The next big event for the school board appears to be tackling the all day kindergarten issue. This will also be a major one because it has such long term ramifications. Attached below are facts through the efforts of Kelly Proudfit. Kelly has put together this information to help educate the board and the concerned citizens and to show the facts surrounding this important issue. This is another item that people must speak out against, the facts as provided through state and local governments are irrefutable and should be considered before the board makes their decisions.
Here is the web site for the parent voice group who also has a blog to follow the ongoing Trinity Saga. http://www.trinityparentsvoice.com/
1. The State of Education Department of PA supports full-day and has been in contact with our district trying to save full day. You can call Dr Daschbach yourself. She was the original education consultant from the state who helped put the full day into place with the previous superintendent. She told me she has been giving the district research and information that only supports full-day and trying to help save it. She is the one who told me there is not much hope because the board simply doesn’t want to pay for it.
2. State Representative Brandon Neuman supports full-day and is trying to reach out personally to each board member to let them know how the state feels. He to said he would speak to you on the record for an article. I have asked him to write a letter to the editor and am waiting to hear back. His number is: (717) 783-4834
3. The parents of Trinity support full-day. 95% of the surveys to parents fully supported full-day. This was shared at the education meeting. 266 parents signed the trinity parent voice petition to save full-day. This petition has been shared with all the board members.4. The teachers of the district almost unanimously support full-day
5. The Research supports full-day. Dr. Paul Kasunich has now twice in education meetings shown data that supports the fact that full-day is improving reading in our schools. The state said the data nationally and locally full supports full-day and that is exactly why they have been funding the program. Dr Daschbach has been directly giving Trinity this data.
6. The education committee is recommending to continue full-day for next year. This is the big thing. If our education committee is making the recommendation this has to be public. People need to make sure the board is listening to our specialized committee’s recommendations.
7. Trinity test scores support full-day. Marlene Kanuck in charge of the Accountability Block Grant (Grant which has funded fully-day for past 4 years) says the test data supplied to the state from the district shows that full-day is working. See her direct quote via email:
“I suggest that you go to the district and request a copy of the full Final Expenditure report for ABG from 07-08, 08-09, 09-10 and this years Mid Year Report. Make sure you ask for the complete report - including the Assessment Narrative information. There is data included on test scores that show FDK is working. The assistant superintendent, Dr. Weaver, is the contact person.
8. The state has been funding full-day. Trinity school district has been taking money from the state for over 4 years toward full-day kindergarten. This funding according to Brandon Nueman most likely won’t come to an end next year. March 8th the state announces what money will be available.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Let's start our new blog with the Coach Dalton case and where does it stand? Good question, at this point they have again terminated Ed, well, they didn’t actually tell Ed he was terminated. So, that created a grievance from the teachers union. The vote to remove came on Mr. Bodnovich's last official board meeting. The vote was Bodnovich, Day, Interval, Clutter and McWreath. The remaining 4 all voted to keep Ed as coach, Clemens, Keisling, Knapp and Salvatori. Why did they vote to keep Ed as coach, aside from the fact that he is a good person and the fact that he has proven to be the best, most winning coach in the history of the school, none of the descending 5 could give a reason as to why they wanted Ed gone. They attempted to have their new "contract negotiator" Mr. Breth investigate the athletic department. The goal; to find mishandling of school monies, which by the way they did find, in the form of Mr. Breth charging us $25,000 to tell us that nothing was wrong with the monies. The only real issue (other than paying an attorney $25,000 to audit the athletics) was the lack of some tracking procedures in the business office. By the way our other auditors reported the same thing $25,000 ago.
So now what, well the fab-5 (as mentioned above) decided to hire Mike Wall as the new coach, but wait, he needs a full time job! I know, lets give him the transition coordinators position. We will just bring that position back; no one will remember that we said it was a position that was not needed. But, how much can we pay him? Lets just wait and pay him what ever he wants, because remember he is an assistant football coach inTexas Upper St. Clair . But how much does he want? Who cares he does not want to work here so we will only have to pay him as coach.
Ok, so now let’s skip ahead to the board meeting, Mr. Makel informs the board that they are again circumventing their own rules and the law by changing the agenda to include a name in the head coach item on the agenda. They immediately go to executive session. When they return a new vote is taken to re-hire Ed Dalton the vote is Clemens, Keisling, Knapp, Salvatori the new board member Harton AND McWreath to keep and Day, Clutter and Iterval to not. There of course are some stipulations but in my mind the only things we have succeeded in doing are to ad more dollar signs or should I say 0's to Ed's law suit. More on this situation as it progresses.
Now what can we (the board) do, lets bring in a guy named Caputo and his insurance company to change our insurance coverage, after all he covers the Blackhawk school district and the, oh that’s right, just the Blackhawk school district. But he must be good he was on the Blackhawk school board and our new attorney, (you remember the $25,000 guy from above) was involved in a law suit with him as defendants. We do have an expert in this field and i will see if he can fill us in more on the insurance problem. I will also see if he would mind adding a few sentences to this blog to keep us all on the same page about the program.
Kaunich’s domestic assault case is scheduled for non-jury trial on May 5th. We will need to watch this one closely also. Half day kindergarten is much closer than you may think, could be this next meeting will be the start of conversations for it. Lots more to go over but I will send more tomorrow.
So now what, well the fab-5 (as mentioned above) decided to hire Mike Wall as the new coach, but wait, he needs a full time job! I know, lets give him the transition coordinators position. We will just bring that position back; no one will remember that we said it was a position that was not needed. But, how much can we pay him? Lets just wait and pay him what ever he wants, because remember he is an assistant football coach in
Ok, so now let’s skip ahead to the board meeting, Mr. Makel informs the board that they are again circumventing their own rules and the law by changing the agenda to include a name in the head coach item on the agenda. They immediately go to executive session. When they return a new vote is taken to re-hire Ed Dalton the vote is Clemens, Keisling, Knapp, Salvatori the new board member Harton AND McWreath to keep and Day, Clutter and Iterval to not. There of course are some stipulations but in my mind the only things we have succeeded in doing are to ad more dollar signs or should I say 0's to Ed's law suit. More on this situation as it progresses.
Now what can we (the board) do, lets bring in a guy named Caputo and his insurance company to change our insurance coverage, after all he covers the Blackhawk school district and the, oh that’s right, just the Blackhawk school district. But he must be good he was on the Blackhawk school board and our new attorney, (you remember the $25,000 guy from above) was involved in a law suit with him as defendants. We do have an expert in this field and i will see if he can fill us in more on the insurance problem. I will also see if he would mind adding a few sentences to this blog to keep us all on the same page about the program.
Kaunich’s domestic assault case is scheduled for non-jury trial on May 5th. We will need to watch this one closely also. Half day kindergarten is much closer than you may think, could be this next meeting will be the start of conversations for it. Lots more to go over but I will send more tomorrow.
Why another blog?
After sending thousands and thousands of emails and attempting to keep up with the daily debacles of this board, I have decided that a blog would help to keep every one informed. This blog should allow each person the ability to read when they have time and also to comment when they feel so inclined to do so. With the emailed letters, the only comments came directly to me and although greatly appreciated it was difficult to pass the comments and information back to the group, this blog will eliminate those difficulties.
There are only a few rules with this blog. First, it is not a gossip site, please include facts and information that is important to the group, we all want to understand what is happening, but need to understand the facts in order to help fight the actions of a few. Second, we are not here to attack the board members, unlike their daily rituals. We are here to inform educate and participate. If some of these board members put themselves in a position to be ridiculed or talked about then so be it, as long as it is factual. Signing your name is not a must; I do understand the ramifications for some people if their name is involved in this type of community support mechanism. But please be truthful, we do not want to stoop to their levels of incompetence and ignorance.
There have been several very well done blogs associated with this board and I certainly do not want to take from their efforts, however after Jane Ann Songer and I discussed the difficulties associated with keeping letters up to date, and with all of the recent happenings associated with Coach Dalton, the Insurance, the 62% increase in attorney fees, the discrimination suit, the Dalton suit, half day kindergarten, the potential closing of South, the bussing issues, the contract negotiations, the lack of contract negotiations for the non teaching staff, the A.D, the Superintendent and his case etc. etc. etc. We decided that a blog would best fit the needs and support of the group.
There are only a few rules with this blog. First, it is not a gossip site, please include facts and information that is important to the group, we all want to understand what is happening, but need to understand the facts in order to help fight the actions of a few. Second, we are not here to attack the board members, unlike their daily rituals. We are here to inform educate and participate. If some of these board members put themselves in a position to be ridiculed or talked about then so be it, as long as it is factual. Signing your name is not a must; I do understand the ramifications for some people if their name is involved in this type of community support mechanism. But please be truthful, we do not want to stoop to their levels of incompetence and ignorance.
There have been several very well done blogs associated with this board and I certainly do not want to take from their efforts, however after Jane Ann Songer and I discussed the difficulties associated with keeping letters up to date, and with all of the recent happenings associated with Coach Dalton, the Insurance, the 62% increase in attorney fees, the discrimination suit, the Dalton suit, half day kindergarten, the potential closing of South, the bussing issues, the contract negotiations, the lack of contract negotiations for the non teaching staff, the A.D, the Superintendent and his case etc. etc. etc. We decided that a blog would best fit the needs and support of the group.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)