Note to District 150 parents: The next time you feel compelled to express your concerns to District 150 board members, just go find a brick wall somewhere and talk to it. There are a number of benefits: you can hit it and not get arrested, you can do it any time instead of just 6:30 every other Monday, and the most important thing of all — you’ll get the exact same results.
The school board voted 5-1 (Linda Butler was absent) to shorten the school day by 45 minutes next year. Jim Stowell was the lone dissenting vote. Kudos to him.
Feel free to use that brick wall to beat your head against after yet another poor, ill-advised decision from our illustrious school board.
What would these folks act like if there was no competition, like Peoria Christian and the Catholic Schools?? Wonder why there is such vehement opposition to vouchers by some? It’s pretty basic – Monopoly=bad; Competition=good. Same thing with health care and everything else. Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely. We forget that truism at our peril.
Trow out da whole sheebang!
Ah yes The #150 wall, built with taxpayer money and somthing the board can hide behind. Without public support #150 will fail in anything they do. But as long as there is the “wall” they are happy and isolated in there land of oz. Face it the public is always wrong and #150 knows better than parents and us taxed to death taxpayers. Long live the king!
During her diatribe, Spangler mentioned she would be leaving the board next year (HALLELUJAH!) and challenged members of the audience to become part of the political process by running for the seat she will vacate (north of Forest Hill).
I propose Diane Vespa for School Board. Any seconds out there? Think we could pull together a good group to work on her campaign. How about it, Diane?
Fantastic idea PrairieCelt! Diane… the public has spoken!
Julie
It was my understanding that each primary school principal would have some flexibility on how the new reduced schedule will look. Did they mention at the BOE meeting if PTA representatives and parents were going to have a voice in this process? I think parents and community members should continue to press the Administration and their schools as how this will all play out. Perhaps PTAs should take the initative to set up parent meetings before the school year is out to solicit feedback that can be presented to the principal of each school.
Kudos to Jim Stowell – yeah, except he knew it was passing so why not put in a vote to the huddled masses that had to sit through Seussical the Musical.
And then there’s this:
Stowell: “I’d ask you as I have others, point to data that reflects the top-heavy nature of our administration.”
Data? How about arithmetic. One, two, three, four superintendants.
He implied said last night that these people (the superduper- intendants) are educated/qualified therefore we should have them on the payroll. And that we aren’t paying them more than the going rate. But the point is: we have three more of them than – like one of the speakers said – her former city of 800,000 needed. 800,000 is a major urban city – Peoria – maybe not much.
If, as some say, this re-structuring is being used as a tool to avoid federal mandates and to get rid of some tenured teachers, 150 better get their lawyers ready. How shallow can they be?
Tenure is an anachronism. There is no such thing as tenure. Anyone can be fired. If you have to hide behind tenure then you probably are not doing your job very well.
It isn’t just too many administrators, it also includes too many consultants!!
Does anyone know what the exact fee was for taxpayers of Peoria to pay tuition for one student to be sent to Youth Farm? Tuition for Youth Farm is a new expense since last year. What happens if 5 kids from Peoria are sent to Youth Farm?
Was it just me or could anyone else hear King Hinton breathing and sighing into the mic when Stowell was asking questions? He seems upset to me that anyone would question his authority.
With the new way principals are going to be rated and given raises, would any dare disagree with administration? For a while I thought this district was being run in panic mode, now I think it is through fear and intimidation from administration.
ImaSwede – fear and intimidation are Hinton’s favorite strategies. I didn’t hear him breathing into the microphone but he doesn’t have much tolerance for any opinion that differs from his.
Did you phone Jan Deissler? I, too, would be interested in her informed opinion on this issue.
Mahkno and I agree 100% on the tenure issue. It’s a practice who’s time has passed.
RUN FOR SCHOOL BOARD!
You seem to know everything and not care about money
To Ryan: You missed the point. The school board IS part of the problem.
Ryan — You’d actually make a better fit with this school board with a cop-out comment like that.
“Mahkno and I agree 100%”
Hell freezes
This may be the time to restate that you don;t have to be in the restaurant business to know when the food’s bad and the service stinks.
Since we are floating names of potential BOE members permit me to suggest Terry Knapp. He’s a retired educator and certainly knows the administration, staff and the very corridors of the buildings having been a vocal and avid past union president. While I have not agreed with Terry on all of his stances I do know would not toe the line to King Hinton! One by one that current BOE needs to be replaced. Their action last night proved once again they do not care what the public wants!
I say rally around Terry Knapp – he will be no rubber stamp for Hinton!
^oo^~
And, as many of you may remember, I supported Beth Akeson for school board during the last election cycle. Hopefully she will run again next time around — she’s another free thinker who would listen to parents and not toe the Administration’s line.
It’s a glacial turnover of school board members at best. I’m guessing Beth Akeson isn’t eligible for the next opening – Mary Spangler’s seat in District 3 in 2009 – since she ran for a District 2 seat.
You’re right. They have five-year terms, so it takes a long time to turn things over. Here’s the bad news list:
This may be a dumb question, but how do they assign the districts in size? Why does district 1 have only 1 representative and the other two have three?
Seems like someone is getting the short end of the representation stick (and I don’t mean because of the board members performance…that’s another issue).
It would be very interesting to see what the voter turn out was for the elections of the current board members. If someone could find that and post it here, it think we would find it quite suprising. I would bet that the turn out for any of the elections would have been in the teens or possibly even single digits. That means that odds are many of the people who attended the meeting, and even some who are very vocal critics on these blog pages, did not even bother to vote in the elections. The old saying “if you didn’t vote, you don’t get to complain” may be particularly relevant here.
I vote and I will congratulate or complain as the case may be. I also have worked on the campaigns of good candidates – whether in my district or not, or whether Republican or Democrat – and will do so in the future.
Last night’s BOE meeting has provided plenty of grist for the rumor mill. But the one rumor that is particularly scary is that Sandy Farkash, former District #150 administrator who was brought out of retirement by Hinton to continue feeding out of the public trough until recently, is going to run for Spangler’s seat. According to the PJS, in April Farkash purchased a home in Edgewild, definitely in District 3.
If the voters of Peoria allow this travesty to occur, they will simply be trading one rubber stamp for another.
So asking for public input was just a dog & pony show? Hinton and the entire board have taken something very crtitcal away from the children and should be ashamed. They don’t care about the kids.
Anyone know how common it is for schools to be only 5hrs and 45 minutes? I am wondering if 6 1/2 hour school days is still the standard…
My grade school and high school went 8am to 4pm every year I went.
PrairieCelt…. seems like we have something in common…. 🙂
The scary part of this whole thing is that I see no way out anytime soon. The damage that is being done is not just to students but also public trust. Is there anyone that is not afraid of Ken Hinton that can make a change?
*city takeover*
[quote]If the voters of Peoria allow this travesty to occur, they will simply be trading one rubber stamp for another[/quote]
As God is my witness, this will NOT happen! The wounds inflicted upon our children last night will not soon be forgotten.
Diane, from your mouth to God’s ear.
Maybe the board knows what it is talking about. I don’t know but then again, I don’t know a thing about education. I do know that everyone saying they are going to pull their kids out of D150 isn’t going to help the schools. I can’t blame them but the actions called upon by people here are going to make things worse in the short term.
Al, are you related to Ken? 😉
“The wounds inflicted upon our children last night will not soon be forgotten”.
NO WAY! WAKE UP PEOPLE! I have problems with the way elected officials in Peoria disregard the wishes of the people, but let’s not make this to be such a tragedy for the kids. A lot of school time is wasted anyway. It is YOU dear parents who need to be taking the lead in your child’s education. This gives you kid more time outside of school to do something constructive! There are a ton of resources out there. Don’t let the Board of Education stand in the way of your kid’s education. You don’t need some overpaid pointy-headed bureaucrat telling you what your child needs to learn. You could start by taking them to the public library, for heaven’s sake.
They have not just books, but educational videos, audio books, all kinds of stuff. And it’s free!
Join Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts. There are a wide variety of low-cost clubs in the area that would love to have new members. Lakeview has programs, even – dare I say it – the Park District. The list of possibilities is long.
GET MOVING!
Did King Hinton’s son keep his job at Manual?
Al: Not going to help the schools? Are you kidding us? “The schools” are just a bunch of stupid buildings! We are talking about our children. You (and the administration and BOE) are talking about a business, capital investments and employees.
Mouse, all of what you say is besides the point. Do we let the entire district go to Hell in a handbasket because we are perfectly capable of educating our own children at home? Also are you saying that the school curriculum is irrelevant since we have the Park District and Girl Scouts? I’m just not following your train of thought.
What’s this about Hintons son working at Manual?
Mouse,
My husband and I intend to send our 5 year old to Whitter and will make up for any lost activities that Dist. 150 has decided to take away. He will be playing t-ball and soccer and we are very good about visiting museums and musical activities. But what about the individuals who can’t do this type of thing? Those who work and/or just simply can’t afford it. And of course, there are the parents who just simply don’t care. Those are the children that this really hurts.
Whether for wrong or right, people have been and will continue to pull their kids out of Dist 150 schools. I did and I am not ashamed to admit it. Sure, we can all fight the “good fight,” but I am not going to do it on my childrens’ time!!!! They grow older, pass from grade to grade, make plans for the future… The clock will not stop because idiots in Peoria cannot or will not do something about area education. I have written my letters, attended meetings, and been thoroughly ignored. My kids no longer attend Dist 150 schools…problem solved.
Now. We can all focus on that multi-million dollar museum.
With all the rants and raves that appear on this blog, it is beyond me why others do not question how the school disperses it funds to each school. You can go on and on about outrageous compensation of administration, too many administers, and the misadventures on Prospect (which I understand come out of a different fund than those that go to educate students), but at the end of the day, District 150 chooses the schools it supports and the ones it allows to get by, as best they can, because these schools are making the grade, in one form or the other.
It is no coincidence that the hours were cut at the primary schools just as the new Manual Academy becomes a reality. And, oh! – news flash – it is going to cost more to operate than expected. What was the thinking of the BOE and the Administration when they were revamping Manual? Was it just carte blanche, whatever it takes, and damn the rest of the student population? I understand the District was under a mandate to restructure, but that should have been done within a budget that allowed for the successful operation and enhance of others schools. And who among you watch dogs of the District does not believe that the new and improved Glen Oak School will not be more costly to operate than other primary/middle schools in the District.
Why does the District never consider enhancing primary and middle schools that have acceptable ISAT scores but that still lag behind the scores of surrounding communities? Why do the parents of these schools and the taxpayers that own property within the boundaries of these schools not demand more? With a small infusion of dollars, enhancement of curriculum and perhaps limited additional staff, schools like Whittier, Kellar, Lindberg, Charter Oak, Mark Bills and Hines would be capable of competing handedly with the suburban schools that so many families are fleeing to.
You may retort that the District cannot afford to spend dollars on the aforementioned schools. I would suggest they cannot afford not to. You can complain about the tragedy of primary students missing out on learning opportunities, but . . . the real tragedy is yet to be seen. With the rising cost of Peoria property taxes, those that are looking for real “choice” and have the financial means, will opt out of District No. 150. Why not? The District has made it perfectly clear what its priorities are and for many that is just not very appealing.
Since the children in the schools are going to take “a cut” in hours, how about the fat cats in the District offices taking “a cut” in pay? Tit for tat. You cut us we cut you? I don’t advocate this for teacher’s salary because I know they spend part of their salaries right back in their classrooms. This is for those upstairs making these ridiculous decisions and getting big raises.
Look. I am going to say this one more time. That’s it. (until the next time)Look at the school budget. How much is spent on Wisconsin Ave? How much is spent on outside contractors? How much is left for the schools themselves… buildings, food, supplies, administrations, football uniforms, etc? Now… what is left for teachers and students in order to participate in this magic event called education that parents and children apparently can not do on their own?
How can we say that “education” is about students and learning? We certainly are NOT arranging our budgets to reflect that.
SD… where do you teach?
ImaSwede – are you referring to his son, Landrian, who is a speech pathologist? I really am not sure if his work assignment is MHS, but I am sure that he has an extra-curricular assignment at MHS as an assistant baseball coach. Whether it is a coincidence or not, I’m told the head boys baseball coach has not been selected to remain at MHS.
That brings up another interesting point. How is Hinton’s son able to leave his contractual position as a speech pathologist early to coach baseball? There was a policy prohibiting this practice at one time – after all, it is a form of double-dipping – receiving pay as a coach while still on the clock as a speech path.
Frustrated you are absolutely correct. How often does new construction come in on or under budget? And their estimates for the cost of running a restructured MHS were always too low (and they have finally admitted as much). To be fair, MHS does receive (because of their poverty rate) significant Title I monies. Not all the schools you mentioned are Title schools, but your main premise is correct.
They should be looking at ways to improve all schools. But you may be asking too much of this administration and BOE. They can’t even figure out how to turn around the failing schools – their solution is to keep on closing buildings. Do you really want them to try and improve the schools making AYP – there may be no schools left in Peoria if they do that!
Prairie Celt, Landrian can coach baseball because the hours of speech-language pathologists reflect the schools in which they work. Landrian’s schedule matches the high school’s hours, so he’s able to take part in athletics. I was an SLP for the district for 10 years…this is how it’s always worked.
ImaSwede – just checked the MHS staff roster on their website, and yes, Landrian Hinton is a speech pathologist assigned to MHS. Will try and find out if he was rehired for next year but think I already can figure out that he was.
Thank you, JC, that is good to know. I’ve been asked about that by several people.
PrairieCelt, yes, I am referring to Landrian. I thought he was “stationed” at MHS, but I have been wrong before. Seems King Hinton has a set of rules for some and a different set for others. I hate to see Landrian get hurt by any of this for I understand he is very nice.
Mouse, I would like to know what you are thinking, also. When I was raising my children, the things you refer to were excellent resources and still are, but they were certainly not the mainstay of my children’s education. I, myself, was a GS til I was a senior in high school, but trust me, earning badges did not take the place of algebra!
My main concern regarding all of this is that Hinton’s management style, “fear & intimidation,” will cause the good employees, teachers and principals alike, not to voice nor share their opinions any longer. Sharing thoughts helps concepts to grow, but when thoughts are stifled creativity dies. The BOE does not stand by the teachers, as evident by the grade change at RHS, and they also do not stand by the parents who elected them.
It is a sad situation because I truly believe District 150 has wonderful employees, great teachers and good principals who absolutely care about the children. No school district is perfect.
In my personal opinion, this whole mess starts on Wisconsin and filters down. We need to elect people on the board who will not buckle to King Hinton. I have not seen it in writing, but if it is a fact that he gets a bonus for cutting costs, on top of the one he received when he retired once already, this district has not seen the end of cost cutting.
BTW, does anyone know if Hinton has donated any of his monies to any of District 150’s foundations or endowments?
Frustrated, great post! Please take it upon yourself to ask the good folks on Wisconsin and the BOE all of the aforementioned questions. Type up a letter and send it. If you would like people to sign it, let me know if you need help getting signatures.
I asked what the price was for the people of Peoria to pay tuition for one student at Youth Farm, but no one seemed to know. Does the public have a right to view the same information the BOE views since it is our tax dollars at work?