Basis families: talk to me about the building

[Anonymous]

Yep, not just BASIS that really struggles to retain teachers among Tier 1 DC charters.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Well, count me among those who likes the HOS.

I find him dedicated, approachable and exceedingly hard-working. We’ve had a few tricky issues over the years, due to behavioral issues (with one of my own kids), teacher challenges, and the like — he’s always been responsive and worked to solve the problems.

Teacher turnover at BASIS is concerning, but I don’t know enough to blame him. (The three teachers who I know left because of him were all atrocious, so I give the HOS kudos for having pushed them out.)

There have have been some gems who have left too. One is now at Walls. I can’t imagine the HOS was the only factor.

I have two kids at BASIS, including an 8th grader who interviewed at Walls but presently wants to stay at BASIS for high school.

I like the HOS as well, but concerned about the quality of teachers and teacher turnover. precalculus has been a disaster this year. They’re finally getting another teacher to teach the material due to dismal test scores…less than 3 months before school ends.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Believe what you want. We consider the guy a jerk and a bully. His predecessor was great.

We would have left for Walls for our younger kid if had been admitted (despite a high GPA). We stay because we don't have a better option and the friend situation is good. You must know that even with the performance bonuses, BASIS can't match DCPS pay.

Whatever. The HoS gets very high ratings in parent surveys. So, you are in a small minority.

Pay isn't everything. That is why DC has the highest urban teacher turnover rate in the entire United States.

Good pay doesn't hurt.

Source for his very high ratings? Please post a link to a parent survey where high school parents rate him highly.

Many of the 11th and 12th grade parents can't stand him (we are indeed a minority at BASIS). MS is essentially all laid out for BASIS families: there are hardly any choices. Dealing with him when the choices are more plentiful and higher stakes can be a real drag. He's a control freak and not the sharpest knife in the drawer.

Troll alert. They provide that information to Basis parents. Either you aren't a Basis parent or are completely clueless.

You sound like a sycophant. PP is correct that the HoS is more popular with middle school parents than high school parents. The ratings don't provide granular data. I'm not seeing a conspiracy here.

No one cares what you think.

More to the point, BASIS leaders don't give a hoot about the rating of admins. If they did, we wouldn't have half a dozen heads in the years before my kid graduated last year. The joke appears to be on the sycophants who believe that franchise leaders care about the ratings.

The current HoS has been there for several years and is generally well-liked by the network leaders. He also receives good ratings in anonymous parent surveys.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:The HOS is pretty universally hated and the teachers get low pay and have no contracts. They are told extremely frequently by the HOS that that can be fired at any time for no reason whatsoever. They jump asap.

Current BASIS parent. I can't speak to other people, but we deeply dislike the HoS. We have found him to be disingenuous when giving families information on a number of occasions.

8th grade parent here - not a fan at all. Toots his own horn all the time, only takes positive feedback. Then is shocked when the mid year feedback parent survey was not great. I honestly feel like my son will be targeted if I speak up in a non-anonymous format

Paranoid much? Feel free to drop out and go elsewhere.

If you’re a current parent and don’t like it, leave. No one wants to hear your anonymous whining about how the HoS hurt your delicate feelings by being “disingenuous” by giving you “information.” Have fun at Walls, Eastern, Cardozo, or wherever you end up. I’m sure the HoS there will give you much less disingenuous information. Bye!

Feel very free to leave this board in search of fellow condescending jerks for company, those who revel in invalidating the bruising experiences of others.

Not PP but you missed the point. If you don't like the school, then leave. Stop whining about your bruised feelings because you don't like the HoS and pull your kid out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Believe what you want. We consider the guy a jerk and a bully. His predecessor was great.

We would have left for Walls for our younger kid if had been admitted (despite a high GPA). We stay because we don't have a better option and the friend situation is good. You must know that even with the performance bonuses, BASIS can't match DCPS pay.

Whatever. The HoS gets very high ratings in parent surveys. So, you are in a small minority.

Pay isn't everything. That is why DC has the highest urban teacher turnover rate in the entire United States.

Good pay doesn't hurt.

Source for his very high ratings? Please post a link to a parent survey where high school parents rate him highly.

Many of the 11th and 12th grade parents can't stand him (we are indeed a minority at BASIS). MS is essentially all laid out for BASIS families: there are hardly any choices. Dealing with him when the choices are more plentiful and higher stakes can be a real drag. He's a control freak and not the sharpest knife in the drawer.

Troll alert. They provide that information to Basis parents. Either you aren't a Basis parent or are completely clueless.

You sound like a sycophant. PP is correct that the HoS is more popular with middle school parents than high school parents. The ratings don't provide granular data. I'm not seeing a conspiracy here.

No one cares what you think.

More to the point, BASIS leaders don't give a hoot about the rating of admins. If they did, we wouldn't have half a dozen heads in the years before my kid graduated last year. The joke appears to be on the sycophants who believe that franchise leaders care about the ratings.

The current HoS has been there for several years and is generally well-liked by the network leaders. He also receives good ratings in anonymous parent surveys.

This BASIS 8th grade parent doubts the veracity of anonymous parent surveys and suspects they're simply used to placate us. If "network leaders" really wanted out input, there would be a PTA and parent committees. This business of the BASIS way or the highway for a taxpayer funded school in a city with few good public middle/high schools is getting old. We don't care for the head and won't stay for highschool even if Walls turns our oldest down. Good luck to those who stay.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The HOS is pretty universally hated and the teachers get low pay and have no contracts. They are told extremely frequently by the HOS that that can be fired at any time for no reason whatsoever. They jump asap.

Current BASIS parent. I can't speak to other people, but we deeply dislike the HoS. We have found him to be disingenuous when giving families information on a number of occasions.

8th grade parent here - not a fan at all. Toots his own horn all the time, only takes positive feedback. Then is shocked when the mid year feedback parent survey was not great. I honestly feel like my son will be targeted if I speak up in a non-anonymous format

Paranoid much? Feel free to drop out and go elsewhere.

If you’re a current parent and don’t like it, leave. No one wants to hear your anonymous whining about how the HoS hurt your delicate feelings by being “disingenuous” by giving you “information.” Have fun at Walls, Eastern, Cardozo, or wherever you end up. I’m sure the HoS there will give you much less disingenuous information. Bye!

Feel very free to leave this board in search of fellow condescending jerks for company, those who revel in invalidating the bruising experiences of others.

Your experience sounds awful. How did the HoS hurt your feelings?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Believe what you want. We consider the guy a jerk and a bully. His predecessor was great.

We would have left for Walls for our younger kid if had been admitted (despite a high GPA). We stay because we don't have a better option and the friend situation is good. You must know that even with the performance bonuses, BASIS can't match DCPS pay.

Whatever. The HoS gets very high ratings in parent surveys. So, you are in a small minority.

Pay isn't everything. That is why DC has the highest urban teacher turnover rate in the entire United States.

Good pay doesn't hurt.

Source for his very high ratings? Please post a link to a parent survey where high school parents rate him highly.

Many of the 11th and 12th grade parents can't stand him (we are indeed a minority at BASIS). MS is essentially all laid out for BASIS families: there are hardly any choices. Dealing with him when the choices are more plentiful and higher stakes can be a real drag. He's a control freak and not the sharpest knife in the drawer.

Troll alert. They provide that information to Basis parents. Either you aren't a Basis parent or are completely clueless.

You sound like a sycophant. PP is correct that the HoS is more popular with middle school parents than high school parents. The ratings don't provide granular data. I'm not seeing a conspiracy here.

No one cares what you think.

More to the point, BASIS leaders don't give a hoot about the rating of admins. If they did, we wouldn't have half a dozen heads in the years before my kid graduated last year. The joke appears to be on the sycophants who believe that franchise leaders care about the ratings.

The current HoS has been there for several years and is generally well-liked by the network leaders. He also receives good ratings in anonymous parent surveys.

This BASIS 8th grade parent doubts the veracity of anonymous parent surveys and suspects they're simply used to placate us. If "network leaders" really wanted out input, there would be a PTA and parent committees. This business of the BASIS way or the highway for a taxpayer funded school in a city with few good public middle/high schools is getting old. We don't care for the head and won't stay for highschool even if Walls turns our oldest down. Good luck to those who stay.

Hope it works out for you. The grass is always greener on the other side.

[Anonymous]

What I'm reading on this thread are posts from some parents--those not at BASIS yet, those there now and those who left--whose ed philosophy doesn't line up with that of BASIS.

Parents can generally roll with the punches in school environments where the outlook of the leadership meshes with their basic beliefs about how public schools should look and act.

BASIS leaders believe that parents should have almost no say in the running of their programs, and that barebones campus' facilities are adequate. If you don't agree, you're running on borrowed time as a BASIS family. You won't enroll if you get a spot or will enroll only to be out the door at some point before 12th grade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What I'm reading on this thread are posts from some parents--those not at BASIS yet, those there now and those who left--whose ed philosophy doesn't line up with that of BASIS.

Parents can generally roll with the punches in school environments where the outlook of the leadership meshes with their basic beliefs about how public schools should look and act.

BASIS leaders believe that parents should have almost no say in the running of their programs, and that barebones campus' facilities are adequate. If you don't agree, you're running on borrowed time as a BASIS family. You won't enroll if you get a spot or will enroll only to be out the door at some point before 12th grade.

Yes, this is true for the most part for all schools. The problem is that most people don't have a better option than BASIS because DCPS is so messed up. So BASIS gets away with a suboptimal experience for most, because people don't have better options. Most people stay because they have to, not because they like it. That's the cold hard truth.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What I'm reading on this thread are posts from some parents--those not at BASIS yet, those there now and those who left--whose ed philosophy doesn't line up with that of BASIS.

Parents can generally roll with the punches in school environments where the outlook of the leadership meshes with their basic beliefs about how public schools should look and act.

BASIS leaders believe that parents should have almost no say in the running of their programs, and that barebones campus' facilities are adequate. If you don't agree, you're running on borrowed time as a BASIS family. You won't enroll if you get a spot or will enroll only to be out the door at some point before 12th grade.

Not sure what planet you are on. Are you in DCPS? Do you think DCPS schools let parents run their programs? Seriously? I can't even get DCPS school administrators to respond to emails.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What I'm reading on this thread are posts from some parents--those not at BASIS yet, those there now and those who left--whose ed philosophy doesn't line up with that of BASIS.

Parents can generally roll with the punches in school environments where the outlook of the leadership meshes with their basic beliefs about how public schools should look and act.

BASIS leaders believe that parents should have almost no say in the running of their programs, and that barebones campus' facilities are adequate. If you don't agree, you're running on borrowed time as a BASIS family. You won't enroll if you get a spot or will enroll only to be out the door at some point before 12th grade.

Not sure what planet you are on. Are you in DCPS? Do you think DCPS schools let parents run their programs? Seriously? I can't even get DCPS school administrators to respond to emails.

Very true.

One thing about BASIS is that they are flexible and can pivot quickly. As a charter, they don't have to go through the red tape and bureaucracy that afflict DCPS schools.

Plus, they are very good about soliciting input from parents regarding the curriculum and school issues. I have personally raised a couple of issues and am happy to report that the school was responsive and implemented both suggestions.

You may not like the changes they make but they make them all the time.

Maybe you just have bad ideas and are making poor suggestions...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What I'm reading on this thread are posts from some parents--those not at BASIS yet, those there now and those who left--whose ed philosophy doesn't line up with that of BASIS.

Parents can generally roll with the punches in school environments where the outlook of the leadership meshes with their basic beliefs about how public schools should look and act.

BASIS leaders believe that parents should have almost no say in the running of their programs, and that barebones campus' facilities are adequate. If you don't agree, you're running on borrowed time as a BASIS family. You won't enroll if you get a spot or will enroll only to be out the door at some point before 12th grade.

Let me guess: you are a WTA rep.

This is why we have school choice.

And plenty of folks are happy with their choice at Basis, given the disaster that is most of DCPS.

[Anonymous]

FYI that the HOS at BASIS has been exceedingly approachable with us, at times calling directly to discuss concerns we’ve had. Once he emailed me at length at ~ 3 am in the morning!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mediocre pay, lack of training and job security and so-so working conditions in the building are the main push factors for teachers, not school leadership. BASIS teachers can much leave more easily than families who can't afford private high school and don't want to move IB for JR or from DC. Some BASIS families would leave if their 8th graders were admitted to Walls.

DC charters can't afford to put many resources into teacher training like DCPS and the suburban school districts can, not the best arrangement for young teachers right out of grad school. DC charter teachers can't join a union, leaving some to worry that their jobs aren't secure. BASIS isn't responsible for any of that.

Every school has some 8th graders who would leave for Walls if admitted. And some charters have formed unions. Other than that you nailed it with meaningful contributions to the discussion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Believe what you want. We consider the guy a jerk and a bully. His predecessor was great.

We would have left for Walls for our younger kid if had been admitted (despite a high GPA). We stay because we don't have a better option and the friend situation is good. You must know that even with the performance bonuses, BASIS can't match DCPS pay.

Whatever. The HoS gets very high ratings in parent surveys. So, you are in a small minority.

Pay isn't everything. That is why DC has the highest urban teacher turnover rate in the entire United States.

Good pay doesn't hurt.

Source for his very high ratings? Please post a link to a parent survey where high school parents rate him highly.

Many of the 11th and 12th grade parents can't stand him (we are indeed a minority at BASIS). MS is essentially all laid out for BASIS families: there are hardly any choices. Dealing with him when the choices are more plentiful and higher stakes can be a real drag. He's a control freak and not the sharpest knife in the drawer.

Troll alert. They provide that information to Basis parents. Either you aren't a Basis parent or are completely clueless.

You sound like a sycophant. PP is correct that the HoS is more popular with middle school parents than high school parents. The ratings don't provide granular data. I'm not seeing a conspiracy here.

No one cares what you think.

More to the point, BASIS leaders don't give a hoot about the rating of admins. If they did, we wouldn't have half a dozen heads in the years before my kid graduated last year. The joke appears to be on the sycophants who believe that franchise leaders care about the ratings.

FFS, pick a side. Either indict BASIS for having changed heads over and over or indict them for retaining this head for 4+ years. You are typical of a lot of the discussion about BASIS on DCUM.