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| Another Observer Letter | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Mar 23 2006, 11:59 AM (1,139 Views) | |
| Administrator | Mar 23 2006, 11:23 PM Post #16 |
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Administrator
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The issue is community input. Both Redford and Taylor went back to the citizens for input. No, its not easy to do, but look at this......the first reference from Demographics Committe.... This is the first reference on the Demographics Commitee Reasearch page. Read this. I really believe if this had been done, we would not be here. For that matter, why not do this now and end all of this. Community Relations: Working With the Public on Big Decisions, Leighninger, 2003 Many school leaders realize that the "decide-and-defend" approach to school district policymaking is a thing of the past. They know that making major decisions without involving parents and other community members can create controversy and threaten funding support. They are using more participatory strategies to avoid open conflicts, obtain useful input on major decisions and build support for implementing those decisions. To accomplish this effectively, some superintendents are borrowing principles and strategies from successful public engagement efforts in other fields, such as race relations and crime prevention. One of the most important tactics they have learned is using small groups instead of large public hearings to help people share their experiences, analyze the policy options and decide how the schools, the parents and other community organizations can all play a role in improving education for young people. Broad Representation The administrators who have pioneered this new approach have learned several lessons. * Encourage truly broad-based, large-scale participation. You don't want your dialogue with the community to be dominated by a small number of opinionated people. Successful citizen involvement efforts make an impact by involving large numbers,--up to 100 in a neighborhood, up to 1,000 in a city. To encourage participation from people who reflect the makeup of the community, start by building a coalition of organizations that represent many different parts. You need the leaders of those organizations to recruit people from their networks to participate. It is particularly beneficial to enlist grassroots organizations such as neighborhood associations, businesses, religious organizations and civic clubs. In rural Harford County, Md., school leaders worked with community organizations to recruit 150 citizens. The project focused on the achievement gap between students of color and white students. The school district subsequently won a $1.1 million federal grant to implement the recommendations, including additional staffing at four schools to help evaluate and modify instruction, train teachers and advocate for low-achieving students. * Provide structure for the small-group discussions. Limiting the groups to 8-12 people allows everyone to contribute. To ensure the discussion feels safe and builds trust, give each group an impartial and well-trained facilitator and ask the participants to set some ground rules. Make it clear that the groups will meet several times--with a first session that focuses on their experiences and concerns, a subsequent session on the critical decision facing the district and a final session that helps the group decide how each one of them can contribute to school success. Provide the small groups with basic information about the schools and the situation, plus a fair and candid restatement of the main arguments about what should be done. These materials should establish a framework for the sessions. The school district in Decatur, Ga., faced a potentially explosive decision about how to redraw the boundary lines for the community's elementary schools. More than 300 people participated in small groups addressing the question. The groups used a guide that laid out the main redistricting options. The guide had been written by a committee of parents and other citizens, led by a local nonprofit called Common Focus. Because the project allowed people to examine the options in an even-handed, analytical way, the school board was able to adopt a redistricting plan with less acrimony than school leaders had expected. An Action Stage * Ask participants to take action, not just make recommendations. From the outset, school leaders should clarify they are not simply asking for recommendations. Citizens should be encouraged to think about what they can do on a number of levels: as individuals, as members of new or existing organizations and as a community. A large-group meeting at the conclusion of the small-group discussions can move the ideas to an action stage. Clearly some policy changes can only be enacted by school leaders, but individual citizens can do a host of things on almost any issue. Projects can be undertaken by a combination of citizens, school district employees and other community organizations. For example, at the end of a project involving 700 participants in Inglewood, Calif., gains were noticeable in PTA meeting participation, donations to schools and volunteer participation at schools. Many parents started volunteering their time for cleaning school facilities and taking care of school gardens. Across the district, after-school programs and community activities, such as English as a second language and computer classes for parents, also were begun. School districts have used this approach to generate a range of outcomes, including construction of new schools in Florida and Illinois, creation of a regional school district in New Hampshire, averting a teachers' strike in Arkansas, devising initiatives for bridging the achievement gap in Calvert and Montgomery counties, Md., passing school bond issues in Kuna, Idaho, and South Kitsap, Wash., and launching tutoring programs and other grassroots projects. In an increasingly busy and sophisticated world, where citizens have more to contribute but less time to spend, school leaders are rethinking the ways they work with the public. To involve parents and other citizens on an ongoing basis, they are incorporating public engagement principles into school and district governance, using them to analyze school reform ideas and employing them at the teacher-parent-classroom level. They are bringing policy decisions into the community, using small groups to create safe, informed discussions and asking citizens to take an active role in problem solving. Matt Leighninger is senior associate of the Study Circles Resource Center, 2 Beulah Ave., Hamilton, ON, Canada L8P 4G9. E-mail: mattl@ studycircles.org COPYRIGHT 2003 American Association of School Administrators COPYRIGHT 2003 Gale Group http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_...60/ai_110458843 http://www.livonia.k12.mi.us/demographic/faq.html |
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| Jill | Mar 24 2006, 12:43 AM Post #17 |
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Principal
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In Redford, the BOE listened to community input and did what ONE group wanted them to do. Then ANOTHER group got angry and has organized. Someone is angry no matter what happens. I suspect that would be true here as well. Here's the article from the Redford Observer: Keeler community fights back BY MATT JACHMAN STAFF WRITER Saying they were blindsided by a plan for changes at Keeler Elementary School, people in the area have launched a petition drive aimed at getting the Redford Union Board of Education to reconsider that decision. The effort follows the school board's 5-2 vote March 13 to close three district buildings, cut jobs and move programs among schools that remain open. Officials say a deficit estimated at more than $3.7 million necessitates the downsizing, which will begin with the 2006-07 school year. The reorganization will close Keeler, on Brady Street north of Six Mile, as a traditional elementary and will move a program for about 120 learning-disabled students into the building. Keeler students will be sent to other schools. "All along we've been reassured and reassured that Keeler was never an option," said Terri Blalock, a leader of the group, who has a grandson, a niece and three nephews at Keeler. "We were just flabbergasted," she added. "It just made no sense." "The whole thing is ridiculous," said Angie Gurra, a Keeler parent "They're basing their decision on geographic location. Well, what about the children?" Gurra said she will home-school her son, currently a first-grader, rather than send him to Bulman Elementary. Under one plan the board considered, Bulman was to be the site for the elementary day treatment program now heading to Keeler, but Bulman parents organized to lobby for their school, which will become a school for students in grades 2 through 5. The Keeler group plans two afternoons of signature-gathering Saturday and Sunday. Volunteers plan to meet in the school parking lot at 1 p.m. both days. The group has a Web site, www.hometown.aol.com/savekeelerschool. Among the reasons Keeler fans give for preserving it as a traditional elementary are: It is the district's largest elementary, with more classrooms, wider hallways, a bigger gymnasium and 11,000 square feet more than Bulman. The size offers room for enrollment increases, they say, and Bulman's smaller gymnasium means that, with more students, more lunch periods will be needed each school day. Keeler's media center is well-stocked and as large as four classrooms, which gives it a large student capacity. Keeler students enjoy a relationship with senior citizen residents at the nearby Village of Redford (formerly Presbyterian Village), and take walking field trips to the new Redford Township District Library. "If Bulman offered the same advantages that Keeler offered, we would not fight this at all," Blalock said. "We want what's best for our kids." Blalock hopes to present the petitions to the school board by the board's Monday, April 10, meeting. Trustee Mark Wierimaa, who voted for the reorganization plan that was adopted, indicated the board's decision will stand. "The decision has been made. It wasn't a close decision, it was a 5-2 decision," Wierimaa said, adding the Keeler fans "need to decide if they think this makes the district a better place or not by what they're doing." mjachman@oe.homecomm.net (734) 953-21155 Originally published March 23, 2006 |
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| ktmom | Mar 24 2006, 09:09 AM Post #18 |
Principal
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Yes they went back to the community for input in Redford. They reviewed 13 plans. Then they adopted a plan that was not even presented! |
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| jodygirlh | Mar 24 2006, 10:45 AM Post #19 |
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Principal
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I agree with cmic-a responsible board does not go to court. How many times has everyone heard Steve Futrell and others ask the BOE to work with the parents and community? Over and over again, we have asked them to address our concerns...To which they respond-the 5/6 has great support with this BOE. In other words-Evanko's words to be exact, "Oz-has-Spoken". They don't care about what any of us think. At last week's BOE meeting, Freeman actually told a parent to "quit her B^%^%!" This is the mentality of these Board member's. They are tired of hearing from those of us who oppose the LI, but are not willing to compromise in any way. To blame CFLF for 'inadequately funding our children's education' is simply the ridiculous rant of another BOE crony. No one wanted a lawsuit or recall effort. This arrogant, unyeilding BOE and Admin. have brought this on themselves. |
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| Momforone | Mar 24 2006, 10:53 AM Post #20 |
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Principal
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You are so right. Many of us have approached the BOE and Dr. Liepa to try to come to some sort of compromise. As far as they are considered they are right and there will be no movement of any kind on their part! Everyone should call Dr. Liepa and set up an appointment to talk to him. See what kid of response you get from him. I guarantee it will be a BIG FAT ZERO! |
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| 49chevy | Mar 24 2006, 11:01 AM Post #21 |
Answers questioned
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They seem to have a "God" complex......what they say goes...don't you dare question us... |
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| cmic | Mar 24 2006, 05:30 PM Post #22 |
Principal
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I disagree! We are not "Special Interest Groups". We are concerned tax payers that pay to keep our schools functioning. We have a right to have input into our children's schooling. And, when we aren't looked at as team members then you better believe we will DEMAND to be heard! It is absolutely ludicrous to make a comment like that. Also, Redford is doing the right thing and yes people will be upset, but they were flexible. And, you will see, it will work out in Redford. I taught there. I grew up there. Redford is fine. Livonia is not fine. Livonia is a mess and from what I am hearing if the proposal was a K-5 model then a lot of the super supporters would be kicking and screaming. You are just fortunate that your plan that you opposed didn't get adopted. Otherwise we might be seeing a very different side of you. |
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| CKlockner | Mar 24 2006, 06:37 PM Post #23 |
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Principal
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Thank you cmic you spoke the words I was thinking. Maybe we are just an especially interested group in our children, school district and city, and disagree with what the BOE plans to do to all of them. |
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11:42 AM Jul 13