When her pet consultant, the Core Collaborative, was voted down tonight by a 4-3 margin, it would not have surprised anyone if she had stamped her foot and left in a huff (or better yet, stamped her foot and left with a Huff).
Last month, the board voted 3-2 not to pay $103,000 to rehire Core Collaborative for a second year with Lynda Banwart and Mike Landis voting "yes" and Jeff Koch, Debbie Fort, and Jennifer Martucci casting "no" votes.
Koch, Fort, and Martucci did not change their minds. Banwart and newcomers Sallie Beard and Ron Gatz voted to bring back the consultant.The deciding vote was cast by the other new board member Gary Nodler.
Stevens, the district's curriculum director, was backed by a who's who of the C. J. Huff Administration, including Executive Director of Secondary Education Jason Cravens, Executive Director of Elementary Education Jennifer Doshier. Executive Director of Special Services Mark Barlass and Executive Director of Sitting There Silently Bud Sexson. There were more executive directors in the room than you could shake a stick at (if that's your idea of having fun).
As each pleaded the case for bringing back consultant Paul Bloomberg's group, Nodler was skeptical. The former state senator had checked out Core Collaborative. "I take this to be Common Core implementation," he said, clearly catching Stevens off guard.
Oh, no, no, a thousand times no. It wasn't Common Core. Bloomberg did that at other schools. (It's Missouri Learning Standards here.) "That's not what we're doing," Stevens said.
Core Collaborative charged $100,000 this year to teach the staff Visible Learning, a concept through which students take charge of their own learning and teachers serve as tour guides.
Stevens and her backup singers attempted to blind Nodler and the rest of the board with the best jargon $100,000 could buy. And, in tact, as the Huff Administration was always looking out for the taxpayer, they came back with a bargain price. Instead of having Core Collaborative for 30 days for $103,000, Bloomberg would cut off a few days and only charge $87,000,
"That seems like a pretty high price to me," Nodler said. The executive directors were stunned. You could see them thinking it. "Eighty seven thousand dollars a high price? Doesn't the new guy realize this is the Joplin School District?"
Nodler said. "This has become a cookie-cutter process with a guru."
"It's a process," executive director of Soaring Heights (or principal) Teresa Adams said, as executive director of Sitting There Silently Bud Sexson nodded sagely.
When board member Jennifer Martucci suggested that R-8 teachers could be better off providing the professional development themselves and would have more buy-in, Koch quickly agreed and Debbie Fort noted that the money that is earmarked for professional development could be spent in that fashion.
Executive Director of Secondary Education Jason Cravens did not think that was such a good idea. Teachers were too tired to want to make extra money, he insisted with a straight face.
When the executive directors insisted the teachers and principals were not ready and needed Bloomberg to guide them through another year, Nodler was not buying any of it. "You don't need a consultant to hold your hand."
The teachers certainly don't. But you never can tell about those executive directors.
32 comments:
Think anyone gave Mike Landis a dirty look from his front row seat?
I don't know...I still don't trust Nodler.
But, but Gary Nodler is evil.
John Hattie and his "research" were mentioned repeatedly in trying to justify the need for the Visible Learning program and the high-priced consultant. I invite everyone to read the following articles:
"John Hattie Admits that Half of the Statistics in visible Learning are wrong"- https://ollieorange2.wordpress.com/2014/08/25/people-who-think-probabilities-can-be-negative-shouldnt-write-books-on-statistics/
"Is John Talking Through his Hattie" - http://danhaesler.com/2014/11/17/is-john-talking-through-his-hattie/
"Literacy in Leafstrewn: Can We Trust Educational Research"- http://literacyinleafstrewn.blogspot.com/2012/12/can-we-trust-educational-research_20.html
Heh, I knew it was going to be difficult for the county commissioners to pick three "right" board members all at once. "Right" as in right for the Joplin area establishment; unfortunately for it, the commissioners represent all of the county, and no doubt some horse trading when on behind those closed doors and Nodler, a man used to a much bigger stage and clearly thinking for himself, slipped through.
As for him being "evil", I'm sure the city's establishment thinks so!
maybe Nodler thinks this works like the legislators and he is waiting for his pay off. Watch when this is brought back and he votes yes....then he has been paid...
I'm on the "I don't trust Nodler" bandwagon but in this case he appeared to have researched this and made an informed decision.
if you didn't see the end of the meeting when all the directors came forward than you need to. I was shocked when Cj said its hard to get buy in but if teachers don't agree with us we don't want them here. Wow did he really say that at his last meeting in front of the board and his directors who were still fighting for 1 consultant to save the district. Forget all the teachers who went to school for years, many earning masters degrees to do what they love. Teach kids in time proven ways that are working throughout the rest of the country. No we need our friend Paul to teach us how to teach the kids to teach themselves. This incompetence CJ had promoted and put into place was on full display. The disregard for teachers who didn't agree with the Huff admins ideas have put us in the place we are in. CJ had 2 groups at the end of the meeting last night the BOE and his hand picked directors, the only problem is he never recognized that it was the incompetence of his hand picked directors that caused him to lose his job and not the BOE. He was hired to do 1 thing, lead the education of our kids, unfortunately that was the one thing him and his hand picked directors could never do. CJ is gone, now these directors need to go they have failed our teachers and more importantly our kids.
The end result, at least for now, is as if Kimborough has been appointed to Lane Roberts seat and Steele and Landis hadn't resigned. For now until April you have a working 4-3 majority which is amenable to not wasting taxpayer money on the Huffite policy of spending on their friends and connected insiders.
The "might as well" spending of Huff and the Joplin Chamber of Commerce types under color of tornado was going to end eventually because it simply wasn't sustainable. The bills are coming due.
I did enjoy the ridicule you heaped on the losers, though. Huff's brain Bessendorfer was run off. Huff is "retired". Any caretaker superintendant will have to do more with less and that means either firing or attritioning out Huff's bloated pet seals in administration.
6:23 AM: Isn't it a pity that in a week those directors aren't going to have Huff to protect them?
And I would add that Nodler both seems to have a clue and enough political sense to avoid doing things that obviously won't be well received by the voters. Whatever you think of him and his style, if he becomes the swing vote between the "anti-Huff 3" and what looks like a revitalized go along to get along "pro-Huff 3" he's likely to have a great time and give the right people a lot of heartburn.
Wait just one minute. Huff redefined "conservative" as a bloated top heavy quasi governmental institution that robs from the middle class and lavishes the local upper crust.
Noddler had the nerve to challenge Huff conservatism?
Mike Landis: Local heiress....
"Elections don't matter."
Gary Nodler: State politician...
"Oh, but they do."
Sarah Stevens nor Jason Cravens Jennifer Doshier are not qualified for the positions Huff put them in. It is time to get qualified educators in these positions. Huff hired weak who followed his every breath.
As a teacher, when Noddler drove the final nail in the coffin, I felt my morale plummet.
Then I realized it was actually true!
Joy to the world!
The sound of all those sphincters snapping shut sounded like a room full of mouse traps and ping-pong balls.
Huff's brain Bessendorfer was run off. Huff is "retired".
As far as I can tell she was the smartest of the bunch. Unlike Huff, after the 1st adverse election in her old school district, perhaps equivalent to the 2014 one that ousted board president Flowers and elected Fort, she got her job here. And she didn't even wait for such a sign in this school district before getting out, and getting out of a career that's so accountable to voters.
We may not like her or her actions, but we should acknowledge her intelligence, or at least cunning. And as I mentioned in a previous comment, now that we've seen how incompetent Huff is without her, it's likely that his post-tornado "there will be school" "miracle" wouldn't have happened if he's been in operational control of the process.
Any caretaker superintendant will have to do more with less and that means either firing or attritioning out Huff's bloated pet seals in administration.
Indeed; without looking at the list of them, I get the impression that getting rid of them will at minimum cover the loss of taxes to the TIF district Huff so foolishly supported. I fear that won't be enough, but it'll be a good first step. And you know they've got to be feeling the heat....
I was very pleased to see Mr. Nodler prove himself as an independent thinker, seeing through the smoke and mirrors that is Bloomberg, and helping to make the right decision. We need to be using our existing resources. I was APPALLED that Huff had the balls to sit there and make comments/suggestions during the salary discussions. He has a lot of nerve. None of us below the central office level are overpaid...the GROSS overpayment has gone (and continues to go) to Huff, Tina Smith, and the over-inflated and unqualified Directors at admin. These worker bee salary increase plans should have already been in place a long time ago. Teachers don't ask for much, we really don't, but we haven't had a DECENT raise since Simpson was here. Thank you to board members who have worked so diligently to oust Huff and make some positive changes for teachers and kids. You're off to a great start!!!
As to an interim to replace Huff.
Where are we going to find another rollerskating monkey on such short notice?
8:47
Comment of the day to be sure!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryImbOTDXe8
I just don't understand how the can justify not giving everyone their step. A step is not a raise the employees earn that. From what I gathered from the meeting was that the lower paid employees of the district make too much money compared to whoever they compared them to. Also I didn't realize they could pick and choose who gets what. I thought it was a all or none deal. Just seems unfair to those lower paided employees just because some feel they make too much money
It was worth staying awake and staring at the screen to see Bloomberg defeated again. I was relieved to see that Nodler did his research, unlike the other two newbies, and saw Bloomberg for what he is. Just as interesting was the reaction of the crackpot team of administrators at work. They truly revealed a lot about themselves.Cravens gave a patronizing speech at the beginning that I'm sure he thought would win them over. Then he insulted teachers by saying they would be "tired" if Bloomberg was taken away. Got news for you, Cravens, we are tired to the bone, by Bloomberg, lack of discipline (aren't you in charge of that?), too many initiatives, too many schedule, curriculum, evaluation, and grading changes. We are flat worn out. So don't exploit us in an attempt to foist someone on us we don't want. Sarah was inept as usual. Really, none of them was prepared to fight for what they wanted. I think they thought they had four votes locked up. YAY for Joplin teachers. We had two successful moments last night. I won't hold my breath for too many more, but it's a start. My morale is up a little, anyway.
I'm getting tired of teachers being the guilt trips for administrators trying to push their agendas. Cravens said teachers would be "tired" if the PD inflicted on them by Bloomberg was taken away. Stevens said our morale would go down. They are either bald faced liars or they are so disconnected from the staff that they don't know how the teachers really feel. I heard nothing from them when it came to getting us raises, and I'm sure if I requested more materials I would be turned down. That makes me tired. I'm also tired of sappy anecdotal stories being confused with true data from normed assessments. Stevens mentioned a few students attaining proficiency, but she failed to say what assessment was used. The results from the MAP test are not in yet, so what is she referencing? Also, perhaps she needs to understand that there were not "800 meta-analyses" but a meta-analysis of 800 studies. Most of those are too old to be valid for research, and many of the schools studied are nothing like Joplin's schools. These inept people need to step aside. They aren't ready to lead, which is why we are falling behind.
An interesting moment in that long meeting to me was when it came time to vote on salary schedules. Banwart and Smith were supposedly in charge of the salary committee, which met a whopping four times last year. They purportedly found a tremendous amount of data, but strangely had nothing to present to the Board on the night the salaries were to be voted on. When did they plan to present their findings? In October? January? But by keeping their findings hidden, they protected CJ long enough to collect his severance package before it is found out just exactly how overpaid he is and how underpaid teachers are. Actually, this is easy enough to find by looking at DESE, so it's no big secret. They just flat don't care if anyone outside of the clique is paid adequately. Let them eat cake. Crumbs, that is. Cake crumbs. Yep, they are really and truly people-oriented problem solvers, those two ladies.You betcha.
On the salary issue, doesn't board policy require a schedule that includes increments for each school year of successful experience? Sounds like a step to me. See Policy GCBA...
Pardon my ignorance.....who was the lethargic looking, stupid sounding woman to Cravens right?
Putting her chin in her hand at the table was terribly sexy.
To add to the post @ 1:46--
Banwart did vote for teacher raises. She didn't argue against them. But it wasn't until Dr. Fort and Mrs. Martucci argued for significant raises and steps that Banwart said anything about what she had learned on the salary committee. She sat silently, as did Tina Smith. Neither of them, from what I could see on my computer screen, would have volunteered to fight for teacher wages. They simply didn't fight against them. You are correct in that they had nothing to offer the Board about their data from the salary committee as far as a presentation. It was just too extensive to talk about. So they sat silently until pushed to speak. Then they offered a few of their findings. It wasn't like she came prepared to fight for teachers or anyone else. She did say those above the state average should not get raises. I don't think she ever said anything against the teachers. I just wish since she was the leader of that committee that she would have spoken up first. It might have created some kinder feelings toward her right now.
At least she didn't vote against it once it was moved to allocate more funds to teachers. We will see if she is more forthcoming at the July meeting, which would not be happening without the pushing by what admin calls the "Fort Faction."
Fort faction or Huff holocaust
Choose
The reaction of the administrators when this failed was anything but professional. The drama of it all. They should have done what anyone else would have to do and accepted the ruling last month. By assuming they had all four votes they needed after stacking the deck, they set themselves up for what they got. I couldn't see them all on the video version, but there was a lot of what sounds like loud sighing and groans and hands slamming the table, and some visible disgust. If teachers were to react to administrative decisions like that, they would get a PIP. Like parents, education professionals should set an example of the behaviors they wish to be emulated. As Ms. Sharp reminded us with her poem, "Somebody's watching you." They have wasted a month now that they could have spent working on Plan B. Perhaps they should provide their staff members with an old fashioned suggestion box. They'll get a few unprofessional remarks, but a lot of teachers would like a safe way to suggest what they really need instead of what is constantly thrown at them from administrators far from the classroom and who lack experience. It might save a lot of time and money in the long run.
The board voted wisely....
Hahahahahaha..snort..hahahahaha
"Perhaps they should provide their staff members with an old fashioned suggestion box. They'll get a few unprofessional remarks, but a lot of teachers would like a safe way to suggest what they really need instead of what is constantly thrown at them from administrators far from the classroom and who lack experience. It might save a lot of time and money in the long run."
No, they would throw the suggestions away, say that teachers are just too negative and ignorant to understand what they really need and discuss the fact that those teachers should just leave.
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