Shake Up at SSMA?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I did think it was a little odd that the CA was separating from the school and forming a registered nonprofit (which allows them to control bank accounts, and therefore threaten the board/admin with withholding fundraising). Is this common? To me, that already indicated that there was mistrust and a potential showdown. So now it's not surprising that the CA is in this position, even if they do have good points. Which I am not totally sure of since the letter isn't posted here.

Yeah. Every PTA/PTO does this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I did think it was a little odd that the CA was separating from the school and forming a registered nonprofit (which allows them to control bank accounts, and therefore threaten the board/admin with withholding fundraising). Is this common? To me, that already indicated that there was mistrust and a potential showdown. So now it's not surprising that the CA is in this position, even if they do have good points. Which I am not totally sure of since the letter isn't posted here.

Yeah. Every PTA/PTO does this.

It's entirely normal to be a nonprofit. It allows for tax-exempt status and creates a corporate structure for long-term continuity. The Washington Lawyers Committee can help your school organization become a nonprofit.

[Anonymous]

As a parent of a current student, I am dismayed at the board's response to the CA. The concern among parents is real and SSMA is always exhaust its' waitlist because parents will roll out at all and any opportunity. The CA team is filled with the most committed and loyal parents, you slit their throats and the rest of us will quietly flee. All the parents have friendly but worried faces as we all are distressed by the building conditions, the inability to integrate the inevitable new older kids into the montessori way, the haphazard ways they implement or promise new programs or the ghosting of staff all the time.

[Anonymous]

support organization undertakes actions to actively undermine the school, its administration and staff; when the directors of the parent support organization actively harass, bully and demean guides, PAs, staff and administration to force a false narrative or justify their acts;

It's really crazy because those are borderline criminal accusations. Also, what possible agenda would be behind the false narrative claim, the parents just want the best for their kids, and having different ideas about what is best or needs to be done is not a nefarious agenda. And also if the parents have no recouse which is seem patently clear there isn't the board could just carry on, no need to scorch the earth.

It all seems wildly unprofessional and so antagonistic. These are involved parents who volunteer their time and energy being disparaged.

[Anonymous]

Isn't Montessori supposed to be about following the child-- are the kids being affected or just the parents?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Isn't Montessori supposed to be about following the child-- are the kids being affected or just the parents?

Of course the children are being effected. Lack of heat or A/C in classrooms and common areas, loss of qualified teachers, lack of adequate staff to support the classrooms and guides, unqualified guides installed in classrooms, unqualified staff hired for director positions that directly effect the classrooms, etc etc etc. How would children not be effected??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The board sent a letter to the general parent community but then sent a separate nastygram to the community association leadership.

Watching this unfold is horrifying. We need an entirely new board and a new executive director.

You need to find a new school. The above isn't going to happen.

Sounds like you made a good faith attempt, but when you come at the king, you best not miss. The Board has chosen sides, and it is sticking with the ED.

You can't just find a new school. You can lottery, but that could take 3 or 4 years. You could go to your neighborhood school but won't till instruction quality or safety issues fall below levels at the neighborhood school. Voting with yoru feet isn't an option unless you have enough money to move to a good school district.

But abosuetly, the CA should raise tons of money and lavish it where they see fit. Or stop raising money and parents stop donating. voting with your wallet is more doable.

What do the CA bylaws say? The school may have a point that the CA has exceeded its legal mandate, and the school can essentially de-certify them.

De-certify the only arm that has raised money and resources? That would be in line with their thought process. This is about the Board trying to protect their friend. They don't care about the kids and all the issues raised. They have indicated they will even grace us with their presence at the stepping up ceremony this year.

How much money have you actually raised?

SSMA's approved budget for 17-18 was $4.7M. All but $40,000 (<1%)was expected to come from donations; the rest is from the per pupil allowance, the facility fund and other city and federal payments. They don't really need your donations to keep the doors open. http://www.dcpcsb.org/sites/default/files/report/2016-2017%20Annual%20Report%28GKYO%29%28ShininStarsMontesAcademPCS%29.pdf

Keeping the doors open is one thing. Repairing an aging facility with an unusable auditorium and an inadequate HVAC that results in school closures is another. Offering competitive salaries to recruit and retain qualified staff is even another. According to the 2016-17 annual report, the highest teacher salary is just over $60K. That's about two-thirds what a DCPS teacher makes. It's less than the median income in DC and significantly less than the income required to live "comfortably" in this city. https://wtop.com/business-finance/2017/04/13337011/ If Montessori is all about grace and courtesy, where is the grace and courtesy in paying teachers and, presumably, lower-wage positions like assistants, so poorly?

But since you asked, the parent group raised around $50K this year. What has the Board or ED raised? If fundraising isn't in their purview, they should consider hiring a staff member to do development. Parent groups typically don't have the capacity or expertise to pursue major gifts or grants. That's typically the Board's/ED/Development Officer's job.

This report also indicates that the majority of the Board doesn't reside in DC, including its two parent representatives. That may be an editing error but it's a big error to make. Residency fraud. The report also states that "Dr." R's degree is a Master's degree, not a doctoral degree. An M. Ed. in itself isn't disqualifying from leadership, but the references to her as "Dr." without evidence of that credential is either another big editing error or a misrepresentation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sorry - that was unclear.

Only $40,000 of the $4.7M budget was expected to come from private donations.

Even if the CA raised $200K per year, that would be just 4.2% of the total.

$40,000 a year is pretty good for the size of the school. And most of any school's budget goes to salaries and fixed costs. Of their truly discretionary budget, $40,000 is a much bigger proportion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Keeping the doors open is one thing. Repairing an aging facility with an unusable auditorium and an inadequate HVAC that results in school closures is another. Offering competitive salaries to recruit and retain qualified staff is even another. According to the 2016-17 annual report, the highest teacher salary is just over $60K. That's about two-thirds what a DCPS teacher makes. It's less than the median income in DC and significantly less than the income required to live "comfortably" in this city. https://wtop.com/business-finance/2017/04/13337011/ If Montessori is all about grace and courtesy, where is the grace and courtesy in paying teachers and, presumably, lower-wage positions like assistants, so poorly?

But since you asked, the parent group raised around $50K this year. What has the Board or ED raised? If fundraising isn't in their purview, they should consider hiring a staff member to do development. Parent groups typically don't have the capacity or expertise to pursue major gifts or grants. That's typically the Board's/ED/Development Officer's job.

This report also indicates that the majority of the Board doesn't reside in DC, including its two parent representatives. That may be an editing error but it's a big error to make. Residency fraud. The report also states that "Dr." R's degree is a Master's degree, not a doctoral degree. An M. Ed. in itself isn't disqualifying from leadership, but the references to her as "Dr." without evidence of that credential is either another big editing error or a misrepresentation.

Residency fraud is a serious crime that must be reported

http://www.dcpcsb.org/blog/why-parents-should-be-aware-residency-fraud
http://osse.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/osse/publication/attachments/Student%20Residency%20fraud%20flyer.pdf

It can be done anonymously at 202-727-7224

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The board sent a letter to the general parent community but then sent a separate nastygram to the community association leadership.

Watching this unfold is horrifying. We need an entirely new board and a new executive director.

You need to find a new school. The above isn't going to happen.

Sounds like you made a good faith attempt, but when you come at the king, you best not miss. The Board has chosen sides, and it is sticking with the ED.

You can't just find a new school. You can lottery, but that could take 3 or 4 years. You could go to your neighborhood school but won't till instruction quality or safety issues fall below levels at the neighborhood school. Voting with yoru feet isn't an option unless you have enough money to move to a good school district.

But abosuetly, the CA should raise tons of money and lavish it where they see fit. Or stop raising money and parents stop donating. voting with your wallet is more doable.

What do the CA bylaws say? The school may have a point that the CA has exceeded its legal mandate, and the school can essentially de-certify them.

De-certify the only arm that has raised money and resources? That would be in line with their thought process. This is about the Board trying to protect their friend. They don't care about the kids and all the issues raised. They have indicated they will even grace us with their presence at the stepping up ceremony this year.

How much money have you actually raised?

SSMA's approved budget for 17-18 was $4.7M. All but $40,000 (<1%)was expected to come from donations; the rest is from the per pupil allowance, the facility fund and other city and federal payments. They don't really need your donations to keep the doors open. http://www.dcpcsb.org/sites/default/files/report/2016-2017%20Annual%20Report%28GKYO%29%28ShininStarsMontesAcademPCS%29.pdf

Keeping the doors open is one thing. Repairing an aging facility with an unusable auditorium and an inadequate HVAC that results in school closures is another. Offering competitive salaries to recruit and retain qualified staff is even another. According to the 2016-17 annual report, the highest teacher salary is just over $60K. That's about two-thirds what a DCPS teacher makes. It's less than the median income in DC and significantly less than the income required to live "comfortably" in this city. https://wtop.com/business-finance/2017/04/13337011/ If Montessori is all about grace and courtesy, where is the grace and courtesy in paying teachers and, presumably, lower-wage positions like assistants, so poorly?

But since you asked, the parent group raised around $50K this year. What has the Board or ED raised? If fundraising isn't in their purview, they should consider hiring a staff member to do development. Parent groups typically don't have the capacity or expertise to pursue major gifts or grants. That's typically the Board's/ED/Development Officer's job.

This report also indicates that the majority of the Board doesn't reside in DC, including its two parent representatives. That may be an editing error but it's a big error to make. Residency fraud. The report also states that "Dr." R's degree is a Master's degree, not a doctoral degree. An M. Ed. in itself isn't disqualifying from leadership, but the references to her as "Dr." without evidence of that credential is either another big editing error or a misrepresentation.

I can not find anything online to indicate that "Dr" R has a doctorate. This report also shows that the individual currently in the Director of Operations position only has a HS degree yet the previous individual had a Bachelor's Degree. Were the qualifications for this position lessened or did the Director position never require a degree? Could her lack of education and experience explain why Operations have been such a shit show this year?? This is why transparency and accountability of "Dr" R are so important and the boards lack of action is so concerning. The issues just keep piling up with this school.

[Anonymous]

The latest at SSMA: most parents don't know this yet but there is a mass exodus of teachers and administrators coming. The way this situation with the principal was handled has had a massively negative impact on retention.


If you have a good relationship with your child's guide, ask your guide if he or she is coming back next year.

[Anonymous]

We are watching the waitlist with much confusion on what we'd do if we got a spot, but how weird is that that someone with no doctorate would be called "Dr."? I need to read the reports more carefully. I actually wouldn't care whether or not a school director had a doctorate as long as they were competent. Why falsify?

I really want this school to succeed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are watching the waitlist with much confusion on what we'd do if we got a spot, but how weird is that that someone with no doctorate would be called "Dr."? I need to read the reports more carefully. I actually wouldn't care whether or not a school director had a doctorate as long as they were competent. Why falsify?

I really want this school to succeed.

All you have to do is look at the facts and your decision will be made for you. The info is not made up. There is much more that you don't know. Now if you just want free PK3-4 or whatever, ignore all of it. You have the info and no one to blame but yourself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The latest at SSMA: most parents don't know this yet but there is a mass exodus of teachers and administrators coming. The way this situation with the principal was handled has had a massively negative impact on retention.


If you have a good relationship with your child's guide, ask your guide if he or she is coming back next year.

I’m a parent of an incoming Pk3 and I’m so nervous after reading this thread, I’ve put our IB school back on our lottery list. My child is in the 30s on other waitlists, but I don’t know we’ll get any other offers by fall.

Besides the mass exodus of great teachers, what’s the worst case scenario of what could happen at SSMA by the time classes begin in the fall?

[Anonymous]

Also incoming SSMA parent-- is it 1-2 parents stirring stuff on DCUM or are there really systemic school-destroying issues at play?