Why are dozens of principals leaving Fairfax Co. schools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Exactly what they said. It’s a terrible working environment and dr. Reid doesn’t care.

You all say this about EVERY SINGLE superintendent. Doesn't matter who. Male. Female. Old. Young. From nearby. From Far.

Hard to take you seriously at this point.

+1.

We continue to recruit folks to be supts on a 350k salary, and expect them to do the job of a Fortune 500 CEO that makes tens of millions a year, and with all the constraints of public budgets to boot. It's not like she can go out and fish for additional top talent when she can pay teachers 55k. We get what we fund.

Because now starting salaries of teachers making $55k with summers off is too little? When does it end? Can we all just get the $15k per child and find our own schooling? Obviously, there aren't enough teachers who want the job. Might as well be moms again.

In what world do you think you’re getting a voucher worth $15k? Even states that give vouchers only give between $2-5K.

That's the irony of the voucher movement. The complain about large class sizes and a lack of resources and then somehow think that a private school can provide individualized attention with the same funding that resulted in those large classes

The cost for private catholic school per pupil even with the community contribution is about the same. FCPS pays about $12k or $13k per standard student without disabilities and additional needs. It's pretty comparable.

Only for kids paying the Catholic rate. There are non-catholics paying twice as much subsidizing everything. That's not even getting into class sizes at Parish schools which are comparable to FCPS (because it takes that many kids to pay the teacher and the overhead). The privates that people covet cost 40k+ because that's what it takes to have small class sizes

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The average this year is $20k per student. Even as expensive as this area is, that is a lot of money per student. Does that fee even include the building costs through bonds? I'm not sure.

It includes SPED and ESOL and Title I. English as a primary language NT kids from middle class homes are getting closer to 10k spent on them

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Exactly what they said. It’s a terrible working environment and dr. Reid doesn’t care.

You all say this about EVERY SINGLE superintendent. Doesn't matter who. Male. Female. Old. Young. From nearby. From Far.

Hard to take you seriously at this point.

+1.

We continue to recruit folks to be supts on a 350k salary, and expect them to do the job of a Fortune 500 CEO that makes tens of millions a year, and with all the constraints of public budgets to boot. It's not like she can go out and fish for additional top talent when she can pay teachers 55k. We get what we fund.

Because now starting salaries of teachers making $55k with summers off is too little? When does it end? Can we all just get the $15k per child and find our own schooling? Obviously, there aren't enough teachers who want the job. Might as well be moms again.

In what world do you think you’re getting a voucher worth $15k? Even states that give vouchers only give between $2-5K.

That's the irony of the voucher movement. The complain about large class sizes and a lack of resources and then somehow think that a private school can provide individualized attention with the same funding that resulted in those large classes

The real irony is the bubble of ignorance you live in.

The median household income in the US is $67,000 - PER YEAR.

You, PP, cannot fathom an entire household “surviving” on $67k for an entire year - but so many American do survive (and even thrive) on that income level.

Catholic schools, and many other private schools you’d sneer at, have low and even heavily subsidized tuition. But it’s still tuition.

The voucher you sneer at and mock - the $5,000 voucher - certainly is the difference between a failing public school and a private school, in many communities where families live on the median income (which again, is $67K for the whole family for an entire year).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Exactly what they said. It’s a terrible working environment and dr. Reid doesn’t care.

You all say this about EVERY SINGLE superintendent. Doesn't matter who. Male. Female. Old. Young. From nearby. From Far.

Hard to take you seriously at this point.

+1.

We continue to recruit folks to be supts on a 350k salary, and expect them to do the job of a Fortune 500 CEO that makes tens of millions a year, and with all the constraints of public budgets to boot. It's not like she can go out and fish for additional top talent when she can pay teachers 55k. We get what we fund.

Because now starting salaries of teachers making $55k with summers off is too little? When does it end? Can we all just get the $15k per child and find our own schooling? Obviously, there aren't enough teachers who want the job. Might as well be moms again.

In what world do you think you’re getting a voucher worth $15k? Even states that give vouchers only give between $2-5K.

That's the irony of the voucher movement. The complain about large class sizes and a lack of resources and then somehow think that a private school can provide individualized attention with the same funding that resulted in those large classes

The real irony is the bubble of ignorance you live in.

The median household income in the US is $67,000 - PER YEAR.

You, PP, cannot fathom an entire household “surviving” on $67k for an entire year - but so many American do survive (and even thrive) on that income level.

Catholic schools, and many other private schools you’d sneer at, have low and even heavily subsidized tuition. But it’s still tuition.

The voucher you sneer at and mock - the $5,000 voucher - certainly is the difference between a failing public school and a private school, in many communities where families live on the median income (which again, is $67K for the whole family for an entire year).

Catholic schools have the same class sizes as FCPS. That 5k voucher means that a Catholic high school still costs 18k for non-catholics. Do you think that's affordable to someone making 67k? Vouchers in expensive areas are discounts for people who can already afford private and subsidies to for profit schools that produce worse results than publics

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And let these "teachers" go get their dream office job. So tired of it. Many of them work in the summer and after school tutoring and make another $20k. That's $75k for a first year job.

They’re also tired of it which is why they’re leaving. I’ve been teaching over 20 years. Probably less than 10% of teachers tutor and less than 2% of the teachers tutor enough students to make $20,000 a year (almost $400 week throughout the year or $2000/week in the summer). Parents on DCUM like to use the words “many/most/all” which in reality is absolutely false.

Well under Adult Children highest paying careers there is someone who is a recent grad making $200k working twenty hours a week tutoring for test prep. So somehow they make it work.

So you’re basing your argument on someone who charges $200 an hour and probably has dozens of clients.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Exactly what they said. It’s a terrible working environment and dr. Reid doesn’t care.

You all say this about EVERY SINGLE superintendent. Doesn't matter who. Male. Female. Old. Young. From nearby. From Far.

Hard to take you seriously at this point.

+1.

We continue to recruit folks to be supts on a 350k salary, and expect them to do the job of a Fortune 500 CEO that makes tens of millions a year, and with all the constraints of public budgets to boot. It's not like she can go out and fish for additional top talent when she can pay teachers 55k. We get what we fund.

Because now starting salaries of teachers making $55k with summers off is too little? When does it end? Can we all just get the $15k per child and find our own schooling? Obviously, there aren't enough teachers who want the job. Might as well be moms again.

In what world do you think you’re getting a voucher worth $15k? Even states that give vouchers only give between $2-5K.

That's the irony of the voucher movement. The complain about large class sizes and a lack of resources and then somehow think that a private school can provide individualized attention with the same funding that resulted in those large classes

The real irony is the bubble of ignorance you live in.

The median household income in the US is $67,000 - PER YEAR.

You, PP, cannot fathom an entire household “surviving” on $67k for an entire year - but so many American do survive (and even thrive) on that income level.

Catholic schools, and many other private schools you’d sneer at, have low and even heavily subsidized tuition. But it’s still tuition.

The voucher you sneer at and mock - the $5,000 voucher - certainly is the difference between a failing public school and a private school, in many communities where families live on the median income (which again, is $67K for the whole family for an entire year).

Catholic schools have the same class sizes as FCPS. That 5k voucher means that a Catholic high school still costs 18k for non-catholics. Do you think that's affordable to someone making 67k? Vouchers in expensive areas are discounts for people who can already afford private and subsidies to for profit schools that produce worse results than publics

Is vouchers were ever approved the private schools would raise their prices the next day. They’re a business first and foremost.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The average this year is $20k per student. Even as expensive as this area is, that is a lot of money per student. Does that fee even include the building costs through bonds? I'm not sure.

It includes SPED and ESOL and Title I. English as a primary language NT kids from middle class homes are getting closer to 10k spent on them

It is closer to $12-$13k. It was $10k about 10 years ago. You can see the breakdowns per student if you drill down into the budget but I don't have time to review in that much detail. The average cost per pupil 10 years ago was around $15k. Now it's $20k. That's a significant increase. The educational standards and teaching have gone down since then.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The average this year is $20k per student. Even as expensive as this area is, that is a lot of money per student. Does that fee even include the building costs through bonds? I'm not sure.

It includes SPED and ESOL and Title I. English as a primary language NT kids from middle class homes are getting closer to 10k spent on them

It is closer to $12-$13k. It was $10k about 10 years ago. You can see the breakdowns per student if you drill down into the budget but I don't have time to review in that much detail. The average cost per pupil 10 years ago was around $15k. Now it's $20k. That's a significant increase. The educational standards and teaching have gone down since then.

The increase reflects the increase in SPED and FARMs students, two groups who would receive no benefit from vouchers.

[Anonymous]

In Arizona they get additional benefits.

https://educationforwardarizona.org/school-vouchers-explained/#:~:text=School%20vouchers%20give%20recipients%2090,can%20be%20upwards%20of%20%2430%2C000.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In Arizona they get additional benefits.

https://educationforwardarizona.org/school-vouchers-explained/#:~:text=School%20vouchers%20give%20recipients%2090,can%20be%20upwards%20of%20%2430%2C000.

"The variation in costs is largely due to meeting the needs of students with disabilities, who are the current primary users of school vouchers." so every parent who can find an ADHD diagnosis can get the state to fund Flint Hill. I see no problem with that approach at all

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Exactly what they said. It’s a terrible working environment and dr. Reid doesn’t care.

You all say this about EVERY SINGLE superintendent. Doesn't matter who. Male. Female. Old. Young. From nearby. From Far.

Hard to take you seriously at this point.

+1.

We continue to recruit folks to be supts on a 350k salary, and expect them to do the job of a Fortune 500 CEO that makes tens of millions a year, and with all the constraints of public budgets to boot. It's not like she can go out and fish for additional top talent when she can pay teachers 55k. We get what we fund.

Because now starting salaries of teachers making $55k with summers off is too little? When does it end? Can we all just get the $15k per child and find our own schooling? Obviously, there aren't enough teachers who want the job. Might as well be moms again.

What do you mean "might as well be moms again"? I guess you were one of those who thinks parenting is the teacher's job, so now that teachers are quitting, you are disappointed that you will have to be your kid's mom again?

Seriously....I've lost faith in parents.

“I don’t think parents should be telling schools what they should teach.”

- failed gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe.

PP - you agree with Terry then?

DP
I’d say, “Yes, I agree”.

How would that even work? It’s not an a la carte system.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At least some of them are retiring to get FCPS pensions while collecting a salary in a new division.

I get the impression Reid actually expects some results from principals and the ones who quit were used to Brabrand’s do-nothing style.

+1. I also get a strong sense from community meetings that Reid is out here pushing for real results - especially for the most disadvantaged and those lagging far behind the norm. I think some principals, specifically those closer to retirement, realize it's going to be hard work to fix the failing schools and jumping ship to a system with less expectations is an easy way out.

I agree with this. It's easy to keep swimming along with the stream, especially if you've been doing it long enough to be close to retirement. Do you really care at that point if the system works or if the stream is clean? Do you care if it is a downright toxic environment for a not-insignificant portion of students? Or do you just want to come in and punch a clock and not have to actually manage anyone or be in charge of fixing anything for the next couple of years?

My guess would be just to punch a clock. That's what I'd want to do, but then again, I don't work in a public environment where I'm expected and entrusted to be a guardian working in the best interest of minors. The system stinks, and when you are in charge of managing a stinky system, then you can't afford to just coast through. If you aren't up to right the ship, then the most responsible thing is to jump ship.

[Anonymous]

Just got an email that our (excellent) assistant principal is leaving for PWCPS

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just got an email that our (excellent) assistant principal is leaving for PWCPS

FCPS is not a great place to work. I hope he or she is happier! We lost many solid teachers from FCPS now it's admin leaving.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At least some of them are retiring to get FCPS pensions while collecting a salary in a new division.

I get the impression Reid actually expects some results from principals and the ones who quit were used to Brabrand’s do-nothing style.

+1. I also get a strong sense from community meetings that Reid is out here pushing for real results - especially for the most disadvantaged and those lagging far behind the norm. I think some principals, specifically those closer to retirement, realize it's going to be hard work to fix the failing schools and jumping ship to a system with less expectations is an easy way out.

I agree with this. It's easy to keep swimming along with the stream, especially if you've been doing it long enough to be close to retirement. Do you really care at that point if the system works or if the stream is clean? Do you care if it is a downright toxic environment for a not-insignificant portion of students? Or do you just want to come in and punch a clock and not have to actually manage anyone or be in charge of fixing anything for the next couple of years?

My guess would be just to punch a clock. That's what I'd want to do, but then again, I don't work in a public environment where I'm expected and entrusted to be a guardian working in the best interest of minors. The system stinks, and when you are in charge of managing a stinky system, then you can't afford to just coast through. If you aren't up to right the ship, then the most responsible thing is to jump ship.

you sound ignorant and condescending. Go jump your own ship and stop projecting your terrible attitude on everyone else.