May the buses run smoothly and on time and may the first day back be a good experience for everyone!

The open house schedule for September 7th as provided by the HPS is this pdf.

The bus routes per the HPS are available in pdf form by following these links for the primary grades, middle schools and Haverhill High School.

Why the school department website insists on a link to a link to a linked pdf for practically every document – I don’t think we will ever know.

The Eagle Tribune published an article about the September 8 meeting regarding participation in HHS athletics including everything you wanted to know about sports fees.

And for my fellow Riverside Residents:  The Mayor sent a letter yesterday about the meeting on September 13th @ 6pm.  This meeting will cover the bridge construction, general roadwork, recycling and have school administration members there to answer school related questions.

As a district we are behind in the percentage of Highly Qualified Teachers allowed by the state.  They posted their numbers here.

What everyone’s forgotten in this fiasco is highlighted in this question by the Eagle Tribune:

Asked how many teachers are not considered qualified by the state to teach the subjects to which they are assigned, Scully told The Eagle-Tribune he did not have an exact number but said it’s “a small minority.”

There is a difference between “Highly Qualified Teachers” as laid out in the NCLB requirements and teachers qualified by the state to teach the subjects to which they are assigned.

Mr Sierpina outlines some of the challenges Haverhill faces in meeting this requirement:

School Committee member Ray Sierpina, who headed Tilton School before retiring two years ago, said yesterday that Haverhill is actually doing quite well to post a 91 percent compliance rate regarding highly qualified teachers. Typically, there’s a hold on hiring in June, so by the time Haverhill is ready to hire teachers, those who have all the credentials to be considered “highly qualified” have taken jobs elsewhere.

Further exacerbating the issue is the complex hierarchy of teachers based on tenure and dual certification where teachers are shuffled around to teach subjects they haven’t taught in a while because their current position is being eliminated.  Therefore a “highly qualified art teacher” who suddenly finds themselves teaching math for the first time in a decade would lose their highly qualified status until they demonstrate competence in mathematics.   This teacher would be covered by a temporary waiver.

Out-of-Field Teaching
Though the Department allows teachers to spend 20% of their time teaching out-of-field, NCLB requires a teacher to demonstrate “a high level of competency in each of the [core] academic subjects” in which he or she teaches. Hence, a teacher who is certified but teaching out-of-field will not be considered highly qualified in the out-of-field subject area until he or she has demonstrated subject matter competency in that area.

So while the newspaper and parts of the school committee would have us believe our students are in the hands of completely incompetent instructors and no one knew.  In reality the students are being taught by qualified teachers – and 91% highly qualified teachers!  The 41 Haverhill teachers who are not currently considered highly qualified undoubtedly have waivers for the year in which they are completing Master’s Degree programs, taking certification courses or otherwise proving their competence in a subject they haven’t taught in some time.

Perhaps if we want 100% of our teachers to be Highly Qualified Teachers 100% of the time we need to restructure how education works in our state.  Giving pink slips to a significant portion of teachers every year, constantly changing who teaches which subjects, cutting more and more programs and shifting responsibilities isn’t working.

As taxpayers we are required then to support the teacher’s unions and they in turn use this money to lobby our government.  As a labor union they are negotiating on the premise of doing what’s best for their members as any labor union should – but they are doing it at the cost of the education system and the children trapped within it.  They are also doing it with public money.

I’ve lately come to really resent sending my children to school.  I have no choice – I must educate them according to law.  I could send them to a private school but I’ve not found one that meets my educational philosophy.  I could home school them but that presents other challenges and denies them certain opportunities as there is sometimes a social stigma attached to home schooling.  The balance I’ve struck is to send them to our local school system but to be aware of what they are learning and to supplement and amend the curriculum in our home to meet my personal education requirements.

Then I read articles like this: The Long Reach of Teachers Unions.

The largest political campaign spender in America is not a megacorporation, such as Wal-Mart, Microsoft, or ExxonMobil. It isn’t an industry association, like the American Bankers Association or the National Association of Realtors. It’s not even a labor federation, like the AFL-CIO. If you combine the campaign spending of all those entities it does not match the amount spent by the National Education Association, the public-sector labor union that represents some 2.3 million K–12 public school teachers and nearly a million education support workers (bus drivers, custodians, food service employees), retirees, and college student members. NEA members alone make up more than half of union members working for local governments, by far the most unionized segment of the U.S. economy.

So if you think you don’t spend money on political campaigns – think again.  For Massachusetts, the amount spent per teacher on politics is $81.24.  Total spending for the year $5.7 million dollars.  Millions of dollars spent to advocate for a broken system dedicated to maintaining the status quo.

Look at one of the big ticket items they spent these funds to support:

Two very large donations concerned a noneducation issue on which NEA has been active: health care. The union contributed $450,000 to Health Care for America Now (AFT chipped in another $125,000) and $275,000 to the National Coalition on Health Care (AFT, $10,000). Last year, NEA president Dennis Van Roekel was part of the labor coalition that persuaded the White House to delay the implementation of the “Cadillac” excise tax on health care coverage, but only when it applied to union members.

No wonder the local teacher’s union won’t negotiate health care concessions.  They’ve got a few extra years before those unwieldy “Cadillac plans” come into the penalty phase.  Once that happens then they will negotiate just enough to avoid the excise tax.  And we, the taxpayer, get to pay both bills.

Open Enrollment letters went out over the weekend so if you were expecting one and didn’t get it you might want to try calling the central office.

Class Lists will be posted on the doors of the various schools on Friday, September 3rd.  Learn who your child’s teacher will be, which of their friends will be in class with them, and how many kids are in their class.  This is another way to see if your Open Enrollment was accepted if you hadn’t heard yet.

School Supply lists went home in June’s report cards and will be available at the various open house events.  Some stores are still running their sales so stock up on glue sticks, pencils, crayons and notebooks now!

We’re looking forward to the 2010 – 2011 school year and hoping the students will be successful.

Of course this extreme spending isn’t limited to California.  Closer to home, Newton North High School has created controversy over its price tag as well.

With little fanfare on Tuesday, the city took ownership of the new Newton North High School. What started out in 2000 as a $39 million renovation mushroomed over the years to a $197.5 million new building that includes mold-free rooms, natural light instead of windowless halls and an HVAC system that actually circulates air.

Dimeo Construction is scheduled to take ownership of the old Newton North on July 1 to prepare it for demolition, according to city Chief Operating Officer Bob Rooney. While the new North will open to students in the fall, it will take two decades to pay for the project.

While I do understand that the physical conditions of a building do impact the ability of students to learn; I am not sure the exorbitant price tags on these buildings impact achievement by enough to justify their costs.

“The commissioned report found “poor environments in schools, …, adversely influence the health, performance, and attendance of students.”(Building Minds, 2006, p. 1) Factors such as poor lighting, inadequate ventilation, crumbling walls, damaged ceiling tiles, and inoperative heating and air conditioning systems were reported in AFT’s 2006 research results. The results also included the factors of noise, overcrowding, and air quality, recognizing their link to student learning (Building Minds, 2006).

Many researchers have categorized building factors as either cosmetic or structural. The cosmetic factors, those that can be seen, consistently are linked with improved student performance. Structural factors, including heating and air-conditioning, also are linked to student achievement. Factors that have been noted repeatedly o influence student achievement include natural lighting, paint colors and paint cycles, general cleanliness, air quality, temperature control, acoustical enhancements, safety features, absence of graffiti, and air conditioning.”

But does providing that truly require:

“At RFK, the features include fine art murals and a marble memorial depicting the complex’s namesake, a manicured public park, a state-of-the-art swimming pool and preservation of pieces of the original hotel.”

Or (from later in the article):

Nationwide, dozens of schools have surpassed $100 million with amenities including atriums, orchestra-pit auditoriums, food courts, even bamboo nooks.

We have districts so cash strapped that educators are forced to justify the validity of art class and students share battered textbooks and need to pay fees for all of their extra curricular activities.  We also have districts across our nation with talking benches, parks and bamboo nooks.  There’s a serious divide in public education made more stark when you compare the opulence in one area to the austerity next door.  When do we place the focus back on education instead of excess?

I learned of this cut and others from this article in the Haverhill Gazette.  I hope the School Committee and the administration and our citizens remember this cut when no new children are looking to join the Haverhill High School Marching Band.  Of course, we haven’t had a band in years – so what’s one more year?  Haverhill’s lack of a band is just one more mark against an already struggling system.

I hope the parents who purchased instruments for their children to take lessons with Mr Bakopulos saved their receipts or can find another place for their children to take lessons.

Other cuts and fee changes listed in the article were:

“eight special education aides and four high school teachers in the areas of art, science, foreign language and language arts.

An adjustment counselor’s position was left unfilled.

Another 109 teachers who received layoff notices in the spring have been called back to work this fall, said interim Superintendent James Scully.

At Haverhill High School, students are going to be asked to pay a fee to participate in school clubs, including yearbook, drama and band. The fees will cover the stipends for teachers to act as advisers to the programs. Stipends range from $1,500 to $4,000, said Kara Kosmes, assistant superintendent for finance and operations.”

I do fear that by the time my children reach Haverhill High School there will be nothing left.

I wonder how much of the good feelings toward Mr Scully are part of the honeymoon phase and will still be around in October.  The not so subtle digs at the former superintendent were not lost on anyone.  That position doesn’t turnover so quickly by accident.  I can just hear the committee’s praises for our “permanent” Superintendent now:  we love the communication, that interim guy didn’t do things like you do!  so nice to have a “permanent” replacement that we can count on.

I feel for Garin Veris.  I don’t know how much more clearly he can possibly explain the sports fee issue before people comprehend there is a fee and that it needs to be paid to participate in sports.  His position is unenviable in this manner.  No one likes the fees but they do need to be paid.  Students who pay the fee on time and in full are the ones most hurt by the nonpayment of others.  Opportunities for waivers do exist for families who cannot pay – all they ask is that you apply for the waiver before the fee collection becomes an issue.

Apparently privatization is only a dirty word when applied to the Special Education department and the Custodial department!  Imagine my surprise in hearing Mr Wood’s suggestion to privatize HHS security after the fights regarding food service, Futures, and the night custodians at HHS!  Mr Wood investigated other high school security forces and discovered most other places “Don’t do it like we do here in Haverhill.”  There are lots of things we do here differently.  Just because its different doesn’t make it wrong – bring a stronger and more detailed argument.

Lastly, I noticed that our Interim Superintendent made some pivotal appointments.  Somehow no one felt the need to question his decisions by stating that he’s only the interim and won’t be around to truly experience the impact of his decisions.  Funny that!

Then we have the lovely rock pile which absolutely brings more tax dollars into town than the successful and popular Friend’s Landing restaurant.  So happy we razed that building, drove out the clientele and built that great condo complex.  Oh wait – we didn’t build anything.  The owner blames the economy but I wonder if the clientele weren’t simply victims of being “those people.”

Zoning makes headlines again as Haverhill attempts to loosen restrictions at the industrial parks to bring new business into the area.  Of course “those people” need not apply.  In this case “those people” are the smaller businesses, euphemistically dubbed “low employment” companies.  Companies like the Canine Fun Time indoor dog park.

These companies are not welcome in Haverhill unless they are willing to settle downtown.  With a viable parking solution at least four years away – adding new traffic downtown is untenable.  The buildings downtown are also not amenable to every business type.  Of course these companies could work towards a zoning exemption but the $5,000 to $10,000 fee is a barrier to many smaller businesses.

I understand the Mayor wants booming large industries akin to what was here when Lucent was prosperous but business has changed much since then.  Even successful businesses have fewer on site employees than ever between economy induced downsizing and telecommuting increases.

So while we wait for a savior, Haverhill keeps pushing away people who want to grow our city.  We also forget our lives are made of more than work and sleep.  We need places to shop and play.  And we need “those people” to help us do so.  There are more of “those people” around than you think!

We should accelerate the implementation of our new “Innovation Schools” model, which has already resulted in the creation of two cutting-edge schools just six months after the passage of the governor’s legislation. We need to continue implementing our six regional “Readiness Centers,” which bring educators, school districts, colleges, and other partners together to address core educational priorities. In short, it’s time to move beyond setting standards to implementing educational strategies which will help our students achieve our high expectations.

Just reading that gives me a headache.  We can implement and innovate on the cutting edge all we want but without textbooks, teachers, supplies and facilities all the innovation on the planet can’t implement learning.

Looking at the results of almost 20 years of reform I can’t say any child has come out of this a clear winner.  Now the Massachusetts Department of Education is backpedaling and attempting to spin its adoption of Common Core Standards as  raising the Ed Reform bar to the next level.  According to the Mass DOE press release last month: Launched in June 2009, the Common Core State Standards Initiative is designed to develop and implement a single set of national standards in ELA and math to define what every student should know and be able to do in order to be fully ready for post-secondary education or a successful career. Massachusetts played a leading role in the development and review of the standards over the past 13 months. Curriculum experts and educators from across the Commonwealth reviewed and submitted comments on drafts that were incorporated throughout the development process to ensure that the expectations set in the final versions met or exceeded the state’s strong standards for students.

Here we are taking our broken system (much like the health care debacle) and inflicting it on the rest of the country.  Then we adopt this new version of what we already do and call it innovation and reform.

The real motivation behind adopting these standards is monetary.  Just six days after announcing the adoption of Common Core Standards the Governor also announced Massachusetts earned a finalist position in the second round competition for Race to the Top funding.

What will Massachusetts do with this money?  The last time I read their RTTT application their primary focus seemed to be data warehousing.  The link t0 the most current application at the bottom of Governor Patrick’s press release is broken.  Of course receipt of this money is set to be revealed in time for the new school year in September – just in time for the government to use it to supplant existing funding as they did with the previous stimulus monies.

Data warehousing would be a great tool if we were giving our students every opportunity and yet they still weren’t successful.  Until we no longer have classrooms without textbooks, sports teams without equipment, schools sharing nurses and class sizes in the mid 30′s it doesn’t take someone with a PHD in education to tell you why students aren’t achieving.  So while our Ed Secretary wants us to believe every child is a winner… I believe the real winners are sitting on Beacon Hill hoping for more money to waste in the name of education and innovation.