testify to SAVE Mayoral control of DCPS

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean, it sounds like the HVAC issues are due to two things right now:

1) the supply chain issues plaguing everything

2) DGS needs more employees, at least temporarily, due to an influx of work orders (maybe a backlog from the pandemic?)

And this is why we shouldn’t have mayoral control! The SBOE would fix the global supply chain AND the labor shortage

But our school has had a non-functioning HVAC system for years. This is the issue, the Mayor has been short changing schools west of the park for years. Now there is a legit reason for the delays, but what about in 2018, 2019, etc. Maybe totally mayoral control would work if the mayor in question cared about schools. This one doesn't. I'm hopeful this threat causes her to take more action but I'm not hopeful.

(a long time DCPS parent, not a teacher)

Nonfunctioning, as in you have zero heat, ventilation, or cooling?

Depends on the classroom and the day. There are several old systems in the building and they break down a lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean, it sounds like the HVAC issues are due to two things right now:

1) the supply chain issues plaguing everything

2) DGS needs more employees, at least temporarily, due to an influx of work orders (maybe a backlog from the pandemic?)

And this is why we shouldn’t have mayoral control! The SBOE would fix the global supply chain AND the labor shortage

But our school has had a non-functioning HVAC system for years. This is the issue, the Mayor has been short changing schools west of the park for years. Now there is a legit reason for the delays, but what about in 2018, 2019, etc. Maybe totally mayoral control would work if the mayor in question cared about schools. This one doesn't. I'm hopeful this threat causes her to take more action but I'm not hopeful.

(a long time DCPS parent, not a teacher)

Nonfunctioning, as in you have zero heat, ventilation, or cooling?

Depends on the classroom and the day. There are several old systems in the building and they break down a lot.

it is true that we can and should expect 100% up time in all facilities everywhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean, it sounds like the HVAC issues are due to two things right now:

1) the supply chain issues plaguing everything

2) DGS needs more employees, at least temporarily, due to an influx of work orders (maybe a backlog from the pandemic?)

And this is why we shouldn’t have mayoral control! The SBOE would fix the global supply chain AND the labor shortage

But our school has had a non-functioning HVAC system for years. This is the issue, the Mayor has been short changing schools west of the park for years. Now there is a legit reason for the delays, but what about in 2018, 2019, etc. Maybe totally mayoral control would work if the mayor in question cared about schools. This one doesn't. I'm hopeful this threat causes her to take more action but I'm not hopeful.

(a long time DCPS parent, not a teacher)

Nonfunctioning, as in you have zero heat, ventilation, or cooling?

Depends on the classroom and the day. There are several old systems in the building and they break down a lot.

it is true that we can and should expect 100% up time in all facilities everywhere.

I'm sorry I don't have exact stats for you that would still not be enough.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean, it sounds like the HVAC issues are due to two things right now:

1) the supply chain issues plaguing everything

2) DGS needs more employees, at least temporarily, due to an influx of work orders (maybe a backlog from the pandemic?)

And this is why we shouldn’t have mayoral control! The SBOE would fix the global supply chain AND the labor shortage

But our school has had a non-functioning HVAC system for years. This is the issue, the Mayor has been short changing schools west of the park for years. Now there is a legit reason for the delays, but what about in 2018, 2019, etc. Maybe totally mayoral control would work if the mayor in question cared about schools. This one doesn't. I'm hopeful this threat causes her to take more action but I'm not hopeful.

(a long time DCPS parent, not a teacher)

Nonfunctioning, as in you have zero heat, ventilation, or cooling?

Depends on the classroom and the day. There are several old systems in the building and they break down a lot.

it is true that we can and should expect 100% up time in all facilities everywhere.

I'm sorry I don't have exact stats for you that would still not be enough.

Basically what you're saying is that it's not a problem right now. Most of us work or live in offices or houses where things are breaking constantly. Sadly, this is the nature of entropy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean, it sounds like the HVAC issues are due to two things right now:

1) the supply chain issues plaguing everything

2) DGS needs more employees, at least temporarily, due to an influx of work orders (maybe a backlog from the pandemic?)

And this is why we shouldn’t have mayoral control! The SBOE would fix the global supply chain AND the labor shortage

But our school has had a non-functioning HVAC system for years. This is the issue, the Mayor has been short changing schools west of the park for years. Now there is a legit reason for the delays, but what about in 2018, 2019, etc. Maybe totally mayoral control would work if the mayor in question cared about schools. This one doesn't. I'm hopeful this threat causes her to take more action but I'm not hopeful.

(a long time DCPS parent, not a teacher)

Nonfunctioning, as in you have zero heat, ventilation, or cooling?

Depends on the classroom and the day. There are several old systems in the building and they break down a lot.

it is true that we can and should expect 100% up time in all facilities everywhere.

I'm sorry I don't have exact stats for you that would still not be enough.

Basically what you're saying is that it's not a problem right now. Most of us work or live in offices or houses where things are breaking constantly. Sadly, this is the nature of entropy.

In your house, when something breaks, there is a clear process toward fixing it. Try filing a repair ticket for any item that needs fixing in a DCPS building.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean, it sounds like the HVAC issues are due to two things right now:

1) the supply chain issues plaguing everything

2) DGS needs more employees, at least temporarily, due to an influx of work orders (maybe a backlog from the pandemic?)

And this is why we shouldn’t have mayoral control! The SBOE would fix the global supply chain AND the labor shortage

But our school has had a non-functioning HVAC system for years. This is the issue, the Mayor has been short changing schools west of the park for years. Now there is a legit reason for the delays, but what about in 2018, 2019, etc. Maybe totally mayoral control would work if the mayor in question cared about schools. This one doesn't. I'm hopeful this threat causes her to take more action but I'm not hopeful.

(a long time DCPS parent, not a teacher)

Nonfunctioning, as in you have zero heat, ventilation, or cooling?

Depends on the classroom and the day. There are several old systems in the building and they break down a lot.

it is true that we can and should expect 100% up time in all facilities everywhere.

I'm sorry I don't have exact stats for you that would still not be enough.

Basically what you're saying is that it's not a problem right now. Most of us work or live in offices or houses where things are breaking constantly. Sadly, this is the nature of entropy.

In your house, when something breaks, there is a clear process toward fixing it. Try filing a repair ticket for any item that needs fixing in a DCPS building.

Would either of the bills to change mayoral control improve this? And how.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I mean, it sounds like the HVAC issues are due to two things right now:

1) the supply chain issues plaguing everything

2) DGS needs more employees, at least temporarily, due to an influx of work orders (maybe a backlog from the pandemic?)

And this is why we shouldn’t have mayoral control! The SBOE would fix the global supply chain AND the labor shortage

But our school has had a non-functioning HVAC system for years. This is the issue, the Mayor has been short changing schools west of the park for years. Now there is a legit reason for the delays, but what about in 2018, 2019, etc. Maybe totally mayoral control would work if the mayor in question cared about schools. This one doesn't. I'm hopeful this threat causes her to take more action but I'm not hopeful.

(a long time DCPS parent, not a teacher)

Nonfunctioning, as in you have zero heat, ventilation, or cooling?

Depends on the classroom and the day. There are several old systems in the building and they break down a lot.

it is true that we can and should expect 100% up time in all facilities everywhere.

I'm sorry I don't have exact stats for you that would still not be enough.

Basically what you're saying is that it's not a problem right now. Most of us work or live in offices or houses where things are breaking constantly. Sadly, this is the nature of entropy.

In your house, when something breaks, there is a clear process toward fixing it. Try filing a repair ticket for any item that needs fixing in a DCPS building.

I imagine you'll have the same result as the rest of us who work in large office buildings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think there are some teachers and a small group of parents who are VERY VERY angry at DCPS. Then there are others who see things that could be improved. The V.V. Angry people place all blame on the mayor, but don't really have any comprehension of how changing mayoral control would solve any of the problems. They are just mad. It's like the people that were so mad that there was a Black president that they voted for Trump. It's not like he solved any problem at all, but that vote satisfied their need to "stick it to authority" or something.

? The mayor framed mayoral control as important bc “schools weren’t getting textbooks on time.”

This year alone:
Many schools don’t have functioning hvac
Many schools don’t have water
Many schools have staffing shortages
Teachers can’t get access to their contractual supply funds bc OCTO can’t figure out how to distribute without getting hacked

These are four major problems that could probably be satisfied if it wasn’t one big circle of people being appointed into patronage jobs by a mayor, and instead a system of checks and balances.

Much prefer patronage jobs as opposed to a union-controlled OSSE and/or DCPS. In case you missed it the union shut down the schools. That’s kinda a bigger deal than anything else.

Shutting down schools was a big deal, for sure. But are you seriously going to argue that having students in a school building all day without functioning HVAC, water, or staff is less of an issue? If that is the case, then apparently your priority is having students in the building, and learning is secondary. Do you really think learning is happening when students are overheating and dehydrated? No, this is not hyperbolic - I just spent the day in a Title 1 school. Water is not an issue for us, as we have water-bottle refill stations attached to the water fountains, which is great. With the HVAC not functioning and no windows because its a newer building, most classrooms hit 80 degrees, which makes concentrating (especially in a mask) extremely difficult. But that's ok, because your kids are probably in a perfectly fine school, as the other kids don't matter as long as your precious children are in well functioning school buildings.

I think you are lying/exaggerating. There were not schools with no HVAC or water.

+1. This is also a recycled union-that-shall-remain-nameless talking point. They used it to say we can't reopen, but now that they're not fighting reopening they're using it to say we can't have mayoral control. As if DCPS facilities weren't FAR worse prior to mayoral control of schools. They just keep coming up with any meritless argument to get more for themselves at the expense of children.

It’s not, my school uses those gallon waters. And not all the toilets flush. Our hvac isn’t fully function but those rooms have extra noisy filters. It is you who do not realize the things schools don’t tell parents.

No air or heater, broken lights, broken toilets, holes in the roof are just some infrastructure problems schools deal with.

So yeah, that's not great, but some broken toilets and noisy HVAC is worlds apart from "no water or HVAC"

Look, I think it should be fixed, but the extreme hyperbole isn't doing you any favors.

Someone just posted that if the WTU had their way, schools would still be closed. Teachers are making lived in claims about broken facilities. Which one is using extreme hyperbole?

On August 26 the SBOE argued that the Mayor should institute unlimited hybrid or virtual. This would have been tremendously disruptive and resulted in effective closures of schools.

https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/education/dc-public-schools-covid-mayor-muriel-bowser-washington-district-dcps-board-of-education/65-822e1563-8fad-488b-847e-aed41e9e8926

Also, I think it's very important to note that all the catastrophizers have been dead, 100% wrong to cater to fears of covid through a virtual option. Covid cases have declined week over week in DCPS - there were only 29 in the last week with full data.

This. The SBOE has made horrible decisions based on political grandstanding. This is not a sharp bunch who could lead us towards bright futures, plus some of them outright lie and are duplicitous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think there are some teachers and a small group of parents who are VERY VERY angry at DCPS. Then there are others who see things that could be improved. The V.V. Angry people place all blame on the mayor, but don't really have any comprehension of how changing mayoral control would solve any of the problems. They are just mad. It's like the people that were so mad that there was a Black president that they voted for Trump. It's not like he solved any problem at all, but that vote satisfied their need to "stick it to authority" or something.

? The mayor framed mayoral control as important bc “schools weren’t getting textbooks on time.”

This year alone:
Many schools don’t have functioning hvac
Many schools don’t have water
Many schools have staffing shortages
Teachers can’t get access to their contractual supply funds bc OCTO can’t figure out how to distribute without getting hacked

These are four major problems that could probably be satisfied if it wasn’t one big circle of people being appointed into patronage jobs by a mayor, and instead a system of checks and balances.

Much prefer patronage jobs as opposed to a union-controlled OSSE and/or DCPS. In case you missed it the union shut down the schools. That’s kinda a bigger deal than anything else.

Shutting down schools was a big deal, for sure. But are you seriously going to argue that having students in a school building all day without functioning HVAC, water, or staff is less of an issue? If that is the case, then apparently your priority is having students in the building, and learning is secondary. Do you really think learning is happening when students are overheating and dehydrated? No, this is not hyperbolic - I just spent the day in a Title 1 school. Water is not an issue for us, as we have water-bottle refill stations attached to the water fountains, which is great. With the HVAC not functioning and no windows because its a newer building, most classrooms hit 80 degrees, which makes concentrating (especially in a mask) extremely difficult. But that's ok, because your kids are probably in a perfectly fine school, as the other kids don't matter as long as your precious children are in well functioning school buildings.

I think you are lying/exaggerating. There were not schools with no HVAC or water.

+1. This is also a recycled union-that-shall-remain-nameless talking point. They used it to say we can't reopen, but now that they're not fighting reopening they're using it to say we can't have mayoral control. As if DCPS facilities weren't FAR worse prior to mayoral control of schools. They just keep coming up with any meritless argument to get more for themselves at the expense of children.

It’s not, my school uses those gallon waters. And not all the toilets flush. Our hvac isn’t fully function but those rooms have extra noisy filters. It is you who do not realize the things schools don’t tell parents.

No air or heater, broken lights, broken toilets, holes in the roof are just some infrastructure problems schools deal with.

So yeah, that's not great, but some broken toilets and noisy HVAC is worlds apart from "no water or HVAC"

Look, I think it should be fixed, but the extreme hyperbole isn't doing you any favors.

Someone just posted that if the WTU had their way, schools would still be closed. Teachers are making lived in claims about broken facilities. Which one is using extreme hyperbole?

On August 26 the SBOE argued that the Mayor should institute unlimited hybrid or virtual. This would have been tremendously disruptive and resulted in effective closures of schools.

https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/education/dc-public-schools-covid-mayor-muriel-bowser-washington-district-dcps-board-of-education/65-822e1563-8fad-488b-847e-aed41e9e8926

Also, I think it's very important to note that all the catastrophizers have been dead, 100% wrong to cater to fears of covid through a virtual option. Covid cases have declined week over week in DCPS - there were only 29 in the last week with full data.

This. The SBOE has made horrible decisions based on political grandstanding. This is not a sharp bunch who could lead us towards bright futures, plus some of them outright lie and are duplicitous.

Unlike our always truthful and forthcoming Mayor.

https://www.npr.org/local/305/2021/10/15/1046341379/d-c-didn-t-ask-northam-hogan-to-crack-down-on-ticket-scofflaws-despite-claims-it-did

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

On August 26 the SBOE argued that the Mayor should institute unlimited hybrid or virtual. This would have been tremendously disruptive and resulted in effective closures of schools.

https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/education/dc-public-schools-covid-mayor-muriel-bowser-washington-district-dcps-board-of-education/65-822e1563-8fad-488b-847e-aed41e9e8926

Also, I think it's very important to note that all the catastrophizers have been dead, 100% wrong to cater to fears of covid through a virtual option. Covid cases have declined week over week in DCPS - there were only 29 in the last week with full data.

This. The SBOE has made horrible decisions based on political grandstanding. This is not a sharp bunch who could lead us towards bright futures, plus some of them outright lie and are duplicitous.

See, it's this kind of thing that makes me think having the SBOE in charge of schools is a horrible idea. This request doesn't at all think about funding, disruption, resources, teachers, education. It's just political "look at me!" meant to satisfy a minority of vocal parents.

[Anonymous]

While y'all continue to echo off each other here, the Council is hearing a wide majority of witness in favor of changing the governance structure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:While y'all continue to echo off each other here, the Council is hearing a wide majority of witness in favor of changing the governance structure.

It's like you don't know that we can BOTH talk here AND write the council.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:While y'all continue to echo off each other here, the Council is hearing a wide majority of witness in favor of changing the governance structure.

Idk the guy talking right now is supporting mayoral control and calling what it used to be "a mess".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:While y'all continue to echo off each other here, the Council is hearing a wide majority of witness in favor of changing the governance structure.

Idk the guy talking right now is supporting mayoral control and calling what it used to be "a mess".

And the next person testifying also support mayoral control.

Also the woman from Georgetown who has done research on DC schools is supporting mayoral control.....

[Anonymous]

And Shannon Hodge is taking R. White to task, saying that changing OSSE structure will not improve student achievement.