DALLAS ISD

Posted by Matthew Barnebey @ 9:12 PM Fri, Feb 01, 2008

I'm thinking of writing an open letter to Jack Lowe on DISD Press. The man should be ashamed and embarassed as a veteran of the United States Navy publicly limiting legitimate public participation on a topic.

Matthew Barnebey
Storekeeper Petty Officer Third Class, USN

Posted by Lew Blackburn @ 7:22 PM Sat, Feb 02, 2008

Kent,
I appreciate your comments on the meeting last Thursday night. The students from Skyline did a wonderful job expressing their viewpoints. I am proud of them for being good leaders.

I want to clarify two points you raised. For the past few years, speakers have been limited to speaking no more than once per 60 days; not 30 as you indicated.

You also indicated that "Trustees Carla Ranger, Ron Price and Lew Blackburn wanted to abolish those rules, and allow citizens to speak as often and for as long as they liked."

For clarification, I want to allow constituents to speak each month if they wish, using the same three minutes that has been in policy for more than a decade. While it make take more time to hear the various viewpoints, I am willing to take the time to listen. Afterall, the Board of Trustees only meet twice a month.

Normally, we don't have many speakers at our meetings. The large number of speakers last Thursday night were not concerned with an agenda item brought before the board. Rather, they wanted to express their opinions of a decision made by Dr. Hinojosa. They wanted the Board of Trustees to hear their voices and see their frustration, after meeting with administrators on at least two ocassions.

A possible solution to the ocassional large crowds would be for the Dallas ISD Board of Trustees to have townhall type meetings whereby we listen to constituents' concerns. The Dallas ISD administration could have public hearings before making decisions that will affect large groups of people. This may minimize the number of speakers at our meetings.

I would be interested in hearing constituents' views on these options.

Posted by Diane Birdwell @ 6:47 PM Sun, Feb 03, 2008

Well, I have to disagree with Trustee Blackburn on one fact: there was only ONE meeting where any DISD adminstrator at the decision level spoke with anyone from Skyline. That was the evening of the infamous "done deal" comment made to parents. Before and after that, nobody at the top came to any of the two other public meetings.

If it pleases the board, you all could pass a policy that mandates public hearings on matters this large and changing.

We do not want to hamstring the Superintendent, nor do we want to see the Board of Trustees revert to the days of micro-managing day-to-day operations. However, this latest situation is a clear indication that there are just some issues that should be ANTICIPATED as being controversial. Also, it still astonishes many of us that there wasn't more effort by some trustees to actually find out what was going on.

Democracy is a strong ideal, yet fragile if taken for granted.

Like one person who spoke before the Board, the bulk of my annual tax bill goes to the very entity for which I work, DISD. I see things from both the inside and outside, but not from the top.

We respect our bosses, we really do, but we should not have to even come close to feeling uneasy about any employment repercussions or unfavorable actions because we choose to exercise our freedom of speech, assembly and petition. (TEK: US History Grade 8: 20b Summarize rights guaranteed in the Bill of Rights)

If the administration would come to us, we could offer so many helpful ideas. That is the Japanese model of management that created such powerful powerhouses in the auto and electronics industries.

As for "townhall meetings," I am sure all trustees do them, but even as active as I am as an NEA rep, I rarely hear about them.

Thanks for listening to us, Dr Blackburn, and thanks for all the wisdom you offer based on your observations of actions as a trustee.

Posted by JD @ 8:23 PM Sun, Feb 03, 2008

I watched the video and I'm curious why Carla Ranger (?) would abstain from voting on the school calendar. She or someone else also abstained earlier on a topic where there sure didn't seem to be any way a conflict of interest could occur.

Posted by MizBennett @ 11:40 PM Sun, Feb 03, 2008

I thank Dr. Blackburn (did he ever go to Skyline? I think he did) for his interest on the account of this Skyline issue.

I thank Ms. Ranger for asking hard questions. She brought up the points that I would have brought up in the same situation.

I thank Ron Price for showing up in a Skyline shirt. I wonder about him at times, but I DO believe that he loves Skyline and what the school is about. I give him kudos for gently counseling Mr. Carraway for observing protocol. I give cheers to Mr. Carraway for being so passionate.

Mr. Price, I would vote for you if I could. Ms. Ellis, you've lost my vote and I live in your district.

I was astonished to watch the board votes on Thursday. I was stunned to see that votes fell out across racial lines. I'm appalled at this. I give credit to Mr. Lowe leaving because he was ill, but that doesn't give credit to the others that just walked out.

Ms. Bingham, you shame our district. I could not believe what I heard come out of your mouth.

I'm older. I never had the cushion of a minimum grade 50. When I came up, if you got a 12 you got a 12 on your report card. I broke up with boyfriends and suffered a parental separation and I didn't tank my grades. Children today know there is a cushion and they work it. "Please, Ms. Bingham, give me a break, I'm Mexican."

Is that enough to warrant giving some credit for NO work done? I think what you said says yes.

Oh My Goodness, poor children. We've enabled them to pass for 8 years, so we need to give them more "mulligans" to go on.

I'm sorry. I believe in supporting children who are trying. I believe in giving children with hard situations a chance. I do NOT believe in giving slackers ANY points at all. If a child does no work, then they should FAIL. Ms. Bingham, you were a teacher, do you think you should give points to the kids who come in a class and sleep? (We assume that you are a good teacher and you've called home.) The kid has been counseled with and he bares his backside at the world and he uses profanity in the hallway and if a teacher dares to correct him, she is called a crazy b-word.

Children need to fail their classes. If they earn 7 points in a six weeks because their teacher is generous enough to give them some participation grade on one day then I think they should take the 7.

I understand about encouraging our students. Some of these kids are very savvy. They know that if they pull a 90 the first two six weeks that they don't have to do anything the last six weeks or on the final and they will still pass the semester. I've had students who knew to the point what they had to make on the semester exam to pull the semester out. I recall children who cheated on the final to get exactly an 87 because that was the point break to pass the semester.

We should hold the kids to what they earn. Teachers are generous. We should not have to give a kid a fifty if they earned a 7. In my class, if a kid comes every day and works in class he/she will pass. I don't want to have to give credit to a kid who is late every day and hasn't taken care of business since the first day of class.

Posted by Mark Harrington @ 3:49 AM Mon, Feb 04, 2008

I doubt that many teachers are aware of the enormous change that took place due to Thursday's meeting. At the meeting trustees maintained a grading policy in which the lowest grade a student may receive is 50. I served on the policy review committee, headed by Leigh Ann Ellis, that unanimously recommended that students receive the grades they earn. A few observations:

1. Evidently a student should be given points they haven't earned. At the same time teachers whose CEIs were 49.9 were not rounded up by .1 and were thus were denied $6,000 additional compensation. Sounds fair!

2. The board has demonstrated that the much touted movement towards greater academic rigor is nothing more than a publicity stunt. One cannot have academic rigor when students are given up to fifty points. The policy review committee was comprised of teachers - those closest to the point where the rubber hits the road. I don't want to hear another word about academic rigor - not one more poster, not one more in-service, not one more article. As they say here in the South, "that dog don't hunt no more."

Memo to the board: Let's just do away with grades and make everyone valedictorian.

Posted by Kent Fischer @ 6:18 PM Mon, Feb 04, 2008

Lew,

Thanks for the clarification, and for your contributions to our project so far.

Posted by wWw1985 @ 4:37 PM Tue, Feb 05, 2008

Dr. Blackburn, please note the following which is quoted directly from Board Briefing Agenda and Notice Dated January 17, 2008 (page 1) "Speakers can only speak one time in a thirty day period".

Posted by Kent Fischer @ 10:16 PM Thu, Feb 07, 2008

Policy does state members of the public can speak once in a 30-day period. wWw1985, nice catch.