WES Head of School resigns

[joromo703]

This is probably the stupidest allegation I have ever had to deal with in any forum anywhere. Just to be clear, however, there was NO favoritism in the choice of ANY of the Kings -- the child of the Board Member was chosen on talent alone, as were the other two.

And what's with the St. Alban's angle? Does St. Alban's automatically admit kids who play a King in their school's Christmas Pageant? My kid was not chosen to be Tacky the Penguin in the kindergarten play this year. Does that mean he has no hope of getting into Sidwell?

[Anonymous]

All the discussion about the 3 Kings when the school is in serious trouble. I know it's a real example of the schools problems, but it's so silly., WES needs an independent board and needs to stop allowing wanna be parents to micromanage the school. No decent HOS can be recruited--or will stay--until big changes are made. It's just embarrassing to be a current WES family.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP, we had the EXACT same experience as you. I ignored the previous threads on here about the "luck of the draw" with regards to the teachers and the bad teachers being "off the charts mean." We found out the hard way that this is indeed true. One of the "off the charts mean" teachers is a recent hire, so it's not just the "old guard" teachers that have been around too long. Same problems at WES, but no one will take any action or constructive criticism. We left angry and will never contribute a penny to this school in the future. I believe that the positive posters are having a good experience at WES, but they were fortunate with the "luck of the draw," and some teachers are real gems. The tuition is too high to be subjected to the misery of one of the mean/bad teachers. We also had two in a row. Now our DC is happier than ever at a different school. To anyone that left WES a long time ago, I can confirm that it's still business as usual over there.

Same story here. Also will never send back a penny. I think your point goes back to the Board issue. WES has always had a weak parent-run board. It has twice now in a row hired weak male headmasters. The parent-run board then disappears from the scene and is never seen again. The headmaster has too much power inasmuch as he controls who is in charge of the auction, who gets on the board, who gets the nicer teachers, who gets the perks. He also (like Sheridan's head) is the one to work the private high schools to get your kid in - so if you haven't devoted your heart and soul and time to WES (hullo, what about us working moms and dads??), then he is going to work harder to get another child's into, say, St. Albans, than your kid. He also should be firing the mean teachers but doesn't because he wants to be friends with the teachers and sides with them because they play tennis together. So the situation just drags along with parents registering complaints about teacher issues and nothing being done, year after year. Decade after decade. The WES board meets and parties. No one makes the hard decisions. The head wants to be popular so sides with the teachers at every conflict so parents vote with their feet. At least Scheussler made decisions - maybe too abruptly for some - but she made them and she hired and fired. WES needs to put in place a larger, professional board of governors. The board needs to take an active role in selecting the next head instead of bumping it to an expensive outside search team who brings in someone from out of state who has no record in local fundraising or familiarity with the local high schools (for exmissions purposes). Then WES needs to hire an independent college advisor so the headmaster has nothing to do with playing favoritism with high school applications. Finally, WES has got to give the mean teachers departure packages. It makes no sense for WES to hire an outside marketing PR outfit unless it is willing to clean house first.

[Anonymous]

Well said.

[Anonymous]

Why thank you.

[joromo703]

I think your view of the school is a bit distorted. WES is not in "serious trouble" at all -- enrollment is growing and parents are happy. I am very pleased with the direction of the school.

I'm not on the Board but I like that parents of current students are, as they have a finger on the pulse of the school. You clearly have a different opinion, but not one that is especially convincing.

[Anonymous]

^^ google dcurbanmom "Washington episcopal school" and read the archives. There IS a problem.

[Anonymous]

These problems are the same problems that WES has had for years. I would consider that "serious". Almost 4500 reads of "WES Head Resigns" is not minor. Close to 100 posts to the same item. Are you kidding??? No problems at the school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:^^ google dcurbanmom "Washington episcopal school" and read the archives. There IS a problem.

One cannot base decision on the existence of a problem based on number of posts in an anonymous especially when a sockpuppet is known to exist. Instead one has to visit the school, look at enrollment numbers, where graduates go to etc. I as a current WES parent do not see a problem and do not want any changes in the current staff or the administration style. Those who voted by their feet if they are happy at their schools, good for them. Please keep in mind that there is not a single school/teacher that is a match for all types of kids. Google any school and you will see pros and cons.

[[e-mail]]

Oh my has this just turned into another chapter of the "Mommy Fight Club"! And it is unfortunate.

So let's start off that the head of school doesn't pick the board members. The head of school is actually the board's only employee.

If your child came home from school one day next week with a problem - academic or social or whatever - would you look at them and simply say, "Hey that sounds like a perfect post for your Facebook!" or "Go tweet about it?" Heck no! You would (ideally) work through with your child how to maybe go about FIXING the issue or at least helping them NAVIGATE the situation.

This is no different. Ranting into cyberspace isn't productive in terms of resolving ill will or getting heard about the myriad of things that are on this thread. Board members are not trolls that live in mountain caves. School administrators are not behind doors with secret keys. These are people that are accessible and DO care about the school. EVERY child and family at the school.

I am not Ghandi or Martin Luther King and I have not been nominated for the Nobel Peace prize. But the frustration that I see on this thread leaves me sad and disappointed because it is not the WES I know and love. I am not anonymous on here. You can send a message to me directly. And if you want to try to work through how to voice and air your concerns in a positive way - I will walk that walk with you. I may not agree with you - but all this posting back and forth doesn't resolve anything. To me this is no different then when a parent at school has said to me that they have a concern or issue. Cyberspace or the lobby - its all our community.

The WES motto is "Be Kind". I am holding out an olive branch. Its yours to take. This is the spirit of the WES community.

[Anonymous]

I am a WES parent. Please, this is embarrassing.

[Anonymous]

I am a current WES parent and appreciate the offer to help resolve issues. The true spirit of the WES community comes across in the post!

[Anonymous]

As much as a few people on this blog want to dedicate their lives to knocking WES, I can tell you that the vast majority of families are very pleased at WES. That is a fact. Enrollment is at the highest level in years, the school built a new field without asking its community for a dime (showing that it has a strong balance sheet and a smart Board) and we just had an auction that raised the most money in a decade. At the end of the day, as a WES parent, I love my kids and love being a part of this community. The level of vindictiveness on this blog is just shocking to me. Life is too short, people.

[Anonymous]

I'm the equivalent of a rubbernecker on the highway. I cannot even imagine caring whose kid plays a speaking role in the Christmas pageant (I assume that's the big deal with the Kings?). And I'm comfortable judging you if you care -- and laughing at you, of course. Much better than satire!

For god's sake, go and get a job or start doing volunteer work that does not involve your child's school.

[Anonymous]

As parents of a kindergartener at WES, we couldn't have been more thrilled when we received an acceptance letter on Saturday for our daughter for the Nursery program next year.

Our experience at WES has been nothing short of terrific. Our entire family is known on a first-name basis, has been welcomed into the WES community with open arms, and we have yet to meet a member of the faculty and staff who we haven't truly liked and enjoyed getting to know. There are constant and open lines of communication with teachers and administrators. Most importantly, there are happy children everywhere. You can see them running off the field after practice in the carpool line, while peering into the classroom on tours during the parents' visiting day or when volunteering, and during the all school chapels to which parents are invited. We visited several schools prior to choosing WES, and it was the one place that really stood out in this regard. My son is a kid who has a tough time with transitions and the staff, faculty, other children and families have made this year almost seamless for him. He is challenged in the classroom, and he is appreciated for who he is by his teachers and peers. And he is happy every day when he gets in the car at pickup.

What we sought out in a private school -- and what we feel makes WES well worth the money -- are two things: 1) the academic program (which we researched extensively) and 2) the community. WES is focused on making children good students and good people. For our family, the school has been more than successful in fulfilling both of these objectives since we've arrived.

I am sorry to see Kirk Duncan go. His wife, Sarah, could not be more lovely and I can't imagine it has been easy for him to live apart from his spouse. Being an involved parent and around the school enough to know if it were otherwise, there were no reasons other than personal ones for his departure.