Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 12:46     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
cardozo middle will cease to exist soon -- DCPS is planning to open the new "center city" middle school in 4 years, feeding all the kids from Cardozo's feeders there. Speaking as someone with kids at one of the feeders, there is a lot of interest in the new middle school.

Absolutely no one I know from the upper grades plans to send their kids to Cardozo Middle. Even our admin set up a middle school fair and encourages everyone to lottery out for middle.

I think DCPS as a whole has stopped paying attention to Cardozo Middle as a result.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 12:45     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
Anonymous wrote:Hi All,

I’m a parent of a middle schooler who came home crying yesterday because there were apparently four fights that occurred simultaneously in the afternoon. One of which had one or more students take scissors from a teacher’s desk and take them apart to form two knives where they went after other kids.

Luckily no one was stabbed, but I’m concerned that I didn’t hear anything about this from the middle school administration or principal Mola. No email, no letter sent home, or any update on their social media pages. I asked my child if they had an assembly to reassure the kids’ safety. Nothing.

Are there any other parents who feel ignored by principal Mola and the middle school administration?

If I’m overreacting, please say so.

Is this kind of violence typical of DC public schools?

Are other principals and assistant principals more or less communicative?

Thanks for listening.


Teacher at another DCPS middle school and I would not say this kind of violence is the norm. I am also not in Ward 3. I've left a container of scissors out on the counter for weeks and no one has ever done this. Are there ever fights? Yes. I do my best as teacher to listen and try to diffuse situations before it ever get to that point. The culture team at my school does as well.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 12:36     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
OP: Has there been a message from either the principal or middle school assistant principal about the incident you originally posted about?
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 12:24     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Last year at Hardy, we would not have heard about a situation like this. The principal didn't reports serious incidents as required because it would look bad for him. I guess he learned that technique for lying where ever he was AP before. He got removed from Hardy, thank goodness.

At Hardy this year, with a new, responsible principal, we would get a communication promptly.


As a Hispanic father, I AGREE!
+1. Another Hardy parent here. Principal is great and communicates everything promptly.


+1 Cardozo middle school parent.

Agree! Agree! Agree!
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 12:21     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Last year at Hardy, we would not have heard about a situation like this. The principal didn't reports serious incidents as required because it would look bad for him. I guess he learned that technique for lying where ever he was AP before. He got removed from Hardy, thank goodness.

At Hardy this year, with a new, responsible principal, we would get a communication promptly.


As a Hispanic father, I AGREE!
+1. Another Hardy parent here. Principal is great and communicates everything promptly.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 11:35     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
OP you need to figure out how to get your kid out of Cardozo asap. If you care about a good education and solid performing peers, then Cardozo is all wrong.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 11:17     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Wow similar issues are happening all over DCPS in the area .We need more parents together in a big platform and open a discussion. Let's change schools bad behavior together.


It also seems much more common to have serious incidents since the pandemic. Are you finding that as well?


Definitely! More crime, fewer rules, less enforcement of standards.

I asked some of my kids’ teachers why there isn’t a uniform policy and why the cell phone policy isn’t enforced and they say, “The principal thinks uniforms and cell phone policies are racist and if all of the kids at Jackson-Reed and Deal can wear what they want and have their phones, why can’t our black and brown kids?!”

I see what he means, but I don’t think holding kids to standards is racially biased.

As a black mother, I kind of find that logic insulting, personally.


Hardy has uniforms (with a few options) and locks up cell phones.

As a white mother, I love both policies!

(Mr. Mola sounds like he needs to run back to elementary and get himself out of a bad fit fast.)
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 10:33     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
Anonymous wrote:Last year at Hardy, we would not have heard about a situation like this. The principal didn't reports serious incidents as required because it would look bad for him. I guess he learned that technique for lying where ever he was AP before. He got removed from Hardy, thank goodness.

At Hardy this year, with a new, responsible principal, we would get a communication promptly.


+1. Another Hardy parent here. Principal is great and communicates everything promptly.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 10:12     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
Cardozo’s middles school assistant principal is Dr. Fields.

My child complains that she just hangs out in her office all day. No incentives. No higher standards. No celebrations of student achievement. She hangs out with the same 4-6 student bullies all day. She gives them all of their time and energy. Meanwhile, my child is on the Honor Roll and she’s never even said, “Hi”, to her.

Shameful.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 10:07     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
Anonymous wrote:A student brought some kind of gun to my elementary school and no one was ever told. Even staff were told not to talk about it and told everything from it was a toy/water gun to BB gun. Sadly weapons and fighting is fairly typical in a lot of schools around here, not just DCPS.

As an aside, all major communication goes through DCPS central office. It’s all a form letter they modify. So you may get a late email message or Remind message.


Oh wow! I’m so sorry to hear that!

That’s so lousy of them! 😡
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 10:06     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Wow similar issues are happening all over DCPS in the area .We need more parents together in a big platform and open a discussion. Let's change schools bad behavior together.


It also seems much more common to have serious incidents since the pandemic. Are you finding that as well?


Definitely! More crime, fewer rules, less enforcement of standards.

I asked some of my kids’ teachers why there isn’t a uniform policy and why the cell phone policy isn’t enforced and they say, “The principal thinks uniforms and cell phone policies are racist and if all of the kids at Jackson-Reed and Deal can wear what they want and have their phones, why can’t our black and brown kids?!”

I see what he means, but I don’t think holding kids to standards is racially biased.

As a black mother, I kind of find that logic insulting, personally.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 10:02     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Wow similar issues are happening all over DCPS in the area .We need more parents together in a big platform and open a discussion. Let's change schools bad behavior together.


It also seems much more common to have serious incidents since the pandemic. Are you finding that as well?


This is Cardozo for gods sake. It’s been a notoriously dangerous school for decades


Community member here.

I went to Cardozo years ago, and it was never this bad. I remember when it had uniforms, a cell phone policy, (after I graduated of course) and rules were enforced.

Respectfully, it hasn’t been “dangerous” for decades, but living in the neighborhood, I’d contend that it’s been this way for about 5 years.

Kids run around the neighborhood, cursing, frightening neighbors, vandalizing, and stealing things, but it’s also only a small group.

I would agree that it appears to many of us who live in the area, the principal isn’t doing much, but I wouldn’t say the school is “dangerous”.

Every school in DCPS has elements of being unsafe.

I have met Mr. Mola before and he does seem like a nice man, but if people think that the school is “dangerous” or “unsafe”, maybe his bosses need to investigate why.

I see your point, but again, as someone who has lived in the area for over 20+ years, I think there is a culture to demonize schools like Cardozo. As I stated before, it wasn’t always like this, only the last 5 years or so.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 09:53     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
Anonymous wrote:Wow similar issues are happening all over DCPS in the area .We need more parents together in a big platform and open a discussion. Let's change schools bad behavior together.


Absolutely! Please like Mr. Mola talk a good game but when it comes down to the nitty gritty, he’s nowhere to be found.

He worked at Bancroft ES before this and the parents love him there. Maybe he should consider returning. High school and and middle school are tough to run together let alone separately.
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 08:56     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Wow similar issues are happening all over DCPS in the area .We need more parents together in a big platform and open a discussion. Let's change schools bad behavior together.


It also seems much more common to have serious incidents since the pandemic. Are you finding that as well?


This is Cardozo for gods sake. It’s been a notoriously dangerous school for decades
Anonymous
Post 03/09/2024 08:54     Subject: Concerned Cardozo Parent
Anonymous wrote:Wow similar issues are happening all over DCPS in the area .We need more parents together in a big platform and open a discussion. Let's change schools bad behavior together.


It also seems much more common to have serious incidents since the pandemic. Are you finding that as well?