Sorry Scores in US History: JLF

Time to step our teaching of Social Studies, particularly US History. In an exclusive Carolina Journal report from the John Locke Foundation (click here), proficiency scores from two years worth of End-of-Course test data show students scored under 70% proficient in US History. In addition, achievement gaps are present, and that goals between these [...]

The silliness has indeed started

Officials at Greensboro’s Grimsley High School have tightened security after some reported incidents this week. We’re also reading published reports of some gang trouble at Southwest Guilford High School that occurred this week.
1. Grimsley High School has tightened security by curtailing hall passes between classes and increasing police presence there following an assault in [...]

Grier’s Raise: Garth Speaks

School Board member Garth Hebert speaks out in defense of his “yea” vote to give Dr. Grier an 8% raise this week, reluctantly saying the man “met all of his goals for the year.” He wrote in to the News & Record’s Chalkboard blog and said:
The goals were pretty lame. I had to honestly [...]

Headlines & Potpourri for 9/28/07

1. Here’s a link to today’s News & Record story on the mentor/youth summit that will take place this weekend at the Coliseum’s Special Events Center. Potential mentors can come tomorrow from 8:30-1pm. Youth can come Sunday from 4-6pm to share their experiences.
“The time is now for our community to end the debate, discussion [...]

Two Views on the NAEP

When is spin…not spin?
First, the spin…from State Supt. of Public Instruction’s June Atkinson:
North Carolina fourth and eighth graders are above the nation in
mathematics and the same as the nation in reading, according to results from
the Nation’s Report Card released for all states and the nation on Tuesday.
Another bright spot – North Carolina [...]

An SRO predicts gangs in schools will get worse: Jamestown News

A school resource officer (SRO) spoke candidly and recently to the Jamestown News about the situation of gangs in schools and why it is now a recognizable problem that should be taken very seriously and why it may get worse before it gets any better.
An excerpt:
Corp. [L.G.] Welch has been on the vanguard of the [...]

Can’t trust ‘em

Pardon the usage of slang, but it is appropriate for this post.

The News & Record has a story today on just why the level of distrust between the Guilford County School Board and the Guilford County Board of Commissioners is probably at its highest level since 2000.
Maybe it is because between both boards, the level [...]

Judge Manning Continues Leandro Case, Focus on Failing Middle Schools

Judge Howard Manning, who has presided over the decade-long Leandro case, who has threatened to shut down failing high schools statewide (including several here in Guilford County), who has openly told principals to “improve or leave,” now wants to shift his focus to failing middle schools statewide.

News 14 Carolina (click here for story and video) [...]

Andrews: The latest

From across the local media desks, here are the latest stories surrounding last week’s incident:
1. News 14 Carolina. Includes coverage on yesterday’s presser by the High Point Human Relations Commission.
2. FOX-8. (see companion story with video here) Includes coverage of the Human Relations press conference, a forum at Andrews last night, and [...]

Some Potpourri for 9/26/07

UPDATE BELOW…
******************************
This whole thing involving Andrews has me too worked up to focus on other things that MUST be mentioned today…most notably:
1. Our school board, as usual, in the dead of night, voted to extend an 8% raise to Supt. Dr. Grier. The lone dissenter: Darlene Garrett, who said that Grier failed to meet district [...]

PRESS RELEASE: E.C. HUEY CALLS ON ENTIRE COMMUNITY TO ENHANCE RACE RELATIONS IN LIGHT OF ANDREWS INCIDENT

P R E S S R E L E A S E

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

E.C. HUEY CALLS ON ENTIRE COMMUNITY TO ENHANCE RACE RELATIONS IN LIGHT OF ANDREWS INCIDENT
SCHOOL BOARD CANDIDATE CRITICAL OF RECENT PUBLIC STATEMENTS BY ELECTED OFFICIALS

JAMESTOWN/ADAMS [...]

Deena’s Disappointed in the “White Community”

Personally, I’m glad I have a nationwide audience here…so they can see the real true “colors” of Guilford County.
Okay, just when you thought the coverage surrounding last week’s Andrews H.S. incident couldn’t get more strange; now comes last night’s Board meeting…and particularly Deena Hayes’ closing comments, which came close to 11:30pm. To paraphrase, Hayes said [...]

We’ve Hit 10,000!

In the midst of the issue surrounding Andrews over the last few days, we quietly hit a milestone here at the online campaign HQ of hueyforguilfordschoolboard.org. Sometime overnight, we surpassed 10,000 visitors to this site.
10,000.
A monumental feat? You betcha. But we’re not letting our guard down, we’re just getting started.
We will file for a [...]

Leftovers from the Retreat

Board members discussed a possible plan to increase SAT scores at this past weekend’s Board retreat. Scores dropped statewide this year, including Guilford County.
Today’s News & Record reports the district will undertake the following:
*Paying selected teachers a $500 stipend to organize SAT preparation in their schools and a $1,000 bonus if schools meet targeted average [...]

Andrews: HP Human Relations Commission to issue public statement Tuesday

From the city of High Point:
WHO: High Point Human Relations Commission members and staff
Paul Siceloff, Chair, 870-4441; Al [...]

Board agenda for 9/25/07 meeting

Click here for the GCS BOE meeting agenda for 9/25/07.
E.C.

Deena Hayes: Racism is reality at GCS–HPE

Continuing coverage of Friday’s incident at Andrews H.S….
INCLUDES UPDATES BELOW…
Today’s High Point Enterprise reports that Deena Hayes, during this past weekend’s GCS Board retreat, said that racial tensions within Guilford Co. Schools are alive and well. She demanded that school brass not look at this as an isolated incident or a simple prank.
An excerpt [...]

Media Briefing Scheduled to Discuss 2007 NAEP Reading/Math Results: DPI

From DPI:
*  Media Briefing Scheduled to Discuss 2007 NAEP Reading/Math Results
State Superintendent June Atkinson and State Board of Education Chairman
Howard Lee will hold a media briefing on Tuesday, Sept. 25, to discuss the
state’s 2007 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Reading and
Mathematics results at the fourth and eighth grade levels. The briefing will
be held at 10 [...]

BREAKING NEWS: Incident at Andrews this morning

More stupidity…the News & Record is reporting that nooses were found on the Andrews H.S. campus this morning. A total of four of them were found about 8:30 this morning, right around the time school was starting. Two were found on a flagpole, one was hung from a tree and another found in an old [...]

New school year…New round of stupidity

Apparently, it didn’t take long for the stupidity in some of our schools to begin.
My friend Doug Clark at the News & Record blogs today about an incident in Charlotte where a student at Char-Meck’s Olympic High School was arrested for carrying a loaded, concealed handgun, along with verbally assaulting a teacher.  See this Charlotte [...]

Eastern Guilford Money Starts to trickle in

Both today’s News & Record and High Point Enterprise report that money to rebuild Eastern Guilford H.S. are trickling in very slowly.
County commissioners approved yesterday moving $6 million in insurance proceeds to help cover construction costs for the new school. The CoCos hinted at possibly moving more money around between other projects to continue financing [...]

Board retreat focuses on conflict of interest, abstentions and other items

Click here for the GCS Board’s Retreat agenda, they meet all day this Saturday.
They WILL (hopefully) tackle conflicts of interest and abstentions (see my recent thoughts on this here). Pick up this week’s Rhino Times, front page and jump to page 10; Jana Benscoter solicited my thoughts in advance on the issue (click here to [...]

New additions to the blogroll and links

Too many to mention here, but take a few minutes and grouse some of the new links I’ve added.
For instance, check out the News & Observer’s WakeEd blog, similar to the News & Record’s Chalkboard blog, features issues facing Wake County Schools.
The Center for Education Reform, a Washington think-tank, and its companion blog Edspresso, focuses [...]

Schools recognized for better test scores

Select GCS schools were recognized yesterday for improved test scores this past academic year. Note, many of the schools received grants…grants for getting more kids to pass a standardized state exam, not learning the curriculum, but filling in the right “bubble” on an answer sheet in a 3 or a 4 hour window on a [...]

Grier vs. You

Thank the News & Record for giving you, the general public, the opportunity to ask “newsmakers” questions in its upcoming Sunday editions (see editor John Robinson’s blog from today for more information).
Its first newsmaker…Dr. Grier. So I submitted my questions:
I have some questions for Dr. Grier (feel free to pick any one of them):
1. Do [...]

Building schools cheaply in Wake County

Again, a dose of required reading for the Guilford County School Board, in preparation for their weekend retreat.
Our friend Terry Stoops, education policy analyst for the John Locke Foundation, just inked a new report focusing on the inefficient construction spending by Wake County Schools (apparently, this is a report that Wake County officials did not [...]

Some Say SBE chair Howard Lee Stepped in it…or did he?

Some would say that Howard Lee unknowingly stepped into a pile of muckety-muck.I’ll report, you decide.
The Wilmington Journal, the black-owned publication in Wilmington, reported recently that the State Board of Education chairman Howard Lee “blasted black parents for not having the educational support necessary so their children can become teachers.”
The Journal also inked a follow-up [...]

Judge Manning has Spoken (and we need to listen)

Judge Howard (Leandro case) Manning ought to be running DPI.
This is the same judge who has threatened to shut down many low performing schools statewide, including Smith and Dudley H.S. This is also the same judge who once told principals to “improve or leave.”
Yesterday, he told a state education testing committee that middle schools across [...]

More on the GCS GANG Problem

…yes, I said GANG problem; that was for Dot Kearns. See, Dot doesn’t want to…she doesn’t want to alarm our parents. She wants to put a rosy picture on a problem that’s about to burst at the seams.
We have a gang problem in our schools. Has Dot walked the halls of any of our schools [...]

What else happened at the 9/13/07 meeting

Three blog entries for the price of one…here we go…
1. Where’s the missing 860?
GCS brass are looking for about 860 high schoolers who haven’t yet shown up for classes. The district’s annual Day-10 Census shows total district enrollment is below projections.
An excerpt from today’s N&R story:
The school system counted 71,176 students on the 10th day [...]