From Susan Stroup -

SACS CASI Working Group Update:

We had our second productive meeting today to work on our response plan for the SACS-CASI recommendations. Several additional representatives provided valuable input today.

They are:

• Scott Carlton, Parent of High School Student and Local Business Owner, SMART Leader
• Rev. George Logan, Pastor New Day Christian Church, Parent, Leader in African-American Community
• Daniel Gutierez, Leader in Hispanic Community, Pastor, Parent, BCPS Teacher
• Amy Morgan, BCPS Classified Employee, Parent
• Nhia Yee Her, Hmong Community Leader, Parent (unable to attend today will attend next meeting)

Also present were Dr. Stellar, Brian Bowman, Michael McNally, Susan Stroup, and Rob Hairfield

We reviewed the templates to be sent regarding #10, #11, and review of ethics policies. Dr. Stellar is drafting a cover letter which he will send to us for feedback. We plan to have an outline to send by Friday and then present the full progress to the Board on Monday, Dec. 7.
We also discussed the tentative details for Review Team visit on Dec. 14-15.

Our next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, December 10.

We are making progress!

The SWAT Oath of Office Ceremony with Public Comments/Open Mic will be an opportunity for authentic stakeholder input. We hope that many will share ideas and thoughts for formulating the vision and goals for BCPS.

Thank you for posting your thoughts here. I appreciate each of you!



Susan Stroup

Today’s the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade . . .

I am thankful for so many things every day, but like most folks I take those things for granted. Since this blog is BCPS-centric, I thought I'd share some of the things in the system that I am grateful for.

Some of the things I am thankful for include (but are not limited to):

School custodians who not only take care of the school facilities, but who implement cost saving measures every day and who keep our schools safe and clean for our students every day.

School maintenance crews who also work tirelessly to keep our schools safe and functional. Wish I had some maintenance crews at my house. I have destructive students here, so I do have part of the equation already. (I am thankful for my destructive students, too.)

Bus drivers. I don't know how you do it. I remember riding the bus. I don't know how you do it. (Yes, that is redundant, but I don't know how they do it.) Thank you.

Technology folks who keep the schools "connected," and who work with a sometimes failing infrastructure to provide services to the schools. What would the system do without them?

Food service workers who provide nourishment and a smile every day, and who practice empathy everyday when dealing with students who consistently forget their lunch money, or and who practice generosity to those who have no lunch money to forget.

The unsung heroes in the Central Office who rise above and beyond the call of duty to fill in the gaps and provide the actual time and effort to fulfill the mandates of their "superiors." There are so many of you who have kept your heads down and who have focused on the difficult tasks of keeping the system running at a time when it would have been easier to walk away and let the those in charge actually have to deal with their own (often specious) directives.

Principals and assistant principals whose leadership is tested daily by demands from above and below, but who are able to balance loyalty to their employees, care and concerns for their students, and the constant pressure to improve scores while trying to provide a "whole" education for the students.

Secretaries and support personnel. You are such a relief to young students when you show them a smile and sympathy. You are priceless to those you work for. You are often a great buffer between parents and teachers and principals.

Teacher assistants. Providing another kind face and support in the classroom. You are a such a benefit to students and teachers alike.

Substitute teachers. Thanks so much for doing such a difficult job for so little reward. (I remember how we used to treat substitute teachers – we didn't make their jobs easy. I have a feeling not too much has changed in that regard.)

Teachers. (I include instructional coaches here.) A group whose "calling" to teach has been taken advantage by society in general to justify paying you so much less than you are worth. (It seems that if we as a society know that someone feels "called" to do a particular job, we can pay them less.) If I were to enumerate all of the qualities you exhibit that I am thankful for, I would be at the computer for the next couple of hours. Suffice it to say that I am grateful for all that you do – under difficult circumstances, for little monetary reward.

Thank you.

Anonymous Suggestions – Random Thoughts

"What I'd like to know is the truth about our finances. Total Transparency.

For instance, I'd like to know about the Schwartz and Shaw bills beyond what is written in the Herald. How much is not being reported? How much do we still owe them?

Rather than cutting salaries, let's look at how many contracted employees we pay, their costs, and for what reasons.

Rather than cutting salaries, let's look at the contract to the energy company. What are the terms to which we signed? How much are we paying them per month?

Rather than cutting salaries, look at hiring other positions in the same fashion and for the same reasons as we did the two EC directors.

Rather than cutting salaries, could the superintendent's contract be modified in any way?

Rather than cutting salaries, let's look at who is getting their cell phones paid for and for what reasons.

Rather than cutting salaries, which programs have been losing money and should be eliminated?

Rather than cutting salaries, let's beg some of the top businessmen in our state to come together to look over our financials and offer suggestions. These men and women know what they are doing. They are successful making money. Their businesses help bring people into our area. Let's learn from them rather than exclude them."

Above is a recently submitted comment that I thought ought to be shared. Please remember that I am not a board member yet and that we don't have an opportunity to act on these suggestions until we meet in December. In the meantime, we (including you) all have the ability to make our opinions known by contacting Dr. Stellar.

Schwartz and Shaw: The bill submitted is woefully short on detail. I am pursuing this as a private citizen. The only thing that is not being reported is any work done from Nov. 1 to the present. We can't compel them to submit those invoices until they are ready to (within limits). I believe we can compel them to itemize the bill they just submitted. I have learned that previous bills have been void of timekeeping detail as well, and I am honestly shocked that BCPS has paid those bills in the past without demanding itemization so that the charges can be checked against what was authorized by the board.

It is a good idea to look at all contracts and look for creative ways to share jobs where possible. It would be a gesture of good will for Dr. Stellar to offer to defer some of his income, but I don't think it is fair for the county to expect this from him. As an attorney, I believe in the freedom to contract, and he has done nothing wrong in his acceptance of this position and in signing the contract. I know many disagree.

The last budget called for a drastic reduction in blackberries. Not sure about cell phones. I think we need to tread softly here, because there are legitimate needs for cell phones/blackberries for many site administrators and such, and as we know, sometimes the price of terminating a contract early is more than continuing the contract until its end. It certainly is worth communicating with the service provider and seeing what kinds of contract amendments they will accommodate, and seeing if there are less expensive alternatives for communication.

Which programs have been losing money? Not sure what public school program doesn't lose money (except for food programs). I am not trying to be cheeky here, but please provide more detail about what programs you are talking about.

Humanities: I am under the impression that Humanities is safe for now.

A "Common Vision"? :

Discussion about technology should be held after there is consensus by stakeholders as to what the "Vision Statement" and "Goals" of the school system are. If super-high test scores are a goal shared by the stakeholders, and if technology/software is an agreed upon means to that goal, then technology issues should be tackled by the administration and principals as a team. If technology for the sake of technology is the goal (and I don't think that goal is an illegitimate goal – it is the way the world is functioning), then again, the administration and the principals must work together as a team to figure out how to accomplish that goal. Once the "Goals" and "Vision" are identified and enunciated, it is my opinion that it is the superintendent's responsibility to lead the discussion with the principals, develop as much consensus as possible, and then make the ultimate decision as to what to recommend to the board.

On the other hand, I understand that there is an attempt to provide uniform technology in all of the schools. For instance, the Alternative Schools apparently have the least optimum technology, software, textbooks and resources of all of the schools, and those students should have equal access to those things. I understand that management of schools is site-based and that principals typically make these decisions on the basis of what their schools need. In my opinion, this is not exactly a "Vision" and "Goals" issue as much as it is an equal access issue.

It seems to me (notwithstanding that administrators have a right to be territorial about their budgets and their decisions) that the bottom line is that students in all schools should have access to the same level of technology.

If the superintendent has convinced the principals that there are certain basic technology needs that all students in Burke County should have access to, then they should work together to accomplish providing that technology to every school. My sense is that both the superintendent and the principals have different ideas about this. I do not know this as a fact. It is an opinion. I hope that before the Central Office acts on any technology acquisitions, they do a thorough job in communicating their reasoning to the site administrators and get "buy in" from the principals. If they do not get "buy in" on the manner of paying for the technology, or if they do not reach consensus on what technology is actually needed, all parties need to table the discussion until the board meets and can discuss the concerns publicly.

Again, among the basic issue of equal access to technology for all schools, there are more complex issues like: what technology is "basic technology," what technology best fits all of the schools, what is the goal of the technology, what is the goal of the system, do all (most) of the stakeholders share that goal, what schools have already paid for technology and have to readjust their game plan? And of course, the most basic question: where is this money coming from? Is it earmarked especially for technology, or are we spending money that should be spent on infrastructure? (That would be part of the discussion about goals and priorities) Remember, in a funky fund/budget system, money is not always fungible and must adhere to the fund rules.

That is enough for now, I hope.

One at a time . . .

I acknowledge and am grateful for all of the thoughtful suggestions.


Note: These comments in italics are an addition to the original post. They are not underlined. I do not redline changes to my posts. "One at a Time" is a response to comments elicited from this question:

"what issues (and there are so many) need to be addressed asap (other than the obvious ones we candidates have been talking about for months)?"

I am not discussing the "obvious" issues in this post. Obvious: Fire outside counsel? Check. Modify policies? Duly noted. Restore classified pay and hours? Working on it. Settle lawsuits? Working on that, too. Restore SACS accreditation? We're on it. Restore trust in the system? We will do all we can. And the list of the "obvious" goes on. This post deals with the not-so-obvious.

One of the not-so-obvious is the rumored dismantling of the Humanities program. I heard about this episode/idea to eliminate Humanities from several reliable sources before anyone wrote about it on my blog. My understanding is that the folks who suggested the elimination of the program have backed off.

I do think the concept of modifying the high school AG curriculum bears discussion, just like the altering of programs for Exceptional Children should elicit discussion. If you are not interested in this, don't read the post. I assure you that commenting on this particular issue (that seems tertiary to many) does not mean that I or anyone else is not cognizant of the other "important" (or "obvious") issues that must be dealt with swiftly.

First of all, please realize that I have much to learn. I am not an educator. Also, it is late and I am presently out of town and cannot address every comment (or most comments) as they are posted. I’d like to continue the dialogue about all of the issues, but I am going to start with the one that seems to be the most popular at present – Humanities/Honors. This does not diminish the importance of the rest of the suggestions!

The Humanities program raises all kinds of passions among my readers. I am pro-Humanities, but I also see that such a program inspires resentment among non-Humanities folks. I have said before that I think it would be great if there could be "Humanities-like" programs available to all levels of learners. I don't think that a pure "AP" curriculum without Humanities will yield as well-rounded AG students as the current curriculum which seems to consist of Humanities and select AP courses. On the other hand, it is frustrating for our students to compete with students from metropolitan areas who have 6 and 7 AP courses on their transcripts - and most colleges don't seem to acknowledge that there is a difference between Humanities and Honors classes.

My children have been both in and out of Humanities. The two oldest children who were in Humanities and AP courses started their freshman years in college with 16-18 semester hour credits due to their AP credits. The third child who was not in Humanities had at least 12 semester hours of credit entering as a college freshman.

I think there is a sense of camaraderie and competition between Humanities students that may be more intense than may exist in Honors classes – it seems that due to scheduling, Humanities students see more of each other than they would if they were taking Honors classes – and as we all know, familiarity may breed contempt, but it also breeds comfort and competitiveness. I am not sure that students in Honors classes have that type of relationship that lasts for all four years of high school. Some folks may call that "exclusivity" due to scheduling "elitism." I wonder if that same kind of perception of "exclusivity" (not "elitism") can be created in other ways. In law school we had "study groups." Some colleges keep their "orientation groups" together for four years. Hogwarts has Hufflepuff, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. (I said it was late . . .) I am out of my depth here - you Honors/Humanities educators can opine as to whether my observations are valid - you can ignore the stuff about Hufflepuff, et al.

My two Humanities sons had a phenomenal education. My non-Humanities son had a phenomenal education - he was more of a mathematician and the extra liberal artsy stuff would have frustrated him. I would say that the jury is still out on my youngest son, but he is actually trying harder in English than I have ever seen. He has a great English teacher.

I also understand quite well the comments regarding stratification of students and self-esteem issues. One of my children was not put in AG classes in elementary school. When he realized what was going on – and that realization was almost instant - he constantly told me that he was “dumb.” I mean, for two or three years, that is all I heard. Yes, it broke my heart. It didn’t matter how often I told him he was as intelligent as anyone else – that he was a “smart” kid – he didn’t believe it.

Regarding the comment about all the kids in Honors and Humanities classes being teachers’ kids, I don’t know about that. I know teachers who won’t put their kids in Humanities classes even when those kids are eligible, because it is too much work. If there are more teachers’ kids in Honors and Humanities classes than non-teachers’ kids, I would guess that there are more correlative than causative reasons for this: perhaps teachers understand the value of education more personally than non-educators, students who grow up in a households where at least one parent has a college degree may be more likely to perform well in school, teachers may be more likely to assist children with their assignments than non-teachers (which in turn leads the students to be higher achievers), maybe teachers learn the value of being their children’s advocates sooner than the rest of us? Honestly, I don’t know if the commenter’s statement is even true – I just think that if it is true, the reasons behind that “fact” are much more complex than “Johnny is in Honors because his dad is a teacher and those teachers make sure their kids are in Honors classes.” I could be wrong.

Regarding “add-ons.” Some of my sons were "add-ons." They placed in Math, but not English, or vice versa. So they would have been add-ons in the sense that for ease of schedule, the schools tended to lump all AG together. (Note - it is rumored that when Hispanic children place in AG in Math in middle school they are not put in any AG classes b/c their English skills do not allow them to be in the AG English classes. That is a tragedy, and another issue to be addressed.)

Humanities and Honors both worked for my family the way they were supposed to.

From the comments I read, special needs children who have vocal advocates for parents do well in the system, although it sounds like the school system could do a better job explaining to the parents of those exceptional children early on what their rights are and how they can advocate for their children.

It is the students in the “middle” who seem to be losing out. If those students do not have “squeaky wheel” parents, they may be placed in regular college prep classes that may not be challenging enough. If they are interested in technical careers, they have few resources for that kind of education.

Signing off.

Comment away!

Reports of the death of "Barking in Burke" are greatly exaggerated.

I have to re-tool the blog a bit once I become a bonafide board member - the character of the blog will have to change a bit, but I hope to keep you all informed of the actions of the board. Until then, this is what I have been up to:

I am still trying to catch up on the things I have neglected over the past couple of months. Like my sophomore son's lack of progress in a few of his classes (sorry Teach!), my job (I now realize I shouldn't have suggested that a potential Mexican partner's lawyer take the first shot at a joint venture agreement a month or so ago – ¡Ay, caramba!), thanking everyone to whom I feel magnitudes of gratitude, coming to terms with the fact that I have a mouse (or meeses) in our bedroom (thanks for taking care of that Joe!), cleaning out the chicken house, cursing the cats for 1) bringing in stunned rodents through the cat door and 2) watching the rodents with complete disinterest once they revive (this is where the mouse problem comes in), paying some attention to the dogs who seem starved for it, having a couple of hungry, hungry college kids home for a weekend.

And setting folks straight about my chickens. They are not a literary device symbolizing my personality (no matter what self-appointed literary critics who "precipitately" leave nasty comments on my blog might tell you.*) I actually had to set Joel Abee straight about this by bringing an egg to the Family Food Mart the other morning! Note: please don't ask me for eggs - the hens aren't laying much right now, they are in molt, and I just happened to have that egg in my pocket. I am just full of surprises.

So, enough about me, what about you all? What do you want to see out of this board I am not a member of yet? We have big plans - if you've been paying attention, you know generally what they are. I hope that the remaining board members will work with us in achieving the goals we have set. I am hoping for some sort of détente, but I guess we will just have to wait and see.

Please leave me a comment and let me know what is important to you right now, how the board should “look” (visualize yourself sitting in the audience – what do you see and hear?), what issues (and there are so many) need to be addressed asap (other than the obvious ones we candidates have been talking about for months) – how do you think we should approach building the trust of the public? What advice do you have?

Also, props to Bill Crump and James Stamey for staying engaged and being so gracious Tuesday night.

Note to my friends at "Hair and Nails Unlimited" - love the sign! I am so sorry you have been harassed by anonymous (well, they think they are anonymous) sore losers. "Sticks and stones may break my bones. . . But if those ladies don't take down that SWAT Victory sign I think it may kill me." Really? And you have to call these ladies and harass them about that sign anonymously? Really? Really? Really.

*The awkward adverb in that sentence is there for a reason. Maybe you can figure it out?