Education

March 31, 2007

Turk doing Robo-calls?

Email tipster:
Robo-call this morning from "Susan Turk from Save Our Schools" urging
> votes for "parents" Wessling and Jackson.

Montee Subpoenas MOHELA

from StLToday.

City's Democratic Central Committee

today Jesse Todd and Jay Ozier pushed for a resolution against the state take-over of the school district.

Vice-chair Yaphett El-Amin ran the meeting as Brian Wahby stepped down to speak against the proposal on the floor.

The voice vote went against the resolution.

March 28, 2007

Hearing Today on Education Bills

in Jeff City.

Senator Smith's 15 point education plan.
Senator Coleman's repeal the transitional board bill.
Senator Gibbons' create a task force.

UPDATE: Smith's parents and grandmother were in the audience, perhaps expecting fireworks which never came.

Gibbon's bill is a "shell" to be used as a vehicle for whatever compromises the senate can come to.

Coleman's bill is a rhetoric roar with no legs.

Smith's bill faced the usual opposition - Susan Turk, Teachers' Union.

Longer School Days

National trend - NY Times.

March 26, 2007

Kennedy on NCLB

Washington Post Op-ed.

March 22, 2007

Shrewsbury Yields School Choice to Reed

KSDK.

Gov to Choose Sullivan

PubDef has it. Obviously picking a non-city resident raises some eye-brows.

But the thinking is that he will provide the business/logistical acumen for the transitional board. The mayor's pick, still undisclosed, will likely have some educational expertise (and be a city resident). As well, Shrewsbury is said to be looking at various principals or former principals who would again have an educational background.

Sullivan's appointment will need the support of Senator Joan Bray. What will she do? While she's no fan of Blunt, most recently warring with him on MOHELA, she is expected to agree to the choice.

March 21, 2007

Mayors Taking Over Schools

From USA Today.

March 20, 2007

KIPP to Expand in Houston

Raises $65 million in private donations.

March 17, 2007

Bourisaw Asks Students To Return

Following demonstrations at Soldan International and Gateway Technical and a walkout at Roosevelt High School, Superintendent Diana Bourisaw asked that students, end the sit-in currently being staged at City Hall.

“I understand the desire of these students to have their voices heard,” said Superintendent Diana Bourisaw in a press release. “We are working to provide them answers to their questions regarding the proposed unaccreditation of the St. Louis Public Schools. In the meantime, I want them to all return to their classrooms.”

The St. Louis Public Schools are on spring break next week, but her intent is understood.

A major issue is the perception that students' college scholarships may be negatively impacted if the state decides to rate the district as "unaccredited" at its meeting next week.

Representatives from Missouri schools as well as the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers told the Post-Dispatch that schools are aware of the situation and it would not be held against district students.

While recognizing that Mayor Francis Slay will not have the final say in the matter, the students are asking him to stand with them in opposition to a state takeover; a position 180 degrees from Slay's repeated public support for the takeover.

Though the involvement of WGNU-920 AM radio host Lizz Brown–who has been a vocal opponent of Slay–may make the Mayor's office less inclined to cooperate, this may be a case where a more visible attempt to communicate with the students is important. Some, perhaps all, of the students' demands may be impossible for Slay to meet, but they have articulated their argument well and with just the right dose of unreasonableness that you know it's genuine.

(Check out PubDef for some excellent interviews.)

The Mayor's office must also tread a fine line. The Mayor, like any elected official must strike a balance; they can not have their schedules and time dictated to them and also execute their jobs. At the same time they must be responsive to the concerns of those they represent. They would certainly be within their rights to evict a group which asks for the undeliverable and is working on an indefinite timeline.

That said, if you are taking actions that are supposed to improve city schools and your office is suddenly filled with students…that may be the definition of the sticky wicket.

The entire affair may be written off by some as a disruptive action motivated by adults who are using students for political gain. Others will call it democracy in action. Adults may quibble, but the students believe they are participating in something important.

Some of them are at the top of their class, some aren't. All of them are there watching.

This is a real-world classroom for them. They see the Mayor's office. They see media. They see Liz Brown, Donna Jones and others who are working with them.

As the adults debate what the future of education in the city of St. Louis should look like, what should the students learn from the situation?

March 16, 2007

Bourisaw: charters promise, district delivers

Mayor Francis Slay may believe in the potential of charter schools, but SLPS Superintendent Diana Bourisaw says the facts don't bear out his confidence.

“We do not need additional low-performing charter schools in St. Louis,” said Superintendent Diana Bourisaw in a press release.  “Instead, we need to work together as a community to continue the improvements that are already underway in the St. Louis Public Schools.”

Bourisaw's statement landed on the Mayor's desk a day after his trip to Jefferson City where he spoke before the State Senate Education Committee asking their support for a pro-charter bill. The bill, sponsored by State Senator Jeff Smith (D-St. Louis), would give the mayor the ability to sponsor more charter schools.

Bourisaw said that, based on Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) test scores, the city public schools have outperformed the existing charter schools.

For more detailed information visit the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's School Data page.

On his blog, Slay said that the city has run out of willing sponsors for more charter schools, thus the legislation is needed so that his office can sponsor new charters. Slay also laid out other reasons for his support.

Third, the taxpayers in the State of Missouri and City of St. Louis have spent billions of dollars on public education in St. Louis. We have received very little value for our money. I do not think that is right. Good charter schools, which are public schools supported by taxpayers, will offer more value right away.

“We are already a district of choice,” said Bourisaw.  “We have over 5,000 students who currently attend charter schools.  Unfortunately, those students are not performing at the level of our SLPS students.  In addition, 8,000 SLPS students attend county schools, and 9,000 are enrolled in our popular magnet programs.” 

March 14, 2007

The Mayor's Pick

A couple of issues ago, we reported that Mayor Slay was already vetting people for his appointment to the anticipated transitional board. It is not an easy sell given the chaos that has enswirled the district.

We had previously reported Wash U's James McLoed as withdrawing his name from consideration. Two others we hear were approached but declined are: Grace Hill's Theresa Mayberry-Dunn and Bill Carson, formerly of the Vashon Compact.

March 13, 2007

No End in Sight

Both sides seem to be anticipating a filibuster stretching into days. Spring recess was scheduled to begin on Thursday, but some senators are starting to imagine that this debate delay the break.

Contest of Wills Continues

As the clock crawled toward 7am, Brad Lager rose to inquire of Wes Shoemyer who was not present on the floor but instead presumably napping in his office.

Shoemyer arrived to respond and between debate parries the two engaged in some chest-thumping about the future of the filibuster - Shoemyer claiming to be totally refreshed by his 45 minute nap, and Lager saying he was looking forward to the second and third days of this debate.

Senate Debate Continues

It's a pretty full senate floor now and the MOHELA debate is continuing...

Senate Filibuster of MOHELA

I'm at Jefferson City this morning where the Senate Democrats are in the middle of a filibuster. Tim Green, Jolie Justus and Maida Coleman are on the floor now. They are periodically requesting quorum calls that rouse some Republican senators from their offices (and perhaps a nap).

The Democrats are taking the floor in twos and threes. Next up for them is Jeff Smith and Victor Callahan.

Word from the Republican side is that Floor Leader Charles Shields promised Governor Blunt that he'd push MOHELA through before the body breaks for spring. Toward that end Capitol sources say that the senate will stay in session through until the filibuster is broken.

Meanwhile the coffee flows, staffers play wiffle-ball in the hall and both sides wonder if the other will yield before dawn.

March 12, 2007

No Shortage of Plans for School

No Shortage of Plans for School, But Little Common Ground
By Brian Werner

“I don’t give a *&#@ about state takeover.”

Mo Costello is never one to mince words, and she is passionate about the St. Louis Public Schools (SLPS). She’s the owner of Mokabe’s coffee shop on Grand and Arsenal where she often talks politics with costumers.

While much attention has drawn by the State’s impending takeover of the St. Louis District, Costello’s more concerned about what changes are needed to turn the district around.

“You can develop condos all you want, but you need to fix the schools.” Costello sees improving education as a key part of development in St. Louis. As new residents move into the city, some will be looking to send their children to public schools. Even those who don’t have children in the system will want to see their tax dollars being spent effectively.

Costello challenges the aldermen to become involved in education. Even though they have no power over the schools, as citizens’ most direct access to the government, she thinks aldermen could be strong advocates for the schools.
Jim Shrewsbury, President of the Board of Aldermen, is the only alderman who has some direct influence over the schools, as he will appoint one of three members of the board that will administer the schools if the State takes over the district. As far as aldermen being involved more in education, he says that they already do listen to their constituents concerns about the schools.

“The city government has nothing to with education,” says Shrewsbury, “but that’s what everyone asks about.”

He says the best that aldermen can do is to pass the concerns of their constituents along to the School Board.

Besides the three-member board that would run the District if there is a takeover, the State Legislature will have the largest opportunity to influence the direction of the district. Local legislators are working on a number of different initiatives to address what they see as they biggest problems facing the district:

Nasheed Fights Takeover, Targets Social Promotion
Representative Jamilah Nasheed has been a vocal opponent of a state takeover, a move she calls, “an effort that the Republican Party is pushing...so that they can push their agenda on school choice.”

Nasheed believes the appointed board would be ineffectual because it is opposed by many within the district. She thinks that State takeover could be overturned in court, pointing to the recent ruling of a California court that the Mayor of Los Angeles’ attempt to take over the School District was unconstitutional.

Nasheed sees “social promotion” as the biggest problem facing the St. Louis Public Schools. Social promotion is the practice of passing unprepared students onto the next grade level despite.

“If child is reading at the third grade level, why would you pass them to the fourth grade” says Nasheed. “That’s the biggest problem plaguing the St. Louis Public Schools.”

A number of States including Missouri have instituted laws to limit social promotion. In 2001, the Missouri Senate passed legislation sponsored by the late Paula Carter that, according to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education website, requires school districts to:

…assess and determine the grade-level reading ability of students in grade 3 and students in grades 4-6 who transfer in during the year…School districts must develop an individualized “Reading Improvement Plan,” to be implemented during grade 4, for any third-grader who was determined to be reading below second-grade level… The reading plan MUST include, at a minimum, “30 hours of additional reading instruction or practice outside the regular school day during the fourth-grade year.

Both the State and Federal Department’s of Education stress the importance of additional help for struggling students, recognizing that simply forcing students to repeat a grade is not effective in and of itself.

However, Nasheed claims the law is not being followed. She wants to amend the law so that schools risk losing funding if they do not follow the statute.

Nasheed also wants to extend school hours, arguing that because of poverty and other issues children in St. Louis face, they start out behind and need more class time to catch.

Hubbard Pursues Voucher Initiative
Representative Rodney Hubbard agrees with Nasheed about the need for extra instruction, saying we need more money for Head Start and after school programs. Hubbard, who supports a State takeover, says the biggest problem for the schools is a lack of qualified teachers. He says we need to make a more conducive environment for teachers through higher pay and other incentives. Where Hubbard disagrees with Nasheed and other Democratic legislators is his support of school choice.

“People want to say it’s a Republican issue, I think this is a people’s issue,” says Hubbard. “Why would anyone be against putting all options on the table?”

Hubbard touts himself a product of school choice. He attended Mehlville High School through the voluntary desegregation program. Hubbard believes that students would benefit from school choice, and competition would spur public schools to improve.

“I’m not trying to destroy the system, I want to empower the system” Hubbard is a sponsor of House Bill 808, which recently died in the House. The bill would have established a scholarship fund for low-income students in St. Louis and Kansas City. Individuals or corporations would receive an income tax credit for donations to the fund. Recipients would receive $5,000 a year to spend on tuition or other educational expenses at a school of their choice. The program is similar to one started in Iowa in June of 2006.

Hubbard has also introduced a bill that would create the “Missouri 4 For More Program,” which is intended to get parents more involved in the classroom. The bill would give tax credits to employers that granted their employees paid leave for up to four hours a month to work with their children in the classroom.

Smith Proposes “Teach for Missouri”
State Senator Jeff Smith also wants to look beyond the battle over control of the St. Louis School District.

“It’s not the time to be protesting,” says Smith about a possible State takeover. “We need to be realistic about where this process is. The district is doing everything it can do to obtain accreditation but that does not appear to be a likely outcome…the children can’t afford any more delays or more resources spent on anything other than their education.”

In early February Smith filed a bill to create the “Teach For Missouri” program. The bill would provide student loan relief to graduates of public colleges and universities in Missouri who agree to teach in under performing schools.
He says he will soon put forth a ten-point plan that focuses on improving the quality of instruction. The plan will include lengthening the school day and school year and money for after school programs. It proposes comprehensive early childhood education and uniforms in all schools. It would give parents the option of “mega-looping,” where teachers keep the same group of students for three years.

In order to attract and retain quality teachers, the plan would offer bonuses for teaching in certain subject areas, such as science. In addition, it would give teachers the choice of not being on a tenure track for the option of higher salaries that are based on performance.

Smith acknowledges that many new programs will require additional funding. He says the school funding equation shouldn’t change, but that more money will have to come out of the State’s budget.

Funding Inequities Persist
However, whether the State’s funding formula will remain unchanged is currently being challenged in court. Over 200 of Missouri’s 524 school districts are suing the State, claiming that education funding is inadequate and unequal.

In 2005 the Missouri Senate changed the funding formula for education. The goal of the new formula was to even out the amount of money spent per child across Missouri’s school districts. Even though the lawsuit was filed previous to this change, the suing districts have continued with the suit, contending the 2005 law does not rectify the problems with funding.

One of the important issues in the case, and generally in education funding is the assessment of property values. Property taxes are the primary source of funding for education. The amount paid in taxes is based on the assessed value of property, as determined by each county’s assessor independently. A variance between counties in the assessment level of properties could skew funding.

When the new formula was passed, the most recent study from the State Tax Commission of Missouri(STC), which oversees property assessment in the state, asserted that every county in Missouri had an assessment level above 90%, and that 22 of 27 counties had assessment levels above the 95% required by Missouri law.

According to a study by Public Policy Research Center at the University of Missouri St. Louis(UMSL), “Assessment level (level of assessment) refers to the percentage that the assessors’ appraised value is in comparison with market value. E.g. if the market value of a property is $100,000, but the assessor bases the assessment on an appraised value of $80,000, then the assessment level is 80%.”

The UMSL study, released in October 2006, called STC’s results “unreliable” and said “It appears that the process was designed more to produce acceptable results than to produce reliable results.”

The UMSL study was funded by the Coalition to Fund Excellent schools, a group of schools districts involved in the ongoing litigation. Steve Gardner, author of the UMSL study, is an expert witness for the school districts. (The case could end as early as this week.) Gardner found that contrary to the STC study, only 4 counties had assessment levels above 95% and that the average level for all Missouri counties was 79.2%.

The effect of this disparity, according to the study, is that, “districts lying within highly assessed counties are harmed, while those within lowly assessed counties are benefited through inaccuracy.”

The UMSL study found St. Louis’ assessment level in 2003 to be 72%, tied for the fifth lowest among all Missouri counties.

“We did have some catching up to do,” says St. Louis City assessor Ed Bushmeyer, and St. Louis is catching up. According to Gardner, “in 2005 St. Louis city assessments went up 33-34 percent which would have brought them in line with market values.” Bushmeyer says that assessment levels in St. Louis will be even closer with the 2007 assessment.

If the formula was redone, it’s unclear whether St. Louis would get any more or less money from the State, but Gardner says there would be more total funding for the State to distribute.

Mo Costello is one person who wants to have if her house assessed at what it’s worth and see her taxes go up as a result. If we want good public education, she says, we better be willing to pay for.

February 02, 2007

MOHELA Looks Short on Senate Votes

From my recent visit to Jefferson City there seem to be at least five Republican senators against or leaning against the MOHELA legislation. Some positions are fluid, but right now it puts the GOP count at 16 votes, two shy of passage.

The senators against appear to be: Bartle, Ridgeway, Lager, Purgason, and Loudon. Bartle, Purgason and Loudon's opposition is considered consistent with concerns of the Missouri Catholic Conference which fears money being used for the construction of medical facilities that do stem-cell research.

Lager, meanwhile, is said to be open to the legislation, depending on how much his district would benefit. Complicating his vote may be his association with northwest Missouri's "Graves" faction of the GOP which tangles from time to time with southwest Missouri's "Blunt" faction.

Governor Blunt has been meeting one-on-one with Democratic senators trying to peel some off. Republicans speak confidently that some senators like Chuck Graham (D) will have to vote for the bill because it would funnel so much money into their districts.

But with the restrictions on stem cell, Graham is quite clearly a No vote, according to good sources and from his own statements. Furthermore, with the Flagship Council against the current proposal, and rumors are that the university's Alumni Association will also side against the legislation, Graham has enormous cover to vote against the funding.

In theory, if the above-mentioned five GOP senators defect, Blunt only needs one Dem to create a tie - 17-17 - which could be broken by Lieutenant Governor Peter Kinder. In practice, a Democratic senator, like for example Harry Kennedy, would "take a walk," be absent for the vote, denying the GOP of a tie and of the necessary 18th vote. So he needs two, which is twice as hard to get than one.

January 24, 2007

Last Night SLPS Board Meeting

From John Ginsburg:

Went to the special school board meeting last night. My first Board experience.

Apparently, at the end of last year, the board voted to bring in a team from the Missouri School Board Association, a non-profit group of which SLPS is a member, to help them with improving how they are as a Board. The guy
facilitating was an excellent presenter and gave a 7-point formula that has come from working with many other School Boards around the state and learning what factors work and what don't. He was well-versed in the statistics facing the SLPS, good with concrete examples, and patient with the members. This was the first of a four-part consulting series, if the Board decides to continue with him.

Veronica O'Brien was noticeably absent, as she left before the guy started. Perhaps she thought it was not necessary, but it certainly makes it difficult for a consultant to build the efforts of the team if not all the team participates. Ron Jackson thought that it was the wrong topic - that they shouldn't have even talked specifically about how to operate as a Board until they were able to deal with their interpersonal challenges. He was polite, but skeptical. The presenter
assured him that that would be dealt with in a later session.

Most of the other observers in the room left before the presentation was over, as did Bob Archibald, but I thought it was interesting. Even if the material was not rocket science, the presenter was engaging, thought-provoking, and experienced. Given the current situation on the board, they could probably use the help.

January 10, 2007

KMOX Editorial on SLPS

PSA? Editorial?

I don't know. Heard more than once by listeners.

January 03, 2007

Trying to Solve Middle Schools

Today's NY Times.

December 21, 2006

Smith leaning against Whitmore-Smith

From the American.

December 16, 2006

State Advisory Committee Report

The Special Advisory Committee report and background documents are available at here. I haven't gotten through all the appendices yet, but the report itself makes for some interesting reading.

The findings agree with many commentators that the district's academic tipping point came in 2003 when the district reversed a four-year increase in accreditation points form 23 to 64, dropping to 39 points in 2005. The district's financial tipping point came in 2001. Since then the district has fallen from a $63 million positive fund balance to a $30 million deficit.

As for the recommendations themselves, they rely on the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's decision regarding the district's accreditation.

Situation 1. If the district loses its accreditation the committee recommends DESE create the three-person transition committee only (italics in the original) if the School Board, Aldermanic President, Mayor Slay and DESE agree on the three members.

Situation 2. If the district retains accreditation, the committee recommends creating: A. a committee to monitor and supervise the district and B. that the state legislature appoint a board with full authority to take over if the district 1. runs a $10 million plus deficit, 2. is managing on borrowed money and 3. if the district does not meet the standards for full accreditation. Currently the district would meets all three conditions; it has a $30 million deficit, borrowed money from the 1999 deseg settlement, and it can expect, at best, provisional accreditation.

If in Situation 1, there isn't an agreement on the appointees to the transition committee, the Advisory Committee recommends moving to the recommendation in Situation 2.

The DESE website says the district is provisionally accredited as of December 2006.

Any and all changes, of course, depend on DESE which could implement the recommendations, do something completely different, or do nothing at all (unlikely).

December 15, 2006

School Board Election? Wait and See

Is their race already run? The presence of school board candidates on the April ballot will depend on the rate at which the state proceeds with the State Advisory Committee's recommendations.

The recommendations mean the dissolution of the elected School Board and the appointment of a three-member committee to restructure and run the district. The findings were released today, but potential legal and logistical hurdles could slow implementation.

At the St. Louis Board of Elections, they are proceeding normally until they get the definitive word from the state said Republican Election Commissioner, Scott Leindecker.

"We'll still be prepared to hold the election if we need to," said Leindecker.

Leindecker said they could make changes right up to their own deadline for preparing ballots which immediately follows the March primary.

If, for some reason, the final decision is not made until after the necessary printed material is printed, Leindecker said there is no harm in leaving the names on the ballot since they will no longer mean anything.

"It will cost us more to take them off then to leave them on," said Leindecker. The same applies to the electronic voting machines since a second evaluation test would need to be performed on all the machines following any changes.

December 11, 2006

What Will Smith Do?

Blunt's educational appointee needs his support. (Via Combest)

December 05, 2006

Down Comforter

Is St. Louis School Board member Peter Downs setting up for a negative recommendation from the state advisory committee? Maybe.

In the latest issue of his newsletter St. Louis Schools Watch (Antonio French is currently at the helm of the watchdog publication), Downs criticized recent reports presented to the state-appointed committee which, "which is dominated and chaired by supporters of [Mayor Francis Slay] and his hand-picked board," said Downs.

Downs criticized a presentation on public opinion assembled by the St. Louis Community Foundation. The group conducted a poll of registered voters and held a focus group assembled from principals, teachers and parents.

The survey found that: 60% of voters were in favor of a state takeover; principals were opposed to the idea; the teachers and parents were somewhere in-between.

District principals may be wary following a statement by Atlanta Superintendent Beverly Hall in the St. Louis American last month that 90% of district principals are no longer with the district seven years into its turnaround. Atlanta has been held up as poster-child for school reform.

Both the Foundation and the polling firm, Vector Communications, were linked to slates of school board candidates backed by Mayor Slay, said Downs.

Based on comments from participants, Downs raised questions about the manner in which the surveys were handled. He cited at least two instances in which incorrect figures were given regarding average per-pupil spending in St. Louis County districts versus the city. Downs said the two are roughly equivalent while the survey made it seem the city was spending over $3000 more per student. The implication being that the St. Louis district mismanaged its funds.

Downs said the committee was addressing important issues and that the district ought to, "ignore the antics of individual members and continue working to address the problems [the studies] raised."

---

Speaking of raising questions, O'Brien's advice to the Post-Dispatch when asked how the board would respond to the sub-par marks the district received last week: ""Why don't you ask [Superintendent Diana Bourisaw] what she plans to do about it?" O'Brien said. "I'm not responsible for 30 years of decay."

December 01, 2006

City Schools miss 8 of 13 on Annual Performance Report

The St. Louis School Board's endless squabbling has reached such a pitch its drowning out ominous sounds.

One would be the sound of the floor dropping out from under them.

The other would be the collective, resigned, sigh of the residents in the St. Louis Public School District.

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education released the district's annual performance report today. Despite some signs of progress, the district failed to meet standards, reaching only 5 of 13 required standards.

The report does not include an accreditation rating (45 points are required for provisional accreditation, 65 for full accreditation), but in a comparison to the 2005 report which met 5 of 12 categories which earned the district a dismal 39, the prospects of accreditation are grim.

(Reports from previous years: 2005 - 39 points, 2004 - 48 points, 2003 - 64 points)

A press release on the district's website tries to strike an optimistic note, "'While St. Louis is not where it needs to be in educating all students, this report shows that we are back on track towards accreditation,' said Dr. Diana Bourisaw, Superintendent." Yet the supporting evidence is thin.

From the press release:
MAP test results 6-8 Math, 20 progress points; [total: 20, required: 50]
6-8 in Communication Arts, 10 progress points; [total: 10, required: 50]
9-11 in Communication Arts, 10 progress points; [total: 10, required: 50]
ACT 1 progress point; [total: 1, required 4]
Graduation rate, 2 progress points; [total 2, reqired 4]

After two years without accreditation, a fractious school board, and a watchdog state committee weighing the district's future, Mayor Francis Slay may likely get his wish.

Update: Board member Bill Purdy sent along figures for other districts: Normandy and Hancock, 5 met; Riverview Gardens and Kansas City Public Schools, 3 met; Hazelwood and Jennings, 6 met.

November 26, 2006

Mayor Slay repeats call for state takeover of SLPS

The Mayor gives his reasons on his blog.

Recent re-ignition of infighting among the Board of Education and the upper administration has drawn criticism from staff, parents and the community.

Much of it has focused on Board President Veronica O'Brien and her very public fights with a superintendent of her choosing as well as board members who, perviously, were publicly aligned with her.

The committee assigned to examine the St. Louis Public Schools will make the final determination as to what, if any, state action is necessary.

November 21, 2006

New twist, same old yarn: O'brien calls for state intervention

...to eliminate the positions of people she no longer agrees with.

Ironically, one of the board's defenders has come under fire from Board President O'Brien as well, board member William Purdy.

Just over a month ago, Purdy defended the district in an open letter to the Post-Dispatch:

Re: “Chaos continues” (September 28). Let me assure your readers that any chaos exists primarily in your editorials. The St. Louis Public Schools are on a sound road to recovery after three years of plummeting performance that began in 2003. Further, the system is now firmly embarked on a plan to regain full accreditation.

O'Brien is now accusing Purdy of being the puppet-master behind Superintendent Diana Bourisaw's insubordinate ways; a superintendent hand-picked by O'Brien as part of a palace coup.

Just hours before the (not-so) surprising ouster of former-Superintendent Creg Williams on July 14th, O'Brien dismissed claims that Bourisaw (who was hired as an auditor) was, in-effect, a superintendent-in-waiting in a conversation with Post-Dispatch columnist Sylvester Brown (P-D, July 16th).

To view the presentation that has gotten Bourisaw in so much hot water, go to the St. Louis School District's web page.

The presentation received mixed reviews from the state oversight committee.

Bourisaw is also getting mixed reviews at home. In addition to O'Brien's criticism that Bourisaw is too free-wheeling in her actions, members Robert Archibald and Ronald Jackson criticized Bourisaw's report as sugarcoating the state of the district.

November 17, 2006

That's not NAFTA you hear....

The building blocks of the "unified front" of six months ago crumbled like adobe when hit with the cool wave that is life in the St. Louis School system.

Recent reports that the pot is boiling over down at the North 11th street offices of the district put a recent St. Louis Schools Watch email in focus.

The email talked about the need to strike a balance between the board and the superintendent. District policies and the required Comprehensive School Improvement Plan (mandated and approved by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and updated regularly) serve as mediators between the personalities and keep micro-management too a minimum while ensuring involvement by board members.

"The two biggest mistakes in school district governance, MSBA trainers said,
are school boards overreaching themselves and trying to micromanage
districts, and superintendents overreaching themselves and trying to set
policy.

Remember, boards govern and administrators manage."

The newsletter struck an almost zen note given the maelstrom of finger-wagging that has been whipped up in recent days, though it kept dangling the issue of the board's ability to fire the Super.

As they say, politics makes strange bedfellows, but recent turns of fate may require a flow chart.

"Chief Under Fire From Board". And "Super Gives Report to State Board".

A new SLS Watch email criticizes Jackson and Archibald for their opposition to Bourisaw's plan on the theory that it undercuts their alleged desire for a state takeover.

Interestingly, the two quietest members at this point are the two who attended the inspiring Missouri School Board Association meeting that led to the policy-heavy SLS Watch email; Peter Downs and Donna Jones.

It should also be noted that in recent years, Bourisaw served as a state supervisor for DESE overseeing accreditation of districts in the St. Louis area. Perhaps a promising liaison to the committee deciding the district's fate.

November 16, 2006

I guess it's news

But somehow it doesn't seem new.

November 15, 2006

School Board Elections

Educate St. Louis starting to re-load?

The elections are not that far off. Thanksgiving, Christmas, and then about 90 days to the April election.

I mention this because I was polled last night - Midwest Research - about the SLPS. It was a long poll with several questions dancing around the potential hot-buttons - tax increase and state take-over.

September 05, 2006

Bourisaw or Bust?

In an issue released Tuesday, St. Louis Schools Watch encouraged parents to support the new superintendent, Diana Bourisaw, as she took on the challenges of the new school year. The new super holds the helm as the district began a new school year under the cloud of potential state intervention due to falling test scores.

The article highlighted statements from Missouri Education Commissioner Kent King. King urged readers and parents to allow the new administration time to work, while at the same time floated the possibility that the district may lose its accreditation this fall.

The SLSW article criticized the brief tenure of Creg Williams, saying that district achievement dropped precipitously under his care. The article cites figures contrasting the Missouri Assessment Program test scores from 2006 with previous years.

Although King has said that according to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) there has been little to no progress, DESE has said that scores from the 2006 test can not be compared with previous MAP scores. DESE spokesman Jim Morris said that not only has number of categories dropped from five (step 1, progressing, near proficient, proficient and advanced) to four (below basic, basic, proficient and advanced), but also the definitions have changed as well.

According to Morris, the definitions have been broadened. In Missouri that has generally meant districts have benefited by more students being counted in the higher two categories–proficient and advanced. In St. Louis, however, the opposite has been the case; the one category that has swelled has been the "basic" category.

The piece holds the previous school board–under the watch of a majority of members supported by St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay– responsible for allowing the district to land into this predicament.

"On the third grade communication arts test, only 25.8% of students scored proficient or advanced in April 2006, compared to 35.2% the year before. The decline was even sharper on the fourth grade math test: 20.3% of students scored proficient or advanced in April 2006, while 36.1% had attained those levels just one year before."

Yet according to the state's own figures, it is only in the 2005 to 2006 transition that the math and communication arts figures lurch so far down. From 2001 to 2005, proficient and advanced scores for third grade communication arts increased: 17.2%, 20.8%, 22.5%, 30.5%, 35.2%. Other grades generally show overall scores improving or holding; including mathematics.

Contrast that with 2006 where the majority of scores fall in the bottom two categories and grow increasingly bad across the grade span from 3rd to 8th.

The district faces a potential state intervention, yet there is little clear information available for parents and voters.

September 01, 2006

Aggravating Data

People can be famously skeptical about numbers and statistics; when it comes to St. Louis school's Missouri Assessment Program score test results, their skepticism might only be bolstered.

Missouri Education Commissioner Kent D. King's said Thursday that the state may revoke the district's accreditation will likely rock the district. Voters and parents looking for more information in the data released today may only find confusion.

Accompanying the release of the test figures, was a statement from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education that due to a number of changes, this year's results can not be accurately compared with previous MAP scores. State law mandated the changes.

"We are trying to discourage comparisons," said Jim Morris, director of public information for DESE.

Morris said that not only have scores been redistributed due to the shift from five to four categories (below basic, basic, proficient and advanced), but even the categories don't match up.

"The top two categories, proficient and advanced, still have the same names, but the definitions have been changed," said Morris. "Those categories have been made broader."

"We're really looking at this year as a new baseline," said Morris.

In addition to changes in how scores are reported, testing changes will also affect results. Instead of the grade-span method where several grades will be chosen, the states now tests grades 3-8 and one grade in high school.

Morris said DESE recognizes that parents and citizens are trying to put the scores into some form of context. Given the changes, the best method would be to compare St. Louis' figures to the state averages. (Antonio French has a great graph of the comparison at St. Louis Schools Watch).

Matching up to state data won't provide particular performance data, nor is it likely to ease concerns. St. Louis city measures far below the state average.

The data will also affect the "adequate yearly performance" (AYP) results, which test how districts match up against standards mandated by the No Child Left Behind legislation. This year, the district has missed the targets in math and communication arts.

August 26, 2006

Wallace and grommet

Responding to the Post-Dispatch article reporting his statement that Mayor Slay is a "modern-day George Wallace standing in the schoolhouse door," St. Louis School Board member Peter Downs said he is correct in laying responsibility for withheld funds at City Hall's front door.

In his newsletter, St. Louis Schools Watch, distributed today, Downs said the Mayor has exerted influence over the retiring Collector of Revenue, Ronald Leggett. The office is holding back $5 million in funds collected for the school district while protested taxes are dealt with.

Downs cites Missouri Revised statute 139.031, saying that as the taxing entity, the St. Louis School District is responsible for handling taxes submitted under protest, not the collector of revenue. According to the statute, the collector of revenue is to impound any taxes collected under protest.

Downs asserts, correctly, that it is the taxing authority, not the collector, that is responsible to refund the taxes if the protest is successful. However, the collector must first release the funds under protest to the district. To do so, the district must apply to the circuit court for the funds to be released.

As of this afternoon no one was available at the school board or Leggett's office to confirm whether such a request has been made. There is a filing (case #0622-CC05339) by the St. Louis Board of Education against Ronald A. Leggett for "other extraordinary remedy" in Circuit Court listed on July 28th on Casenet. Downs says, additionally, that a city-appointed attorney is challenging the process. If the case cited above is the filing required, there has been no additional action recorded in Casenet besides the issuance of summons.

Part of the requirements for the court to release the funds include, "a satisfactory showing that such taxing authority would receive such impounded tax funds if they were not the subject of a protest and that such taxing authority has the financial ability and legal capacity to repay such impounded tax funds".

July 27, 2006

Blunt approves creation of SLPS review committee

Governor Blunt responds to news the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has established a committee to asses and assist the St. Louis School System (kudos to Antonio French over at Pub Def for trekking out to Jeff City to get the scoop).

The committee is co-chaired by attorney and legendary civil rights activist Frankie M. Freeman and Dr. William H. Danforth, Chancellor Emeritus of Washington University. Also on the board: Dr. Donald Suggs, Publisher
St. Louis American; Michael Middleton, Deputy Chancellor University of Missouri-Columbia; attorney Ned Lemkemeier, an alderman in Ladue.

Commissioner of Education Kent King made sure to say the department is not looking to take over the school system. The commission's mission is to determine what it will take to bring full accreditation to the St. Louis school system. Followers of the takeover talk around St. Louis will be quick to point out that consistent failure to reach full accreditation is one of the criteria required for the state to step in.

Update: Mayor Slay, unsurprisingly, endorses the commitee. "It is my strong belief that these five citizens will be able to make some timely recommendations for children whose best interests have been misplaced and whose educations have been bungled."

July 24, 2006

O'Brien responds to protests

School Board President Veronica O'Brien told Fox 2 News this morning that the protests being staged in front of her house were orchestrated by "high ranking elected officials."

O'Brien said she was concerned and disappointed by the protests.

I think that is a dangerous game to play. I am concerned that someone is going to be harmed.

The protests began soon after the firing of Superintendent Craig Williams and coach Floyd Irons. Irons has participated in the protests.

Mayor Slay, to whom O'Brien is likely referring, has expressed his disapproval at the firing of Williams. Word also came from City Hall on the day of Iron's removal that it was seen as a precursor to the eventual ouster of Williams.

Board member Bill Purdy is facing a lawsuit filed by Floyd Irons and two fellow board members, Flint Fowler and Ron Jackson. A number of other citizens have signed on with the suit as well.

The suit, filed partly on behalf of Williams, seeks to remove Purdy from his seat based on board rules that members can not have family members working for the district. A state law regarding school board election rules allows relatives of district employees to run.

[Update: Re: Joe's comment, CaseNet, the Missouri State Court database provides publicly available data on most current cases including the lawsuit against Purdy, case#: 0622-CC05220.]

July 18, 2006

Cotton: Majority members are reformers

From George Cotton, Sr. activist and executive director of REACH St. Louis.

To paraphrase Franklin Roosevelt.....

"when matters need addressing, DO SOMETHING, if that does not work, DO SOMETHING ELSE, BUT FOR GOD'S SAKE, DO SOMETHING!"

Continue reading "Cotton: Majority members are reformers"

St. Louis On the Air

The School Board is the topic for St. Louis on the Air at 11:00am on KWMU, 90.7 FM.

July 17, 2006

Smith on SLPS

Statement from Jeff Smith:

"I am very disappointed with the actions of the board majority. Instead of
focusing on the needs of the children, the board majority has forced out a
man who had a plan to revive our school system. In just over a year, Creg
Williams helped the system make great strides with the ninth grade
academies; the move towards smaller, more manageable high schools; and, a
push towards college preparation. The board should have given him a chance
to see his plans through. While some individuals raise legitimate concerns
about decisions made during his tenure, I am not convinced that he was
guilty of the gross negligence of which he has been accused. He brought
energy, intellect and dynamism to the system. Those of us who care about
St. Louis, its children, and the future of our neighborhoods can only hope
and pray that our new leadership exhibits the same passion and concern for
the children that Dr. Williams displayed. A district's chief clients are
the children, and their welfare should be the central concern of all
decisions going forward."

"Examine every alternative"

Blunt's Statement.

July 14, 2006

He's gone

Unclear at this time whether he was fired, forced out or resigned, but Craig Williams is outta here. Happening at an emergency board meeting this evening.

July 12, 2006

Firing Floyd

I'm no Irons apologist, but this looks like a Board that's disruptive to the superintendent's work rather than supportive.

July 11, 2006

Where there's a Will(iams)

Mayor Slay again offers his support for SLPS Superintendent Craig Williams. The Mayor also renewed his criticism of the school board's leadership, chastising them for obstructionist tendencies.

The new school board majority — rather than helping the superintendent carry out his plan — has done everything it can to drive Dr. Williams out of St. Louis.

Less than three weeks ago, Slay singled-out board vice-president William Purdy for criticism, asserting the Purdy and the board misunderstood the relationship between the board and the Superintendent.

It is no secret that I – and a lot of people in our community – trust Dr. Williams and hope that he perseveres here. And it is no secret that Purdy disagrees.

School boards are elected to provide direction. The superintentent is hired to run the district. Not the other way around.

As the divisions between the parties deepen, something to keep in mind are Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education figures that put 5 St. Louis public schools on their "highest-performance" list (only two districts had more schools on the list) [The list is ranked based on averaged MAP Math and Comm Arts results from 2001-2005]. St. Louis also had 11 schools on the "most-improved" list for 2005 (via The Commonspace).

May 23, 2006

IL to raise $10 Billion

for education by selling its state lotto.

May 02, 2006

New duties for French

Antonio French, of Public Defender, has taken over as the editor of St. Louis Schools Watch. Newly-elected School Board member Peter Downs had run the watchdog newsletter for several years. French and Downs had been working together on the newsletter's blog.

April 14, 2006

First lesson

A story in the K.C. Star takes a look at the cutback in the promised student aid endowment, an endowment that is a condition of the sale of MOHELA assets.

Early promises $100-193 million, current proposal, $12.3.

Also, the life-science technology centers that are supposed to be built with the assets will be barred from research into early stem cells.

April 10, 2006

NY Schools hire Alvarez & Marsal

New York City Schools hire Alvarez & Marsal.

Meanwhile, SLPS teacher writes book about tumultuous Roberti year. (Via SLS Watch)

April 07, 2006

The breakdowns w/ non-aligned candidates

Download file

Post-Game Analysis

Unofficial Results.
Both KWMU and Pub Def have these results color-coded by winner.
And Jake has them by percentages.

Political Eye does some analysis.

Oracle talks about the race.

April 05, 2006

And now the questions

The morning after - oops. Sorry, the afternoon after.

Trying to look around the corner.

Ron Jackson will assume the role of Board president as Clinkscale vacates position at next meeting?

After that, who will the new majority elect to be Board president? Most people I talk to think it will be Purdy, due to his prior experience.

Will new majority dismantle standardized curriculum? Purdy's on the record in favor of keeping Open Court, but O'Brien voted against it.

What specific actions will be at the top of the new Board's agenda?

April 03, 2006

Feel like I'm being set-up to play Ross Perot

But it's the most important issue we face. Please join us. 7pm 88.1 FM.

March 19, 2006

It's back

As the Post and other sources reported on Thursday, a bill dealing with the way science is taught to middle and high school students that is starting to gain traction in the MO House. The bill, introduced by Rep. Wayne Cooper, R-Camdenton, focuses on distinguishing "verified empirical data" from discussions of theory.

The problem is, much of what we think of as science is based on countless mutually supporting theories. We can take certain measurements, but without a theory or system to provide context, they are meaningless.

If you drop a hammer we know exactly its rate of accelerate towards the ground due to gravity. We can generate all kinds of data based on gravitational attraction, but we don't know how gravity works. There are working theories, of course, and we know enough to send satellites into space, but there is no definitive description of its operation, only theory (though there are some very good theories).

Science is an inherently skeptical endeavor. Yet to get far enough into science education to delve into the reasoning behind the assumptions we use to get to hard, empirical data is beyond the scope of most grade school science teaching. It may be possible to get into that in high school, but by that point, the rest of the industrial world's children are ahead of ours in the curriculum.

Missouri students should be guaranteed a comprehensive and intensive science curriculum that actually teaches science, evolution and all. Sure we could skip evolution, but how do we explain geology if we have to worry about offending people who believe the earth is merely thousands of years old.

Science and its methods should be taken on their own terms and not as we want them to be.

Note: there is also an identical bill in the State Senate SB 1249

March 14, 2006

Sylvester's Side

Today's Post.

February 22, 2006

Duncan out?

McFarlane Duncan told the ACC today that he had withdrawn from the school board race a couple of weeks ago. His name still appears on the BOE website.

February 07, 2006

Educate St. Louis

Committee to support Clinkscale and Buford.

January 27, 2006

Private Interest vs. Public Good

An interesting aspect regarding Governor Blunt's plan to sell MOHELA, the successful Missouri student loan organization, is the firing of the director of MOHELA, Michael Cummins, for, presumably, his opposition to the plan.

The AP wire has a separate story on the subject. It notes that Cummins hasn't commenting on his firing, but quotes Sen. Joan Bray saying he passed along his misgivings to her the day before he was fired.

Few details are available yet, but the central question can still be debated in the abstract: Will the shift from an agency accountable to the voters who created it to a private entity significantly change things?

Is it wise to unload a program as successful as MOHELA, which controls $5 billion in assets, simply to cover capital-improvement costs? Perhaps we should put some of MOHELA's expertise to work in securing bonds to finance capital improvement bonds.

One thing is clear, opposing the Governor's initiatives is not a path to job security. Cummins, a 14-year vet of MOHELA, will follow former Public Council John Coffman on the employment search. Coffman, a member of the PC's office for 15 years, his last four as its head, was fired in May after he opposed legislation easing restrictions on utilities that he claimed would have hurt consumers. His critics called him a partisan, but now consumers are facing the odd prospect of paying higher rates on gas after installing energy-saving technology designed to save them money such as energy efficient furnaces.

January 17, 2006

Haas withdraws from School Board Election

According to the text of remarks Bill Haas will make at tonight's School Board meeting, he withdrew from the School Board election this afternoon.

The text which Haas sent to media this afternoon reads:

"You should know that this afternoon I formally withdrew from the election. I think I had a good chance to win, and it saddened me to do that, but ambitious people like myself have an obligation to be humble in their ambitions, and the conventional wisdom would hold that we have a better chance to elect two people with three candidates than four so it seemed right to do the unselfish thing and take one for the team."

January 10, 2006

Harris-Stowe State University

Changing of names, website will change over a couple of months.

January 06, 2006

Polling Again

Tipster emailed in that she was called last night by a polling firm asking about the school board race this spring.

December 09, 2005

Haas to announce

for School Board at 10:00am Tuesday December 13th outside Board of Elections (and again Tuesday evening 6:00pm Carr Lane school on Jefferson and MLK before the board meeting).

December 08, 2005

Downs to Announce for School Board

From his email:

Dear Friends,

This Saturday, at 10 a.m., I will announce my candidacy for the St. Louis Board of Education at a press conference at the old Waring School site (Compton and Laclede). Please join me and my broken ankle there and let the press know that you think it is time to get off the Clinkscale Slide and stop the looting of the public school system for private profit.

Sincerely,

Peter Downs

Word is that Patricia Laughlin of AFT Local 420 is sitting in line at the Election Board on behalf of Peter Downs right now. The 420 website says that Downs is "heavily favored" by the union even though their endorsement meetings don't come around until next week! Laughlin is married to Mike Penderfast, one of the top dogs at the City Labor Club, and head of one of the smaller IBEW locals in town.

December 06, 2005

Percy: Buford nice, but not in our interests

BUFORD… Not In Our Best Interest!
Commentary by Percy Green, II

From my observation, James Buford of the Urban League is a nice and personable person, but he is not what the St. Louis Board of Education needs to succeed. Neither is Darnetta Clinkscales, now School Board President. Both of them should be voted off the board in April 2006. The dismal record speaks for itself.

Buford supports the same failed programs and decisions as that of former School Board member, Vince Schoemehl. This Board now needs to move from the control of Mayor Francis Slay and his band of bandits. For the past four years, things have gone from bad, to worse. The academic achievements in our School District, according to the State of Missouri, continue to decline, with an enormous drop in points. Mayor Slay obviously appoints Buford to the School Board to maintain his control, and to rescue troubled Clinkscale’s record in the upcoming election. Slay’s original majority four School Board members continued on with exercising their incompetent decisions. Those decisions were, but not limited to, secret meetings to exclude the public, the hiring of William Roberti, a New York consultant for five (5) million dollars (that was not in the budget), and the Waring School closure and give away to St. Louis University, the closure of 14 public schools in North St. Louis, the outsourcing of 1,500 service and maintenance jobs, the superintendent search disaster, the abuse to class room teachers and principals, the hijacking of the Teachers’ Pension Fund, and over paying top administrators at the expense of class room teachers and assistance.

To a fair-minded observer, a public figure is evaluated on an accumulation of events that are publicly documented and those that are discovered in the shadows and brought to light. Buford should be treated no differently, now that he has chosen to enter the political arena on the side of the enemy, Mayor Slay.

First, Buford claims that he has to do something to immediately end violence in the public school system. That something was to have Mayor Francis Slay appoint him to the School Board. Since, he ain’t Clark Kent, he cannot be Superman, although he sounds like he may think so. In reality, he is not going to stop violence in public schools or anywhere else. Even Superman cannot put an end to people having disputes, which may lead to fisticuffs now and then or worse, sometimes. The overwhelming majority of disputes mainly centers on money, sex, greed, and defense. Since schoolchildren are usually reflections of their parents, they also tend to deals with these challenges in similar fashions. Parents with decent paying jobs frequently handle such disputes with less apparent hostility than do those less fortunate parents because they have more options. Children of high-income parents usually have more options as well.

Consequently, it can be argued with merit that a decent paying job goes a long way with parents adopting and applying good family management skills. The application of such is directly related to parents’ household income. Most St. Louis parents’ income is not enough for them to provide for their children, as they would like. Notwithstanding, a sizeable number of these parents have been, and may still, be victims of racial and/or class discrimination. The irony is that most of the able body parents that are working two, and, sometimes three jobs, do not earn the income that Buford receives from the Urban League, although it is a non-for-profit agency. Yet, parents are blamed for being less fortunate, economically, as if it was their choice.

Secondly, where was Buford’s involvement when other public efforts to end violence in public school were put forth? Anthony Shahid, a long-time Youth Group Director, routinely visits and speaks to students in middle and high schools about anger management. He said Buford has never attended any of these sessions.

Thirdly, Buford admits publicly that he is a supporter of the voucher program and charter schools, which is no different from Schoemehl’s position. Both programs removes badly needed operating funds from public schools with little or no accountability. Mayor Slay, and Civic Progress, Inc., also support these programs. Why? Because they can influence who is funded. The fact of the matter is that none of these programs has shown any success in increasing academic achievements here in St. Louis, beyond that of the regular public school system. Before Slay took over the School Board, it was only 2 points from full accreditation by the State. Buford’s team is now responsible for the lost of 30 accreditation points.

Fourthly, Buford has a questionable history of supporting Mayor Slay. Last March 2005 he joined a “front group” called “Advocates for Kids” to support Mayor Slay’s fabricated scheme to oust School Board Member, Veronica O’ Brien. She was re-elected last April, in spite of the Buford/Slay conspiracy. Their efforts failed. Now, Buford is trying to convince the community, as reported in the St. Louis American, an African-American weekly newspaper “There were no politics, no deals. I decided to run [for the school board] on my own. I knew I had to step in. This is something I must do.” Before his support to get O’Brien ousted, Buford had joined this same “front group” earlier in an effort to support Slay’s Home Rule, Proposition A, B, C, & D. It too was defeated.

Finally, it appears obvious that Buford will not make the tough decisions contrary to the desires of the Mayor’s office and Civic Progress, Inc. Another factor is that he is vulnerable because they pay his salary and fund his agency. If he should flip and truly become a legitimate advocate for public education like Veronica O’Brien, then our public education system will benefit. But, Buford is not likely to do that. Instead, he probably preoccupied with the possibilities of the white establishment carving him up like a Christmas turkey if he should flip. After all, Buford is quite familiar with how Slay continue to work his unfair racial agenda within his administration, the police and fire department.

Stay tuned!

November 27, 2005

Darnetta's Defense

The State of the St. Louis Public Schools

Leaders in the St. Louis Public School district live with many public realities. But sometimes public reality still shields the truth.

The latest report from the state of Missouri-the Annual Progress Review-highlights the district's "reality" but doesn't necessarily show us the truth. The report finds severe deficiencies in outcomes that measure the performance of middle-schools and high-schools. The district is failing when the attendance rate; drop-out rate; graduation rate and participation in ACT college placement tests are measured.

As a board we do not reject this analysis-we wholeheartedly agree. The failure after 6th grade in the St. Louis Public Schools is both heartbreaking and infuriating. And, it's why we ran for school board.

Evidence of the truth is hidden in the numbers provided by the state. Our most recent problem (though by no means our only problem) is that by and large the 11th graders in 2004-2005 did not take the ACT test. It was in this category that the district lost points.

This deficiency is being addressed. At the request of the Board, Superintendent Creg Williams has implemented an ACT Preparation Program in the district which will improve participation and eventually improve scores.

However, the bigger question is why aren't our high-school students taking the ACT test? Why are they dropping out of school? Why do they engage in unruly behavior?

Pundits will offer many excuses ranging from general poverty to a lack of parental involvement. Without question these can be factors. But let's go back to the state's numbers. When today's 12th graders were in middle school in 2001, only 12.6% of them were performing at grade level or above. These children are now in high-school, faced with the academic demands that high-school presents, and they don't have the skills. Most adults know what happens when children are placed into a situation in which they cannot succeed. They act up. They drop out. And, they don't take the ACT test because they surely do not see college in their future.

That's our district's hidden truth-the academic condition of SLPS middle-school and high school students. They are not equipped to succeed in high-school. And it is not the children's failure. It's the adults. The school district has failed them throughout their entire academic career.

I joined the St. Louis Public School Board on April 22, 2003 and was elected its President. The district had a $90 million operating deficit, crumbling buildings and academic performance scores that were among the worst in the entire nation.

In 30 months time we have put the fiscal house in order; negotiated a new contract with our teachers that will put their salaries on par with some of the best suburban districts in St. Louis; extended the school day to give our children more time-on-task; consolidated schools so that our efforts at building maintenance can be directed towards fewer buildings; implemented a standardized curriculum throughout our elementary, middle and high-schools; purchased more than $4 million in new text-books this year alone; dramatically increased the number of certified teachers in the district and delivered more than 190,000 hours of teacher training. Our state MAP scores, released in August, showed dramatic improvement at the elementary school level and gave us the first evidence that these reforms are going to work.

Despite this whirlwind of activity, we must do more. At our request, Creg Williams will be proposing some dramatic changes to our high-schools in the coming weeks.

We selected Dr. Williams as our new superintendent, in part, because of his past success at the high school level. We need to intervene with our middle-school and high-school students or they'll never have the opportunity to live up to their potential.

We cannot quit on these children. They aren't statistics. They are real people-individuals-that deserve a chance to succeed in school and in life.

Darnetta Clinkscale
President, St. Louis Public School Board
November 21, 2005

November 23, 2005

Spampinato Exits

Story at KWMU.

November 21, 2005

Mayoral Press Conference Announces

resignation of Vince Schoemehl today from School Board. Slay's appointing Jim Buford to take his spot. Buford and Darnetta Clinkscale will run for School Board in the spring elections.

November 11, 2005

Accreditation Arc

Via email from Bill Purdy:

Accreditation Performance points 1999-2005
66 points required for full accreditation

1999 – 23 points Dr. Cleveland Hammonds, Jr.
2000 – 32 points
2001 – 48 points
2002 – 55 points
2003 – 64 points Last year for Dr. Cleveland Hammonds, Jr.and four board members: Brewster, Davis, McKinney & Purdy (Haas, Moore, Hilgemann remain)
2004 – 48 points Slay Board arrives, Schoemehl, Clinkscale, Archibald & Jackson William Roberti
2005 – 39 points Slay Board continues Floyd Crews, Pam Hughes, Creg Williams

The school district currently has 39 points which equals = Unaccredited

November 09, 2005

Kansas: Science "Ok"....

...for others.

What are the odds that Rep. Davis (R-O'Fallon) will have another intelligent design bill on the calendar the first week of next year's House session?

Update: Perhaps Kansas will soon find itself alone in its perplexing fight against the role of reason. Descartes, Galileo, Einstein, Sir. Richard Dawkins, my college logic professor and Mr. Wizard could pick a few points with the folks in Kansas.

Update #2: Davis already planning to submit a new bill. From the Nov 12th Post-Dispatch: "Davis said she was ready for a long campaign to promote intelligent design. She said she had already retooled her textbook bill to file next month."
Matthew

November 02, 2005

Garden Variety Error...

A sharp eyed reader noticed this morning that the dropout rate figures on the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education website is significantly different than the "miraculous" numbers SLS Watch reported and we passed along in the post below last night. The numbers currently show the rate for 2005 as 15.7% and the 5-year average as 10.3%.

A representative from the Missouri School Improvement Program, which handles the Annual Performance Report, confirmed that the original figures were in error. They did not include all of the data when the numbers were calculated. They made the change after someone brought the error to their attention.

Matthew

Present and Accounted For

Saint Louis Schools Watch (subscription only) is reporting some rather surprising numbers from the 2005 District Summary of Annual Performance (grades 3 through 12).

If, as the old saying goes, 90% of success is showing up, the students of the St. Louis School District should be going places soon.

According to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, St. Louis Public Schools reported that the dropout rate plummeted from 9.4% in the 2003-2004 school year to only 2.1% in 2004-2005.
…
The sharply lower dropout rate is quite a story, but school district administrators have not called attention to it nor explained how they did it. It has at least one school board member asking: "Do you believe in miracles?"

Though the dropout number is surprising enough to raise some questions, other numbers are not as positive nor as out of the norm.

The number of graduates entering college is the lowest in 5 years (43.8%). Add in job placement (including military) from vocational training and the number is still its lowest in 5 years (46%).

The overall report is a mixed bag, but in math it appears that all the tested grade levels have made some progress, or at least not lost much ground, in the past 5 years. The communication arts are more problematic with only the third grader showing consistent improvement.

Update: A reader brought a disparity to our attention. The original figures for the dropout rate on the Missouri School Improvement Program website were in error. A representative from the MSIP, which handles the Anual Performance Report, confirmed the figures were changed after the problem was brought to their attention. The accurate dropout figure is 15.7% for 2005 and 10.3% for the 5-year average.

Matthew

October 02, 2005

The largest employer

of graduating Wash U seniors last year...

August 24, 2005

Metro Maxed Out

From St Louis Schools Watch:

by A. Parent
August 23, 2005 ––
If district administrators are intent in treating Metro like a sardine can, one can only hope they will find space for and purchase the additional needed lockers and some folding chairs.

Metro High School, rated #48 of the 100 top high schools in the U.S. by Newsweek, has been difficult to get into in the past, partly due to space limitations. It would seem the school's success has led the district to push it to the limit.

While relocation to a larger facility may help, friends of mine who went there when I was in high school said the small size contributed to the positive environment.

There are factors that contribute to Metro's success that can not be duplicated by the district (parental involvement, social environment, etc.), but perhaps Metro's success can help seed other schools in the district.

Certainly the results can't the result of circumstances unique only to Metro, perhaps they are merely better focused there.

August 19, 2005

SLPS says 2005 elementary MAP scores Up

Their press release:

The St. Louis Public Schools today announced the preliminary results from the 2005 Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) test. While the majority of the District’s elementary schools show increases, middle and high school scores remain stagnant.

The MAP measures academic standards and determines the level to which schools enable students to become proficient. The tests are scored on proficiency standards of Advanced, Proficient, Nearing Proficient, Progressing and Step 1. The levels of Advanced/Proficient scores are used to determine each school’s Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) required by the Federal No Child Left Behind law.

“We obviously have a great deal of work to do to ensure that all of our students are performing at advanced and proficient levels,” said St. Louis Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Creg E. Williams. “As these results show, elementary schools have made meaningful gains over the past year, while middle schools and high schools have not. The Board of Education made an essential strategic decision to invest approximately $3 million in curriculum materials for the elementary schools. This year, not only will the District build upon the work that was started late last year in the elementary grades, but we will make curriculum changes in middle school and implement a totally revamped core curriculum in the high schools as part of our comprehensive plan to raise student achievement. We expect to see growth across the board next year.”

District Highlights

• The achievement gap at the elementary level in Communication Arts has narrowed significantly and is much narrower than that of the State. The level for white students is 36% and 35% for black students, both above the Annual Yearly Progress goal of 27%.
• Three elementary schools, formerly identified as “Needs Improvement” by the State, preliminarily met the criteria for Adequate Yearly Progress and may be removed from the list.
• In Grade 3 Communication Arts, the percentage of students in the St. Louis Public Schools scoring in the combined Proficient and Advanced Achievement level equals the percentage of the State, both at 35%.

The MAP score information is preliminary, as the Federal government requires the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) to provide districts a 30-day appeal process. Final determinations of MAP data and AYP will be made by DESE in November.
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July 14, 2005

Creg Williams' Outrage by Mark Ribbing

Creg Williams' Outrage
by Mark Ribbing

The primary purpose of Tuesday night's school-board meeting at Carr Lane was to pass a new budget for the state's largest district. And this did occur, albeit by a 4-3 vote. But something else happened that might signal something of even greater importance to the district and the city it claims to serve: the arrival of Creg Williams.

Williams has actually been the district's superintendent for three months now, and he's hardly been a secret -- whirlwind visits to long-neglected schools, favorable notices in local media, mandatory getting-to-know-you sessions with regional power-wielders.

He's even managed to create a somewhat more positive, constructive environment at school-board meetings -- no mean feat. But Tuesday's meeting was a particularly high-stakes, high-visibility affair. After all, to budget is to govern, and the budget-vote meeting was therefore bound to unleash more than a few furies.

And the furies came, riding the wings of Rumor. This school about to close, that program about to be scrapped, these jobs about to be lost. Yes, some hard cuts were going to have to be made, for real -- it's a school district with rapidly shrinking enrollment in a city only beginning to recover from a half-century of what can justly be called civic hemorrhage, a vast bleeding of people, jobs, and tax dollars. It's a school district that only two years ago was on the verge of bankruptcy, and still has a general deficit of $26.5 million.

So, cuts will have to be made, yes. But to listen to the seething crowd Tuesday night, you'd think the district was planning to franchise all of its school buildings to Wal-Mart and sell teachers into indentured servitude on eBay. Stoked by its suppositions, the crowd was in high dudgeon -- if the dudgeon had gotten any higher, it might have gone right into geosynchronous orbit. In the public-comment session, speaker after speaker railed at the board about jobs and programs perceived (sometimes correctly, sometimes not) to be endangered. In this environment, hardly a sentence went uttered by any board member without a boo or a catcall from the audience. It was, in short, like the Bad Old Days all over again.

Or so it seemed until it was Williams's turn to speak. Remaining seated at the center of the stage under a massive screen showing the budget slide presentation, Williams spoke extemporaneously but with hardly any break in his flow. He spoke loudly enough into his microphone to still the gallery. Far more importantly, he spoke knowledgeably enough and passionately enough to make them listen.

He addressed the spead of rumors, and stanched them one by one: No, we're not ending in-school suspension. No, we're not purging teachers -- in fact, we have lots of teaching positions to fill.

Then he showed one slide after another that depicted bar graphs of how many SLPS students had reached proficiency on the Terra Nova tests or the MAP tests. For each grade, there were two tower-like bars, the one on the left showing how many district kids had taken the test, the one on the right representing how many of these test-takers had scored at anything like a proficient level.

Time after time, slide after slide, the left-hand bar towered over the right-hand bar. For example, 2,795 6th graders had taken the 2004 Terra Nova reading test. Only 458 -- a tiny stub of the test-taking group -- had placed at or above the national averages.

Another slide showed that 2,227 10th graders had taken the 2004 MAP science test. This time, the right-hand bar barely registered. Out of all these 2,000-plus high-schoolers, two years away from entering higher education or the workforce, only 23 had scored proficient or better.

That's not 23 percent, but 23, as in 23 kids. Out of 2,227. In a city that seeks to pin its economic future on becoming the next hub of the biotech industry.

As Williams then properly noted, if you take the district's star school, Metro, out of the equation, the numbers become even more abysmal. The audience did make some noise during these slides, but they were gasps and sighs of sadness and disbelief. The man had made his point.

Then Williams said something that has so urgently needed to be said by a superintendent of the St. Louis Public Schools. He mentioned the fact that so many people had used the school-board meetings to share their personal outrage about the jobs of adults, the programs of adults.

He nodded toward the graphs showing how few students are truly learning how to read properly, perform a math problem, or understand a scientific concept. He talked about how these numbers weren't mere percentages on a chart; they were kids, children, human beings whose futures swayed precariously in the balance.

And then he said, "This is my outrage."

May 10, 2005

Warming up to Williams

The St. Louis Schools Watch (by subscription only) is reporting that new SLPS superintendent, Craig Williams, may be doing the impossible, winning over both parents and SLPS staff.

Leaders of the Parent Association expressed appreciation for his quick action to pull "pimp education" snacks from the schools after parent Curtis Royston brought a bag to his attention.
...
A principal, who has been critical of the leadership of the district for the last two years, said that Williams has brought new excitement to the district. Those assistant superintendents, who, following the lead of former interim superintendent William Roberti and some school board members, had routinely abused their underlings reportedly are reportedly acting as if they've had personality transplants: ... The rumor is that Williams leashed them in, and told them that if they can't get along with the staff in the schools, he does not need them.

Williams seems to be bringing good ideas and a willingness to listen to a school administration that has been lacking in both.

St. Louis Schools Watch is run by former School Board candidate, Peter Downs. Schools Watch is also on the radio, Wednesday morning's, 7 a.m., on the Lizz Brown Show WGNU 920 AM.

April 27, 2005

Doing the job right?

In addition to reducing the amount districts with higher costs-of-living would receive under the new school formula, Missouri legislators defeated an amendment to the state school funding formula. The amendment would have required the state study the assessment practices used around the state.

Given that the assessments will play a large role in determining how much state aid a district will receive, a careful review of assessment practices should be the first step in implementing any new funding formula. The St. Louis Metropolitan area alone has seen a great deal of controversy over unfair or inaccurate assessment practices.

The Public Policy Research Center of UMSL has an analysis of the role assessments play in the new funding formula.

April 26, 2005

Drug testing for all?

White House Deputy Drug Czar, Mary Ann Solberg, is in town today to discuss expanding drug testing to all middle and high school students, not just those who participate in extracurricular activities.

Random drug testing is a troubling reality for many students. While the legality may be secure, the larger question of the effects of a random invasion of an individual's privacy still remain. Proponents offer that it is restricted to those who participate in extracurricular activities. Yet everyone must remember parents, teachers and school officials touting the positive benefits of such activities. College admissions offices look at extracurricular participation when evaluating a students application. If a student objects to random invasions of their privacy, aren't they unjustly punished for standing up for their beliefs?

What's the effect expanding drug testing to all students? How can schools effectively teach or talk about constitutional rights when the students themselves are subjected to involuntary searches that others are not subjected to. Should a police officer be able to stop the same student walking down the street and demand they pass a drug test?

In addition, is this a useful way to spend time and money when many students are unable to pass remedial math and reading tests?

Raising the question of expanding student drug testing will hopefully bring greater attention to the questionable nature of mandatory testing.

If anyone attended today's talk and you would like to comment on what went on, please feel free to add a comment.

Correction: The Deputy Drug Czar is Mary Ann Solberg, not Dr. Andrea Barthwell, as I originally stated. Thanks to ArchPundit for the heads up.

April 02, 2005

Victory Parties

Hope to have a full listing by Tuesday afternoon. Here's the first:

Veronica O'Brien, 7:00 p.m, Euclid Plaza Building, 625 N. Euclid

March 29, 2005

My apologies to Myrtle French

Below I had posted (21th ward unity) that Myrtle French endorsed certain school board candidates. She has not.

I received an email from Bill Purdy with the information in that post and threw it up here without checking.

My mistake.

I have since received other emails from Purdy concerning endorsements, of which at least one more contains a similiar mistake.

March 28, 2005

Crew's in the news

Rudy Crew is in a board battle down in FLA. (Registration required).

March 24, 2005

Clinkscale to be Honored

On Thursday, May 5, FOCUS St. Louis will honor Darnetta Clinkscale, President of the St. Louis Board of Education, with the presentation of their FOCUS St. Louis Leadership Award.

March 22, 2005

Veronica O'Brien Victim of Vandals

Her account:

EVERYONE PASS THIS ON! AFTER THE FORUMS TONIGHT I WAS DRIVING HOME AND NOTICED MY SIGNS HAD ALL BEEN RIPPED UP. I HAD OTHERS IN THE CAR AND TRIED TO REPLACE SOME OF THEM. I HAD ANOTHER BOARD MEMBER WITH ME AND WE THOUGHT HOW AWFUL THIS WAS.

UPON APPROACHING MY HOUSE I SAW THEY HAD BEEN IN MY YARD. THIS ALARMED ME. THE OTHER BOARD MEMBER GOT IN HER CAR AND DROVE ABOUT A BLOCK AND CALLED BACK BECAUSE HER TIRES WERE FLAT.

YES, THE POLICE WERE CALLED AND REPORTS WERE MADE. THE POLICE LOOKED AT HER CAR AND SAID THE TIRES HAD BEEN SLASHED. NOTE THIS HAPPENED WHILE PARKED AT MY HOUSE AND IN MY DRIVEWAY. THIS IS VERY ALARMING.

EVERYONE BE CAREFUL AS WE KNOW WHO IS BEHIND THIS. THIS IS SAD THAT THIS HAS COME TO THIS. I HAVE POLICE REPORT NUMBERS BUT I AM SURE THE CHIEF OF POLICE WILL COVER THIS UP ALSO.

March 16, 2005

Jen Allen is out.

She's only lived in the city for a year. The requirements of the School Board are to have been a resident for three years.

She says that she asked the Board of Elections about residency when she filed and they told her one year. They've apologized for the mistake.

March 11, 2005

28th ward endorsements

28th ward endorsed Joe Keaveny, Flint Fowler, and Joe Moramarco for School Board last night.

March 09, 2005

Endorsement

At its March 9 membership meeting, Two Rivers Greens formally endorsed the following candidates for the St. Louis Board of Education at the April 5 election:

Veronica O'Brien
William Purdy
Peter Downs

March 07, 2005

Polling for School Board Election

An email from School Board candidate Bill Purdy reports that David Chilenski is doing polling for the School Board election.

His source is unclear, but the story makes sense.

Chilenski often works with Vigilant Communications and is said to be exceptionally proficient at his trade.

Purdy's description of the polling implies that the "mayor's slate" is coalescing around Flint Fowler, Joseph Keaveny and either Joseph Moramarco or Frank Kriegel.

March 01, 2005

Update on School Board candidate forums

Via SLS Watch

March 2, 6:30 - 8:30 pm, joint Community, Majic 104.9, and Parent Assembly Candidates Forum, St. Paul AME Church, 1260 Hamilton

March 10, 6:30 pm., School board candidate forum, McKinley CJA Middle School, 2156 Russell Blvd, 1 block east of Jefferson and 2 blocks south of I-44.

March 14, 7 pm, School board candidate forum, Julia Davis Branch Library, 4415 Natura