Ha! Like a THIRD Assistant Principal? Not the kind of help they need. That school needs a competent administrator from downtown to come on site and talk to teachers and parents. Give assurances to teachers that they have whistle blower protection so they are comfortable to discuss problems.

There seems to be some frivolous and some serious issues at Lafayette. Best to figure out which is which and then take the serious ones to Lafayette's Instructional Supeeimtendent.

It is a shame to see some of the things going on up there. With such a large school and some challenging issues it would be wise to get the administration some help. They could also use some oversight.

She's a nightmare to work for

Between that principal and those parents, good luck.

Anonymous wrote:As a perspective Lafayette parent for K next year, can someone provide more context here. How are things going this year in Kindergarten so far?

An extra class had to be added (and thus an extra teacher/asst hired as well finding a classroom) at the last minute to meet demand and keep class sizes reasonable. This naturally has created some one time challenges.. things should be worked out by next year. The little ones are learning a lot and seem to be having fun (which is all that matters in the end)

It seems to me that there are a lot more haters of Lafayette that like to pile on. Open communication is good and considering some of the cuckoo stuff others put on here the complaints about Lafayette parents seem to be just affectations. If anyone has the vapors it is not Lafayette parents...

The school has expanded in size enormously and most of the parents don't have any idea what is actually going on anymore. Classes are switched up every year, so connections to other parents are down, the PTA, has developed over the years to be insular (not on purpose) and school policiesbhave been I mplemented o keep the busybodies. When everything is taken together the feeling of disconnect gets amplified. A small group does all the work and feels resentful/unappreciated. The large group doesn't know what's going on and feels kept in the dark. The natural reaction is to look for outlets for nformation. Everything will be fine, the structure just needs to adapt to the new reality.of a 1000 school and there are going to be growing pains along the way.

As for this topic, c'mon people adding an extra K class at the last minute in August was going to cause some problems. A little.consideration of both the legitimacy of the gripes and the adminstrative difficulty of pulling it off goes a long way.

Anonymous wrote:LAFAYETTE PARENTS ARE SCARY! No wonder they can't hire anyone there qualified anymore. One look at this page and anyone with a brain better RUNNNN!

Obviously this is a huge generalization and just not fair to the majority. It's a large school, but everyone I know who sends their kids there is easy going and down to earth. They have questions. There is a lot of them... back off.

LAFAYETTE PARENTS ARE SCARY! No wonder they can't hire anyone there qualified anymore. One look at this page and anyone with a brain better RUNNNN!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I know Lafayette parents think it's great to air their dirty laundry on here but it's counterproductive. I know of two fantastic teachers who after the interview were going to take a job if offered. After doing some more research about the school and looking at dccum chose not to take the job when it was offered. And the job was offered. The look you guys are giving to potential teachers isn't a good one.

Honey, any NW school is just like this. Lafayette just doesn't try and hide it like everyone else does.

no honey, nuts cases are everywhere but Lafayette seems to have a pretty high concentration of people with a mix of entitlement and lots of time on their hands. parents' involvement in school is great, but at a certain point parents need to step back and let the principal and teachers do their job. some grievances I read here are ridiculous. "kids in aftercare have to wear vests"... "kids at lunch have to stay quiet and eat", now the poster above saying that there were 30 kids in a room (until a week before school started, so there were never actually 30 kids in a room) and that now her kid was taken to a secluded hallway, sounds like the set of Oliver.

+1 Lafayette parent here, this is spot on. I met another upper NW parent tonight who asked me what is wrong with the parent community at Lafayette. It was embarrassing.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I know Lafayette parents think it's great to air their dirty laundry on here but it's counterproductive. I know of two fantastic teachers who after the interview were going to take a job if offered. After doing some more research about the school and looking at dccum chose not to take the job when it was offered. And the job was offered. The look you guys are giving to potential teachers isn't a good one.

Honey, any NW school is just like this. Lafayette just doesn't try and hide it like everyone else does.

no honey, nuts cases are everywhere but Lafayette seems to have a pretty high concentration of people with a mix of entitlement and lots of time on their hands. parents' involvement in school is great, but at a certain point parents need to step back and let the principal and teachers do their job. some grievances I read here are ridiculous. "kids in aftercare have to wear vests"... "kids at lunch have to stay quiet and eat", now the poster above saying that there were 30 kids in a room (until a week before school started, so there were never actually 30 kids in a room) and that now her kid was taken to a secluded hallway, sounds like the set of Oliver.

Anonymous wrote:I know Lafayette parents think it's great to air their dirty laundry on here but it's counterproductive. I know of two fantastic teachers who after the interview were going to take a job if offered. After doing some more research about the school and looking at dccum chose not to take the job when it was offered. And the job was offered. The look you guys are giving to potential teachers isn't a good one.

Honey, any NW school is just like this. Lafayette just doesn't try and hide it like everyone else does.

They moved a 6th K teacher to First last year because they said "enrollment was down" (ya right. The principal just doesn't know how to manage the budget). So there were 30 Kindergartners in a room until a week before school started. Our kids got pulled out of those regular classes to be put with a new teacher, in a secluded hallway that has no other common classes, then there was no assistant for two weeks, and now, the poor teacher is in the hospital and out for at least two weeks. We shouldn't be upset at her, but we are definitely feeling frustrated with the situation.

I know Lafayette parents think it's great to air their dirty laundry on here but it's counterproductive. I know of two fantastic teachers who after the interview were going to take a job if offered. After doing some more research about the school and looking at dccum chose not to take the job when it was offered. And the job was offered. The look you guys are giving to potential teachers isn't a good one.

As a perspective Lafayette parent for K next year, can someone provide more context here. How are things going this year in Kindergarten so far?

NO. For heavens sake people, we have a teacher who needs medical care. She's not our indentured servant who serves at our will. Second grade started the year without a teacher when she broke her ankle. These are professionals--just like some of you and your loved ones--and they are entitled to take time away from the classroom to care for the health and wellbeing.