Considering a career change - consider Education Administration

The business of education - it's where the money is these days. As a matter of fact, I am starting to encourage folks who are entering college to consider a career in Education Administration. The payout is worth the effort - here's an example:

Pamela Schau (District 150's former Treasurer/Comptroller) retired as assistant superintendent of business at suburban Chicago's Maine Township High School District 207; she has more than 25 years of finance experience; has worked as a public accountant and auditor as well as with school finances at an elementary school district, at a community college district and at a high school district. She holds an undergraduate degree in business and accounting, a master's degree in school business, a superintendent certification and is taking classes to earn a doctorate in educational leadership.

Before she retired, she was raking in a *monthly pension of $7,749.00, with a salary of $175,182.00. When she retired from Main Township to come to Peoria, her retirement payout was $244,263.00. Not a bad retirement, eh?

Then after retirement, your career is not over, you have the option of going to another school District, or getting hired as a consultant for your current one. In Schau's case, after retirement, she took a job with District 150, with a salary of $125,000 per year. She was at District 150 for one (1) year, before they let her go and paid her "roughly $12,000, plus any accrued vacation time".

The turn-off for many people who won't consider a field in Education, is they don't want to deal with children. Good news for those folks, because in some of the best jobs in Education, you don't have to deal with children.

Education Administration, definitely worth consideration.

*Source

Urban legend - the #150 Marauders

It’s interesting how getting information on District 150 school fights is almost like running down an urban legend.

About one week ago, I was exiting off of 74 at lower Knoxville Avenue. As we approached Glen Oak we heard and saw an un-marked Police car with siren blaring and lights flashing, zoom by. As it was just around the time school was letting out, we assumed they were headed to Peoria High School.

We saw the car turn off Knoxville onto Richmond, we drove slowly across Richmond, rubber necked down the street and didn’t see anything. We proceeded up Knoxville past the old Cub Foods, and we didn’t see anything there either. What is odd, is that I have been hearing people say that large fights took place that afternoon on Richmond and at the Old Cub Foods and pepper balls were dispersed.

I am having a hard time believing that with a Chief of Security as capable as Officer Collins that District 150 is letting their students maraud entire neighborhoods and Officer Collins wouldn’t have anything to say. If pepper balls were dispersed in the area of the school, with students present, he would have given a report on this – right?

I spoke earlier of Officer Collins neither confirming nor denying the reports of violence at last night's meeting. However, I am thinking that perhaps Officer Collins was at the meeting last night for the same reason I was, to see if parents would come forward with more information about the violence.

If children are being beat up and/or hassled on their way to and from school, why didn’t the parents of those children come to the BOE with their complaints? If neighborhoods around Peoria High School are being marauded, why didn’t the neighborhood come to the BOE with their complaints?

General Parker is the President of the Heart of Peoria Neighborhood Association. He and his wife, BOE Member, Rachael Parker live in the area of Peoria High School and are very active in the neighborhood. They both were at the BOE meeting and neither one of them spoke of receiving complaints from neighbors. As a matter of fact, if you go to the Heart of Peoria Neighborhood Association webpage, you will see the photo to the left, along with contact information.

I am bothered to hear people speaking of children with such disdain and I can’t help but wonder if some of the complaints of large groups of scary children are racially motivated. I also don’t like the component of people who didn't want Woodruff to close, implying that people from Peoria High are the problem. As I recall, Woodruff High School had fights and discipline issues just like Peoria High School, Manual and Richwoods. The propensity to fight appears to be District wide.

It was also very troubling for me to view Carl Cannon’s fashion police video. The uneasiness was heightened, when I saw my nephew in Mr. Cannon’s video being pulled to the side. My nephew is a good kid and he does not need the ELITE team to tell him how to behave or dress. He is a kid who is well taken care of; with a father who is gainfully employed and he does not wear baggy clothing to school. He was stopped by Mr. Cannon, at Manual, for wearing Birkenstocks. He was held up for .25 minutes, while Mr. Cannon continued to pull other children over and then he looked at him and said “oh yeah, you can go”. He was humiliated and it made me sad to hear that in his voice. He won't be happy about the fact that he is in a District 150 video, appearing to be disciplined.

Many clapped at the video presentation Mr. Cannon put on. I couldn’t, because it bothered me to see groups of children rounded up that way. It’s all just a little to close to racial profiling for me to cheer on the process. Oh well, I guess if it’s working, that’s more important than the humility of our young people.

Are our schools safe?

I was at a local gas station over the weekend and over heard a daughter talking to her mother about fights that happened after the Richwoods vs. Notre Dame game. Her mother seemed surprised, and said she hadn't heard anything on the news about it, the daughter told her "as if people would actually fight on school property".

At last night's BOE meeting at Harrison School, a mother from Peoria High spoke of hundreds of students congregating on Bigelow; 200 kids in her front yard loitering and as a result, it took police officers four (4) minutes to get to her home.

Also at last night's BOE meeting at Harrison School, a father, who is a security expert and has a student at Richwoods, talked about the crowds and lack of security at Richwoods and his daughter not being safe; he begged the BOE to consider wands and said that from his professional opinion they absolutely need more security staff.

The concerns and comments from the Peoria High parent made the newspaper, however, the concerns and comments from the Richwoods parent did not. That's unusual, isn't it? Usually, the Richwoods parents have a rapt audience in the pjstar.

The new District 150 Chief of Security was at the meeting, but had no input on the issues that were raised. The allegations from the parents of large groups congregating, fights and/or lack of security was neither confirmed nor denied. I guess he was just there for security.

A parent asked for advice and/or comment from Carl Cannon, unfortunately, he had already left the building. He just stopped by briefly to show a short video (with music) of his fashion police stopping children at Peoria High School and Manual. Apparently he and his entourage had another meeting to rush off to.

At first glance I thought Jay-Z was top 400

I snatched up the magazine and purchased it, anxious to get it home, to see how far he was from the bottom. Much to my surprise, his name was not even on the list. BlackVoices goes hard...

Jay-Z Exploited by Forbes Magazine to Sell '400 Richest Americans' Issue

Jay-Z is featured on the cover of this month's Forbes magazine with billionaire Warren Buffet, not because he is listed as one of the 400 richest people in America by Forbes, as Buffet is. No, Jay-Z is included on the Forbes cover because someday, he hopes he will be included on the list of the 400 richest people in America. And Jay-Z just might be, if over the latter half of his life the rap mogul can double his wealth.

Of course, if one takes a closer look at Forbes' list of the 400 richest people in America, you will find exactly one black person: Oprah Winfrey. While that is no surprise, perhaps putting Oprah on the cover would not provide the needed boost of attention that Forbes is going for. I also can't imagine Oprah submitting to the condescending "little sibling" role that Jay is treated with by the editors of Forbes in pairing the successful rapper with the ancient investor. In addition to brazening using Jay-Z to sell magazines, what this does is two things:

1. It avoids a critical examination of what it takes to build massive wealth in this country, and who has access to that capital. If you look at the list of the 400 richest people in America, you will see that many of the richest are women and men who have inherited wealth from extremely successful family members. And of course, you will see mostly white people, and very few women. By putting a "cool black guy" on the cover who isn't even on the list, Forbes seems to be trying to make America turn a blind eye to who is actually rich, how they get that way and how they stay that way. And forget about who is consistently kept out. Sorry, Forbes, but we at Black Voices aren't distracted.

2. Jay-Z, who typically has a strong black male image, is made to seem submissive and needy. It has been widely reported that corporate America prefers black men who are "baby-faced," thus not threatening in appearance or demeanor to the mostly white men who run everything. This preference for docile-looking black men has of course made it difficult for African American men who do not fit this mold to get ahead in a corporate environment, even if their hard work and education make them deserving of promotion.

By casting Warren Buffet as the big kind Dad who can teach little Jay-Z to be a billionaire like him someday if he tries, not only is Forbes trying to get us to ignore all the many real barriers to wealth creation that most people face, "trying" aside (see point one). Corporate leaders who prefer their blacks submissive also get to eat up this kinder, gentler Jay like so much cream pie, thus reinforcing their preference for baby-faced black men. The magazine is also taking away one of the amazing things about Jay-Z's image that the African American community loves -- his inspiring masculine energy of self-determination. Say it ain't so, Hove!

Sometimes parents are the problem

A Florida mother who stood on the sidelines cheering on her daughter during a planned high school fight between the teen and another girl was arrested today for child abuse.

According to a Manatee County Sheriff’s Office affidavit, April Newcomb, 39, can be seen on multiple YouTube videos “encouraging” her daughter “to physically fight” with the other girl. The videos, one of which can be viewed below, were filmed by attendees of the fight, which occurred in a vacant field near Palmetto High School.

As seen in this still, it appears most teens present came prepared to record the fisticuffs.

When questioned by a cop, Newcomb, pictured in the mug shot at right, claimed that she only attended the bout between the two 16-year-old combatants in order “to make sure nothing got out of hand.” She also wanted to look out for her daughter’s health since the teen had “sustained a skull fracture from a previous incident approximately two years ago.”

"Of course we were both wrong and I understand that," Newcomb said, adding, "I understand where ya’ll are coming from.”

As her daughter is being throttled by a larger girl, Newcomb can be heard at one point yelling to her child, “Don’t f**ing stop.” Later in the video, apparently serving as her offspring’s corner man, Newcomb advises, “Punch her in the f***ing body.”

Newcomb can also be seen at the clip’s outset, arriving with her daughter’s entourage as the teen's opponent bounced about in preparation for the fight.

BOE Notice of deadline for filing a Petition for 2011 election

The seats of two of the Board of Education's most criticized members have terms that are set to expire in April of 2011. Debbie Wolfmeyer, who was elected to the Board from District 2 in 2006, currently serves the Board as President. Mrs. Wolfmeyer also serves on the Strategic Communications Committee. Also set to expire is the District 3 seat that Jim Stowell currently holds. Mr. Stowell also serves the BOE as Chairperson of the Building Committee and Community School Advisory Committee.

The Notice

The Board of Education, City of Peoria, School District #150, hereby gives public notice that two (2) School Board member are to be elected in the election to be held on April 5, 2011. One School Board member is to be elected from the second (2nd) School Election District and one from the third (3rd) School Election District.

Petitions may be obtained from Joan L. Bastian, Secretary of the Board of Education, at her office at 3202 N. Wisconsin Avenue, Peoria, Illinois, during normal office hours. School Board candidates may circulate petitions beginning September 21, 2010. The first day petitions may be filed is Monday, December 13. 2010 at 8:00 a.m. and the last day for filing petitions is Monday, December 20, 2010 at 5:00 p.m. Source

A Christmas letter from Pastor Burnett to the BOE

To the Media:

I am enclosing correspondence that I sent to District 150 asking for a clarification regarding the 2010-2011 calendar and the deletion of Christmas from it. Board member Jim Stowell says that the issue was addressed at the last board meeting and an apology made for the "oversight" of deleting Christmas. Yet I still receive calls and would like to know more myself.

Do any of you have any information which affirms that this issue was addressed and a public apology made or issued? I have received many calls regarding the issue and have nothing to point anyone to. I would prefer the District to make a public statement directly dealing with the issue. Please help if possible. Thanks.

The Letter

Hello,

Hope all is well with everyone.

I have received a number of calls regarding the 2010-2011 School calendar. The majority of the inquiry centers on the removal of any reference to Christmas on the calendar while simultaneously and plainly outlining Ramadan, Kwanzaa and Hanukkah which are all non-Christian holidays.

In fact after doing a review of the calendar there are 11 references to Jewish holidays, festivals and celebrations, 1 African that lasts a week, 1 Islamic that lasts almost a month, 1 Latin, and 2, Christian - protestant (Easter & Palm Sunday) and 4 Catholic (Ash Wed., All Saint's Day, Valentines Day, & St. Patrick's Day) and recognition of Thanksgiving and Halloween.

Does anyone have any idea and or reason why Christmas was deleted from your calendar and replaced by simply saying "Holiday" and "Winter Vacation"? I believe this should be addressed as the "Christ" in Christmas is not a criminal and as it represents Christianity, is as valid of a holiday to be recognized as any of the ones that the designers of the calendar thought to insert.

A public response regarding this issue is in order and will be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Pastor Harvey Burnett
(309)688-6599ofc

Peoria gets important mention on Chicago Blog

Most everyone has a web page these days... Scroll to the bottom of the page.

The District must do better to increase parental involvement

District 150 has a Parental Advisory Group Committee that has been active for the last three years. Parental Involvement in Title 1 schools is a mandate. Unfortunately, there are no parents from Title 1 schools (schools South of War Memorial) on the Parental Advisory Group Committee. There is no PTO representative from Woodruff, Manual or Central, but two from Richwoods.

Mrs. Dryden has a platform that has allowed her to be able to speak on behalf of the interests of the people in her school; she would be remiss if she didn't take advantage of it. However, as long as the District does not have parents from schools South of War Memorial on this Advisory Group Committee, I will continue to raise the issue.

York Powers is the District's new student, family and community coordinator, who replaces Sandra Burke. I have let Mr. Powers know about my hope that the District would make an effort to reach out to a more diverse group of parents. Although Mr. Powers has not seen fit to respond to my e-mail inquiry that I sent approximately a week ago, I remain hopeful that he has taken it into consideration. We'll see what happens.

Our school is better than your school

One of my biggest pet peeves with District 150 is the appearance that the only parents, who have opinions that matter, live North of War Memorial.

First we get reports that the Richwoods PTO feels that uniforms are a negative and Richwoods students should be exempt from wearing them.

Now we have a report that the Richwoods PTO feels that because they are entitled to their tradition and school pride, District 150 should not hold graduations at the Civic Center.

Why is it that we only hear what the parents on the Richwoods PTO want? Don’t we have other PTOs in District 150? What about what they want?

Contrary to what the Richwoods' PTO appears to believe, Richwoods is not the only school in District 150 that matters. Hopefully Lathan & Co. will make this clear.

Bullies driving parents over the edge

Did this Dad go to far? What would you do? Personally, the only thing I think he did that was wrong was threatening to kill the little knuckleheads. Additionally, I understand why he felt the need to check the bus driver - but threatening the bus driver with bodily harm, was a bit much...

A father furious because his 13-year-old daughter who suffers from cerebral palsy had been bullied stormed onto a school bus and threatened the children who teased her, deputies in Florida said.

The girl had to be hospitalized because of stress from the confrontation. The father, James Willie Jones, was arrested Thursday after he stormed onto the bus two weeks ago and later released on bail. He hopes to apologize to the children, said his attorney, Natalie Jackson.

"The little girl was scared to go to school. There has to be something done about school bullying," Jackson said.

Jones boarded the school bus on Sept. 3 because several boys were allegedly bullying his daughter, according to the sheriff's office report. He told deputies the boys placed an open condom on his daughter's head, smacked her on the back of her head, twisted her ear and shouted rude comments at her, the report said.

Video surveillance from the bus shows Jones asking his daughter to point out the students accused of harassing her. Jones is heard threatening those who bully his daughter, and he also threatens the bus driver.

Read the entire article here.

Who's running 150's community schools initiative?

The Bradley Scout is reporting that Bradley is "running" the community schools initiative. The College of Education and Health Sciences and the Institute for Principled Leadership in Public Service have reportedly developed an advisory council that meets monthly and works closely with principals.

I'm curious about the cost of running the program. Who foots the bill for the schools being open after hours? Will the school district be able to make money for letting service providers use their buildings and having access to their "client" list?

Bradley Running Peoria's Community Schools Initiative.

Bradley is taking the lead in integrating full service community schools with the Peoria community.

The full service community schools project, started in 2006, is an effort to enrich not only students’ education, but the welfare and stability of the families and neighborhoods. This initiative centers on the school as a community hub that includes mental health services, health clinics, drama club, business classes and more.

Garfield Primary School, Trewyn Middle School, Manual Middle and High School and Harrison Community Learning Center all participate in the full service community program.

“We’re used to the school day being 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., but a community school allows for all of these outside activities,” Executive Senior Outreach Program Director Julie Schifeling said. “There is a program at Manual where students and members of the community can take free computer classes, a resume building course, apprenticeship programs and access job availability lists.”

Schifeling said the College of Education and Health Sciences and the Institute for Principled Leadership in Public Service have developed an advisory council which meets monthly and works closely with principals to bring in partners willing to help.

Dean of Education and Health Sciences Joan Sattler said Bradley’s role involves coordinating organizations to help support the schools. “We want to turn schools around and help support student achievement,” she said. “So we bring in agencies, health care and business consulting for parents and others looking for jobs.”

Sattler said Bradley has been involved with these schools in various ways for many years, and this initiative allows students a greater opportunity for real-world experience. “Schools are a living laboratory and we are learning from that,” she said. “Our students from nursing, physical education, elementary education and even our faculty can be involved in helping.” Sattler said full service community schools have proven successful in aiding student achievement all over the world. Source

2009 - 2010 EHS College Advisory Council Members
Nina Lou Baird, Civic Leader - Peoria, IL
Dr. Gerald Michael Brookhart, Regional Superintendent - Peoria County Office of Education
Laraine E. Bryson, President - Tri-County Urban League
Jan Deissler, Director (retired) - Illinois Central College Child Care Connection
Charla Lynne Draper, Associate Foods Editor - Southern Living Magazine
Anne Maple Fox, Executive Director - American Red Cross
Anne H. Griffith, Vice President - Lincoln Farm Corporation
Ken Hinton, Superintendent (retired) - Peoria Public School District #150
Joseph Henderson, Strategic Consultant- Central Illinois Bank
Dr. John Kauffman, Vice President, Marketing - Scholastic Testing Service, Inc.
Rose Marie Langfels, Vice President (retired) - Commerce Bank
Justice Mary Wheeler McDade, Justice of the Illinois Appellate Court
Dr. Joy Erlichman Miller, Psychotherapist - Joy Miller and Associates
Sean T. O'Grady, FACHE, Senior Vice President - NorthShore University HealthSystem, Vice President - Evanston Northwestern HealthSystem
Judy Oakford, Community Development Specialist - Red Cross
Michael Riley, President, Professional Therapy Services, Inc.
Dr. Joan L. Sattler, EHS Dean - Bradley University
Betty Joanne Schlacter, President - Jones Brothers Jewelers
Claire Widmer, Consulting Dietitian
Susan C. Wozniak, Chief Operating Officer - OSF Saint Francis Medical Center

New District 150 Organizational Chart introduced

For those of you who are baffled about the "chain of command" at District 150, here ya go...

Superintendent Dr. Grenita Lathan introduced her 2010-2011 Administrative team and presented an updated organizational chart at the September 13th regularly scheduled Board of Education meeting. The Superintendent developed four goals for her team:

· Respect the Customer
· Respect Learning
· Respect Our Finances
· Respect Individual Differences

Click here to see a copy of 2010-2011 Administrative Organizational Chart.

Source

More cultural voyeurism by white elitist

The cultural economy from which this film emerges is one in which the clothes worn by the young black women in the film, the very fashions around which this film revolves (Proenza Schouler’s Fall 2010 RTW collection), is in fact not available to the characters represented in the film. The working class black women whose life experiences and life chances are such that the narrator is forced to wonder, “How come God gotta be so violent?” could not afford the clothes displayed here – the high-waisted skinny paint-splattered jean that is the star of the film retails for $550.

And if the characters lack the financial capital to wear these clothes, then the actual actor-models lack the social capital. It is important to point out that the models in the film the do not actually embody the ideal Proenza Schouler fashion subject on the runway.

Of the 33 looks in the Fall 2010 collection, all but three were modeled by white models – two looks by Chinese-born models Liu Wen and Shu Pei Qin, and one by Lais Ribeiro, who is Afro-Brazilian not African American like the characters in the film. As we know by now, the fashion modeling world is a glaringly white one. The reality is that without playing the roles of “delinquents” in Act Da Fool, Michelrica Hughes, Elizabeth Smith, Kiara Smith, Miileah Morrison, and Rashaani Wilson – all models – would not have jobs modeling Proenza Schouler fashions.

The film reveals nothing about the lives of these characters. Their significance lies only in the difference they represent: the exoticism of their racially classed nihilism, the contradiction of their gendered optimism which serves to assure the viewer poverty is actually not too bad, and perhaps most importantly, their spatial and social distance from the luxury fashion world that excludes them even as they wear the clothes in the film.

The Korine-Proenza Schouler film invents in order to fetishize a subculture that is far removed from the elite white world that Proenza Schouler (the label and the designers) inhabit. Yet, the production of this racial spectacle enables Korine, Proenza Schouler, and their supporters to culturally tour without actually engaging with the racially classed experiences of these young black women. Their bodies, unlike the bodies of white models, do not represent a cultural standard of beauty but serve instead as screens onto which romantic and racist ideas about working class black women (“greatest living delinquents”) are projected and appropriated to symbolize and sell a brand. The lives of these characters matter less than the fetish they activate. Source

Resolvere

Facing a period of resolves.
It's a luxury that is good for the soul.
Try it.

Resolve
–verb (used with object)
1. to come to a definite or earnest decision about; determine (to do something): I have resolved that I shall live to the full.
2. to separate into constituent or elementary parts; break up; cause or disintegrate (usually fol. by into ).
3. to reduce or convert by, or as by, breaking up or disintegration (usually fol. by to or into ).
4. to convert or transform by any process (often used reflexively).
5. to reduce by mental analysis (often fol. by into ).
6. to settle, determine, or state formally in a vote or resolution, as of a deliberative assembly.
7. to deal with (a question, a matter of uncertainty, etc.) conclusively; settle; solve: to resolve the question before the board.
8. to clear away or dispel (doubts, fears, etc.); answer: to resolve any doubts we may have had.
–verb (used without object)
9. to come to a determination; make up one's mind; determine (often fol. by on or upon ): to resolve on a plan of action.
10. to break up or disintegrate.
11. to be reduced or changed by breaking up or otherwise (usually fol. by to or into ).
–noun
12. a resolution or determination made, as to follow some course of action.
13. firmness of purpose or intent; determination.

Suit claims Principal paid for tips on gangs

A principal at a Chicago High School allegedly got creative and came up with the idea to pay students out of the school fund for tips on gangs.

Gangs long have been a problem in the Northwest Side neighborhood that feeds into Carl Schurz High School. But the principal had an unorthodox way of going after them, according to a recently filed federal lawsuit. She allegedly paid students to give up the gang affiliations of classmates.

"The school is loaded with gang bangers," said Sally Chiodo, one of four plaintiffs in the lawsuit, which describes her as a former treasurer and secretary at Schurz.

Before leaving as principal earlier this year, Mary Ann Folino would approach two particular students when she needed information, ask them to "identify certain gang bangers," and pay them $50 per tip -- with school funds, Chiodo said. "That would happen on a regular basis," she said.

Folino, who could not be reached for comment, may have had good intentions, Chiodo said. She allegedly used the information to try to force out problem students. But it still violated school district policies, the lawsuit contends.

The complaint targets Folino, the Chicago Board of Education and Chicago Public Schools CEO Ron Huberman, and makes a host of other allegations, including that Folino "engaged in the practice of ghost student enrollment," in an apparent attempt to boost funding.

The suit also outlines troubles in the special education program, claiming that audit information provided to the Illinois State Board of Education was falsified. (The state board now is looking into this claim, an official said.)

The four plaintiffs complained about various problems at the school, the suit alleges, but "Folino took retaliatory action" against them, violating whistleblower protection rules.

In one instance not outlined in the lawsuit but relayed by Chiodo, a teacher friendly with Folino *"blew a gym whistle in my face and said, 'Tell me you're not the whistleblower,'" then tossed a bag on Chiodo's desk with a plastic rat inside.

The Chicago Public Schools' inspector general's office investigated that claim and recommended discipline against the teacher accused of wielding the whistle and rat, records indicate.

A CPS attorney who said she is representing Folino declined to comment on the suit, saying: "We do not discuss pending litigation."

Huberman's press secretary, Monique Bond, said: "We're certainly concerned any time allegations as strong as these surface." She declined further comment.

The school, located at Milwaukee and Addison, has roughly 2,300 students

*Who would do this kind of mess - hilarious! Sounds like a bad movie.

Source