Posts from — July 2010

I’ll be taking a two week break from this blog to help my youngest child (and myself) prepare for her move out of state for college.

Once again…I’m inviting anyone interested in writing a guest post to contact me at carrie.adams@comcast.net.  I’m sure I’ve missed some stories or issues that others would like to share!

I’ll return to the blog on August 9th.

Congratulations to state representative Ben Cannon (district 46) for being chosen as one of Willamette Week’s 2010 Best People.  Ben won the Best Politician Money Cannot Buy category.  His district includes Marshall High School.

This year’s incoming Freshman class at Marshall would have been its largest in years but then Carole Smith got involved. 

Prior to board approval of Smith’s recommendations for high schools, Smith announced that Marshall wouldn’t be taking incoming freshman.  Parents of those students were sent letters saying that their kidswould be going to the recommended feeder schools.  The counselors from the new feeder schools then forecasted Marshall freshmen. 

A few weeks later, Smith announced that Marshall would be taking incoming freshmen but Marshall students still wishing to attend their new feeder schools could do that.  Kids were then re-forecasted for the fall.   

In a period of about a month, Marshall went from it’s largest incoming freshmen class in years to no incoming freshmen and now they’re at about half of where they started before Smith’s involvement. 

Do board members pay any attention to this?  Every time the school closure issue comes up the superintendent and board members blame the schools for declining enrollment.  I’m sure that’s much more comfortable for them than accepting responsibility for their own actions.

PPS closed Clarendon Elementary School in 2006 and the building has sat empty (except for homeless people) since that time.  The building is falling apart, covered with graffiti, windows are boarded up, smells like piss and a homeless person is sleeping there. 

The property is adjacent to a nice little park with an abandoned playground.  Is this what we want for our neighborhoods?  

  Welcome

Enter with care and love. 

If it looks like piss and smells like piss…

Second bathroom.

1 Bedroom.

Who knows what happened here

Working on making a skylight

Watch your head

There’s paint in the dust that runs along the outside wall.  Clarendon was built in 1970.  Lead paint was banned in 1978.  Are children being exposed to lead? 

Don’t want to guess what’s smeared on the windows

Where are the children?

The Clarendon building has an interesting history.  Like Whitaker Middle School and Marshall High School, Clarendon is one of PPS newest buildings.  This is from PPS Historic Building Assessment:

While Clarendon does not meet the 50 year standard for National Register eligibility and is not considered exceptionally significant, the following eligibility determination is provided for future district planning purposes. Given the uniqueness of both the design and planning process used to arrive at the design choice, the Clarendon School is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places under Criteria A and C. As the first Portland school planned in a decentralized and collaborative manner that involved citizens, school administrators, and teachers, Clarendon set an important precedent for community involvement. It is therefore associated with a significant historical pattern or trend in educational facilities planning and policy thus meeting the standard of National Register Criterion A. The building is also eligible under Criterion C, as a unique school building type in the City of Portland. No other hexagonal unit schools were constructed in Portland either before or since the Clarendon building was erected. The building retains much of its historical integrity on the exterior and interior.  You can read more about it here.

Tonight a group of Marshall parents attended the David Douglas school board meeting because the Marshall site was on their agenda. 

Given that the superintendent was instructed to continue (or maybe begin…the story changes regularly) discussions with David Douglas about sharing the facility, you would think that the superintendent would have at least attempted to have a serious conversation with them about it.  But that’s not what was described at tonight’s David Douglas meeting.

David Douglas superintendent Don Grotting kicked off the discussion by saying that PPS superintendent Smith wanted him to talk with the David Douglas board about their apprehensions around partnering at the Marshall site. 

David Douglas board members apprehensions come from a few places.  First, PPS has yet to articulate a plan for shared use of the site.  According to a David Douglas staff member, PPS started the conversation by saying “what can we do for you?”  When pressed for specific ideas for shared use of the site, PPS was reluctant to articulate what they had in mind. 

David Douglas board members asked if PPS has brought any ideas forth since the initial discussion.  NO.  Board members said they didn’t feel it was their place to tell PPS how to use their building.  One board member said “they should have a plan on how they want the building used.” 

Other board members said: 

• We’re not going to be their saviors
• We’re spinning our wheels until they can come up with something
• I don’t see us going into a cold planning session for the facility
• I’d support any solution that makes sense for staff and students and is cost effective

The only area where PPS was able to provide any clarity was on the issue of a boundary change.  Superintendent Grotting asked Carole Smith if she’s willing to support a boundary change and she said no. 

Every day brings a new reason to secede from PPS.  The district won’t provide an adequate education for students in the Marshall cluster.  They won’t let neighborhood students stay in the Marshall building.  They aren’t serious about a focus school.  They aren’t willing to fully utilize the building. 

We have formed a group called Eastside Equity Now and we are collecting signatures to change the district boundaries. 

We will be at Ed Benedict park (SE 100th and Powell) Saturday and Sunday 2-4 PM. (Update – we’re awaiting confirmation on this.  Unlike PPS, we don’t want to piss off an entire community).  More dates and locations will be announced soon.  Please email me at carrie.adams@comcast.net if you’d like to volunteer to collect signatures.

I thought I would follow Carole Smith’s example of moving forward on high school redesign implementation prior to a board vote.  

Carole’s contract is up for renewal this October.  Assuming that the board votes for non-renewal… 

What are the top THREE characteristics you would like to see in our next superintendent?

I found it unbelievable that Superintendent Smith would give principals extra time off with pay this summer while at the same time asking teachers to sacrifice.  Oh yeah, there was an update this afternoon saying that principals will work harder later.  I’m sure.

I calculated the cost of giving all principals 18 days off with pay.  My estimate is conservative because I used the bottom end of the administrator salary schedule and most administrators are experienced and at higher steps.  The district’s About PPS page says there are:

• 15 high schools
• 10 middle school
• 31 K-8s
• 27 elementary schools
• one K-12
• one 6-11

The total cost of the paid days off just for principals alone is $479,392.  (Vice principals and assistant principals would also be getting time off with pay.) 

How is PPS leadership going to be able lobby legislators for additional funding when they continue to make thoughtless decisions?

Better yet, how can Superintendent Smith justify closing schools to save money when the savings would amount to less than the cost of giving principals a break?

Carole Smith’s contract is up for renewal on October 1, 2010. 

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I’m sure I must live in the wrong zip code because I’ve written the PPS school board several times and only received one response from a board member.  Hint: it wasn’t Pam. 

But when a Grant parent writes the board they receive this:

Thanks —-.  I was wondering where the Grant community was.  There are potential big cuts to Grant, which could be even greater if the high schools in the Academic Priority zones are held harmless.  I am not hearing from Grant people.  I do not know if they are contacting others.  It would have been good to hear from them in public at the meeting.   I am not sure if there will be another public meeting on the budget.  

Pam

Dear Pam,

Please don’t worry about how the Academic Priority Zones might impact the Close the Gap, Not the Schools people.  It is of the utmost importance to the group that you do whatever is necessary to close the gap. 

Love,

A former Grant parent