Beauvoir Head has resigned with over a year's advance notice

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote: Why are you waiting with baited breath

bated breath

[Anonymous]

Baited breath = eating sushi past its sell-by time!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Actually, the security guard was fatally shot by two police officers during the standoff after he killed the teacher.

http://www.wusa9.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=75336

Yes, this was in the media 4 years ago and everyone knows the sad and tragic details. Why are you waiting with baited breath to stir the pot ? These two adults met at work. Many people have other aspects to their lives beyond where they work. Had the school been asked to honor a restraining order and failed to and had she been shot on school property then you might have some grounds. This tragedy happened in the last week of summer before the school year started. It happened 30 miles from the school. THe teacher's brother was the Atty General of MD at the time. If the school was culpable in any way, it would have been made very public . It was a tragedy, period. Let the families have some peace and don't dredge this up for your own selfish motives.

Actually, I saw this clip many years ago as well. Its statement of facts simply does not make sense. The issue here is that no thorough investigation was done. The clip was taken only a few days after the incident. The security guard had no one to speak up for him. He had/has one teenage son, and no spouse. I continue to question whether the MC police officers, one of whom was relatively young to my recollection, allowed things to get out of hand. Not intentionally, of course. But, with multiple people holding guns, and with tempers flaring, the situation easily could have gotten out of hand. I simply do not believe that the facts happened the way the MC police presented them. They had every reason (and ability here) to keep any mishaps quite.

I'm sorry but when you hold a gun to another human being's head you give up your right to walk out of their alive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Actually, the security guard was fatally shot by two police officers during the standoff after he killed the teacher.

http://www.wusa9.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=75336

Yes, this was in the media 4 years ago and everyone knows the sad and tragic details. Why are you waiting with baited breath to stir the pot ? These two adults met at work. Many people have other aspects to their lives beyond where they work. Had the school been asked to honor a restraining order and failed to and had she been shot on school property then you might have some grounds. This tragedy happened in the last week of summer before the school year started. It happened 30 miles from the school. THe teacher's brother was the Atty General of MD at the time. If the school was culpable in any way, it would have been made very public . It was a tragedy, period. Let the families have some peace and don't dredge this up for your own selfish motives.

Actually, I saw this clip many years ago as well. Its statement of facts simply does not make sense. The issue here is that no thorough investigation was done. The clip was taken only a few days after the incident. The security guard had no one to speak up for him. He had/has one teenage son, and no spouse. I continue to question whether the MC police officers, one of whom was relatively young to my recollection, allowed things to get out of hand. Not intentionally, of course. But, with multiple people holding guns, and with tempers flaring, the situation easily could have gotten out of hand. I simply do not believe that the facts happened the way the MC police presented them. They had every reason (and ability here) to keep any mishaps quite.

I'm sorry but when you hold a gun to another human being's head you give up your right to walk out of their alive.

Absolutely! You mean they couldn't see he was a nice person though he was holding a gun to her head while she was crying and screaming.

Clearly, he came to her house with the intent to threaten/harm her. The woman was frightened of him, she shared that with neighbors. He probably displayed some violent tendencies in the relationship or something else that she said hell no to. She was killed the weekend before B teachers returned from summer break to organize, etc. for the new school year. He probably also wanted to make sure that she didn't say anything to the school about him. Such a nice guy. articles.baltimoresun.com/2009-02-02/news/0902010087_1_protective-orders-domestic-violence-governor-initiatives

[Anonymous]

This thread has lost focus. Congrats to Paula and all that she has done for Beauvoir. She will be missed.

[Anonymous]

yes, jumped the shark for sure.

[Anonymous]

I’m resurrecting this thread

I found it after reading the thread about a Maret teacher who had a typo on a poster in their classroom. THere was a mention of a retiring Beauvoir head, which was news to me, and so I searched it. I found this thread and found it fascinating.

I didn’t read DCUM in 2012, so I thought others might benefit from this thread.

Reading it reminds me of the high level, professional “shush” job that was executed after this happened. Any PR professional who wants to study a successful silence campaign should follow this story. From a professional perspective, I was impressed. From a personal perspective, I am horrified. Some part of me thinks the school should have been closed after this happened.

Hopefully it will put into perspective what matters in a lower school teacher. It’s not typos.

[Anonymous]

Um, ok, but I think the issue in these threads has been more with the departure of the subsequent head. Luckily the school seems to have a fabulous new head. Hopefully outplacement will also be stronger too after a couple spotty years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Um, ok, but I think the issue in these threads has been more with the departure of the subsequent head. Luckily the school seems to have a fabulous new head. Hopefully outplacement will also be stronger too after a couple spotty years.

Why is it spotty? We went on a tour and it seems like a strength.

[Anonymous]

The past two years, especially two years ago, outplacement has been spotty. Two years ago, at the time that the head presented the results, five kids were still looking for placement and fewer than expected were admitted to the Cathedral schools. Last year the results were better for the Cathedral schools, but something like 10-12 kids didn't get their first choice.

[Anonymous]

Former Beauvoir parent who left the school only because of a family move and who has "no dog in this fight."

The head of school (HOS) initially discussed by this thread's OP was at Beauvoir over 20 years. As noted upthread, she had a planned, deliberated retirement with a great deal of transparency. In our experiences with her, she was forthright, sincere, and smart. She left Beauvoir approximately 18 months after the announcement, retiring at the end of 2013 as planned.

The subsequent HOS was at Beauvoir for 2 years; we'd left before her departure, so all I can really say factually is that it's unusual to depart an HOS position after 2 years and that a community can feel very rocked in such cases, depending on the circumstances. I can't speculate on what caused the atypical placement results suggested upthread, although they by no means reflect solely on an HOS....

Last year (2017-18) Beauvoir had an interim head last year and launched a national search for a new HOS. The successful candidate assumed her responsibilities this year.
The little bit of contact I have with Beauvoir as an alum parent indicates a good future's in the works, but that's naturally based on very superficial "evidence." Additionally and of course, each parent/alum/alum parent/student/faculty-staff member will have a different perspective.

In terms of the 16:28 PP's thoughts: from my own perspective, we didn't experience a "successful silence campaign" that would "impress" a "PR professional" vis a vis the long-term HOS referenced in the OP. In fact, I was impressed that she was more *a*political when we met multiple times and had sustained interactions. She didn't shy away from questions about the tragedies that occurred on and off campus. Her demeanor and her administrative skills were impressive and were a model in some ways. Indeed, since that time, when multiple campuses across the country have been embroiled in scandals, I've reflected that she in some ways emerged as one of the most successful in managing a campus through more than one crisis. (And not to sound too snarky, but yes, I am of course aware that a HOS is nothing without the school's faculty and staff and Board and parents/students and that the school hired a crisis management firm during this time; it would have been irresponsible to do anything less....)

I agree that people considering Beauvoir should know of its past so that they can have an accurate perspective No one who's been part of the DC independent school community in the past 10 years can easily forget that multiple heads of school at Beauvoir at other DC schools have navigated some of the most horrific traumas and tragedies imaginable, including the two mentioned upthread, other situations at other schools involving accusations of inappropriate contact with students and parents (discussed throughout DCUM and in the media so no need to rehearse them here), and also some situations that have devastated communities while having no connection to faculty or staff --i.e., personal tragedies involving students and their families.

In my opinion, frankly, those schools' abilities to persevere and their students' persistence in the face of crises speaks volumes about the quality of community so fundamental to lifelong learning, and inspiring and fostering lifelong learning is central to many DC schools' mission whether private or public. If you truly want to open readers' eyes to the environment at Beauvoir or elsewhere, though, alluding to a "high level, professional 'shush' job' in a way that suggests conspiracies and cover-ups can do so much more harm than good. There's lots of salacious gossip out there already. and feeding it consciously or even inadvertently can cause families to be so frustrated that they seem isolating or cold simply because they've no interest in anonymous conversations that can derail at best and destroy reputations at worst. 16:28's desire to "put into perspective what matters in a lower school teacher" is totally understandable and important, as is bringing as much clarity as possible to any school's history when warranted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The past two years, especially two years ago, outplacement has been spotty. Two years ago, at the time that the head presented the results, five kids were still looking for placement and fewer than expected were admitted to the Cathedral schools. Last year the results were better for the Cathedral schools, but something like 10-12 kids didn't get their first choice.

Incorrect. There was only one spotty year. Last year had record high admits to STA and NCS which were most students first choice. One spotty year in all of these years won’t define a school. Beauvoir is doing great.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The past two years, especially two years ago, outplacement has been spotty. Two years ago, at the time that the head presented the results, five kids were still looking for placement and fewer than expected were admitted to the Cathedral schools. Last year the results were better for the Cathedral schools, but something like 10-12 kids didn't get their first choice.

Incorrect. There was only one spotty year. Last year had record high admits to STA and NCS which were most students first choice. One spotty year in all of these years won’t define a school. Beauvoir is doing great.

No, it's correct. 90 percent of those who applied to the Cathedral schools were accepted. That is true. Yet not all students applied there. 88 percent of students were accepted to their first choice school. That means 12 percent weren't. For a class of slightly more than 80 students, that means at least 10 kids didn't get accepted to their first choice.

Last year's 3rd grade class went to:
STA
NCS
St. Patrick's
Sidwell
Stone Ridge
NPS
WES
Grace Episcopal
Holton Arms
Lowell
Mater DEI
McLean
Montgomery County Publics school
And a school in the Bay Area

The info was presented to parents and is also publicly available.

[Anonymous]

Only 12% weren't accepted to their first choice and you think that is spotty results?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The past two years, especially two years ago, outplacement has been spotty. Two years ago, at the time that the head presented the results, five kids were still looking for placement and fewer than expected were admitted to the Cathedral schools. Last year the results were better for the Cathedral schools, but something like 10-12 kids didn't get their first choice.

Incorrect. There was only one spotty year. Last year had record high admits to STA and NCS which were most students first choice. One spotty year in all of these years won’t define a school. Beauvoir is doing great.

No, it's correct. 90 percent of those who applied to the Cathedral schools were accepted. That is true. Yet not all students applied there. 88 percent of students were accepted to their first choice school. That means 12 percent weren't. For a class of slightly more than 80 students, that means at least 10 kids didn't get accepted to their first choice.

Last year's 3rd grade class went to:
STA
NCS
St. Patrick's
Sidwell
Stone Ridge
NPS
WES
Grace Episcopal
Holton Arms
Lowell
Mater DEI
McLean
Montgomery County Publics school
And a school in the Bay Area

The info was presented to parents and is also publicly available.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Only 12% weren't accepted to their first choice and you think that is spotty results?

Yes, just ask the parents of those 10 kids how they feel. Parents send their kids to Beauvoir assuming it will open doors to wherever they want. No one expects to have to settle. Also some of the other "lesser" school like k-8s get 95 percent of their kids into their first choice at what's arguably a much more competitive grade (9th). Beauvoir should be doing even better and should have an extensive network at all the schools and should advocate hard to ensure no child falls through the cracks. The school should also be giving parents a realistic picture of chances so that parents aren't disappointed. 88 percent first choice simply isn't good enough for a school with Beauvoir's rep.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The past two years, especially two years ago, outplacement has been spotty. Two years ago, at the time that the head presented the results, five kids were still looking for placement and fewer than expected were admitted to the Cathedral schools. Last year the results were better for the Cathedral schools, but something like 10-12 kids didn't get their first choice.

Incorrect. There was only one spotty year. Last year had record high admits to STA and NCS which were most students first choice. One spotty year in all of these years won’t define a school. Beauvoir is doing great.

No, it's correct. 90 percent of those who applied to the Cathedral schools were accepted. That is true. Yet not all students applied there. 88 percent of students were accepted to their first choice school. That means 12 percent weren't. For a class of slightly more than 80 students, that means at least 10 kids didn't get accepted to their first choice.

Last year's 3rd grade class went to:
STA
NCS
St. Patrick's
Sidwell
Stone Ridge
NPS
WES
Grace Episcopal
Holton Arms
Lowell
Mater DEI
McLean
Montgomery County Publics school
And a school in the Bay Area

The info was presented to parents and is also publicly available.