D11 Board considering making a Decision!!!
COLORADO SPRINGS, CO - The Colorado Springs School District 11 Board of Education is considering closure as a possible option in dealing with a perpetually under performing middle school. East Middle School has been failing to educate kids for years, and closure is one option recommended to the board by D11 administrators on Wednesday night.
"The reality is that the state is forcing us to act because we haven't really tried to improve that school," said D11 Superintendent Terry Bishop."There are mainly poor and minority students at that school, so my data shows me that any real effort would be wasted on that type of population." Bishop emphasized that it is important to create the illusion that the administration and school board are taking some type of initiative on this issue rather than to publicly discuss the fact that the state is forcing the district's hand. "I have been on the job since July, and we have several new board members. We just felt that we had better make the community think that we have done something or this district could be ripe for takeover by another group of people who might want us to focus on educating kids. Board president John Gudvangen told me that he felt it would be very disruptive to have those types of conversations on the board again." Bishop said that he was personally thinking of some things to do around D11 to show the taxpayers that he was trying to earn his $130,000 salary. "I did some things in Austin, once, and I have been thinking about doing some things right here in D11. By taking credit for moving on East, I can honestly tell the public that I have done something."
Deputy Superintendent for Instruction Mary Thurman denies that a lack of instructional leadership on her part brought East to this point. "I stood there and told board members that I care about kids. Last year I even told them that I really, really care about kids. I told them that people call me 'The Hammer,' and I was serious about not taking excuses." When asked to provide examples of what she has done to improve the instruction at East or other schools, Thurman snapped, "I just told you that I went to the board and told them that I care about kids." Thurman said that she is considering hiring an additional executive director to assist her with her busy schedule because she felt that it was important to emphasize how much she cares. She pointed out that she was not about to pay this executive director any more than $90,000. "We pride ourselves on our fiscal responsibility," she said. D11 CFO Glenn Gustafson refused to comment. Thurman concluded that closing East would be good for D11. "By getting that school's data off of our records, it will appear that we are improving as a district. That will show the community that we really care."
Board members seemed unified on the issue of closure, and more importantly, they were getting along with each other."I don't think that we have had a fight in a long time," giggled Tami Hasling. "It just seems like we haven't been fighting!" Asked about the issue of closure of a D11 school, Hasling said that she has been warning the people about those Schuck supported privatizers who want to destroy all public schools. "This just goes to show you the lengths that these people will go to hurt our teachers," said Hasling. "Eric Christen and Craig Cox just want to sell the building to their friend Steve Schuck so that he can make a fortune off of D11 property. I am outraged." When it was pointed out that Christen and Cox were no longer on the board that was considering closure, Hasling admitted that she had not been given her updated script to read on that topic yet.
John Gudvangen said that any questions on the issue of closure were nothing more than an attack on him. "For years I have had to deal with these assaults on my integrity. The truth is that there is no ownership of truth anywhere that there is an opinion on truth. Whose truth are we talking about, anyway?" Gudvangen then pulled papers from his purse which he claimed would show that Eric Christen was downright mean. "The truth is that this person has never given me the chance to show that he is a mean person and that there is no ownership on the truth."
Charlie Bobbitt, one of the board's newest members, said that he was just happy to do whatever the administration wanted him to do."I couldn't nod my head hard enough when the administration presented us with those options," gleamed Bobbitt. When asked which of the three options he would support, Bobbitt said, "This administration really knows what it is doing. I am here to give my support."
Sandra Mann felt that this was a chance for some inter-governmental cooperation. "Since the city owns Patty Jewett golf course, which sits right next to East, we can show the tax payers that we aren't going to just hand over East to some private developer." Mann pointed out that it was extremely difficult to get an adult beverage when playing the back nine at Patty Jewett. "I just think that if we gave that building to the city, they could turn it into something productive, like a clubhouse. It seems unreasonable to have to go all the way around that course without a place to grab a beverage. This is the perfect solution." Mann pointed out that if the clubhouse stayed open late on Wednesday nights, it was not very far from the D11 board room. "I drive right past the building coming to and going from board meetings," Mann smiled.
Jan Tanner said that her biggest concern as board treasurer was whether Eric Christen would eat lunch with people if East was turned into a clubhouse. "I spent a lot of time looking over Christen's receipts when he was on the board. One time he spent over $20 on lunch with a constituent. Now that he is off the board, there is no way for me to track his lunchtime expenditures. That bothers me." Tanner said that she really doesn't care one way or the other what happens with East, as long as parents don't have a say in the process. "I sued parents once when they thought they were going to get choice, and I'll sue them again." Asked about the current state of education at East, Tanner said that it was not the business of the board to worry about things like that. "Why would we worry about that," wondered Tanner. She said that she was still trying to determine whether Christen had ever eaten lunch at East.
D11 labor union co-spokespeople Tom and Lori Watson seemed unfazed by the talk of closure. "Let me first say that Eric Christen and Craig Cox are scumbags," declared Tom Watson. "These two as----es and their little stealth agenda to destroy our schools have been shown the door by the voters of D11. Buh-byeeee Christen and Cox. Thanks for stopping by." When asked how this relates to the possible closure of East, Watson became indignant."Don't try to change the topic. Keep in mind that Christen and Cox are both scumbags. They won't even show their faces around town anymore. Buh-byeee." Lori Watson said that although she collects her paycheck from working at East, she isn't worried about losing her job. "The labor union will find a place for me in the district. I'm not worried." She pointed out that the number of teachers in D11 has climbed steadily over the past decade, even as student enrollment has plummeted. "It's not about the number of students," she said, "it's about funding the union. The union has done a lot of good things, and it is important to keep it healthy." Asked to provide examples of some union accomplishments, Watson declined, stating that the labor union is a private organization that need not be accountable to anyone.
The Watsons have angrily accused reform board members of having plans to close D11 schools in the past, but see no irony in the fact that the board that they support is actually planning on doing just that. "Christen and Cox are scumbags," said Tom Watson. "This board is closing a school because they have to. Christen and Cox just hate teachers and public schools. They are both scumbags. Buh-byeee."
The board is expected to make a final decision within a few weeks. "They will make a decision as soon as we tell them which decision to make," declared D11 facilities director Frank Bernhard.
NOTE: To my liberal friends, the above article is called a "parody." No sensitive liberals were harmed in the production of said article.
"The reality is that the state is forcing us to act because we haven't really tried to improve that school," said D11 Superintendent Terry Bishop."There are mainly poor and minority students at that school, so my data shows me that any real effort would be wasted on that type of population." Bishop emphasized that it is important to create the illusion that the administration and school board are taking some type of initiative on this issue rather than to publicly discuss the fact that the state is forcing the district's hand. "I have been on the job since July, and we have several new board members. We just felt that we had better make the community think that we have done something or this district could be ripe for takeover by another group of people who might want us to focus on educating kids. Board president John Gudvangen told me that he felt it would be very disruptive to have those types of conversations on the board again." Bishop said that he was personally thinking of some things to do around D11 to show the taxpayers that he was trying to earn his $130,000 salary. "I did some things in Austin, once, and I have been thinking about doing some things right here in D11. By taking credit for moving on East, I can honestly tell the public that I have done something."
Deputy Superintendent for Instruction Mary Thurman denies that a lack of instructional leadership on her part brought East to this point. "I stood there and told board members that I care about kids. Last year I even told them that I really, really care about kids. I told them that people call me 'The Hammer,' and I was serious about not taking excuses." When asked to provide examples of what she has done to improve the instruction at East or other schools, Thurman snapped, "I just told you that I went to the board and told them that I care about kids." Thurman said that she is considering hiring an additional executive director to assist her with her busy schedule because she felt that it was important to emphasize how much she cares. She pointed out that she was not about to pay this executive director any more than $90,000. "We pride ourselves on our fiscal responsibility," she said. D11 CFO Glenn Gustafson refused to comment. Thurman concluded that closing East would be good for D11. "By getting that school's data off of our records, it will appear that we are improving as a district. That will show the community that we really care."
Board members seemed unified on the issue of closure, and more importantly, they were getting along with each other."I don't think that we have had a fight in a long time," giggled Tami Hasling. "It just seems like we haven't been fighting!" Asked about the issue of closure of a D11 school, Hasling said that she has been warning the people about those Schuck supported privatizers who want to destroy all public schools. "This just goes to show you the lengths that these people will go to hurt our teachers," said Hasling. "Eric Christen and Craig Cox just want to sell the building to their friend Steve Schuck so that he can make a fortune off of D11 property. I am outraged." When it was pointed out that Christen and Cox were no longer on the board that was considering closure, Hasling admitted that she had not been given her updated script to read on that topic yet.
John Gudvangen said that any questions on the issue of closure were nothing more than an attack on him. "For years I have had to deal with these assaults on my integrity. The truth is that there is no ownership of truth anywhere that there is an opinion on truth. Whose truth are we talking about, anyway?" Gudvangen then pulled papers from his purse which he claimed would show that Eric Christen was downright mean. "The truth is that this person has never given me the chance to show that he is a mean person and that there is no ownership on the truth."
Charlie Bobbitt, one of the board's newest members, said that he was just happy to do whatever the administration wanted him to do."I couldn't nod my head hard enough when the administration presented us with those options," gleamed Bobbitt. When asked which of the three options he would support, Bobbitt said, "This administration really knows what it is doing. I am here to give my support."
Sandra Mann felt that this was a chance for some inter-governmental cooperation. "Since the city owns Patty Jewett golf course, which sits right next to East, we can show the tax payers that we aren't going to just hand over East to some private developer." Mann pointed out that it was extremely difficult to get an adult beverage when playing the back nine at Patty Jewett. "I just think that if we gave that building to the city, they could turn it into something productive, like a clubhouse. It seems unreasonable to have to go all the way around that course without a place to grab a beverage. This is the perfect solution." Mann pointed out that if the clubhouse stayed open late on Wednesday nights, it was not very far from the D11 board room. "I drive right past the building coming to and going from board meetings," Mann smiled.
Jan Tanner said that her biggest concern as board treasurer was whether Eric Christen would eat lunch with people if East was turned into a clubhouse. "I spent a lot of time looking over Christen's receipts when he was on the board. One time he spent over $20 on lunch with a constituent. Now that he is off the board, there is no way for me to track his lunchtime expenditures. That bothers me." Tanner said that she really doesn't care one way or the other what happens with East, as long as parents don't have a say in the process. "I sued parents once when they thought they were going to get choice, and I'll sue them again." Asked about the current state of education at East, Tanner said that it was not the business of the board to worry about things like that. "Why would we worry about that," wondered Tanner. She said that she was still trying to determine whether Christen had ever eaten lunch at East.
D11 labor union co-spokespeople Tom and Lori Watson seemed unfazed by the talk of closure. "Let me first say that Eric Christen and Craig Cox are scumbags," declared Tom Watson. "These two as----es and their little stealth agenda to destroy our schools have been shown the door by the voters of D11. Buh-byeeee Christen and Cox. Thanks for stopping by." When asked how this relates to the possible closure of East, Watson became indignant."Don't try to change the topic. Keep in mind that Christen and Cox are both scumbags. They won't even show their faces around town anymore. Buh-byeee." Lori Watson said that although she collects her paycheck from working at East, she isn't worried about losing her job. "The labor union will find a place for me in the district. I'm not worried." She pointed out that the number of teachers in D11 has climbed steadily over the past decade, even as student enrollment has plummeted. "It's not about the number of students," she said, "it's about funding the union. The union has done a lot of good things, and it is important to keep it healthy." Asked to provide examples of some union accomplishments, Watson declined, stating that the labor union is a private organization that need not be accountable to anyone.
The Watsons have angrily accused reform board members of having plans to close D11 schools in the past, but see no irony in the fact that the board that they support is actually planning on doing just that. "Christen and Cox are scumbags," said Tom Watson. "This board is closing a school because they have to. Christen and Cox just hate teachers and public schools. They are both scumbags. Buh-byeee."
The board is expected to make a final decision within a few weeks. "They will make a decision as soon as we tell them which decision to make," declared D11 facilities director Frank Bernhard.
NOTE: To my liberal friends, the above article is called a "parody." No sensitive liberals were harmed in the production of said article.
posted by Craig Cox | 12:28 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home