In the article, Huff says Common Core Standards are a step in the right direction and he explains his political beliefs:
I typically stay out of politics. As a servant to all students and families regardless of political affiliations, it’s not healthy for a superintendent to engage in those debates. In my view, there is no place for politics in schools outside of teaching civic responsibility, the need to be well informed when voting for elected officials and on specific ballot measures. I think we would all agree that Southwest Missouri leans to the right, as do I. So when I first received word that our state, along with many others, was working on common standards with a common assessment I was excited. The conservative, competitive side of me said, “Finally, we are going to get the opportunity to see how our education system measures up to other states.” The playing field was about to be leveled. We were going to show them what we’ve got. The competition to see who could raise up the best and brightest students in the country was about to begin.
What a phony. Those on the Right are supposed to be conservative, as I recall, in areas such as spending and implementation of programs. There is no effort to be conservative fiscally in R8 with the exception of paying staff. According to DESE records, Joplin has a very high teacher/student ratio and a very low teacher pay scale. Yet,millions are spent on nonessential jobs that were supposed to bring about greater academic gains. The opposite has occurred. If all the money spent on those job positions, initiatives, excess technology, expensive trips, and excess administration was spent on teachers and materials, Joplin students would make great gains. It's time for a change. We are Joplin. And we will come back from this disastrous example of leadership. Just watch us.
ReplyDeleteThere is a single word in the CJ Huff blog post that reveals a lot.
ReplyDelete" As a servant to all students and families regardless of political affiliations, it’s not healthy for a superintendent to engage in those debates."
The word is servant. Huff did not state the complete phrase this time, but it is "servant leadership".
Sometimes found used in articles such as this one page five at the link :
Service Above Self “After the Storm”
Thoughts from Dr. C.J. HUFF
Superintendent of Schools
Joplin, Missouri
By: Mark Dobbs, District Governor Nominee Designate
“After the storm”, when lives are in peril and homes, churches, schools, and businesses are destroyed—the words “Service Above Self” come alive, become vibrant and take on a life of their own inspiring everyday heroes to rally support for victims. DR. C.J. Huff, Superintendent of Public Schools and a Rotarian from Joplin, Missouri, and who was also our guest speaker at the 2012 District Conference, recently shared some thoughts about Rotary’s motto and what it really means in the aftermath of disaster.
C.J. believes that the concept of ’Servant Leadership’ where leaders are servants first is the natural feeling that makes Rotarians want to serve. By taking care of the needs
of others first, he believes: “People, especially young people will see Rotarians taking this Servant Leadership role, providing Service Above Self and it will inspire them to emulate these leaders.” He adds, “Particularly the kids, they are always watching and learning from us as role models.” C.J. uses the principles of Servant Leadership to train the staff, teachers, coaches and students within his school system. He also shared a little about Joplin’s “Bright Future Initiative”,
This could be the same CJ Huff that said (use Huff as a search term and view page one) :
Angry, troubled, exhausted, and confused teachers do more to impact morale and school climate than anything. After a while, other teachers become tired of hearing the complaining and begin to distance themselves from them. Consequently, the staff loses some of its desire to collaborate and work as a team. This creates fragmentation which, in turn, impacts school improvement initiatives.
—C. J. Huff
Then there is the problem of the dreaded ICT. (ICT =Instructionally Challenged Teacher- teachers who are unable to teach so that students can learn). As one building leader named C. J. Huff apparently once said:
Follow through is a challenge for me. As the building leader, I'm pulled in hundreds of directions. When I have an ICT to deal with on top of all my other responsibilities, finding the time and energy is difficult.
Hopefully someone said enough of the magic buzz words in Huff's vicinity to help him improve his follow through.
12:46--
ReplyDeleteOne would have to conclude that CJ Huff is a charlatan judging from your quotes and from other commentary and posts. It is despicable that he has gotten away with it for so long. He may claim to be a servant, but in reality he is a harsh tyrant. We will be better off when he is gone.
Maybe instead of spending my tax dollars on dumbass facebook and wifi for school buses, you should've bought my kids some books. Damn hypocrite wants to pretend he cares but really just wants to make a name for himself at the cost of the kids' learning. Take your dog and pony show down the road, Huff.
ReplyDelete