Churchill Getting a New Principal

[Anonymous]

Won't Monifa have to approve his choice? I do agree they must have someone in mind. I'm a little worried that it may be someone totally mediocre.

[Anonymous]

The Churchill cluster has had quite a bit of turnover in Principals since we have lived in the community. This will be the fourth time I have been a parent at a school who is conducting a Principal search. The majority of the new hires were not stellar choices.

Being an Assistant Principal or a Principal Intern is not the same as being Principal. It will take years for someone to make the changes at Churchill. I am crossing my fingers and toes that someone with experience as a Principal will be applying. Mrs. Heckert was new and the Director (her support system) was new. It was a ill thought out combination.

[Anonymous]

Be careful what you wish for. They could put in an experienced principal who sucks. Someone who isn't popular in their current school community.

[Anonymous]

The MCPS process creates a filtered view of what the community is looking for in a principal. If I was on the interview panel, I would be interested in hearing how the candidate would address the following problems:

1) drugs sold and used at Churchill

2) bullying, harassment, and intimidation of students (includes a plan of how to end hate incidents at school so all are welcomed to learn)

3) minority access to honors and AP classes / how to improve participation and achievement

4) ideas for a return to school plan including of how to support the mental health recovery of staff and students

5) supporting the needs of students with disabilities including extra support needed when students could not access services for the past year

6) support for English language learners at Churchill

[Anonymous]

I'm a teacher and really hope they get one of the awesome Black principals in MCPS, though they might have to convince them to come. I'm thinking of someone like Dr. Joey Jones, Jewel Sanders or James Allrich. A couple have been recognized nationally.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a teacher and really hope they get one of the awesome Black principals in MCPS, though they might have to convince them to come. I'm thinking of someone like Dr. Joey Jones, Jewel Sanders or James Allrich. A couple have been recognized nationally.

I would agree that getting a great candidate with proven Principal experience would be ideal for Churchill. However, wouldn’t that create a late vacancy at the other school in MCPS. I don’t think Central Office would like that idea because then there would be more work with the need for a second search. There would not be enough time to hire someone at the other school by August.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The MCPS process creates a filtered view of what the community is looking for in a principal. If I was on the interview panel, I would be interested in hearing how the candidate would address the following problems:

1) drugs sold and used at Churchill

2) bullying, harassment, and intimidation of students (includes a plan of how to end hate incidents at school so all are welcomed to learn)

3) minority access to honors and AP classes / how to improve participation and achievement

4) ideas for a return to school plan including of how to support the mental health recovery of staff and students

5) supporting the needs of students with disabilities including extra support needed when students could not access services for the past year

6) support for English language learners at Churchill

Is this a joke? Most of this are not issues. My issue is get Winston Churchill back to number 1.

Churchill is majority minority. So don’t understand more minorities in AP.

If I was in charge I would do what my old s hill district did.
1) no immersion (why devote so much money to one ethnic group) to learn not to speak English
2) create sister HS for non English and Special needs to get them back up to speed with out impacting WC HS Stats.
3) no magnet students
4) drugs and bullying. Fake news
5) invest in arts, band, plays, school spirit, pep rallies. The school needs more school spirit.
6) Free Drivers Ed
7) Free SAT and ACT tutoring

Focus on academics and the arts. And improve football team

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a teacher and really hope they get one of the awesome Black principals in MCPS, though they might have to convince them to come. I'm thinking of someone like Dr. Joey Jones, Jewel Sanders or James Allrich. A couple have been recognized nationally.

How about an IVY league Jewish PhD

[Anonymous]

I wonder how other high schools, including our cluster HS, did not encountered these "issues"? Did other high schools have school administrators who are able to solve all these?

Anonymous wrote:One underserved population at Churchill are students with disabilities. For IEP and 504 meetings, school administrators are vital members of the team.

As a parent who have attended meetings in the cluster at my child’s elementary, middle, and high school, I have been in these meetings with many school administrators. Sadly, their lack of knowledge about laws in place to protect children with disabilities has been disturbing.

Mrs. Heckert might be a nice person with good intentions, but she doesn’t understand the concept that the needs of the student should be what drives the services and supports the child receives. She came across at meetings as ignorant, which is a demonstration of the lack of training school administrators receive. The net result of Mrs. Heckert’s leadership resulted in discriminatory practices for students with disabilities at Churchill.

Then came the pandemic. Children with disabilities struggled without vital accommodations and services during the building closure. Many students with disabilities have fallen behind and did not make adequate progress this year. Some are no longer on track for graduation.

Churchill needs a Principal who understands the IDEA, ADA, and Section 504 laws so students with disabilities don’t have barriers for equal opportunities within the school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The MCPS process creates a filtered view of what the community is looking for in a principal. If I was on the interview panel, I would be interested in hearing how the candidate would address the following problems:

1) drugs sold and used at Churchill

2) bullying, harassment, and intimidation of students (includes a plan of how to end hate incidents at school so all are welcomed to learn)

3) minority access to honors and AP classes / how to improve participation and achievement

4) ideas for a return to school plan including of how to support the mental health recovery of staff and students

5) supporting the needs of students with disabilities including extra support needed when students could not access services for the past year

6) support for English language learners at Churchill

Another person has never been through the process. If you are on the panel, you would not get to ask any of these questions. You are given a list of questions to ask, you are not allowed to deviate from the questions, and you are not allowed to ask follow-up questions.

Anyone remember the school newspaper article interviewing Heckert when she first started? She said she didn't like to read!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The MCPS process creates a filtered view of what the community is looking for in a principal. If I was on the interview panel, I would be interested in hearing how the candidate would address the following problems:

1) drugs sold and used at Churchill

2) bullying, harassment, and intimidation of students (includes a plan of how to end hate incidents at school so all are welcomed to learn)

3) minority access to honors and AP classes / how to improve participation and achievement

4) ideas for a return to school plan including of how to support the mental health recovery of staff and students

5) supporting the needs of students with disabilities including extra support needed when students could not access services for the past year

6) support for English language learners at Churchill

You don't get to ask questions if you are on a panel.

If your kids are having mental health issues, get them help. Schools educate, not provide mental health.

[Anonymous]

If Monifa is smart, she will make as many appointments that reflect her commitment to diversity, because I highly doubt she will be the permanent replacement for Dr. Smith. Too many people internally can't stand her, and they will pressure the Board of Education to hire someone else.

[Anonymous]

For the 42 people who attended the information meeting last night, did you notice how only Dr. Moran could see the questions in the chat?

Churchill is an incredibly divided community as represented by previous posts. We are a micro version of what is wrong with the US right now. The new Principal and Mr. Moran will have their hands full healing this community.

[Anonymous]

Diversity, special needs, pride, immersion are all “good” non English speaker needs are all good things and bad things.

My brothers public school did all of this. His public school was majority white Catholic and Jewish. All A students.

It ended up driving the whole school core out and ratings went into free fall. Parents pay for private school

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If Monifa is smart, she will make as many appointments that reflect her commitment to diversity, because I highly doubt she will be the permanent replacement for Dr. Smith. Too many people internally can't stand her, and they will pressure the Board of Education to hire someone else.

She is not where she is at without being politically savvy. Even if she doesn’t get the MCPS Superintendent position now, she will not rock the boat too much to ruin future chances in MCPS or other school districts.

I am supportive of hiring a black/brown Principal for Churchill. Perhaps the truly bigoted families will leave for private school which would be an improvement. However, there are many other problems in the school that color alone will not fix.