Doyle fails a simple math test

"First and foremost, this budget maintains the state's commitment to fund two-thirds of the cost of our kids' education." (Governor Doyle in the Feb 13th budget speech)

As a parent of children in RUSD, I know our students are able to compare percentages, decimals, and fractions and determine if the numbers are equivalent. Apparently our governor, Jim Doyle, does not possess these rudimentary mathematic skills.

It has been reported that in the upcoming budget cycle, the state has not lived up to its promise of 2/3 funding for the state’s public school system. For the 2007-2008 school year, his budget includes funding of 65.3%. Both my children (5th and 6th grade) are able to state (with much confidence!) that 65.5% is LESS than 2/3.

Doyle aide Matt Canter insisted that the governor lived up to his promise. "This is two-thirds funding," (JS 3/6/06)

I know what you’re thinking – come on, it’s pretty close – cut the guy some slack. But consider this – public schools cost $9.2 BILLION dollars so every percentage point represents about $92M. This is not pocket change, my friends.

So the shortfall is about $100,000,000 – that’s a lot of zeros to be made up. I’m not debating whether it was the right thing (fiscally) to do; I’m trying to examine why he feels the need to lie about it. Does he think we wouldn't notice?

The RUSD political shell game

On Feb 7th, the RUSD Board of Education’s Legislative Committee held an unprecedented meeting with the trustees of the surrounding suburban villages. The intent of this meeting, I believe, was to establish some kind of ongoing dialogue with the leaders of our community. I believe this was a good first step, however, I think the mayor and the county executive should have been there, too.

The meeting was not confrontational as many had predicted it would be; it was a “warm and fuzzy” love-fest of epic proportions. At the end of the meeting, many village leaders asked “Where do we go from here?” The RUSD Legislative Committee promised that they would meet, break down the area of concerns (safety, student engagement, busing, etc), and get back to the village leaders with more concrete plans to address the concerns. I assumed (don’t ever assume anything!) that this would be done in a timely manner.

On March 26th, the Legislative Committee is finally meeting to discuss this initial meeting – 47 days later – nothing like addressing the problem head-on! At this point, do they even remember what was said at the meeting?

I have come to expect nothing less from any elected official – I think this is simply another political shell game that masquerades as “progress”. I hope I am wrong, our schools are in need of change and it will take all the stakeholders in this community to right the wrongs of past leadership.

A question for the REA

David, A JT blogger, posed this question on a recent JT post that concerned the lack of action by the RUSD to redistrict. His response was favorable to neighborhood schools and one of the many questions he posed was this:

Would neighborhood schools be better served if we moved the teachers around versus noving the students around?

Not being a teacher, or a dues-paying member of ANY kind of union, I ask the following question as a follow-up...

... do you think the REA would support an idea like this?

A light at the end of the tunnel

I wish you all could have been at 2200 Northwestern Avenue last night for Dr. Vanden Wyngaard’s “public debut” and presentation on closing the achievement gap. If you had, you would realize what an “ace in the hole” she is. She is one of the nation’s top experts in closing the achievement gap, and the citizens of greater Racine should know that we are lucky to have her.

She is dynamic and very engaging; I dare anyone to listen to her and not walk away thinking that closing the achievement gap cannot be done. The only obstacles, as I see it, are the grown-ups in the district! By grown-ups I mean us all – teachers, administrators, taxpayers and parents! We need to step up and do what is right for educating ALL of the children in the district. I believe that if Dr. V had been working along side of Dr. Hicks since his coming to Racine; the suburban communities, the NAACP, and the RTA would not be in battle-mode right now.

As inspiring as she is, she cannot do it alone. It will be difficult for her, I imagine, to change the mind-set of many in our community. From teachers to community members, everyone needs to change their feelings about how we educate our children. If this cannot be done, I shudder to think what will become of this community.

I know this might sound like I have lost my mind – I am supposed to be one of the crazed Caledonia residents who hate all things RUSD, right? I suppose for those of you who do not know me personally, it might seem that way. As I am fond of saying, I just want good schools. I don’t care if there are RUSD schools, Caledonia schools or schools run by the Hare Krishna. I just want good schools. The easiest solution for all is just to make RUSD a place that educates ALL children – and Dr. V, as I see it, is our best chance to get there.

Realistically, any action by Caledonia to create an independent school district, is years away. My children are in the system now, so I need to make sure my children are getting the best possible education NOW!

It's crunch time for RUSD board

The RUSD Board continues their discussion on the redistricting tonight at 6:30PM. Time is ticking away if any changes would be implemented for the upcoming school year. The district’s demographers have already done a study based on the recommendations of the Equity and Access Committee and a study based on neighborhood schools. Brian Dey, a RUSD board member, has already drafted a proposal to fit the neighborhood school scenario.

Now, I understand Dr. Hicks has drafted a proposal as well. I imagine this proposal will be discussed at much length Monday evening.

I just hope the board can come to some consensus so the district can move forward. I fear that they will put off any decision until the Supreme Court weighs in on the 2 school equity issues they currently have before them.

As I have said before, I do not believe it is important as “how” the schools look, but “what” goes on inside them.

Let’s pray that the board members will finally come to a decision – they cannot move on with the more pressing issues (such as grade configuration ) until they have decided the redistricting, They have been promising this since the 2003-2004 school year.

The time to act is now….

Cat Lovers Beware

I'm warning all feline lovers to not to watch this video (this means you, Kat)

For me it just keeps getting funnier every single time I watch it...

Another look at the violence in our schools

What you're looking at is a tabulation of "reported" incidents of violence against RUSD staff for the month of January. I wouldn't normally post anything like this but the fact that there was only 1 "reported" incident in our high schools is noteworthy.

By reading this, we can only assume that our high schools are safe and functional; it would seem that the problems with violence are only with our middle and elementary schools.

P.S. In case you haven't figured it out already, I am being somewhat (okay, extremely) sarcastic.

A question of hypocrisy?

One last thing about the past Caledonia CDA meeting that discussed the next steps for creating an independent school district in Caledonia. I will pose it as a question...

Why is the education liaison of the Johnson Foundation and former president of the Wisconsin Charter School Association ( and currently serving on the board of the 21st Century Preparatory Academy) so against the idea of Caledonia seeking an alternative to RUSD?

His comments at Wednesday's meeting were welcomed because he is a resident of Caledonia, but I left that meeting trying to figure out what he was so afraid of.

After all, actions speak louder than words. He has made it his lifelong ambition to ensure there are alternatives to RUSD for a select few, but when Caledonia wants to do the same, he is against it?

I ask you this, why the vehement opposition?

Wednesday's Caledonia CDA Meeting

I was going to write about Wednesday’s CDA meeting at the Caledonia Community Center but then I read Kat’s take on the meeting, and realized I could not even begin to explain the situation as well as she. Check it out…

Late night update on marathon meeting

I just got home from the RUSD meeting and they were still going strong when I left... Tonight's meeting was poetry in dysfunction.

As suspected, the Paullin Group update item on the agenda made for what could have been kind of ugly. The school board president did reign in a couple of board members, but not before the configuration of the schools came into question. As you may know, the board directed the Paullin group to configure the schools K-6, 7-9 and 10-12. The results of the 1.5 million study did not reflect these changes, and some board members are understandably concerned.

Another concern, is that many board members thought that detailed blueprints would be included in the study. The initial RFP was supposed to get detailed building specs, the board members (and me included) assumed that meant blueprints. This detail was in the initial bidding process, but we did not get the blueprints, simply a detailed list of what each classroom should have. All in all, the study may be a thorough one, but I do not think that it was worth $1.5 million. The price tag was an issue of concern also, as The Paullin Group was not the lowest bidder in the initial bidding process.

Somehow, I do not think this issue is a dead one...

Do we just need to move on? Part of me says this is the right thing to do...

Things to watch for at RUSD business meeting - Part 2

I noticed that there will be an update on the Paullin Group (facility study) Report this evening. I expect there may be outraged board members bringing up "old" issues regarding the study, everything from questioning the proposed configuration of the buildings to the initial bidding process. If I am correct, I ask what has taken so long?

I even predict that referrals will be made at the appropiate time in the meeting. However, I believe that the best ideas go to "referral" and are never heard again.

Let's hope I'm wrong...

Things to watch for at RUSD business meeting

Tonight is the regularly scheduled business meeting of the RUSD School board. Among the items on the agenda are the results from the latest Edulog study (the one used for redistricting) and a presentation on a 5-year balanced budget.

If you have never attended a board meeting, I suggest you start tonight. Here's a couple of things you should look for in tonight's meeting:

1. Does the Edulog study support increased busing for socio-economic status?

2. Does the 5 year "balanced" budget include money for security, maintenance, or technology? Or will these programs rely on the district passing another referendum?

3. Is the budget really balanced? How can the district state the budget is balanced when we do not know what the State of Wisconsin will be giving the school district in its next biennial budget? Governor Doyle has shortchanged the schools and not lived up to the promise of 2/3 funding in the past, and the state is currently facing huge deficits.

Too funny...

After this very depressing week, I need to laugh. I have never posted one of those fowarded e-mail thingies, but this one made me giggle. Hope it does the same for you...


Most of you have read the scare-mail about the person whose kidneys were stolen while he was passed out. Well, read on.

While the kidney story was an urban legend, this one is not. It's happening every day. My thighs were stolen from me during the night a few years ago. It was just that quick. I went to sleep in my body and woke up with someone else's thighs. The new ones had the texture of cooked oatmeal. Who would have done such a cruel thing to legs that had been mine for years? Whose thighs were these and what happened to mine? I spent the entire summer looking for my thighs. Finally, hurt and angry, I resigned myself to living out my life in jeans and Sheer Energy pantyhose. Then, just when my guard was down, the thieves struck again.

My ass was next.

I knew it was the same gang, because they took pains to match my new rear end to the thighs they stuck me with earlier. I couldn't believe that my new ass was attached at least three inches lower than my original. Now, my rear complemented my legs, lump for lump. Frantic, Iprayed that long skirts would stay in fashion.

It was two years ago when I realized my arms had been switched. One morning I was fixing my hair and I watched horrified but fascinated as the flesh of my upper arms swung to and fro with the motion of the hair brush. This was really getting scary. My body was being replaced one section at a time. How clever and fiendish.

Age? Age had nothing to do with it. Age is supposed to creep up, unnoticed, something like maturity. NO, I was being attacked repeatedly and without warning. In despair, I gave up my T-shirts.

What could they do to me next?

My poor neck suddenly disappeared faster than the Thanksgiving turkey it now resembled. That's why I decided to tell my story. I can't take on the medical profession by myself. Women of the world, wake up and smell the coffee. That really isn't plastic that those surgeons are using.


You KNOW where they are getting those replacement parts, don't you? The next time you suspect someone has had a face "lifted", look again. Wasit lifted from you? I think I finally found my thighs - and I hope that Cindy Crawford paid a really good price for them!

This is not a hoax.

This is happening to women in every town every night. WARN YOUR FRIENDS!

P.S. I must say that last year I thought someone had stolen my breasts.I was lying in bed and they were gone! As I jumped out of bed, I was relieved to see that they had just been hiding in my armpits as I slept.

Now I keep them hidden in my waistband.

The dangers from within our schools

And just a reminder, even if our children are safe from intruders from the outside, what is going to be done about the dangers from within our schools?

WTMJ update on school assault case

WTMJ (Channel 4) is reporting that the suspect in the recent school assault was accused of a similar crime in 2005, but a criminal complaint was not filed. The earlier victim reportedly did not back up his original story. Thank goodness, the recent victim did not do the same. This little guy should be commended for his courage; he may very well have saved another from experiencing the same horrific fate.

In fact, commendations should go to both the staff of the school and the Racine Police Department for their quick response to the alleged incident Tuesday.

Lawmaker aims to allow the blind to hunt

This story makes me realize that Wisconsin legislators and lawmakers do not hold reign as being the most stupid…

A study in irony

i·ro·ny- An outcome of events contrary to what was, or might have been, expected.
(Reference: Internet resource site www.dictionary.com)


The irony of two separate events this week amazes me – a young life is changed forever by a sexual offender here in Racine and our governor is now backing off key portions of a law that would have required child predators to be monitored by a GPS system for the rest of their lives. Apparently he is now worried the new bill (which he signed last spring) is unconstitutional and the offenders’ rights are being violated because tracking will occur even after their probation is served.

I ask this, what about the rights of the young victims and the community as a whole? Child predators, as I understand it, are very hard to rehabilitate and many times they return to the same kind of behavior after their sentences have been served. I think a GPS system to track the offenders is the very least we can do to protect the most vulnerable members of our society – our kids.

Normalcy can return to our school

With a suspect now in custody, hopefully the parents, children and staff at Red Apple Elementary (and the entire Racine area) can breathe a sigh of relief and try to return to normalcy. With TV crews from the Milwaukee news stations, along with at least a half-dozen police cars camped out outside the school all day, there has been very little “normal” happenings at the school. The children are frightened enough, police cars and news vans only make it worse.

Many are still playing the blame game – this needs to stop! This horrific incident was certainly a tragedy, but the real tragedy is if we as a community learn nothing from it. We need to stop trying to find someone to blame and start doing what is right for our community – our children are counting on us. Admittedly, we were lulled into thinking something like this could never happen, but it did. We need to be more vigilant for our children – they are our most precious gifts and they deserve a happy childhood.

My thoughts and prayers go out to all affected, I cannot imagine the pain you must be feeling.

A Tragedy At Red Apple

As most of the regular readers know by now, there was a horrific incident at one of my children’s school yesterday. An unknown intruder found his way into the building and sexually molested a 6 year old child. As a parent, my heart is breaking for this young victim and his family. However, my heart is also breaking for the hurtful comments I read on the JT weblogs regarding the staff of Red Apple.

There are many to point fingers at the staff of Red Apple, but few are placing the blame where I feel it belongs. The blame should lie with the sick bastard that forever changed a young life yesterday.

Red Apple is one of the best schools in this district; they have a wonderful and caring staff. To blame them for the heinous actions of another is unfair and pointless. I feel that Red Apple has always provided my children with a safe learning environment. The many doors of the decrepit 130 year old building are locked, and visitors are required to “buzz” the main entrance to gain access to the building. I have been buzzed in many times, and I have never been offended when asked who I was. Because the only other school my children attended also had a camera/intercom system, I was not aware this was not a standard operating procedure for all of our schools. It needs to be….

Were there security breaches? Yes. Could parents (or intruders) still get in without being buzzed? Yes. Did parents hold doors open for others behind them, of course we did. Notice I said “did”, because I am sure no one in the near future will engage in this practice. The principal has sent another note home today asking the parents to assist the staff in keeping our children safe by practicing a few common sense strategies when picking up or dropping off our children.

Although some are demanding a meeting for the parents of Red Apple, I would suggest demanding a meeting for the other schools in the district. Like New York on 9/12/01, Red Apple Elementary today is an extremely safe and secure place. I would venture a guess that nothing like this will ever happen at Red Apple again – but it can happen at another school.

The parents of Red Apple have been informed of the steps being taken, but the parents of children attending other schools have not. They need to make sure that this kind of tragedy does not occur at their school. If it happened at Red Apple, I can assure you it can happen anywhere. Many of our buildings in the district are not designed with today’s needs in mind. This will happen again if the district does not start addressing the real problems this district faces.

Musings over assets and liabilities...

Winter sucks.... and its official - I am definitely getting a flu shot next year. I apologize for my prolonged absence, I am feeling a little better. In fact I felt good enough to attend the RUSD Audit Committee meeting last night. This committee only meets once or twice a year to discuss the outside yearly audit.

I will write more about the high points of the audit later, but I thought I would first share with you a comment one of the members of the financial team shared with the members of the audit committee.

When asked about the deficit and if it included the long-term liability of post-retirement benefits (as required by new governmental accounting laws starting next year), Mr. Dickson said it did not. The follow-up question was something along the lines of "How is the district going to structure those costs? All in one year or spread across multiple years?"

His answer was sort of surprising to me - he stated that if Caledonia seceded from RUSD he would recommend the single year concept so Caledonia has to pay up front.

I guess this makes sense, but if Caledonia has to pay 25% of the long-term liability, then I imagine the residents of Caledonia would get 25% of the assets too, right? Isn't that only fair? I imagine that the buildings that reside within the village will come at no additional cost to the taxpayers.

These, of course, are just my initial thoughts. I imagine soon we will know the real facts. Stay tuned - things could get very interesting.

I guess punctuation IS powerful...

Mom, where do babies come from?

The Pregnant Woman Keychain is a clear plastic woman's torso with a not-yet-born baby floating in the womb. As the photo shows, you can remove (or "deliver") the baby by popping out the ball that the baby floats in.

Honestly, this is about the dumbest thing I have ever seen.

RUSD better off without Caledonia?

From the 1/26/07 Key Communicator Meeting:

I am simply presenting the following without the usual added commentary from me; I will leave all comments to you, my loyal readers.

When asked about the proposed Caledonia referendum, Dr. Hicks told the group that Unified had started putting together some numbers in anticipation of an advisory referendum. It is interesting to note that the remainder of the district (sans Caledonia) will be better off financially than it is now, according to the RUSD superintendent.

Does knowing that RUSD will be better off (fiscally) without Caledonia make a difference to anyone?

School Board Member Press Release

This press release was sent to me; I thought it should be posted. I imagine it will bring forth much discussion.

Thoughts/comments?

For Immediate Release:
January 28, 2007
RE: Brian Dey’s Neighborhood/School Choice Plan
Contact: Brian Dey
bdey@tds.net
262-681-0661

Over fifty years ago, Linda Brown was an eight year old black child that had to cross Topeka, Kansas to attend a school that was designated as an all-black public school, while her white friends were free to attend the neighborhood school, just a few blocks away. The decision of the Supreme Court, in their ruling regarding Brown v. Board of Education, made it unlawful to separate children by the color of their skin, and striking down the courts previous decision, Plessy v. Ferguson, which allowed separate but equal schools. Over fifty years later, there is a fear that a neighborhood school plan would return us to the injustices of the past.

I am offering a plan that assures that neighborhood schools won’t take us back to those injustices. The plan calls for all children, district wide, to be assigned to the school closest to their home. The District would maintain district wide school choice with bussing provided for students who receive free or reduced lunch. The plan also calls for all schools to be considered in the neighborhood school concept including our magnet schools. Magnet programs will be kept intact but may have to be moved to different locations. To attract talented teachers to inner city schools, the District will provide specific training and pay incentives. Additional resources should be provided to inner city schools for counseling and social services. Multiculturalism will be included in the curriculum district wide. Lastly, capture as much diversity as possible, while maintaining sensible contiguous boundaries. The School Board will monitor annually that all buildings are equitable and that resources are expended based on need.

Many communities, including Milwaukee Public Schools, have returned to neighborhood schools, realizing the benefits to students, parents, neighborhoods and taxpayers. The benefits to students include little or no time spent on buses, the opportunity to be more involved in after school activities and the ability to receive help with school work after school. The benefit to parents includes the ability to be more involved in their child’s education. The neighborhood benefits by increasing pride and concern for their community, and will hopefully lead to citizens and community leaders becoming more involved. For the taxpayers, savings should be seen by reduced transportation costs and/or more money going directly to the classroom.

Segregation, as defined by the American Heritage Dictionary, is the policy or practice of separating people of different races, classes or ethnic groups, as in schools, housing and public and commercial facilities, as a form of discrimination. Drawing boundaries by neighborhoods and allowing the freedom of choice is color-blind. Whether you are Black, White, Hispanic or any minority, all would have the ability to attend their neighborhood school and the ability to choose any school in the district.

This plan is similar to the Milwaukee Neighborhood Schools Initiative outlined in the 1999 Wisconsin Act 9. We might be able to petition the state to grant us the same provisions Milwaukee has, which include provisions for facility bonding and additional aid.

In the thirty plus years of RUSD’s self-imposed desegregation policy, the achievement gap has not narrowed significantly. It’s time we rethink how we educate children. It’s time to believe that all children have the ability to learn and succeed. It’s time once again to have the school be the center of the community, and that all schools will be great schools.

What is a key communicator?

Today I attended my very first Key Communicator meeting at the RUSD Administrative Center (formerly known as "Central Office"). To tell you the truth, I was not sure what to expect. The meetings, I was told, are informal and lend themselves to open dialogue between Dr. Hicks and community members. I am happy to report this was all true. Dr. Hicks kept his opening remarks brief and to the point, and allowed for ample time for questions from the community members.

Going to school board meetings on a regular basis for the last few years, I did not expect to learn anything new at today's meetings - I only wanted to attend to hear the kinds of questions from other members of the community. I was pleasantly surprised to learn a few things today, which I will now share with you (because I am now a Key Communicator).

When asked why it was acceptable for a 4th grader to read at a 2nd grade level, Dr. Hicks said it was not acceptable. With the new testing tools in place (NWEA-MAP) and the baseline data recorded, each child tested is expected to have an increase in their RIT scores – this is a target. If they do not meet their targets, additional resources will be provided to the child that did not meet them

Okay, for the eduspeak-challenged this means that we have testing now that is done 3 times a year, and every child has different goals. Instead of waiting for months for the state test results, the district and teachers get them back the very next day. If a child or school does not progress, additional resources (teachers, tutors, etc) will be provided. Every school is responsible for the successes/failures in the buildings.

I have been asking for accountability for years, it appears I may finally be getting my wish. My only fear now is that somehow the volatile climate of this district will somehow impede real progress.

Response to JT Commentary

My husband still smells of coffee from the shower I gave him this morning while reading the paper. Reading the commentary regarding the possible Caledonia advisory referendum over my first cup of java was not such a good idea in retrospect; I actually spewed coffee in my disbelief of what I was reading.

There are many things I feel were not represented well, but I will only cover a few here, perhaps I might even answer some of his many questions:

I wonder where you believe you will find the money to purchase or build new schools?

After paying millions to RUSD each year for the last 35 years, I would imagine that the citizens of Caledonia have to have at least some equity in the buildings residing within the village limits.

I wonder where you will find the money to hire people to run and teach in those schools you will build or buy.

I imagine it will be the same place RUSD gets their money – state and local property taxes.

How will you achieve the diversity required by federal law in those schools?

Racial diversity is required? Really, please inform Burlington, Oak Creek, Waukesha and the other hundreds of districts in Wisconsin that they are in violation of those federal laws. I believe the law states the district must reflect the makeup of the municipality. Besides, if you think Caledonia does not have ANY racial diversity, you are mistaken.

The money issues alone need to be answered before irresponsible and in some cases uninformed comments are made.

The Village is NOT making any decisions, voting in favor of the advisory referendum WILL NOT create a new district. Voting YES will only authorize the Village to investigate the financial impact of creating a new district. If the end result is a double in taxes I doubt ANYONE would support going forth. After the millions wasted on consultants in RUSD without any taxpayer approval , I applaud the Village of Caledonia of asking first, spending later.

Finding another way around those pesky revenue caps...

From the AP Friday:

Public schools should be allowed to pay for safety officers without having to worry about exceeding the state-imposed spending limits designed to hold down property taxes, Governor Jim Doyle said Friday.

This is a warranted proposal, police and safety officers are desparately needed in our schools - ask any RUSD teacher, parent or administrator. With that said, however, I do think that the state legislature is heading down a slippery slope. They have already exempted some costs from the revenue caps through the establishment of Community Service Funds, now they want to exempt Safety and Security too? What’s next, an exemption for costly consultants?

I imagine that the governor and state legislators will soon find a way around all those pesky revenue caps and we will become the highest-taxed state in the country.

3 Reasons to support the proposed Caledonia referendum

The Village of Caledonia is seeking input from the citizens on whether on not a feasibility study should be done that explores creating a brand-new independent school district; they will be seeking input by potentially putting an advisory (non-binding) referendum question on this spring’s ballot. They are many reasons why this should not only go on the ballot, but should be passed. These are the top 3 (in my humble opinion):

1. Since the referendum is advisory in nature, voting YES does not commit the village to anything. There will be plenty of time to study the fiscal impacts for all involved parties.

2. It doesn’t cost anything. Unlike the recent RUSD June referenda that cost the taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars, this referendum is scheduled for a “normal” election day. Adding a referendum at the end of the ballot will not cost any extra tax dollars.

3. Voting YES in the proposed April referendum will authorize the Village to finally answer the oft-debated question “Can Caledonia financially support its own school district?” Frankly this issue comes up every few years and never gets a response; it would be nice to finally get an answer.

Caledonia takes its first steps...

The front page of the JT local section has an article about Caledonia’s proposed April referenda that would explore the feasibility of Caledonia creating a new independent school district. Although Randy over at RDW has already covered this, as well as Kat from Kat’s Cradle, I thought I would point out a few things that I feel may have been left out in today’s JT story.

First of all, the Community Development Authority DID make a recommendation to include an advisory referendum on April’s ballots. What wasn’t recommended was the wording of the referendum, although I believe the referenda will not include any mention of the word “secession”, “secede”, or contain any language that refers to the Racine Unified School District directly.

It was also pointed on in the JT story that typically the legal process to add a referendum to the ballot takes 45 days. At Wednesday’s CDA meeting, it was brought up since the proposed referendum is advisory in nature, and not a binding one; this 45 day legal window is NOT applicable. This means, the Village board has some leeway in its legal timeline, which I think is good news for the residents of Caledonia.

A Slight Shift in Focus

Although the name of this site is Racine’s Report Card, which reflects on the successes and failures of the schools in the greater Racine area, I do not live in Racine – I reside in the village of Caledonia. All regular readers of this blog (and other local ones) know that the village of Caledonia is taking its first step of creating a brand new independent school system. Many of the future posts will be on this topic, but I will still continue to write about RUSD.

Government in action

Having spent many a Monday evening at 2220 Northwestern Avenue over the years, I am no stranger to seeing a governmental body in action (government in action – is that an oxymoron?). I thought I had seen it all, but apparently I was wrong.

Yesterday, I witnessed my first Caledonia Village meeting – the Community Development Authority (CDA) met to discuss a proposed TID district and the possibility of drafting a referendum that may lead to Caledonia forming an independent school district. I have to say I was impressed with how Caledonia conducts their business and treats the citizens who show up.

First of all, there were handouts for everyone, not just the board members. Nothing is more irritating than having to listen to people discuss what is on the bottom of page 2 when you have no idea what is on even on page 2!

Second, citizens were allowed to ask questions throughout the meeting. At Unified’s meetings, there is time for citizen comments at the beginning of each meeting, but the board and administration do not have to address any concerns brought up by the speaker.

Finally, not only can citizens ask questions – the questions actually get answered (or at least addressed).

I am embarrassed to admit that this was the first time I attended a Village meeting; but it certainly will not be my last.

The End is Near

Great, like I don’t have enough to worry about…. The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists moved the clock to Doomsday ahead by 2 minutes. We are now only 5 minutes away from nuclear annihilation. Hopefully, it is just a matter of somebody watching a little too much of FOX’s show, 24.

New school district for Caledonia?

I found out earlier today that the Caledonia Village board is entertaining the idea of having an advisory referendum to create a new Caledonia School District – the Journal Times has too posted a piece on this at http://www.journaltimes.com/.

My question is this – shouldn't a community of Caledonia’s size have their own schools? Even smaller communities such as Burlington, Union Grove and Waterford have their own schools, why shouldn't Caledonia?

Besides the unknown start-up costs, what do you think the biggest challenge will be?

(Hint, I’m looking for positive discussion here - no name calling or derogatory remarks.)

My Nasty Little Secret

Many people ask why I don't just run for a seat on the RUSD school board - I have many reasons. The major one is that I have two children who have lots of homework and a husband that works 2nd shift - the other is I am finishing up my BS in Information Technology and with work and the kids I do not have much time.

But I have a new reason not to run - I smoke.

Yes, like Barack Obama I have a nasty (but legal) habit. Apparently there are many in this community who will not vote for a smoker. Thank you, open-minded citizens of Racine for giving me yet another excuse not to run for a seat on the RUSD board!!

Police in our schools...

There is no doubt in my mind that the urban school districts in our state (MPS, RUSD, Beloit, etc) have a growing problem with violence – but is Racine Unified as bad off as MPS? It was recently reported that the Milwaukee Police Department was called over 11,000 times in the last school year. I know that a similar request to the Racine Police Department and Mt. Pleasant Police Department would not yield the same kind of numbers, even prorated to the smaller population of our community.

But does this mean our schools are safer, or even less violent? No, it means simply the schools are not calling for police to be sent to our schools because the police ARE ALREADY THERE!

Some people do not know this, but JI Case has a full-time police liaison in the school and there are also several off-duty police officers at the school each and every day. These off-duty officers report to Al Days, Unified’s director of Safety and Security. Al Days recently asked the board for increased funding;off-duty police officers don’t come cheap but they are desperately needed. At the recent study session where long-range budget predictions were presented, an extra $200,000 a year was set aside for this program. Let’s make sure that this line item stays in the budget, or RUSD (like MPS!!) will be soon making similar headlines in the paper.

Wanna buy a cow?

Everyone has an opinion on how the schools in RUSD should be run – ask 10 people in the community “How the district can improve?” and you may very well end up with 10 different answers. However, these people will not (for the most part) run for a seat on the board since it is widely believed that an ordinary citizen does not (and cannot not) understand the very real problems and cannot serve as well as somebody with a masters or doctorate degree.

Perhaps what the district needs is some leadership that is not educationally “learned” and not a member of the secret club of Educrats. How can the board represent the needs of the children in the district if they had not experienced life in the same way some of our students have? Just because a board member has advanced degrees does not make him/her an effective leader.

Remember, the boards' sole responsibility should be to provide broad direction for the district- Administration (the experts) still have final say in how these board decisions are implemented.

The following quote kind of sums up my feelings quite nicely---

He was so learned that he could name a horse in nine languages; so ignorant that he bought a cow to ride on.

Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790)

Making the case for reconfiguration

I have already expressed my feelings on the recent RUSD hot-button debate of neighborhood schools versus busing for socio-economic equality. I have stated both scenarios have potential drawbacks, and the best solution would probably be a blend of the philosophies. But I will keep lamenting on the subject because the district needs to make a timely decision; they need to move ahead and focus on their other plans to improve student achievement.

I am not suggesting that there will not be gains in student achievement by some sort of redistricting; however there is something I believe will raise the test scores and increase student engagement even more than redistricting – reconfiguring the schools to the junior high configuration. One board member has said (repeatedly) that the 9th grade failure rate skyrocketed after the implementation of the middle school concept, and has never really stabilized over the years. There is also the case of reconfiguring to make the schools smaller and more manageable.

When RUSD reconfigured the districts’ school in the 1983-84 school year, RUSD had approximately 22,000 students. It has been explained to me that there were long-range predictions done at the time that suggested that the district would only have 15,000 students in a few years, so although the schools were overcrowded the public was assured that the overcrowding would be for only a short time.

But there apparently something wrong with the demographer’s long-range predictions, there hasn’t been the predicted decrease in students as expected; 23 years later we have approximately the same amount of students and our schools are just as overcrowded.

The big three comprehensive high schools are designed for 1200-1400 students, yet we have 2200 students in them! Simply by moving the 9th graders out of these schools would be a huge first step in reducing the overcrowding at our schools – of course 6th graders would need to then move back to elementary schools – and this is where the problem lies, I believe. With the expanded 4-year old kindergarten and all-day 5-year old kindergarten, there is no longer room at the elementary schools for the 6th graders.

The Paullin Group has recommended that the district build 3 early childhood centers to house the both kindergarten and the early childhood programs – this of course will cost money and lots of it! Is the general public willing to invest in the future of our community, or are we destined to keep making the same mistakes again and again? We need action, not a board afraid to make an unpopular choice. What the district “looks” like is not as important as how the district functions. We need to focus on student achievement, not secondary issues like racial balance and busing. I am not trying to convey that racial balance is not important; I am simply suggesting that student achievement should be the district’s primary mission.

The first step in making the district sustainable is making the schools work, and they cannot and will not work when we have high schools that are dangerously overcrowded.

Please urge the board members to make a decision on redistricting so the district can focus on their primary mission – educating the young people of this community.

Another showing of Groundhog Day

Remember the Bill Murray movie Groundhog Day, where the main character has to keep living the same day over and over again? Yeah, tonight’s RUSD board meeting was kind of like that.

You see, way back last September (9/11 to be exact) the board started seriously talking about redistricting. To redistrict, the board had to decide if it was going to listen to the community and return to neighborhood schools or expand busing for racial and socio-economic status. To get a better idea of where the children are living, the board decided to hire a demographer. The board wanted to test the theories of neighborhood schools and ordered a report that would show where the children are in relation to the schools. They were told by administration the first baseline report would take 4-5 weeks, so at the latest the board should have seen the report by the end of October.

Now in January, 3 months later, the board finally sees the baseline report and it is not the report they asked for. Communication wires got crossed, again! So tonight the board again asked for a report from the demographer with the following parameters:

1. Children will attend the closest reasonable school provided there is capacity.
2. There will be an opt-out option if the parents do not want to send their child to the neighborhood school.
3. All the Unified buildings were thrown back in the mix, including the now closed Caddy Vista and Winslow and the magnet school buildings (including Janes Elementary – the year-around school).

This is virtually the same language that was used on 9/11 but this is not what the board received last Thursday at their study session. Now we will have to wait 5 more weeks for this scenario before “testing” another? Is it any wonder that the wheels of government roll slowly?

The Referendum Is Coming, The Referendum is Coming!!

These were the projected deficits for the next three years, if the RUSD administration had done nothing:

$9.2M
$11.9
$14.4

After the recent reductions/revenue enhancements, the projected deficit is $2.8 million for the first year, with a small surplus for each of the consecutive years.

This is good news for the taxpayer, right? Fiscal problems solved, let’s move on to another topic…Wait, you didn’t expect to let off that easy, didya? There are, what the RUSD financial team refers to as “add-ons” – money we need to include each and every year, which RUSD has not done in years, if ever.

$3.3M in facility upkeep
$1.5M technology upgrades
$200,000 for Safety and Security (in addition to a one-time charge of $200,000)

The financial team is urging to the district to seek a recurring referendum of $6.45M to cover this expenses. Recurring without an expiration or sunset date?

While I agree that our buildings are in dire repair, the technology in our classrooms and schools are about 15 years out-of-date, and we definitely need to have safer schools – I cannot and will not support a recurring referendum. Didn’t the Waukesha school board try that last year? Just keep giving us the money; we don’t want to tell you what it is for!

Instead, I will support a shorter-term (3 year) multi-year capital referendum that outlines exactly where the money will be going – I actually think that referendum might have a chance in passing…

The Weekly Report Card

A look back at the previous week’s news:

The first week of the year usually brings feelings of hope for change; some people make resolutions to quit smoking, lose weight or seek better employment. Others resolve to change their worlds in a bigger way – they run for elected office. Hats off to all the residents who this week turned in their nomination papers and are seeking change within their communities by running for public office. Some names are familiar, like Fred Dooley of RealDebateWisconsin and Brian Dey, a current RUSD school board member who is seeking a seat on the Caledonia village board. One name is even more familiar (to me anyway) because I share his surname – Taylor Wishau of Burlington. Taylor, a 17-year-old senior is seeking a spot on the Burlington School Board. Taylor is a wunderkind of sorts – his understanding of politics is rare (and so refreshing!) in someone so young.

Good luck to all of you on April 3rd!

Weekly Report Grade: A

The first week of the year also should have also brought hopes of change within the Racine Unified School District. The district, for years, has done little in the area of redistricting creating a very expensive and lopsided mess. With the promise of the results of the in-depth demographic study, the taxpayers of eastern Racine County once again had their hopes crushed. The data which was presented at this week’s RUSD study session did not include approximately 2400 students, which consists of the students at the charter and magnet schools and the children who attend a school outside of their attendance boundary. This latest snafu was blamed on a “problem with the technology”. I believe it is due to a “problem with the communication”. How a decision can be made if the board does not have all the needed information?

Weekly Report Grade: F

RUSD Community Survey - By the Numbers: Part 3

In concluding my initial impressions of the 2006 Community Survey project, which was presented at last night’s RUSD study session, I will leave you with an interesting bullet point that was included in the PowerPoint presentation:

“Although student achievement was not considered to be a major problem in 2000, close to one-half of survey respondents perceived it as a major problem in 2006.”

My question to you is this – why such a dramatic change in public perception? Is the general public simply paying more attention to academic achievement, or do the members of the community believe that our children are worse off academically than they were 6 years ago?

RUSD to seek recurring referendum?

The first portion of last night's RUSD meeting was devoted to the discussion of the district's long-term financial planning. Very enlightening to say the least....

I will be posting something soon that may have everyone asking the question "Is RUSD gearing up for a recurring referendum?"

RUSD Community Survey - By the Numbers: Part 2

I will continue to breakdown the highlights of last night’s RUSD study session, which included the presentation of the 2006 Community Survey Project:

2 out of 3 respondents support the concept of neighborhood schools.

2 out of 3 respondents support parental choice.

2 out of 3 respondents support the expansion of the magnet school programs to other buildings.

For some, it might seem that these ideas are contradictory. For example, some perceive that magnet type programs will take up additional space at neighborhood schools, ultimately making it impossible for neighborhood children to attend. However, I believe these responses share a common thread. Parents want the right to send their children to any school they wish, whether it be the school closest to their home or a school across town.

RUSD Community Survey - By the Numbers

The following numbers represent the breakdown of last night’s RUSD study session . Topics discussed were long-range budget planning, the presentation of the latest Community Survey and an update on the Edulog demographic study.

Obviously, some of the numbers presented last night can be interpreted several different ways and can be discussed for hours – but I thought I would provide a recap of what I perceive as the major talking points of the Community Survey:

69% of survey respondents support the concept neighborhood schools (the school closest to their home)

31% of survey respondents support the concept of neighborhood schools when it includes the additional bussing to achieve racial diversity.

29% of survey respondents support the concept of neighborhood schools when it includes the additional bussing to achieve economic diversity.

Also nearly 50% of survey respondents support neighborhood schools even though it may require the relocation of magnet school programs to other building locations.

I think these numbers speak volumes about what the community wants, and when compared to the data collected in 2000 and 2004, it is apparent that the numbers are consistent from year-to-year.

Deadline for Filing RUSD Nomination Papers Passes

Today was the deadline for all interested parties to turn in their nomination papers for the upcoming RUSD School Board election.

There was one candidate, Mr. Van Atta, who filed before the Christmas holidays, but I have not heard of any more - I wonder if Mr. Van Atta will be the only candidate running.

We will soon know, I imagine, but let me take this opportunity to wish the best of luck to Mr. Van Atta and (?) any other candidates.

I respect the committment it takes to sit on the RUSD board; it is a thankless job. Especially when you have to put up with people like me!

No Child Left Behind?

A few nights ago, I caught the end of the rebroadcast of Dr. Hicks State of the School District Address on CAR20. I had tuned in just as he was finishing his speech, and was able to watch the entire Q&A segment that followed his presentation. None of the questions surprised me, however, one of Dr. Hicks answers did.

When asked why children were being socially promoted to the next grade level when they were not reading at grade level, Dr. Hicks replied “Grade level does not matter with Mastery Learning”.

Really, now? He went on to explain that a child can BE in the fourth grade and BE reading at 2nd grade level. He explained there is not a reason to hold the child back, because Mastery Learning allows the child to learn at his/her own pace.

I know that it can hurt a child’s self-esteem if the child is retained, but isn’t it more demeaning when the child gets to middle and high school and cannot read?

Is it any wonder why RUSD scores on the state’s WCKE are so abysmal? It is very possible that many 4th grade students take the 4th grade test and have never seen any of the information on the test in class because they are still working in the 2nd grade book.

Up until a few years ago, children who had not mastered the basics in the early primary grades were given extra attention (via reading specialists and teacher assistants). Now, it seems that many children are not getting the “extra” time they need. It is definitely easier to remedy this situation when the child is 7, rather than having to enroll in the new reading recovery program, Read 180, in high school.

It seems to me that the Mastery Learning has created a whole new generation of children “left behind”.

A lesser of two evils

What sort of school district should eastern Racine county have? A diverse one, with families forced to bus their children up to 2 hours a day? Or one where the child simply attends the closest school to their home? Which is the best environment to learn? After all, the district's prime focus should be education.

Neither of the scenarios are perfect, and the solution just may lie between these philosophies. Having a district where the parents choose (sans waiting lists, lotteries and racial quotas) would be utopia (at least in my eyes). There will always be families that want to send their child close to home, and other families who are willing to send their child to a school across town because of different program offerings.

Why not let the community decide? Competition is what is needed to make our schools thrive, not busing for socio-economic reasons or skin color - but I have come to realize this could only exist in an alternate universe where everyone values education.

So I ask you, which philosophy - neighborhood schools or increased busing for integration - is the lesser of two evils?

Increased busing for integration

In continuation of the complex issues that the RUSD board and administration faces, I will examine the possible ramifications of increased busing - based on the Equity and Access Committees’ recommendation of using both race and socio-economic factors. (As a reminder, the RUSD board will be meeting Thursday evening at 6:00 pm to discuss this and other equity and access issues.)

Increased busing:

1. Promotes diversity.
Diversity should be valued in the classroom. Exposing young minds to other cultures and ideas can only benefit the education “experience”. With that said, is it the role of government to force diversity? Wouldn’t it be easier to gently “nudge” diversity by increasing the number of choice schools? Does an inner-city child only excel when sitting next to a suburban one? Or vice versa?

2. Costs money.
The district, according to the latest figures on the DPI, spends approximately $9.3 million a year on transportation costs. KUSD, our neighbor to the south, spends approximately $5.4 million a year. Each of the school districts have approximately the same number of children, so RUSD spends more than 72% more than Kenosha for transportation. (Kenosha currently does not bus for the purpose of integration, they have neighborhood schools. )Wouldn’t those extra millions be better spent in the classroom? Of course, one cannot really put a price tag on something intangible as diversity. This may be one of the hugest factors in making the tough decisions, as our district is continually strapped for cash.

3. Will alienate/disengage parents.
This is a huge talking point. Many advocates of neighborhood schools claim the reason for low achievement is that the parents of bussed children do not attend school functions, parent-teacher conferences, etc. While this may be true in some circumstances, I find that this is perhaps the most subjective and weak reasoning for neighborhood schools. I would venture a guess that many parents whose children currently attend a school in their neighborhood are not “engaged” and many parents whose children are bussed across town are extremely engaged in their children’s education.

The RUSD board needs to make a decision on what this district will look like, and soon. It will not be an easy task, and some population demographics will be definitely not be happy – but the board needs to weighs the pros and cons of each of the 3 proposed scenarios and make the best fit for the most number of people.

A Return to Neighborhood Schools

There will be much discussion on returning to neighborhood schools; I will examine some predictable arguments against neighborhood schools.

Returning to neighborhood schools:

1. Is unconstitutional.
The Supreme Court decision of Brown vs. the Board of Education did not stipulate the school districts needed to bus children across town in order to achieve diversity, it mandated that schools could not bar enrollment based on the child’s ethnicity.

2. Will eliminate the very popular RUSD magnet schools.
This is a real possibility, after all how can the inner city children return to their “neighborhood school” if the school is full of non-neighborhood children. We must remember why the magnet schools were created in the first place – they were created to draw the children from the outlying suburban areas to the inner-city. While some of these magnet schools have become a haven for the upwardly-mobile suburban residents, others like Red Apple Elementary still function like it was intended.

I am obviously biased, but Red Apple is the best example of what is a magnet school should be. There are MANY children from the surrounding neighborhood attending the school, yet there are still families like mine from the suburbs who choose to send their children there. The school is racially diverse (meeting RUSD’s voluntary desegregation policy) and consistently scores above district and state averages on the WCKE. Why is this? I think it is all about expectations. The parents sign a compact before enrolling their children, promising to be part of their child’s learning. The teachers and staff have high expectations for ALL the children, as do the parents. Schools like Red Apple need to be located throughout the district, making integration a more natural phenomenon.

3. Will create an environment of low-performing “minority” schools.
This is also another possibility, but it can be addressed. Julian Thomas, a majority-minority school located in the central city has created an extremely successful environment for these children to learn. It can certainly be replicated throughout the district. The school receives additional funding, the best teachers and has the added benefit of great parental support. I do not believe that inner-city children need to sit next to a suburban one to learn, I think it is (again!) all about expectations. If we think a child will fail; he most likely will. It should have nothing to do with the color of the child’s skin or the size of his parents’ pocketbook.

Just another RUSD study session?

Next Thursday, at 6:00 pm, the RUSD will be holding another special study session at the Administrative Office. According to the agenda from the RUSD website, the long awaited results of the latest community survey will be available. This was the survey done this last fall that asked the residents opinions on such matters on equity and access; this was also the survey where they over-sampled the minority population in order to get back enough results to make it statistically significant. The results of the Edulog (the demographer) study will hopefully be available also - this is the study we were SUPPOSED to see at the end of September!

Without the results of these two studies, any decision on redistricting/bussing would be based on personal preference and not on facts, so I do applaud the board for not acting in haste. With that said, the board does need to act quickly and decide what to do. Simply from the shift in populations over the last 15-20 years, some of our schools are overcrowded and some are woefully underutilized. Administration has given the board until the end of February to come to a decision if any of those proposed changes would take effect for the 2007-2008 school year.

Deciding what our district will look like will not be an easy one; I predict the board will put off the decision until the Supreme Court weighs in on the two most recent cases of equity in our nations’ schools. However, I anticipate many arguments about which “method” is better – neighborhood schools or busing for integration. Which is better? What are the potential downfalls? Over the next few days, I will try to examine some of these issues…

The Weekly Report Card

I am debuting what may be a regular feature today – the Weekly Report Card. The concept is pretty much self-explanatory; I comment on events from the previous week and grade them. My grading scale is completely subjective and self-indulgent…


For some of us, the war in Iraq is not something we think about everyday. We go on with our daily lives, sometimes forgetting those young people who are far away from home trying to make the world a safer place. Sadly, the citizens of Racine County got a reminder this past Sunday. Evan Bixler, a 2003 Park High School graduate, died Sunday while serving his country in Iraq. Rest in peace, Evan.
Weekly Report Grade: A

Governor Doyle was fined $300 for accepting Packer tickets from a lobbyist. This ethical no-no would normally warrant a failing grade, however since all the fines collected from the Ethics board get redistrubuted to the schools, I thought I’d give our governor a passing grade.
Weekly Report Grade: D-


Laquonda Jones was charged Wednesday for first-degree reckless homicide and child abuse for the death of her 8-month old daughter. Apparently, her child “cried too much”; what kind of excuse is that? My daughter cried incessantly and never napped during the day when she was an infant so I know how bad it can be. Dealing with crying babies is no picnic, but taking out your frustrations on a helpless infant is reprehensible. Can she be the first to “fry” when the death penalty is reinstated?
Weekly Report Grade: F

Big Brother is watching...

Last week I installed some cool code from www.StatCounter.com that not only tracks hits but also tracks IP addresses and the path of each visitor to this site, along with a lot of other information! I can see server host names and am able to see which post(s) attract the most visitors. I can also see the referring links! It’s all very cool, and did I mention it was free?

Success in the Central City: Julian Thomas Elementary

On November 7th 2000, the voters of eastern Racine County passed a RUSD referendum to renovate and expand the former Garfield Elementary School. (The school was renamed Julian Thomas Elementary in honor of the late Julian Thomas, a local civil rights leader.) This school was to be the district’s first “neighborhood school” where it only drew the student population from within walking distance of the school – no busing. The board, realizing that the student population of this proposed school would be mostly (86.2%) minority, extended a waiver from the district’s voluntary desegregation policy.

Fast forward a year or so - the newly hired superintendent, Dr. Thomas Hicks, apparently did not like the fact this school (still under construction) was slated to be a walk-in neighborhood school, so the school was then designated a “choice” school. This was done with hope that the strong science program, foreign language, and Suzuki strings would attract non-minority children from outside the neighborhood. At that time, Dr. Hicks, along with many others, seemed to think that economically disadvantaged minority children can only learn if sitting next to a kid from the suburbs.

Ironically, when the school became a “choice school”, many of the applicants were also minorities. When the school opened in 2003, the school population was still 80% minority. As expected, many predicted this school would fail. Even Dr. Hicks had concerns; he spoke at a board meeting expressing his concerns about creating a majority-minority school.

Fast forward a few more years - Dr. Hicks spoke of the successes of Julian Thomas in his 1st Annual State of the District Address on December 14th. Why do I share this story? Is it to try and prove that Dr. Hick’s education plan is a success, or do I have more sinister motives? No not really…I just find it ironic that the school that he did not want to exist is now the school that has become his major talking point.

The successes of Julian Thomas can be attributed to many things, I imagine. Increased parental involvement, a great staff, and additional district resources probably are all factors in the school’s recent achievements.

I find it extremely insulting that our local media has focused solely on Dr. Hick’s comprehensive reform plan (The Quality District Model), as the sole reason for the recent successes at Julian Thomas. It is a slap in the face to the many hard-working parents, teachers, support staff and community members that are working diligently every day making these small victories possible.

Peace on Earth, Good Will to Men…

I was having a Scroogey kind of day today. First my husband decided TODAY was the day he was going to TRY to find his Christmas spirit. Amidst the plethora of unhung Christmas decorations littering my house, and obnoxious jazz Christmas carols blaring in the background (which he doesn’t even like), I escaped to do some tedious errands. First trip, the grocery store – guaranteed to make my foul mood even worse. Soon after I returned home (which now looks like Christmas Town threw up) I received a phone call from my mom asking if I knew where my cell phone was.

It turns out somehow I had lost my phone at Pick N Save, whoever found it turned it in to the service desk, and they went through my address book in the phone trying to locate the rightful owner. My faith in humanity is restored with this simple act of kindness. Hopefully my newfound warm and fuzzy feeling will still be around even after my husband is done decorating our home for the holidays, but I am not counting on it….

More on RUSD off-site meetings....

Must be a slow news day, the Racine Journal Times had a front-page, above-the fold article entitled “Offsite meetings OK for Unified board?” There were some brilliant comments (insert self-deprecating tone) made by a citizen journalist, but all in all, the article was decent and I feel my quotes, although edited, adequately conveyed the message I was trying to make.

From my discussion with the JT reporter yesterday, he admitted that the logistics of having the meeting at the MACTE offices left much to be desired. The conference room was not conducive to discussing school board and administration matters; I wonder if any real progress was made in this uncomfortable and stuffy environment.

I, and many others, encourage the board and administration to keep scheduling these study sessions, and I understand they would like (and need) to do so in a fresh environment that would lend itself to more sharing of ideas.

All I ask is that these meetings, if they must be held off-site, be held in a PUBLIC building with adequate room for both the press and concerned citizens.

My question is this, when is it okay for governmental bodies to meet in a private office building - especially a building that has limited space for the press and concerned citizens? I do not think it is a wise idea – and apparently the state Attorney General’s office agrees.

RUSD Listening Sessions - Part Trois

Tonight the RUSD board members are meeting to study all those hot-topic issues (desegregation, busing, neighborhood schools, etc) – I wish I could have been there to hear what I imagine was some very animated discussion. Hopefully the Journal Times will be covering the meeting. In light of not being able to write about that – I will continue my discussion of the listening session I attended last Friday…

When I entered the board room, another board member was entering the board room from a different door and direction. He took one look at me and my friend, and said something to the effect of “Great, the trouble-makers are here!” All heads turned my way – what a self-conscious way to start my day.

Ask a few pertinent questions, and you’re labeled a “trouble-maker” or worse yet a “barracuda”. That’s OK, because I have a few pet names for some of the board members as well, and they are probably not to be used in mixed company.

Now on to more highlights from the listening session; I will pick up where I left off yesterday:

4. Racine does not need new buildings.

Racine has some very old facilities, some dating back to the 19th century and most of them built in the first half of the last century. While these buildings are old, structurally there are in pretty good shape. The group came to a consensus that with updated HVAC, windows that open, and cabling for the 21st century – these buildings could probably last quite a few more years.

5. The administration and board should not keep asking for additional operating revenue via the now “annual” spring referendum.

Duh, you think???

6. Uniforms, meaning the strict dress code implemented at Gilmore Middle School this year, should be implemented district-wide.

This is also a no-brainer. It will most likely cost the parents less at the back-to-school sales in August and it takes clothes factor out of the school experience. Whether it is a competition between the haves and the have-nots, or dealing with risqué clothing – making all the students dress in a similar style makes sense.

I am sure that there are more highlights from the session, but like yesterday, time constraints plague me.

RUSD Listening Sessions - Part Deux

On Friday morning, I attended one of the RUSD listening sessions; I was hopefully optimistic that it would be a fruitful and interesting way to spend my morning. It was interesting, but how fruitful the meeting remains to be seen – it really all depends on what the board and administration will do with the information gathered at these listening sessions. Although there were a respectful number of attendees at the listening session I attended, many population demographics were not represented.

But even though the attendees did not represent the demographics of eastern Racine County very well, there were many good ideas and interesting observations made; I will try to summarize a few of them here, I will interject my thoughts (in a different color font):

1. RUSD needs smaller class sizes, especially in the primary grades (K-3).

There are many elementary schools in the central city that already have small class sizes due to SAGE and P-5 funding from the federal government. Other schools (like Gifford) are overcrowded due to the fact of the growing population in our western communities. Redistricting will alleviate the worst overcrowding.

2. RUSD needs to return to the Junior High grade configuration: K-6th grade, 7-9 and 10-12th grade.

Immediately after changing the grade configuration in the 1983-1984 school year, the 9th grade failure rate skyrocketed to 40%. This was expected, as 9th graders faced new challenges; it was also expected that this failure rate would level out over time. After 23 years, the district is still faced with a 9th grade failure rate that is not acceptable. Returning to the junior high configuration definitely cannot hurt the already dismal results we are seeing in our high schools and as an added bonus - this will also help reduce the overcrowding at many of our schools.

3. Like Kenosha Unified and MPS, RUSD needs to return to neighborhood schools. This would help engage more families in the educational process and save money on busing.

No one wants to see Brown vs. The Board of Education overturned; returning to neighborhood schools will not bring us back to a new age of segregation. On the surface, returning to neighborhood schools makes sense. Families will not be forced to send their children across town on hour-long bus rides. However, I feel the best answer to promote diversity in our schools lies between these two philosophies. If every school was a “choice” school and drew its potential population from across the district; diversity would happen naturally.

Obviously, after nearly 2 hours of discussion there was many more ideas discussed but the constraints of both time and space do not allow me to examine any more at this time. Perhaps I will revisit this issue in a future post….

Dear Santa...

On Thursday, I attended the Honors Breakfast at Jerstad-Agerholm Middle School (JAMS). I thought I would share with you not my obvious pride with my son, but my impressions of Dr. Citron, the new principal at JAMS.

Dr. Citron, who came to this district from MPS, is definitely what RUSD needs more of in principals – he is a firm disciplinarian, yet he relates to the children extremely well. He seems to have struck the perfect balance needed to run a school full of hormonally unbalanced adolescents.

I think I am going to ask Santa to bring more administrators like Dr. Citron to our district…

RUSD working behind closed doors?

The dynamics of the sometimes tedious RUSD meetings are changing, I think. It seems that the board is doing most of its “real work” behind the scenes at study sessions that are not scheduled at the normal meeting place (Central Office).

While I applaud their efforts to keep the regularly scheduled meeting times brief and focused, I am concerned that there is a public perception that these meetings cannot be attended by the general public. I also fear that the public may perceive that decisions will be made behind closed doors.

I understand that no decisions will be made at these study sessions and the meetings (or study sessions as they are called) can be attended by the general public. While I was assured that members of the public CAN attend these meetings, I was left wondering if the board members would really welcome observers.

There is a meeting scheduled for 12/11/06; based on the agenda, I predict that the discussion should be quite lively. Please make it a point to attend the meeting and hear the discussion on redistricting, because when it finally shows up on a regular agenda, there will be little or no discussion on the matter – only a vote.

Also, please consider attending and posting your comments here on this forum; I will be unable to attend this meeting due to my son's middle school Christmas concert which is scheduled for the same time.

Another delay in redistricting for RUSD?

Yet, another potential delay in redistricting RUSD – yesterday the Supreme Court heard arguments regarding the integration policies of our public schools. The justices will consider whether race can still be a factor in public school placement.

Their decision, which is expected next spring, will have far-reaching ramifications for our nations’ schools. Currently, RUSD has a voluntary desegregation plan and is seeking to change/update this plan. Will we now have to wait (for the much needed “normal” redistricting) until the high court of the land hands down their decision? Is it unconstitutional to send an inner-city child to a western suburb like Sturtevant to attend school?

And will it change the current practice of choosing who goes to the district’s magnet schools? Currently, there are at least 2 alternative high schools (Walden and The REAL School) which base their decisions on accepting students partly on the basis of the students’ ethnicity.

I value diversity; I think that there is intrinsic value in having a diverse classroom. But it should also be noted that FORCED busing at the elementary level does little, if anything positive for our district. It disenfranchises parents and adds additional costs in busing to an already cash-strapped district. Why not encourage more parents to attend a non-neighborhood school by making every school a CHOICE school? If our magnet schools are so popular (and they are!), why not expand these programs? Busing will still be an issue, but I envision making busing available for economically-disadvantaged families who DECIDE to send their child to a school across town.

It should be noted that by nature of where our middle and high schools are geographically located; our district would NEVER be segregated. The elementary schools might be racially “out of balance” for a time, but overall the district would reflect the diverse population of eastern Racine County. We need to encourage diversity, not force it.

RUSD Listening Sessions

The RUSD board has sent out a call for community input; I have answered their call and am attending one of their Listening Sessions this Friday. It was originally scheduled for December 1st, but with the recent snownami this session was cancelled.

The following is the one question/statement that will spark all discussion at these sessions:

(Please forgive my paraphrasing, I do not have the exact wording!!)

The year is 2015, RUSD is among the top 10 school districts in the country. Please describe the district.

Simple, right? Wrong! I understand that this open-ended statement will spark many interesting and lively debates, but I feel the RUSD board is again trying to redesign the wheel.

We have had numerous surveys, forums, etc in the last 6 years. Overwhelming, the public wishes to return to the Junior High Configuration (K-6, 7-9 and 10-12) and wants to be able to send their child to any school they wish, regardless of the color of their skin or the size of the bank account. They do NOT want their children to be FORCED to ride a bus for 45 minute - 1 hour (one-way!!) to a school out of their neighborhood.

They also want safe schools (duh!!!) and good teachers (double - duh!!!)! How many times do we need to say that?

Will they just keep holding these forums until they get the answer they want? Instead of action, we again are looking to redesign the district "vision"...

Why can't we all just get along?

When I first starting blogging it was definitely a therapeutic tool; I used this forum and others like it to reduce my stress level. Now, it seems that when I read blogs everyone is SOOOO angry. I do not need more anger in my life, hence; I have not been posting as much as I would like.

I enjoy a spirited debate; but why do some feel it is necessary to blast others for their opinions? Is it the anonymous nature of most sites that fuel this anger?

School board members endorse candidate

Remember the furor over the whole right to speech controversy over an unnamed Unified Board member a few months back? We all assumed it was Brian Dey who was taken to task for speaking his mind on blogs like these and conservative talk radio.

We never did find out who was in trouble, the RUSD board cleverly found a way to remove the disciplinary action from the agenda (Thanks Armin, Brian, Julie and Randy!!)

After months of keeping quiet, he is back in the news with his outspoken ways. Now he has brought friends - Brian Dey and fellow board member, Armin Clobes, just publicly announced their endorsement of gubernatorial candidate Mark Green over at RDW. Brian, we welcome you back with open arms and Armin, thanks for taking a stand for what you think is right for the students of this district!

I would just like to take this opportunity to thank them both for standing up for the candidate they believe in and providing the people with honest and intelligent reasons why they are supporting Green.

Some may say that non-partisan elected officials should not publicly endorse a partisan candidate, but I believe it is refreshing and completely relevant!

H/T to RDW

Rambo 101

I recently found out that the school district in Texas that was teaching the students to attack intruders have stopped the controversial training program. Now is a good time for reflection…

Is training middle-school and high school students to thwart an attack from a gun-toting lunatic a good idea or is this just about the dumbest idea since inventing spandex?

A Moral Dilemma?

Okay, I have a question and I am looking for some feedback…

Can a person be both pro-choice and oppose the death penalty? Don’t these beliefs contradict each other?

What do you think?

Must See TV

Televise the RUSD school board meetings? Wish I had thought of that…. Wait, I did. For any of you (especially the board members) who personally know me, you would know this is a recurring (and sometimes annoying) request from me.

We finally got the “board packets”, the informational handouts at the board meeting, available to us online – now please finish the job and start televising the meetings.

I do not believe we need to add staff for this, a remote camera (such as the one used to televise common council meetings for the city) would work nicely. If that is not an option, please consider using volunteer students. They all need community service hours to graduate, how about utilizing some of our own “resources”?

Only 7 more days...

Is anyone else completely and utterly turned off by all the partisan mudslinging? Why can't the candidates focus on the issues?

Both the Democrats and the Republicans, along with those nasty 527's, are to blame for voter apathy. Please DO go out and vote for the very important referenda next Tuesday, but I urge you to consider completely ignoring the heated partisan races of governor and state senate. Neither party or candidate deserve any votes!

If we continue to condone their behavior by voting for them anyway, how will anything ever change?

Mill Rate Myths Part 2

I would like to this opportunity to remind everyone that the RUSD budget has very little to do with the assessed mill rate. Even with a paltry 1% increase in the mill rate, the budget passed last week will increase the tax levy by $62.3 million; the new budget will be in the excess of $271 million and the proposed increases for this school year are again rising faster than the rate of inflation.

Will somebody please look at our “above the norm” expenses such as busing and administrative costs?

RUSD Budget Increases

The RUSD 2006-2007 draft budget is available online today; I thought I would give it a quick glance. One line item really stuck out to me – in the General Management Expenditures (page 32) there is a whopping 935.5% increase in the category “Other”. There is also a notation denoting there was an explanation, so I returned to the beginning of the budget to see the reason for this massive increase.

This is the explanation, in verbatim: “Additional allocation for school training and development per Board policy”.

Are these are the same training sessions that they keep telling us are “corporate funded” and paid for by our “business partners”?

I know in the grand scheme of things, this money is an insignificant part of the overall budget, but it hacks me off to no end when we (the public) are told one thing and they do another. I do not understand how this district can condone this spending when children have to share textbooks and curriculum offerings have been reduced!

Bill McReynolds Balances budget - cuts funding for special ed?

“Unfortunately he balanced the budget on the backs of special needs education kids....but I guess they don’t vote”.

The above comment was recently posted to a Journal-Times weblog in response to an article discussing the proposed Racine County budget – but is this an accurate statement or is just the usual pontificating of the average JT blogger ?

Way back in May 2003, the Racine County Board decided to dissolve the Racine County Children with Disabilities Education Board (RCCDEB) which for decades had provided special educational services to the children who live in the western end of Racine County. The resolution allowed the affected communities time to prepare for providing these services in their respective school districts. As of June 30th of this year, Racine County is officially out of the special education business.

Given the fact that McReynolds was not voted into the County Executive’s office until April 2003, and government bodies are known to move slowly on any kind of legislation, I would venture a guess that McReynolds had very little to do with the initial resolution that was passed a mere month after he took office.

But I have come to expect nothing less from the people of this community - apparently it is completely acceptable to blast someone that is “unpopular” without knowing all the facts.

A question for Bill McReynolds...

This question is for Racine County Executive Bill McReynolds…

Can you please show the RUSD board and administration how to live within their budget? They may need your expertise and experience in maintaining a budget (within levy limits) in a few weeks when they make out their budget!

Truancies down, but is that enough?

The Journal-Times has recently published on an article on the Racine Police Department crackdown of truants; I applaud both the Racine Police Department and RUSD for taking a stand on truancy. I know that in my high school day, I may have returned “late” from an off-campus lunch once or twice but I would not have if there was a chance I would be handcuffed, fined and returned to school!

With that said, I cannot help wonder if forcing the truly habitual truant back to class is the right answer. I really can’t believe I’m about to suggest this, but perhaps the mandatory attendance age should be lowered from 18 to 16. Why should these children, who realistically are probably not going to graduate, be forced to attend school until their 18th birthday? Why not just allow them to drop-out? Wouldn’t it make our schools and classrooms easier to manage?

I wonder if it will affect graduation rates all that much, considering the following information.

This data is from the most recent Manhattan Institute report on our nation’s schools and graduation rates and a report from the internet resource site infoplease.com:

- Iowa has the highest graduation rate (93%) and the compulsory attendance age is 16.
- North Dakota ranks 2nd (88%); their compulsory attendance age is also 16.
- Wisconsin ranks 3rd (85%); compulsory attendance age is 18.
- Nebraska ranks 4th (85%); compulsory attendance age is 16.
- Vermont ranks 5th (84%); their compulsory attendance age is also 16.


So 4 out of 5 of the top graduate-producing states only mandate that a child attend school until their 16th birthday; I think we could cautiously assume that changing the mandatory attendance age would not necessarily make Wisconsin’s graduation rates go down.

Limited access to teaching materials = Poor results

Keeping with my current discussion of the inadequacies of RUSD’s curriculum and textbooks, I thought I would share some other parents’ experiences. Due to last year’s textbook reduction, many classrooms in our district have to share textbooks. In one school’s 9th grade US History class, the books are not allowed to come home since the district could only afford 35 textbooks for the entire school.

What is a parent to do if a child is out for an excused absence but cannot take the book home to complete the missed work? If the learning tools are not available, how can we expect our children to succeed?

One solution would be for the district to purchase textbooks that are available online. I know one of my child’s textbooks is available online. (I wish that all of them were!!) Having an electronic version of the book available could eliminate many of the frustrations parents and teachers face on a daily basis.

Forget the BHAG

Tomorrow evening, the RUSD board and administration will be holding a study session – the topic will be the district’s BHAG. For those not familiar with the RUSD lexicon, BHAG stands for Big Hairy Audacious Goal. While I applaud their efforts at setting goals for our district, I am fearful that any goals they may set Monday evening will not be attainable. Therefore, I respectfully suggest that they change the meeting to discuss what I like to call SHAG – Small Hairless Attainable Goals.

In order to help jumpstart the discussion I suggest one of the following:

SHAG #1 – Have more retreats with the Aspen Group. While our district leaders have exhausted how they feel about trees, the topics of rocks and dirt have yet to be explored.

SHAG #2 – Hire more consultants to “clear the path of any obstacles that may impede progress”.

SHAG #3 – Come up with a new excuse on why our children’s test scores are still so far below their peers from across the state.

Imagine the increased self-esteem our board and administration would feel if they could just successfully reach one goal – that would be, in the words of Austin Powers, “completely shag-a-delic, baby”!

RUSD curriculum sucks - most RUSD teachers do not!

Before I continue my tirade about the sub-standard curriculum RUSD is using at the middle school level, I like to take this opportunity to state this is no reflection on the staff at my son’s middle school. They did not choose the curriculum, and I do not have a “beef” with any of his teachers, especially his “core” teachers.

One of his core teachers (the one he has for 3 subjects) has done everything in her power to make my son’s transition into the “real world” much easier. She is very open to discussing him and often communicates with me outside of her “normal” working time.

I only wish every teacher in RUSD was as dedicated as she …

RUSD Curriculum - Part 1

One of the reasons my oldest child is having a hard time adapting to middle school, I believe, is getting used to the curriculum used at his school. You see, he has always been at the one of the district’s magnet schools where the standard curriculum is enriched with outside activities. Those supplementary activities explored the concepts taught above and beyond what was covered in the classroom text.

He is no longer at a magnet school, and is using the districts standard curriculum. Now I see the curriculum for what is really is; social engineering. Most of the tests, quizzes, and assignments are very subjective. There are many questions on how they feel and what their opinion is on certain subjects. While I assured him that his thoughts cannot be graded, I am really not too sure why questions like this are included.

I understand that these kind of subjective assignments should be (and are!) included in language writing assignments, but I feel they have no place in subjects like math, science or geography. Unfortunately, these subjective questions are included in these subjects.

And to top it off, the textbooks are lacking in basic facts – but that is another story for another time.

I'm back (again)!

I know it has been a while since I posted anything, and I apologize. This last month has very hectic in our household. The new school year has proven to be more challenging for my oldest and any “free” time I may have is devoted to trying to keep him on track academically. Middle school is a whole new experience for us….

I will be posting a series of entries (over the next week or so) revolving around the textbooks and curriculum RUSD is currently using. I believe I may have discovered why RUSD students continually score below their contemporaries in other neighboring districts.

Please check back soon…