San Diego Unified Parent- Life At School

Had a great time today volunteering in the kid’s classroom about my least favorite subject: Math.  I continue to struggle with even some of the basics, and when he brought home long division homework, I nearly got sick.

Hate the stuff.

But I was pottering in the garage the other day with one of my most favorite pastimes- motorcycles.  I needed to compute a final drive ratio.   This is not a difficult problem, but I began thinking- suppose I had learned math on a motorcycle?  How would that have changed my relationship with math?

We are fortunate to have John Snyder teaching Jesse this year, and like many teachers, Mr Snyder welcomes input and creative approaches.  And thus MotoMath (and MotoScience) was born.

My buddy Paul Kamanski  (a HUGE talent- see Comanche Moon) helped unload and roll in the bike and it’s lift to the classroom while the students were at PE.  I used the bike for conversations about fuel/air ratios, mileage computation, final drive ratios. How many teeth on the sprocket and the countersprocket and how many times would the countersprocket revolve with a single revolution of the rear wheel?

We discussed safety gear, ATTGATT or “All The Gear All The Time”, coefficient of friction, traction, hydroplaning, speed vs power.

We talked about alloys, strength and weight of the elements that make up the materials from which a motorcycle is made.

And it worked.  The kids were stretching their understanding of math, seeing applications for their lessons and applying their brains to something they saw was both unusual and interesting.

And I hate math just a little less.

I’m a motorhead.  Motorcycles especially, but cars too.  And when there are major engine problems in a single-cylinder internal combustion engine, the two most crucial parts are the piston and the crankshaft.  If the piston is damaged beyond repair, but the crankshaft is OK, repairs can be done- a new “top end”.  If the crankshaft is bad, it’s far more complicated, but  new bottom ends have been done.

But if the piston and the crankshaft are bad, it’s time to rebuild. With new parts.

And so it is with the San Diego Unified School District.  Yes, I have my beefs with the school board and the union that controls and operates them.  I certainly can see some excellent decisions and  some very poor ones.  But this is all minor stuff- engine tuneup material, compared to the budget shortfall passed down by the State of California.  Boardmember Evans and I agree on at least two things- textbooks will be like typewriters and what we’re doing right now isn’t really belt tightening- it’s cutting off one of your arms.

I see the budget issue as insurmountable.  The piston and the crankshaft are both bad.  So, what to do?

What any other large business or municipality can do:  File bankruptcy.

Clearly SDUSD’s operating costs exceed their income.  And there is no amount of little spending freezes or head-office cuts are going to offset that shortfall.  The teacher’s union is “not allowing” teachers to be cut, and parents are strongly objecting to any change to status quo.  (And status quo to their personal primary school experience- roll back the clock if they can!) The head office and it’s lack of management skills are one reason the union thrives- SDUSD is one of the worst employers I’ve ever observed.  These fundamental forces are fighting to keep both the broken piston and the broken crankshaft.

The hard fact of life at SDUSD is 80% of their expenses are personnel.  If you agree the capital assets, like buildings, property etc needs to be maintained at a minimum level (and trust me, that’s what they do) from where are the cuts going to come?

Ok, let’s say we have to cut teachers.  We all hate this.  Cutting teachers means increasing class size.  But we can’t cut the least-effective, nope.  The union that runs the district requires cuts be made on a seniority basis so we leave some less effective teachers to live on, and risk cutting some of the freshest (albeit less experienced) and most progressive talent to Starbucks to sling caffeine.

I’ve seen the effect of cutting administrators- much of the work is laid at the feet of principals.  These folks have one of the world’s worst jobs, and they took it for one of the world’s best reasons- to help teach children.  Instead of spending time in the classrooms observing and encouraging teachers (with whom they are tasked to manage, support and encourage) they are trudging through the muck of budgets and legal issues.  Many vice-principals, school nurses, school counselors are gone now- and where do you think that workload has gone?

Move now, and move quickly.  Pull the legal ejection handle and file bankruptcy and reorganize.

Start with new leadership that creates a modern organization with strong central management skills.  Re-hire only the best, brightest and experienced teachers with a track record of effective teaching. Incorporate 21st century teaching using methods that truly prepare our children for life in the future, and allow those teachers to function as the coaches and mentors at which they excel.  Create management and accountability systems for those teachers that support and encourage the best, and eliminate those that are better suited to jobs outside of education. Management systems that offer principals both the accountability for their school’s performance, and the authority to make changes to support that performance.

Over-simplification?  Maybe. But after a few years of observing and participating in the SDUSD, I’m pretty confident this is the only alternative.

Pull the handle, San Diego Unified.

President Obama has something to say about education, and would like to say it to students. This has become another polarizing event for the Right and Left- why?  Certainly if it was President Bush, the Right would fight for Diamond Vision screens in cafeterias nationwide. Instead, they are actively promoting a protest day. But let me set politics aside for the balance of this post. There is a fantastic opportunity here that is being skipped by both sides of the aisle:

Teach about media.

Teach why a President would want to talk directly to children. Teach how the President can get airtime and news attention that will relay his agenda and his viewpoints. Teach why people would object to this. Teach how important it is to some people that information is regulated. Teach how important it is to some people that information is UNregulated. Teach what might be called partisan in the President’s message. Teach what the alternatives to the President’s suggestions might offer.

Whatever a family’s point of view on education might be, I believe a child will improve their ability to navigate the world if they are offered the power to reason, and the power of understanding the influence (and influenced!) media and news.

By now, everybody knows I’m not an educator. I’m just a local parent trying to navigate the waters of San Diego Unified.

By now, most of my readers understand I’m frustrated at what I’ve discovered on this journey.

By now, my strong support for teachers, and specifically not their union, is well-documented.

By now, people have begun to send me things, and among them are resources that come from researchers far more talented and patient than I. I just received one yesterday that summarizes the biggest frustration I have with San Diego Unified- the grip of the teacher’s union on the management of the district.

First, I completely understand why unions are formed. Unions are formed primarily to provide working people with the power to improve their working conditions. Many years ago, before the multitude of employee protection laws, unions were the only way to preserve safe and equitable work environments. These unions have ballooned to become their own beast, the HAL9000 of labor, who’s prime directive is self-survival and growth at all costs. Many teachers who will speak candidly are often embarrassed by their own representation and the protection their union offers poor quality teachers, often at the expense of higher-performing and better qualified individuals.

In recent months, we’ve seen the union-controlled school board vote our bond dollars to not just support the teacher’s union, but the construction worker’s unions as well. So the union has unions.

The basis and power of unions lie in collective bargaining, a constitutional right which I support, as long as a business or institution has the constitutional right to hire and fire the employees of their choice. And therein lies the rub.

Have a look at this 48 page report put together by Harvard University, The Brookings Institution, the American Enterprise Institute and the Program on Education Policy and Governance. Heck, you can just read the Executive Summary if you’d like,but the details are in the rest of the 40+ pages. It’s about collective bargaining and it’s problematic effects on education. Here’s a favorite (however sad) clip:

• They restrict efforts to use compensation as a tool to recruit, reward, and retain the
most essential and effective teachers.
• They impede attempts to assign or remove teachers on the basis of fit or performance.
• They over-regulate school life with work rules that stifle creative problem solving
without demonstrably improving teachers’ ability to serve students.

The report also cites specific examples of some ridiculous clauses successfully negotiated by teacher’s unions- examples that defy all logic, but exist in the code because, frankly, they asked for it.

Now before you get your keyboard all heated up, I’ll reiterate my belief and support for teachers, the second most important part of the education equation. Most teachers earn the privilege and deserve to be treated and compensated fairly. Teachers also deserve the full protection of the employee legislation that govern conduct at any organization. I support teacher pay raises for those who are exceptional in their work conduct and make strong efforts to continuously improve the classroom environment for our children. No only do I believe this in the abstract, but continuously volunteer at our school and in our classrooms supporting and encouraging teachers.

But. As long as the union is running the school district we will be unable to create the changes necessary to move our district forward far enough to provide the level of education our children need for a global future.

Any superintendent hired as a change agent will quickly follow the lead of Bersin, Cohn and now Grier and get the heck outta this town. Read the report- you’ll see why.

Teachers, YES, unions, no.

Parents are frustrated. We see all the power and influence in the district and on the board- the teachers, the administrators, and unions. But what about parents? Are we entirely powerless?

Well, sorta, yes.

Parent unions are becoming popular for a good reason- we’re under-represented and have little organized voice. The concept of a powerful parent group has it’s appeal- torches, pitchforks, and a march on the Board who is supposed to represent us. And I like that- do it!

I see a different problem. The parent groups in which I’ve been involved fight like crazy for the maintenance and longevity of the status quo. They are the first to fight budget cuts (and why not?) and the first to fight for textbooks and cork bulletin boards. Not better connectivity and website content.

But I have rarely seen a parent group fight for progress. Or fight for innovation, fight for forward-thinking. Fight for new concepts and new technologies and their implementation in our schools and classrooms. Fight to change paradigms when budget cuts come- they rarely ask the question: How can we benefit from these changes?

Certainly a parent union can’t hurt. But I believe actual solutions to many of our problems require more than another organization, however powerful or well-meaning.

Solutions require leadership and innovation- rare in large torch-and-pitchfork groups, or groups of any kind.

It isn’t that they can’t see the solution. It’s that they can’t see the problem.” -G K Chesterton

There’s been a lot of talk around the district and parents regarding the role specific parent groups, mostly Foundations, may play in directly funding positions at district (public!) schools. As a former Foundation chair, I completely understand the district’s policy of reluctance about parent groups directly funding onsite personnel.  I also share the frustration parents have about their willingness to fund critical education shortfalls.  Parents see that their child’s education could be enhanced with additional curriculum, and that’s easy to resolve.

Solution: Let’s put on a show in the barn and with the money we raise, we’ll hire another teacher!

As a business owner, married to another business owner, I have an understanding about employment and human resource demands and the extensive legal and tax implications thereof.  I have never met a single parent group (a PTA, PTO or Foundation) that shares that understanding.  It’s not as simple as throwing down some money to a former teacher on a bi-weekly basis.

The employment laws of the State of California are a tangled web which have driven many companies out of our state.  This, coupled with the significant complication of placing an employee on the premises of another entity-a district school- and subject to the control and direction of the district, creates a legal quagmire for both parties.  And should some legal incident take place- an employee that commits a crime,(ask Helix High!) or simply trips/falls causing injury while on campus, the lawsuit papers will fly like the birds on Piazza San Marco. So Foundations will need to carry fairly expensive insurance policies to protect themselves, their board and the district.  Foundations hate paying for insurance.

The most naive will believe it’s simple- pay the  ”teacher” as an “Independent Contractor”. The IRS and labor board take a very narrow view of this status, and the description of the position itself; regular hours, specific tasks, consistency of pay and performance- are all directly opposite of the Independent Contractor definition.  As an employer of per-deim personnel, my corporation is a target for the labor board, and I have been audited specifically in search of inappropriately defined Independent Contractors.  Surviving this audit was easy for me- I had consistent and thorough employment records, kept by a professional.  Records like these have not been in my experience as a Foundation Chair nor a former PTA member.

So- parents employing staff is not as easy as it sounds in the abstract.  Sure, 30 or 40k per year for a Spanish, Art or Science “teacher” is within the fundraising abilities of some parent groups.  But the infrastructure required to properly support that position legally and consistently is another major hurdle that is rarely considered. It might be possible for a year or two, but at some point the Foundation may wish to fund something different, or may have a fundraising shortfall. What happens then?

From the district’s point of view, their first and overriding priority is the safety of our children. They do this is by carefully controlling and vetting those allowed on their campuses.  I support this goal (who wouldn’t?) and independent hiring by other entities represents a significant threat to that policy. In order to maintain security for our children, the district would need to be involved in the selection process or  require certain standards in background checks for prospective employees.  And that process would have to be monitored and controlled at the district level, so we’ve now created another level of administration at the district level for which there is no funding.

There is also the Pandora’s box of authority.  Would the Foundation’s employee be subject to the authority and direction of the school’s principal?  If so, it asks the question: Who’s the boss?  Suppose the principal prefers Castilian Spanish over the Spanish of Mexico?  Or likes contemporary art rather than classics?  Is the Foundation in charge of the curriculum for which it’s paying?  Let’s suppose, just to add a tempest to the teapot, a Foundation pays for a teacher specializing in Creationism? Who decides?

Are there ways around this?  Possibly.  One would be for the district to create a relationship with an independent employment service to establish and create hiring standards and background checks.  The Foundations would then pay that employment service to hire and administrate the position.  But most Foundations will be unwilling to face the cost of these practices- it raises the price of a position by at least 25-30 percent.

But I have another conflict with the idea,

about which I remain completely unresolved.

Government support of education is by nature, a socialist program. We are taking our tax dollars and distributing them on an education program with the specific intent to help children become functioning and contributing citizens, hopefully paying taxes and not utilizing expensive social programs.  The “rising tide raises all boats” idea.  I think that’s great. Most of the Foundations wishing to fund additional curriculum are generally at schools that are higher-performing with higher income parents.  These parents (and I include myself among them) are making decisions based on the specific needs of their own children, not the greater need of the district.  This circumvention of the process brings with it ethical and moral questions. When I volunteer in our child’s class room, I’m not there just to help him, I’m there to support the teacher and the entire classroom.  If I’m involved in campus beautification, I’m trying to create a better environment for all at the school.

So where does that end- at the gate of our own child’s class, grade level or school, or at some higher level?

Our family’s neighborhood school is Grant, and our principal Bruce McGirr, is leaving.  He’s retiring after many long years of service and I shall miss him.  

When I first laid eyes on him as a fresh-faced Kindergarten parent, I swore he was the human embodiment of Principal Skinner.  In the ensuing years, we’ve not only sat on many boards together, but have become friends and motorcycling buddies as well.  Bruce has helped my attempt to navigate the waters of San Diego Unified, and I’ve learned a great deal.

Retire well, Bruce, you’ve earned it!

Now begins the process of choosing a new principal for Grant, and it’s an amazing process.  Wise people differ on the best methods.  At Grant, we are fortunate to have a very active parent community and naturally, many folks want to be part of the process- I’m certainly among that crowd.  But I’m pretty certain I shouldn’t be.

In previous years, the district has allowed panels of parents, specifically School Site Councils, to interview a small assortment of candidates that have been pre-screened as possibly fitting the position.  The SSC is a body of parents, teachers, and staff that is elected by the same to lead and represent the interests of the school to the district.  For the sake of full disclosure, I chair the SSC at our school, and we have an excellent group- well chosen by our peers.  We may not always agree, but that why we’re a team.

However, the current and increasing attitude around school is to “expand” the process, that is, to allow more (and more!) people into decision making.  And that sounds attractive, right?  I mean, the more the merrier?

Nope.  

I’ve yet to find a mob that makes rational decisions, and yet to find one qualified to interview candidates for a job.  I’m not sure having a panel of elected representatives is the right way, either.  I’m self-employed, and believe sometimes management needs to make management decisions.  A principal that may fly through SSC may be the worst for the over-arching direction of the school district.  

So here’s the process as outlined by Shirley Wilson, our School Improvement Officer, and her boss Sid Salazar, Chief Middle School Improvement Officer.  The district has a group of principal candidates defined by screening tests, including the Haberman. The position is then advertised and candidates are drawn from that pool and interviewed for the position at Grant, using input from parents as site-specific criteria. Parents are polled and asked to convey the criteria important to them in a principal.  The decision is made at the district level, without parent review, panels, or mobs. And they claim it’s a two-week process.

I’m impressed with both Wilson and Salazar- I think they’re damn good folks who’ve earned their positions.  They have a lot at stake here.  If the principal they install at Grant does not work out, it will reflect poorly on both of them, not to mention the damage done to students and the parent relationships.  I think that’s a pretty good motivator to choose well and decide on standards that are set far higher than a mob of parents waving torches, demanding their pound of interview flesh.

Does Grant have special needs that should be addressed?  Sure.  Our school is a K8 pioneer, and we have the problems associated with that- discipline, unclear curriculum goals are only two.  Even more, Grant is a high performing school with a API score in the top ten district-wide, but based on very old-school (hah!) educational paradigms from the middle of the 19th century.  Grant is desperate for a change agent capable of taking the hard-won gains of Bruce McGirr and moving forward to the 21 century.  

Heck, I’d settle for the 20th for now.

But what about “being heard”? Shouldn’t Grant parents be able to convey their wants and needs directly to the candidates?  Well, it’s our plan to post those directly to our website.  Any candidate worth his/her continuing education credits will be checking out our community and hopefully read our news item entitled “Want to be our Principal?” at Grantk8.com

So, overall I’m happy with the way the district has chosen to handle the process, and I look forward to meeting our new principal.

Thanks to a fellow Twitter-er, I got a link to a site that explains 21st century learning is plain English. It’s both fascinating and exciting.

Many parents are still confusing the use of technology in our schools with teaching technology as a goal, just like we did as teens and young adults- a Career in Computing!  And, here’s your flowcharts and Fortran manuals.  Let’s start with the punch cards, OK?

Here’s the link 

And here’s the video:

I volunteer a lot- it’s an illness. 

If I had to choose a single volunteer event from last year as my favorite, it would be serving on a panel at the Patrick Henry High School Senior Exhibitions.

Many parents and educators hate the exhibitions because they have been a requirement for graduation.  Awful! Torture! Unfair!  And maybe they’re correct. I’m not an educator, and am not qualified to make that decision.  But I do believe the process is extremely valuable, both for students and volunteer panelists. Perhaps it shouldn’t be a requirement- I’ll allow that. But it still deserves our support and the students deserve our encouragement.  So- Sally Smith, don’t fire up the computer ;  ) 

I received the email from Yvonne Walden, Employer Outreach Specialist at Patrick Henry yesterday and have already scheduled the day.  Here’s what Walden says:

Dear Friend of San Diego City Schools,

We value your commitment to education, our community, and our students.  We desperately need your help! We are asking for a few hours of your time to assist on a Patrick Henry High School Patriot Exhibition Panel. 

The Senior Exhibition became a graduation requirement for all seniors in San Diego City Schools in 1998. The Patriot Exhibition is a presentation by the student of his/her educational accomplishments, community experiences, college or work plans, and examples of choice works.  The exhibition gives each senior an opportunity to present before a panel of community/business persons, parents and teachers.  Panelists listen to 4-6 student presentations; ask questions if necessary for clarification, and then evaluate the student’s presentation using a score sheet.

On Thursday, April 23, 2009 from 12:00 noon to approximately 3:30 p.m. more than 400 PHHS seniors will be presenting their exhibitions.  We need your participation to make this a successful experience for our seniors. Please encourage co-workers and friends to volunteer as panel members as well.  We can place you on the same panel.

If you elect to participate, please plan to wear business attire during the Exhibition.  The students will be dressed professionally as well.  We will provide light snacks and water for our panelists.

You may have questions about being a panel member.  The information enclosed with this letter may be of help. If you have additional questions please call me at 619-286-7700 x 2233.  There is also additional information on the Henry website at www.henry.sandi.net . Click on “Students” on the top of the page and then look for a section marked “Senior Exhibitions”.  We look forward to your participation and thank you for supporting the students of Patrick Henry High School.  

Please return the enclosed confirmation form by mail, or fax or e-mail.

Sincerely,

Yvonne Walden, GCDF
Employer Outreach Specialist
PATRICK HENRY HIGH SCHOOL
6702 Wandermere Drive, Room #11, Main Office
San Diego, CA 92120
(619) 286-7700 x 2233
(619) 229-0370 (Fax number)
ywalden@sandi.net <mailto:ywalden@sandi.net> 

and here are the attachments: Fact Sheet   Panelist Form

I cannot recommend the experience enough. Maybe those of you who have high-school age children are tired of it, but for us newbie primary-school parents, it’s a glimpse of what’s in our futures.  And in our pasts.

I’ve already set the day aside, and I hope you will as well.  

Full disclosure: we are an advertising family- I’m a commercial/advertising photographer, and my wife is the COO of an agency here in San Diego.  We make our living in photography, video, advertising, public relations, social media and all that goes with it.

That typed, I stumbled across an interesting website that I believe should be on all parent’s radar screens:

Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood.

There are LOTS of ways advertising messages are infiltrating our schools, some more visible than others.  I’m a big free-speech guy, so I’m reticent to create legislation to limit that right.  But I do believe schools deserve special consideration- they should be as advertising-free as possible.  

I also recognize and respect the argument that trying to protect our kids from advertising messages is a bit like trying to stop rain, and it may be wiser to teach our children about the pervasive nature of advertising. If only the district would provide as much media awarness as advertising possibilities, I might be satisfied.

Regardless of which position you take for your family, the above site is an excellent resource to support you.  It monitors many of the ways advertisers are out to reach your children.  One which I found amazing, is “BusRadio” where school busses are equipped with sound systems to provide ad messages to that captive (really!) audience.

Have a look, the site is amazing and valuable. 

Here’s another great resource for kids from PBS:

Don’t Buy It

This site has the single best insightful look at advertising photography- they do a “cover shoot” where before, after and during images are shown to demonstrate how the process really works.  They do a similar treatment for food photography.  Both of these venues are well within my professional purview, and they are accurate.  This site is created for kids- very valuable.