School District 129 has filed a brief opposing a motion for dismissal in a court case that challenges the constitutionality of Illinois’ education funding system.
The lawsuit contends that the State has abandoned local control of schools in favor of centralized decision-making by the ISBE. Because of this, the unequal tax burdens on property-poor school districts caused by the state education funding system violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution of the State of IL.
The defendants contend the existing system serves the goal of promoting “local control” over decision making. They are seeking to have the lawsuit dismissed in advance of any fact discovery.
The brief argues that preservation of local control of education can no longer be a rational basis for the State’s educational funding system since the state has stripped districts of local control by imposing State-mandated Learning Standards and numerous additional State mandates.
D129 Supt. Rydland explained at the Aug Board meeting “Since the state is responsible to see that there is a quality, foundational education for all students, it also has an obligation to fund education,” Rydland said. “However, because the state funding formula relies more heavily on local funding sources, the discrepancy between the property-rich districts and property-poor districts continues to grow.”
(this is an abbreviated version of an announcement sent thru D129 parentsnews emails)
113 comments:
SIMMONS SUCKS !!!!!
Good for District 129 for challenging the state on this! The state cannot have it both ways; our legislators have pushed through too many unfunded mandates in an attempt to convince voters that they're doing something positive. "No Child Left Behind" left the money behind, and left taxpayers holding the bag.
It's about time districts started speaking up in the best interests of the kids. You go, D129!
Illinois current system of funding education amounts to an educational welfare system. Using this system, the State of Illinois has, for decades, insured that the students in Illinois' more affluent school districts keep all money and an excellent education within their district borders while Illinois' poorer districts are given just enough to squeak by.
The State of Illinois funds at a level that places them 49th in the country and that's all our politicians can do is complain about the money spent on education and cut, cut, cut.
Linda Chapa Lavia knowing how pathetically the state funds education ( She is on the committee that oversees education funding) stated for the local newspapers how much she admired a mentor politician of hers and quoted him as saying: Linda, it doesn't matter how much money you give to education, they will be right back asking for more. That's like finding a person dying of thirt and complaing: I gave them a drop of water and now they are asking for two drops.
The state controls and manages all school districts in Illinois and actually imposes more control and regulation in the poorer districts that rely heavily on state funding. They demand that we educate at a level that is equal to districts that have more than twice the resouces that they allow districts like ours. While we are allowed approximately $8,000 per student, other districts receive $20,000 or more per student. The districts receiving the largest amounts of money are in communities that have the greast outside resources.
Our politicians know all these things and the current state funding formula is a deliberate attempt by them to insure that the kids in Illinois' poorer district have a lifelong disadvantage from their more affluent neighbors.
Central office gossip is that Marin Gonzalez is getting hers from Jerome. She is using power left and right. Joanie is the new star of the show. Everyone now knows who the new Superintendent will be. Its Joanie, Roberts will take disability by the end of the year. Its getting harder for him to see and Lisa and Clayton are becoming more his eyes. In fact Clayton will soon get additional help. So he can work more with Roberts. Deanne Adams also works with Roberts one on one. Deanne still reports to Marin but Roberts now works through her.
I'm sure Jerome is aware of Marin's reputation as a bully (not only the band mess, but other incidents over the years). Joan, on the other hand, has a reputation for being reasonable and approachable. She would be a much easier "sell".
Unless, of course, the district gets a bunch of negative publicity in the Bob Green case. Then Joan might not look like such a great candidate for superintendent.
Central office news is Marin once picked by Jerome to become the next Superintendent is no longer. He has had too many complaints from administrators that work for him and the new Board is holding him accountable. He can claim disability because he is legally blind. The rumor is he will, but it is anyone's guess.
There was an article in the Beacon today about a new mentoring program in our district. It's called "Connect Four Mentoring", and it's supposed to involve matching at-risk fifth graders with adults from the central office or School Board. These adults will continue to mentor the youth through high school graduation.
Sounds like a good idea--it'll be interesting to see how it works out.
The Connect 4 Kids was Johnson and Clayton's idea. I know her buddy Roberts forced this through. I am never sure whether Johnson cares for the kids or it is a image builder. Many believe her and Roberts to be very close. She has also had many in the Central Office moving on the Technology. Many of our building are starting to see service. Gates had smart boards just installed that had been sitting for a couple of years. The main thing with her is she only works on her agenda and not the Boards. Time will tell, I also still believe she is more about image.
Yes, time will tell--and talk is cheap.
If this program actually lasts for more than a few months it will be wonderful for our at-risk kids. But if someone drops the ball (kids, mentors, school, or parents), it could be devastating for those kids.
Good for them for trying this. I hope it works out well for everyone.
Whatever Johnson's motivation she seems to get Roberts off his dead ass. One thing for sure Roberts was on a trip down retirement lane. Our building saw some improvements as well when Central Office ordered a inventory it was determined several computers that had not worked for some time in the classrooms got addressed. Simmons still sucks. I was never sure it was the Tech Department or Wilson but at least some things got done.
If the admin's really visit the building and just show up for the kids maybe we will see some change here as well.
Why are they not reaching out to other community members and what happens with these children if the board members or administrators aren't around for the full term. Shouldn't they be reaching out to all people in the community to help. It is a image builder and really board members shouldn't be this involved with these things because maybe later on they won't be on the board and will they still care after that?
How about trying to get the test scores up for all the children and bringing back the programs they cut before to help all the children of the district. How do they pick the children they are mentoring.
It's smoke and mirrors folks to make others think they are doing something while our test scores still sink. A chance for a few to say look what we are doing but all the while so many are left behind.
My question is this is what if someone who is on the board now is not on it when these 5th graders are in high school or the adults at the central office are still not there, who will take their place to mentor these students? Will the ones that started with the students in 5th grade still be allowed to mentor them? Has this as other things in the past been really thought out before bringing forth to the public? As, in the past, I do not think it has really been thought out and planned. Though I do believe the mentoring idea is a good one. Johnson is all about image and where she wants to get in this game.
Here's an idea: The Dominican Literacy Center in Aurora offers free tutoring for immigrant women, to help them learn to speak, read, and write English. This program involves a 90-minute session once per week, with women from the community tutoring their student one-on-one. Many of the students go on to pass their citizenship tests, get a GED, or get a better job because they have a better control of the English language.
Why not something like this for our students? Community members could tutor students one-on-one at a central location in the district, helping them with their homework. If school board members and/or administrators wanted to participate, that would be great--but many retired folks would probably love to "give back" to the community this way. After all, the Dominican Literacy Center has no problem getting volunteer tutors (and they only have women tutors & students--imagine how many men might add to the number of people volunteering!)
I'll be starting my fourth year as a volunteer tutor at the Dominican Literacy Center, so I can vouch for the fact that the program works!
This sounds like a plan to me August 8, 2010 8:03 PM seems like it would reach so many and will help everyone in the community.
8:07 p.m., here's another angle:
High school upperclassmen could volunteer an hour every week tutoring a grade-schooler--and earn service hours. A win/win situation!!
The mentoring idea is not a new one.
The alumni association worked at forming a mentoring program involving alumni a few years back.
Lack of support and involvement, I believe, was it's demise.
Recently, the district was to work with the alumni on a similar project.
I do not recall hearing where that plan went.
The Dominican Literacy Center is located on Vermont Avenue, next to St. Therese Church. It is run by the Dominican Sisters (nuns). The tutoring program has been running successfully for more than 20 years.
I've been volunteering for 4 years now, and I can tell you that it's one of the best ways to help another person. I feel like I get back more than I give. I highly recommend it to any woman who has a couple of hours a week to donate to make our community a better place.
Training for new tutors will begin soon--for more information, call the Center at 630-898-4636.
I have not read the Beacon article, so I am unaware what the story said. I do know Clayton did mention community members being involved in the mentoring program, at a later date.
This was explained in some detail at the last Board Meeting.
Mentoring and tutoring are two different concepts. A mentor is more of a role model, while a tutor is like a teacher on a one-to-one basis.
Our kids can benefit from both.
Here's a quote from the article:
"The program, called Connect Four Mentoring, will match four at-risk fifth- through 11th-graders with an East Aurora School Board member or central office administrator. The groups will meet bi-weekly and the mentor will follow the students through high school graduation."
No mention of community members being involved; but maybe this was accidentally left out?
So why can't the district look into seeing who is doing this kind of work to help all the children with their homework and their development and partner with them. I'm sure there are some that are doing this and help build on this instead of having someone trying to boost themselves up to make a name for themselves. Reach out to the ones that are already doing something not to make a name for themselves but are trying to help everyone for their benefit and not yours.
Only four how about all the others.
If School Board members are mentors, then at election time wouldn't some of them use that as a bargaining chip to get re-elected? As in, "I'm mentoring these kids through high school, so keep me on the board?"
It is my understanding hearing a presentation last week that this was 25 Central Office administrators and some Board Members they would help 100 kids for the first year to get all the problems solved. They then would open it up to the Buildings and teachers. It was stated that all the Central Office would do it including Roberts. Rumor was it Roberts forced all the Central Office to do it. I am not sure about the Board when Roberts gave his presentation he only used the words our Board President will be mentoring as well.
Someone said the Board was not asked they never voted on the program so I am not sure how the Board fits in. I thought they voted on all programs. Johnson decided to do this and Roberts put it in for her. I think its a good program but why did the other members not get involved.
Shouldn't it be that they try and get community members to be involved? Many of those stated don't even live in the district so they might not be around when the student needed them. Also, the way this program is being done it makes the employees almost seem like they have to do this and that is not right.
I'm also wondering about the motivation of the "mentors".
Some are, no doubt, participating because they want to help our kids succeed.
And some are probably doing it to try to whitewash their reputations, so the community thinks "mentor" instead of "bully" when their name is mentioned.
OH SHUT UP
Uh oh, someone's upset--must be one of the bullies.
We tend to get profanities, "shut ups", and/or yelling whenever somebody mentions the b-word.
No, not "band".
"Bully".
I guess the truth hurts, or at least ticks some people off :P
Yup, whatever, your ignorance is overflowing.
Ignorance, huh? Maybe they need a mentor.
Has the districts report cards came out yet? How did the district do. With all this positive news coming out of the district we should of made some progress with the report cards.
Yeah right. The report cards are the one thing that the board and administration can't lie about, however, they do try to baffle us with Bullsh**. They are right there every year with excuses at the ready when the scores come out.
Rudy, I would rather have my children mentored by those who are willingly volunteering their time to help students (similar to the tutors at the Dominican Literacy Center) than by those who are being pressured into it. Attitude IS important--and most students can tell the difference.
Remember, mentors are role models. Students learn more than academics from effective mentors; they learn integrity and ethical behavior. This would be difficult to learn from a corrupt "role model"!
I would rather have kids being offered the service with some mentors only doing it for their reputation, than to not have any kids being mentored at all.
The problem with that statement is that the person being mentored might feel that response and feel that they need to follow that which is not good. Mentoring is a good thing but should not be made for someone to look good but to be something that makes someone feel good and be able to get that feeling across to the person they are mentoring. There are many good mentoring programs out there if you want to look for them. The one place that all should look for first is in their home life. We all don't have perfect home life but it should start there first.
If you are more or less forced to do something to make where you work look the others that run that business (and a school district is a form of business) it is called
anarchy. I believe we do have many that want to help and have in their own way that don't need someone from administration tell them to do so. I bet if you ask some of the students if they have someone in the district that has helped them they will say yes and they didn't need someone to tell them to do it.
It sounds like Rudy has had a few corrupt mentors help him during his years in 131. You see, it does make a difference.
I have found in mentoring, helping or tutoring that I am the one who benefits from it as I have always learned something from the one I am with. If this is selfish, then I am glad that I am.
Yep, that report card is out and my thoughts tend to go in the direction that folks are not going to be happy.
Wow Rudy! I guess the truth hurt. Must have hit a little too close to home. With each statement you make, you show more and more how little character and morals you have. 9:58 was correct, you must be a product of poor mentors. I'm guessing you are product of Clayton and/or Liska. Open your mouth some more and show everone here what we really have on the East Side for students.
I saw Boys2men on NBC news tonight it showed Clayton as the only mentor these kids had. I could see East Aurora High School in the background. I for one believe many of these people do it for the kids.
As a parent, if someone were volunteering to tutor my child with his homework I wouldn't care whether they were selfish or trying to whitewash their reputation. I would just be grateful for the help.
But mentoring is different. Mentors are supposed to be role models, and I don't think that bullies can model integrity.
Bully administrators helping kids with homework=good :)
Bully administrators trying to be role models=bad :(
Mentoring is a good thing and their are many programs out there that the district could partner with a touch a much bigger group.
This district seems to center on one thing though and that is making Clayton into something. You would think he is the only person in the district doing anything to help the children when I'm sure their are many teachers that have help students that don't seem to need to be in the lime light. Clayton is using this district to make a name for himself and that shouldn't be because we have so many others that try so hard to help others.
This is the article on NBCChicago.com
Their name reminds many of the once-popular group of singers, but this band of brothers is more about teaching success than singing.
Boys to Men was founded at Aurora East High School in 2002, a year that saw 25 people in that city killed by violence. The mentoring group's founder says the idea was spurred by emotion and anger.
"We realize that no matter what race you are, no matter what side of town you live on, every boy wants to become a man," said Clayton Muhammad. "We got so tired of going to funeral after funeral of young people, we should be going to graduation parties."
In about eight years, Boys to Men has spread to a dozen suburban area schools and about 200 young men have been through the program. All of them graduated high school, and the majority went on to college or the military.
Meliton Chaidez is a Junior member. Boys to Men helped him get a poem he wrote about his father into the Library of America. The soon-to-be seventh grader said his mentors have taught him a lot about what's life is like as an adult.
"Not everything is having fun," he said. "Sometimes you've got to work hard to have fun."
Tavis Gibson, 18, became involved with Boys to Men when he was in fifth grade. He's since graduated from Yorkville High School and is headed to Victory University in Memphis, Tennessee.
"The friends and the decisions I was making, I was headed in the wrong direction," said Gibson of his life before Boys to Men. "When you're surrounded by greatness you really have no choice than to confirm that same status, so it pushes me."
The Aurora Beacon News dubbed Boys to Men the anti-gang. The group teams up with other agencies to offer tutoring and guidance. Full membership is open to young men between eighh and twelfth grades, but they must commit to attending Sunday night meetings at least twice a month.
Muhammad believes just having the young men meet each other -- many of whom come from single-parent families and have lost friends to violence -- is a huge step to realizing they are not alone in their struggles.
"To be able to have a peer to reach out to, and to relate to, makes a world of difference. Because now they have someone who's 'been there done that,'" he explained.
Kane County Sheriff Pat Perez believes Boys to Men has helped diminish the number of offenders who end up behind bars.
"If they respect themselves they respect others, " he said. "Clayton [Muhammad] is sowing seeds and now these young men are sprouting trees out of seeds. Gang affiliation and the senseless killings and drug deals will really be a thing for the past of this community, that's really the ultimate goal."
Source: http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local-beat/boys-to-men-anti-violence-100308644.html#ixzz0wD2E4k6y
Seems like a pretty good program - and it not just East Aurora as this blog leads everyone to think.
Kudos to District 131 and for Clayton and all of the other countless individuals that are working with all students. Teachers work very hard every day. Administration strives to do what's best although at times may fall short with so many on their plate and with few resources. That is why mentoring is so important. It takes a village! Even as some will criticize Clayton, they are haters. He is home grown and simply wants to see those whom are cast aside, forgotten, or already written off, to rise above and realize their potential. He simply has not given up on them when most already have. Regardless of what some people on this post point out about B2M, it has given these boys an outlet and something that they can call their own. The facts do not lie! All B2M have graduated from high school and most will graduate from college! These young men are simply paying it forward and it makes everyone's job a little bit easier for teachers, parents, and society! Others, like Rudy, who posts here, have reached heights without the need for mentorship. But he also has a heart the size of Aurora. Hopefully, those naysayers, those whom are resistant to change, those xenophobes who detest seeing Aurora change and diversify, will realize that these young men will be successful and contribute to a healthy society!
The best mentors for a young person are their PARENTS. If a parent dies or is unavailable, then the next best would be a grandparent or other close relative. That's how it works in most cultures around the world. That's how I was raised to be a productive member of society, and how I (together with my husband) have raised our kids. Both are college graduates. Neither has ever been in trouble with the law. Both will proudly point to us, their parents, as their main role models.
PARENTS, pick up the ball here! If YOU do your job, YOU are your kids' mentors (until they go out into the larger world and learn from mentors in their field of expertise). Teachers, administrators, and other authority figures can serve as good (and occasionally bad) examples for our kids, but it's up to us PARENTS to start them out right!!
I have not been on this blog all week so I apologize for the late comments on the mentoring. At the Board meeting Clayton introduced two mentoring programs. One at the grade school which is a partnership with HopeUSA. They already have a presence at Brady and this year it is expanding to Rollins and Krug. the plan it to get it in ALL the grade schools. The Connect 4 is modeled after another program that has been used in Boston and locally at Elgin.
Even if a board member does not get re-elected they are still living in the community so they can continue to mentor. You are right also, tutoring and mentoring are different. We need both. The person that works with the Dominican group needs to call or email Ms. Lewis, Ms. Johnson, or Clayton and let them know about the program.The district has many community partners and is always open to more.
PS- Rudy you are awesome. You make me proud.
You use the term has been used so are they still doing it or have they stopped and if they stopped do you know why.
What we need is to get the grades up in this district so people want to move into our district because the school system is good. We need to make it so parents want there children to get a good education for all not those that have people mentoring them.
Scores probably will be going up at least a little bit this year. With the economy being as bad as it is, many parents just can't afford to send their children to private schools. Our population of white kids has about tripled in the past couple of years. We'll see when the scores come out this year and even more so next year.
For all the Clayton haters it now seems in today's Beacon that many other schools are wanting his program so I say congrad's to Clayton. He has helped countless minority children and he is finally getting the recognition he deserves.
Mrs Lewis has always donated many hours to the District and I am glad that she is a voice of the kids.
I have also read many nasty comments about Johnson but she is turning East Aurora around. Finally a Board member who speaks up and gets things done. I hope we can get her to speak up on the test scores. Roberts came to a new teacher group I attended and by his comments everyone can tell the Board is finally starting to work on solving District problems with administration. He seemed to have a great deal of respect for Johnson he commented that she has brought her business experience back to the school she graduated from and he looks at things not just as a educator.
(105 ILCS 5/10‑16.7)
Sec. 10‑16.7. School board duties with respect to superintendent. In addition to all other powers and duties enumerated in this Article, the school board shall make all employment decisions pertaining to the superintendent. The school board shall direct, through policy, the superintendent in his or her charge of the administration of the school district, including without limitation considering the recommendations of the superintendent concerning the budget, building plans, the locations of sites, the selection, retention, and dismissal of employees, and the selection of textbooks, instructional material, and courses of study. The school board shall evaluate the superintendent in his or her administration of school board policies and his or her stewardship of the assets of the district.
(Source: P.A. 94‑881, eff. 6‑20‑06.)
Ok?
It is the superintendant's job to bring things around with the administration. The administration are the superintendant's employees and the superintendant is the school board's one and only employee. There was another school board member that tried to do good for East schools but the others on the board put a silence on this person, but you can bet that Johnson and Lewis are now trying to be this person's best friend, or appears that way at meetings. Love these "As East Aurora Turns" episodes. Has anyone seen the report card yet? Rumor has it that it is not good. White students are not the only ones who make good grades. That is what the one statement implies. Also, revamp ESL or whatever it is called and get these students in the mainstream after 2 yrs. in these classes. Why is it that the Asians, Africans, Germans and all other ethnic groups do not have the problem that the Spanish speaking do? Answer: because these ethnic groups are not catered to and does not demand special attention. If a student applies themself they can make good grades. This is where parents come in, to guide their children. Miniority children are not the only ones that need help. Actually on the East side it appears that whites are the minority. Everyone should just get off their soap boxes and help all students.
How about the AYP letters that went out with words misspelled? Those secretaries make alot of money for that work. Also, if the secretaries cannot spell, well how about our students? Shoould we count how many misspelled words there are and post the number here?NO, we did not make AYP. What has it been now? Eight years? Where is the outrage from the parents? Hope there will start to be good turn outs now at the meetings. Ask this district what kind of curriclum they have for the year? Do they even have one yet? Johnson or Lewis should not be answering these questions. It is the superintendants job to answer them and the information should be coming from his administrators. This community really needs to come togehter on this.
Bullshit. The reason many of the Mexican kids struggle is because of the language barrier. The same as every other culture has had assimilation issues when they were the first generation in this country. With each additional generation, the problems resolve themselves. Our imigrants children will do well and their grandchildren will be even better.
The last thing they need is a bunch of racist assholes griping about them because they are a generation or two behind the assholes.
If you really want to be a racist asshole, I am sure you'll fit in very well down in Arizona. Let me know if you need a ticket.
Wisconsin and other states have had their fill with all this AYP crap and they are doing what they can to supplement their states educational dollars.
Simply put, they want to tell the federal government what they can do with No Child Left Behind and all the BS rules that come with the few dollars the feds send to the states.
We should be following their lead. The Federal Government has no business in education. The constitution states that any powers not given to the Federal Government in the constitution reside in the states. There is nothing in the constitution that gives the Federal Government any oversite for education. Education should be controlled by the states.
You will notice that it is the No Child Left Behind "ACT", not "LAW". The states don't have to follow the federal rules by law, they simply must follow the federal rules if they want the federal dollars. It's about time people stand up and say, this is our money and you have no right to hold it from us or create BS rules to obtain it. Do what's right for the people of your state or we'll elect others who will.
Even without AYP our district would still be in the same place. We need to get strong leaders for the children of our district. We might have money in the bank that we can give some people that work for the district raises but when we don't educate our children to the best of our ability we are not doing our job and all that money means nothing if it doesn't make our district let others know that we are serious about the education of our children.
The buck stops at the Superintendent that this board renewed a contract for just recently and with the scores we are getting it doesn't seem like he is doing his job and neither is this school board.
There are first generation immigrants coming from Asia, Germany, Romania, India, Africa and many other foriegn countries at this time also and they are not being the same way as the Spanish speaking ones are. This is not a racist statement, just a fact.
August 11, 2010 9:30 PM
"they are not being the same way as the Spanish speaking ones are"???
I'm sorry but do you want to try again to tell us what you meant about other cultures who don't communicate well?
Spanish-speaking immigrants are catered to because there are so many of them, and they spend money.
100 years ago in Aurora there were a lot of German immigrants. Many businesses (banks, stores), schools, and churches used German along with English.
It's about economics.
You are wrong about Public Acts they are laws.
Definitions of public acts on the Web:
Bills that have been approved by the Legislature and signed into law by the Governor, filed with the Secretary of State, and assigned a Public Act number.
www.bcbsm.com/home/governmental_affairs/glossary_of_legislative_terminology.shtml
This is what happens when we don't teach civics anymore people don't know how government works.
I notice in the Beacon today that our district's getting $6.5 million in stimulus funds.
Hopefully some of that money will go to our hard-working teachers.
To: August 12, 2010 7:16 AM
The Germans you refer to a hundred years ago couldn't pass the state tests any more than the immigrants of today. The only difference is that they had no measurable standards to live up to.
You're also wrong about it being the Spanish speaking immigrants who are being catered to. Go to Indian Prairie and you'll find that they have immigrants from over 80 different countries and if they have language issues they all get special services.
Your opinion is either very short sighted or racist. For some reason you can't seem to see past the Mexican population in Aurora.
Yes, other district have different eithic groups to deal with and the one big difference is the involvement of the parents who are willing to pay higher taxes for those services. They also don't keep them in the programs that long and some parents even get private tutors for their children.
10:06 a.m., it's not about black, white, or brown--it's about green.
As in money.
Whatever ethnic group spends money, will be catered to. It's that simple. Years ago, it was the Germans; today it's the Hispanics.
That's not racist.
The teachers all get paid the same. It doesn't matter if the teacher speaks english, spanish or both. There's nothing green about it. In fact,the district gets more state and federal money for the bilingual education. It costs the local taxpayers less for the spanish speakers.
Don't kid yourself, it's not about the green and there are many racists in our town.
August 12, 2010 10:30 AM
How long do they keep them in the programs?
You obviously KNOW something and are just not pulling things out of your ass.
Prove to me that bilingual students in other districts speak English faster.
The other thing is that your basis for East High students being in the program a long time is that the program exists at the high school level. Because you think that all kids spend K-12 in this school district and that no students come here in high school or middle school.
East High has a high mobility rate. The reason the program exists at the high school level is because people move here, WHEN THEY ARE IN HIGH SCHOOL.
I think we all know that we have many students that move in and out of the district that are in all grade levels I don't think that is the point. Why is a friend of mine children still in the program when the children started at kindergarten and are still in it at the middle school level that is what we are talking about.
Maybe your friends children are just a little (or a lot) slower than the everyone else. You shouldn't be asking why they are still in the program, you should be asking what can you do to help them. What do they need and how do we make sure they receive it. It's a lot cheeper to help them as children than it is to support them their entire lives.
They do not want help and they are not a lot slower they can curse with the best of them and can speak very good Spanish. They have no respect for other peoples property since they throw their trash in others yards. The parents even though the neighbors have tried to reach out to them don't want to respond. As many try to at least make their homes look better by even mowing their lawns they do not. So many have tried to reach out they do not want to respond. You might not live in an area on the East side that this goes on but it does.
I DON'T THINK ANYONE WAS TALKING ABOUT THE HIGH SCHOOL I THINK THEY WHERE TALKING ABOUT THE ONES THAT START FROM THE FIRST GRADE AND BEYOND. LET'S BE REAL WHEN YOU CALL ANY COMPANY ON THE PHONE DO THEY SAY PUSH ONE FOR GERMAN, TWO FOR CHINESE, THREE FOR ANY OTHER LANGUAGE?
Calm down "August 12, 2010 8:14 PM" - Your tiny brain needs a rest.
My tiny brain has calmed down I was only replying to August 12, 2010 3:35 PM who seems to want to scream. But this is the real world and when you don't want to see it or at least respect what other people see that is what you get. I don't think that people want to sound like they don't care about things that are going on but they want to see change for the better of everyone.
Not being the same way as the Spanish speaking are is that they demand and get things done in their language. Also, that they are not willing to learn English. This is the way I interupt it.
I know of a Spanish family that the parents speak English, yet their children who speak English were in the bi-lingual program from K to 12. One was in regular classes and that was the oldest one. Also, admins have called and told Spaninsh parents that their children should be in the bi-lingual classes. The parents told the admin that their children would be in regular classes and speak their own language at home. These are not isolated incidents. One young woman in a Beacon article not to long ago stated many stay in the bi-lingual program because they feel comfortable in it.
I know a redneck family that practically had a junk yard in their yard yet it was hard to tell most times as their grass was four feet high. The kids went to school and used both racial and gender slurs regularly. Needless to say, the child was in a lot of fights. When the parents came into school you saw where he got it from. The parents language was even worse and they frequently tried to create physical confrontations with teachers and administrators.
We had another white family that had about a dozen kids come through our building. It was hard to keep track of how they were all related. You see, for these 12 kids there were a total of two fathers and four mothers. They must have been some type of swingers because both men had children with all four of the mothers. Tales of drugs, prostitution and abuse were common for that family.
We had another white kid come to school one day bouncing off the walls. There was obviously something wrong with them. It took quite a while to figure it out.
It started with his mother sending him to the store for aspirin. She didn't have money, so she told him to steal it. Of course he got caught and brought home by the police. Before the police brought him home though, the father had come home. After the police dropped him off the father beat the crap out of the kid. During the beating, the kid let it out that the mother was having an affair. The father also beat the crap out of the mother. The police were called back and DCFS was brought in. Dad was in jail, mom was in the hospital and the kid was taken away by DCFS and placed in a foster home.
We have lots of kids from every race that require extra services. Every child who needs these services, receive them. Anyone who comes out against these hispanic kids is doing nothing more than showing their racist streak.
I bet the white kid could at least speak English. There are good and bad in everyone the point here is mainly about the ELL Program. Back when buying housing was booming I knew some Hispanics that wouldn't buy or rent in this district because of the schools. Ours is not the only districts having these problems with ELL a lot of them are trying to get the program to work better for them.
Racist
I notice on the agenda for next Monday's School Board meeting that a new position is being created at the central office: "Community Resource Facilitator".
Do other districts have this position?
Maybe Mr. Muhammad is going to be working full-time with Boys II Men. That group is taking off and gaining popularity throughout the country. I could see how it could keep Mr. M busy 24/7, if he chose to concentrate all his time on it.
If Clayton is or wil be giving full time attention to B2M then he no longer should be working for the district. Therefore his postion should be open. If this new postion is being created to help Clayton out, then we, the community needs an explanation. There has been enough postions created since Roberts has become superintendant and many have gone to people he knows. It aso has cost this district alot of money and many of these people that the new postions were created for have been promoted to newer make postions with substantial raises that were rectroactive. Enough is enough.
Who is the new Dean at East High? Does she or he speak Spanish? There's a laaarge number of students there that don't speak English at all...
So are you saying that the district will still be paying Clayton to travel the country to promote his group on the districts dime. I do believe that is illegal but in this district he is god and can do anything and we will pay him while our students suffer.
I think this is the statement they are talking about.
Maybe Mr. Muhammad is going to be working full-time with Boys II Men. That group is taking off and gaining popularity throughout the country. I could see how it could keep Mr. M busy 24/7, if he chose to concentrate all his time on it.
August 13, 2010 8:28 AM
referencing to this statement.
I notice on the agenda for next Monday's School Board meeting that a new position is being created at the central office: "Community Resource Facilitator".
Do other districts have this position?
August 13, 2010 8:22 AM
I think some are thinking if Clayton will be spending so much time promoting his group and they need to hire someone else because he will be busy is it on the districts dime or will Clayton be leaving?
Some are ASSUMING BASED ON NOTHING.
Yeah, this is what is going to happen. The district is hiring somebody to replace Clayton but going to keep him on the payroll anyway.
Some of you people just can't stand that Boys 2 Men is getting good publicity.
What some should ask is it alright for a district to just promote one employees program. I'm sure we have many that work for the district that are doing good work for children. You would think that he is the only person that is doing good for this district. Shouldn't we be promoting all of the people that help this district move ahead to help children?
This has nothing to do with B2M getting good publicity, it has to do with financil responsibility to the district.
8/13 @ 7:42pm you are right in your statements.
This is a blog for people to ask questions and make comments, just like anyother blog. When someone makes a statement or asks questions, no one should get their feathers in a ruffle and take it personally or think something bad, just come back with their thoughts or comments.
I hope the new Dean speaks many languages, just like I hope the students from different ethnic groups learn to speak English, but keep their own language and use it at home or functions they go to from their native homeland.
Central Office gossip is Johnson & Roberts took care of Clayton. On the other hand they just got 6.5 million
for hiring new positions. Roberts will say its coming out of that. Both of them need Clayton to do the public relations work they don't want to to. Meanwhile Marin is still on Roberts list. Roberts spent several hours this week yelling at the staff because of mistakes made on reports to the Board. It seems Johnson is upset so Roberts needs to make her happy
If there's enough money to create at least one whole new position at the central office, there should be no excuse for not giving the teachers a raise. Otherwise, our teachers are facing the possibility of working without a contract.
It is my understanding the Union wants to work without a contract. They do meet on a regular basis.
Clayton is off starting a National organization. That is why they needed a helper/ secretary for him. Roberts & Johnson are soooo worried about their image they made a deal with Clayton to stay around and let him build his program on the district dime. Lets not forget his mentor has a foundation he is in charge of the Debra Roberts Foundation. Johnson recently bailed the East Aurora Education Foundation out. These people are all about themselves.
The Central Office is in a uproar Roberts has been cracking down and not giving support. Support was given to Clayton and Joanie but not the others. Johnson is a big supporter of Clayton and Roberts is a big supporter of Joanie. Christy & Marin are being racked over the coals by other Board members and Roberts/Johnson are not supporters. Why because test scores are not a popular issue.
If they are letting Clayton go off and do that on the districts dime then they all need to be fired. Johnson needs to quit also she has no authority to let Clayton do that.
This is a school district not a pep club. Get back to do your job and educate the children by getting the test scores up.
The Board became upset when the Central Office mailed out the incorrect letter for Cowherd. They also told the Board it had been corrected. Along with that the Board received complaints and Lewis and Gonzalez pulled a Weaver and treated them harshly. Roberts at that point with Johnson became involved and continue not to support the admin's This is causing more fighting look for the next chapter to unfold at the meeting Monday.
This blog has a way of ripping good people down.
Clayton has saved many kids and put them on the right path. The mentoring program will save countless more. If Clayton gets help then fine. More kids will be helped
Roberts has changed this District for the good financially and countless teachers have him to thank for their jobs this year. He also has 6. million to spend on new hires.
Johnson is has gotten Roberts to look at the District as a business. They have mutual respect for one another and by next year we will reap the rewards of some of the programs. From the computers to mentoring they have things moving along.
So Bravo to them.
I keep hearing about how Clayton has saved all these at risk youths and at the same time hear about how Boys II Men only accepts the best, most phenominal kids.
If a teacher only accepted the best students, they would look awesome also. It's all a crock of BS.
Don't kid yourself, Clayton has never done anything just for others. If there isn't a PR angle for himself, some way of boosting his own career, it won't be done. Clayton even made a public show when taking in a foster kid. He really is a pathetic person. I pity him and all his little disciples that run around thinking he is God.
That position does sound like it if for someone to take over or help Clayton. He should do his job and not go off to do things on the districts dime. It is not fair to the other that work in this district. This leaves and opening for others to do start some kind of program and be able to do it on the districts dime. Who would be watching the store then? Temporary workers? Postions keep being created in administration but no new teachers. We have to many chiefs and not enought Indains at this point, really have for awhile. This is not right. What happens when this districit no longer has money for all of this? Will they get rid of all these positons they have made? We need teachers, not new positions for Roberts or Johnsons friends or favorites. If someone does not think this is what is happening, then whomever does not go to meetings or read between the lines in the board bits. Johnson needs to stay focused and be a board member, not using this district for her ambitions. What did that comment mean about Lewis and Gonzales pulling a Weaver. Did not understand it, please explain. The posting on 8/14 @ 3:31pm sounds like Johnson.
Is that 6 million going to be around for ever or is it just for right now because if it is just for now it doesn't mean a thing.
What about all the test scores while they where out there saving money it did nothing to get grades up that is another important thing that needs to be done.
The district isn't a business it is for educating children and making sure they get what they need not money in the bank. Having money to spend on the students is a good thing though.
We need to help the children in this district before anyone goes out to other places and I really don't think it is the district responsibility to do that to promote one persons agenda.
Just some facts for the teachers. 11 million total in last 2 years left over in the budget. Now additional 6.2 million from state to hire elementary and secondary teachers ONLY. Take that to the bargaining table. Johnson says she has it in the bag and already has a deal on the table. BTW this information was overheard during a breakfast and luncheon meetings between a couple of board members.I thought board business was suppose to stay in the board room. Just another thing.............wheres the state?
I love how district 131 is footing the dime for other districts kids to get all the schlorships and help thru Boys 2 men. Does anyone know how many of the boys are even district 131 students? By the looks of the news clip not many.
Board minutes are the responsibility of the Lisa Morales who is no more more qualified for her job than her loser husband Wilson. But that is the prize you get in doing special favors of the Superintendent. A example would be reading for him because he is to blind to do his job. Or giving him a back rub at a Board meeting.
So when the Secretary like Lisa does not do her job that falls on Anita Lewis to check. But Anita is to busy running garage sales with Clayton to win a prize for her grand daughter.
The next weak link is Stella Gonzalez who can't use a computer. If you can't use a computer how would you know the comments are missing.
Then there is Johnson who is so busy with her own image and the districts that why worry about the web-site. I am sure she designed the signs that Clayton runs all over town putting up. The rest of her time is spent telling Roberts what to say. So why worry if the District is not in legal compliance with the web-site, who will complain anyway.
No need to fear Clayton will soon have another helper in the Superintendents office. Maybe she can help poor Lisa.
Remember folks it is making choices for IMAGE
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