What's the question; what's the answer?

In 2009, the parents of Wake County spoke. They elected a majority on theWCPSS School Board who supported the end to the mindless reassignment of their children. These School Board members bravely broke the mold after decades of diversity busing. Busing that not only adversely affected the education of suburban students but was eventually proven by WCPSS itself to have no positive impact on the education of the poor students targeted for those long distance assignments. After a few immediate and key resignations and retirements, many doors were opened to the changes needed in our school system.

The assignment policy was amended. Diversity goals were removed. An emphasis was placed on the educational needs of students and the involvement of parents. After years of mandatory year-round assignments and families split by school calendars, choice was resurrected. The ’09 School Board members ran on a platform of providing the necessary resources to students – not busing students for diversity under the guise of a better education. Their policies promoted stability, community involvement, and predictability in assignment in their attempt to create a school system that was responsive not critical.

But that didn’t last long.

Some were outraged at the very thought of removing diversity as a goal in assignment. They did all they could to create and spread fear around our community of what could happen. They painted their own message in the media of resegregation and the isolation of minorities. In 2011, a new majority-Democratic Board was elected to save and restore diversity.

So how is it that just last week the N&O published in an article that states the number of high-poverty schools has more than doubled under the direction of the new School Board? Let that sink in….more than doubled – from 18 to 46. Twelve WCPSS schools now have populations of more than 70% low-income students. There were none under the ’09 Board.

The current School Board has had five years to undo the changes they deemed as “destructive” and “racist” and yet have chosen to do absolutely nothing. Not only have they not taken any action on the changes made back in ’09, their inaction and apathy have done more to make their fears a reality than anything else. And their friends - who raised a ruckus and feigned concern about the “loss” of diversity - are now silent and uninterested because their Democratic friends are faithfully leading the charge.

Or are they?

The N&O editorial this past weekend addresses this issue. It questions these numbers but it totally misses the mark. The question we should be asking is not “Do we pursue diversity or do we let segregation return?” That is a lazy, simple-minded question and only serves to create the same fearful rhetoric we heard years ago.

What we should be asking is “What can we do to improve education for every child in Wake County?” It’s a tough question with many answers and just as many opinions. I agree that we are at a crossroads as a county and community. But diversity is not it. There are so many others ways to improve education and address the needs of our students than assignment. There are better conversations to have. Our crossroads is ensuring we don’t go back to the way it was.

Although our current School Board has managed to create a school system that reflects exactly what they claimed they were against, we simply can’t let the diversity pendulum swing completely back.

D before E

Have you ever wondered if diversity really trumps education in Wake County? I mean, honestly... you can read my posts from the past two years and listen to my opinion but I'm sure you've thought: 

"Yeah, yeah. You're just political and hate this School Board" or 

"My kids are fine. Diversity is a good thing (as long as we don't get reassigned)." or 

(in a whisper...) "That woman is crazy."

Well, I feel your pain. This School Board has not made it easy. In the past 3 years, they have made many damaging decisions (like going through 4 superintendents in 2 years) and many non-decisions (uh, after 3 years and whole lotta talking, still no assignment plan?).

But, are they really so focused on creating diversity in our schools that the educational needs of our students run a far second?

Here's some clarity. 

Last week, the N&O had an article about the WCPSS School Board ending a successful and effective program that was running at 5 low-income schools in Wake County.  While Mr. Literal, aka School Board Jim Martin, tried to berate the N&O and claim that the Board never canceled this program, the reality is the funding has ended and this program, one that has helped thousands of low-income children, is over. Don't let Mr. Martin's patronizing twist on the truth make you believe otherwise. 

In the end, the program was ended because this Board doesn't like helping all sorts of poor kids together in one school. In the Board's opinion, it's wrong for poor families to choose to attend school together and then have the school system provide extra resources to help their children. The success of that program isn't what's important to them. The diversity of that school is important. Diversity over education.

But, do you care? After all, not my children.

So, let's talk about something that you might care about. Something that really speaks to the Board's one and only concern: diversity.

At their last work session (the meeting before the official Board meeting), there was a discussion about the placement of the new schools that will be built from the 2013 bond money. You know, the bond you voted for last year because "it's for the children".

WCPSS staff has been working to identify areas to build schools around the county in order to best serve the growing population of Wake County. To make it easy, I'll recap that discussion for those of you who live in SW Wake. 

Here's what your unsympathetic and magnet-focused School Board member Susan Evans had to say:

"We've been having various other conversations about student assignment and the magnet program and I think this is probably a good time for us to put it out there on the table. We have to be forward thinking about all of that stuff and I don't know what the decent answers are but, I've said this before and I'll say it again."

Here it comes, people...

"While I understand that the density of new neighborhoods is strong along that Western corridor and will be strong along the most Southern corridor, so that looks like that's our immediate need, I have a concern from a long-term perspective that, in 20 years when those neighborhoods have aged up and we've got a bazillion schools around the perimeter of the county, is that going to serve us well? We need to think globally about the positioning of schools with long-term in mind and build more towards the center of [the county]."

Globally? Uh, ok. So, even though we have been recognized as the fastest growing area of the county...  And, even though you have been told by Susan Evans that you matter and she will work for your family and your children...  And, even though you honestly believed that your support of the 2013 school bond would result in new schools in your crowded neighborhood...  Even though there is an "immediate need" (her words, not mine) for schools in our district, we're not going to get them.

As quoted in the N&O, "It’s easier to assign children to schools in the central areas of the county to balance population and diversity than to send them to schools farther away."

Let me say that in plain English. 

Schools will be built closer to Raleigh so diversity will be easier to achieve. And your kids are the next pawns in that system.

So, the joke's on you. Do you care now?


 

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2014/06/21/3954206/wake-county-leaders-debate-where.html?sp=/99/102/110/112/#storylink=cpy

The Suburban Imbeciles

I just watched the WCPSS Strategic Plan meeting...aka #wakevision.

(If you want to waste 2 hours of your time, you can watch it here.)

This meeting was held at Memorial Hall on May 30th to kickoff the development "of a five-year strategic plan that will guide the school system moving forward." (BTW, this meeting cost you at least $2,422.85.) (And...the last five year strategic plan was done just two years ago. But, whatever.)

The speaker hired by WCPSS, some guy who calls himself a futurist, was actually okay.  Engaging, sounded pretty knowledgeable, had some interesting ideas. A little nutty but tolerable, I guess. In a nutshell, his message was that we need to be teaching for our kids' future, and not from our own past. And how important this is - now more than ever - because the world is changing at a faster rate than it ever has. 

Good message. But, considering this crowd and that School Board members and Supt. Merrill were in the room, it probably floated over their heads and right out the door.

But, the absolute best part of this meeting (and well worth watching at 1:51:55) was when one parent, Becky, stood up to ask a question. Little ol' Becky was pretty confident in her question...as if she already knew the answer. Here's what she said:

"I am the parent of two students at Martin Middle School. One of the stronger points of the Wake County Public School System has been the long-time commitment to having diverse schools. What do you say to parents, and I think this is part of the visioning process, guys - who are so adamant that the worst thing that can happen to their kid is that they could be reassigned to a different school the next year?"

Good grief. 

Could Becky possibly be any more condescending while gnashing her teeth?

Uh, yes, she could. And she was:

"I'm sorry - but if my child is going to have 5 to 10 different careers, God forbid that they should have to go to 4 or 5 elementary schools. I mean, it seems like preparation for living to me."

OMG. 4 or 5 elementary schools?! 

Becky is either the worst kind of parent or she represents the epitome of a smug, patronizing, and arrogant magnet parent who thinks us "suburban" parents are idiots. 

Maybe that choice is one and the same. :)

And Becky didn't stop there:

"We don't close our schools because the population shifts; we shift the kids around. And it has worked really well - except that parents get so irate because their children, in spite of the fact that they are all digitally connected, that they are losing that connection."

Fortunately, the futurist stopped Becky from babbling and making herself look even more foolish. His response, however, was brilliant. 

He said:

"I will say that if all the schools in the district are equal quality, there shouldn't be a problem. So, that's the first thing. If the school system can stand up and say "You're gonna get the same education", that's a true statement."

And we all know WCPSS isn't about educational equality. If it was, Becky and her buddies would be very upset over losing their magnet goodies and sharing them with the rest of us imbeciles in the suburbs.

And then the futurist said something incredible:

"The other thing is... the word 'diversity'... Diversity is a loaded, social, emotional word of about 50 years standing that, if you want diversity, you have to let go of the legacy thinking of what the word diversity means and create what is diversity in this school district in 2014. Whatever that is... face that diversity, rather than some formulaic thing. But, the first thing is to make all schools good. Then, it doesn't matter."

So, was it worth the $2300 for the venue and god-knows-how-much for Mr. Futurist to tell the irate parents of Wake County what we already know?  

For those last two minutes, yes. Yes, it was.

Do you think Becky, her magnet friends, and the WCPSS School Board actually listened to those comments? 

Not in a million years. 

Understanding this simple concept would require parents like Becky to change. Parents like Becky have it too good in the magnet system. Parents like Becky have absolutely no understanding of the effect of reassignment on a child - not to mention 4 or 5 of them. Parents like Becky may understand that the reassignment of our children allows her magnet children to remain safe, secure, and untouched at their school. Parents like Becky are ignorant and offensive. Sadly, there are plenty of them in Wake County.

Even worse, they are also on our School Board.

Repackaging Tata's vision

What we are witnessing today on the Wake County School Board is politics at its best.

In 2009, the School Board removed quotas for diversity in the WCPSS assignment policy. After all, there was decades of data that showed the busing scheme in Wake County - that is, using the assignment of poor children to fill quotas at each school - did not work. It did not improve academic outcomes.

However, as a result of that simple change, the liberals went wild. 

They packed the Board meetings, protested anywhere they could, chanted and sang, encouraged students to get arrested, and proudly crossed the security barriers to physically take over the School Board seats. C'mon, we all remember it. Overly-dramatic candlelight vigils. Yelling, singing, and praying during Board meetings. Years of hateful statements, speeches, and name-calling.

Fast forward to this past week...

New Superintendent Merrill and WCPSS staff presented a new academic formula to the School Board. This formula could be used to better identify the needs of struggling schools - how to place resources properly - rather than simply using diversity busing to address educational problems. Sadly, it does include the ability to reassign students to "improve" performance. But, it's no longer the be-all and end-all as this Board and their liberal friends so desired.

This new formula is divided into 5 areas - yet "diversity" is no longer the most important factor. In fact, "demographics" (which it is named under this formula) is similarly weighted to 3 of the other 5 factors.

And, shockingly, the left remains silent. No outrage. Silence. Crickets.

Let's not forget... the end result of all that hubbub from the liberals was the buyout of the contract of a very effective and very successful superintendent. With the support of the 2009 Board, Tata managed to change the conversation in Wake County. Not an easy feat.

So, I can only believe that either Merrill is treading on very thin ice with this Board by basically dismissing diversity busing as a solution in education. Or this School Board is filled with a bunch of liars and hypocrites.

In a nutshell...

A vision and leadership from a superintendent hired by a Republican-majority board?
Bad, bad, bad.

The same vision from a superintendent hired by a Democratic-majority board?
Hmmm... seems OK.

Now, don't get me wrong. This isn't set in stone. The Board has to approve this new formula that puts little emphasis on diversity busing. And, in the long shot that they will vote in favor of it, I wonder if the outrage will return.
 
I'm not betting on it.

The Rat in the Hat

 
Look at me! Look at me! Look at me now!
It is fun to have fun but you have to know how.


Very fitting for Bill Fletcher. Full of trickery and lies.
(Yes, that's his goofy picture on the left.)

Back in 1993, when Fletcher first ran for School Board, he ran as a critic of diversity busing. Like any sane person, he was against the reassignment of children over and over again simply to meet a diversity quota.

Well, that was his first (and probably most damaging) trick on the citizens of Wake County. Once in office, Fletcher's true intent became very clear. He voted in favor of EVERY SINGLE REASSIGNMENT PLAN from 1993 to 2005. Twelve years of deeply-entrenched diversity busing plans - and Fletcher voted for every one of them.

Is it any wonder that Fletcher came in 3rd place the last time he ran in 2005?  Yup, didn't even make it into a runoff. The citizens of Cary were sick and tired of him, his lies, and being yanked around and ignored by a system that Fletcher happily created. (Then, like a knife in the back, the current majority appointed him back to the School Board this year.)

So, why does Fletcher think he can fool us again? Well, you can thank his cousin, Jim Goodmon. Goodmon is a mouthpiece in Wake County (He is the CEO of Capital Broadcasting) and has the media at his fingertips. He is active with Great Schools in Wake and has very deep pockets. There is no way that Fletcher will vote against anything his cousin wants. Goodmon has funded and continues to fund all the 'pro-diversity' candidates because, well, busing the poor out of Raleigh makes Jim happy. And Fletcher will use his cousin's influence and money to continue to lie and hope you don't remember the truth.

Another little tidbit about Fletcher. He used to sit as a member of the Board for Big Brothers Big Sisters - the place John Tedesco used to work. Fletcher, as this article implies, was instrumental in pushing Tedesco out of his job. Of course, Fletcher won't tell you the truth about that - but it certainly explains why Tedesco voted for a member of GSIW rather than Fletcher when filling this School Board seat. 

And this mess is so big
And so deep and so tall,
We cannot pick it up
There is no way at all!

Yup, pretty much sums up what Fletcher will do to this county and our children.

Vote for Caggia on October 8th.

A Thousand Words

Hi. My name is Susan Evans - School Board member for District 8. I'm the one on the right. I'm with my fellow Board member, Christine Kushner. She's the one on the left. 

Who is that in the middle, you ask? That's one of the leaders from Great Schools in Wake (GSIW), Adrienne Lumpkin. This picture of us was taken at the last Moral Monday protest. If you have Facebook, you can see some of my other friends and GSIW members here.

You might remember that Christine and I were accused of being involved with GSIW after taking our Board seats. You see, being actively involved with such a political group would be against the WCPSS Code of Ethics. So, Christine and I just denied everything. Denied, denied, denied. But, c'mon, did you really believe us? ;)

Not only do we work closely with their leaders, we love going to their organized protests and bad mouthing people who don't agree with us. We wear stickers and hold protest signs during the day - and then pretend we're listening to all sides when we sit in our Board seats at night. It's so much fun!

So, to date, we've checked off the following on our GSIW to-do list:

1. We ended the Choice Plan. Too many of our magnet friends were upset. I don't really understand why the suburbs are so angry. Whatever.

2. We fired Supt. Tata. Honestly, the guy is smart. Had to go. Buh-bye.

3. We hired a new superintendent. He's an old school guy . Our previous Board chair, Kevin Hill, really likes to live in the past. You know, like 30 years ago. This Merrill guy will fit right in.

4. Our latest accomplishment was getting approval to go back to using F&R data to assign students. What? You don't remember the Board discussing that in public? LOL. That's because we didn't. Of course, Adrienne knew all about it. 

It really amazes me how easy it's been to keep up this guise. I guess it helps that the media is on our side. 

Anyway, I hope you like the picture.





 

Your future is your past

Have you seen your future?

WCPSS has posted the recommendations for the "bridge" plan for 2013-14. And it provides some very good insight into what is coming down the pike with the BIG reassignment plan in 2014-15. 

If you didn't know already, the new Board majority voted to move back to base assignments - which caused great disruption and upheaval to our children and families for the past decade - rather than continue with the Choice Plan, which promoted proximity and promised stability. And, yes, nodes are back too.

In a quick reading, here are some things we all should be concerned about:

1. Anyone can choose to move back to their base assignment based on their 2011 node assignment. Or can they? In the proposal, it states: "Students participating in the Base Declaration will have a guaranteed seat at their base school for the new school year."

Sounds great! But, wait...there's more. 

 "Unless the school becomes fully capped based on numbers requesting to return to their base school." Huh? That's a guarantee? Some will get their base assignment; some will not. How is that any different than not receiving your first choice, which the anti-Tata's so whined about as a problem with the choice plan?

2. This proposal includes a stay-where-you-start policy. The Dem majority on the Board have touted the implementation of this sort of policy in their push back to base assignments. In his editorial rant, Kevin Hill referred to this new policy as a way to provide stability. Well, what he didn't say is that this Board's version of stability will not, in most cases, come with bus transportation. Read it and weep.

3. Those who participated in the Choice Plan last year are now being told that their promised feeder patterns "...will be honored, to the extent possible." Doesn't sound promising, does it? And, once again, your choice to maintain that feeder pattern may not come with transportation.

Keep in mind -- this is just the beginning. This proposal mostly addresses the opening of a few new schools. Next year, the Board will address what they have coined as "hot spots" across the county - and more than likely use the same guidelines as listed in this proposal.

No bus, no choice, no stability, and no recourse. Welcome back to 2008.

Power, Corruption & Lies

C'mon... Do we really believe that Board members Susan Evans, Christine Kushner & Jim Martin aren't secretly involved with the partisan and very hateful group, Great Schools in Wake? You'd be foolish to believe otherwise. 

Back in May, I wrote this blog post. Members of GSIW were somehow completely aware of what was going to happen during the Board meeting in June the following month. How?  Because they were orchestrating it thru their members - Evans, Kushner & Martin. 

GSIW "suggested" in their email for a push to create a directive for a new student assignment plan. Voila!...the Board majority had a new directive prepared and ready to approve for the June meeting. Coincidence? I think not. 

(BTW -- here's a photo of GSIW and their "diverse" group. Notice in the article that Board member Susan Evans is referred to as a "coalition leader" - even though she continues to deny involvement with this group. Evans also placed a GSIW leader to chair her Board Advisory Committee. Does she really think we're that stupid or is she just that arrogant?)

The WakeEd blog had a post recently about Yevonne Brannon, the leader of GSIW, containing another email sent to her group. Her email blathers on and on with praise for her friends/members on the School Board yet berates Supt. Tata at every opportunity. Since then, this small group of crazy women (honestly, have you heard them before?) have organized their comments at every School Board meeting to bash and blame Tata.

So, is it really surprising to anyone that Chair Hill and Vice-Chair Sutton have now scheduled a closed session meeting to discuss "personnel matters" on Monday? 

Are they firing Tata? 

Yevonne and her GSIW biddies have ordered it -- therefore, Evans, Kushner & Martin must make it so. That's how the School Board rolls these days.

Add to this all the push-pull of student assignment (which GSIW is intimately involved with too) and you, as a parent in Wake County, are losing every chance of being heard. 

Your School Board is being controlled by a small fringe group who don't have to follow rules or ethics policies. They just make a demand -- and the Democrats on the Board respond.

The days of parents being recognized in WCPSS are slowly slipping away. Choice is being shown the door and stability will soon be a memory. To put a nail in the coffin, Board member Susan Evans, has already stated:

"...we have the opportunity through assignment to assign kids wherever we feel like is in their best interests."

Apparently, that's what GSIW wants -- because that's certainly not what the parents of Wake County have been fighting for over the years.

Read more here: http://blogs.newsobserver.com/wakeed/wake-county-school-board-on-assigning-students-in-their-best-interests#storylink=cpy

Out of focus

Let me start out by saying that I believe assignment - and how students are assigned - should have nothing to do with achievement. For decades, the solution to addressing student achievement in WCPSS was always to fall back on student assignment. If a school wasn't performing, students were moved to other schools to make the school "healthy" once again. That solution didn't actually do anything positive to the education of those who were moved - you simply can't make a child smarter or perform better just by reassigning them. But, it made some people feel good. Really good. It was a cheap, feel-good way to perpetuate the awards for diversity and the perception of "no bad schools". It also, however, created much unnecessary instability, did nothing to improve achievement and ticked off many parents royally.

WCPSS was on its way to untangling assignment from achievement with the new Choice Assignment Plan. All parents were given choice - with a mix of proximity, calendar, and magnets. All families were promised stability at every school level and a predictable future as their children aged up. Plain and simple - this plan provided what parents wanted for their children and families -- and had little to do with raising achievement.

As a result of this new focus, Supt. Tata and his staff have worked to understand the educational needs of different schools and students and have implemented academic solutions to address achievement -- and we are now seeing very successful results. Just last week, the NC Department of Public Instruction released performance data for Wake County schools -- and the results are incredible. There have been gains across the district - at many schools and subgroups. (You can look up your school here.)

So, rather than fret over the demographics of a school and how to create and maintain a utopian mixture of students, it's obvious that our focus should remain on how each school population could be served better academically. We've seen the success - and it could be only the beginning.

Instead, however, the School Board has thumbed their noses at parents and chose to direct staff to link assignment with achievement once again. They didn't even wait to see how many more successes could be achieved. The new Choice Assignment Plan has been nixed (without even getting a chance) and we're moving back to "healthy" schools, set aside seats for certain types of student, limited choice and quotas for every school.

Back to a system that believes assignment and "diversity" will magically increase achievement. In reality, it will only serve to make the Democratic Board members feel good about themselves. After all, that's all it's done in the past.

And now for something really scary...

As I talked about in my last post, the WCPSS Board majority is raising the dead.

Yes, the horrors of nodes, multi-year reassignment plans and assignment quotas are on the verge of a unwanted return.

And that's not even the scary part.

A parent from Kevin Hill's district wrote to him with concerns about changing the new Choice Assignment plan. In his reply, Mr. Hill stated: 

"I agree with the following: 'Parent choice' proceeds from the belief that the purpose of education is to provide individual students with an education. In fact, educating the individual is but a means to the true end of education, which is to create a viable social order to which individuals contribute and by which they are sustained. 'Family choice' is, therefore, basically selfish and anti-social in that it focuses on the 'wants' of a single family rather than the 'needs' of society."

Say WHAT?!

Kevin Hill, the chairman of the Wake County Board of EDUCATION, does not believe that the purpose of education is to provide individual students with an education?!

Hill believes your children should be used "to create a viable social order"?

O.M.G.

Yeah, read that again...and again...until it really sinks in. 

It's hard to believe Hill actually admits that he doesn't think education is about educating at all. But, after years of pretending otherwise, he did. 

So, the jig's up.

It is now clear that this new Board majority isn't out to help you or your children. So, you can quit emailing them about not getting your 1st choice, or not liking your feeder pattern, or your disgust over their sneaky midnight vote to revive the old assignment plan. It does not matter.

What matters to them is what part you and your children will play in their socially-engineered agenda.  To them, you, your family and your children are just pieces of their societal puzzle.

And we should be very scared.

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/06/20/2150093/change-in-wake-student-assignment.html#storylink=cpy

Were you even awake?

Well, Wake County, here's what you elected.

The School Board waited until 12:53 A.M. (yes, A.M.) to rush through a vote -- without public input -- that will drastically alter the new choice assignment plan. 

You know, the plan that our superintendent and staff have worked on for the past 2 years, the plan where everyone has already made their choices for next year, the plan that gave our families choice and our children stability, the plan that hasn't even been fully implemented yet. 

And guess what? They have directed staff to go back to a multi-year, node-driven assignment plan that incorporates socioeconomic and academic achievement goals. 

Gosh, that sounds awfully familiar. 

During the meeting on Tuesday (and into Wednesday) and just before voting on the directive that will probably reassign your child, School Board member Susan Evans felt it was important to remind everyone who she is and what she thinks of us -- in her usual arrogant and condescending fashion.

"While I acknowledge that, first of all, the Raleigh Chamber and the Wake Ed Partnership are valuable partners in our community, and I respect the input of all citizens, at these board meetings on the blogs, wherever they choose to give their input, I just wanted to remind Ms. Prickett and the board that we are the elected officials charged with making these important decisions on behalf of the school system."

In other words, everyone can go pound sand.

Wake Education Partnership called this vote a "...late-night, partisan debate..." with the "...abscence of a collaborative approach."

The Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce also issued a statement to the School Board warning them -- and reminding them of the past: 

"Based on our research we believe that an address based approach advocated in the directive will require mandatory assignment to fill schools." "With a sizeable majority of parents satisfied with the current choice plan we anticipate a change will create disruption among a new group of stakeholders."

Disruption is putting it mildly.

Read more here: http://blogs.newsobserver.com/wakeed/greater-raleigh-chamber-of-commerce-disappointed-in-wake-county-school-boards-student-assignm#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://blogs.newsobserver.com/wakeed/greater-raleigh-chamber-of-commerce-disappointed-in-wake-county-school-boards-student-assignm#storylink=cpy

So, where do we stand now? That's a good question. Some are claiming this was merely a directive; others are calling this the creation of a new plan for 2013-14. Regardless of what this turns out to be (and, let's be honest -- this really is a return to the days of yearly reassignments), you should be awake and be concerned.

This is just another step in the wrong direction.

That's what friends are for

Now wait just a minute.

Board member Jim Martin said what?

Martin said the provost of N.C. State asked him to help out.

For May 29th's policy committee meeting, Martin, the chair of that committee, added an agenda item to discuss "Student Assignment for Extended Family Professional Leave". And then, at the meeting, proceeded to talk about how to create a policy specifically to serve his colleagues at NCSU.

Is this really a pressing issue? Well, for Mr. Martin, a professor at NCSU, it is. After all, this is his employer we're talking about.

I questioned Mr. Martin about the unethical nature of creating a policy to serve his friends and co-workers at the request of his boss. His response, in a nutshell, was..."The Provost is not my boss."

Martin goes on to say in his email..."You must realize that NCSU is one of the large employers of Wake County. It is for that reason that we should pay attention to matters impacting that employer. Careful attention should be paid to policies that impact any of the County's major employers."

He isn't concerned with, as he called them during the committee meeting.."the lowest common denominator". In Martin-speak, that would be those people who aren't as fortunate to have professional opportunities but have to leave the system for a short period for other reasons.

According to Mr. Hui on the WakeED blog.."[Martin contends]...that it's not equitable to say that because famlies of transient students have less resources than professionals that it's a reason not to go ahead with a leave policy."

So, let's boil it down....

Martin isn't concerned about you and me. He isn't concerned about those with less opportunities and less resources. He only wants to serve those he works with, those that attend his son's school and those who are just like him.

So, how do you feel about that? If you work for a major employer...let's say...NSCU, for example... Mr. Martin will pay careful attention to you and your children. He'll work to create policies to help you to ensure you're happy.

If you don't, well, you know...

You're an afterthought. After MYR and years of reassignment, it's an attitude those of us in Apex are familiar with.

It appears that attitude is making a comeback.

Ethics, schmethics

Do you remember when Susan Evans was questioned about her continued involvement with GSIW? In this email, she claimed:

"I am neither actively involved in their [GSIW's] activities, nor am I given any advance notice of the content or distribution of their press releases."

Hmmm. Really?

So, how does GSIW already know what is going to happen at the June 5th Board meeting?  

Here's an email I just received:

From: Calla Wright <ccaac_aacca@yahoo.com>

Subject: [CoalitionofConcernedCitizensforAfricanAmericanChildren] Fw: May Meeting Notes, YOUR HELP NEEDED

Date: May 20, 2012 4:25:20 PM EDT

To: coalitionofconcernedcitizensforafricanamericanchildren@yahoogroups.com

Cc: parentsfordiversity@yahoogroups.com

--- On Sat, 5/19/12, yevonne brannon <ybrannon@gmail.com> wrote:

From: yevonne brannon <ybrannon@gmail.com>
Subject: May Meeting Notes, YOUR HELP NEEDED
To:
Date: Saturday, May 19, 2012, 11:11 AM

I am very sorry that you missed our meeting on Tuesday.  Your help is needed!!

Here are the meeting notes.  Please review and let us know how you can help.  ACTIVATE your friends to join you!  It is very important NOT to stand down in the month of June!! We still have many opportunities to make a difference! Some of  the critical decisions facing the board in June---from the magnet study results, the results of round one and two of assignment plan, to voting on the budget, and directives needed NOW for the 2013 Student assignment plan—let’s make sure we have a strong voice at the June 5 and June 19 board meetings.

 

Work to DO: 

1.  JUNE 5 Board Meeting: We are going ALL out to get a lot of speakers at this meeting.  We are still working to get the board to at least direct the staff for the 2013 assignment PLAN.  We need everyone to show up and speak.  We can help you with speeches. PLEASE talk to Amy W and Lynn and coordinate this effort.  Here’s the bottom line: June 5 will be the last board meeting before school is out.  We need to let the BOE know how well they did this school year!! GIVE them their Grade for the school year, did they pass?? Did they make appropriate progress in a year?  Come on, this could be fun!!!!  (other topics include the budget, the transportation mess, the horrid behavior of the feeble four, the horrid CHOICE plan in summary, the need for NEW PLAN directive for staff to start working on now!)

2. Research:

1)      Amy Lee is working on the update on Round Two of the student assignment results. Patty is working on the web site update and on various fact sheets.  Please contact Patty if you can help with the fact sheets.

2)      Call/email Amy Lee and Sharon if you can help with the IMPACT of the Choice Plan on our schools.  This is critical research and will help us in other legal actions.

 

3. Letters to the Editor: Please consider drafting a ton of LTES right away on the following three topics:

1)      Lack of transportation for those assigned without transportation. This is just as wrong as the Unassigned.  If you were an unassigned, then you will especially understand this issue. Use the I contact today to draft a short LTE.

2)      Let’s find a better way:  NEED a lot of push as the next school board meeting (JUNE 5) to MAKE A NEW PLAN for 2013.  Start by getting a lot of LTEs on asking for a directive that stops using the CHOICE proximity model and starts using a RESIDENCEY based assignment plan.  We need to set the stage for the June 5 meeting with LTEs.  If you draft, send to Patty who will edits and give to Amy W and Lynn to get published. 

3)      VALUE of magnet schools.  Clearly, magnet schools are under attack.  PLEASE take the survey and write an LTE supporting the many important objectives of the magnet program. See I contact you received for points to make.

 4.  TAKE THE SURVEY on Magnets:

1)      Yes, this is not appropriate to have a thrown together –shallow survey—only online!! But we need to make sure it is balanced in the responses.  Please get your pta to print copies or your church/synagogue and get those mailed in to central office.

2)      Make sure you add in the comments how unfair and hasty this approach to magnet reviews is and how it is not ethical to continue to attack one of our best options at attempting to keep our schools well utilized and balanced.

5.  Let’s Find a Better way.org :  Please keep putting in your stories here—this is our way to document the tragedy of the Choice Plan.  Let your contacts know of this web site.

September 29, 2012 FORUM: We are planning a statewide forum for this date.  Working title: Protecting the Public in Public Education, or Public Education is the Better Way or something positive but urgent about how we need to fight against the attacks on Public Education (lack of funding, charter schools, vouchers/tax credits for private schools, revitalization of schools services, the reformers etc.)  If you have suggestions for focus of workshop, speakers etc. please let Patty or me know ASAP. We have started a planning committee---are you interested in helping?  This will be done with GSNC (now Public Education First).

 

6.  UPDATES:

Great Schools in NC has changed to a new name due to issues with domain names/searches etc. We will now be called Public Education First.  We have new web site, Public Education First.org 

More details later.  We will have work to do in changing out our current web and face book page.  We are still seeking funding.  We had a great one day retreat this week and hope to see more progress on this statewide effort soon.  If you want to work on this project, let me know. Also, please nominate names or organizations of folks across the state who should be involved in this coalition of individuals and groups to advocate for public education. Here is revised draft of the GSNC=PEF mission: Public Education First mobilizes citizens to advocate for a system of high-quality, equitable, and diverse public schools for all North Carolina students.

Lots of work to do, let me know how you can be a part of our important work.

Peace and love, Y

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that either Evans or Kushner (maybe both?) are continuing to guide the direction of GSIW and giving insider tips to what they believe are the necessary next steps in stopping the new assignment plan.

Some of these statements are quite particular -- and some use definitive terms.

"We are still working to get the board to at least direct the staff for the 2013 assignment PLAN."

"We need to set the stage for the June 5 meeting with LTEs."

Still working? The 2013 assignment plan? Set the stage? 

Since when is there a 2013 assignment plan? 

Does this mean that the Board majority really is going to completely ignore the cries from parents for a neighborhood school (and choice and stability and predictability) and move back to node-based assignments because that's what GSIW wants? (See my last post.)

Sounds to me like there's been some improper discussions going on. How else would 
Brannon know how to "set the stage" for the next Board meeting?

I think Supt. Tata apologized to these two way too soon. 

Facing reality

Some members of the School Board are now talking about changing the assignment plan. They claim the plan is flawed and needs to be fixed. But, are they really just going to fix what’s not working? Are they really listening to what parents are asking for?

I’ve listened to the relatively few complaints over the past months. Parents – whether they have current WCPSS students, rising K’s, charter, private or home-school students – want a neighborhood school. Some were frustrated that they were left unassigned (and rightly so). But, most of them were concerned over the distance of their assigned school or their feeder pattern schools.

But, the comments made by some School Board members about this plan, once again, seem completely disconnected to reality.

Susan Evans speaks about the new assignment plan in some way at every Board meeting. Most of what she says is to satisfy her friends in the audience – you know, the GSIW crowd. The issues she raises during these soapbox speeches, however, have nothing – nada – zero – to do with the new assignment plan.

She says some parents are unhappy with their predictable feeder patterns because it keeps them in the year-round calendar rather than at a more proximate school. Evans knows full well that the problems we have with YR in our district – and throughout the county – are a direct result of MYR and previous Board’s imbalanced distribution of that calendar.

I completely agree that we are still feeling the aftereffects of MYR in our district – but Evans is intentionally misleading parents by pinning their discontent on the new assignment plan and letting them believe that changing this plan will address their concerns.

At last week’s Board meeting, Christine Kushner indicated she would like to explore a hybrid assignment model for the future – a cross between addressed-based assignments with expanded choice. I’ve written to Ms. Kushner about her comments so she can elaborate but haven’t heard back yet.

After decades of base assigning students and knowing that base assignments WILL LEAD TO REASSIGNMENT, I am baffled that any School Board member would even suggest bringing them back. It may serve to satisfy a few (magnet parents who want to opt back into their neighborhood school, realtors want a school assignment attached to the home) but we all know that base assignments are too rigid for our school system, are unable to effectively address growth, create more problems than they fix and will never be able to provide long-term stability. Who in their right mind would consider bringing them back?

Well, since writing to Ms. Kushner, I found this statement from GSIW and the NC Justice Center from last year which calls for a “fine tune” of the old node system. Both Evans and Kushner were still active leaders in GSIW when this paper was published.

Are these comments about the new assignment plan from Kushner and Evans just another example of GSIW pulling their strings? It’s no secret that GSIW and Evans, in particular, do not like Supt. Tata or this plan. Are these Board members just following their agenda with complete disregard to what parents really want?

Is this School Board interested in facing reality? 

Desperate times

I think we are now witnessing desperation.

The N&O recently ran a couple of columns by Burgetta Eplin Wheeler about how “disturbing”, “confusing and upsetting” the new student assignment plan is. Oh, the drama.

Ms. Wheeler’s first column addresses the “alarm bells” of this plan. She paints a picture of uncertainty and leftovers (not surprisingly, it is mostly magnet-driven fear – as Ms. Wheeler is a magnet parent herself). She ridiculously calls the plan “nearly incomprehensible”. 

I have found that most people who find the plan confusing or “nearly incomprehensible” haven’t taken the time to actually read it. It’s not rocket science. Spend a few minutes reading it, Ms. Wheeler, and check your alarms while you’re at it.

I’m fairly certain that Ms. Wheeler wrote that column to simply taunt parents and taxpayers because opposition to this plan is losing traction. She uses phrases like "casualty count" and "collateral damage" in an attempt to paint a dark picture. Instead, it comes across as a weak last-ditch effort to stop the plan.

Just days later, the N&O published her second column about the plan. In this one, Ms. Wheeler addresses the “mystery” of student assignment as it relates to realtors in Wake County. Somehow Ms. Wheeler managed to find the only 3 realtors in Wake County that have either had their heads in the sand for the past few decades or have been lying repeatedly to each and every home buyer. The realtors claimed they are worried about not having a base assignment to help sell a house. There has never been a guaranteed assignment in Wake County. After decades of yearly reassignments, any realtor that sold a house based on the currently assigned school was being deceitful – and they knew it.

In my opinion, these columns are clear signs of desperation. The so-called pro-diversity groups have lost the battle and they are now losing the war. 

So, where do Brannon and her GSIW cronies fit in? That’s hard to say. They’ve bashed and insulted Supt. Tata, have said this plan was rushed from the beginning and that it’s too confusing to parents, and have even given awards to their School Board friends (Evans & Kushner) in hopes of halting this plan.

Yet, strangely, in today’s N&O article, the leader of GSIW, Yevonne Brannon, states: 

 "A large majority of the folks we are hearing from do not understand this plan; they think it's too complicated; they'd like to go to school closer to where they live, with vibrant options to move out."

Huh? Did she just admit that the parents want to attend a school closer to where they live? A neighborhood school, perhaps?

After two years of protests, disruptions, candlelight vigils, lawsuits and arrests in response to moving WCPSS towards a more family-friendly, proximity-driven assignment plan, Brannon is now asking for a more defined neighborhood model to allow more students the opportunity to attend school close to where they live.

Is this another sign of desperation?

GSIW and the NAACP have lost the diversity battle in Wake County. The election of their leaders hasn’t really panned out. And, most damaging to their rant, parents are speaking loudly that they like this plan -- and those who don’t seem to like it actually want more neighborhood options (as I addressed in a previous post) -- not a return to diversity quotas.

If you ask me - Brannon's comments are just another desperate attempt from a group trying to remain relevant. They no longer have a target on the School Board. Their demons are gone and they have been left with nothing. Their membership is nil and their press releases have become ludicrous. There's nowhere else to go and have now shown they are willing to say anything (even "more neighborhood schools") to have a continued purpose. They are backed into a corner and will say anything just to survive.

I’ve said all along that if you let these people argue long enough, eventually they will end up in support of neighborhood assignments.

I think we might almost be there.

Lies, lies, lies...Ye-ah

With the recent hub-bub over Supt. Tata calling out School Board members Susan Evans and Christine Kushner about their continued involvement in GSIW, I have to ask.... 

What's with all the lying?

It actually started before the new Board members were even elected.

During her campaign, Susan Evans claimed to be a CPA. She put it all over her website and her media questionnaires -- even articles in the N&O and Indy Weekly referred to her as a CPA. But, she's not. 

And her response when she was caught in this lie was simply: "This is a non issue."

During his campaign, Jim Martin attempted to paint Supt. Tata in a bad light by publishing some of the emails in a chain - but not all of them. Martin was caught in this manipulation yet never apologized or even acknowledged that he purposefully tried to pull a fast one.

A couple of posts ago I exposed an email from Martin titled "Confidential Draft". In this email, he encourages Evans and Kushner to keep the discussion and information about halting the student assignment plan just between the three of them. Yet, when confronted by the N&O about these secret deliberations, Martin tries to twist his way out of it and said:

 "I challenge the assertion that somehow it was secret. By that definition, any message sent between two or three board members would be secret. That's baloney."

Uh, wrong. The fact that the email is between two or three Board members is not contentious nor does it make it secret. But certainly an email that is titled "Confidential" which leaves a breadcrumb trail of deceit, private deliberations and continued secrecy would qualify. Exactly like the one you sent, Mr. Martin.

Why didn't Martin just own up to what he attempted to do? Why is his first reaction to lie about it?

And Evans isn't done telling porkies either.

At the February 7th Board meeting, Evans voted in favor of a 9th grade center for Panther Creek. Just over 24 hours later, she was telling parents and the media that she did no such thing. Evans even tells School Board member Deborah Prickett in an email that she "...voted against it" and that the vote was "...either 6 to 3 or 7 to 2." In reality, the vote was 8-1 with Martin, for whatever reason, voting against it.

d more here: http://blogs.newsobserver.com/wakeed/wake-county-school-board-members-question-how-the-vote-went-on-the-panther-creek-high-lease-d#storylink=cpy

Evans could have easily explained her vote to her constituents and her reasoning for her initial support of this facility. But, nooooo. Instead, her first reaction is to lie.

And, now, suddenly, we're just supposed to just believe Evans when she says she no longer has an active role in GSIW? Ms. Pants-on-fire? 

Supt. Tata had every right to question Evans' and Kushner's affiliation with GSIW.  Both of these women happily accepted an award on behalf of GSIW just last month. You don't send just any ol' person to accept an award for your group. You send your leaders.

So pardon me if I don't believe the "Just take our word for it" approach about their involvement in GSIW. Actions speak much louder than words -- especially when there's an award involved.

Kushner doesn't seem to have a track record of fabrication....yet. (In my opinion, she seems like a fairly reasonable person.) But Evans and Martin have been caught in fairly significant lies in the past.

And, as they say, past behavior predicts future behavior.

Read more here: http://blogs.newsobserver.com/wakeed/new-wake-county-school-board-members-discussed-draft-resolution-for-delaying-student-assignme#new#storylink=cpy