On another thread Anonymous wrote:
""Cutting teachers and classes is not the way to solve this problem," she said.
Education Watchdog A+ Schools wants to send a clear message to Pittsburgh Public Schools officials about what the community thinks is most important when considering budget cuts that could affect the classroom.
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/education/s_747898.html
Read more: Education watchdog monitors school cuts - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/education/s_747898.html#ixzz1SpuxI3YY
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14 comments:
Members of the public seem to be sending a very clear message that if cuts need to be made the first department to cut is central administration, and not just the little guys, but the opposite seems to be happening.
The public should not test until the raises given the day before the Governir announced his budget proposal are returned.
Central Office personnel, executives, directors, assistant superintendents need to be cut in half. There are twice as many executives now as opposed to a time when there were half as many with twice as many students. And yet achievement continues to fall. It is disgraceful! We need a whole new slate or competent educators who can lead PPS out of this decline.
Ummm. Does anyone really think PPS administration cares what A+ Schools thinks?
I think you are right that PPS admin generally treats A+ Schools more as an annoyance than anything else. I have always wondered if A+ Schools suffered from grade inflation when they scored the Board, but that might be strategic on there part to gently nudge the Board in a different direction without the Board tuning them out.
Clearly market forces are speaking loudly. Despite the projections and cheerleading of McKinsey at the outset and later by PPS staffers (and Broad residents) Eddie Jones, Amy Mahan, Cate Reed and Marni Pastor, even the Promise of a scholarship after high school has not been enough to stem the tide of enrollment decline.
You see related, but not necessarily similar, market forces at play in the Pittsburgh Promise not meeting its fundraising goal of $15 million the last couple of years.
We will look back someday and wonder if the Superintendent's time and energy wouldn't have been better spent in the schools, trying to raise the relative level of achievement in the district. Even if we make AYP this year, PPS by most measures is a bottom dweller among PA school districts.
"I think you are right that PPS admin generally treats A+ Schools more as an annoyance than anything else."
Well, not exactly -- they look at them as their arm to enable them to say that they got community and parent input.
A+ was founded and funded by the same funds that brought us Roosevelt -- the same funds that had been pulled from the schools prior to his arrival.
A+ runs their meetings for them, provides PPS a report on the answers given at these meetings to their leading questions (which are at least suggested by the PPS). That's that. PPS doesn't have to do anything other than say that they saw that and took it into consideration.
A+ is just a handy tool of the PPS.
That's really sad.
The best Superintendents and Business Managers in the State held community meetings throughout their districts and took one unscripted question after another on the impact of budget reductions on schools.
Pittsburgh has enough central staff that they could easily have divided and done the same.
Dividing up staff to answer unscripted questions would never happen. Staff has to stay strictly on message, and they need to know what the message is. Many times when asked to speak they look terrified of saying the wrong thing.
"We will look back someday and wonder if the Superintendent's time and energy wouldn't have been better spent in the schools, trying to raise the relative level of achievement in the district. Even if we make AYP this year, PPS by most measures is a bottom dweller among PA school districts."
I thought raising achievement was the #1 priority! It is read aloud for all to see/hear at every Board meeting. We shouldn't be wondering but demanding that achievement be raised. Or is it the general consensus with the PPS Admin, Board, and unmentionable others, etc. that it can't be done??? If that is true, then flight from the city is the only solution for those who care and can flee. Those that remain appear to be doomed.
Is anyone having a hard time getting to the live board meeting using the district website? Perhaps someone from Technology can...oh, wait...uh hmmmm, nevermind...
cant get in either...seems they've stopped hotline, organizational charts--a general lack of "transparency" (their word)
Are you saying the option of leaving a message on the hotline after hours is not available?
You can't connect today to the live board meeting option again.
Let's set a clock to see how long it takes to fix the problem.
no there used to be a "hotline" that read all the names of the changes--it was on by midnight after board meetings. Before computers, that was how some principals on vacation found out where they were going. Yes it was old tech but it was quick
We have no direct "hotline", no direct Email addresses to our school board "representitives", and no technology/call center employees left to remedy any concerns we have.
What is going to happen when school starts and transportation, placement, (Insert problem here) is all screwed up?
What can parents do?
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