Question: Is distance a factor in giving out boundary waivers?

I have a friend who lives three (3) blocks from Von Stueben Middle School which is located on Forrest Hill Street (see map below). The only other schools around them are crime filled and failing miserably (Glen Oak School - 4 blocks away, Lincoln School - 5 blocks away), but the School District tells them they cannot attend Von Stueben they must attend Glen Oak or Lincoln.

Can somebody explain to me how it makes any sense that the boy in the photo above lives on the 1900 block of Garden Street and attends Von Steuben Middle School on Forrest Hill Street? Isn't he closer to the wonderful Trewyn, Lincoln, Calvin Collidge and/or Sterling? Von Stueben is 5.7 miles away from his home, well outside of the taxing district in which he resides. It makes me wonder if distance is taken into consideration when giving out boundary waivers.

Teachers are praying that the Board of Education will show some sign of life

Lately life has kept me from blogging as regularly as I used to. However, I have not negelected to read your thoughts each day. As I look through comments, the resounding noise I continue to hear is based around this years Lemon Dance. Although, I'm not so sure it's a lemon dance, as comments seem to indicate that it's more a vindictive Superintendent...

Anonymous said... I can't believe no one has mentioned yet what the bully is doing now, firing the principals at Glen Oak and Irving. Their crime - applying for jobs in another district... I'm all for holding people accountable, which seemed difficult for former sups' when their friends/relatives were in positions, but let's be fair in the delivery. 

That doesn't even begin to address her actual delivery style - bully is right on. I don't remember there ever being a class in college called "Leadership from the Top Down" or "Because I Said So," but apparantly Dr. L found a class like that and then minored in "If I yell at you and demoralize you, you'll listen." Oh and supposedly she's been telling people she's not going to allow public comment Monday night, possibly due to the backlash of her wanting to fire these 2 administrators (again, not the one's that deserve it) and their assistant principals...  

Dr. L has proven in just 2 short years how vindictive she can be. I'll fight and take the risk if my students are being impacted, but so far they are sheltered from all of this mess. The new curriculum objectives are good, everything else about her sucks! Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Comment after comment seemed to back up the sentiments of the Anonymous above; the sheer astonishment that main street media had not picked up on the current upheaval within District 150 based around the rumor that the Superintendent will be sending Glen Oak  principal, Annette Coleman and Irving Principal, Kevin Curtin back to the classroom. It is has been difficult to read the sheer pleas from Anonymous teachers, begging any Board member who may be reading the blog to stop the Superintendent from her latest cuts...

Anonymous said... Lathan has her claws out and is directing them towards two principals who have dedicated many more years to the youth of Peoria than she ever will. Both apparently tired of her insanity and ego-tripping and dared to apply for a principalship outside of Peoria to get away from her bullying. Both are now being recommended by her to be returned to the classroom due to "poor leadership". It is funny that this poor leadership did not surface until they both decided to try to save their own mental health and get away from Psycholathan. 

If you know Annette Coleman or Kevin Curtin, you must know how outstanding both are in their schools as well as this community. To think that Lathan has made their lives so intolerable that both made a choice to leave 150 is nearly criminal. Something needs to happen in order to stop this woman from destroying the good people who are actually in the school buildings working with Peoria children.

All Lathan has done is tie the hands of principals so no punishment can be given then walk the halls, poke her head into some rooms, deem all teachers she sees as unsatisfactory due to student behavior, and close places like Garfield where absolutely wonderful things were happening. I'm pretty sure she didn't bother to walk those halls before she said, "Close it!" 

I pray the board can actually see that the crime of this recommendation has nothing to do with Coleman and Curtin's leadership and everything to do with hers! Sunday, February 19, 2012 

Anonymous said... That would make 4 excellent principals she has chased away. This must stop. The BOE has to take their heads out of the sand and save this district! Our children deserve better than this! With Lathan, it isn't about the students...it's about her way or the highway. Please, the good, intelligent people on the BOE...look into all of this! Sunday, February 19, 2012 

Anonymous said... Please be sure to include the loss of Paul Monrad, assistant principal at Glen Oak, in your count of lost talent in 150. His contract has not been renewed and he will be leaving the district at the end of this school year. Yet another unbelievable loss for our students. Sunday, February 19, 2012

District 150 students recent fight videos now playing on YouTube

I saw these student fight videos over on peoria.com. The fights appear to be on and near the grounds of Glen Oak School. This fight was more than likely brewing all day inside the school building and erupted once school was let out. I am reposting them here hoping that some teachers or adminstrators might be able to identify some of these knuckleheads and pull them in to help them resolve some of their issues.

The adults in the third video should be arrested for encouraging one child to "beat" anothers "a**" and you will notice that the adult female actually knocks one of the young girls to the ground, when she got advantage of the girl the adult was supporting. Again, these adults need to be arrested - this fight will continue in the neighborhood. Now parents will be looking to get at each other. The school can help in squashing this issue.

Videos removed. The videos can be found on Youtube (search on "legacychyck)

Some issues from the February 14, 2011 BOE meeting that you all may want to discuss...

Glen Oak, Irving and Columbia schools will be restructured.
RECOMMENDATION FOR BOARD APPROVAL OF RISING STAR RESTRUCTURING PLANS – Moved by Butler, seconded by Ross that the Board of Education approve the restructuring plans for Glen Oak, Irving and Columbia schools. These three schools are new to restructuring and require board approval to proceed to submit their plans to the Illinois State Board of Education. On roll call, 6 ayes. Motion carried.

Emtronics has been complaining about treatment of the cafeteria managers and the fact that they have not had a cost of living increase in several years. I guess a 1.1% increase is better than nothing?
COST OF LIVING INCREASE – HIGH SCHOOL CAFETERIA MANAGERS – Moved by Butler, seconded by Ross that the Board of Education authorize a 1.1% cost of living increase for the high school cafeteria managers. On roll call, 6 ayes. Motion carried.

Time is of the essence in the assignment of Administrators – curious as to what Mrs. Costic needed clarification on?
RESOLUTION TO ASSIGN ADMINISTRATORS TO TEACHING POSITIONS - Moved by Butler, seconded by Crawford that the board of Education adopt the resolution to reassign administrators to teaching positions. Mrs. Costic asked for this resolution to be tabled for further clarification. Dr. Lathan explained that she needs to move forward to realign the district. Delays in this action will have a domino affect in regards to future planning.

Mrs. Ross replied by saying that she would like to wait for the facility study before moving forward with this action. Mrs. Wolfmeyer would like to give Dr. Lathan the flexibility she needs to move forward – closing schools, programs, etc. She also stated that not all of the employees listed on this resolution will be reassigned back in the classroom.

Mrs. Butler spoke out saying that she supports Dr. Lathan and she is doing what she was brought here to do. “Right sizing” this district is a difficult task.

Mr. Stowell supports moving forward – he does not feel we need to continue supporting past practices.

Mrs. Costic replied by saying she understands what everyone is saying. On roll call, 5 ayes – Butler, Costic, Crawford, Stowell, Wolfmeyer. 1 nay – Ross. Motion carried.

So, the District is NOT going to reemploy Administrators who are probationary teachers?
RESOLUTION TO NON-REEMPLOY ADMINISTRATORS WHO ARE PROBATIONARY TEACHERS – Moved by Butler, seconded by Stowell that the Board of Education adopt the resolution to non-reemploy administrators who are probationary teachers. On roll call, 6 ayes. Motion carried.

Stowell mentioned several staff members attending the No Child Left Behind Conference in Chicago. I'm curious...how many staff members and at what cost?
TRAVEL REQUESTS – Moved by Butler, seconded by Ross that the Board of Education approve the travel requests as presented by the administration. (Copy is on file in the Board Secretary’s office.)

Mr. Stowell commented on the number of staff members attending the No Child Left Behind conference in Chicago. He would like to see some pushback from the community to state and federal government officials as this is a non-funded program. On roll call, 6 ayes. Motion carried.

Third East Bluff business to be held up by armed robbers since last Monday

There was a strong armed robbery at about 1:00 p.m. today, across from the new Glen Oak School, at the Mexican restaurant which is located at 2001 N. Wisconsin. I believe the restaurant is called La Esquinita.

If you will recall just yesterday, July 26, the East Bluff Domino's store at 3320 N. Prospect Road was robbed at about 12:30 a.m. The robber forced the Domino's employee to empty the safe and then fled with an undisclosed amount of money.

Last Monday, July 21, you read it here first that a woman robbed the Family Dollar Store at 2321 N. Wisconsin Ave. at gunpoint and fled the store with about $150 cash. That robbery occurred at about 3:30 p.m..

In the meantime, the shooting tally continues to climb...

July 25, 2010 - A man was shot in South Peoria early Sunday morning in the 2300 block of West Marquette Avenue. Duane L. Wiley, 26, who does not reside at the Marquette address, was found with a bullet wound to the arm that had penetrated his chest. Police said his injuries were not life threatening.

July 22, 2010 - Peoria Police responded to the area of North Illinois and East Indiana Avenues shortly before 2:00 a.m. Thursday to a call of 7 to 8 shots fired. they found a man on a porch in the 700 block of Illinois Avenue with a gunshot wound to the elbow. Authorities say Injuries are serious but not life threatening.

Jul 21, 2010 - A dispute during a card game led to a Peoria man's arrest Tuesday night for allegedly firing at the house after leaving, police said. Hurie J. Boclair, 30, of 2413 W. Proctor was upset about a card game taking place inside and after walking outside turned and fired once at the back door. No one was injured by the bullet, police said.

Jul 21, 2010 - A man told police he was shot at early Wednesday morning by his girlfriend's ex-boyfriend. Timothy J. Wilson, 27, said he was in the 1500 block of West McClure Avenue when a man approached him saying, "I got you now" before pulling out a handgun and firing one shot, police reports said. Wilson was not injured.

Glen Oak Principal on administrative leave

The Principal of Glen Oak School has been put on administrative leave. The reason why Shipp was put on leave has not been confirmed, however, Tuesday of this week a child was reportedly pushed down by a teacher at the school.

You may recall a previous post done here on Valda Shipp, entitled "Will the real Valda Ship please stand up", which followed an article done by DeWayne Bartles of the Times Observer entitled "Shipp leads school from 'zoo' to 'pocket of excellence'". The Bartles article piqued my interest, because it received a large number of comments from people who alleged to be present and/or former co-workers of Shipp and they considered her an absolute tyrant.

Since the Bartles article, staff at Glen Oak have made constant efforts to illustrate that Shipp's management style was counter productive to what the school should stand for.

It is said that today Shipp was put on leave because she was insubordinate. Interesting that the leave was not as a result of mistreating her staff and letting children run wild, since that is what has been alleged to date.

Did a teacher push a student at Glen Oak School?

A reliable source tells me that the Peoria Police Department was called by a parent of a seven year old Glen Oak School student who was allegedly pushed to the ground by a teacher. However, just because the police was called does not make it a fact. Perhaps the pjstar will pick up on this story in a couple of days and give us more info.

Glen Oak is already undergoing an investigation around the children that where allegedly told to make like Little Red Riding Hood and walk to grandma's house in Pekin and now this?

It would appear that the closer Glen Oak gets to their new school coming to fruition, the further away they are getting from being the trustworthy stewards of our children that we need them to be.

Street construction for the Glen Oak Impact Zone

Monday was the start of street construction around the new Glen Oak School. Completion is expected on or around August 10, 2010.

The City of Peoria will be setting up a storefront office on Wisconsin Ave. next to the bait shop during this project, to address any resident concerns. There are three civil engineers working this project, who you may call regarding any concerns and/or questions:

Scott Reeise - 494-8818
Jim Lancaster - 208-7289
Ron Camp - 303-8654

Each street re-design is expected to take 1 1/2 to 2 months to be completed. Work will start at the intersection of Republic and Maryland on sewer issues, with Maryland being the first street to be re-done.

Traffic will primarily be re-routed to McClure Ave. and Nebraska Ave. When Wisconsin Ave. is closed to traffic, city buses will be using Arcadia Ave. to reach the bus stop at Kroger.

Murder in the Glen Oak School Impact Zone

The Glen Oak Neighborhood Impact Zone, a two-block area in the East Bluff – the city's top target area for crime reduction, neighborhood revitalization and home improvement assistance, surrounding District 150’s new $25 million Glen Oak School.

Last night’s East Bluff murder at Peoria Food Stop Inc., took place immediately across the street from the new Glen Oak School (one block from the Boy's and Girl's Club).

The Glen Oak Neighborhood Impact Zone was identified by the City Council in May 2009 to be targeted for revitalization. The city designated millions of dollars in public investment, with more than $3 million in sidewalk and road projects already completed.

The City has already noted that there has been very few applications for down payment assistance to purchase a home near Glen Oak School. This murder in the Impact Zone certainly won’t help the situation. Unfortunate.

Related read: A Matter of Time

Will the real Valda Shipp please stand up

I came across a really nice article that Dewayne Bartles, over at the Peoria Times Observer wrote on Valda Shipp, the Principal of Glen Oak School, entitled "Shipp leads school from 'zoo' to 'pocket of excellence'". Shipp's philosophy is based on high expectations and the article is filled with wonderful little anecdotes about Principal Shipp (which are sprinkled throughout here).

Although Shipp came into the school "like a drill sergeant", in Bartles' opinion, (which is complete with a first hand account of Principal Shipp in action) Principal Shipp is doing a stand up job and making a real difference in the lives of the impoverished children of the East Bluff.

It's a real feel good article, that is until you read the comments - 27 of them - as old as seven days and as recent as 12 hours ago. What are they saying? They are saying Mr. Bartles has it TWISTED. That he has been fooled by Valda Shipp and he needs to take a second look. Actually, they are begging him to take a second look at the real Valda Shipp. Here is a sample:

AlyssWL12 hours ago
This is for DeWayne and the Editor. I would be more than happy to give you first hand accounts of things that have transpired in that building since the current 'administrator' came. E-mail me.

Just let me say for those that still have to work in that building, I am sorry for you. New name for the school should be 'HELL ON THE HILL'. I have witnessed on the occasions I have been there, not only staff belittled, but students and parents as well. She is an equal opportunity hater. She's told parents to 'take their ratty kids to another school as she didn't need them in HER building'. I've seen students screamed at, picked up by their arms and dragged down the hall to the office (these are kindergarteners), children pinched, bullied, humiliated, etc. The average person cannot just come into the building without an appointment, parents included. Traveling staff are encouraged to have set times/days to come in, as this keeps witnessing obscene events to a minimum.

These people are not kidding when they express how hateful she is, not can be at times, IS. Hopefully, now that the relative-tie is gone, she will be following shortly. I know some EXCELLENT people who could turn that building around through kindness, patience, encouragement and TEAMWORK.

Oh, and Mr./Ms. Editor...you may not get much response if you try to talk to current staff, as the fear of retaliation is high.

Reading the comments made me curious, so I Goggled Valda Shipp (of course). This article about a District 150 bus monitor who taped a child's mouth shut came up. Although the incident had nothing to do with Shipp, apparently one commenter thought Shipp should go to jail for her treatment of people:

Friday, May 1 at 5:46 PM Teacherwithamind wrote ...
I am talking about Velda "Hitler" Shipp the principal at Glen Oak. I would love to see the inches thick file full of parent, teacher, and student complaints about her. If Julie was fired because she upset a few parents...Shipp should have been fired years ago. If you have ever worked under her then you know what I am talking about. She is a female Hitler. She is cold, uncaring, mean, a liar...If they put her at the new Glen Oak it will become what all her others have been a concentration camp.

Friday, May 1 at 5:47 PM Teacherwithamind wrote ...
more about Hitler....she makes your life a living hell. She barks orders at you. She constantly lies and i think her goal in life is to see how many people she can make have a nervous breakdown. If you are not in her inner circle, then you are a nobody...just there to take her abuse. It is my opinion that she does this to make herself feel better. All of the teachers that wanted McArdle gone should transfer to Glen oak next year!!!!!!!!!

Friday, May 1 at 5:50 PM Teacherwithamind wrote...

They can fire a man for putting tape on a child's mouth...but not for stealing thousands or giving teachers nervous breakdowns......go figure....most of us know the reason for that...

So, who is the real Valda Shipp? Is she a misunderstood, no nonsense administrator that per Interim Superintendent Norm Durflinger, is responsible for making Glen Oak School a “pocket of excellence.” Is the fact that “She does not accept excuses,” and “She expects a safe school, a clean school.” an excuse for being a tyrant?

It is said that being liked was not on Shipp's agenda as she took the school’s reins. That's unfortunate, because being likable goes a long way towards the over all moral of the school and the District.