Direct from the 9-R Website
The Durango School District website is running a very exciting announcement. Who wouldn't come be part of such an event? Thank you, Dr. Owen and staff for a bold invitation. This community is ready!
"Public education is trapped in a pattern of conflicting demands and difficult dilemmas that cannot be overcome by reforming unworkable systems. Only through a radically new approach of creating complete strategic systems can educational leaders create and maintain a system of learning that is worthy of all our students. On September 23rd, 2008, teachers, parents, students, and the community are all invited to a basic Strategic Planning Awareness Session to introduce our district to the Strategic Planning Process.
We will be exploring the need for change, discussing planning philosophies and the process of Strategic Planning and the most effective method of implementation. The Strategic Design allows for school districts and communities to facilitate their own plans, to extend the process throughout the schools, and to sustain continuous creation.
To develop this strategic plan, the school district needs parents, students, and community leaders as a whole to be involved; in other words, we need public input to be successful.
At this time, an evening session is planned for the community beginning at 6 p.m. on September 23. For more information, please contact the Public Information Office at 247-5411, ext 1440."
27 comments:
Thus far, it appears that Dr. Owens does, indeed, bring welcomed fresh air to 9-R.
Unfortunately he's saddled with a board that remains embroiled in controversy and remains distracted from its true responsibilities. In turn, this distracts from Dr. Owens' formidable challenge.
I sincerely hope that none of the current board members are engaged in encouraging a recall process, but rumors are flying throughout the community about who is actually the catalyst for the process. It would be very unfortunate for the feud between a couple of board members to cause even more bitterness and polarization of the board itself, let alone the community as a whole.
Let's hope and pray that the school board can grow past the petty bickering and egocentric behavior and stay focused on the mission they are charged with.
I believe that Paddy Lynch is an excellent board member who brings much needed public debate to many critical issues. As I've said before on this blog, he may not make everyone comfortable but the issues are brought out and they are exposed to public debate. His alleged offenses will play out in the judicial system and if he is found guilty the judicial system will manage the associated consequences. He is fully entitled to due process.
It is apparent that the DCAT board has serious issues to resolve. DCAT's video featuring Paddy Lynch cast a shameful image for the community, and I cannot believe it is representative of the populace.
To single out a member of the community in such a ghastly way before the judicial process has worked itself through is not something I, nor my family support in any way and I simply cannot believe the DCAT board would either.
Let's hope the reins get pulled in and these sorts of acrimonious acts are punished and stopped so we can get on with the education of our children.
Paddy should resign to avoid the recall and spare the expense to the school if he is a man of any character.
Anyone who has such poor judgment and believes it is OK to commit a felony does not belong on the school board. He belongs in jail.
The video on DCAT is security camera video of a crime Paddy admitted to. I agree the video is shameful because it shows the actions of a member of our community and school board member acting very badly. Paddy's actions are shameful not the video. God help us if Paddy is representative of the populace.
I'm not sure what judicial process your referring to because when you confess to a crime there isn't much process other than how long your sentence will be.
I don't believe the DCAT board had anything to do with the release of this video and the editing. On the contrary, the board is quite upset. Paddy broke the law breaking into the Humane Society, that we can all agree. The taking of his dog is what is in question and up to legal defense if Paddy so chooses. Let Paddy remain on the board to ask important questions. Such as where does the money go? If the School Board insists on this recall then I guess the next 3 months will consist of this business and not what they were appointed for. Public School Improvement. Hopefully Dr. Owen can help direct their energy, deal with Paddy and provide for our students.
We teach our students tolerance yet don't practice it when given the opportunity. What a shame.
Dear Anonymous #2;
The way you condemn me is the same way we have been condemning the Vocational and Agricultural programs at 9-R. Saying that I belong in jail is the same philosophy 9-R used to have towards "at risk" students.
If you say "God help us", I say God forgave me for retrieving Marsha long before I was born. As far as the video (I haven't seen it), at least the gentleman who made it was showing creativity (which is something I see so little of anymore) and I do not fault him.
As far as the recall election...no matter how bad is seems for me, someone else has it worse. Someone is being foreclosed on, someone lost their job and has a family to feed, someone is dying of cancer, someone in Iraq had his leg blown off... I look at how blessed I am to know that someone out there would trade places with me in an instant and how trivial we have become.
I don't "pretend" to be perfect, I don't put on "facades". If you wanted "perfect" on the school board....maybe we shouldn't have nailed "PERFECT" to a cross?? I am just a man doing to best he can.
You are right...I do have character....loyalty too...even if it is to a "dog" who happens to be like my child.
To me, the word "resign" is another word for "quit"...and I am not a quitter. Sorry to disappoint you. Politicians tell you one thing, get elected and do something else.
I look forward to working with Dr. Owens, and from what I have seen and heard he is 180 degrees from the direction 9-R had been headed. Somehow we have managed to take the fun out of learning. I hope we can realize that "fun" and "learning" are not diametrically opposed.
I have learned that there will always be "critical" people...who are always ready to put someone down (I guess they feel it makes them larger), so I figure as long as they are putting me down, someone like me is helping to build someone else's self esteem.
At this stage in the game...I have learned to accept who and what I am with all my imperfections; as I try to modify them.....the same way I accepted my students for who and what they were without being judgmental. Love ya!
Remember: it is hard to know the facts if you weren't there.
Gotta run
Padraig Lynch
It's rather inappropriate of DCAT employee Chris Hall to take the security video and make fun of Paddy in that way, but hardly surprising, considering......
I'm glad Paddy was only charged with a misdemeanor, because that's all the fuss should be about.
Reading back on the month's worth of school board business excitement, one see's that they haven't been up to much, but demonizing a member most of them cannot stand. That's the unfortunate part though. Just because Paddy is "controversial" and you know, I've never thought he was, he just called a spade a spade, and didn't do the peacock dance around the former superintendent that the rest of them do, I think they were hoping this would be the end of him.
Of course, it just might, given their zealot hellbent California go get 'im recall action. It's funny to read the names of the people involved, because most of them have never done a damn thing to improve our school district.
Whatever happens over the recall election will "be".
Paddy, don't resign, because you are right, that makes you a quitter. A former school board president was a quitter, and he tried to take half of the current board down with him, but fortunately that didn't happen and we were glad to see the back of him.
I'm glad to see some in the community think this is such an important "school issue" to deal with. These same people never spoke up when 94% of our 10th grade DHS special education students were failing math CSAP. And I'm not looking at the statistics, but a similar amount of them failed reading too. These same people read the over exagerated press releases from 9R and liked to believe all was well. I don't put too much faith into their current attacks on Paddy. We would have liked their input 9 years ago into the lack of reading programs that existed for up to 20% of the population estimated to be dyslexic by the NIH, but then, so long as their children were reading, they didn't have so much zeal to fight for reading programs for all our communities children did they?
Paddy did. Paddy does. He cares about the vocational and technical programs. He cares about the reading and math programs. He cares about making a difference to the lives of all our children, and not just the AP or "normal" students that so many of his colleagues seem to support.
Paddy's crime on the school board is to speak the stuff that for 9 years was swept under the carpet by fabulous PR and people who lacked the backbone to tackle the stuff that Dr Owens is made of. Owens will tackle it all, and nothing will be swept under the rug, and for that I'm happy.
Only when you have changed state law, or taken the school district to due process, or fought for years to see change for all our students can you see what a breath of fresh air Paddy was and is.
Who knows what will happen. I'm sure those witches will get their wish though, but we who know, would have enjoyed the character and gumption of a truly courageous man.
"Let he who is without sin cast the first stone".....when you are all perfect, then perhaps you could be forgiven for getting your knickers in a twist over Paddy Lynch, but the reality is, you are not. Neither for that matter am I. So let the court decide Paddy's fate, and stop beating the man up.
As I read back on the letters in the Herald re Paddy, I was also reading a philosophy book, and this paragraph written in 1903 is perfect for those letter writers:
"And do not feel so self-righteous because your Conscience holds you to a very high code of ethics-- there are people today, that view your code of ethics as you do those of the Bushman. You doubt this! Let us give you an illustration. You call yourself "honest" and "truthful". Can you truthfully say that you have ever lived a month without telling an untruth? Come now, honor bright "white lies" and an evasion of "the whole truth" count as well as the big lies--have you ever been absolutely truthful and honest for a whole month? Trade lies--professional "necessities"--"business talk"--"politeness"--and all the rest count against you in this test. Oh, no, we do not condemn you--in fact, we cannot see how you could be much better in the present stage of the unfoldment of the race--you are doing the best you know how--and to be able to see that you are not strictly honest and truthful is a mighty advance."
Some letter writers ought to apply this test to themselves before they get so pompous about whether or not Paddy is "fit" to own a dog or "serve" our children. For example, how many board members or presidents have broken the sunshine laws?
Closing the achievement gap is the reason for CSAPs isn't it?
Minority and Special Needs Children struggle with this to the 9th degree. If 9-R could concentrate on closing the achievement gap for these children, this subgoup could eventually join their peers at the same level of Reasonable Educational Benefit. As Tammy Capdeveille so eloquently added in today's Herald, not to forget about the "average" student. Correct me if I am wrong. Average Students are at grade level and have the potential and the skills necessary to become excellent. There is no "gap" for these students. They read at grade level, write at grade level, comprehend at grade level and keep the CSAP scores on track. Yes, don't forget about the average student but the District should support the students who struggle the most and are several grade levels below their peers.
Reasonable Educational Benefit...what the heck is THAT? It's like New York Appellate Justice Alfred Lerner saying that "an eighth-grade education is everyone's constitutional right. Anything beyond that is aspirational."
He actually said that. You can't make this stuff up.
Equity is not on the capatalist, corporate, congressional agenda.
They believe that "throwing money at schools doesn't work." Their mantra is: Money doesn't solve problems; high-stakes tests solve problems.
Any educational expert can tell you that the number one thing that helps children succeed in the classroom is class size...student to teacher ratio. There's 25 to 30 students in most classes at DHS.
You're right, Mimi, we need to do more for the students who struggle. Reduce class sizes, hire more reading specialists, identify those students with disabilities early and get them the intense help they need, invest in new technology, pay educators more so the profession attracts "the best and the brightest," spend money to make education more democratic by making sure that ALL children have equal access to the types of schools and education that affluent parents and students consider their due.
Why is there always money for war but never for education?
Reasonable Educational Benefit is all our Public Schools are responsible for. An excellent education is not. This we have found out the hard way for our son who struggles. If he is able to have a reasonable educational benefit from the school without aid, the schools don't have to provide anything. What does that mean? Within 9-R I believe a D is demonstrating reasonable educational benefit. Go figure!
Do you think Mary and Deb will apologize to Shane Voss?
Wow. Today's Herald and the gossip are too much.
Karma.
Did you notice that the Kill Paddy Lynch story made "above the line" in the Durango Herald today, and the story about the teacher/football coach who was arrested last night for suspected child abuse was....er....hidden inside the paper?
I'd hate to ruin anyone's breakfast or brunch today, but what gives? We still beat the drum about an old news story regarding a school board member and his dog, and let slide a very important front page story and delegate it to the inside.
I hope the good ladies of the school board, and those who wrote letters to the editor about Paddy, will take as much time to express their concern and outrage over this affair, as they have about one man and his dog. Or is it a case of "Let's bury Paddy Lynch first, before we concern ourselves with possible child abuse?"
Heads should roll, depending on what the charges are, if any.
Interesting state of affairs. It's like our communities priorities are all wrong.
This was sent to me on 6/16/08 by a school board member. Funny how Linda's office got it wrong the second time someone asked.
1) Many people have asked me why we (the board) have not removed Paddy. The Board cannot and, therefore, my intent was merely to clarify the recall process to the voters of 9R- (2600 signature per county clerk's office). My statement re not being elected is because there was no election held in November. Therefore this determines how many signatures must be obtained. Rather than a percent of ballots cast, it must instead be percent of registered voters in the district.
Today's Herald is very telling of character:
“We came close, very close,” said Allison Pease, co-chairwoman of Recall Lynch, who read aloud from a statement written by fellow co- chairwoman Jennifer Hughes at Tuesday’s board meeting. Pease said the group would renew its effort to unseat Lynch. “I have never been more resolved in my belief that we will succeed in removing Mr. Lynch from his position,” she said." (Durango Herald 10/15).
Didn't we say the same about Saddam Hussein, and then execute him? And now we have probably killed more Iraqi people than Saddam?
Why can't these women (do they all have children in 9R?), go and volunteer at the Boys and Girls Club, or read to our children who cannot read and for whom 9R does not have curriculum books on CD for?
Karma. Karma. Karma. Let the courts do their job, and meanwhile, if you have so much energy to devote to a passion, why don't you make it one that will help our children and schools grow.
It only took about 35-45 of us to get rid of the ex principal of DHS (who is working in the district again by the way), and the former superintendent, (contract not renewed), and another member of the cabinet for......
Where were you when one board member kept her out of state number plates over the time period allowed? Or when one member wrote emails to the former superintendent that contained information from executive session? Or when they were going to give more money than sense to a contractor they didn't bid out to, to knock down the liquor store, until Paddy spoke up and saved us all money? Or when they broke with state law over the ventilation of the metal lab? Or when various board members broke the Sunshine Laws or walked into our schools without signing in? It wasn't just Paddy you know, but that's who some of the Administrators liked to pick on and they even wasted our tax payer money to write him a legal letter and tell big ol' stories to the Herald that were not conducive to the emails from the student and his parents.
Now those Administrators are with us no more, we get you? That's not what we want. We want a functional district. Just let people do their job with the new great leadership we now have, and leave the Old Guard Dirt at the door.
Go do something worthwhile for our children, and leave everything up to the proper channels.
The bottom line is, none of the Board are perfect. Actually, I can think of two of them as being darn near perfect, but they would die if I wrote names.
Just let the board get on with their job, and let the courts take care of Paddy. And if some of the Board want to resign, then it's probably a good thing, because they are partly responsible for all this nonsense anyway.
We have a great new leader, and either the Board can play ball and stop dragging up the past, or they can resign, and we can get down to better business.
Good job the old PIO doesn't work for 9R anymore. She would have had a hard time telling McCain he couldn't do his political war speech on our high school football field.
Didn't she get all upset over Paddy Lynch having his truck parked in the parking lot during the County Fair with a vote for me for county commissioner sign and ban all flyers from school property? Man, she would have had a cow tonight.
It was a zoo at DHS today. The students couldn't have had any real classes with the TSA and Secret Service causing all that chaos.
An ex school board president would have called the cops on McCain for exceeding the capacity of the football field at Durango High School!
The Herald over quoted though. There was no one outside waiting to get in when I went in, and there wasn't 6,000 inside either. How many do the bleachers hold? Double it and add about 500, and that's how many were probably in there.
What a shame that so many people, including DHS students, acted so disrespectfully at the McCain rally. I was emabarrassed by and disappointed in how they acted. Freedom of speech is one thing, but yelling obscenities, saying they hate America, and carrying signs with profanities scrawled across them are not ways to be respectful. Have we forgotten how to teach children to be resepctful, including being respectful to our flag and national anthem?
Yes, we removed a principal, but now we have one that encourages an atmosphere of intimidation at DHS. Intimidation is not the answer to discipline. Intimidation makes students and parents lose respect for the administrators at DHS (and perhaps, that atmosphere is partially responsible for what was displayed at the McCain rally). Intimidating students makes students and parents have little, if any, motivation to respect the rules and/or to do well on CSAPs, and/or to care much about DHS.
Wouldn't it be nice to have professional administrators that respect students and parents? What a nice change that'd be!
Truly phenomenal to think I had so much power as PIO, according to anonymous regarding Mr. Lynch's placement of his truck on school district property during the commissioner elections a few years ago. If anonymous had bothered to find out the facts, he/she would have learned that the school district had no legal power to request that Mr.Lynch remove his truck; however, I was assigned the task to inform him that many voters had called to complain and it might be in his best interest as a candidate to move his truck. (I also contacted the other county commissioner candidates to inform them of the voters' concerned that the district had received.) I had no cow; couldn't. I'm sterile. I cannot reproduce. But the voters sure had a herd of cattle. However, that kind of nuance gets lost in the "I'm a victim" ethos that Mr. Lynch and his supporters continue to espouse. It's far too easy to play the blame game instead of trying to understand the greys of First Amendment rights, etc. As far as the fliers in schools were concerned, the school district certainly could have continued with status quo -- as long as families didn't mind accepting fliers from churches, atheists, KKK proponents, or anyone else who wanted to take advantage of the free speech forum that had been established by allowing organizations to distribute fliers to children. A number of Supreme Court rulings address this issue. You can't have "partial" free speech in a public forum. It's all or nothing.
This, of course, was all explained "back then," but choosing to be informed over maintaining your personal world view as a victim is what's wrong with our country today.
I wish blessings upon all of you. It is my hope that all of you will one day be willing to educate yourselves about the facts before spewing your vitriol.
Deborah
I found this quote today, but I don't know who wrote it!
"How we take back our children's education: one person, one question, one school at a time."
San Juan BOCES and the SEAC Committee very kindly sent me to Seattle two weeks ago to the International Dyslexia Association Conference. I ordered some books to put in the Durango Public Library when it opens, mainly to do with dyslexia, but also to do with LD in general.
My flight was paid for, and my conference ticket. I got permission to spend any left over money on books for our library. I took care of the rest.
This is the kind of beautiful stuff that can happen now we have a new administration.
Thank you for sending me!
Here's to the money Jared Polis spoke about in Sunday's paper making it's way to Durango School District 9-R/San Juan BOCES.
Here's to our new President, who I heard say something on NPR about what the world wants: "Truth and honesty. Not lies and hypocrisy."
And, here's to Dr Owen's Strategic Planning Committee giving us what our community want: "Truth and honesty. Not lies and hypocrisy."
See ya all Wednesday night over at Miller Middle School then!
I am sorry to hear that we lost another student today. Peace to his family, his friends, and all those who knew him.
Tonight's Action Committee meeting was heart warming. A truly phenomenal change is beginning to take place in our school district. Truth and Honesty is heading to a student near you. I was going to go tonight, and then step away, because I just wondered "What's the point, another 17 days and my son is out of there!" -- but listening to Dr Owens, and Floyd, and all the speakers, and being a part of John Heists committee, was exciting, not least because I know they meant what they all said.
I'm excited for the future of our school district.
I was amazed at the number of people who have volunteered their time to make the 9-R strategic plan a reality. I was of a mind that Durango, La Plata County and 9-R community members had become apathetic to the process. I certainly feel that 9-R has an unprecedented opportunity to be the 'pathfinders', 'pioneers', 'cutting edge', ....FIRST, to define and implement what American public education should be nationwide. I look forward to a day that we can look back, and see the tangible results of the design and implementation OUR strategic plan, when other educators, politicians, and superintendents hold Durango 9-R School District as "the standard". I echo the comments made by Ms. Youseff and Mr. Patterson in their enthusiasm. The hard part has not begun yet, but those who have tenacity will see its fruition.
Padraig Lynch
So the saga continues....
SJBOCES denying once again appropriate services for children with Specific Learning Disabilities. Seems they just don't know how to help these students. Staff isn't trained on the latest technology, SJBOCES is unwilling to offer direct service to students and refuses to offer software for students across all environments. Guess they don't care if students have the necessary tools at home for the homework load. We are luck our son has a Case Manager at the High School who is very concerned about his progress and willing to help him get his work done at school. However, weekends you can count on work being sent home.
Here is how SJBOCES operates- If you are a Parent of a child with a disability hire an advocate, fight like hell, hire a lawyer, fight like hell, sign a settlement agreement granting your child services and technology devices. At this point, if you are lucky, your child will receive what they are entitled to. Not willing to spend the money and time and effort? Forget about it, your child will go without. The process stinks, but is what we have come up against in the past 10 years our son has been in 9-R. I am waiting to see if Dr. Owen can correct this but I am not holding my breath. We have signed 3 settlements, had 5 IEPs in the last year and they think we are unreasonable. Why, because our son has a Specific Learning Disability. We have blazed this trail and it is unfortunate this is what it takes to get your child with a LD the help they need. What a shame and what a sham!
Yes. Yes. Yes. I think it about sums up the state of public education. If you don't fit inside the box.....you ain't gonna get an education.
My son Jamie graduated from Durango High School today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
YEAY!!!! It's over!!! No more misery!!!
The world awaits this beautiful young man. As soon as they all got out of school at 11:30 this morning, they went to Luca's and borrowed the buzz clippers, and the boys buzzed their hair! Gone are the long curly locks of rebellion at DHS. They all look fresh faced, happy and beautiful!
Here's to a good, peaceful and happy life for all who graduated today.
So you can make $10K on school district property in a few weeks during the summer, giving the air that the school district is somehow responsible for the football camp, with insinuation (to Joe Parent), that if one does not play ball, one might not play DHS soccer, and play for free to boot on Escalante's field, only picking up the $500 dollar fee when you get ousted, and everyone says: "This is OK!"
Ha ha. One rule for football, another for a parent of a dyslexic child who isn't even allowed permission to get their Certified Academic Language Therapist to teach said dyslexic child at Escalante, despite the fact that parent is paying, and said child jumps 6.5 grade levels ahead in English Language in 256 hours of teaching, to the benefit of teachers, district, child and parents.
“I’ve met with Diane Lashinsky, Sheldon Keresey and Keith Owen,” Emrich said, naming the principal, athletics director and 9-R superintendent. “They have spent countless hours doing their due diligence. I have their support, and I feel like I don’t have any more comment beyond that.”
Ha ha. What gives?! Is school about reaping in thousands of dollars for a sideline in soccer coaching, or learning to read? My CALT therapist didn't even make that much money from me during the 2 years, and 256 hours I paid her to get my son from 4th grade to 11.6 grade reading level whilst he was still in 8th grade.
The rules were very clear, and some on the current board did nothing to change them, i.e.: "We do not support private GAIN of an individual on Durango School District 9-R property!"
Ha ha indeed. Football.....no problem.
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