Hearst Principal Leaving/Washington Post

[Anonymous]

Most of the problems he cited - certain pushy parents, in-bounds families that didn't want to attend, OOB kids who may bring more discipline issues to the school, etc. - were in existence when he signed-on. Other schools are successful in making it work despite dysfunctions within DCPS.

What schools are those, these "successful" schools that have both pushy involved parents, yet they're almost all OOB (70+%) , AND a lot of OOB discipline issues?

I can't think of one school that fits that description and is successful. Maybe Hill schools? I don't know those.

The "successful" schools with pushy involved parents aren't the ones with no in-boundary families.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ugh. Why is Kaya saying "ain't"?

Wonderful spokesperson; yikes! Is she trying to be 'just folks'? Not the right moment in a situation meriting a serious, reasoned response.

--former DCPS teacher who give thanks every day for my good fortune in escaping....

So many take-aways in this article. Good on the Principal for putting his real thoughts out there.

That said, when I read "ain't" coming out of the Chancellor's mouth in an on-the-record interview with the Post, my first thought was: she should be fired just for that.

Can you imagine a CEO being interviewed in, say, the WSJ, about a key executive's departure and hearing the word "ain't" in her answer. Please!! Just ridiculous. Standards are set from the top. What a joke.

You can usually tell the folks who are insecure about their education, since they always tend to focus on the wrong things. "The Schools Chancellor said aint! There goes all DCPS' credibility!!"


Why, can you imagine a CEO being interviewed in a major publication and using the word "ain't"? The idea!!!

http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2010/11/aig_ceo_this_ship_aint_going_t.html

Reminds me of the non-scandal from a few years ago where some grant-writing team repurposed some standard boilerplate in their grant, and all the semi-educated folk got up in arms about "plagiarism". "What will our children think!!!!"

Whatevs.

Ha! I predicted on another thread here that central office would start looking for other dignitaries who said "ain't." I figured they'd try for V Gray or K Brown, but apparently they could only find a 2010 quote from the CEO of AIG in NY Magazine.

Your tax dollars at work!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ugh. Why is Kaya saying "ain't"?

I'm no big fan of Henderson's but it's basically an expression - like "ain't no big thing." I'm sure she doesn't use "ain't" on a regular basis.

[Anonymous]

17:22 again - I should add that maybe Henderson's use of "ain't" was pretty shrewd. Sure it turns off a bunch of DCUMers but there may be other parents who see her as "jus' folks" because of it and not the huge threat that Rhee was. Rhee supporters, maybe you should be encouraged by this. You've got someone who follows Rhee's philosophy but is smart enough to know how to fit in with people rather than needlessly antagonize them.

I couldn't stand Rhee, and don't care to see her policies continued but I recognize that maybe Henderson is the shrewd one here. One way or another, I'm not going to lose sleep over her saying "ain't."

[Anonymous]

Please, I would like to know the successful schools that have the pushy involved parents, 70+% OOB enrollment, and few OOB discipline issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:17:22 again - I should add that maybe Henderson's use of "ain't" was pretty shrewd. Sure it turns off a bunch of DCUMers but there may be other parents who see her as "jus' folks" because of it and not the huge threat that Rhee was. Rhee supporters, maybe you should be encouraged by this. You've got someone who follows Rhee's philosophy but is smart enough to know how to fit in with people rather than needlessly antagonize them.

I couldn't stand Rhee, and don't care to see her policies continued but I recognize that maybe Henderson is the shrewd one here. One way or another, I'm not going to lose sleep over her saying "ain't."

Nice try -- first it's a well known expression, then other CEO's say ain't, now it's a shrewd move. None of these work.

Even people who regularly say ain't know the head of a school system is not supposed to use it.

If Henderson is really different from Rhee, she'll say she's sorry - something Rhee could never do.

[Anonymous]

I have been an active parent in OOB situation. I think there are good reasons to have reservations about the OOB situation in schools, yes these can be incredibly active parents, but they also give the local parents an excuse to not be involved. While I need and have taken advantage o the OOB situation I do believe it feeds the dysfunctionalality of DCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it's interesting that he used that one student disciplinary issue as an excuse. We don't know the details of the case. The child may have been undergoing evaluations for his behaviors and if that is the case he CAN NOT be suspended or expelled for an issue related to the area that he is being evaluated under. So if a child has psychological issues that cause behavior problems they cannot be expelled for a behavior problem and they most certainly cannot be put out of the school. If this child was not a DC resident but moved into the district during the school year then DCPS did act accordingly. OOB seats are not given to students based upon good behavior. What's funny is that MANY principals try to push OOB special needs kids (autistic, LD, MR, etc) and kids with behavior problems out of their school and into their neighborhood school because they don't want to deal with the child or do not want to use their budget on hiring the therapists....so they research the families and try to do whatever they can to push them out. It sounds crazy but trust me it happens too often in other wards!

Obviously, you have never had your child in a class room with another child who has stabbed two other children to the point where the children were bleeding and the other children actually frightened. And these are third graders. Not to mention the canceled opportunities (field trips, special projects) because having a wild card in the class effected everyone's experience. And if your child was in this class, you would be fine with that as long as he is undergoing evaluations. And if this was your neighborhood school and you had no other options... no big deal?

[Anonymous]

Speaking of the OOB issue and dysfunctional situations -- the school is 70% OOB but has classes in trailers. I fail to understand how it is helping to keep cramming OOB kids into schools that are bursting at the seams (with or without OOB students). These schools are going downhill because they are simply too big to manage successfully in the space they have.

[Anonymous]

Yup. Kerlina, Betts, and Cahall - all are/ were mediocre principals.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Speaking of the OOB issue and dysfunctional situations -- the school is 70% OOB but has classes in trailers. I fail to understand how it is helping to keep cramming OOB kids into schools that are bursting at the seams (with or without OOB students). These schools are going downhill because they are simply too big to manage successfully in the space they have.

Firstly, I'm an IB parent at Hearst and it is not "going down hill." Far from it and it is offensive to read your comments. And the school has trailers because OPEFM is delayed, in providing the slated renovations and addition, and the school now goes to 5th grade. IB parents recently fought to have the school go to 5th grade so the children, both OOB and IB, don't have to transfer to another school, as they were required to do when the school only went to 3rd grade. They also did this to stop the cycle of IB parents bailing after kindergarten to ensure a spot for their child. Secondly, nobody is "cramming OOB kids" into Hearst. They're entering the lottery and choosing it because it is a good little school. And if more IB parents would send their children, there would be less OOB. But what continues to upset me is the code used for OOB. OOB, whether at Hearst or any other school, does not automatically equal poor, uneducated, violent, uninvolved parents/families, blah, blah, blah, or whatever else it is that scares you. Seriously.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ugh. Why is Kaya saying "ain't"?

Wonderful spokesperson; yikes! Is she trying to be 'just folks'? Not the right moment in a situation meriting a serious, reasoned response.

--former DCPS teacher who give thanks every day for my good fortune in escaping....

So many take-aways in this article. Good on the Principal for putting his real thoughts out there.

That said, when I read "ain't" coming out of the Chancellor's mouth in an on-the-record interview with the Post, my first thought was: she should be fired just for that.

Can you imagine a CEO being interviewed in, say, the WSJ, about a key executive's departure and hearing the word "ain't" in her answer. Please!! Just ridiculous. Standards are set from the top. What a joke.

You can usually tell the folks who are insecure about their education, since they always tend to focus on the wrong things. "The Schools Chancellor said aint! There goes all DCPS' credibility!!"


Why, can you imagine a CEO being interviewed in a major publication and using the word "ain't"? The idea!!!

http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2010/11/aig_ceo_this_ship_aint_going_t.html

Reminds me of the non-scandal from a few years ago where some grant-writing team repurposed some standard boilerplate in their grant, and all the semi-educated folk got up in arms about "plagiarism". "What will our children think!!!!"

Whatevs.

Ha! I predicted on another thread here that central office would start looking for other dignitaries who said "ain't." I figured they'd try for V Gray or K Brown, but apparently they could only find a 2010 quote from the CEO of AIG in NY Magazine.

Your tax dollars at work!

I posted the first comment here. I hardly think it is a scandal, but I find it seriously disappointing when educators, especially the head of our school system, use bad grammar. Do other people do it? Sure, but so what. I think we all have slip-ups and no one has perfect grammar, and there are all kinds of expressions we use with friends, family, etc., but when giving an on-the-record statement I think we would all try to sound as educated as we are. And as far as it being "shrewd" as one later PP suggested, I don't call that shrewd, I call that pandering. I am perfectly comfortable and secure with my education, I think educated people who go around using bad grammar so they'll be better liked by those who aren't as educated may be the insecure ones.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:[
I posted the first comment here. I hardly think it is a scandal, but I find it seriously disappointing when educators, especially the head of our school system, use bad grammar. Do other people do it? Sure, but so what. I think we all have slip-ups and no one has perfect grammar, and there are all kinds of expressions we use with friends, family, etc., but when giving an on-the-record statement I think we would all try to sound as educated as we are. And as far as it being "shrewd" as one later PP suggested, I don't call that shrewd, I call that pandering. I am perfectly comfortable and secure with my education, I think educated people who go around using bad grammar so they'll be better liked by those who aren't as educated may be the insecure ones.

Are you listening DCPS and hired hands? Your attempts to poo poo this are not working.

It's not shrewd, it's not entertaining, it's not typical of hot-shot execs.

It's stupid. It's embarrassing. It's a mistake - not a huge one, except to the extent that you insist on denying it

Deal with it -- like the adults who put kids first whom you pride yourselves on being.

[Anonymous]

I think Kaya is in over her head. A good #2 is very different than being the leader of the organization. Her inexperience is showing. But I think that's why Gray wanted her - so he could tell her exactly what to do and she would do it, unlike Rhee.

[Anonymous]

Of course Kaya is in over her head!!! She is not qualified to run a school system.