Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Students shot outside Brashear

On another post Anonymous wrote:

*New Post*

3 Brashear students shot at school:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/14/us/three-students-are-shot-near-pittsburgh-school.html?hp

66 comments:

Questioner said...

Former Brashear student arrested in shootings:

http://www.post-gazette.com/local/2013/11/13/Shooting-reported-at-Pittsburgh-Brashear-High-school/stories/201311130158

Anonymous said...

Well they won't be able to cover this one up. Since this unfortunate incident was related to a fight that took place in the school and the shooter was the victim in that incident and reportedly the shooting victims were the ones who assaulted him, I wonder if the 3 boys were suspended and had board hearings for the assault? Granted that the shooter didn't press charges, but wouldn't the school do something?

Anonymous said...

Incidents like the one at Brashear are tipping points for a school.

One can believe that this shooting is an unfortunate rarity. Sort of like a meteor hitting a house.

Or one can believe that the shooting is just a preview of the chaos to come.

Parents who believe the latter is true will be looking elsewhere for their children's education.

Personally, I believe that this is a preview of things to come. Not necessarily more shootings. But more violence.

That's because central administration has a history of doing nothing to address the growing disorder in the schools.

I expect that the administration will issue a few tough press releases, then order a few dozen safety posters. And there will be school police at Brashear for a few days.

Then it's back to business as usual.

Anonymous said...

I heard an initial statement from Ms Lane and she appeared to not know any history about the previous event. COVER UP???And yet they just float the fact they are seeking a tax increase! PPS is a hot mess! They hide just how bad they are, even from the Pgh. Police and the media.

Mark Rauterkus said...

When was the principal at Brashear pulled to the other PPS school?

And when was the prior fight?

How do those events fall together?

And who is on the case with the kid with the gun who may have been a drop out? is there follow up on a 1 to 1 basis for those out of school?

Wondering.

Anonymous said...

Just two comments:

First: "Honesty is always the best policy."

Second: True "envisioning" will provide solutions to what is happening in schools that now distance our children (inadvertently or deliberately) from the opportunity to be successfully and productively engaged in an educational process that will change directions and lives for the students who are currently so disenfranchised by the failure of processes in our schools to positively educate them for the future.

Anonymous said...

The PELA program over and over again shows that it does not work.

Anonymous said...

The big"C" consequences are not part of PELA--they call in various "programs" -- consultants! There is no attitude of THAT ( whatever) will NOT happen at this school. Families and individuals have consequences..if you dont do laundry, you dont have clean clothes! We all can thunk of consequences every day. And yet, a drug deal resulting in a robbery in a school, less than a month ago-- and every actor is STILL at school. Our board is worried about how to hire week-end wonders, since PELA worked so well.

Anonymous said...

Remember that Lane proposed cutting the grass less often, less snow removal AND fewer security members.

Anonymous said...

Nothing will be changed due to this. It didn't happen IN the school.

The district views this as a dodged bullet, not a wake up call.

Anonymous said...

Judge Motznik is having a press conference at 1:00 today. Apparently he contacted the D.A.'s office about investigating the dramatic drop in the number of incidents reported in schools.

Questioner said...

Reporting is an issue in many settings- for example some colleges have complained that the more conscientious they are about reporting, the worse they look compared to other colleges with looser standards.

Anonymous said...

http://triblive.com/news/adminpage/5077101-74/district-judge-attorney#axzz2kkJVzov7

Anonymous said...

Thank you judge Motznik for looking in to the politics and the crimes being swept under the rug by the chief of the school police.The chief told her police not to write citations and not to arrest students unless it is a serious crime.She was promised a bonus from upstairs at belfield if she stopped the police from writing citations. Many school police are angry and outraged because there hands are tied and most of them have a code of ethics.That crime at brashear that happened on oct 18th should have been taken more seriously and the two boy should have been arrested for robbery and what happened on 11/13/13 would have never happened.DAs office will find wrong doing by the chief and hopefully the chief will be investigated.Thank you judge Motznik again and please if anyone else knows any wrong doing by the new chief or people upstairs at belfield contact the DAs office.

Anonymous said...

On of the problems with the PPS school police is that they are no longer assigned to the schools.

That defies logic. You'd expect the park police to be in the parks. And they are. You'd expect the airport police to be at the airport. And they are.

And you'd expect the PPS school police to be at the schools. But they aren't! Instead they are all driving around in patrol cars.

Years ago that wasn't the case. Every large school had a school police officer assigned to it. Those cops were in the hallways on a permanent basis. They were proactive, not reactive. And they were able to make arrests and issue citations on the spot. And the kids knew that.

The PPS police now show up only after the fact. All they do is direct traffic and transport suspects.

Put the school police back in the schools!




Anonymous said...

ANON 4:38 You hit the nail rite on the head about the chief of school police.I am a former school police officer and i worked under the new chief and that was her policy,nothing in writing but that was her policy and if you went against her or the asst chief you were sent to the east end were no one wants to be.They are the two most unprofessional people and they make there own law for writing citations.Now that she will be investigated watch and see the citations will hit an all time high.Fadzen got fired for pulling a ambulance over,she botch a serious crime of attempt of murder that could have been prevented if should would have left her police arrest the two men for robbery and they would have not been at brashear the day of the shooting.

Anonymous said...

While you're at it, Mr.Zappala, take a look at the district's unscrupulous and illegal activities in firing and intimidating its teaching staff. Many of us already have labor lawyers looking into these practices as a just-in-case measure, but you should be aware of what is going on.
This is a district whose administration is rotten from the top echelon of administration to its bottom. And these practices are being done at taxpayer expense. From the superintendent's office on down, a full investigation is in order.

Anonymous said...

ANON 5:29 no they will not put police back in the schools because if a riot happens at 1 school the police cant leave the school they were assigned to, to help and If they do they will leave there school short handed.If the board wants to save thousands of dollars from the budget lay the police off for the month of august when there is no school most of them probably go home after they get there police car and get paid for it what else would they be doing no school ,no kids.

Questioner said...

School actually starts in August, with staff in the building even earlier in the month.

Anonymous said...

Anon 5:54, I'm anon 5:29 I'd like to make two points.

One, if the school police were in the schools permanently there would be less chance of trouble in the first place.

Two, if there was a riot at a school the city police should be called. The city police should be the back up.

Having all the school police riding around in cars all day is silly. Put them in the schools. If something really serious happens, call the city police.

Anonymous said...

We should use the city police as our police force anyway. Drop the school police and do a contract with the city police or allow them to set up a school police unit. The charter and private schools use the pgh police, why cant we?

Anonymous said...

New post please.

This is interesting. Criminal incidents in the Pittsburgh city schools are way down.

From http://triblive.com/news/adminpage/5077101-74/district-judge-attorney#axzz2kkJVzov7

"In school safety reports filed with the state Department of Education, Pittsburgh Public Schools claimed an 85 percent decline in criminal incidents over five years district-wide, falling from 17,686 during the 2008-09 academic year to fewer than 3,000 last year."

That is amazing. In five years there was an 85 percent drop in school criminal incidents.

Sorry, but that is just too amazing, to the point of being unbelievable. Someone at central administration has evidently put the word out. Do not write citations. Do not make arrests. Do not report criminal activity. Put public relations before honesty and before student safety.

I tried to give the PPS police leadership the benefit of the doubt, but later in the article:

"(Judge) Motznik said he and District Judge Richard King tried to set up a meeting with Pittsburgh Public School Police Chief Lisetta Novicki two to three weeks ago. Novicki canceled, citing a busy schedule, he said. The meeting wasn't rescheduled."

So Chief Novicki won't even meet with two judges who are curious about the school crime statistics. Is the Chief really that busy?

What's going on here is more than just troubling. It is outrageous, and every PPS parent needs to know about it.

anon 1 said...

The disparity between schools of the reported incidents was obvious when A+ Schools first put out its Report to the Community. The application of punishment for infractions was not uniform across the district. Motznik should be hearing fewer cases as a result of the changes to the Code of Conduct. What is more troubling to me is that Novicki canceled a meeting. During an interview yesterday Dr. Lane expressed concern that the judge did not come to her with his concerns. That should not fly. It does not say much about an organization if you have to go to the top for answers on every issue.

Anonymous said...

"So Chief Novicki won't even meet with two judges who are curious about the school crime statistics. Is the Chief really that busy?"

Gosh, she shouldn't be, what with that amazing drop in crime.

Will THIS be the thing that pulls away the curtain from this administration? Good for the judge. Here's hoping the DA's office stops sounding uninterested.

Anonymous said...

The smoke screen of - not making federal offenses out of cell phones, tardies etc-is sounding like the adults have NO judgement. Sure, minor offenses dont need prosecuted. BUT violence DOES. ANY assault must result in a serious suspension so that all citizens...students and parents feel that SOMETHING was done. Students see "nothing done" because most assaults result in "calling Mommy" especially at the below hs level. Students and parents need to feel adults will act on situatiobs to the best of their ability, or students will go elsewhere-- it is that simple.

Anonymous said...

I agree with the "smokescreen" of changes about cellphones and uniforms. It would be a pretty simple matter to ask the judges how many cases they saw like that before now.

I'm betting that those things might have been *added* to other reasons for the citation but were rarely, if ever, the main reason for the citation.

Anonymous said...

PELA "leaders" are a joke they nothing about being a part of the day to day happenings in a school they are so lost in academia. A safe school takes more than a hug- true consequences need to be enforced regardless of race. That is the elephant in the room no one wants to talk about. The new policy of fewer suspensions & fewer disorderly conducts is in direct response to too many African American students being suspended. Consistent progressive discipline needs to occur for violations to conduct & disruptions to school regardless of race! Let's keep our schools safe. Let's keep our honor students. This will be a district of last choice if these decision makers in central office have their way. Let "real" principals& "real" assistant principals lead their schools. Save $- get rid of all the supers & all the content supers & all those assistant central office folks making big$ that have nothing to do with running a safe learning environment.

Anonymous said...

All I can say is that Jessie Ramey's comments under the article in the PG show that she has no idea what life is like in high schools or what is required to run them. Under reporting and miscoding violent assaults as fighting , just as one example, is not right. It sends the wrong message to students and does not treat the offenders. Changing what you call incidents does not mean violence is lower. It means you gave it a new name that won't show up on reports. They are right to look into this.

Anonymous said...

I believe that her children are younger and still in elementary school. There are still enough good elementary schools that parents remain hopeful. They truly don't have an idea of what it's like elsewhere.
Many people who have heard tales from teachers and believed them...but not understood them until they've actually seen a few classes in a high school.
You can also ask subs for their stories, but again, people don't believe it until they've actually seen it up close and personal.

Anonymous said...

What's it like in high school class/ Can you give some stories?

Anonymous said...

Mrs. Ramey should not speak then as an authority or leader if she does not really know.

Anonymous said...

Well, nobody knows everything. She's done an excellent job of getting attention on the school district and on funding issues.

It's not like there are so many people out there talking about quality public education in Pittsburgh that we can wait around to choose the very most perfect one!

Anonymous said...

What will you see? You'll see teachers who have to decide do I try to stop kids from sleeping, texting, talking loudly to one another, talking back, making obscene gestures or comments, shoving other kids, walking around the room, etc. and then engage in those battles throughout the class period, or do I teach and talk to the few that are listening and ignore the rest of the behaviors in the room.

If you try to fight the battle to get everyone engaged and involved, you usually end up not teaching at all, because there will be constant interruptions to get kids to stop those behaviors and to deal with the attitude you'll get for enforcing classroom rules.

If you choose to just teach to those who want to listen over the din and chaos, well, you've failed in the teaching part because more than half of your class isn't learning a thing. AND your students' grades and test scores directly affect your livelihood.

Even the best teachers, the most engaging, struggle with this every day. You'll see kids with behavioral issues -- they'll fart or burp through out the class, they'll talk loudly to themselves or to the class at large, they'll interrupt. Sometimes teachers can work out deals and the same kid might stay with one teacher s/he treats the best, for an extra period or when they are particularly disruptive, just so that that student doesn't totally disrupt another classroom.

The language and behaviors that are common in school are things that would constitute a "hostile work environment" in a "real world" job.

There's also always the risk of violence -- not usually aimed at the teacher (though sometimes it is), but if a fight breaks out, teachers have to make those split second decisions of what to do, how to keep other kids safe, and how to keep the kids who are fighting from actually hurting each other, never mind thinking about their own safety, as well.

How's that for a start?

Anonymous said...

9:23 That sounds incredibly sad. It's almost too much to take in. I have a nephew (10 years old) who I think is really bright. One day I asked him "Randy, how are you so smart"?
He shrugged his shoulders and said "I just pay attention", I think when I was in school that was a huge part of it. We just listened to the teacher. We would never imagine ever disrupting a class. I went to Catholic school but I always thought that all classes were like that back then.

Anonymous said...

Everything that 9:23 said is true. Everything.

And I want to emphasize that the disruptions 9:23 described are not rarities. On some level they happen in most classrooms almost every day. The only exception is with the honors classes, such as Advanced Chemistry, etc.

The mainstream teacher has very few options to handle these disruptions. Remember that everyone must follow the scripted curriculum. Creative teaching is discouraged.

And if you have a principal willing to suspend disruptive students, it's like a revolving door. As some go out on suspension, others are coming back from suspension.

The biggest losers here, of course, are the mainstream students who really want to learn.



Anonymous said...

Not buying that all teachers of mainstream kids blame it on the kids, their parents, the community, and the administration. Any good teacher has the respect of the students because they have built strong relationships with their students. Respect is mutual because these teachers know how to develop strong, respectful, loyal, "will-do-anything-for-you" relationships with young people. (You get back what you give out on a day-in-da-out basis, think about it.)

Anonymous said...

1:29, sorry but it's not that simple.

What you said about mutual respect is VERY true, and most teachers understand that and apply it.

But consider a mainstream Algebra 1 class with 25 students. You'll have perhaps 15 students who will respond to a caring teacher. They will pay attention and try to learn.

But you will have perhaps 5 students who don't like algebra, don't want to be in algebra, and resent being in algebra. They will, at best, not pay attention. At worse, they will act out.

And there will be another 5 students in that class with chronic behavioral issues. They will act out regardless.

Kindness and showing respect will help to minimize these outbursts. But no way will it even come close to eliminating them.

1:29, I am a PPS math teacher who has won awards for my teaching. Disbelieve me if you want to, but I'm telling you the truth.

Anonymous said...

Judge Motznik hit the nail on the head. All you need to do is look at Lellock, Westinghouse, Carrick. Cover-ups and lies are a way of life in the PPS Schools. The point everyone is missing is, when they started lying big time about incidents,and took the former chief's car off of him so he could not go to calls. Why??? Because of the need for GATES money. Everyone was ordered not to report anything.

Anonymous said...

What we need is a Grand Jury in Pittsburgh to look into PPS Schools!

Anonymous said...

It's not about choosing the most perfect one to speak. It is about honesty. Jessie Ramey should not speak about situations she doesn't know or have actual facts to make a reasoned statement. She is speaking in support of African Americans so she can show she is in support of African Americans. She is not speaking to address the facts here which are that African a American boys attacked and brutalized another African American boy in school who later retaliated against them with a gun and had warned everyone he would seek his own revenge. Instead of sending all the boys to the alt Ed center for treatment and schooling, the two female principals let the boys who made the initial assault remain in school and let the victim drop out. This is not a result that addresses either issues of race or safety. It is a result that addresses the fear teachers and principals have that they will get a poor employee performance rating if they do not do exactly what they are told. Fear makes people think about themselves, not students, not parents, not communities, not the Pittsburgh Promise, not the life of the city. No one has an 85% drop in reported incidents in a single year. A result like that is something that us a red flag to any researcher that data was skewed or that a completely new instrument, probably one without a lot of validity, was used. Mrs. Ramey is a researcher and would know this. The point here is not to attack Jess Ramey but instead to ask everyone to remember that you said you would be careful and honest. The statements she made were not either one of these things. If she wants to tun for the school board, great, but be clear about that. Don't try to shift the discussion to make it look like something it's not. The actions taken with these boys show that something is not right somewhere in the guidance and processes the school officials followed. It is a red flag. Judge Motsnick is right to ask that this be reviewed. That is a rational and careful response to a very erratic set of circumstances and very unusual set of data results. He if an officer of the court and would not be doing his duty if he did not call for this. And he is asking for the protection of all kids, including the boys at the center of all of this. They should never have been released to their own devices without treatment and follow up. That is so unbelievably incorrect, inhumane, and unsafe that anyone with any kind of experience with kids can't even process that it happened like this. And putting Richard Carrington--a very good guy, but who is basically a staff of one--and Mercy a Behavioral Health in there now as the crisis team us also bizarre, as students don't know them and don't really talk to them. Where are the counselors and social workers and psychologists who work for the district and who know the neighborhoods, students and families? Oh that's right. Laid off under a cost savings plan called equity so that we can keep costly Gates initiatives in place that font service students. So please talk about what you know, not your interpretation of what it means to be supportive of what you think you should say to appear supportive of African Americans, which sounds hollow. Be concerned about what actually happened and shy and not what you think you should say to sound supportive. Your kids will be in these high schools soon and will face these same issues. What will you say then? Reform is not a blueprint. Reform is constantly looking at what you are saying and doing, not settling for just getting what you want for your particular kid today in exchange for throwing other kids under the bus.

Anonymous said...

Yes, the level of pure, unadulterated dishonesty we are seeing can be uncovered everywhere in PPS and it is beyond comprehension! Has the threat of being replaced in their positions enough to make EVERYONE complicit ??? What has happened to PPS ???

Anonymous said...

The University of Pittsburgh School of Education Urban Center invited Dr. Pedro Noguera to speak last Friday at the David Lawrence Hall. The Hall was filled with educators. Dr. Noguera offered solutions; but, he blamed the Broad/Gates influence as a factor responsible for bad decisions and results. He was also strongly critical of Teach For America.

Too bad neither Linda Lane nor Jerri Lippert, nor the Assistant Superintendents, nor other key Central Office decision-makers were in attendance.

Questioner said...

Does Pps still hire dr noguera as a consultant?

Anonymous said...

Yes, he is still working with the schools. He talked about several.

So, it is safe to assume that PPS Central Office is not following his advice since the strategies and solutions that he presented are not in place in PPS.

And, clearly, PPS is proceeding with the Broad/Gates agenda as well as Teach for America.

It makes you wonder if they follow through with consultants' advice if it conflicts with the Broad/Gates agenda.

Does Broad/Gates have a connection with Teach For America?

Questioner said...

It is surprising that they still hire him, it always seemed like consultants did not feel free to contradict district plans.

Anonymous said...

It is an assumption to assert that they "still hire him" since the contract has been in place for more than a year. What do you know about what he tells them or they tell him? We are not there? We only know that he was HONEST at this forum.

That would indicate that he is an honest man. He speaks his mind, even to large audiences with many PPS and Pittsburgh educators - Early Childhood thru University Professors!

With the high-profile, positive, and nationally-respected reputation that Pedro Noguera has it would not be a good idea to let him go before his contract expires. It will be very interesting to see how this plays out. He certainly re-inforced PPS teachers who have expressed duress under a scripted, managed curriculum, outrage at being replaced by non-certified TFAs with only a two-year commitment, and hostility regarding the repercussions of Broad/Gates intrusions.

Of course the PG did not cover this event. So, Pittsburgh citizens, in general, were not aware of what transpired, unfortunately.

Questioner said...

No way to know what he tells them in private but public statements contra to the party line are unusual and significant.

Anonymous said...

Pedro is a man of great consciousness and speaks the truth as he sees it, always. He has stated these things openly to dental admin and the superintendent and the board and the foundations since he has been here.

Anonymous said...

Pedro actually said all of things openly at the superintendents address to the public at CAPA, and all the leaders in the city were there. This was the one Lynn Hayes Freeland moderated and streamed to others. Pretty interesting for him to say that there. He had nothing to loser.

Anonymous said...

Your statement. 8:55, is confusing. If Pedro Noguera spoke his mind before PPS Superintendent, Admin, and foundations, he would have something to lose (his PPS contract) yet he spoke honestly and consistently in each and every forum.

Conclusion, Dr. Noguera is an honest man, a professional fears NOT the consequences of being truthful and honest in PPS. Bravo!

Anonymous said...

Noguerra works only at Pittsburgh Perry. One must wonder why the contract at Westinghouse was not renewed this year. Would be interesting to hear Crenshaw's story as to what really happened. Those interested might pull up the Board meeting when Holly blasted Noguerra. Talking the talk does not always translate to walking the walk.

Questioner said...

Why did she blast him?

Anonymous said...

I imagine that what's changed is not Noguera or his views nor the administration.

What's changed is that he's seen that what the administration says (and told him when they signed him on as a consultant) is almost completely at odds with the actual effects of their actions in the schools.

If he's been in the schools, he sees the effects of their actions and realizes that what they say and what they do, do NOT match up. He's also realized that a lot of the administration only likes and feels for the students in the abstract, but not for the real students we have.

Anonymous said...

Holly was disturbed by the lack of accountability on behalf of Noguerra. She asked for evidence that the monies spent were justified. The goals for the new contract were abstract and no one seemed to be able to answer her question about evidence of effectiveness. Lane was also intentionally vague about why Westinghouse administration decided not to include Noguerra in their supports this year. I have yet to see hard evidence that he has made measurable gains anywhere. The rhetoric is what everyone wants to hear but I have to side with Holly and ask for evidence.

Questioner said...

To be clear, she asked for accountability from all the consultants not just noguera. What do we have to show for all this consulting?

Anonymous said...

At that legislative meeting she specifically asked for Noguerras proof. I would like to see what work they did in September for $23,000. It must have been pretty intense for that kind of money. I hope Holly asks to see it and shares with The Board at large.

Anonymous said...

The contract overall was much, much larger than $23,000. Dr. Holley did not "blast" Noguera.

Dr. Holley asked for a show of results. However, there is not follow through on what Dr. Noguera (or others) recommend or provide so how can the consultant be held accountable?

PPS hires consultants because they do not how to get results (on anything); but, PPS never takes advice (on anything). But, then again they have consultants to blame which certainly seems to be the reason they hire outside the district. Its a vicious circle of irresponsible behavior. Round and round we go

Anonymous said...

That Linda Lane has the utter audacity to say at a Brashear parent meeting that she is a "40 year educator" is an insult to all educators, everywhere.
Lane would not last a week in any mainstream classroom in her district, let alone suburbia, or anywhere else. Like those who surround her, the "educator" status has entailed working in offices, discussing research, having meetings or better yet, flying off to other cities to have meetings.
THIS comprises a 40 year career in education?

Anonymous said...

Does Brashear have 2 principals? Are they pellas?

anonymous said...

Angel Washington, Kimberley Safran are both PELA's.

Anonymous said...

http://triblive.com/news/adminpage/5110614-74/shooting-pittsburgh-security#axzz2kQkOLrFX

Why would PPS pay an outside firm $4,000 to investigate the Brashear shooting incident when we have a DA and the Pittsburgh Police to do that? Is this another attempt at a cover-up of some sort? Are we covering our tracks for some reason?

If I'm the shooter's attorney, I'd be demanding every piece of evidence that Brashear and PPS's security did really follow procedure in this case as far as filing charges, suspensions, etc. and in a timely manner. Did PPS drop the ball in some way?

Anonymous said...

http://www.post-gazette.com/local/2013/11/21/DA-satisfied-with-discipline-in-Pittsburgh-schools-highlighted-by-Brashear-shooting/stories/201311210329

PPS is covering their tracks.

Anonymous said...

Pittsburgh is a small town with connections everywhere. PPS slips one by again! Unbelievable!

Anonymous said...

http://www.wtae.com/news/local/allegheny/pittsburgh-public-schools-to-vote-on-hiring-outside-firm-in-wake-of-shooting/-/10927008/23094272/-/j50esw/-/index.html

Note that Brentley says the board wasn't asked, they were told. Isn't that how it always is?

Also, Lane said the solicitor recomended the CSI group. I'm guessing then that CSI will certainly have a very favorable report and PPS will release it to the media.

Anonymous said...

If we could ever get the first andrews report that Rosevelt had em change because it out line the security needs for PPS perfectly we would see many of these security issues and concern could have been eliminated. But Lane refuses to produce it. Why?

Anonymous said...

What is the Andrews study and how do I get a copy of it?