It looks like next week will be the earliest that the Wake County school board can decide what to do next with AdvancED over the accreditation fight.
Due to the absence of school board attorney Jonathan Blumberg from today's meeting, the board did not hold a discussion on AdvancED. But school board chairman Ron Margiotta said it will happen soon.
Toward the end of tonight's meeting, board member Kevin Hill pressed Margiotta for when the issue would be discussed. Margiotta said he's waiting to see if Blumberg will be available to meet with them during a board meeting.
It's too late to provide the 48-hour notice to amend either Wednesday's or Thursday's reassignment public hearings to bring up the issue.
The next likeliest options are Monday's reassignment hearing at Cary High or the reassignment work sessions on Jan. 25 and 27.
Hill said he wants more than "49 hours notice" of the meeting.
Comments
Goldman will support AdvancED
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 18:21 — magnetParenthttp://www.wral.com/news/education/wake_county_schools/story/8969119/
"After careful consideration and conversations with constituents, educators, students and parents, I believe it is time for the Wake County Board of Education to accept the review process proposed by AdvancED. I believe the dialogue with AdvancED has created a chasm between our two institutions which, while understandable, is not in the best interest of our students.
At some point, regardless of the righteousness of my concerns regarding the complaints filed against the Board, the authority in the accreditation process lies with the accrediting agency. While some board members may have concerns with the way that authority may be ultimately executed, I do respect AdvancED’s position to enforce their process on their accredited schools. As both a parent and a school board member, I value the accreditation process, and I am gravely concerned for our students and their prospects for future success, particularly graduating seniors, if we refuse to participate in the review.
I would hope that AdvancED would consider a careful review of their policies regarding complaint handling in light of this unfortunate conflict between our two fine institutions. This is neither a partisan nor a political issue, but rather one that directly affects students and parents across the County. As we focus on student achievement, a review of our processes can only help us to make our fine school system even stronger.
Therefore, I will support moving forward with the accreditation review and I will meet with AdvancED when they come for our review. It is critical that we finalize this matter so that we can move on to other important issues, such as school funding, student achievement, community-based schools and school assignment."
OT -- Wake and Tedesco make the Colbert Report
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 08:13 — virginiadarehttp://www.wral.com/news/education/wake_county_schools/story/8963193/
He did an amazing...
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 09:05 — bpuli9999job of summarizing the situation - he made JT look like a moron (which I happen to agree with, btw).
In the clip showing JT's tea party speech, he talks about social engineering - what's he doing by wanting to create zones - that's not social engineering? that's not govenrment intervention? he wants to set where my kid can go to school - and somehow that is not social engineering?
And you make you look like a moron
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 16:54 — FSandYOUDid you know moron is not an acceptable word according to those at the N&O?
"Hill said he wants more
Tue, 01/18/2011 - 23:26 — loriac"Hill said he wants more than "49 hours notice" of the meeting."
If it's too much of a bother for Mr. Hill to abide by the rules, maybe he should step down.
Or, he could just shirk his
Tue, 01/18/2011 - 23:52 — woodstockOr, he could just shirk his responsiblities and go shopping like Sutton does... his choice.
Hill does seem like a shopper
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 16:55 — FSandYOUHe has an obvious fem side. Can't keep up Mr. Hill, you're free to go. I'm sure most in your district would help you pack.
In other AdvancED news..........
Tue, 01/18/2011 - 23:13 — nancyncAtlanta public school system put on probation by AdvancED:
Complaints that the school board wasn't governing effectively prompted AdvancED to make an onsite visit in December and review school system documents.
The board had become divided after the launch of an investigation of allegations of cheating on standardized tests. After months of bickering, four members filed a lawsuit in October alleging that the board's chairman and vice chairwoman were improperly elected to the leadership positions. They had to give up the positions as part of a settlement, though El became chairman again in a subsequent vote.
To keep its accreditation, the board must develop a long-term education strategy, hire an impartial mediator to resolve board disputes and put in place a transparent process for selecting a new superintendent, among other requirements. The system will have to convince Elgart's group that it's making "authentic progress" on those requirements by the end of September, he said.
The board had become divided after the launch of an investigation into allegations of cheating on standardized tests at 58 city schools.
Four members of the nine-person board filed a lawsuit in late October after months of public bickering over the investigation. The suit alleged that El and Vice Chairwoman Yolanda Johnson were illegally elected leaders of the board. The suit's settlement in late November required El and Johnson to step down from their leadership positions. El has since been reelected.
To retain accreditation, requirements of the board include:
— Developing and implementing a long-term plan to communicate with and engage stakeholders in the board's mission of educating students;
— Hiring a trained, impartial mediator to work with board members to resolve communication, operational and personal issues that are making the board ineffective;
— Ensuring that board member actions and behavior comply with board policies;
— Reviewing and refining policies to promote achievement of the board's mission;
— Developing and implementing a transparent process for selecting a new superintendent;
— Working directly with the state to address inconsistencies in the Atlanta Independent School System Charter.
The board must submit a progress report in May and, by Sept. 30, it must make "authentic progress in moving this system forward in a positive manner," Elgart said.
It would seem that AdvancED is the real leader of all school boards, they have the power to threaten loss of accreditation and get the parents in a huff and everyone panics.
Somehow that seems a bit too much power in the hands of one man.
There seems to be a trend of
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 07:13 — DrActualFactualThere seems to be a trend of Board Members jumping on the band wagon to sue/penalize their own district based on what you indicated. During the Bill LuMaye show he indicated that Rick Martinez had interviewed Dr. Elgart who indicated that some of Wake's BOE were involved in bringing the complaint forward but wouldn't say which ones. This seems to be a tactic used to sabotage BOE members and have them replaced. I think the public should know which BOE members have no problem risking the futures of our students in an attempt to alter the BOE composition to their political liking.
That's interesting - why
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 17:16 — loriacThat's interesting - why wouldn't we be entitled to know which BOE member contacted Mr. Elgart? The taxpayers pay the bill for Mr. Elgart's 'service'. Keung?
You guys are getting into
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 17:27 — KeungHui (author)You guys are getting into third-hand accounts now.
Third-hand?
Thu, 01/20/2011 - 00:37 — FSandYOUHow about getting the facts on something much more important than JT's personal problems? The voters deserve to know which board members are the traitors!
Compare and contrast
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 00:08 — magnetParentCompare the response of their BoE Chairman:
"Board Chairman Khaatim Sherrer El said the district is taking the report very seriously and will address all of the concerns in a transparent manner.
"I want to make this absolutely clear, retention of our accreditation is a top priority for this board and administration because the academic standing and reputation of the district is at stake," he said. "
To ours:
"LuMaye asked Margiotta why the school board doesn't just tell AdvancED to "take a walk."
"I would agree with you because I'm not sure we need that accrediting from AdvancED or anyone else," Margiotta replied. "The problem that I see is the PR problem that if any child doesn't get into a school of their choice that parent is going to blame us because we lost the accrediting from AdvancED. Or if a child doesn't get the scholarship they'll blame us.""
Seems like RM is more concerned about how it reflects on him than the district.
Maybe someone else knows
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 07:18 — willynillyMaybe someone else knows more about this so I'll throw this out. When I applied to college I filled out an application and had my transcripts sent to the college. I took my SATs and had those scores sent. I wrote my essay and attended meetings at the schoolo to prepare. So where does the accreditation play in here? Would a college simply say no to a student......if that student had great grades, well written esaay, good to excellent SAT scores? Simply because a school system does not have accreditation?
I'm no expert but this is
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 07:31 — magnetParentI'm no expert but this is what I have gleaned from university web pages.
They won't flat out say no to a student simply because of their school's non-accreditation status. However, as they are perusing the thousands of applications, those students at non-accredited high schools will go into a separate pile for a different analysis. The requirements are more stringent. Most of them specify a higher SAT/ACT score. Some look for a higher GPA and/or class rank. Some require some form of GED certificate. I even saw one that said those applications would be reviewed by committee. Will that student with great grades, a well written essay, and excellent SAT scores be denied? Probably not (depends on the competition I guess). But what about that student with good grades, and good SAT scores? (But not good enough for the non-accredited requirements). Those are the ones that could lose out.
Now, as for scholarships, some (not all) do require attending an accredited high school. I don't think there is any way around that.
Yeah....
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 00:33 — Bob_SconceSo, there's clearly a perception that accreditation is critical, but it's not at all clear that the reality lives up to that perception. Districts seems to kow-tow to the accreditation agencies and (because there's usually something to have gotten the agency interested) are not really in a good position to push back. Of course, WCPSS isn't in a particularly good position to push back, but is doing so anyway.
Only the high schools in Atlanta Public Schools are accredited, not the district. Strangely, according to the Journal Constitution: "The announcement, which set off a chain reaction of worry and condemnation in one of Georgia's most visible school systems, had nothing to do with the system's academics." Yet, "Losing accreditation can affect students' eligibility for scholarship money, including Georgia's HOPE scholarship, college acceptances and federal funding. It also could depress property values throughout Atlanta and scare away companies that are considering a relocation to the city." There's something wrong with those two statements -- basically, there's nothing wrong with the quality of the education, but your scholarships and college applications may get dinged anyway.
[Like I pointed out above, I'm not convinced that the second italicized statement is true. But, enough people believe that it is that the political situation is the same.]
Whether the accreditation is
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 06:54 — magnetParentWhether the accreditation is necessary and whether AdvancED is in the right or in the wrong can and will be debated for a long time. Having had to live through a few ISO9000 audits and DOD Government contracts, I can understand the purpose of AdvancED and what they are trying to do.
I was more struck by the difference in concern between the two board chairmen. One is very clear that he is concerned about how it will affect the students and the district. The other is more concerned about public perception and getting blamed for issues the students may face.
The comment from the Atlanta
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 09:08 — shearertwThe comment from the Atlanta BOE chair appears to be a prepared statements, Ron's comment is more off the cuff during a live interview. I'm sure you're not cherry picking comments to try and make a point but I'm willing to bet if you had access to every comment the Atlanta BOE chair has said about the issue you may find one you didn't agree with. Suggesting Ron doesn't care about how all this will affect the students is just plain stupid. Its just as stupid as me saying Obama doesn't care how is healthcare law will affect my healthcare. Both could be wrong, but both do care. I won't go into details here again as I described in on another post but there are several reasons why one could believe not giving in to AdvancED now is the best long-term decision for the students of WCPSS. This is no ISO9000 audit about standards and practices, this is a political game AdvancED is neck deep in. AdvancED probably "cares" but their means and motives are highly suspect.
Fine, then show me one
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 09:35 — magnetParentFine, then show me one comment, prepared or otherwise, where Ron said anything remotely close to what the Atlanta BOE chair said. I couldn't find one.
This is not a political game. What would AdvancED have to gain from it?
and lots of free publicity
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 11:52 — loriacand lots of free publicity
No kidding....What good is
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 12:27 — shearertwNo kidding....What good is an accreditation agency is it doesn't remove its accreditation every now and then?
Really?
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 10:50 — Bob_SconceThe same thing EVERY organization wants to gain -- an increase in its sphere of influence. The real question is what keeps that organization in check?
It is absolutely a political
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 10:01 — woodstockIt is absolutely a political game.
Power and influence.
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 09:49 — shearertwPower and influence. Pretty strong motivator for some people.
Actually, widespread
Tue, 01/18/2011 - 23:37 — eddie2Actually, widespread cheating seems like something they should have been able to agree was a bad thing, which needed to be rooted out. Sounds like some of the members didn't want the problem to be exposed.
So let me ask this.....is it
Wed, 01/19/2011 - 07:22 — willynillySo let me ask this.....is it cheating when the state provides EOG test questions to students? LAst year my department chair (science) brought me a release test from the DPI web site. I used that in April to review with my students and to ge tthem to see what the test looks like. To my surprise my students came back to me and told me that there were questions on the EOG that were on the release test. My best estimate was that there were 12 questions on the test that were also on the release test. I saw some of this with my own eyes as I walked around the room.
Yes, that's cheating, on the
Thu, 01/20/2011 - 03:01 — eddie2Yes, that's cheating, on the part of the state, if they gave out actual questions that would be on the test.
Not surprising that they do anything to inflate the scores, but it's cheating.
.
Tue, 01/18/2011 - 23:57 — nancyncThe cheating is one facet, but look at the list of directives during their probation.
There is more to this story than what I could find reported or AdvancED is over the top in their approach here.
...
Tue, 01/18/2011 - 22:06 — Sideburns"Hill said he wants more than "49 hours notice" of the meeting."
Then change the rules, Kev.