Maury Principal Leaving (ACPS)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also don't agree that he did much for Black and Hispanic children who had potential to participate in TAG. My son had several friends (all boys) who are in Honors classes with him at GW, and doing well, but not one of them was identified for TAG in Maury. Out of my son's TAG classes (reading and math), there were two Black girls in TAG reading, none in math, and zero Black boys in any TAG classes.

This is a consistent problem within ACPS.

It is. I remember six or seven years ago at an ES PTA meeting, some ACPS rep claiming that they were working hard to identify more kids for TAG. It never happened.

Now they are finally bringing Young Scholars to all the schools. So maybe that will help. But I'm sure they are just going to dump TAG instead.

[Anonymous]

We had a wonderful experience with Mr. Powell, but our boys are in lower elementary and we've only been at Maury the last two years. I did think he tried to advocate to get child care for teachers and aftercare from Campagna in hybrid. He always greeted our kids by name in the morning and knew me by name, which I'd expect as Maury is a small school. I thought Mr. Powell was a great role model. He did seem to favorite the PTA parents, which I am not one of because I usually have to work when they have meetings.

I heard other parents who had polar opposite experiences. They said he did not advocate for their kids be it TAG or IEPs, recommending Black kids for TAG who are clearly academically gifted or stand up to teachers who used outdated discipline processes rooted in shame and fear such as having kids stay in from recess or kids hiding under their desks or teachers who yelled at kids or shamed them in front of the class.

I heard from an insider that FCPS recruited him. Being a former teacher myself, middle school pays better. I do think it is somewhat odd to not finish up the school year. My sister in law is a principal and got a new job at a different middle school next year in a different district that is also virtual and transitioning to hybrid. It's weird to me he is leaving in May, when school ends in June. I also wonder if all those promises about hybrid, child care on site for teachers and Campagna onsite were just talk. I know he was contacting the individual school director rather than the Campagna leadership and not sure if he was coordinating with ACPS for space for child care when we need all the space possible for hybrid.

What do you know about Mrs. Hess the vice principal who will be acting? I honestly don't know anything about her other than she writes really nice notes to kids in the school yearbook and takes ads for kids who might not be able to afford a yearbook ad.

[Anonymous]

Same as a previous poster. Look at the Black and Hispanic test scores under his tenure, particularly black boys. I was told he was a super star at increasing test scores. My sons are in TAG and the diversity is lacking. It is like Nice White Parents with all the higher SES kids regardless of race in TAG.

[Anonymous]

Leaving in May seems really strange. You couldn’t stick it out for one more month?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You might need to read some articles about why grammar is is a function of an oppressive society.

Is this why ACPS doesn't teach grammar?

Assuming people are unintelligent or unprofessional because they use AAVE, which is a dialect that has defined speech patterns and its own grammar, and not standardized WHITE English is racist. It is.

It also is not used in academics, literature, or general media so the continued use is likely to have an impact on students who try and take standardized tests, using grammatically correct English.

Think about it - a little kid is asked to select the sentence with the correct grammar. One sentence is written grammatically correct and the other is written in the vascular. Kid reads both. The grammatically correct sounds vaguely familiar but the vascular sentence is how he hears adults and friends speaking all the time so that one must be the correct choice. Except it isn't. And he gets the question wrong. Repeat many times on the same test and this kid who is very intelligent now gets a very low standardized test reading score and is told he needs remediation.

If that intelligent kid gets remediation so that he can actually write sentences with standard grammar, won't that better equip him to succeed in the future? It's not like the broader society is going to start accepting AAVE as standard American English.

This is the issue. What you think is “standard grammar” is white grammar. AAVE is standardized too. It had legitimate patterns in syntax, grammar and verb tenses. This is a known linguistic reality. Saying that only white English is standard ignores this. A child who grows up in a home that speaks AAVE DOES have a grasp of grammar and usage and sentence structure and speech patterns. They are taught in schools this is “wrong” and only white English is correct.

I don't question the linguistic arguments about patterns of syntax and the like, but it's not especially productive to suggest we treat every version of vernacular English (and undoubtedly there are others besides AAVE) as equally worthy of recognition as standard English grammar. If it helps teach standard grammar to recognize that some students may be more familiar with AAVE or some other vernacular, or to characterize it as different rather than wrong, fine, but there is too much value in a wide range of contexts in having a preferred standard English to abandon that ideal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Leaving in May seems really strange. You couldn’t stick it out for one more month?

Looking at this thread, why would he? Some of you don’t understand that school personnel who aren’t valued by that school don’t owe the school anything. An opportunity came and he took it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Leaving in May seems really strange. You couldn’t stick it out for one more month?

Looking at this thread, why would he? Some of you don’t understand that school personnel who aren’t valued by that school don’t owe the school anything. An opportunity came and he took it.

It seems to me that this is a two way street. Maybe when the school personnel begin valuing the kids and actually do some educating, the community will value the personnel. It’s easier to leave early and let someone else sort out the carnage.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Leaving in May seems really strange. You couldn’t stick it out for one more month?

Looking at this thread, why would he? Some of you don’t understand that school personnel who aren’t valued by that school don’t owe the school anything. An opportunity came and he took it.

It seems to me that this is a two way street. Maybe when the school personnel begin valuing the kids and actually do some educating, the community will value the personnel. It’s easier to leave early and let someone else sort out the carnage.

Ok. Carnage. LMAO. Good luck to this man and whoever is unlucky enough to take his place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Leaving in May seems really strange. You couldn’t stick it out for one more month?

Looking at this thread, why would he? Some of you don’t understand that school personnel who aren’t valued by that school don’t owe the school anything. An opportunity came and he took it.

It looks unprofessional. And what about the kids--are they owed anything?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Leaving in May seems really strange. You couldn’t stick it out for one more month?

Looking at this thread, why would he? Some of you don’t understand that school personnel who aren’t valued by that school don’t owe the school anything. An opportunity came and he took it.

Fair enough. I’m sure the parents will be totally different in FCPS. And no one will view his quitting mid-year as any kind of red flag.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I also don't agree that he did much for Black and Hispanic children who had potential to participate in TAG. My son had several friends (all boys) who are in Honors classes with him at GW, and doing well, but not one of them was identified for TAG in Maury. Out of my son's TAG classes (reading and math), there were two Black girls in TAG reading, none in math, and zero Black boys in any TAG classes.

This is a consistent problem within ACPS.

It is. I remember six or seven years ago at an ES PTA meeting, some ACPS rep claiming that they were working hard to identify more kids for TAG. It never happened.

Now they are finally bringing Young Scholars to all the schools. So maybe that will help. But I'm sure they are just going to dump TAG instead.

To be fair, this is a problem in most, possibly all, school systems.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:-He failed both my kids in times of need
-Called one of them a liar after they were assualted by another kid
-Has the warmth and personality of a wet towel
-Glad to see him go.

What is it with ACPS and denying assaults?

What is it with ACPS tolerating residency fraud? Back when school used to actually happen I'd see a half dozen cars with Maryland plates dropping kids off every single morning- this wasn't split custody scenario, the kids lived in MD.

There's a different set of rules for certain people. I'll let you figure out what the commonality is.

Why would anyone travel to Alexandria for it's terrible schools?

The different set of rules are for the PTA and PTAC parents who are always there to defend ACPS (and their home values).

At Maury or elsewhere? I do now of a Maury parent who publicly celebrated her son attacking another student and yet was somehow granted permission to serve on the PTAC. So odd.

I know what you're talking about, and this to me is the single most puzzling and off-putting thing about PTAC to me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Leaving in May seems really strange. You couldn’t stick it out for one more month?

Looking at this thread, why would he? Some of you don’t understand that school personnel who aren’t valued by that school don’t owe the school anything. An opportunity came and he took it.

It seems to me that this is a two way street. Maybe when the school personnel begin valuing the kids and actually do some educating, the community will value the personnel. It’s easier to leave early and let someone else sort out the carnage.

They are educating. You just don't like it. Your problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You might need to read some articles about why grammar is is a function of an oppressive society.

Oh boy. Proper English is oppressive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You might need to read some articles about why grammar is is a function of an oppressive society.

Is this why ACPS doesn't teach grammar?

Assuming people are unintelligent or unprofessional because they use AAVE, which is a dialect that has defined speech patterns and its own grammar, and not standardized WHITE English is racist. It is.

I completely agree. But I don't think the solution is not to teach any grammar or a standard curriculum. I'll beg off now, bc I don't want to derail the thread.

I speak my own language. Just do. Don’t ask me to change — or your not being equitable. I don’t care that English is the official language. Oooh. Maybe that needs to change too. Maybe my language can become an official language too.