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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]The latest at SSMA: most parents don't know this yet but there is a mass exodus of teachers and administrators coming. The way this situation with the principal was handled has had a massively negative impact on retention.

If you have a good relationship with your child's guide, ask your guide if he or she is coming back next year.[/quote]

I’m a parent of an incoming Pk3 and I’m so nervous after reading this thread, I’ve put our IB school back on our lottery list. My child is in the 30s on other waitlists, but I don’t know we’ll get any other offers by fall.

Besides the mass exodus of great teachers, what’s the worst case scenario of what could happen at SSMA by the time classes begin in the fall?[/quote]

This is a response to you and to a few other resent posters.

SSMA has the makings of a really good school. It has dedicated guides, a diverse student body and a strong parent community. What's more is it provides a free quality Montessori education. Those are huge positives. I have nothing negative to say about the quality of instruction.

But, of course, the school also has some huge negatives. And that's why there are people on DCUM stirring the pot. SSMA has a Facebook group and a lot of private discussions occur there for people in the SSMA community. These back and forths can be heated but they're private. Not everyone uses Facebook though. So I suspect some people have taken to DCUM to express their concerns for that reason and as a way of warning people outside the SSMA community of the issues at play.

The heating, air conditioning and turnover issues are all symptomatic of the core issue at SSMA which is admin. The ED really does care about education. There's no question about that. She has dedicated her life to it. And this is her third attempt at setting up or leading a PCS in the DC school system. But unfortunately she is a disaster as an administrator: unorganized, thin-skinned, and sometimes downright rude and nasty. The reason guides are leaving en masse is the same reason that the school has had 4 principals in five years: when people see how the ED operates up close, they become alarmed. She operates first and foremost by instilling fear. Ask anyone who works there. Seriously.Just ask, "Does Shining Stars have a culture of fear?" And see what response you get. Anyone not loyal to her -- and she has brought in a few people from her personal life like friends, Uber driver, babysitter, friend's personal trainer, etc, etc -- had better show loyalty to her or she will tear them apart. And either she ejects them or they leave of their own accord. This year will be particularly bad. Think about how the principal left: mid-year, mid-day, 5 weeks before school ended. Why? It goes to the ED's character. This was shockingly mean-spirited.

When the next year begins, it's basic organization that will be the problem. The worst case scenario is chaos on the organizational level: not enough teachers, classes out of ratio because they have no subs, classrooms not ready for students, air conditioning breaking again, no one at carpool to take children into the classrooms, school supplies not ordered. The ED is disorganized and the principal masked that disorganization. With her gone, the chaos has already started. And so some very good people are going to not be there next year. And when those people leave, other people will leave too - because that's how organizations work; people stay because of other people and leave because of other people.

So the worst case scenario is not just disorganization but also a loss of qualified teachers. And it's all so disappointing, heartbreaking even. Shining Stars is a great school in so many ways. But the ED is her own worst enemy.

P.S. - She did lose a son this year and she lost her mother last year too. I can't say if that has affected her behavior.[/quote]

The question by the poster at 10:35 suggests your worst case scenario is already happening. What can we do to stop the departures? I know people are going to say make the ED step down. I just don't see that happening. What else can Shining Stars do to retain guides for next year? This much turnover will kill the school.[/quote]

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