Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Report is pretty shocking. This is why graduation rates have gone up - because they will graduate just about anyone not because DCPS is doing anything better. If I was a Ballou parent, I would be outraged at the shenanigans at the school. Principal needs to be fired now but I feel bad as I’m sure there are people involved above her who will escape unscathed.

If a kid is missing that many days, then its clear the parents are all that interested or on top of their kids academic career. I think the parents expect the kids to do all the parenting. THis is the problem.

Some of these students don't have parents.

And for those students and other at-risk students the system should provide the needed wrap-around services, the exceptions to policy, etc.. There were 214 homeless seniors last year compared to the 3800 who were not homeless. So let's not try and negate the argument for more parent engagement by throwing around orphan and/or homeless status. That sort of argument is intended to shame people into not actually addressing a very real problem...the problem of checked out, bad parenting.

40% of all DCPS students are at risk. The percentage is even higher in the high schools.

DCPS had 2307 graduates last year. We should assume that at least 900 of those students were at risk.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Report is pretty shocking. This is why graduation rates have gone up - because they will graduate just about anyone not because DCPS is doing anything better. If I was a Ballou parent, I would be outraged at the shenanigans at the school. Principal needs to be fired now but I feel bad as I’m sure there are people involved above her who will escape unscathed.

If a kid is missing that many days, then its clear the parents are all that interested or on top of their kids academic career. I think the parents expect the kids to do all the parenting. THis is the problem.

Some of these students don't have parents.

And for those students and other at-risk students the system should provide the needed wrap-around services, the exceptions to policy, etc.. There were 214 homeless seniors last year compared to the 3800 who were not homeless. So let's not try and negate the argument for more parent engagement by throwing around orphan and/or homeless status. That sort of argument is intended to shame people into not actually addressing a very real problem...the problem of checked out, bad parenting.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What does it take in DCPS to actually be fired? Not reassigned or brought back to central office and drawing a salary?

You don't understand. These issues are happening systemically. Principals are following orders FROM central office to get graduation rates up. Firing principals and/or teachers does not solve this problem.

I do understand. But sometimes you need to set an example and sometimes that example means firing or punishing the leader. In the case of Ballou, regardless if the absenteeism problem is systemic, it was the principal who announced and embraced the obnoxious, self-serving, arrogant goal that every student would apply to and be accepted into college.

I'll be curious to see if any clever attorneys out there try and get a group of parents of Ballou graduates from 2017 to file a suit against the District.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Report is pretty shocking. This is why graduation rates have gone up - because they will graduate just about anyone not because DCPS is doing anything better. If I was a Ballou parent, I would be outraged at the shenanigans at the school. Principal needs to be fired now but I feel bad as I’m sure there are people involved above her who will escape unscathed.

If a kid is missing that many days, then its clear the parents are all that interested or on top of their kids academic career. I think the parents expect the kids to do all the parenting. THis is the problem.

Some of these students don't have parents.

Anonymous wrote:What does it take in DCPS to actually be fired? Not reassigned or brought back to central office and drawing a salary?

You realize the principal at Ballou was a carry over from Oakland by the Chancellor. Firing her would show poor judgment by the Chancellor for bringing her on.

Cronyism is alive and well.

Anonymous wrote:What does it take in DCPS to actually be fired? Not reassigned or brought back to central office and drawing a salary?

You don't understand. These issues are happening systemically. Principals are following orders FROM central office to get graduation rates up. Firing principals and/or teachers does not solve this problem.

What does it take in DCPS to actually be fired? Not reassigned or brought back to central office and drawing a salary?

Anonymous wrote:Report is pretty shocking. This is why graduation rates have gone up - because they will graduate just about anyone not because DCPS is doing anything better. If I was a Ballou parent, I would be outraged at the shenanigans at the school. Principal needs to be fired now but I feel bad as I’m sure there are people involved above her who will escape unscathed.

If a kid is missing that many days, then its clear the parents are all that interested or on top of their kids academic career. I think the parents expect the kids to do all the parenting. THis is the problem.

Excerpts from today's WAMU story on interim report.

Students Across D.C. Graduated Despite Chronic Absences, An Investigation Finds
Kate McGee

Tyrone Turner / WAMU

A high-level investigation into chronic absenteeism in Washington, D.C., high schools has found that students across the city were graduated despite having missed more than 30 days of school in a single course, in violation of district policy.

The findings today followed an investigation late last year by WAMU and NPR Ed into widespread violations of this policy at Ballou High school. That reporting has led to two investigations and the placement of the school’s principal, Yetunde Reeves, on administrative leave. Results from the other inquiry are expected later this month.

The findings today come from the D.C. Office of the State Superintendent (OSSE), which contracted with a private firm to look into what happened at Ballou and other high schools. That investigation was ordered by D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser on Dec. 1.

“The huge investments we have made in our schools only work if students are sitting in the seats,” Bowser said at a news conference today.

The OSSE findings also confirmed our reporting from the last school year at Ballou High School, citing violations, specifically, with 113 of 177 graduating students’ records.

And in looking across the city at other high schools, the investigation found:

A pattern of students graduating despite extreme absenteeism
Inappropriate and excessive use of credit recovery (accelerated versions of a class)
A pattern of communications from administrators urging teachers to find ways of passing students regardless of absences. Teachers reported concerns about the effect this had on their performance evaluations.

Antwan Wilson, the chancellor of the city’s public schools, said he was “disappointed” by the findings, notably that “over 60 percent of students [were] graduating despite chronic absences.”

“Failure is a part of life,” Wilson added, but he said the district still needs to make sure that students adhere to policies and are set up for success.

Results from a full, district-wide investigation are expected at the end of this month.

Since publishing our initial report, WAMU and NPR Ed have heard from educators across the country that similar practices are taking place in their schools.

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone know if the Ballou principal was actually fired or will remain reassigned to Central office? What about the bonus she received last year because her superiors thought she was doing such a fantastic job? Why is no one else getting fired? There is no way she was the only one responsible.

According to WAMU (last paragraph of this story) she is 'permanently" reassigned. The interim principal will finish this year, and there will be a search for a new principal. https://wamu.org/story/18/01/16/report-confirms-policy-violations-ballou-allowed-chronically-absent-students-graduate/

Does anyone know if the Ballou principal was actually fired or will remain reassigned to Central office? What about the bonus she received last year because her superiors thought she was doing such a fantastic job? Why is no one else getting fired? There is no way she was the only one responsible.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Satisfactory attendance is defined as 5% or fewer missed instructional days (be they excused or unexcused absences).

So riffing off 10:34, how many days have your kids missed this year (for any/all reasons)?

My kids:

8th 4
11th 2

The report card says 7, but the truth is 4. Not worth the effort to fix it. It is like this every year, even in elementary school.

This is another good point. The accuracy of the front office at our school is laughable.

Totally. I think many of us can say that the absent count on report cards is likely wrong but who wants to take the time to get that figured out unless your child is borderline in some way? Besides, report cards only offer up numbers of tardies and abscences, without any dates or reasons. For instance, if my child had an excused absence, does it still show up in the absences count on the report card? And why aren't absences and tardies part of ASPEN?

We were just talking about this issue since I came across my 6th graders report card this weekend. In big font it says 18 Days missed but in looking at the classes she missed max of 7 days in one class, one was 4, one was 2 and the others had 0. She has a Summer bday so dentist once a year for a tardy/early dismissal but other then that she would have been out all day. Annoying.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Satisfactory attendance is defined as 5% or fewer missed instructional days (be they excused or unexcused absences).

So riffing off 10:34, how many days have your kids missed this year (for any/all reasons)?

My kids:

8th 4
11th 2

The report card says 7, but the truth is 4. Not worth the effort to fix it. It is like this every year, even in elementary school.

This is another good point. The accuracy of the front office at our school is laughable.

Totally. I think many of us can say that the absent count on report cards is likely wrong but who wants to take the time to get that figured out unless your child is borderline in some way? Besides, report cards only offer up numbers of tardies and abscences, without any dates or reasons. For instance, if my child had an excused absence, does it still show up in the absences count on the report card? And why aren't absences and tardies part of ASPEN?

Yes, an excused absence should still show up on the report card.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Satisfactory attendance is defined as 5% or fewer missed instructional days (be they excused or unexcused absences).

So riffing off 10:34, how many days have your kids missed this year (for any/all reasons)?

My kids:

8th 4
11th 2

The report card says 7, but the truth is 4. Not worth the effort to fix it. It is like this every year, even in elementary school.

This is another good point. The accuracy of the front office at our school is laughable.

Totally. I think many of us can say that the absent count on report cards is likely wrong but who wants to take the time to get that figured out unless your child is borderline in some way? Besides, report cards only offer up numbers of tardies and abscences, without any dates or reasons. For instance, if my child had an excused absence, does it still show up in the absences count on the report card? And why aren't absences and tardies part of ASPEN?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Satisfactory attendance is defined as 5% or fewer missed instructional days (be they excused or unexcused absences).

So riffing off 10:34, how many days have your kids missed this year (for any/all reasons)?

My kids:

8th 4
11th 2

The report card says 7, but the truth is 4. Not worth the effort to fix it. It is like this every year, even in elementary school.

This is another good point. The accuracy of the front office at our school is laughable.