Haricots Verts (French Green Immersion Charter)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, do you speak fluent French?

Have you ever lived in a francophone country, or do you have a significant knowledge of francophone culture? I'd just like to get a sense of your experience with this. thanks

Could you please explain the purpose of your question? You're asking for credentials, it appears. Are you implying that one needs to have fluency in french and expertise in francophone culture to encourage starting a charter school? Also, I don't know if anyone can claim "knowledge of francophone culture". The Diaspora literally traverses the entire planet with Francophones from all sorts of DIFFERENT cultures making up the greater Francophone culture. Some African nations speak English, but I wouldn't pretend that I know their culture because I also speak English. Some older Vietnamese speak French, but it would be absurd to ask someone from Montreal to explain the Vietnamese culture just because they share a mother language. Am I wrong?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm the charter school employee from higher up on this thread.

I don't think that people are "faking" this, or that this is a joke. I do think that people are understimating what it takes to start a charter school. The task that people are talking about is enormous, and complex, and requires a great deal of expertise, a great deal of money, and a great deal of time.

I wish you all luck, and will be curious how this turns out.

Hi! Could you enlighten us on what we could say to indicate we are not "underestimating what it takes to start a charter school". I'm just not understanding what posts thus far give you impression that we've underestimated the undertaking. This idea was conceived just yesterday. Should we have a charter penned by now. Somehow, I'm not too sure you're really a charter employee. To be so short-sighted and negative for the sole purpose of discouraging a very energized group, I have a hard time believing your negative energy is directed towards children. If it is, God help them! Anyways, if you have something positive to add, like a realistic picture of the realities we'll likely face, we'd love your constructive feedback. TIA

As someone else pointed out, this is an idea that was proposed yesterday. I'm seeing a number of posts saying things like "we can totally do this!", rather than "this is worth looking into, I wonder what it would take to get this done?" I'm also seeing a lot of people talking about minute details, like the Lebanese Bacc and whether to write the original charter through 5th grade or 8th, and not stepping back to look at bigger questions like mission and vision.

I'm not being a pessimist. I think this can be done. That doesn't mean I think it will be done. You've got a long way to go. I think a good first step would be to sit down as a group, talk about the vision. See if you can come to shared agreement about what would be the core elements. Clarify terms such as "green". Also, if you want to make a school that serves the city, be aware that DCUM doesn't represent the city very accurately. Take steps now to make sure that that initial group is inclusive. For example, if you want representation by parents from Francophone Africa, make sure they are there from Day 1.

[Anonymous]

I think you're misinterpreting the initial bursts of excitement (including focusing on minutia) as an indicator of the potential success of the group. Kinda like when someone first gets proposed to. You start to ponder everything- the dress, the venue, etc... in the first five minutes. Then, when you've had a chance to start really thinking and organizing those thoughts, a plan emerges. I don't speak for the others, but I'm still in the giddy phase, just so excited that perhaps in the next few years a viable school option may exist for my kids. This whirlwind of lotteries, and discussions of race SES, etc... has been a tremendous downer. Just the thought of a french charter with a positive and rewarding curriculum really made my day. Now, I'm starting to really think about this and am reading the charters of other schools. From the group thus far, I get the feeling someone will be suggesting a meet-up time soon. If not, I will. We need to meet, and organize ourselves first and then go from there. That will take a long time, hence, we get that this is a long and arduous undertaking. I think once we really dive in, we can look at outreach. Right now, I have nothing to outreach for. I want to be able to approach a family with a legit plan, not some pie in the sky idea. Knowing a lot of Francophone Africans, they will want to be given a firm idea so they know from the beginning it's worth looking into. That's what will start to work on. Also, African francophones aren't the only communities we should think about reaching out to. Haitians, people from Martinique, Quebec, any Louisiana Creole/Francophiles, people from French Polynesia, Moroccans, Lebanese, etc... in addition to French people, people from Belgium, Swiss, etc...

[Anonymous]

I know it's extremely early and not of first order importance but, where do you think HV will be located?

[Anonymous]

Oh DCUMer and Smart Ass, a synonym made in hell... Not sure where HV will be located, but I'll make sure it's location doesn't show up on your map!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, do you speak fluent French?

Have you ever lived in a francophone country, or do you have a significant knowledge of francophone culture? I'd just like to get a sense of your experience with this. thanks

Could you please explain the purpose of your question? You're asking for credentials, it appears. Are you implying that one needs to have fluency in french and expertise in francophone culture to encourage starting a charter school? Also, I don't know if anyone can claim "knowledge of francophone culture". The Diaspora literally traverses the entire planet with Francophones from all sorts of DIFFERENT cultures making up the greater Francophone culture. Some African nations speak English, but I wouldn't pretend that I know their culture because I also speak English. Some older Vietnamese speak French, but it would be absurd to ask someone from Montreal to explain the Vietnamese culture just because they share a mother language. Am I wrong?

I'm the OP, and I would add to your questions about the purpose of PP's question this basic question: even if I answer, how does the fluency/non-fluency and what you call "knowledge of francophone culture (AS IF there is one francophone culture!!!) of one single person make or break this idea? I'm the person who started a new thread on a message board and came up with the original "French Green School" idea in another thread... but I am NOT suddenly the visionary for the actualization of this idea or the new Principal or anything like that.

PP asking for my credentials, I'm happy to share my relevant experience and language level with the group that's seriously looking at whether this idea is feasible, but I'm not getting where you're coming from with your question, and so I don't feel in any way obligated to answer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think you're misinterpreting the initial bursts of excitement (including focusing on minutia) as an indicator of the potential success of the group. Kinda like when someone first gets proposed to. You start to ponder everything- the dress, the venue, etc... in the first five minutes. Then, when you've had a chance to start really thinking and organizing those thoughts, a plan emerges.

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to imply that this couldn't be successful. Just that's it's very very early.

Anonymous wrote: I don't speak for the others, but I'm still in the giddy phase, just so excited that perhaps in the next few years a viable school option may exist for my kids. This whirlwind of lotteries, and discussions of race SES, etc... has been a tremendous downer.

This concerns me. The people who have founded the best charter schools, the kind of charter schools that the city needs, are those who look issues of equity in access, race and SES in the face. If you find having conversations about them on DCUM to be a "tremendous downer" are you ready for this work?

Anonymous wrote:Just the thought of a french charter with a positive and rewarding curriculum really made my day. Now, I'm starting to really think about this and am reading the charters of other schools. From the group thus far, I get the feeling someone will be suggesting a meet-up time soon. If not, I will. We need to meet, and organize ourselves first and then go from there. That will take a long time, hence, we get that this is a long and arduous undertaking. I think once we really dive in, we can look at outreach. Right now, I have nothing to outreach for. I want to be able to approach a family with a legit plan, not some pie in the sky idea. Knowing a lot of Francophone Africans, they will want to be given a firm idea so they know from the beginning it's worth looking into.

Is your goal to build a school for DC's children, or for your children. If it's the former, then diverse groups need to be there from the start, when you're building the vision and formulating the mission. Waiting to invite them until you have a "firm idea" leaves out their ideas and their voices. If it's the latter, that you want to build a school for your own child, and hope that some French speaking children will come along for the ride, then you might consider creating or joining a private school. Honestly, given the amount of time and work associated with building a charter school you could probably earn a lot of tuition.

Anonymous wrote:That's what will start to work on. Also, African francophones aren't the only communities we should think about reaching out to. Haitians, people from Martinique, Quebec, any Louisiana Creole/Francophiles, people from French Polynesia, Moroccans, Lebanese, etc... in addition to French people, people from Belgium, Swiss, etc...

I hope this turns into a wonderful, lovely, welcoming school that takes on the immense and immensely important task of educating a diverse population.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm the charter school employee from higher up on this thread.

I don't think that people are "faking" this, or that this is a joke. I do think that people are understimating what it takes to start a charter school. The task that people are talking about is enormous, and complex, and requires a great deal of expertise, a great deal of money, and a great deal of time.

I wish you all luck, and will be curious how this turns out.

Hi! Could you enlighten us on what we could say to indicate we are not "underestimating what it takes to start a charter school". I'm just not understanding what posts thus far give you impression that we've underestimated the undertaking. This idea was conceived just yesterday. Should we have a charter penned by now. Somehow, I'm not too sure you're really a charter employee. To be so short-sighted and negative for the sole purpose of discouraging a very energized group, I have a hard time believing your negative energy is directed towards children. If it is, God help them! Anyways, if you have something positive to add, like a realistic picture of the realities we'll likely face, we'd love your constructive feedback. TIA

As someone else pointed out, this is an idea that was proposed yesterday. I'm seeing a number of posts saying things like "we can totally do this!", rather than "this is worth looking into, I wonder what it would take to get this done?" I'm also seeing a lot of people talking about minute details, like the Lebanese Bacc and whether to write the original charter through 5th grade or 8th, and not stepping back to look at bigger questions like mission and vision.

I'm not being a pessimist. I think this can be done. That doesn't mean I think it will be done. You've got a long way to go. I think a good first step would be to sit down as a group, talk about the vision. See if you can come to shared agreement about what would be the core elements. Clarify terms such as "green". Also, if you want to make a school that serves the city, be aware that DCUM doesn't represent the city very accurately. Take steps now to make sure that that initial group is inclusive. For example, if you want representation by parents from Francophone Africa, make sure they are there from Day 1.

Yes, tons of people on DCUM. The actually few people who showed up to sign up to do the work....not so much. They have looked at the bigger picture then "where will HV be located" - but keep being negative, I'm sure you will be first in line 2 years from now to fill out an application for the school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Oh DCUMer and Smart Ass, a synonym made in hell... Not sure where HV will be located, but I'll make sure it's location doesn't show up on your map!

Merci de votre gentille reponse a ma question. Bonne chance.

[Anonymous]

Ok everyone, let's take a step back and remember where we are: those who have now connected on this idea are VERY VERY CLEAR that we are at the very beginning stages of assessing interest, energy, experience, knowledge, energy, time and money for whether this project even takes its first baby steps. No one involved so far thinks it's a done deal that this school will happen.

So can we please request the following from these 3 different groups of DCUM folks:

Will all those who are seriously interested in exploring this please email and join our yahoo group? That's where the details of who is interested and initial resource sharing is happening.

Will all those who know they don't have time or interest but feel like they have helpful hints/ideas please definitely post them here? We appreciate all the considerations anyone raises in the spirit of helping, even if it's a "watch out" type of post. Thank you!

And will all those who feel entitled to judge, make snarky comments, single out individuals for questioning, or have nothing better to do than be negative and discouraging, can you please just leave this alone? You can smirk later if you never ever hear anything else about this idea. You can even start your own "I told you so!" thread. But for now, the thread is clearly labeled, there is no reason to "accidentally" be exposed to an idea you think is a waste of time. Just leave it alone please.

The opening post still speaks to where we are:

Anonymous wrote:
Interested in being at the very beginning of the possible founding of a French, Green Immersion charter school? Have skills, experience, commitment, time, connections, or just plain energy and good will to bring to the idea?

Then please join us in this very very early conversation on the idea. Contact [e-mail] so we can all be connected, and at some point we'll figure out our next step in getting the conversation going.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think you're misinterpreting the initial bursts of excitement (including focusing on minutia) as an indicator of the potential success of the group. Kinda like when someone first gets proposed to. You start to ponder everything- the dress, the venue, etc... in the first five minutes. Then, when you've had a chance to start really thinking and organizing those thoughts, a plan emerges.

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to imply that this couldn't be successful. Just that's it's very very early.

Anonymous wrote: I don't speak for the others, but I'm still in the giddy phase, just so excited that perhaps in the next few years a viable school option may exist for my kids. This whirlwind of lotteries, and discussions of race SES, etc... has been a tremendous downer.

This concerns me. The people who have founded the best charter schools, the kind of charter schools that the city needs, are those who look issues of equity in access, race and SES in the face. If you find having conversations about them on DCUM to be a "tremendous downer" are you ready for this work?

Anonymous wrote:Just the thought of a french charter with a positive and rewarding curriculum really made my day. Now, I'm starting to really think about this and am reading the charters of other schools. From the group thus far, I get the feeling someone will be suggesting a meet-up time soon. If not, I will. We need to meet, and organize ourselves first and then go from there. That will take a long time, hence, we get that this is a long and arduous undertaking. I think once we really dive in, we can look at outreach. Right now, I have nothing to outreach for. I want to be able to approach a family with a legit plan, not some pie in the sky idea. Knowing a lot of Francophone Africans, they will want to be given a firm idea so they know from the beginning it's worth looking into.

Is your goal to build a school for DC's children, or for your children. If it's the former, then diverse groups need to be there from the start, when you're building the vision and formulating the mission. Waiting to invite them until you have a "firm idea" leaves out their ideas and their voices. If it's the latter, that you want to build a school for your own child, and hope that some French speaking children will come along for the ride, then you might consider creating or joining a private school. Honestly, given the amount of time and work associated with building a charter school you could probably earn a lot of tuition.

Anonymous wrote:That's what will start to work on. Also, African francophones aren't the only communities we should think about reaching out to. Haitians, people from Martinique, Quebec, any Louisiana Creole/Francophiles, people from French Polynesia, Moroccans, Lebanese, etc... in addition to French people, people from Belgium, Swiss, etc...

I hope this turns into a wonderful, lovely, welcoming school that takes on the immense and immensely important task of educating a diverse population.

You pretend martys are so obnoxious! Of course, we're starting a school for our kids dumbass! My child didn't get into a school, so I'm going to go with a group starting one. All of the interested people are parents to kids who are looking for a school for ourselves. I'm happy if it can serve others, but why would I be starting a school if I didn't have a vested interest. There are some pervs out there who get involved in things related to children because they're pervs and have no other reason. I'm not in education, but I have kids who need a school. Why on earth should I not be involved in getting one started to go private. Also, why are you on here trolling around. Do you have any children or are you just some perv getting off on attacking parents who want to start a school? Also, take your advice on engaging people and shove it right back where you got it- your ass! I can assure you, you're no expert on engaging people and organizing a school. Just listen to your dumb judgmental ass. The uber focus on race/SES etc... is just terrible for everyone. I simply want a good school for my kid. I could care a less about the race/SES status of the other kids. You freaks that make it a huge issue are the problem. Get a life!!! and please do not involve yourself with HV.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You pretend martys are so obnoxious! Of course, we're starting a school for our kids dumbass! My child didn't get into a school, so I'm going to go with a group starting one. All of the interested people are parents to kids who are looking for a school for ourselves. I'm happy if it can serve others, but why would I be starting a school if I didn't have a vested interest. There are some pervs out there who get involved in things related to children because they're pervs and have no other reason. I'm not in education, but I have kids who need a school. Why on earth should I not be involved in getting one started to go private. Also, why are you on here trolling around. Do you have any children or are you just some perv getting off on attacking parents who want to start a school? Also, take your advice on engaging people and shove it right back where you got it- your ass! I can assure you, you're no expert on engaging people and organizing a school. Just listen to your dumb judgmental ass. The uber focus on race/SES etc... is just terrible for everyone. I simply want a good school for my kid. I could care a less about the race/SES status of the other kids. You freaks that make it a huge issue are the problem. Get a life!!! and please do not involve yourself with HV.

You are either a troll to the nth degree, or if you really have joined us in seriously discussing HV, you are probably in for a rude awakening. Your kids needing a school TODAY is not even close to a reason to get involved with founding a school. Yes, most of us who have seriously started this discussion hope that at some point if it becomes reality, this school will serve our kids. But some of us also realize it is such a giant undertaking, you really need to be in it for way more than just your kids.

If you're serious in your interest, we still welcome you. The amount of work this will take will quickly weed out people who are in it to see it through from people who think this is a quick fix, so if you are in it for the long haul, cool.

But really... this sounds exactly like what someone trying to make the serious people here sound crazy would write. I'm still calling TROLL on this one!

[Anonymous]

This school exists in PG County.

http://www1.pgcps.org/robertgoddardfrenchimmersion/

K-8 charter, 500+ students
MD "Green School" certified
Proficiency in the 90s
75% black, 25% FARMs

http://www.greatschools.org/maryland/seabrook/2065-Robert-Goddard-French-Immersion/

Why not ask them to expand to DC? Just don't use the name Haricots Verts or they will probably ignore you as a joke. (Les toubabous sont dingues. Vraiment. Ils disent rien de quoi.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You pretend martys are so obnoxious! Of course, we're starting a school for our kids dumbass! My child didn't get into a school, so I'm going to go with a group starting one. All of the interested people are parents to kids who are looking for a school for ourselves. I'm happy if it can serve others, but why would I be starting a school if I didn't have a vested interest. There are some pervs out there who get involved in things related to children because they're pervs and have no other reason. I'm not in education, but I have kids who need a school. Why on earth should I not be involved in getting one started to go private. Also, why are you on here trolling around. Do you have any children or are you just some perv getting off on attacking parents who want to start a school? Also, take your advice on engaging people and shove it right back where you got it- your ass! I can assure you, you're no expert on engaging people and organizing a school. Just listen to your dumb judgmental ass. The uber focus on race/SES etc... is just terrible for everyone. I simply want a good school for my kid. I could care a less about the race/SES status of the other kids. You freaks that make it a huge issue are the problem. Get a life!!! and please do not involve yourself with HV.

You are either a troll to the nth degree, or if you really have joined us in seriously discussing HV, you are probably in for a rude awakening. Your kids needing a school TODAY is not even close to a reason to get involved with founding a school. Yes, most of us who have seriously started this discussion hope that at some point if it becomes reality, this school will serve our kids. But some of us also realize it is such a giant undertaking, you really need to be in it for way more than just your kids.

If you're serious in your interest, we still welcome you. The amount of work this will take will quickly weed out people who are in it to see it through from people who think this is a quick fix, so if you are in it for the long haul, cool.

But really... this sounds exactly like what someone trying to make the serious people here sound crazy would write. I'm still calling TROLL on this one!

Um, the troll is you! You need to read the messages of people whom've expressed interest. We're not trying to start a school that doesn't benefit our kids. Look back at the thread and read what people wrote. There was discussion of starting a middle school program because we know how long it could take and want our kids to benefit. Then, someone stated that the school could start based upon when our kids would be in school (i.e. first or second grade). I'm not sure who you are, but you seem to be presenting yourself as a mouth piece for the group. You're not! Others out there please identify if you're interested in forming the school for other children in the future. That's a very generous and meritorious prospect, but not something I intend to sign up for. Anyways, I'm going to continue looking into forming the school. Right now there is no leadership, although you seem to think you are. If it emerges that this about forming a school for the sake of forming a school, I'll put my energies elsewhere. Good news is the demand is so overwhelming, the kids will be there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This school exists in PG County.

http://www1.pgcps.org/robertgoddardfrenchimmersion/

K-8 charter, 500+ students
MD "Green School" certified
Proficiency in the 90s
75% black, 25% FARMs

http://www.greatschools.org/maryland/seabrook/2065-Robert-Goddard-French-Immersion/

Why not ask them to expand to DC? Just don't use the name Haricots Verts or they will probably ignore you as a joke. (Les toubabous sont dingues. Vraiment. Ils disent rien de quoi.)

Is it any worse than "Green World"?