Teacher Shortage

Growing Lack of Confidence

Posted by jcpswatch on August 25, 2016
Posted in: Teacher Shortage, Vision: 2020. Leave a Comment

erinI apologize that this is going to have to be more blunt than I would like. But when you are forced to consolidate 3 years of frustration, abysmal customer service and unfulfilled promises into 3 minutes, all you can do is be blunt.

As a parent of a JCPS student and a tax payer, I am here to express my growing lack of confidence in our current superintendent’s leadership.

You spoke at the State PTA conference about the importance of parents being involved, your actions around creating a Community advisory Team made up of half JCPS Administrators and the other half business leaders excluding the parent voice show us that you did not mean what you said.

You’ve claimed that JCPS values every employee, but the way that negotiations have been handled with teachers and staff tells another story.

You said that teacher voice was valued, but the teacher and bus driver voices were initially excluded from the code of conduct meetings.

You claim our district is transparent, yet there were gross misrepresentations in reporting bus incidents and the use of restraint with students.

Your words mean nothing when your actions are the opposite.

These actions do not earn our trust as parents. And many of us have no choice but to entrust our children to you. Because unless you can afford private school or to home school, participation in JCPS is state mandated.  Do you have any idea how hard it is to be required to send your child to a place every day in which you do not have complete confidence? I do and I wish that on no one.

We have lost multiple cabinet and upper administration positions. We have lost half of our area superintendents in just the last 15 months.  We have a bus driver shortage. We cannot find enough teachers to come to work and stay in our district.

At the end of last school year my son’s school lost half their English department and the entire math department. So even though you are paying them on average $8,000 more than comparable districts, this track record shows that qualified educators and staff still don’t want to work for this district. Our district is hemorrhaging talent from the bottom to the top and our children are the ones paying the ultimate price.  This cannot continue.

We need a superintendent that people flock to instead of flee from.  We need someone who listens to parents and teachers, not just business owners and internal administrators.  We need someone who can lead with honesty and authenticity; transparency but still be humble enough to admit and take ownership of mistakes that are made and ensure those mistakes don’t happen again.  I and many other parents have not gotten that from our current superintendent over the last 3 years.

I have to ask you “How long must we continue to make a mistake just because we’ve spent a lot of time and money making it?”

Erin Korbylo
Co-Founder, Dear JCPS
JCPS Parent, Taxpayer, Community Member

Do The Right Thing

Posted by jcpswatch on August 16, 2016
Posted in: Budget, Teacher Shortage, Vision: 2020. Leave a Comment
Dear JCPS,

As Jefferson County Public School Board of Education members, I hope that you are aware of the extremely negative consequences of Dr. Hargens’ latest ploy to gain finances at the detriment of the teachers.  For years, a teacher’s retirement pay included compensation for unused sick leave.  For many retiring teachers, this is a substantial contribution to the pay schedule that the teachers will depend on for the rest of their lives. Central Office offered this perk to teachers to encourage them to attend school every day, without using the ten sick days allotted each year.  A substitute teacher is necessary on many occasions, but most would agree that the level of instruction with a substitute teacher cannot compare to that of the classroom teacher.  Also, Central Office must pay the salary of the substitute in addition to the salary of the regular teacher.  So in terms of both quality instruction and salary outlay, Central Office benefits when the regular classroom teacher is present.  This is a win/win situation.  Instruction remains on its highest level, and those teachers who came to school every day even through illness and personal turmoil are rewarded for their loyalty.

If you were at retirement age, would you continue if you thought your retirement pay would be drastically diminished?  Very few could afford it.  This is your LIFETIME salary.  I know many teachers who are beyond retirement age, but they love their jobs and prefer to keep educating children.  However, I personally know two who regretfully retired or will in the next few months because they do not trust that their sick leave salary will be available in this contract.  Why should they trust???  They entered a school year with no contract!! They agreed to work without knowledge of their payment.  How many workers in the work force would agree to this?  The JCPS School Board and the Central Office were aware of the first day of school.  Why weren’t the proper meetings held to insure that the contract was settled?  And because of that lack of trust, JCPS is going to lose the wisdom, the experience, the carefully- built program leadership of loyal employees who would prefer to work but don’t trust the leadership to continue to do the right thing for the students and the teachers of Jefferson County Public Schools.

You must do the right thing and stop any consideration of the termination of the sick leave reimbursement.  Dr. Hargens says in the Courier Journal : ” The whole reason for a district, the whole reason for being, is learning.”

I wonder. . . . . . . .

This letter was submitted via our Open Letter Form. Their information, while known to Dear JCPS, is kept anonymous for their protection. Board members may request to be put in contact with these authors at any time.

What Message Are You Sending?

Posted by jcpswatch on August 8, 2016
Posted in: Teacher Shortage, Vision: 2020. Leave a Comment

August 8, 2016

Dear JCPS,

Please be cognizant of the message you are sending to both employees of JCPS and to the community at large regarding the value of teachers within this district.

Today I spent my entire day presenting professional development to my colleagues. This consisted of a presentation, handouts, and instructional activities, all of which I volunteered to develop on my own unpaid time—time spent working instead of enjoying the waning days of my summer with my family. This professional development will hopefully help to further improve already great teaching practices happening in our building. But I am not a Goal Clarity Coach, or a Resource Teacher—I am a classroom teacher who chooses to not only accept opportunities to lead my fellow educators, but who chooses to seek out and make those opportunities on my own time and my own dime.

In the midst of this valuable work today that was preparing us for a strong start to another great year, we received a disturbing email from our teacher’s union regarding ongoing contract negotiations, which we had thought were pretty much resolved. Talk about deflating morale.

In light of this email, I felt it necessary to remind you that as teachers, we have chosen to dedicate our lives to giving other people’s children a future filled with opportunities to live up to their potential.

I cannot emphasize enough that we do not teach for the paycheck. Teaching in urban high-poverty schools comes with a unique set of challenges, especially in our district where students are bused all around the city and come to us from a variety of previous education and home experiences. This is a challenge that those of us working in JCPS have accepted, but our commitment should in no way be taken lightly. Please understand: We choose to teach because it is a calling to do something to benefit the future of our community, our country, and our world.

In the past six months, your shareholders—teachers, support staff, students, parents, preservice teachers, taxpayers, etc.—have repeatedly seen you trying to take things away from certified and classified educators. First with the misleading audit and the surprise report, to the last-minute freeze on step raises, and now with the list of demands we received today. In a district such as ours, with students who have very real, extreme, and diverse needs, is it not a priority to recruit the best and the brightest coming from teacher education programs? What is the message you are sending to them about what it is like to work in JCPS?

Tomorrow we will all sit in our schools and listen to Dr. Hargens’s YouTube video. If it is anything like last year, I predict it will be full of platitudes about how wonderful JCPS is and how excited we are to be starting another great year. She’ll probably point out an abundance of examples that prove we are #JCPSReady. Again, another fact I should not have to remind you of, but none of the schools would be #JCPSReady to start school on Wednesday without the work of teachers across the district.

In every decision you make in the future as JCPS school board members, it is absolutely crucial that you consider the message you are sending to current and future employees as well as to the families of our students and to the students themselves regarding the value of the educators who go above and beyond every day to educate this community’s children. If you don’t appreciate us, how can we expect them to do so?

Sincerely,

A teacher who doesn’t stop when the bell rings

Access to Quality Education Should be Equitable

Posted by jcpswatch on July 29, 2016
Posted in: District Boundaries, Teacher Shortage, Vision: 2020. 1 comment

Good morning Academy @ Shawnee Leaders and Supporters,

I wanted to follow up regarding previous conversations I’ve had with each of you in different settings and during different times, over the past few years.
First let me start by saying the purpose of this email is not to place blame or criticize or throw anyone under the bus. We are a very large district and it’s really hard to get everyone on the same page at the same time, much less come up with a plan of action when there are so many moving parts and interested parties to consider.
I tried to start by sharing some of this history, as well as concerns and suggestions at Tuesday night’s board meeting, but 3 minutes is not nearly enough time to cover everything, tie it back together to make a case, much less respond to concerns, brainstorm for better ideas, etc. when the dialogue is only one way. But these concerns continue to remain urgent and to date they have not generated the attention I had hoped for or expected. My hope is that by sending this global follow up email we can try to pick up on some of the more urgent items since school starts in less than two weeks. These are just ideas, and other folks may already have the ball on this, or there may be factors I am not aware of, but I can’t allow another year to go by without at least attempting to see what can be done.
I realize I may be butting in where I don’t belong, and am probably stepping on people’s toes, and possibly many of these ideas are already in the works. But because some of these issues have gained momentum and agreement with previous leaders, including Dr. Barber and Amy Dennes, and every time we gain new leadership, we seem to start from scratch, I didn’t want to take any chances. I feel this loss of continuity and repeated delay has done a huge disservice to our students and students in the West End.
Below is a series of problems and proposed solutions that I would like your feedback on before school starts on Aug. 10. And if possible, hopefully some of the proposed solutions, or a variation thereof, can be implemented in time to affect this year’s student population.

PROBLEM:
I met with John Collopy last spring and he explained to me that one of the reasons Shawnee has such a high cost per student, (in addition to the fact that we are charged for Early Childhood’s cost center and shared costs with ESL, but their populations are not factored into the divisor), is also that there are certain fixed costs that remain the same whether you have 500 or 2000 students in a building. Several leaders I have spoken with have agreed that growing the school to around 700 students would allow much more economies of scale.

PROBLEM:
Shawnee has met all of its AMOs for the past 3 years, but it cannot get out of priority status because it cannot move out of the bottom 5%. Growing the magnets and retaining or attracting students from the West End and our resides who might apply to schools like Manual or Male, or even be assigned to a school across town but prefer to stay in their community, is another way to raise the scores. Failing schools have nothing to do with the teachers, or the building. Test scores have everything to do with the student population mix and the income and wealth of the families in attendance. Even with ESSA changing soon, we owe it to this school and this community to do right by them now. This school year.

 
PROBLEM:
I volunteered during the first day of school last year and there were 100 students from the West End there who either were at the wrong school but thought that Shawnee was their resides school, or had not completed any registration paperwork and were not in our system. We had to triage them in the auditorium, which was an all-day affair. If they were in the right school, we couldn’t build a schedule for them until we got them entered into the computer system. If it turned out they were in the wrong school we sent them home, even though they WANTED to be there, and may have qualified for a transfer! Once the first day of school starts, students are no longer allowed to apply for a transfer.

IMG_0349

SUGGESTION:
Could we ask for the mobile registration bus to be at Shawnee during our high school orientation on Aug. 3? And again on the first day of school? This would speed up the registration process and allow for a quick decision as to whether a student qualified to apply to our magnet.

SUGGESTION:
Could we get the word out to the Shawnee community that they can apply for a transfer the day of registration if it is not their resides school. Perhaps yard signs and announcements in the paper. I will help any way I can.

SUGGESTION:
Can we make an exception for this community that experiences the greatest amount of burden caused by busing (reference the high school boundary map presented Tuesday night)? I realize that could lead to having to hire or relocate additional teachers at the last  minute, but that sounds like an adult problem, not what’s in the best interest of the students.

SUGGESTION:
Can we reach out to students who did not get their first and second choice, who feel that they have no alternatives but to attend their resides school and let them know about the opportunities that exist at Shawnee?

Please provide Ms. Benboe and her staff the support they need to find some way forward on this topic of recruiting and growing the school to 1) reach the economies of scale needed to run efficiently, 2) serve the students and families who live in the west end and wish to attend Shawnee and 3) recruit more students from the east end to obtain better integration using “more carrot and less stick.”

The Academy @ Shawnee is a shining star in the West End and has the potential to transform that community. Let’s make sure it gets the oxygen it needs to breathe and flourish. Please?Just as you are only as strong as your weakest link, a school district is only as strong as its weakest schools. I look forward to your replies, additional ideas, suggestions, concerns, etc. We have important work to do, and I believe some of the most important work of all starts here.

Thank you for your time, I’ll be following up with an update at the August 9th board meeting.

Sincerely,
Gay Adelmann
260-633-0463

Banning Cell Phones Will Result in Increased Test Scores and Decreased Disciplinary Issues

Posted by jcpswatch on June 15, 2016
Posted in: Behavior/Discipline, Teacher Shortage, Vision: 2020. Leave a Comment

Dear JCPS,

It is evident that our school system, like every school system, has its flaws. Some of these issues, such as employee’s salaries and the code of conduct, have rightfully been brought to the public’s attention over the past 6 months. There are no “easy fixes” for issues like these, as we have all witnessed via board meetings that deservingly last for hours. That said, as a teacher with JCPS, there is one “easy fix” that will solve a multitude of problems.

Ban cell phones. It’s simple. As a teacher at a school that encourages the use of cell phones for research in the classroom, it is evident that they cause more harm than good. It is flat-out impossible for one teacher to monitor 25+ students’ actions on a cell phone. I understand that one cannot simply make a “blanket statement” like the one above, but that arguments must surely be justified with solid evidence.

I have experienced the pros and cons of a BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) school first-hand, but my argument is not simply for our local community. Rather, it is an international issue. On June 15, 2015, The Boston Globe’s Linda Matchan wrote “a study released in May by the Centre for Economic Performance at the London School of Economics looked at 91 schools in four cities in England, where more than 90 percent of teenagers own a mobile phone. The study found that test scores were 6.41 percent higher at schools where cellphone use is prohibited.” In a district that unfortunately places so much emphasis on standardized testing, this should be a no-brainer. Get rid of the cell phones and see an increase in test scores. Furthermore, “the researchers concluded that mobile phones ‘can have a negative impact on productivity through distraction,’ particularly among low-achieving students, who benefitted most from the ban, with achievement gains of 14.23 percent.” If we, as JCPS, are truly trying to raise students’ test scores who are novice and apprentice to the proficient and distinguished level, then we are making it more difficult on ourselves. Ban cell phones and see a decrease in the novice and apprentice range and an increase in the proficient and distinguished categories. The numbers are there, and numbers don’t lie.

Personally, I must admit that there are pros to students having cell phones in the classroom. These include instant access to research, an easier ability for parent/student contact, the ability for students to listen to music as they work, and the ever-so-misguiding label of being a “technology friendly” school.

That said, the cons far outweigh the pros. As stated above, the main issue is monitoring. I may be able to ensure a student is researching a topic by using proximity control as I pass by their desk, but after I pass, I cannot control if that student then logs onto SnapChat, Instagram, Facebook, or any other social media platform.

My second concern is maintaining students’ attention while teaching. I adopted a new policy in my classroom this past year that was somewhat successful. Upon entering the classroom, students put their phones in a box on my desk. Yes, I put my phone in as well. Then, when it came time for students to work on their assignment, I would allow them to retrieve their phones for research and music. However, the majority of students would continuously use them for the wrong purpose. Sure, I could write a referral, but we’re supposed to be cutting down on those, right? We’re fighting a losing battle, and it’s frustrating.

My third issue revolves around cell phones being used to plan fights. This has been an increasingly dangerous problem that has continued to escalate in JCPS schools over the past few years. Students will trash talk one another via texting or social media, then plan to fight during lunch, in a stairwell, or in another teacher’s class. Then, when they do fight, it is more difficult for administration or security to get to the altercation because, you guessed it, dozens of other students are recording the fight on their phone.

And whatever you do, do not try to take a student’s phone. That is simply dangerous. Here are a few examples if you need further evidence:

Nationally:
http://www.northjersey.com/towns/paterson/paterson-freshman-charged-with-assault-after-classroom-attack-on-teacher-1.1239201

http://www.wcvb.com/news/weymouth-hs-teacher-allegedly-attacked-for-taking-students-cellphone/32371212

Locally:
http://www.wlky.com/news/Eastern-HS-student-arrested-accused-of-attacking-staff/38282504

http://www.wdrb.com/story/30667651/prp-hs-student-accused-of-assaulting-teacher-over-
cell-phone

My last concern involves not all students being able to afford cell phones. If you have an activity that requires a cell phone and a student cannot afford it, the student almost feels as though they are being called out. I’ve seen the look in their eyes. It’s the “please don’t call me out for not having a phone” look. It’s a stigma that is out of their control, and that is not their fault.

We are the people on the front lines, the people who face these obstacles every day, and the people raising our future. The teaching world is already full of infinite obstacles. I have to teach a student who slept on broken glass last night. I have to teach Algebra 2 to a student who is on a second grade reading level. I have to teach a student who lost their brother to gang violence over the weekend. Many of these obstacles are unfortunately out of our control.

That said, our teaching world is also full of obstacles that we can control. Obstacles such as proposals for pay freezes and a relaxed code of conduct. Obstacles like JCPS putting off the vote on the code of conduct until the summer, when teachers are more likely to be vacationing with their families than protesting for their livelihood. Obstacles like JCPS’ own Chief Business Officer Tom Hudson (who makes $176,000 a year) publicly stating “what I don’t understand is why the community hasn’t been outraged that we’ve paid these people (teachers) this much money over the years.” Obstacles like cell phones.

I could go on and on, but I won’t. What I will do is encourage other JCPS teachers, administrators, and parents to share their stories about the pros and cons of cell phones in school. That said, the evidence is clear. If JCPS wants increased test scores and decreased disciplinary issues, it’s time to ban cell phones.

Racism: The Elephant in the Room

Posted by jcpswatch on May 26, 2016
Posted in: Admin, Behavior/Discipline, Teacher Shortage, Vision: 2020. 1 comment

This letter was submitted via our open letter form. It does not necessarily reflect the views of Dear JCPS.

Dear JCPS,

JCPS is reflective of the racism instituted by our society. Employees and students alike are continually discriminated against on every scale. Black students make up over 50% of all discipline issues but make up way less than 50% of the population. Teachers routinely punish black students for offenses that white students get away with far more often. I have taught for over 15 years and I’m sick of it. I see it daily and at every school I’ve been it’s the same. Cultural competency is not a priority at JCPS where most often teachers are white. This is the same problem Judge Olu faces because our kids are being judged and punished by those who are not their peers and don’t understand.

Employees are also routinely disrespected. Every Black male hired is seen as muscle instead of a competing intellectual. Black men with good reputations and solid teaching and/or academic coaching experience are often overlooked for promotions. The district has less than 2% African American administrators. Blacks usually have to wait twice as long as white applicants to be moved into a promoted position.

I’m tired of not being considered for promotion but someone who has half of my experience is continually being promoted. I was told directly by my supervisor that I did not get promoted to an assistant principal position because the other administrators felt there were too many black administrators at my school. I’ve heard this before. No one ever complains about too many white administrators but they get uncomfortable with black admin.

I have stellar records for raising test scores for students and teachers who serve them. I’ve been in education for over 15 years and like so many other Blacks in the district I get by passed by less qualified individuals who are in tune with the”good Ole boy” network.

STOP THE RACISM JCPS. YOU’RE FAILING THE ENTIRE AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY.

Signed,
Angry Black Man

NOTE: While the author’s identity is protected here, they are not anonymous to Dear JCPS. Any board member wishing to address the concerns shared here can contact our administrators to make a connection.

Chomping at the Bit

Posted by jcpswatch on May 24, 2016
Posted in: Behavior/Discipline, Budget, Teacher Shortage, Vision: 2020. Leave a Comment

Dear JCPS,

I was 17 when I started teaching summer school. It was minimum wage so my paycheck was tiny. We were expected to wear dresses (with stockings) every day and we were called by our last names. Students respected me and I walked taller just knowing that I was changing lives.

I loved it. Loved the kids, loved the lessons, loved planning the lessons, loved learning how to keep kids on task and how to help them be their best selves. . . I had found my home.

I was hooked.

Degrees followed, along with experience navigating the horrors of No Child Left Behind (I paid for so many tests), a master’s, a Rank I, more training and a few more endorsements onto my awesome teaching certificate (had it framed in my classroom I was so proud). I am good and I love what I do.

After 11 years, I was ready to move to a district that would afford me opportunities for advancement in my specific area. As mentioned above, I am qualified above and beyond the average. I’m also a fireball teacher.

As I looked around the state, I considered a few different districts. JCPS offered me a competitive salary in an area with relatively low housing costs while providing the opportunities for advancement that I wanted. I made the move and began teaching in my new home.

I’ve been bit, hit, kicked, slapped, called a motherf#$king b!$ch (and lots more things out my name), tripped, been used for target practice (white boards leave bruises, FYI), spat upon, had death threats (credible ones), and generally been abused to the point that I’m wondering if the bullying policy might apply to teachers being bullied. I’ve had shots for hepatitis B and tetanus and I’ve had to pee in a cup to ensure that my kidneys weren’t bleeding after I was punched so hard that I went down. I’ve compared bruises with other teachers that have been obtained from the same student. I’ve been screamed at by parents and I’ve had administrators blame me for not “holding him” when I was being beat up.

I’ve been called to the carpet for being at fault for being bitten (not the most recent bite for those who know me) and I’ve pretty much decided that I need to be more vigilant when it comes to kids’ ability to inflict pain upon me.

My friends in private school say we get “hazard pay” and that they’d never go over to the “dark side” and teach in the public school system. I can tell you this, I’m really good at what I do and I can work anywhere in the world. Without that hazard pay, I’d be hard pressed to stay here. I mean, the allergies alone. . .

Furthermore, in response to the teacher candidate who has expressed her desire to never work for JCPS, we’re bad, but if you can handle it, if you can stick with it for a bit (or a bite), you can work yourself into a 100K job in the board office and tell everyone to duck faster.

I’m checking the jobs board now.

Sincerely,
Ophelia Payne

NOTE: While the author’s identity is protected here, they are not anonymous to Dear JCPS. Any board member wishing to address the concerns shared here can contact our administrators to make a connection.

A Possible Solution

Posted by jcpswatch on May 24, 2016
Posted in: Behavior/Discipline, Budget, Teacher Shortage. Leave a Comment

This letter was submitted via our open letter form. It does not necessarily reflect the views of Dear JCPS.

Dear JCPS,

Listening to the top administrators at JCPS has made one thing perfectly clear to me…they are completely out of touch with what is actually going on in Jefferson County Public Schools.

Anyone who spends time in our schools would know that we need improved methods in dealing with student behavior. The answer to this problem is not less consequences. Anyone who spends time in the schools would know that the staff who work with students on a daily basis deserves a raise, not a salary freeze.

Then I saw the news about JCPS cutting central office jobs and it hit me…close down all of the offices at Van Hoose and Gheens. Any employees or administrators who are still needed could set up an office at a school. There was a time, before current technology, when administrators needed to physically be in the same building, but that time has passed. I’m sure most communication is now handled through email, Google docs or Skype. All of that can be done from offices at the schools. This would allow administrators to make decisions that are best for the students, teachers and schools by allowing them to see first-hand what is actually going on in the schools.

I have a small room connected to my classroom. I would be more than happy for Tom Hudson, Chief Business Officer, to set up his office there. This way he can show me what he does all day to justify his $176,000 salary and I can show him why I deserve to not have my salary frozen. He would also get to experience challenging student behavior first-hand, and be more informed when making decisions about the code of conduct for JCPS students.

I hope JCPS listens to my suggestions. Not only will it help decision-makers be more in touch with what is happening at our schools, it could also save JCPS and taxpayers a lot of money.

Sincerely,
A teacher that unfortunately must remain anonymous

NOTE: While the author’s identity is protected here, they are not anonymous to Dear JCPS. Any board member wishing to address the concerns shared here can contact our administrators to make a connection.

A Letter to Dr. Hargens

Posted by jcpswatch on May 24, 2016
Posted in: Behavior/Discipline, Budget, Teacher Shortage, Vision: 2020. 1 comment

This letter was submitted via our open letter form. It does not necessarily reflect the views of Dear JCPS.

Dr. Hargens,

I attended Jefferson County Public Schools for 12 of my 13 years of education and have been working for the school system from the time that I was 18 until now. All together, I have spent 16 years in JCPS and so I feel highly qualified to say that I have watched the system fall apart more and more every day under your leadership.

I will be graduating from the University of Louisville in December of this year with a Bachelors degree in Secondary Education with a concentration in English. I am writing not only to speak for myself but to be the voice of many other wonderful teacher candidates who I have had the opportunity to share classes with. You have successfully made almost all of us wish to teach outside of Jefferson County. People are moving out of the county to teach elsewhere (I already have). We are refusing to put our children in your school system. We are afraid to teach under your leadership. We know that our children will not get the educational experience in JCPS that they could receive elsewhere.

Though, I must say, I am not so sure that you even care about the quantity or quality of your teachers considering the blatant disrespect and disregard that you have for them and their jobs. Teachers go to work every day and bring their work home with them every night because they care about their students. They get disrespected and so much of their work goes unnoticed every day because you have allowed such a climate to exist. No other profession would be if it weren’t for teachers—not even yours.

You have continuously implemented rules and ridiculous jobs to cater to the misbehaving children who ruin the educational experience for well-behaved children. Free education was never meant to be a right, but a privilege. Because you have made these children feel that it is their God-given right to be in the schools, they no longer see the value or how blessed they are to receive a free education in our country. They simply do not care and you have played a pivotal role in devaluing education in their eyes. So many of these children are leaving high school feeling as if the world owes them something and they do not have to work hard or treat anyone with respect to get it.

Students who behave and wish to be in the classroom are the ones who are suffering. Their parents are suffering. TEACHERS ARE SUFFERING. Students are being bullied and the blood is on your hands. You have made it OK for students to disrespect their teachers, their principals, their peers. These students are not being disciplined, they are being babied and sent out into the real world feeling as if they will receive that same type of treatment. They are being sent out into the real world believing that they can be disrespectful, violent and unruly and will get a slap on the wrist and get away with it. You are doing every last student a disservice.

I refuse to put my child(ren) in your school system because they should not have to deal with the unsafe environment that JCPS has become. They should not have to deal with disrespectful and violent students coming in and out of her classroom disrupting and/or bullying, being taken out for a short period of time and sent right back in to do it all over again.

Are you aware that when these students are threatened to be sent to the principals office, they either: A. Want to go to get out of class, and/or B. Respond with something along the lines of, “Go ahead b&$@h, they aren’t going to do anything to me”. This is the harsh reality. If you don’t believe me, go be a teacher for a little while. These students are fully aware that there are little to no repercussions for their actions and, believe me, they take full advantage of that.

I refuse to teach for your school system because, like Dewey Hensley said with precision in his letter, the focus is no longer on the students. The focus is on you and your image. The focus is on central office. I will not represent a school system that caters to the most disrespectful children in it. I refuse to be in a situation where a student can curse me, threaten my life and endanger the physical and mental well being of everyone around them—and absolutely nothing truly gets done about it. You are preventing people from doing their jobs, Dr. Hargens, and we are all sick of it.

We are not blind to the fact that you are trying to phase out suspension, ISAP, alternative placement, etc. with these nonsense jobs that you have created to cater to these unruly students. I do not see you as progressive, I see you as detrimental. You are running teachers and parents away from your school system and damaging the experiences of those who are stuck.

Students who break the rules are not going to stop breaking the rules because someone pulls them out of class and tells them to stop it. And I guarantee you this, watering down the rules is far from the solution. It absolutely disgusts me and so many others that you feel as if this is the answer. Numbers and statistics are all that matter to you. Students are not numbers and statistics, they are people.

How would you feel if you were in a 6 and a half-hour long board meeting and people kept getting out of their seats, throwing things, physically harming others, threatening to kill the speaker or threatening to kill YOU, cursing people out, etc. And someone comes in to pull them out for a while then sends them right back in. Period after period, day after day. Tell me, Dr. Hargens, is that the environment that you want to be in? Is that the environment that children should have to be in during the most malleable time of their lives? Is this an environment that nurtures growth and learning?

NO. The answer is NO. Because this type of behavior is not condoned in the real world. And this is what you have let the classroom come to. These are the behaviors that children now believe can be carried into adulthood—where they get a rude awakening.

You seem very worried about your image. You should be. Teachers, parents and students are unhappy with you. Your emails and speeches with articulate language which attempt to justify your wrongful actions and policies do not fool me or anyone else who sees that you are the root of the issues. You are a tyrant.

I feel confident in speaking for myself and so many of my classmates who are all so eager and excited to teach the future generations of America when I say that we care for all students. Those who behave and those who misbehave. The problem, however, is the lack of discipline for those who misbehave as it hinders our abilities to teach, our students abilities to learn and our peace of mind when it comes to our own safety as well as the safety of our students. You are facing shortages and missing out on fresh, enthusiastic incoming teachers who are graduating from college because you have created this environment and culture that caters to those with ill intentions.

I do not think I even need to discuss this “salary freeze” thing. I have faith that the union will destroy you, as they should. Teachers are already underpaid and underappreciated as it is. Here’s an idea! Let’s do something about YOUR $300,000+/year salary.

It is time for everyone to stand together against the real problems in JCPS that stem with you.

Sincerely,
A parent/A senior in the teacher preparation program at the University of Louisville/A JCPS employee/A former JCPS student/A person with a right mind who cares about children.

NOTE: While the author’s identity is protected here, they are not anonymous to Dear JCPS. Any board member wishing to address the concerns shared here can contact our administrators to make a connection.

Bloat is epidemic

Posted by jcpswatch on May 24, 2016
Posted in: Budget, Teacher Shortage, Vision: 2020. Leave a Comment

Dear JCPS,

I am writing this letter on the heals of the news the Code of Conduct is being reviewed for lessened discipline and the false narrative that JCPS teachers are overpaid.

Oh where or where shall I begin? First of all the “comparable” districts how comparable are they really? Lets look at Cobb County, where only 63% of the teachers have “Advanced Degrees”. In JCPS 84% of teachers hold Master’s Degrees or higher. We have a 20% higher rate of free and reduced lunch students, Higher number of ECE students, more bus routes, more bus drivers and plenty of top heavy bloat! This was not exactly apples to apples.

JCPS for years has also been the primary source of survival for area businesses with some questionable practices.

Shively Sporting Goods wins bids by list their prices as XX% under “catalog price” or “MSRP” when an individual can walk into Dick’s Sporting Goods and buy an item cheaper than its on the bid list from Shively something smells rotten. If a coach can find the same item cheaper they cannot buy it anywhere else.

Yatz Produce another monopoly created by JCPS. JCPS is probably their ONLY customer., Its a JCPS dependent company and if JCPS made those purchases in accordance with prevailing law, Yatz would be out of business.

Cardinal Office Supply another company on “bid list” when anyone can find online the same products drastically cheaper. Explain how these bids/non-bids/pseudo bids save money? Please I am listening?

I would also like to see how comparable transportation spending was in these other districts. Our transportation budget is ridiculous and the assignment plans used for the last 30 years that made it so have not increased student performance ONE BIT!

In this current situation I may have to back JCTA, though in many instances they are a hindrance to the improved quality of education in JCPS, in this incident they are not.

A great way to save money and put more dollars towards teachers and student learning would be to go back to community schools. Study after study shows students perform better academically in their local communities. Community pride, team spirit all play a role. Imagine the transportation savings! In areas were the schools struggle, south and west areas of the county, give GOOD Teachers willing to take on the tougher job incentives to motivate and educate the students the current assignment seeks to place the biggest burdens on. Burdens that come from school being 20 miles from home and busing not getting them home til 4 or 5 in the afternoon. Dispersing students in a fan shaped spray across the county has improved NOTHING, teach them were they live!

Sincerely,
Frustrated Teacher

NOTE: While the author’s identity is protected here, they are not anonymous to Dear JCPS. Any board member wishing to address the concerns shared here can contact our administrators to make a connection.