Please Vote Yes: Washtenaw County Special Ed. Millage May 3

Tuesday May 3d the county has a special education millage on the ballot. 

It's the only thing on the ballot, and it's critical that it passes. 

It will support special education services in all of our county districts--and since special education services are mandated and have to be supported whether funded or not--we also support general education by voting yes. All of the funds will stay local.

Students up to age 26 are eligible to receive special education services. Your YES vote means public schools in Washtenaw County can support the 6,500 students who count on these services without eliminating programs that benefit ALL students. 

Unfortunately, the Washtenaw County Republican Party voted to oppose this millage. 

Please don't let the "No" votes win.

For several of our districts, it is the difference between deficit budgets and break-even budgets.

Read more here.

Support our schools--join me in voting yes!




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Missed Opportunities: Ann Arbor and the Washtenaw IB/WAY/ECA Consortium

I wasn't really paying attention to the big brouhaha as to whether the Ann Arbor schools should sign the contract to continue to participate in the International Baccalaureate program, the WAY (Washtenaw Alternatives for Youth) program, or the Early College Alliance. But now I am. And mostly what strikes me is that there have been several missed opportunities. Sure, I know that hindsight is perfect, but looking back and evaluating is also a good way to learn.

So here are five missed opportunities.

1. Missed Meetings: The Ann Arbor News reported that the Ann Arbor school representatives missed many of the consortium meetings. I don't know if Supt. Pat Green or Deputy Supt. Alesia Flye was to blame for that--maybe it was both of them. They're both gone now, so I'm not sure if it matters if we figure that out. Going forward though, if we have a seat at the table, we need to take it. It's pretty clear that we can have more influence if we are there early in the process.

2. Anti-union contract: Someone called me to say that he was worried that the contract the Ann Arbor school board was discussing was anti-union. Given that the contract (click on the link to see it) specifies that if a teacher is tenured in a district and goes to work for the IB, WAY, or ECA schools they are not operating under or accumulating tenure (among other things), you could describe it that way fairly, I think. But here's the thing--this same contract was already voted on by the Ann Arbor schools for this current year in August--and by the other school districts as well. Does the Ann Arbor Education Association or the Washtenaw Education Association not care, or did they just miss this? They probably could have influenced the terms and conditions...

3. Failure to Track: When the Ann Arbor school's Count Day numbers came out, and they were below expectations, much of the attention went to the number of AAPS high school students who were enrolled in the IB, WAY, and ECA programs. And the district seemed surprised by this. To my mind, either they weren't surprised, but wanted the public to feel that they were (which would be misleading), or they were surprised. And if they were surprised, then I have to ask why that is. You might remember that my son applied to the IB program at the Washtenaw International High School--and he found out that he was accepted sometime in late winter or early spring. Now surely, as consortium members, the district could find out how many Ann Arbor students had gotten in to--and later, decided to go to--these alternative programs. The question is, why didn't they take those numbers into consideration as they constructed this year's budget?

4. Transportation Thinking: I don't think the school board and administration really took into account the way that threatening to cut high school transportation could affect the way students looked at schools. I'll probably never be able to prove this, but to my mind, when the district said--at the same time that students were looking at high schools--that high school transportation might not be available, it changed the equation for many parents. I know for myself that I was intimidated by the idea of transporting my son to the IB school. On the other hand, if I lived far from my district high school, and would have to transport my child anyway, then I would not be comparing "drive my child to one school or have him take a bus to the other" but rather "drive my child to school A or school B?" So even the threat of the transportation being cut may have influenced the debate for students at the time when the choices were being made.

5. Going it alone: I believe the ECA, the IB program, and the WAY program are all very worthwhile. But Dexter--which decided to do its own IB program, and which decided not to join the WISD transportation consortium--may have done the best job in looking out for Dexter. I am glad to see the Ann Arbor school board now considering doing its own IB program, even if the consortium IB program continues.



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Ypsi/Willow Run School Board Thinks They Thread the Needle, But They Don't

I went to the Ypsilanti Community Schools Board Meeting tonight where they were deciding about the new Superintendent. I've mostly just pasted in my tweets here, along with some additional commentary. 

First of all, when I got there, there were about fifty people out front. Only one of them had a sign, but it expressed the opinions of the others: 

Georgina Hickey's sign

Eventually, we filed into the auditorium. The meeting started a few minutes late.

The Board's First Turn

Ruth Kraut ‏@schoolsmuse

They added board comments before public comments. A little odd but apparently meant to be soothing. #ypsiwrboard

The board comments were mostly about how they really had listened to what people had said. How they needed involvement. 

Ruth Kraut ‏@schoolsmuse

It is a very big auditorium (quite nice too) and about half full.#ypsiwrboard

Expand

Also, About 3/4 of the audience was white, 1/4 black; about 3/4 of the audience was women, 1/4 men.

Ruth Kraut ‏@schoolsmuse

Why does every bd member feel the need to comment "we hear you, we value you." The proof will be in the pudding. #ypsiwrboard

Public Commentary

Ruth Kraut ‏@schoolsmuse

30 minutes for public comment; 13 people signed up. #ypsiwrboard

I think in the end there were more than 13. The first speaker was also the one whose sign is pictured up above.

Ruth Kraut ‏@schoolsmuse

First speaker asks for new leadership, id'd as a need at the summer retreats. Should have considered external candidates.#ypsiwrboard

Ruth Kraut ‏@schoolsmuse

Second speaker wants two current superintendents to stay in place through establishment of new district. #ypsiwrboard

Third speaker wants one superintendent and supports Dedrick Martin #ypsiwrboard

Ruth Kraut ‏@schoolsmuse

Next speaker Ruth Ann Jamnick. Kind of a rah rah speech.#ypsiwrboard

Next speaker "main concern is the children." Voted for consolidation. Pick someONE who can lead. Need an expert.#ypsiwrboard

Next, a speaker discussed how when he was young and was supposed to help out during a big storm (with a ham radio, I think), and he couldn't, because, he said, "I was a novice." That set the stage for this graphic comment:

Ruth Kraut ‏@schoolsmuse

Graphic! "We need an expert. Do not leave our kids under the pecan tree with a rope around the neck." #ypsiwrboard

[To which someone tweeted back to me: Yikes!]

Nancy Harvey speaking on behalf of about 20 people supporting Sharon Irvine. Make a real change; need NEW leadership.#ypsiwrboard

Nancy Harvey got a LOT of applause. Next up Kara Berman. Supports 1 superintendent, doesn't support electing two popes either. #ypsiwrboard

Kara Berman was on the Ypsilanti school board. [At least two other school board members spoke as well: Floyd Brumfield and Andy Fanta.]

Maria Cotera started out by talking about how this issue brought up the same feelings she had during the Chappelle closing. Then she talked about how much time she had spent on the consolidation process and why she supported it. 

Ruth Kraut ‏@schoolsmuse

Maria Cotera: "If we're committing all this time to making all this change, we need to commit top to bottom." #ypsiwrboard

Ruth Kraut ‏@schoolsmuse

Andy Fanta questions the idea that you can get different results with the same leadership. Supports Sharon Irvine or external.#ypsiwrboard

Next: Support our teachers with one superintendent. Creative, collaborative, new, decisive leadership. #ypsiwrboard

Next: Critiques the idea that people in the community are "nuisances," something said by a board member last week.#ypsiwrboard

Why aren't supers' contracts being terminated like contracts? Why did we pay 12K for a super. search we're not using? #ypsiwrboard

The last speaker was a student at Estabrook who said she supported Sharon Irvine because we need change.

The Board's Turn

Now the board reviews where we are at. #ypsiwrboard

The man from the Michigan Leadership Institute gave a little bit of background. Shortly before the due date for applications they had none. He then went and called the people whose names had come up earlier in the year--namely, the two current superintendents and Sharon Irvine--and encouraged them to apply. They all did. At the time of the due date they also had three external applicants--two were in-state, and had no superintendent experience; one was from out of state. The board decided to simply interview the internal candidates first.

My comments: I guess what this shows is that this job is not so highly-sought-after. As my aunt would say, "It's not so hotsy-totsy and it's not so I-Yai-Yai."

The man from the MLI also said that they haven't been paid a penny yet. [I guess this was in response to the $12,000 comment.]

The man from MLI continued that after they had the interviews the board asked him to look at co-superintendent alternatives. That's not allowed according to the Michigan School Code. But what is allowed is to have a contract with an intermediate school district, and the ISD then would designate someone to act as superintendent.

Thus they came up with the idea of contracting with the ISD, and specifically designating the WISD Superintendent, as the Ypsilanti Community Schools Superintendent, Scott Menzel, and then appointing the two current superintendents as associate superintendents.

Committee proposes that the ISD hold the superintendency w/ the current supers as assoc. supers. Through 12/2014 or 6/2015.#ypsiwrboard

The Committee was trying to make the case that the date (timed to coincide with the current appointed board transitioning off) would make this a "transition plan" with the idea that eventually there would be one new superintendent.

Some comments that I got on twitter: 

@schoolsmuse #ypsiwrboard I've been on search committees for high ranking academic positions. This headhunters logic is baffling me.

@schoolsmuse #ypsiwrboard isn't the fact that they have to bend the law a good sign that maybe it's not a good idea?

The committee discussed asking for, not just anybody, but the person they've been working with, Scott Menzel. 

@schoolsmuse: Request Scott Menzel as the designee. Not designer. #ypsiwrboard

Board believes they will need to pay the contracts of the current supers no matter what. Still responsible for several years.#ypsiwrboard

So there is this "not so minor" point that the current superintendent contracts don't end when every other employee's contract in the district ends. Nope. Dedrick Martin's has, if I understood correctly three more years; Laura Lisiscki's has one more year. The board has sent them non-renewal letters. Who negotiated these contracts, anyway? There was some discussion of why their contracts are different but a) I'm not a lawyer and b) even if I was one, I haven't looked at the details. Anyway I think this is where the board thought they were being smart by saying there would be "one" superintendent and yet saving money by paying the current superintendents to actually do work.  My personal feeling is that this is a penny-wise and pound foolish plan. 

 I didn't quite understand but they are a different type of contract. Civil, I think? #ypsiwrboard

yes. It is a bad idea. Maybe Menzel could be designee and Irvine could be associate. #ypsiwrboard

Martin has three years left and Lisiscki one.#ypsiwrboard

@schoolsmuse it boggles my mind too. Is not the end if a district just cause to fire without paying off his deal?

 I don't understand that either. #ypsiwrboard

1. People are not happy. 2. Decision would need to go to the WISD board. 3. Decision tonight would not be binding. #ypsiwrboard

Comment #1 was my observation of how people in the building were feeling. Comments #2 and #3 came from (I believe) the president of the school board explaining how things would proceed. Scott Menzel was asked how he felt and he said the WISD Board would need to decide. 

Celeste Hawkins calls the situation "unique." Really it is not. Others have consolidated & districts hire supers all the time. #ypsiwrboard

MLI says not a dollar has been paid them yet. #ypsiwrboard

Booing starts as the motion is read. Rowdy! #ypsiwrboard

A person opines if the current supers respected the districts they would both offer resignations. #ypsiwrboard

When I said, "a person opines," that is something that someone yelled from the audience and got a lot of applause. 

I am sitting too far back to know who is who on stage mostly. Current speaker "we have the best team we could have." Really??#ypsiwrboard

Grant from the state includes money for superintendent services (transitional). #ypsiwrboard

Bates clarifies this is not finalized. I am wondering how much time Scott Menzel has in a day. Will he be super in name only#ypsiwrboard

Vote passes unananimously. #ypsiwrboard

The board members did not spend a lot of time on discussion. It was clear they had already all made up their minds. 

Adjourned. #ypsiwrboard

@schoolsmuse They are contracting with Menzel as Superintendent with M and L as "associates" at full pay? #ypsiwrboard

I really like Scott Menzel. I think he is responsive to people and staff seem to like him. But--and it's a big but--he already has a full-time job as WISD Superintendent, and in my opinion that is a pretty full job. So, does he not do his job as WISD Superintendent? Or does he do his job as WISD Superintendent, and essentially delegate nearly all the work to the two current superintendents? In which case, we have the same situation we have now. 

Which leaves me to my next question: why didn't the board ask to contract with the WISD and Scott Menzel and then ask him to hire the appropriate associate superintendents? There are likely more candidates for associate superintendent than for superintendent.

And that's the news. . . If you don't like this plan (actually, if you do like this plan, too), you can approach the WISD Board: WISDBoard@wash.k12.mi.us

Ypsilanti-Willow Run Consolidation Begins With 18 Candidates for 7 School Board Spots

And the Ypsilanti-Willow Run Consolidation starts off with a bang.

Monday and Tuesday, yes--this Monday and Tuesday, November 12th and 13th, there will be interviews of 18 candidates for 7 slots. Yes, that's 18 candidates for 7 slots. The Washtenaw Intermediate School District Board of Education gets to do the choosing, but they are asking for the public's input. Read more about who is on the WISD Board of Education here.

The interviews start at 6 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 12 in Willow Run High School's forum room.
The interviews continue at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 13 in Room 138 of Ypsilanti High School.

The Ypsilanti Courier has links to all of the applicants' applications. (I will put the links below, attached to each person's name.)

Applicants include current Ypsilanti school board members:

David Bates
Ellen Champagne
Andy Fanta
Linda Snedacar-Horne

Applicants include current Willow Run school board members:

Don Garrett, Jr.
Greg Myers
Kristine Thomas
Mark Wilde

Applicants also include two Ypsilanti school board candidates who ran uncontested this week but can't be seated because the consolidation passed:

D’Real Graham
Dan Raglin

Applicants also include several members of the public who have not previously been school board members (at least, if they have been, it wasn't recently):

Maria Sheler-Edwards
Scott Elliot
Celeste Hawkins
Greg Johnson
Robert Oliver
Venus Strong-Smith
Anthony VanDerworp
Althea Wilson

We have an interesting group of candidates. It is a nice thing that so many people want to serve--and of course it raises for me the question--if it was an election, would all of these people be running?

Some of them present much better in an academic/literacy/resume sense. Does that mean those people would make the best board members? How much weight should we place on the letters of reference that each applicant included? I encourage you to read the individual letters, resumes, and statements and put your comments/questions about them in the comments section. Many thanks to heritage.com and the Ypsilanti Courier for posting the links to these documents.

One question I would like to see asked of each of these candidates: if you have children who are school age or older, have they gone to the Ypsilanti or Willow Run school districts? If so, what have you liked about it? If not, why not?

If you live or teach (or otherwise work) in the Ypsilanti/Willow Run area, I really encourage you to go to hear these candidates be interviewed. I believe there will be a way to submit your input/feedback. This is a really important decision as it sets the stage for so many others!

Meet the WISD Board

The WISD works with the area's school districts & charter schools.

I believe that I've mentioned here before, that as the Washtenaw Intermediate School District amasses more control over county-wide projects, we ("the people") ought to be taking a closer look at just who is running the place, and exactly what they are doing. For instance--if you've got complaints in Ann Arbor or Ypsilanti about how they are running transportation, well...contact the WISD board.

You might be surprised to know that there was an "election" in June, and two board members were re-elected to six-year terms. I put election in quotes because the election is very indirect. The school districts send representatives to a group that does the electing of members who are nominated by the school district. In other words, unless you are a school district representative (an appointed position), you did not get to elect anybody. Thus it probably won't surprise you to find that all of the WISD board members previously served on local school boards--and that's not, in my opinion, necessarily a bad thing.

I do get a little squeamish when I see that several of the board members have been on the WISD board for over 16 years, and both of the board members who were elected in June were actually re-elected. . . and the terms are six years long! By the way, I'm not a fan of term limits, but I am a fan of consciously trying to bring in diversity and new blood into organizations. And right now, the shortest period of time that any board member has served on the board is six years. And the board is not a large board. So, in essence, we have a very small group of people (only five members) who have been in their positions for a long period of time, making decisions that are having an increasingly large impact on all of the school districts and students in the county. I think this should be examined, because ultimately I don't think it's a good way for an organization to function. (Sure, there are women on the board, so the term "old boys network" might not apply exactly, but I think you know what I mean.)

And that is not meant to imply that any of the board members are doing a bad job. But it is time to start paying attention to the WISD.

So, to start us off, here is the WISD board. Read closely--one is currently teaching! One served on more than one school board, in addition to the WISD! One serves on the Michigan Association of School Boards Board of Directors!

From left to right: Gregory A. Peoples, Mary Jane Tramontin, Mark Van Bogelen, Dayle K. Wright, Diane B. Hockett

Mary Jane Tramontin, WISD Board Treasurer
Current Occupation: Fourth Grade Teacher, Pleasant Ridge Elementary
Employer: Saline Area Schools
Local Board Service: Ann Arbor, for three years from 1989 – 1992
I’ve been a member of the WISD Board since January of 1994 (17 years).

Mark Van Bogelen, WISD Board Trustee
Current Occupation: General Merchandise Manager
Employer: Meijer
Local Board Service: Manchester Community Schools for four years, serving as Trea-
surer part of that time.
I’ve been a member of the WISD Board since 1994 (17 years).

Gregory A. Peoples, WISD Board President
Current Occupation: University Ombudsman
Employer: Eastern Michigan University
Local Board Service: Willow Run Board: 1987-1994 and Lincoln Board: 1996-2004,
serving as the President of Lincoln’s Board for four years
I’ve been a member of the WISD Board since 1993 (18 years).
This is also my third year of service on the Michigan Association of School Boards Board
of Directors. This year I am serving as the Vice President.

Dayle K. Wright, WISD Board Vice President
Current Occupation: Registered Dietician
Employer: Allegiance Health
Local Board Service: Chelsea from 1994-2006, having served two years as President,
along with serving as Vice President and Secretary.
I’ve been a member of the WISD Board since 2005 (6 years).

Diane B. Hockett, WISD Board Secretary
Current Occupation: Project Manager
Employer: Eastern Michigan University
Institute for Children, Families & Communities
Local Board Service: Ann Arbor Public Schools for six years, having served as Vice
President for two of those years.
I’ve been a member of the WISD Board since 2001 (10 years).

Top Eleven List: Things to Think About Tonight. Or Tomorrow.

1. The tenure bills passed the House. All of them. One major change, given how many layoffs have happened this past year...the seniority rule of "last in, first out" changes (this was pushed by a group championed by Michelle Rhee, the highly controversial former Washington DC superintendent). Another bill limits topics that can be bargained to wages and benefits.  I think this could be a sea change for many school districts. Read more about it in this Grand Rapids Press article.
As far as evaluation goes, of course it is important. It also strikes me that many principals are lousy at it. Principals are typically trained to be administrators, not managers. If we're going to ask them to be managers, then we'd better make sure we're training them on that!
It also highlights for me how disorganized the teachers, and teachers' unions have been. And by the way, it has always surprised me how many Republican teachers I know. And there are plenty of teachers who live in districts represented by Republicans. So tell me--do those teachers agree with the new laws? Or did they just forget to press their Representatives? 

2. I've written previously about how Carolyn King broke the Little League barrier for girls nationally in Ypsilanti.  Well, it turns out that there is a very elite all-girls' baseball team (yes, not softball) called the Dream Team--and they are coming to play in an elite baseball tournament in Ypsilanti this very weekend! Read about it in this Detroit Free Press article. What's even better is that you can go watch them, as well as some other very good teams, this weekend--and it's free! These are very high-level teams. That story reminds me that my older son had a girl on his baseball team for several years, and she was just as good as the boys. . . better than some of them.

Details of the tournament, from the Detroit Free Press:

Check out the Dream Team
WHERE: The Michigan Major Elite will be held at the baseball fields at the Eastern Michigan Recreation Complex on 100 Westview Street in Ypsilanti.
ADMISSION: Free
WHEN: The Dream Team will play at least five games in the tournament, which features 28 teams of 13-year-olds:
Friday: Brighton Black on Field 1 at 2 p.m.
Friday: Great Lakes Cardinals (Canton) on Field 2 at 8 p.m.
Saturday: Boys of Summer (Ohio) on Field 3 at 10 a.m.
Saturday: Strongsville Stallions (Ohio) on Field 3 at 6 p.m.
Sunday: Consolation and championship games, beginning at 8 a.m.

3. Scarlett News--I was sorry to hear about the sudden death of the science teacher James Bryant. I had met him, but I had no idea that he was an Olympian!

4. The special education department (SISS) has at least two vacancies right now--Bill Harris is moving to Eberwhite to be a principal and there is another vacancy. Parents with special education concerns should make sure to keep an eye on the process of filling these positions. The other day I heard a story about a parent whose child has an IEP. The child was not doing well in school. They had a parent meeting a couple of weeks ago and one of the teachers says, "Oh, so s/he's a visual learner?" Umm. Yeah. That's what the IEP says. Teachers, read the IEPs. That's what they are there for--so you can tailor your teaching to the needs of the students you are teaching. Parents, don't be afraid to be your child's advocate...even if you have to keep repeating yourself!

5. I recently heard that the number of graduate students in the University of Michigan's elementary-school-age one-year Masters and Certification program (El-MAC) has dropped substantially. So maybe people are getting the idea that there are very few jobs out there. . . I've written before about how we are training too many teachers. 

6. I'm glad to hear that busing won't be cancelled for kindergarten or high school students in Ann Arbor. Although I understand the rationale for asking high school students to walk further, in my neck of the woods,  for Skyline students that would mean walking down a fairly busy street (Newport) with no lights or sidewalks while it is still dark out in the winter. It would only take one hit-and-run accident to change the whole cost-benefit analysis. I'm glad the school board has recognized this!

7. Speaking about millages. . . did you know that even though we approved the special education millage, it is still not enough money to keep special education funding flowing at the same rate as last year? Read the background here. Since special education funding is mandated, that means that money needs to come from somewhere--and yes, that somewhere is general education. What, you say? How could that happen? Well, I believe it was the WISD board that put this millage on the ballot. Why did they decide to ask for less money than last time? I believe it's because the WISD board operates behind the scenes. Nobody elects them; nobody goes to their meetings; nobody gives them any feedback about their ideas. By "nobody" here I don't actually mean "nobody." I'm referring to the general public that bothers to give the Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, Dexter, Milan, Saline, Whitmore Lake, Lincoln, Willow Run, Chelsea and Manchester boards of education a piece of their minds. That public process sometimes keeps school boards (which are, after all, just groups of people) from making bad decisions. [Yes, not always. It was a bad decision to offer the incoming Ann Arbor superintendent such a high salary, and the school board was told that. On the other hand, the school board was also told it was a bad idea to cut high school transportation, and they listened.]  Scott Menzel, I hope you are planning on making the activities of the WISD more public. 

8. The Manchester School Board is conducting a non-traditional search for a Superintendent (they have informally identified a preferred candidate). The first interview will be June 21. Read about it here. In addition, according to the Manchester Enterprise article, the next regular school board meeting is scheduled for at 6:30 p.m. June 20 in the Ackerson Building and will begin with the budget hearing.

9. School of Choice enrollment for Ann Arbor fell short. Surprise, surprise. Remember when I discussed the school board and administration's rationale for not opening up the high schools to school of choice students? I was pretty critical of their reasoning. You know, Ann Arbor school board, there is actually still time to do that. And if not this year, there is always next year.

10. It looks like James Dickson has joined the Ann Arbor Journal/Heritage Newspapers and has been assigned the local schools beat. I believe he was one of the layoffs from annarbor.com a couple of months ago. I personally welcome any additional coverage of local school districts. They deserve much more coverage than they get, despite the best efforts of Kyle Feldscher (annarbor.com); Jennifer Coffman (Ann Arbor Chronicle); Tom Perkins (stringer for several local news sites); and other freelancers. I appreciate all of you!

11. Do you know what the #1 post on this blog has been? It's (very) hard for me to believe, but a lot of people apparently want to know why some female softball players wear bows. Yup, that's right. I invite you to read my post, No Bow Lesbo, to find out the answer. 

Whatever Happened?

To the state budget? The House votes tomorrow; the Senate voted today. You'll find more information at mipfs.org. This rolls back funding to what it was in the 2005-2006 year.

To our Local Boy Makes Good story about Shael Polakow-Suransky? I got this note from my New York City activist parent friend this morning, and she writes, "Do you know anyone who can talk some sense into Shael?" She pointed me to this New York Times article: Tests for Pupils, but the Grades Go to Teachers.  And she said to especially read the comments. Then, if you do know Shael, feel free to give him a call or an email...

To the WISD Superintendent Search? Scott Menzel has been chosen to be the district’s next superintendent. Menzel is in his fourth year as the superintendent of the Livingston Educational Service Agency (LESA)--yes, that's our sister program. By the way, I'm super annoyed that I couldn't find the information about the new superintendent on the WISD web site. It's really hard to find things. I had to go outside the web site and google it to get the press release!
In addition, I couldn't find any information about his compensation. The press release says it will be "brought back" after a subcommittee negotiates with him. Recent agendas have closed sessions for "Authorization." I think that this probably violates open meetings notice, I think you have to specify why you are closing the meeting. The last approved minutes published, are from mid-April, even though they've met several times since then. I am not impressed. This is a group that needs a watchdog!

To the Achievement Gap? It's still there. I liked this article, which reminds us how long it has been there! This Week in Ann Arbor History: 1967: Future mayor Albert Wheeler alleges racial discrimination in Ann Arbor schools, police department.

There's Lots Going On Locally

Ann Arbor Public Schools are deciding if they should be open for schools of choice. Here's the proposal, the decision comes next week. [Don't get too excited, it would only be for K-6 students.]

Meanwhile, Saline has schools of choice for the high school. [Updated: See the comment that explains this is only true for the alternative high school, which I did not realize. I wonder if there are concerns about "who" would opt in to Saline and if that is really code for concerns about African-American students from Ypsilanti coming in to largely white Saline?] Saline is now considering extending it to the middle school.  The Saline Superintendent described the motivation as "largely financial." I think that's true for every district in the county!

Student applications are still being accepted for the Washtenaw International High School (the new International Baccalaureate program which will be located in Ypsilanti at the former East Middle School). It is open only to 9th graders. There is another parent information session scheduled for March 28th at 7 p.m. (but the web site doesn't say where!). The following districts are in the consortium, which means students from those districts can apply: Ann Arbor, Lincoln, Milan, Saline, Whitmore Lake, Willow Run, Ypsilanti.

Look for Dexter to set up its own IB setup next year, and it won't surprise me if the districts on the west side of the county (Chelsea and Manchester) work out some agreement with Dexter. It is, after all, a pretty far drive from Manchester to Ypsilanti.

Washtenaw Community College has reopened the search for a new president.

The Washtenaw Intermediate School District board continues to interview candidates for superintendent. One candidate, however, Thomas Langdon, has removed his name from consideration because he took another position. And then there were five...

There's a big College and Career Fair next Wednesday March 30th at Pioneer High School from 6-8 p.m. There will be lots of colleges and businesses attending. See the list here.

And according to Annarbor.com, the Scarlett-Mitchell Lab School is still planning a fall 2011 opening. Parents in the area have until Friday to take a survey. I wish they would ask the rest of us to take a (possibly different) survey, and I really hope they don't move forward until they answer these questions:

1. Can people opt out of the school if they prefer a different school?
2. Can people opt in if they are at a different school but want the lab school?
3. How is this going to be paid for? I'd like to know about both the short-term funding and the long-term funding. We've had lots of trials that haven't lasted, and in this financial environment I'm feeling rather nervous. . . especially about the idea of "intersession" being paid for by grants. . . did we notice the report that Ann Arbor Public Schools are expecting a $15 million dollar deficit next year?

The district is already saying that the budget cuts will affect class size, mostly at the high school level. Well, at this point 4/5 of my daughter's high school classes have 32 students or more. So. . . let's have that conversation too. How big were you thinking?

And on May 3d, we will have the opportunity to vote on a special education millage. I'll write about that another day, but if you want to start reading up on it now, try here and here.

WISD Superintendent Search

I'm reproducing this WISD press release in its entirety.

My Summary: There are six interviews of finalist candidates for the WISD superintendent position. Interviews begin today. All meetings are open to the public and will be held at the WISD, 1819 S. Wagner Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48103. The Superintendent will have a lot of control over many of the consolidation initiatives that are ongoing, and that will affect every public school in the county. So yes, it's an important position.

Ann Arbor, MI— At a special meeting on March 15, 2011, the Washtenaw Intermediate Board of Education selected six candidates to interview for the position of superintendent. The candidates are:

Christine Beardsley
Ms. Beardsley is in her tenth year as Superintendent of the Oscoda Area Schools. She received her bachelor’s degree from Ferris State University in business administration, her master’s degree in educational administration from Central Michigan University and is scheduled to receive her doctorate in educational leadership in May, also from Central Michigan.
David J. Campbell
Mr. Campbell is in his eleventh year as Superintendent of the Olivet Community Schools. He received his undergraduate degree in education at the University of Wisconsin at Whitewater and his master’s degree in educational administration at Illinois State University.
Thomas L. Goodney
Dr. Goodney is in his sixth year as Deputy Superintendent and Chief of Staff at the Educational Service Center of Central Ohio (Columbus, OH). He received his bachelor’s degree in mass communications at Northern Michigan University, his master’s degree in speech at Miami University (Oxford, OH) and his doctorate in educational leadership, also at Miami University.
Beverly A. Knox-Pipes
Ms. Knox-Pipes is in her ninth year as Assistant Superintendent for Technology and Media Services at the Genesee Intermediate School District. She received her undergraduate degree in elementary education at the University of Texas at El Paso, her master’s degree at Lesley College (Cambridge, MA) focusing on computers in education and is currently completing requirements for her doctorate in instructional technology and distance education from Nova Southeastern University (Miami, FL).
Thomas M. Langdon
Dr. Langdon is in his seventh year as Superintendent of the Big Rapids Public Schools. He received a bachelor’s degree from Cornerstone University in biology and physical science and a second bachelor’s degree from Calvin College in education. His master’s in educational leadership is from Western Michigan University and his doctorate in educational leadership is from Central Michigan University.
Scott A. Menzel
Mr. Menzel is in his fourth year as Superintendent of the Livingston Educational Service Agency. He received his bachelor’s degree in religion from Vanguard University (Costa Mesa, CA), his master’s degree in philosophy and social policy from the American University (Washington, D.C.) and is completing work on his doctorate from Eastern Michigan University.

The interview schedule is as follows:
Monday, March 21, 2011
6:30 p.m.    Scott Menzel
8:00 p.m.    Beverly Knox-Pipes
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
6:30 p.m.    David Campbell
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
6:30 p.m.    Thomas Langdon
8:00 p.m.    Christine Beardsley
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
6:30 p.m.    Thomas Goodney

All interviews will be held at the Washtenaw Intermediate School District, 1819 S. Wagner Rd, Ann Arbor MI and are open to the public.
The Board is selecting a new superintendent to succeed Dr. William C. Miller who retired in December of 2010 after more than 22 years of service to the district, 12 of them as superintendent. Dr. Michael Emlaw, Superintendent Search Consultant for the Michigan Association of School Boards, is assisting the WISD Board with its search. He can be reached at (734) 657.2425 or emlaw@comcast.net.

Down for the Count

Yup, it's back...count day for schools. Really, there is greater count day and lesser count day...proportionally, fall count day "counts" more than winter count day.

And so I wonder about one district in particular. Is it, in fact, going to be down for the count? If so, that would be a consistent trend for more than ten years. I'm talking about Willow Run.

Ten years ago, Willow Run schools had 3,153 students.
In Fall 2010, Willow Run schools had 1,632 students.
Between Fall 2009 and Fall 2010, approximately 100 fewer students are enrolled in the Willow Run schools. And that number includes nearly 100 students who are enrolled in the Washtenaw ISD Washtenaw Alternatives for Youth program.

In September 2010, Willow Run High School had 62 twelfth-grade students, down by more than half from two years ago. There were 95 ninth-grade students. It's hard to see how that is sustainable. If I assume that the students who are the most motivated to stay in school are most likely to want higher education and challenging classes, it seems like they would also be most likely to jump ship to the Early College Alliance, Washtenaw Technical Middle College, a charter school or another school district. With continuously falling enrollment, it becomes hard to field sports teams or offer advanced classes (or remedial classes!)

This is also the district whose turnaround plan for its high school was not accepted by the Michigan Department of Education. Nor did MDE ask the district to do some minor tweaking (Ypsilanti High School's status). No, their plan got "changes required" status. That may be because their first proposal didn't meet the "turnaround" requirements.

According to state law, a district has to have a high school. So really, the life of a school district all rises and falls at the high school level. The turnaround proposal was required because Willow Run High School was designated as a failing school.

If you ask me, the big shockers in the original turnaround proposal (read it here) were these two things:
1. There are more students at every grade of the high school who live in the district but choose to go to a school outside the district, than there are students who live in the district and go to Willow Run High School
and
even more shocking--way, way more shocking--
2. The average student in the high school missed the equivalent of 16 days of school, but

teacher attendance patterns are not all that different than student attendance patterns in terms of overall absences.  There were 32 teaching staff in 2009-10 and there were 740 days of absences.  This works out to an average of 23 days per staff member.  Some of these absences were due to conferences, school business and other professional reasons.

Think there are some morale issues in the Willow Run schools? Willow Run school teachers don't get paid much, either. The starting salary for someone with a BA is a little over $33,300.

So--what's to be done? Right now, consolidation would require both consolidating districts to vote yes. And honestly, if it were your district consolidating with Willow Run, would you vote yes? What is the plus?

(Read more about the difficulties of consolidating here. Actually, there would be a financial plus for Lincoln Schools, but a major financial disincentive for Ypsilanti or Ann Arbor.)

If the Willow Run district wants to be forward thinking, perhaps it's time to think about a structured dissolution. At least, that's what I think. But my vote doesn't count (at least, not in Willow Run)--nor, I point out, should it.

2011: Keep your eye on...

As far as I'm concerned, the #1 thing to keep your eye on (in Washtenaw County education) in the coming year is:

The Washtenaw Intermediate School District

You probably don't even know what they do! If you had asked ten years ago, I would have said they spent most of their time on three areas of services  for all the local school districts and charter schools: professional development; coordination and services for certain special education students; and data and reporting.

Well, that was then. Now, they are increasingly coordinating lots of services. . . transportation; back-end administrative services; the Washtenaw International High School; Washtenaw Alternatives for Youth.

And in my opinion, 

they are rather OPAQUE about what they do and how they do it. 

A couple of years ago, I read an article in the Ann Arbor News about school graduation rates by (I believe) income. The article said the information was based on a study had been done by the Washtenaw ISD. Unfortunately, the online version of the article didn't have the chart I wanted. When I called to ask for the information, I was told that it was "not public." Yes, I've since learned I could have probably FOIA'd it, but pack rat that I am, I found that I had a hard copy.

More recently, I had these two interactions:

Me: "Do you have a copy of the IB presentation that you have made to Saline, Ypsi, Ann Arbor... (Latest version) up on the WISD web site? If so, can you send me the link--I couldn't find it. I am also interested in other supporting documents: proposed budget, staffing scenarios, transportation information. If that is available please send me links or documents."

The WISD: "You can find the Ann Arbor presentation and related documents here:

http://www.aaps.k12.mi.us/boe.1011/files/092410_blue.pdf  Scroll to pages 9-64."

 

Ummm, seriously? You want me to open a very long presentation in a particular district's board document, and scroll through to your section? If the Washtenaw International High School is important, don't you think you could have a section of your web site devoted to it? [Side note: this is actually a really long and important piece of reading, although it was super hard to understand and had not scanned in very well. It has the consortium agreement in there. In other words: what, exactly, did the districts agree to?]

Here's another one: 

Me: "I'm also wondering about the WISD board. Is there an election for the board? Or is it appointed, and if so by whom? (I see some former school board members on the current board list.) I am confused about the board minutes. I see that you post a summary, but not the actual minutes. Why is that? The summaries don't even state who was present at the meeting. Also, how would one get the supporting documentation--for instance, financial reports or plans for service changes (e.g., consolidation)--and the actual minutes."

 

The WISD: "For more information about WISD and the Board see:  http://wash.k12.mi.us/files/WISD101.pdf. We're in the process of updating our website and board minutes will be included.  In the meantime, if you want a copy of the minutes please contact Colleen O'Sullivan at cosulliv@wash.k12.mi.us."

 

So, until recently you couldn't get the WISD board minutes online. [They are now available back to 2008, which is a VAST improvement.] And, how exactly is their board made up? They didn't tell me in the email, even though it seems so obvious to me that they could have explained in a couple of sentences. Once I looked the requisite section up it was also clear why they didn't want to do so. Here is how their board is made up: 

 

(This information is taken from the link above referring to the board. I had to scroll through several pages there as well.)

9) How are WISD Board members elected?
Members of WISD’s school board are elected biennially on the first Monday in June by a body of electors composed of one member from each constituent local school district board of education. WISD Board members’ terms are staggered. Each member serves a six-year term.
10) Who are the WISD Board members?
The following are members of WISD’s 2010-11 Board of Education:
Mark Van Bogelen, President
Gregory A. Peoples, Vice President
Dayle K. Wright, Secretary
Diane B. Hockett, Treasurer
Mary Jane Tramontin, Trustee

In other words, there is no direct election of WISD school board members. It doesn't say who creates the nominations. . . or when board members' terms are up. . . or if they get paid and what they get paid.

It's not very transparent at all.

To the WISD, I say this: If you want me, and other people who care about process, to vote for the special education millage that is coming up, then you had better find a way to be a LOT more transparent in the coming months. And I say that even though I think the special education millage is important.

To those of you who are journalists or passionate observers of the local school scene, I say: it would be a good idea to have journalists at the WISD board meetings. The WISD is becoming a more, and more, important player.

The next meeting is Tuesday, January 25th, at 5: 30 p.m., at the WISD. They will be discussing the Superintendent search (they have an interim Superintendent now) as well as Washtenaw Alternatives for Youth.

I would tell you to contact the WISD board members by email or phone and ask them to develop a better process for sharing information with the public, but their emails are not posted, only a central phone number: 994-8100 x1300.