APS cancels Summer school for many previously qualified students due to lack of staffing

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I want to clarify that the Arlington Parent's for Education group is NOT blaming teachers for the summer school change.[b] Please see the press release they wrote yesterday: https://arlingtonparentsforeducation.org/press-releases/release-may-11th/

Quotes below
The blame is on senior APS leadership and not teachers who "have [had] the hardest year of their careers".

APE says: "Arlington Parents for Education continues to be disappointed by the disregard APS shows towards teachers, families and students. At what point do we stop sacrificing the education of our children on the altar of incompetence at Syphax? The lack of urgency and willpower at the top should be concerning to us all."

Maybe you need to communicate this to the teacher-haters on this thread.

Can you stop trying to make APE happen? No one cares. Except APE (and SR, but they're irrelevant too.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Colleagues,

I apologize for the impact on our teaching staff of the SchoolTalk message about elementary summer school programming that was sent on Monday. My intention was to call attention to the fact that we have been unable to effectively recruit enough staff to serve all the students identified as eligible for summer school. I wanted to alert families to this so that they can make other plans. While we have been proactive in our messaging to families all along by including disclaimers in all summer school messaging that final enrollment would depend on staffing, starting Monday's message with this disclaimer distracted from the intent of the message and caused hurt and surprise for teachers. You are in no way at fault, and I regret that the message indicated that you were. You have enabled APS to be successful this year and that point should lead any message we send to the community. I am deeply sorry for any pain that this message caused and remain profoundly grateful for your professionalism and commitment to the success of our students.


Bridget

Loft needs to "resign" the same way Chadwick did.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Colleagues,

I apologize for the impact on our teaching staff of the SchoolTalk message about elementary summer school programming that was sent on Monday. My intention was to call attention to the fact that we have been unable to effectively recruit enough staff to serve all the students identified as eligible for summer school. I wanted to alert families to this so that they can make other plans. While we have been proactive in our messaging to families all along by including disclaimers in all summer school messaging that final enrollment would depend on staffing, starting Monday's message with this disclaimer distracted from the intent of the message and caused hurt and surprise for teachers. You are in no way at fault, and I regret that the message indicated that you were. You have enabled APS to be successful this year and that point should lead any message we send to the community. I am deeply sorry for any pain that this message caused and remain profoundly grateful for your professionalism and commitment to the success of our students.


Bridget

She needed to go yesterday. I can’t believe she’s still employed.
LOL

She's consistently dismissive of both parent and teacher concerns. Remember in the fall when she stood up at a SB meeting and told parents of kindergarteners that she understands the issue of supporting asynchronous learning while working because she used to help her college aged student with his homework? She's also the one responsible for no new learning, and no instruction period for K-2, last spring. She absolutely needs to go.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Colleagues,

I apologize for the impact on our teaching staff of the SchoolTalk message about elementary summer school programming that was sent on Monday. My intention was to call attention to the fact that we have been unable to effectively recruit enough staff to serve all the students identified as eligible for summer school. I wanted to alert families to this so that they can make other plans. While we have been proactive in our messaging to families all along by including disclaimers in all summer school messaging that final enrollment would depend on staffing, starting Monday's message with this disclaimer distracted from the intent of the message and caused hurt and surprise for teachers. You are in no way at fault, and I regret that the message indicated that you were. You have enabled APS to be successful this year and that point should lead any message we send to the community. I am deeply sorry for any pain that this message caused and remain profoundly grateful for your professionalism and commitment to the success of our students.


Bridget

She needed to go yesterday. I can’t believe she’s still employed.
LOL

She's consistently dismissive of both parent and teacher concerns. Remember in the fall when she stood up at a SB meeting and told parents of kindergarteners that she understands the issue of supporting asynchronous learning while working because she used to help her college aged student with his homework? She's also the one responsible for no new learning, and no instruction period for K-2, last spring. She absolutely needs to go.

I think she's the one who told parents and the school board that concurrent learning was terrible for ES students then.... Pulled the trigger on ES concurrent learning.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Colleagues,

I apologize for the impact on our teaching staff of the SchoolTalk message about elementary summer school programming that was sent on Monday. My intention was to call attention to the fact that we have been unable to effectively recruit enough staff to serve all the students identified as eligible for summer school. I wanted to alert families to this so that they can make other plans. While we have been proactive in our messaging to families all along by including disclaimers in all summer school messaging that final enrollment would depend on staffing, starting Monday's message with this disclaimer distracted from the intent of the message and caused hurt and surprise for teachers. You are in no way at fault, and I regret that the message indicated that you were. You have enabled APS to be successful this year and that point should lead any message we send to the community. I am deeply sorry for any pain that this message caused and remain profoundly grateful for your professionalism and commitment to the success of our students.


Bridget

She needed to go yesterday. I can’t believe she’s still employed.
LOL

She's consistently dismissive of both parent and teacher concerns. Remember in the fall when she stood up at a SB meeting and told parents of kindergarteners that she understands the issue of supporting asynchronous learning while working because she used to help her college aged student with his homework? She's also the one responsible for no new learning, and no instruction period for K-2, last spring. She absolutely needs to go.

I think she's the one who told parents and the school board that concurrent learning was terrible for ES students then.... Pulled the trigger on ES concurrent learning.

Yep. That's her too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I want to clarify that the Arlington Parent's for Education group is NOT blaming teachers for the summer school change.[b] Please see the press release they wrote yesterday: https://arlingtonparentsforeducation.org/press-releases/release-may-11th/

Quotes below
The blame is on senior APS leadership and not teachers who "have [had] the hardest year of their careers".

APE says: "Arlington Parents for Education continues to be disappointed by the disregard APS shows towards teachers, families and students. At what point do we stop sacrificing the education of our children on the altar of incompetence at Syphax? The lack of urgency and willpower at the top should be concerning to us all."

Maybe you need to communicate this to the teacher-haters on this thread.

You do realize not all teacher haters are part of APE. Lots don’t even know it exists.

[Anonymous]

I’m not reading 15 pages of snowflakes crying over a cancellation.

As a teacher though, I’m glad to see that our mental health trumps the needs of irrelevant and phony failing parents.

[Anonymous]

Wait did Chadwick resign? Really???

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wait did Chadwick resign? Really???

He "retired" in February, I think? But everyone suspects he was forced out.

Let the Syphax purge begin!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Colleagues,

I apologize for the impact on our teaching staff of the SchoolTalk message about elementary summer school programming that was sent on Monday. My intention was to call attention to the fact that we have been unable to effectively recruit enough staff to serve all the students identified as eligible for summer school. I wanted to alert families to this so that they can make other plans. While we have been proactive in our messaging to families all along by including disclaimers in all summer school messaging that final enrollment would depend on staffing, starting Monday's message with this disclaimer distracted from the intent of the message and caused hurt and surprise for teachers. You are in no way at fault, and I regret that the message indicated that you were. You have enabled APS to be successful this year and that point should lead any message we send to the community. I am deeply sorry for any pain that this message caused and remain profoundly grateful for your professionalism and commitment to the success of our students.


Bridget

She needed to go yesterday. I can’t believe she’s still employed.
LOL

She's consistently dismissive of both parent and teacher concerns. Remember in the fall when she stood up at a SB meeting and told parents of kindergarteners that she understands the issue of supporting asynchronous learning while working because she used to help her college aged student with his homework? She's also the one responsible for no new learning, and no instruction period for K-2, last spring. She absolutely needs to go.

I think she's the one who told parents and the school board that concurrent learning was terrible for ES students then.... Pulled the trigger on ES concurrent learning.

Yep. That's her too.

Loft is also the one who told the school board last spring that it would be 'unconscionable' to allow remote learning in the Spring b/c some kids might not be able to access it and it might increase the opportunity gap--- and then led us into a year of crap online learning....

[Anonymous]

Loft is also the one who told the school board last spring that it would be 'unconscionable' to allow remote learning in the Spring b/c some kids might not be able to access it and it might increase the opportunity gap--- and then led us into a year of crap online learning....

You make it sound like she controlled the pandemic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Serious question: where would Syphax even get the money to attract more summer school teachers, who again, don’t have to teach outside of their contracts?

Moving several ES schools around during a pandemic was super important to them. It had to happen, no delay.

So you’re saying they should’ve delayed opening the new school and/or left ASFS without relief from overcrowding for several more years? The timing certainly was crap, but as a bystander to all of that, they had a bunch of sh***y options. Not sure how they could do *nothing* and then use that money for bonuses. And also, didn’t the SB approve all of this by vote? Syphax couldn’t just change course on its own.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Loft is also the one who told the school board last spring that it would be 'unconscionable' to allow remote learning in the Spring b/c some kids might not be able to access it and it might increase the opportunity gap--- and then led us into a year of crap online learning....

You make it sound like she controlled the pandemic.

Loft and Duran absolutely had control over the decision to open entirely virtually. Loft and Duran absolutely had control over the decision to mix classes initially between virtual and in person, and then go down the rabbit hold of concurrent learning rather than rearranging classes. Loft and Duran absolutely had control over the decision to continue to deny children in person education. Loft and Duran absolutely had control over the decision to not go to 3 feet distancing and bring kids back 5 days a week in the spring. Loft and Duran absolutely had control over the decision to shorten the elementary school day by more than an hour.

Did they have control over the 'pandemic' no- but they 100% had control over APS's crap response.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Loft is also the one who told the school board last spring that it would be 'unconscionable' to allow remote learning in the Spring b/c some kids might not be able to access it and it might increase the opportunity gap--- and then led us into a year of crap online learning....

You make it sound like she controlled the pandemic.

She could have said "We're asking teachers to do their best to continue educating students despite school buildings being closed. We understand that some students may have access barriers. Teachers should flag these to their administrators and we'll work with families to resolve those barriers as quickly and equitably as possible."

Instead, she said that no education is the most equitable solution. She promised that APS would catch kids up later. Now she's reneging on that promise. If APS had actually kept teaching all along, fewer kids would be behind and APS would have more resources per kid for those who need them.

[Anonymous]

Let's all remember when Loft said that concurrent was not developmentally appropriate for middle schoolers. That was before she expanded it to elementary!!!