum on the Nov. 4 ballot calling for a “citizens’ constitutional convention.”
The idea is to let a delegation of citizens — three elected from each of the state’s 50 senatorial districts — review and reform a state government that no longer seems capable of serving the interests of citizens. The convention would last nine months.
“One could not imagine a company conducting over $50 billion worth of business and employing 55,000 workers that would not routinely review and update its strategic plan,” Galloway said, raising this logical question: “How can the commonwealth keep up with today’s changing world if we are still living by guidelines set in the 1800s?”
Answer: Not very well.
Essentially, our state government is broken. And by government, we mean the Legislature, which is dominated by entrenched “leaders” who keep change at bay by controlling the legislative agenda, committee assignments, the money — you name it, they own it.
Instated, Galloway and King want to “allow the people to own the government again. We should trust them to look at our Constitution and do the right thing,” Galloway said, adding that lawmakers have a “credibility problem.”
He’s right about that. One scandal after another has practically destroyed our faith in Harrisburg. Maybe it’s time, as the old saying goes, to give the power to the people. They couldn’t do any worse.
Then there's an editorial where the BCCT agrees with the concept.
A call made to overhaul constitution
Two Bucks lawmakers say it’s time for a constitutional convention. Pennsylvania is operating under guidelines set in the 1800s.
By JAMES MCGINNIS
Two Bucks County lawmakers are calling for changes to the state’s Constitution to bring about “true reform.”
State Reps. Chris King, D-142, and John Galloway, D-140, said they want a voter referendum on the ballot in November. If approved by voters, a constitutional convention could convene in December.
Each senatorial district would send three convention delegates who are elected by the general public.
In a bill introduced in the House July 4, Galloway and King estimated the convention would need a budget of at least $20 million. No one currently holding state office could sit on the convention, according to the bill.
Galloway and King introduced a similar bill in March 2007. But that bill never made it to the House floor.
The last time the Pennsylvania Constitution was given a “comprehensive look” Ulysses Grant was in the White House, Galloway said.
“One could not imagine a company conducting over $50 billion worth of business and employing 55,000 workers would not routinely review and update its strategic plan,” Galloway said. “How can the commonwealth keep up with today’s changing world if we are still living by guidelines set in the 1800s?”
“The need for a state constitutional convention is clear and convincing,” King said. “Many of our freshman colleagues in the House were elected to bring reform to Pennsylvania. A citizens’ constitutional convention is the most important reform this commonwealth could undertake.”
---------------------------
Broken system
The state Legislature is a dysfunctional body in need of repair. Citizens should be entrusted to fix it.
Anybody who’s watched the goings-on in Harrisburg for a few years or even a few days knows that often there’s not much going on. Not much we can call progress. There’s plenty of politics and all sorts of chicanery as recent indictments indicate. But there’s little progress on issues that really matter to people.
Property taxes, for example. Lawmakers have been trying for decades to do something about this unfair and increasingly costly means of paying for our schools. After numerous false starts and two alleged reform laws, not much has changed. Lawmakers talk about change constantly, but most don’t have the guts or the moxie to support the real thing.
Then there’s redistricting, the census-dictated process of reshaping legislative districts to reflect population shifts. Legislative leaders have turned this into a jigsaw puzzle contest.
In an effort to protect incumbents, far-flung neighborhoods sometimes stretching from one county to another are drafted into a district to pack in as many Democratic or Republican voters as possible. This highly political process makes it virtually impossible to defeat incumbents, depriving the Legislature of much needed independent voices with new ideas.
One of the few new ideas to come out of Harrisburg belongs to state Reps. John Galloway and Chris King, freshman Democrats from Falls and Middletown respectively. The two reformers have introduced legislation to place a referendum on the Nov. 4 ballot calling for a “citizens’ constitutional convention.”
The idea is to let a delegation of citizens — three elected from each of the state’s 50 senatorial districts — review and reform a state government that no longer seems capable of serving the interests of citizens. The convention would last nine months.
“One could not imagine a company conducting over $50 billion worth of business and employing 55,000 workers that would not routinely review and update its strategic plan,” Galloway said, raising this logical question: “How can the commonwealth keep up with today’s changing world if we are still living by guidelines set in the 1800s?”
Answer: Not very well.
Essentially, our state government is broken. And by government, we mean the Legislature, which is dominated by entrenched “leaders” who keep change at bay by controlling the legislative agenda, committee assignments, the money — you name it, they own it.
Instated, Galloway and King want to “allow the people to own the government again. We should trust them to look at our Constitution and do the right thing,” Galloway said, adding that lawmakers have a “credibility problem.”
He’s right about that. One scandal after another has practically destroyed our faith in Harrisburg. Maybe it’s time, as the old saying goes, to give the power to the people. They couldn’t do any worse.
Oktoberfest
From the BCCT
Morrisville planning Oktoberfest
Posted in News on Sunday, July 13th, 2008 at 4:39 pm by Courier Times staff writer Danny Adler
Residents, local businesses and companies in Morrisville are planning an Oktoberfest celebration to be held Oct. 3 through Oct. 5.
Organizers are looking for individuals, businesses, companies, groups, schools, churches, and more to join the planning committee at 6:30 p.m. Monday at the First Baptist Church of Morrisville, 50 N. Pennsylvania Ave.
The Oktoberfest celebration will benefit the Morrisville Fire Co., organizers said. It will include a chili cook off, crafters, vendors, games, entertainment, food, rides and more.
Morrisville planning Oktoberfest
Posted in News on Sunday, July 13th, 2008 at 4:39 pm by Courier Times staff writer Danny Adler
Residents, local businesses and companies in Morrisville are planning an Oktoberfest celebration to be held Oct. 3 through Oct. 5.
Organizers are looking for individuals, businesses, companies, groups, schools, churches, and more to join the planning committee at 6:30 p.m. Monday at the First Baptist Church of Morrisville, 50 N. Pennsylvania Ave.
The Oktoberfest celebration will benefit the Morrisville Fire Co., organizers said. It will include a chili cook off, crafters, vendors, games, entertainment, food, rides and more.
Monday, July 14, 2008
Special Meeting Reminder: Tomorrow
Don't forget that there is a special meeting being held tomorrow evening, Tuesday, July 15, 2008 to approve engineering resources.
The Emperor is at it again. He has decided what will be done without consulting the much of the board (accomplices only, please!) or the parents and taxpayers. See the Reports from the Facilities Committee post for more details.
"The RFP was for all 3 schools but all vendors presented only for the HS and Grandview. Why? Because, Hellmann said, 'I decided' "
"Lastly (ACTION ALERT), they expect this vote to happen at the meeting on 7/15 even though some of the board members had not yet received copies of the responses. The question you need to be asking yourself -- and the Board -- is why the rush? All of the vendors agreed this project from start to finish will take about 28 weeks. And since the actual construction (the last 6 weeks or so) should be done in the summer (read: it's not happening for this coming school year), then a decision should be made by approx December. So why the rush? Let's get a plan together, discuss it, and THEN take action. It does not have to be voted on in 5 days."
I guess the shocker would be if Marlys Mihok, Angry Al Radosti, Brenda Worob, and Bill Farrell voted AGAINST the Emperor. No dictator is ever out there alone. He needs his minions to feed and stroke his massive ego. I expect Jack Buckman will be a newly empowered and reliable accomplice vote (ergo, his selection). What about Gloria Heater?
The final question is the same one: WHAT'S THE PLAN? (Shout out to the late Ed Frankenfield.)
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Special Board Meeting
The Board of School Directors of the Morrisville School District will hold a Special Meeting for the purpose of approving engineering services on July 15, 2008 at 7:00 pm in the LGI Room of the Middle/Senior High School. Marlys Mihok Secretary
The Emperor is at it again. He has decided what will be done without consulting the much of the board (accomplices only, please!) or the parents and taxpayers. See the Reports from the Facilities Committee post for more details.
"The RFP was for all 3 schools but all vendors presented only for the HS and Grandview. Why? Because, Hellmann said, 'I decided' "
"Lastly (ACTION ALERT), they expect this vote to happen at the meeting on 7/15 even though some of the board members had not yet received copies of the responses. The question you need to be asking yourself -- and the Board -- is why the rush? All of the vendors agreed this project from start to finish will take about 28 weeks. And since the actual construction (the last 6 weeks or so) should be done in the summer (read: it's not happening for this coming school year), then a decision should be made by approx December. So why the rush? Let's get a plan together, discuss it, and THEN take action. It does not have to be voted on in 5 days."
I guess the shocker would be if Marlys Mihok, Angry Al Radosti, Brenda Worob, and Bill Farrell voted AGAINST the Emperor. No dictator is ever out there alone. He needs his minions to feed and stroke his massive ego. I expect Jack Buckman will be a newly empowered and reliable accomplice vote (ergo, his selection). What about Gloria Heater?
The final question is the same one: WHAT'S THE PLAN? (Shout out to the late Ed Frankenfield.)
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Special Board Meeting
The Board of School Directors of the Morrisville School District will hold a Special Meeting for the purpose of approving engineering services on July 15, 2008 at 7:00 pm in the LGI Room of the Middle/Senior High School. Marlys Mihok Secretary
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Optimism, Vision, and Leadership! Oh My!
I know for a fact several members of the school board and the borough council are repeat readers and contributors to this blog, some openly, and some anonymously.
Here is a comment that was entered last evening that deserves its own posting. No one expects our elected leaders to be perfect. We just expect them to do what's right.
Some town in Virginia is going to be mighty lucky very soon. And the loss is all Morrisville's.
George Bolos has left a new comment on your post ""Pretend this meeting never happened"":
Peter,
I voted for you last year and I would support you for school board again! As you said a few days ago, we may not have always agreed with one another (although, I have come to better understand, appreciate and agree with most of your positions on the school)but we were able to communicate constructively and without animosity or hard feelings for one another's position. We both found that we did not have to rip each other's throats if we disagreed with each other's ideas. We talked, listened, evaluated and then decided if it made sense. As a community, all our leaders seem to know how to do is "slash and burn", crush each other and take no prisoners in the name of control and power. It's not working.
The responsibility for the governing and building of our community's future by both the school board and borough council has descended to what I consider to be an all-time low. Whatever happened to people with optimism, vision and most of all, leadership skills. Currently, we have very few leaders and mostly retreads from the past. It didn't work with them at the leadership helm then and it certainly is not working now. We do have a small nucleus of elected leaders to build from who are willing to work together, but overall I give most members on both boards a vote of no confidence. I am extremely upset to see what is happening to our borough schools and the lack of business development in our community. As long as we have people who bully, who proclaim to know what is in the best interest of our community, detracting from smart, steady growth, our community will be deprived of a business base and void of well-paying jobs. We will continue to lag behind the rest of the region, sooner or later falling into decay and becoming one large blighted borough; never to recover.
The problem is and has always been simple-It's not the teachers, the administrators, the students, our borough employees or the borough manager. It's the elected officials who were voted to represent the borough and the leadership left in charge to make these things happen! It's our lack of any semblance of a local economy or people with enough horse sense to make it happen. Borough Council has had the ultimate responsibility of generating the opportunities to bring in business and have failed miserably at this task, period! They have scared away most viable opportunities and are too stubborn to accept this responsibility. Without the needed tax base achieved by supporting our current business owners and developing a more vibrant, robust business community, both the borough and its school district will soon not exist.
The residents of Morrisville should evaluate the people who have been elected in these past elections. There are two options: If you are satisfied with the direction in which the borough is going, then simply keep the same people that currently hold leadership roles in place. If you have decided that you have had enough and want to start with some fresh faces and ideas, ones that better represent your vision, then find residents who will better represent your wishes and organize now!
Good luck and Godspeed!
-George
Here is a comment that was entered last evening that deserves its own posting. No one expects our elected leaders to be perfect. We just expect them to do what's right.
Some town in Virginia is going to be mighty lucky very soon. And the loss is all Morrisville's.
George Bolos has left a new comment on your post ""Pretend this meeting never happened"":
Peter,
I voted for you last year and I would support you for school board again! As you said a few days ago, we may not have always agreed with one another (although, I have come to better understand, appreciate and agree with most of your positions on the school)but we were able to communicate constructively and without animosity or hard feelings for one another's position. We both found that we did not have to rip each other's throats if we disagreed with each other's ideas. We talked, listened, evaluated and then decided if it made sense. As a community, all our leaders seem to know how to do is "slash and burn", crush each other and take no prisoners in the name of control and power. It's not working.
The responsibility for the governing and building of our community's future by both the school board and borough council has descended to what I consider to be an all-time low. Whatever happened to people with optimism, vision and most of all, leadership skills. Currently, we have very few leaders and mostly retreads from the past. It didn't work with them at the leadership helm then and it certainly is not working now. We do have a small nucleus of elected leaders to build from who are willing to work together, but overall I give most members on both boards a vote of no confidence. I am extremely upset to see what is happening to our borough schools and the lack of business development in our community. As long as we have people who bully, who proclaim to know what is in the best interest of our community, detracting from smart, steady growth, our community will be deprived of a business base and void of well-paying jobs. We will continue to lag behind the rest of the region, sooner or later falling into decay and becoming one large blighted borough; never to recover.
The problem is and has always been simple-It's not the teachers, the administrators, the students, our borough employees or the borough manager. It's the elected officials who were voted to represent the borough and the leadership left in charge to make these things happen! It's our lack of any semblance of a local economy or people with enough horse sense to make it happen. Borough Council has had the ultimate responsibility of generating the opportunities to bring in business and have failed miserably at this task, period! They have scared away most viable opportunities and are too stubborn to accept this responsibility. Without the needed tax base achieved by supporting our current business owners and developing a more vibrant, robust business community, both the borough and its school district will soon not exist.
The residents of Morrisville should evaluate the people who have been elected in these past elections. There are two options: If you are satisfied with the direction in which the borough is going, then simply keep the same people that currently hold leadership roles in place. If you have decided that you have had enough and want to start with some fresh faces and ideas, ones that better represent your vision, then find residents who will better represent your wishes and organize now!
Good luck and Godspeed!
-George
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Special Ed Lawsuit
The Bristol, CT school district is being sued for the way they handled a nine year old boy's placement.
Suit Filed After Bristol Special Ed Placement
By DON STACOM | Courant Staff Writer July 11, 2008
BRISTOL — - The family of a special-education student is suing the city, claiming it is entitled to legal fees after hiring a lawyer to challenge a decision about where the boy should attend class.
The school system this week filed court documents to contest the family's claim, indicating it intends to fight the case.
Details about the issues are scarce. The federal lawsuit was filed in April under the name "Mr. and Mrs. T" to keep the boy's identity secret, and schools Superintendent Philip Streifer on Thursday evening said that the matter had been turned over to city attorneys and that he would not comment on it.
The suit says the boy, a 9-year-old at Stafford Elementary School, was suspended from school last fall because of "a number of behavioral incidents." The suit says the boy suffers from hyperactivity, but did not describe the incidents or say whether they involved violence or threats. The schools provided two hours a day of home education for the boy.
The boy's parents took the school system to hearings before the state education department last winter, accusing the schools of violating the boy's right to attend classes in the least possible restrictive setting. According to the suit, a hearing officer sided with the parents, and ordered Bristol to hire an aide, train staff to work with the boy, provide psychological counseling and pay for a home-school, behavioral training program.
The family is suing for reimbursement of an unspecified amount in legal fees.
In a response filed Thursday, the city denied many of the claims and said the suit was premature because it is appealing the hearing officer's decision.
Suit Filed After Bristol Special Ed Placement
By DON STACOM | Courant Staff Writer July 11, 2008
BRISTOL — - The family of a special-education student is suing the city, claiming it is entitled to legal fees after hiring a lawyer to challenge a decision about where the boy should attend class.
The school system this week filed court documents to contest the family's claim, indicating it intends to fight the case.
Details about the issues are scarce. The federal lawsuit was filed in April under the name "Mr. and Mrs. T" to keep the boy's identity secret, and schools Superintendent Philip Streifer on Thursday evening said that the matter had been turned over to city attorneys and that he would not comment on it.
The suit says the boy, a 9-year-old at Stafford Elementary School, was suspended from school last fall because of "a number of behavioral incidents." The suit says the boy suffers from hyperactivity, but did not describe the incidents or say whether they involved violence or threats. The schools provided two hours a day of home education for the boy.
The boy's parents took the school system to hearings before the state education department last winter, accusing the schools of violating the boy's right to attend classes in the least possible restrictive setting. According to the suit, a hearing officer sided with the parents, and ordered Bristol to hire an aide, train staff to work with the boy, provide psychological counseling and pay for a home-school, behavioral training program.
The family is suing for reimbursement of an unspecified amount in legal fees.
In a response filed Thursday, the city denied many of the claims and said the suit was premature because it is appealing the hearing officer's decision.
Simply Left Behind
Take a look at Simply Left Behind. It's quite an interesting read. The tag line makes you think: "Democrats Work For Solutions; Republicans Pray The Problem Will Go Away"
We have a LOT of Republicans in Morrisville. When it comes to the school system and the survival of the borough, "pray the problem will go away" seems to be the mantra.
Full Disclosure: Simply Left Behind is an unabashedly left wing liberal leaning website. The right-wing whackos and left-wing liberal weenies both have good idea as well as bad ideas. You need to be smart enough to choose the best and forget the rest
A Paradigm Is More Than Two Bits was a pretty good look at rights and responsibilities.
When considering the state of the American political and governing system, it is probably a good idea to think about the flip side of the coin: the governed.
I've always believed that it is important to stress to Americans that there is no free lunch. For too long, politicians on both sides of the fence have strived hard to come up with painless solutions to thorny problems, not trusting the American people to be a rational, intelligent and reasonable community of people.
That's probably an accurate impulse. I can't really blame Republicans for offering tax cuts to ignore or Democrats for offering grandiose schemes to solve intractable problems. The sense I get is that Americans of all stripes would prefer someone else handle the problem.
We're spoiled, in other words. This sense of "it's somebody else's responsibility" plays out in so many facets of life, it's not even funny.
You get hit by a car. You sue the other driver. He hires a lawyer and sues you back to try to prove that, indeed, it was your fault for stepping in front of his car.
Voter turnout in elections has been abysmal, even in 2004 when people took up voting arms against a sea of trouble and likely again this year, despite Barack Obama's encouraging and energizing candidacy.
You see a woman in an emergency room collapse. She lays there for 24 hours and dies. No one does a thing. Why? Because someone else should have handled it.
You walk down a street and a piece of newspaper blows across and wraps around your ankle. You stand next to a garbage can, yet rather than reach down, pluck the paper and toss it in the bin, you shake your foot and off it flies to litter again. Serial litter, I like to call this.
We fight a war in a far-off land, and the only sacrifice we're asked to make is to load up on debt and shop some more. Arguably, given what has happened, this might turn into the ultimate sacrifice for many of us, but that's a different story.
We ask so much of our country. We give so little in return. Perhaps in addition to a Bill of Rights, we should look into establishing a Bill or Responsibilities.
A Google search turns up roughly 300,000 hits on that term. Some of these "bills" are simply outrageously idiotic: really, the best someone could come up with was "you have the responsibility to be a loyal citizen of the United States of America"?
Memo to the Roses: WE ARE! (I won't embarrass them with a link)
I did find a rather intriguing Bill, and I wanted to share it with you:
Freedom and responsibility are mutual and inseparable; we can ensure enjoyment of the one only by exercising the other. Freedom for all of us depends on responsibility by each of us.
To secure and expand our liberties, therefore, we accept these responsibilities as individual members of a free society:
1. To be fully responsible for our own actions and for the consequences of those actions. Freedom to choose carries with it the responsibility for our choices.
2. To respect the rights and beliefs of others. In a free society, diversity flourishes. Courtesy and consideration toward others are measures of a civilized society.
3. To give sympathy, understanding and help to others. As we hope others will help us when we are in need, we should help others when they are in need.
4. To do our best to meet our own and our families' needs. There is no personal freedom without economic freedom. By helping ourselves and those closest to us to become productive members of society, we contribute to the strength of the nation.
5. To respect and obey the laws. Laws are mutually accepted rules by which, together, we maintain a free society. Liberty itself is built on a foundation of law. That foundation provides an orderly process for changing laws. It also depends on our obeying laws once they have been freely adopted.
6. To respect the property of others, both private and public. No one has a right to what is not his or hers. The right to enjoy what is ours depends on our respecting the right of others to enjoy what is theirs.
7. To share with others our appreciation of the benefits and obligations of freedom. Freedom shared is freedom strengthened.
8. To participate constructively in the nation's political life. Democracy depends on an active citizenry. It depends equally on an informed citizenry.
9. To help freedom survive by assuming personal responsibility for its defense. Our nation cannot survive unless we defend it. Its security rests on the individual determination of each of us to help preserve it.
10. To respect the rights and to meet the responsibilities on which our liberty rests and our democracy depends. This is the essence of freedom. Maintaining it requires our common effort, all together and each individually.
Freedom is a balance of rights and responsibilities. If one only assumes the rights of freedom without taking responsibility to see those rights are secured and maintained, one loses the rights.
If one only secures the rights of freedom for oneself, without ensuring those rights for everyone, one loses freedoms.
If one abuses, distorts, or otherwise diminishes the rights of freedom, abrogating one's responsibilities for that freedom, then one loses one's freedom anyway. Karma's a bitch.
If only enjoys the freedom to enjoy one's property, one's life, one's liberty, one's pursuit of happiness while even one other person is unjustly deprived of his or hers, then one loses his freedom too.
We've seen that. We've seen that in this administration and in administrations throughout at least my lifetime. And one could make the argument, indeed, that because Americans have never had the responsibilities inherent in freedom, Americans were never truly free.
Oh, we could fake it, to be sure. When this land was wilderness and a man or woman could ride an entire day without seeing another person, you have the illusion of freedom.
Oddly enough, those same people took it upon themselves to ensure their own freedom by standing up for themselves when that freedom was threatened.
A community, you see, is a balance between the rights of the individual and the needs of the population. We are the most important unit in our own lives, but we are not the most important individual in anyone else's life. We can't be. As I like to say, I don't care what anyone else thinks because no one else is going to climb into my coffin with me when I die.
That statement, however, implies that I can live with myself well enough that even I get into my coffin when I die!
Vigilance, involvement, activism: community.
I would quibble with some of these statements from the Freedoms Foundation. I'm drawn to article 9 as one that could use some fleshing out and tuning up, because it allows for all sorts of bizarre interpretations ("Why, I own this Abrams tank because you never can tell when Osama and his minions will come strolling down Cherry Lane, bent on taking out the Gas-N-Gulp!")
We the people of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution of the United States of America.
Right there in the Preamble to the Constitution is our mandate: to create community. A nation. A secure foundation to build our hopes and dreams on. To prevent tyranny and injustice, in whatever form it may take. To raise our families. To be free, all of us, not only those of us with money who can buy a home in a gated community (an oxymoron, that..."gated community"), but you, me, your children, my children, her children, his children.
As we ponder how to fix the things that are broken in America, we might want to pause a moment and see if as we point fingers, we aren't pointing many more back at ourselves.
We have a LOT of Republicans in Morrisville. When it comes to the school system and the survival of the borough, "pray the problem will go away" seems to be the mantra.
Full Disclosure: Simply Left Behind is an unabashedly left wing liberal leaning website. The right-wing whackos and left-wing liberal weenies both have good idea as well as bad ideas. You need to be smart enough to choose the best and forget the rest
A Paradigm Is More Than Two Bits was a pretty good look at rights and responsibilities.
When considering the state of the American political and governing system, it is probably a good idea to think about the flip side of the coin: the governed.
I've always believed that it is important to stress to Americans that there is no free lunch. For too long, politicians on both sides of the fence have strived hard to come up with painless solutions to thorny problems, not trusting the American people to be a rational, intelligent and reasonable community of people.
That's probably an accurate impulse. I can't really blame Republicans for offering tax cuts to ignore or Democrats for offering grandiose schemes to solve intractable problems. The sense I get is that Americans of all stripes would prefer someone else handle the problem.
We're spoiled, in other words. This sense of "it's somebody else's responsibility" plays out in so many facets of life, it's not even funny.
You get hit by a car. You sue the other driver. He hires a lawyer and sues you back to try to prove that, indeed, it was your fault for stepping in front of his car.
Voter turnout in elections has been abysmal, even in 2004 when people took up voting arms against a sea of trouble and likely again this year, despite Barack Obama's encouraging and energizing candidacy.
You see a woman in an emergency room collapse. She lays there for 24 hours and dies. No one does a thing. Why? Because someone else should have handled it.
You walk down a street and a piece of newspaper blows across and wraps around your ankle. You stand next to a garbage can, yet rather than reach down, pluck the paper and toss it in the bin, you shake your foot and off it flies to litter again. Serial litter, I like to call this.
We fight a war in a far-off land, and the only sacrifice we're asked to make is to load up on debt and shop some more. Arguably, given what has happened, this might turn into the ultimate sacrifice for many of us, but that's a different story.
We ask so much of our country. We give so little in return. Perhaps in addition to a Bill of Rights, we should look into establishing a Bill or Responsibilities.
A Google search turns up roughly 300,000 hits on that term. Some of these "bills" are simply outrageously idiotic: really, the best someone could come up with was "you have the responsibility to be a loyal citizen of the United States of America"?
Memo to the Roses: WE ARE! (I won't embarrass them with a link)
I did find a rather intriguing Bill, and I wanted to share it with you:
Freedom and responsibility are mutual and inseparable; we can ensure enjoyment of the one only by exercising the other. Freedom for all of us depends on responsibility by each of us.
To secure and expand our liberties, therefore, we accept these responsibilities as individual members of a free society:
1. To be fully responsible for our own actions and for the consequences of those actions. Freedom to choose carries with it the responsibility for our choices.
2. To respect the rights and beliefs of others. In a free society, diversity flourishes. Courtesy and consideration toward others are measures of a civilized society.
3. To give sympathy, understanding and help to others. As we hope others will help us when we are in need, we should help others when they are in need.
4. To do our best to meet our own and our families' needs. There is no personal freedom without economic freedom. By helping ourselves and those closest to us to become productive members of society, we contribute to the strength of the nation.
5. To respect and obey the laws. Laws are mutually accepted rules by which, together, we maintain a free society. Liberty itself is built on a foundation of law. That foundation provides an orderly process for changing laws. It also depends on our obeying laws once they have been freely adopted.
6. To respect the property of others, both private and public. No one has a right to what is not his or hers. The right to enjoy what is ours depends on our respecting the right of others to enjoy what is theirs.
7. To share with others our appreciation of the benefits and obligations of freedom. Freedom shared is freedom strengthened.
8. To participate constructively in the nation's political life. Democracy depends on an active citizenry. It depends equally on an informed citizenry.
9. To help freedom survive by assuming personal responsibility for its defense. Our nation cannot survive unless we defend it. Its security rests on the individual determination of each of us to help preserve it.
10. To respect the rights and to meet the responsibilities on which our liberty rests and our democracy depends. This is the essence of freedom. Maintaining it requires our common effort, all together and each individually.
Freedom is a balance of rights and responsibilities. If one only assumes the rights of freedom without taking responsibility to see those rights are secured and maintained, one loses the rights.
If one only secures the rights of freedom for oneself, without ensuring those rights for everyone, one loses freedoms.
If one abuses, distorts, or otherwise diminishes the rights of freedom, abrogating one's responsibilities for that freedom, then one loses one's freedom anyway. Karma's a bitch.
If only enjoys the freedom to enjoy one's property, one's life, one's liberty, one's pursuit of happiness while even one other person is unjustly deprived of his or hers, then one loses his freedom too.
We've seen that. We've seen that in this administration and in administrations throughout at least my lifetime. And one could make the argument, indeed, that because Americans have never had the responsibilities inherent in freedom, Americans were never truly free.
Oh, we could fake it, to be sure. When this land was wilderness and a man or woman could ride an entire day without seeing another person, you have the illusion of freedom.
Oddly enough, those same people took it upon themselves to ensure their own freedom by standing up for themselves when that freedom was threatened.
A community, you see, is a balance between the rights of the individual and the needs of the population. We are the most important unit in our own lives, but we are not the most important individual in anyone else's life. We can't be. As I like to say, I don't care what anyone else thinks because no one else is going to climb into my coffin with me when I die.
That statement, however, implies that I can live with myself well enough that even I get into my coffin when I die!
Vigilance, involvement, activism: community.
I would quibble with some of these statements from the Freedoms Foundation. I'm drawn to article 9 as one that could use some fleshing out and tuning up, because it allows for all sorts of bizarre interpretations ("Why, I own this Abrams tank because you never can tell when Osama and his minions will come strolling down Cherry Lane, bent on taking out the Gas-N-Gulp!")
We the people of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution of the United States of America.
Right there in the Preamble to the Constitution is our mandate: to create community. A nation. A secure foundation to build our hopes and dreams on. To prevent tyranny and injustice, in whatever form it may take. To raise our families. To be free, all of us, not only those of us with money who can buy a home in a gated community (an oxymoron, that..."gated community"), but you, me, your children, my children, her children, his children.
As we ponder how to fix the things that are broken in America, we might want to pause a moment and see if as we point fingers, we aren't pointing many more back at ourselves.
Bensalem Board and Council Work Together
It may have taken two years to negotiations, but it's nice to see that a borough council and a school board from the same town can work together.
Deal will help district save money
The agreement involves fee waivers and drainage easements.
By JOAN HELLYER
The Bensalem School District will save “hundreds of thousands of dollars” from a deal recently reached between the school system and Bensalem’s municipal government, the school board solicitor said.
The township has agreed to help the district save money by waiving permit and application fees and other charges in connection with pending renovation and construction projects, solicitor Thomas Profy III said.
The projects include renovations at Cecelia Snyder Middle School off Hulmeville Road and the transportation center off Byberry Road and the planned construction of a physical education facility behind Bensalem High School, he said.
In exchange, the school district granted some easements at no cost to the township in connection with a road improvement project along Galloway Road, Profy said. The easements allowed the municipality to install drainage systems along the roadway where it borders district property, as required by the state, he said.
The one easement involves almost 100,000 square-feet of land at Galloway and Hulmeville roads at the southwest corner of the high school’s property, the solicitor said. The other involves about 7,000 square- feet of a 4.2-acre piece of undeveloped district property at Galloway and Richlieu roads, he said.
Profy said he started working on the deal with township solicitor Barbara Kirk in early 2007. They recently came to terms.
The Courier Times was unsuccessful in reaching Kirk for comment, after calls to her office at Rudolph, Pizzo and Clarke in Bensalem. District officials referred questions about specific amounts that would be saved to director of business administration Jack Myers, who could not be reached this week for comment.
The Bensalem school board approved the deal in June, and efforts are under way to finalize the agreement with township officials, the school board solicitor said.
Also as part of the agreement, the township officially transferred ownership of Samuel K. Faust Elementary School to the district. A township authority, which has since been dissolved, built the school in the mid-1950s, Profy said. The township held onto the property’s title until the district finished paying the loans that were taken out to cover its construction and various expansions, he said.
Deal will help district save money
The agreement involves fee waivers and drainage easements.
By JOAN HELLYER
The Bensalem School District will save “hundreds of thousands of dollars” from a deal recently reached between the school system and Bensalem’s municipal government, the school board solicitor said.
The township has agreed to help the district save money by waiving permit and application fees and other charges in connection with pending renovation and construction projects, solicitor Thomas Profy III said.
The projects include renovations at Cecelia Snyder Middle School off Hulmeville Road and the transportation center off Byberry Road and the planned construction of a physical education facility behind Bensalem High School, he said.
In exchange, the school district granted some easements at no cost to the township in connection with a road improvement project along Galloway Road, Profy said. The easements allowed the municipality to install drainage systems along the roadway where it borders district property, as required by the state, he said.
The one easement involves almost 100,000 square-feet of land at Galloway and Hulmeville roads at the southwest corner of the high school’s property, the solicitor said. The other involves about 7,000 square- feet of a 4.2-acre piece of undeveloped district property at Galloway and Richlieu roads, he said.
Profy said he started working on the deal with township solicitor Barbara Kirk in early 2007. They recently came to terms.
The Courier Times was unsuccessful in reaching Kirk for comment, after calls to her office at Rudolph, Pizzo and Clarke in Bensalem. District officials referred questions about specific amounts that would be saved to director of business administration Jack Myers, who could not be reached this week for comment.
The Bensalem school board approved the deal in June, and efforts are under way to finalize the agreement with township officials, the school board solicitor said.
Also as part of the agreement, the township officially transferred ownership of Samuel K. Faust Elementary School to the district. A township authority, which has since been dissolved, built the school in the mid-1950s, Profy said. The township held onto the property’s title until the district finished paying the loans that were taken out to cover its construction and various expansions, he said.
Schools News Around the Blogosphere
Learning from the best schools, whatever we call them
St. Paul Pioneer Press
Joe Nathan
All kinds of students - eager, indifferent, bright and bored, suburban, urban and rural, will benefit from careful, nondefensive use of several recent reports about Minnesota's district and charter public schools. The reports came from Minnesota's Legislative Auditor, the University of Minnesota/Minnesota State College/University System and the Center for School Change.
Is algebra useless? Not to these folks
Sacramento Bee
Thursday morning, Johnnie Powell, a longtime National Weather Service forecaster, heard the news that all of California's eighth-grade students would have to take Algebra 1 within three years.
Professor: Don't leave gifted, talented behind
Des Moines Register
Sally Beisser has watched educational programs for Iowa's most talented students improve and expand over 30 years, but the Drake University professor is concerned that those efforts have been hurt by a federal push to bring lower-achieving classmates up to speed.
289 Math & Science Employment and Employment Projections by Required Education and Training Levels in the United States 2006-2016
Columnist EducationNews.org
This is the first of a series of Center reports that will be prepared from the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) U. S. Employment Projections 2006-2016 published in the Monthly Labor Review November 2007. The ten-year projections of United States employment are prepared every two years and are conveniently ignored by the popular media and the supporters and critics of public education in the United States.
Performance-based bonuses cropping up across Maryland
Baltimore Sun
From rural Washington County to suburban Prince George's County, school systems around the state are beginning to wade into a promising but controversial topic in education: pay for performance.
Autistic students get help navigating college life
USA Today
By Melissa Kossler Dutton, Associated Press
When Dan Hackett started college, he didn't make the grades he knew he could. Hackett, who has Asperger's syndrome, found at the Community College of Allegheny County in Pittsburgh that some of his symptoms were holding him back. He had difficulty organizing his time and managing assignments.
Pennsylvania Tells Autism Speaks to Stop Talking
In a historical and unprecedented move, the Pennsylvania legislature voted nearly unanimously in the affirmative for House Bill 1150 to mandate commercial insurance companies to cover some services for children with autism. The bill, introduced by House Speaker Dennis M. O'Brien, requires insurance companies to cover up to $36,000 of autism-related treatment for individuals less than 21 years old.
Could Four-Day Weeks Work for You?
Some school districts looking to save time and money have switched to four-day school weeks, either leaving the fifth day free or available for tutoring and parent conferences. Although some superintendents favor the concentrated class time, some say the wear and tear from a longer day has not been worth it for staff or students.
Student Gains in Privately Managed Philadelphia Schools - Nearly Double Those in District Schools
State Tests Show Increases in Student Achievement at EdisonLearning Schools in both Reading & Math
School test scores recently released by the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment reveal that schools partnering with private education management organizations (EMO's) - including EdisonLearning - showed greater gains in student achievement than the schools operated by the Philadelphia School District.
St. Paul Pioneer Press
Joe Nathan
All kinds of students - eager, indifferent, bright and bored, suburban, urban and rural, will benefit from careful, nondefensive use of several recent reports about Minnesota's district and charter public schools. The reports came from Minnesota's Legislative Auditor, the University of Minnesota/Minnesota State College/University System and the Center for School Change.
Is algebra useless? Not to these folks
Sacramento Bee
Thursday morning, Johnnie Powell, a longtime National Weather Service forecaster, heard the news that all of California's eighth-grade students would have to take Algebra 1 within three years.
Professor: Don't leave gifted, talented behind
Des Moines Register
Sally Beisser has watched educational programs for Iowa's most talented students improve and expand over 30 years, but the Drake University professor is concerned that those efforts have been hurt by a federal push to bring lower-achieving classmates up to speed.
289 Math & Science Employment and Employment Projections by Required Education and Training Levels in the United States 2006-2016
Columnist EducationNews.org
This is the first of a series of Center reports that will be prepared from the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) U. S. Employment Projections 2006-2016 published in the Monthly Labor Review November 2007. The ten-year projections of United States employment are prepared every two years and are conveniently ignored by the popular media and the supporters and critics of public education in the United States.
Performance-based bonuses cropping up across Maryland
Baltimore Sun
From rural Washington County to suburban Prince George's County, school systems around the state are beginning to wade into a promising but controversial topic in education: pay for performance.
Autistic students get help navigating college life
USA Today
By Melissa Kossler Dutton, Associated Press
When Dan Hackett started college, he didn't make the grades he knew he could. Hackett, who has Asperger's syndrome, found at the Community College of Allegheny County in Pittsburgh that some of his symptoms were holding him back. He had difficulty organizing his time and managing assignments.
Pennsylvania Tells Autism Speaks to Stop Talking
In a historical and unprecedented move, the Pennsylvania legislature voted nearly unanimously in the affirmative for House Bill 1150 to mandate commercial insurance companies to cover some services for children with autism. The bill, introduced by House Speaker Dennis M. O'Brien, requires insurance companies to cover up to $36,000 of autism-related treatment for individuals less than 21 years old.
Could Four-Day Weeks Work for You?
Some school districts looking to save time and money have switched to four-day school weeks, either leaving the fifth day free or available for tutoring and parent conferences. Although some superintendents favor the concentrated class time, some say the wear and tear from a longer day has not been worth it for staff or students.
Student Gains in Privately Managed Philadelphia Schools - Nearly Double Those in District Schools
State Tests Show Increases in Student Achievement at EdisonLearning Schools in both Reading & Math
School test scores recently released by the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment reveal that schools partnering with private education management organizations (EMO's) - including EdisonLearning - showed greater gains in student achievement than the schools operated by the Philadelphia School District.
Friday, July 11, 2008
School Board Evaluation Forms?
Check out Do the Right Thing For Kids, a blog designed to monitor the goings on in the Kansas City, MO school district.
The best part was their Board Watch Campaign, complete with an evaluation form. Perhaps a clever reader might want to create a Morrisville School Board Evaluation Form?
The best part was their Board Watch Campaign, complete with an evaluation form. Perhaps a clever reader might want to create a Morrisville School Board Evaluation Form?
Confronting Faulty Grad Tests
This is presented as is with no editorial comment. I do not know enough of the specific situation to evaluate the essay content. What is clear is that in American society, anyone can sue anyone. Tightened graduation requirements, if imposed in unclear, haphazard, or inconsistent manners, will eventually lead to a courtroom.
The Nation / Youth, Education, & Children / Standardized Testing
Exit Strategies: Confronting Faulty Grad Tests
July 3, 2008
My name is Latricia Wilson. I was born in Gary, Indiana but currently reside in Memphis, Tennessee. I am 25-years-old and a student at Tennessee Technology Center. Just a few years ago I wasn't sure if I would be able to achieve any higher education or vocational training because my high school denied me a standard diploma despite the fact that I had completed all of my courses.
I was denied a proper diploma because I had failed to pass the math section of a new end of year test by a few points.
The Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program Achievement Tests (TCAP), now called the Gateway Exam (PDF), are part of the state's assessment program. The high-stakes exit exam I took is part of a growing trend around the country leaving thousands of students without diplomas.
Prior to graduating high school, my career goals were to be a hairstylist and television makeup artist. After being denied a standard high school diploma in 2002 for failing to pass the TCAP math section, I was denied entry into all beauty schools even though I was on the technical/vocational path in high school and had taken cosmetology classes during my high school career. I was also denied entry into other Memphis technical and community colleges and universities.
I struggled as an adult to make a living wage to support myself. I worked as a waitress for years, took on double shifts and was just barely able to pay my rent. I was getting further away from my career goals and sinking deeper into poverty and debt. Eventually, I was evicted from my apartment. I've truly experienced how difficult it is to be an independent adult without a valid high school diploma. But I decided to do something about it, and started a quest to regain my rightful degree.
This is my own experience with Tennessee's public education system and how I was able to change it.
Diploma Drama
I was one of many students denied a high school diploma for failure to pass the TCAP tests in 2002. I had a mild learning disability in math, which made passing those TCAP sections difficult. I was enrolled in math resource classes from the ninth grade, and instructed at a slightly lower grade level than my classmates. Despite this, I was repeatedly administered the TCAP on a higher grade level than the one at which I was taught. As a result, I was unable to pass the math section by the end of senior year.
I was allowed to participate in the graduation ceremony, but instead of a regular diploma I received a "special education diploma," awarded to students with physical, emotional or severe learning disabilities not able to meet standard diploma requirements. But, having passed 20 credits in regular classes just like other students, I was qualified. I was mislabeled for no reason other than having failed the TCAP math section.
I was told by more than one high school guidance counselor that I could still further my education to some degree. I later learned that technical, vocational, community colleges and universities in Tennessee wouldn't accept my special diploma, because these institutions don't consider it a valid graduation certificate.
I was shamed and silenced, just like thousands of students that fail these state tests every year.
Gateway's Gaps
Twenty-three states, including Florida, Texas and California, have adopted exit exams as a requirement for receiving high school diplomas. The Gateway Exam is Tennessee's graduation requirement test and consists of English II, Algebra I and Biology I exams.
These assessments might seem like an important way to gauge a school or student's performance, but in the end they're linked to an inherently flawed public education system that fails to consider factors that hinder student performance such as lack of access to adequate classroom resources, quality instruction or tutoring services.
Students with learning disabilities are disproportionately affected because Tennessee public schools don't offer reasonable test accommodations such as portfolio assessments, additional test time, alternative test formats, or the use of adaptive equipment. Failing to provide these accommodations violates federal and state provisions set forth in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (reauthorized in 2002 as No Child Left Behind), the 1975 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
School closures also impact student preparedness for exit exams. In Memphis, for every school that closes, another facility must be made available, otherwise students are assigned to the next closest school. This can lead to class sizes of up to 40 students. Overcrowding hinders a teacher's effectiveness in covering core subjects such as English, science and math. Some teachers aren't even properly prepared to teach the basics.
In 2005, the Memphis City School Report Card data revealed that over one third of instructors were not "highly qualified" to teach core courses, leaving Memphis students with some 6,653 under-qualified teachers.
The Tennessee Department of Education also refuses to release test information that identifies what answers students missed, or indicate sections on which they may have performed poorly. Releasing this information would help instructors provide assistance for the Gateway Exam and ensure that students could be more successful when retaking the exam. Despite the fact that failure to pass an exit exam may seriously impact a student's future, proper assistance is not provided.
Denied Opportunities
According to the Tennessee Department of Education Annual Statistical Reports, between 1995 and 2007 a total of 32,233 students statewide were denied standard high school diplomas and given "special education diplomas." A further 8,654 students were only issued Certificates of Attendance (COA).
The Tennessee Department of Education failed to notify students of the COA's limitations including ineligibility for student loans, scholarships, entrance to the military or Federal Pell Grant funding for post-secondary education, as well as exclusion from technical, community colleges and universities.
The individual and societal costs of denying a diploma based on a state test score without providing students other alternatives are painfully high. Data from FairTest, the American Community Survey, US Census Bureau and Education Research Center show that students without diplomas earn much less in the workforce. They are less likely to maintain stable families as a result of unemployment or under-employment, and may turn to criminal activities in order to earn an income. Young people face these challenges every day and the stigma of having failed to complete their education silences them. In my case, it took a lawsuit to regain my voice.
I Had to Do Something!
While contemplating my future and feeling frustrated with the system, I decided to appeal the deficiencies of special diplomas and high-stakes exit examination before the Memphis school board, the state legislature and make my case heard on all the Memphis news stations (video).
I first addressed the Memphis City School Board at several meetings. Then I began contacting several local and state representatives by e-mail and phone to tell them how graduation requirements had affected my life. I came in contact with Rep. Barbara Cooper (D-Tenn.) who at that time was pushing for legislation to change the state graduation policies. I explained my diploma's limitations and how it was barring me from even entering a beauty school and Rep. Cooper asked me to testify before the House and Higher Education Committee at the Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville.
I also explained the issue in a one-on-one meeting in Washington, DC with Congressman Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.). A local DC blog called The Pesky Fly covered the meeting and wrote:
What impressed me about [her] current Congressman is that he didn't blow her off, and when she began to articulate her issue, he immediately offered to put her in touch with the Chairman of the Education sub-committee, Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.). Rep. Cohen gave Ms. Wilson a two-hour meeting on a Friday morning (when many of his colleagues, including some members of the Congressional Black Caucus, were busy blowing town for parts unknown, if not back to their districts). Expect Latricia to become a "shining star" on the Hill when she gives that testimony before Rep. Miller's subcommittee.
Meanwhile, I approached news reporters while they were covering stories on the streets of Memphis and distributed brief summaries of my personal experience and copies of my diploma. Media outlets were instrumental in forcing the state to acknowledge the issue of how its exit exams affected students like myself.
As a result, a federal class action lawsuit was filed July 26, 2007 against the Tennessee Department of Education on behalf of all former students that were denied high school diplomas for failure to pass the Gateway Exam. I was one of the plaintiffs represented by a young man named Corey Robertson. Walter Bailey Law Firm Attorney Javier Bailey filed my case.
Better Days Ahead
Within the lawsuit, my attorney asked the judge to dismantle the Gateway Exam as a graduation requirement. We also asked that students denied diplomas be recertified. Unfortunately, the lawsuit was dismissed due my case's expired statute of limitations. We lost the battle but in the end we won the war because we were successful in being the first to legally challenge the state on this issue. Tennessee's unfair testing policy had been exposed.
The Tennessee State Board of Education did not want to risk being challenged on graduation testing again and on January 25, 2008, just a few months after my suit was dismissed, the Board moved to eliminate the Gateway Exam as a diploma requirement. In the 2009-2010 school year no student in the state of Tennessee will be required to pass any test to qualify for a high school diploma.
While I failed the TCAP math section in 2002 because of systemic failures in the public school system here in Tennessee, I do not consider myself a failure. In fact, I took the Gateway Exam on May 1, 2007 in hopes of passing to obtain a standard diploma. I'm determined that I will not be deemed unemployable and incapable of pursuing my career goals merely because of a high school test score.
The Nation / Youth, Education, & Children / Standardized Testing
Exit Strategies: Confronting Faulty Grad Tests
July 3, 2008
My name is Latricia Wilson. I was born in Gary, Indiana but currently reside in Memphis, Tennessee. I am 25-years-old and a student at Tennessee Technology Center. Just a few years ago I wasn't sure if I would be able to achieve any higher education or vocational training because my high school denied me a standard diploma despite the fact that I had completed all of my courses.
I was denied a proper diploma because I had failed to pass the math section of a new end of year test by a few points.
The Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program Achievement Tests (TCAP), now called the Gateway Exam (PDF), are part of the state's assessment program. The high-stakes exit exam I took is part of a growing trend around the country leaving thousands of students without diplomas.
Prior to graduating high school, my career goals were to be a hairstylist and television makeup artist. After being denied a standard high school diploma in 2002 for failing to pass the TCAP math section, I was denied entry into all beauty schools even though I was on the technical/vocational path in high school and had taken cosmetology classes during my high school career. I was also denied entry into other Memphis technical and community colleges and universities.
I struggled as an adult to make a living wage to support myself. I worked as a waitress for years, took on double shifts and was just barely able to pay my rent. I was getting further away from my career goals and sinking deeper into poverty and debt. Eventually, I was evicted from my apartment. I've truly experienced how difficult it is to be an independent adult without a valid high school diploma. But I decided to do something about it, and started a quest to regain my rightful degree.
This is my own experience with Tennessee's public education system and how I was able to change it.
Diploma Drama
I was one of many students denied a high school diploma for failure to pass the TCAP tests in 2002. I had a mild learning disability in math, which made passing those TCAP sections difficult. I was enrolled in math resource classes from the ninth grade, and instructed at a slightly lower grade level than my classmates. Despite this, I was repeatedly administered the TCAP on a higher grade level than the one at which I was taught. As a result, I was unable to pass the math section by the end of senior year.
I was allowed to participate in the graduation ceremony, but instead of a regular diploma I received a "special education diploma," awarded to students with physical, emotional or severe learning disabilities not able to meet standard diploma requirements. But, having passed 20 credits in regular classes just like other students, I was qualified. I was mislabeled for no reason other than having failed the TCAP math section.
I was told by more than one high school guidance counselor that I could still further my education to some degree. I later learned that technical, vocational, community colleges and universities in Tennessee wouldn't accept my special diploma, because these institutions don't consider it a valid graduation certificate.
I was shamed and silenced, just like thousands of students that fail these state tests every year.
Gateway's Gaps
Twenty-three states, including Florida, Texas and California, have adopted exit exams as a requirement for receiving high school diplomas. The Gateway Exam is Tennessee's graduation requirement test and consists of English II, Algebra I and Biology I exams.
These assessments might seem like an important way to gauge a school or student's performance, but in the end they're linked to an inherently flawed public education system that fails to consider factors that hinder student performance such as lack of access to adequate classroom resources, quality instruction or tutoring services.
Students with learning disabilities are disproportionately affected because Tennessee public schools don't offer reasonable test accommodations such as portfolio assessments, additional test time, alternative test formats, or the use of adaptive equipment. Failing to provide these accommodations violates federal and state provisions set forth in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (reauthorized in 2002 as No Child Left Behind), the 1975 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
School closures also impact student preparedness for exit exams. In Memphis, for every school that closes, another facility must be made available, otherwise students are assigned to the next closest school. This can lead to class sizes of up to 40 students. Overcrowding hinders a teacher's effectiveness in covering core subjects such as English, science and math. Some teachers aren't even properly prepared to teach the basics.
In 2005, the Memphis City School Report Card data revealed that over one third of instructors were not "highly qualified" to teach core courses, leaving Memphis students with some 6,653 under-qualified teachers.
The Tennessee Department of Education also refuses to release test information that identifies what answers students missed, or indicate sections on which they may have performed poorly. Releasing this information would help instructors provide assistance for the Gateway Exam and ensure that students could be more successful when retaking the exam. Despite the fact that failure to pass an exit exam may seriously impact a student's future, proper assistance is not provided.
Denied Opportunities
According to the Tennessee Department of Education Annual Statistical Reports, between 1995 and 2007 a total of 32,233 students statewide were denied standard high school diplomas and given "special education diplomas." A further 8,654 students were only issued Certificates of Attendance (COA).
The Tennessee Department of Education failed to notify students of the COA's limitations including ineligibility for student loans, scholarships, entrance to the military or Federal Pell Grant funding for post-secondary education, as well as exclusion from technical, community colleges and universities.
The individual and societal costs of denying a diploma based on a state test score without providing students other alternatives are painfully high. Data from FairTest, the American Community Survey, US Census Bureau and Education Research Center show that students without diplomas earn much less in the workforce. They are less likely to maintain stable families as a result of unemployment or under-employment, and may turn to criminal activities in order to earn an income. Young people face these challenges every day and the stigma of having failed to complete their education silences them. In my case, it took a lawsuit to regain my voice.
I Had to Do Something!
While contemplating my future and feeling frustrated with the system, I decided to appeal the deficiencies of special diplomas and high-stakes exit examination before the Memphis school board, the state legislature and make my case heard on all the Memphis news stations (video).
I first addressed the Memphis City School Board at several meetings. Then I began contacting several local and state representatives by e-mail and phone to tell them how graduation requirements had affected my life. I came in contact with Rep. Barbara Cooper (D-Tenn.) who at that time was pushing for legislation to change the state graduation policies. I explained my diploma's limitations and how it was barring me from even entering a beauty school and Rep. Cooper asked me to testify before the House and Higher Education Committee at the Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville.
I also explained the issue in a one-on-one meeting in Washington, DC with Congressman Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.). A local DC blog called The Pesky Fly covered the meeting and wrote:
What impressed me about [her] current Congressman is that he didn't blow her off, and when she began to articulate her issue, he immediately offered to put her in touch with the Chairman of the Education sub-committee, Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.). Rep. Cohen gave Ms. Wilson a two-hour meeting on a Friday morning (when many of his colleagues, including some members of the Congressional Black Caucus, were busy blowing town for parts unknown, if not back to their districts). Expect Latricia to become a "shining star" on the Hill when she gives that testimony before Rep. Miller's subcommittee.
Meanwhile, I approached news reporters while they were covering stories on the streets of Memphis and distributed brief summaries of my personal experience and copies of my diploma. Media outlets were instrumental in forcing the state to acknowledge the issue of how its exit exams affected students like myself.
As a result, a federal class action lawsuit was filed July 26, 2007 against the Tennessee Department of Education on behalf of all former students that were denied high school diplomas for failure to pass the Gateway Exam. I was one of the plaintiffs represented by a young man named Corey Robertson. Walter Bailey Law Firm Attorney Javier Bailey filed my case.
Better Days Ahead
Within the lawsuit, my attorney asked the judge to dismantle the Gateway Exam as a graduation requirement. We also asked that students denied diplomas be recertified. Unfortunately, the lawsuit was dismissed due my case's expired statute of limitations. We lost the battle but in the end we won the war because we were successful in being the first to legally challenge the state on this issue. Tennessee's unfair testing policy had been exposed.
The Tennessee State Board of Education did not want to risk being challenged on graduation testing again and on January 25, 2008, just a few months after my suit was dismissed, the Board moved to eliminate the Gateway Exam as a diploma requirement. In the 2009-2010 school year no student in the state of Tennessee will be required to pass any test to qualify for a high school diploma.
While I failed the TCAP math section in 2002 because of systemic failures in the public school system here in Tennessee, I do not consider myself a failure. In fact, I took the Gateway Exam on May 1, 2007 in hopes of passing to obtain a standard diploma. I'm determined that I will not be deemed unemployable and incapable of pursuing my career goals merely because of a high school test score.
Willing to pay for more testing?
A guest opinion appearing in the BCCT. Here's a good point that parallels the questions Superintendent Yonson has been raising. She's asked how can we raise the accountability you want without paying for teachers.
Don't forget that the board adopted a resolution against increased testing.
Are the taxpayers willing to pay for more testing?
It’s the taxpayer who ends up footing the bill for the mandates, often through increases in school property taxes.
Thomas J. Gentzel is the executive director of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association.
The Bucks County Courier Times editorial on June 18 regarding graduation requirements is filled with inaccuracies and is offensive to the dedication and successes of public schools in Pennsylvania.
Your assertions that school districts are handing out “empty diplomas” and that most school districts “cheat kids out of an education” are an insult to every hard-working teacher, school board member and school administrator working in a Pennsylvania public high school. Worse, they are not factually accurate.
Information from a recent PSBA survey shows that school districts invest substantial amounts of time, effort and resources into developing local assessments, aligning them to the state’s academic standards as the law requires. Many districts in your readership area fit that bill.
The Avon Grove School District in Chester County and Centennial and Central Bucks school districts in Bucks County are but three that have comprehensive local graduation testing and alignment procedures in place. These districts, along with scores of others, take their responsibility in this area seriously. To dismiss their efforts, as your editorial does, simply gives credence to the careless propaganda that proponents of this proposal are using to try desperately to win its enactment. The members of the General Assembly who have raised concerns with this proposal do so for good reason and should be commended, not condemned, for questioning a plan that is so badly misdirected.
The argument against the Graduate Competency exams is about more than the tests themselves. It is also about the funding. Although proponents argue that the full cost of the mandate will be covered by state funding, the reality is that the money will disappear rather quickly. More often than not, school districts and taxpayers are left funding a large portion of these mandates. There is no guarantee that the money proponents say will help districts pay for the costs of this proposal will be there in 2011-12 when it takes effect. Look at the current budget process, where the Senate proposed a 41 percent cut in funding for education that would cause chaos for school districts that have already adopted budgets. Not only has Senate Bill 1389 been proposed so late in the year that school districts do not have time to adjust their budgets, but it also ignores the results of the Costing-Out Study that was commissioned by the General Assembly. In the end, it is the taxpayer who ends up footing the bill for the mandates, often through increases in school property tax.
Let’s be clear: There is no disagreement about the need for students to be proficient in critical subject areas and to be prepared to become contributing citizens when they graduate high school. This is a debate about whether those attributes can be demonstrated through paper-and-pencil testing alone and who should carry the cost burden of more testing. The question taxpayers need to ask themselves is: “Are you ready to pay for yet another unfunded mandate?”
Don't forget that the board adopted a resolution against increased testing.
Are the taxpayers willing to pay for more testing?
It’s the taxpayer who ends up footing the bill for the mandates, often through increases in school property taxes.
Thomas J. Gentzel is the executive director of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association.
The Bucks County Courier Times editorial on June 18 regarding graduation requirements is filled with inaccuracies and is offensive to the dedication and successes of public schools in Pennsylvania.
Your assertions that school districts are handing out “empty diplomas” and that most school districts “cheat kids out of an education” are an insult to every hard-working teacher, school board member and school administrator working in a Pennsylvania public high school. Worse, they are not factually accurate.
Information from a recent PSBA survey shows that school districts invest substantial amounts of time, effort and resources into developing local assessments, aligning them to the state’s academic standards as the law requires. Many districts in your readership area fit that bill.
The Avon Grove School District in Chester County and Centennial and Central Bucks school districts in Bucks County are but three that have comprehensive local graduation testing and alignment procedures in place. These districts, along with scores of others, take their responsibility in this area seriously. To dismiss their efforts, as your editorial does, simply gives credence to the careless propaganda that proponents of this proposal are using to try desperately to win its enactment. The members of the General Assembly who have raised concerns with this proposal do so for good reason and should be commended, not condemned, for questioning a plan that is so badly misdirected.
The argument against the Graduate Competency exams is about more than the tests themselves. It is also about the funding. Although proponents argue that the full cost of the mandate will be covered by state funding, the reality is that the money will disappear rather quickly. More often than not, school districts and taxpayers are left funding a large portion of these mandates. There is no guarantee that the money proponents say will help districts pay for the costs of this proposal will be there in 2011-12 when it takes effect. Look at the current budget process, where the Senate proposed a 41 percent cut in funding for education that would cause chaos for school districts that have already adopted budgets. Not only has Senate Bill 1389 been proposed so late in the year that school districts do not have time to adjust their budgets, but it also ignores the results of the Costing-Out Study that was commissioned by the General Assembly. In the end, it is the taxpayer who ends up footing the bill for the mandates, often through increases in school property tax.
Let’s be clear: There is no disagreement about the need for students to be proficient in critical subject areas and to be prepared to become contributing citizens when they graduate high school. This is a debate about whether those attributes can be demonstrated through paper-and-pencil testing alone and who should carry the cost burden of more testing. The question taxpayers need to ask themselves is: “Are you ready to pay for yet another unfunded mandate?”
"Pretend this meeting never happened"
It seems that unreality is not limited to the borders of the Morrisville school board's domain.
This article talks about the South Iron Missouri School District, who got in trouble with the way they dealt with religion in the school. That's not quite Morrisville's problem. The paragraphs describing the school board however, are classic Morrisville.
"...And the fact that the school board repeatedly ignored the advice of their own superintendent, their own attorney, the attorneys for the state association of school boards and the attorney for their insurance company (which voided their liability policy as a result, just like in Dover) and refused to change that policy even after being told by all of them that allowing the Gideons to do so was unconstitutional.
And the fact that the school board actually voted to "pretend this meeting never happened" when those attorneys all told them they had to change their policy. It was only a few days before a court hearing on a preliminary injunction that the school board, under advice of Staver's legal group, finally and reluctantly changed their mind and instituted an open forum policy. But they also made it clear that they didn't think there was anything wrong with the old policy."
"Pretend the meeting never took place!" I can only imagine who might make that motion.
Staver Lies About Court Case
Category: Politics
Posted on: July 10, 2008 9:16 AM, by Ed Brayton
And the odds of that were about, oh, 1 to 1. In this article at OneNewsNow, Matt Staver, head of Liberty Counsel and Falwell's law school, tells more whoppers about the facts and outcome of a case involving the distribution of Gideon bibles in an elementary school in the South Iron School District in Missouri. The lies begin with the headline of the article:
ACLU given 'veto power' over free-speech rights
Not even close. The case didn't even have anything to do with free speech rights, it was an establishment clause case. And this idea of the ACLU having "veto power" is a ridiculous way to spin the ruling (which you can see in full here). And boy is Staver spinning:
The South Iron School District allows off-campus organizations to distribute literature to students before and after school, and during other non-instructional times such as lunch breaks. But the American Civil Liberties Union sued, saying the Gideons should not be allowed to hand out Bibles because of their religious nature. U.S. District Judge Catherine Perry agreed.
True to form, the AFA's news site leaves just a few inconvenient facts out of the story. Like the fact that the suit was filed not against a policy that allows off-campus organizations to distribute literature, but against a policy that allowed only the Gideons to do so, and that further gave the Gideons access to 5th grade classrooms during instructional time, something court after court has struck down as clearly unconstitutional.
And the fact that the school board repeatedly ignored the advice of their own superintendent, their own attorney, the attorneys for the state association of school boards and the attorney for their insurance company (which voided their liability policy as a result, just like in Dover) and refused to change that policy even after being told by all of them that allowing the Gideons to do so was unconstitutional.
And the fact that the school board actually voted to "pretend this meeting never happened" when those attorneys all told them they had to change their policy. It was only a few days before a court hearing on a preliminary injunction that the school board, under advice of Staver's legal group, finally and reluctantly changed their mind and instituted an open forum policy. But they also made it clear that they didn't think there was anything wrong with the old policy.
That's why the judge refused to moot the case based on the voluntary cessation doctrine, because the school board had clearly changed its policy only to get out from under the case. But in doing so, they also made quite clear that their sole objective in the process was to endorse Christianity by preserving some way, any way, for the Gideons to get into the school and hand out bibles.
The judge in this case, citing the Lemon test prohibition on any policy which does not have a clear secular purpose, said:
The undisputed evidence here shows that the District's purpose in passing the new policy was the promotion of Christianity, and therefore it violates the Establishment Clause.
All of this flows directly from the Supreme Court's rulings in Santa Fe and McCreary, where the court analyzed similar situations where the government attempted after the fact to change their policy but left clear evidence of their religious intent behind in the process. There is a case to be made against such reasoning, but a district court is bound to apply the precedents as they are.
"In fact, the federal judge said...the ACLU must be able to have the say-so over whether religious literature can be distributed -- and obviously, if the ACLU has that say-so, no religious literature will ever be distributed," says Matt Staver, founder of Liberty Counsel.
This is a flat out lie, plain and simple. The judge said nothing even close to that. The ruling doesn't give the ACLU "veto power" over anything. The ACLU represented the plaintiffs and the court agreed with the plaintiffs that existing precedent required the conclusion that this policy was unconstitutional. That's it.
But Staver points out that the First Amendment prohibits any "heckler" from having the right to prohibit free speech. "...The ACLU may not like the fact that equal access also means equal treatment for religious speech, but, frankly, the Constitution requires equal treatment," states the attorney. "...Hecklers may heckle all they want to, but they may not veto private religious speech."
I think David Gibbs is going to have a hard time catching Staver in the competition for the title of the nation's loopiest religious right attorney. Arguments like this are simply laughable. If you analyzed this ruling for a con law 1 class in law school and pretended that the case had something to do with the heckler's veto and private speech, the professor would not only flunk you he might also suggest that you make a different career choice.
This article talks about the South Iron Missouri School District, who got in trouble with the way they dealt with religion in the school. That's not quite Morrisville's problem. The paragraphs describing the school board however, are classic Morrisville.
"...And the fact that the school board repeatedly ignored the advice of their own superintendent, their own attorney, the attorneys for the state association of school boards and the attorney for their insurance company (which voided their liability policy as a result, just like in Dover) and refused to change that policy even after being told by all of them that allowing the Gideons to do so was unconstitutional.
And the fact that the school board actually voted to "pretend this meeting never happened" when those attorneys all told them they had to change their policy. It was only a few days before a court hearing on a preliminary injunction that the school board, under advice of Staver's legal group, finally and reluctantly changed their mind and instituted an open forum policy. But they also made it clear that they didn't think there was anything wrong with the old policy."
"Pretend the meeting never took place!" I can only imagine who might make that motion.
Staver Lies About Court Case
Category: Politics
Posted on: July 10, 2008 9:16 AM, by Ed Brayton
And the odds of that were about, oh, 1 to 1. In this article at OneNewsNow, Matt Staver, head of Liberty Counsel and Falwell's law school, tells more whoppers about the facts and outcome of a case involving the distribution of Gideon bibles in an elementary school in the South Iron School District in Missouri. The lies begin with the headline of the article:
ACLU given 'veto power' over free-speech rights
Not even close. The case didn't even have anything to do with free speech rights, it was an establishment clause case. And this idea of the ACLU having "veto power" is a ridiculous way to spin the ruling (which you can see in full here). And boy is Staver spinning:
The South Iron School District allows off-campus organizations to distribute literature to students before and after school, and during other non-instructional times such as lunch breaks. But the American Civil Liberties Union sued, saying the Gideons should not be allowed to hand out Bibles because of their religious nature. U.S. District Judge Catherine Perry agreed.
True to form, the AFA's news site leaves just a few inconvenient facts out of the story. Like the fact that the suit was filed not against a policy that allows off-campus organizations to distribute literature, but against a policy that allowed only the Gideons to do so, and that further gave the Gideons access to 5th grade classrooms during instructional time, something court after court has struck down as clearly unconstitutional.
And the fact that the school board repeatedly ignored the advice of their own superintendent, their own attorney, the attorneys for the state association of school boards and the attorney for their insurance company (which voided their liability policy as a result, just like in Dover) and refused to change that policy even after being told by all of them that allowing the Gideons to do so was unconstitutional.
And the fact that the school board actually voted to "pretend this meeting never happened" when those attorneys all told them they had to change their policy. It was only a few days before a court hearing on a preliminary injunction that the school board, under advice of Staver's legal group, finally and reluctantly changed their mind and instituted an open forum policy. But they also made it clear that they didn't think there was anything wrong with the old policy.
That's why the judge refused to moot the case based on the voluntary cessation doctrine, because the school board had clearly changed its policy only to get out from under the case. But in doing so, they also made quite clear that their sole objective in the process was to endorse Christianity by preserving some way, any way, for the Gideons to get into the school and hand out bibles.
The judge in this case, citing the Lemon test prohibition on any policy which does not have a clear secular purpose, said:
The undisputed evidence here shows that the District's purpose in passing the new policy was the promotion of Christianity, and therefore it violates the Establishment Clause.
All of this flows directly from the Supreme Court's rulings in Santa Fe and McCreary, where the court analyzed similar situations where the government attempted after the fact to change their policy but left clear evidence of their religious intent behind in the process. There is a case to be made against such reasoning, but a district court is bound to apply the precedents as they are.
"In fact, the federal judge said...the ACLU must be able to have the say-so over whether religious literature can be distributed -- and obviously, if the ACLU has that say-so, no religious literature will ever be distributed," says Matt Staver, founder of Liberty Counsel.
This is a flat out lie, plain and simple. The judge said nothing even close to that. The ruling doesn't give the ACLU "veto power" over anything. The ACLU represented the plaintiffs and the court agreed with the plaintiffs that existing precedent required the conclusion that this policy was unconstitutional. That's it.
But Staver points out that the First Amendment prohibits any "heckler" from having the right to prohibit free speech. "...The ACLU may not like the fact that equal access also means equal treatment for religious speech, but, frankly, the Constitution requires equal treatment," states the attorney. "...Hecklers may heckle all they want to, but they may not veto private religious speech."
I think David Gibbs is going to have a hard time catching Staver in the competition for the title of the nation's loopiest religious right attorney. Arguments like this are simply laughable. If you analyzed this ruling for a con law 1 class in law school and pretended that the case had something to do with the heckler's veto and private speech, the professor would not only flunk you he might also suggest that you make a different career choice.
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