Since the beginning of man, some group or religious sect has predicted the "End of the Earth." Well, thankfully so far, neither they, Nostrodomus or anyone else has predicted Earth's demise correctly. Today, May 21, 2011 was a day some religious groups thought would be the end of the world. Most reports of their beliefs were met with sarcasm and jokes. It did however make me think; what if today was my last day on Earth? What if it was yours? How would you spend it? This is how I spent mine.
My "Day of Doom" began at 7:30 AM as my 7 year old daughter woke me up. Like me, she is an early riser compared to my wife and my son, and just wanted daddy's company. Not a bad start. My son had a make-up baseball game scheduled for noon, so we awakened him - which on some mornings is like waking a bear from hybernation - so we could run a few errands before his game. My oldest daughter had to work, therefore she dropped her 4 year old son, my grandson, over so my wife could take him to his final soccer game of the season.
My son, finally dressed, and I started our errands. I grabbed a cup of warm coffee (2 Splenda's & cream) from Tim Horton's and we headed for the barbershop. Today was slated to be a gorgeous day, so while we got our hair cut, I got the SUV washed at fellow Eastmoor High School alum's car wash "Sammy's Auto Clean." The barbershop conversation was lively and centered around LeBron James and his leaving for Miami (still!?). The consensus was that comparing Cleveland to Miami, we all would have left! No one even minded "The Decision" because how many times have you heard a player learning about being traded to a different team on ESPN rather than from his organization? If that's the culture owners set, then they can't be mad when the shoe get's on the other foot. I would have taken my talents to "Souf" Beach too! Plus, no one mentions the millions of dollars donated to charity "The Decision" created.
Arriving to his game, we discovered that despite the sunny morning, the field was completely unplayable due to the immense amount of rain we've received. His game was cancelled. Good thing because while taking my mom and my grandson to his soccer game, my wife suddenly became violently ill. I left my son with his team at one Gahanna park to rescue the rest of my crew at another. Fortunately, her parents live only a 6-Iron away from Headley Park and I came as my father-in-law was driving my wife away in her car. As I came upon my mom and young daughter, my mother-in-law arrived to bring them back to the house. Luckily, I was able to watch the rest of my grandson's soccer game before heading back to pick up my son.
While picking up my son, my cousin called and needed a ride to an auto repair shop to pick up his car. Since my wife was sick, they told my grandson that he couldn't go to the year-end pizza party at Massey's Pizza. Poor little guy's face clouded up, and to him, it was the end-of-the-world. Grand Dad to the rescue! I was able to take him to his pizza party and watch him receive his medal, certificate, and eat the piece of cake with his name on it! Not bad.
I picked up my cousin and his three young children and took them to pick up his car. He really appreciated the favor, but really, the favor was to me because I was able to spend a few moments with him and his adorable children. The rest of the afternoon was spent trimming bushes, cutting grass and purchasing flower bowls from DeMonye's for the beautiful hanging garden on our deck. With all the rain this spring, everyone's yard looks like a resort when freshly cut.
It was early enough when I finished that I decided to take my two youngest children and my grandson to see Pirates of the Caribbean 4 at Easton. My wife enjoyed the several hours of piece and quiet and I enjoyed several hours with the most important young people in my life. Driving to the theater, Will Smith's song "Summertime" played and all seemed too right in the world for it to end today.
The movie is over, the Earth is still here and the kids are safe in the bed. Currently, as I write to share my day with you, I am on my deck sipping a delicious glass of Sunstone Estate 2006 Syrah while taking soothing drags from a lucious Monte Cristo Reserva Negra cigar.
Some may have had a more exciting "last day," but as I reflect, I spent quality time with my youngest children and grandson, saw my in-laws, spoke to my eldest daughter, saw my grandson recieve his medal, spent time with my cousin and his children, spend quality "alone" time in my yard, spoke with and attempted communication with both women who call me son, thought fondly of my sisters, took in a movie, and had a great glass of wine and cigar. At the very end to this day, I will thank God for all my blessings and beg forgiveness for all of the dumb things I've done in my life. And at the end, I will fall asleep next to the best friend I ever had.
If today is my last day on this Earth, it was a pretty damn good day and it has been a damn good life...but I'm glad they were wrong.
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Can't Get No Satisfaction: Students Say High Schools Are Failing�Them
Many high schools espouse the new "3 R's" - not Readin' Ritin' and Rithmetic, but Rigor, Relevance and Relationships. Clearly, from the survey response outlined in this article, many schools have incorporated the rigor and relationship piece, but lack the relevance craved for by students. With the explosion of information available to students at the touch of a finger, high school teachers are transforming from the givers of information to the guiders of information. With that, students want to know how the information they are learning in high school will help them when they walk out of the school doors.
Can't Get No Satisfaction: Students Say High Schools Are Failing�Them
Can't Get No Satisfaction: Students Say High Schools Are Failing�Them
Sunday, April 10, 2011
What's Next for Ohio Senate Bill 5?
I can’t recall another bill that has stirred such intense reaction in Ohio as Senate Bill 5. It seems daily there are protests at the statehouse accompanied by articles in local news publications outlining the differing perspectives of the bill. State legislators are bombarded with correspondence from constituents trying to persuade them to their point of view. Public employee unions have become very powerful entities, and the typically democratic supporting organizations are under assault like at no time since their inception. Those against Senate Bill 5 cry out that this is an assault on the middle class itself and on the rights of public employees to protect their working conditions, while those in support of the bill say that it is high time to rein in the power and perks of union employees and give government officials the capabilities of controlling spending. Even private unions are wary of a possible attack on them.
A prominent former state official recently shared with me that this measure is politically bigger than public unions, but is a once in a generation opportunity for republicans in Ohio to seize control from the democrats for the foreseeable future. Clearly, this is a perfect storm of a crisis in the economy which is allowing elected officials to take radical measures that wouldn’t ordinarily be supported in prosperous times. Additionally, republicans in Ohio control both houses of the General Assembly as well as the governorship at a time when the state redistricts state and congressional boundaries which will have an effect on the outcome of the next several elections. The former official stated that weakening unions and their ability to support democratic candidates will strengthen the Republican Party in Ohio and turn the Buckeye State into a clear “red” state for the 2012 elections. The official also said that republicans would like nothing better than for public employee unions to spend all of their campaign funds on the 2011 Senate Bill 5 referendum than on state and national candidates in 2012.
As evident as it was that Senate Bill 5 was going to pass both houses of the General Assembly and receive the governor’s signature (legislative votes were secured before the bill was even introduced), is as evident that this impending law will surely end in a referendum. We have heard much about the effects that Senate Bill 5 will have on educators, police officers, fire fighters and other public workers, but what can we expect as this bill heads to a referendum?
A referendum is the right of Ohio citizens to challenge a bill passed by the state legislature and signed into law by the governor. If the required amount of registered voters signs a referendum petition, then the bill will go before the citizens in a statewide vote with a simple majority needed for passage or failure of the bill. This act is democracy at its finest.
Governor Kasich signed Senate Bill 5 into law on March 31, 2011 with the bill becoming law 90 days from the date it is signed. During the 90 day period, which we are currently in, signatures are collected to place the bill on the November ballot. Since the Secretary of State’s office received the bill on April 1, 2011, that places the deadline for filing the signatures with the Secretary of State at June 30, 2011. The number of signatures of registered voters must be at least 6% of the total vote cast for the office of governor at the last gubernatorial election. Therefore, the estimated number of signatures that must be collected to place Senate Bill 5 on the ballot has been determined to be just over 230,000 signatures. In addition, signatures must be collected from at least 44 of the 88 Ohio counties.
Once the signatures have been filed, the Secretary of State’s office must determine the validity and sufficiency of the signatures no later than 105 days before the election. Therefore the deadline to determine if there are enough valid signatures to place Senate Bill 5 on the ballot is July 26, 2011. If it is determined that there are not enough valid signatures, ten additional days will be allowed to file additional signatures to the petition. If that happens, the Secretary of State has no later than 65 days before the election to determine sufficiency, which is September 4, 2011. If the deadline date falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the date DOES NOT move to the next business day.
If there are any challenges to the validity of the signatures, those challenges must be filed no later than 95 days before the election, which is August 5, 2011. The Supreme Court of Ohio will rule on any challenges. If there were any addition signatures added, challenges to those signatures must be made no later than 55 days before the election, or September 14, 2011. Again, the Ohio Supreme Court must rule on those challenges no later than 45 days before the election.
Once it is determined that the bill will be placed on the November ballot, ballot language will be determined and it will be advertised statewide and voted on at the November 8, 2011 general election. If no valid referendum petition is filed by the legal requirements, Senate Bill 5 will become law on July 1, 2011. If a petition for referendum is filed and all requirements are met, it will become law immediately after the general election if it passes, or will not become law if the measure fails.
Hang on for an interesting “off” election year.
A prominent former state official recently shared with me that this measure is politically bigger than public unions, but is a once in a generation opportunity for republicans in Ohio to seize control from the democrats for the foreseeable future. Clearly, this is a perfect storm of a crisis in the economy which is allowing elected officials to take radical measures that wouldn’t ordinarily be supported in prosperous times. Additionally, republicans in Ohio control both houses of the General Assembly as well as the governorship at a time when the state redistricts state and congressional boundaries which will have an effect on the outcome of the next several elections. The former official stated that weakening unions and their ability to support democratic candidates will strengthen the Republican Party in Ohio and turn the Buckeye State into a clear “red” state for the 2012 elections. The official also said that republicans would like nothing better than for public employee unions to spend all of their campaign funds on the 2011 Senate Bill 5 referendum than on state and national candidates in 2012.
As evident as it was that Senate Bill 5 was going to pass both houses of the General Assembly and receive the governor’s signature (legislative votes were secured before the bill was even introduced), is as evident that this impending law will surely end in a referendum. We have heard much about the effects that Senate Bill 5 will have on educators, police officers, fire fighters and other public workers, but what can we expect as this bill heads to a referendum?
A referendum is the right of Ohio citizens to challenge a bill passed by the state legislature and signed into law by the governor. If the required amount of registered voters signs a referendum petition, then the bill will go before the citizens in a statewide vote with a simple majority needed for passage or failure of the bill. This act is democracy at its finest.
Governor Kasich signed Senate Bill 5 into law on March 31, 2011 with the bill becoming law 90 days from the date it is signed. During the 90 day period, which we are currently in, signatures are collected to place the bill on the November ballot. Since the Secretary of State’s office received the bill on April 1, 2011, that places the deadline for filing the signatures with the Secretary of State at June 30, 2011. The number of signatures of registered voters must be at least 6% of the total vote cast for the office of governor at the last gubernatorial election. Therefore, the estimated number of signatures that must be collected to place Senate Bill 5 on the ballot has been determined to be just over 230,000 signatures. In addition, signatures must be collected from at least 44 of the 88 Ohio counties.
Once the signatures have been filed, the Secretary of State’s office must determine the validity and sufficiency of the signatures no later than 105 days before the election. Therefore the deadline to determine if there are enough valid signatures to place Senate Bill 5 on the ballot is July 26, 2011. If it is determined that there are not enough valid signatures, ten additional days will be allowed to file additional signatures to the petition. If that happens, the Secretary of State has no later than 65 days before the election to determine sufficiency, which is September 4, 2011. If the deadline date falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the date DOES NOT move to the next business day.
If there are any challenges to the validity of the signatures, those challenges must be filed no later than 95 days before the election, which is August 5, 2011. The Supreme Court of Ohio will rule on any challenges. If there were any addition signatures added, challenges to those signatures must be made no later than 55 days before the election, or September 14, 2011. Again, the Ohio Supreme Court must rule on those challenges no later than 45 days before the election.
Once it is determined that the bill will be placed on the November ballot, ballot language will be determined and it will be advertised statewide and voted on at the November 8, 2011 general election. If no valid referendum petition is filed by the legal requirements, Senate Bill 5 will become law on July 1, 2011. If a petition for referendum is filed and all requirements are met, it will become law immediately after the general election if it passes, or will not become law if the measure fails.
Hang on for an interesting “off” election year.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Innovative Black History Month Activity at Westerville North HS
In recognition of Black History Month, Westerville North High School is infusing a school-wide activity in which significant African-American figures are introduced, discussed and voted upon by students. Merging the spirit of the March Madness NCAA tournament brackets, the newly formed Big Ten divisions "Legends" and "Leaders," and the Electoral College process, WNHS has developed its own daily competition among historical African-American figures.
To begin with, 16 historical African-American figures were selected and divided into two divisions. The "Legends" division contained those people who are no longer living while eight living icons were selected to be in the "Leaders" division. Once the selections were made, each division was seeded 1-8. The final seedings are:
LEGENDS
1. Martin Luther King, Jr.
2. Rosa Parks
3. Frederick Douglass
4. Thurgood Marshall
5. Malcolm X
6. Harriet Tubman
7. Jackie Robinson
8. George W. Carver
LEADERS
1. Jesse Jackson
2. Barack Obama
3. Colin Powell
4. Condoleezza Rice
5. Maya Angelou
6. Oprah Winfrey
7. Muhammad Ali
8. Michael Jordan
Each day, the students at Westerville North meet for several minutes in an Advisory period where this activity takes place. Like the NCAA tournament, the #1 seed is paired of against the #8 seed and so on. Students are given a brief biography of the accomplishment of each "contestant" and then discuss and vote within the classroom on the figure they believe have made the greatest historical impact. Like the Electoral College concept, the icon that wins the most votes in the class receives the entire singular vote for that class. After adding up the votes of all the advisories, the figure with the most votes moves on to the next round of competition. Each day the competition rotates divisions until a champion is crowned at the end of the month.
Displayed on a large bulletin board at the entrance of the school is the bracket shown below along with the biographies of the icons pitted against each other for the day. Those figures selected, their seed placement and the outcome selected by students are far less important than the daily discussions of historical figures along with their impact on our country, and the interest over the course of the month that stokes anticipation for coming matchups. Many schools display posters or read famous African-American quotes during the month of February, but this activity fosters rich discussion over the course of an entire month that hopefully will introduce deserving people to students and help all students realize that there is no such thing as black history or white history, but a history of all peoples that are interwoven to tell the story of AMERICAN history.
As you can see from the bracket, there has already been several upsets!
To begin with, 16 historical African-American figures were selected and divided into two divisions. The "Legends" division contained those people who are no longer living while eight living icons were selected to be in the "Leaders" division. Once the selections were made, each division was seeded 1-8. The final seedings are:
LEGENDS
1. Martin Luther King, Jr.
2. Rosa Parks
3. Frederick Douglass
4. Thurgood Marshall
5. Malcolm X
6. Harriet Tubman
7. Jackie Robinson
8. George W. Carver
LEADERS
1. Jesse Jackson
2. Barack Obama
3. Colin Powell
4. Condoleezza Rice
5. Maya Angelou
6. Oprah Winfrey
7. Muhammad Ali
8. Michael Jordan
Each day, the students at Westerville North meet for several minutes in an Advisory period where this activity takes place. Like the NCAA tournament, the #1 seed is paired of against the #8 seed and so on. Students are given a brief biography of the accomplishment of each "contestant" and then discuss and vote within the classroom on the figure they believe have made the greatest historical impact. Like the Electoral College concept, the icon that wins the most votes in the class receives the entire singular vote for that class. After adding up the votes of all the advisories, the figure with the most votes moves on to the next round of competition. Each day the competition rotates divisions until a champion is crowned at the end of the month.
Displayed on a large bulletin board at the entrance of the school is the bracket shown below along with the biographies of the icons pitted against each other for the day. Those figures selected, their seed placement and the outcome selected by students are far less important than the daily discussions of historical figures along with their impact on our country, and the interest over the course of the month that stokes anticipation for coming matchups. Many schools display posters or read famous African-American quotes during the month of February, but this activity fosters rich discussion over the course of an entire month that hopefully will introduce deserving people to students and help all students realize that there is no such thing as black history or white history, but a history of all peoples that are interwoven to tell the story of AMERICAN history.
As you can see from the bracket, there has already been several upsets!
Thursday, February 10, 2011
What Race Are You?
Many contest that there is no true scientific basis for "race" and that it is a poorly contrived man-made classification system. As America has evolved over the 20th and now 21st Century, the extreme diversity in our country is now resulting in a very large percentage of Americans who are made of multiple races either directly from their parents or from their ancestors. That is causing a great delimma as our government and educational systems try to maintain an archaic racial classification system of which many people no longer fit.
Federal funding for many programs and educational accountability systems, such as the measurement of the achievement gap and the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), are still based upon the archaic racial classification system. Organizations representing minority groups are resisting multiple racial classifications because it has a direct impact on minority government funding and sometimes political strength. The NY Times article points out that today 1 in 7 marriages in the United States are either interracial or interethnic. How on earth can their children be neatly classified into a racial category? If those with multiracial backgrounds are allowed to check multiple boxes for each race in their heritage, then is there any validity or accuracy in the racial classification data? I suspect that if everyone who was multiracial checked the "multiracial" box on the many forms where race is asked, the multiracial group would be the largest "race" in America.
As a person who is multiracial, I find it curious that I even have to define myself, by others rules mind you, by any classification at all. Why should I even have to choose a particular race and deny the other? Or do I select "multiracial" and as a person of the African-American and White race, lump myself into a general category no different than someone who is Asian-Hispanic, Black-Asian or any of the thousands of other possibilities that truly exist?
I grew up in an African-American household, was reared within the African-American culture and define myself as an African-American. However, for me, that is a cultural distinction rather than a racial one. I also hold no illusions that as I am researching my genealogical heritage, I've discovered that I am equally or possibly even slightly majority White, but based upon the unfortunate racist practices, policies and laws throughout the history of this country, I could NEVER claim to be White in the same manner that I claim to be African-American, and not be looked upon with a straight face. And because of that, I would never want to be - but again, that should be MY choice.
I recently watched a program where NFL Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith discovered his family heretage and learned through a DNA test that he was 81% African, 13% European and approximately 6% Native American. The examiner said that 81% African was the highest percentage she'd ever seen of an African-American, with most being between 60%-70% African and the rest a myriad of other races. That makes me wonder, is it the color of your skin or the culture with which you were raised that determines most your personal classification of race. Tiger Woods once said that he was Cablinasian, which was a word he devised to recognize his Caucasian, Black, American Indian, and Asian biological heritage. I remember that many in the "black" community were outraged at him for not claiming to just be "black" because White Americans will only view him as a "black man." As someone equally as multiracial as Woods and with a far fairer skin tone, I concur that that is how I am viewed. But he isn't "just" anything, clearly from his Asian mother and apparent other mixtures in his background...and why should he or any who are multiracial (which is nearly all of us) be "just" anything? Thoughts?
New York Times Article: Counting Race Can Throw of Some Number
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/10/us/10count.html
Federal funding for many programs and educational accountability systems, such as the measurement of the achievement gap and the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), are still based upon the archaic racial classification system. Organizations representing minority groups are resisting multiple racial classifications because it has a direct impact on minority government funding and sometimes political strength. The NY Times article points out that today 1 in 7 marriages in the United States are either interracial or interethnic. How on earth can their children be neatly classified into a racial category? If those with multiracial backgrounds are allowed to check multiple boxes for each race in their heritage, then is there any validity or accuracy in the racial classification data? I suspect that if everyone who was multiracial checked the "multiracial" box on the many forms where race is asked, the multiracial group would be the largest "race" in America.
As a person who is multiracial, I find it curious that I even have to define myself, by others rules mind you, by any classification at all. Why should I even have to choose a particular race and deny the other? Or do I select "multiracial" and as a person of the African-American and White race, lump myself into a general category no different than someone who is Asian-Hispanic, Black-Asian or any of the thousands of other possibilities that truly exist?
I grew up in an African-American household, was reared within the African-American culture and define myself as an African-American. However, for me, that is a cultural distinction rather than a racial one. I also hold no illusions that as I am researching my genealogical heritage, I've discovered that I am equally or possibly even slightly majority White, but based upon the unfortunate racist practices, policies and laws throughout the history of this country, I could NEVER claim to be White in the same manner that I claim to be African-American, and not be looked upon with a straight face. And because of that, I would never want to be - but again, that should be MY choice.
I recently watched a program where NFL Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith discovered his family heretage and learned through a DNA test that he was 81% African, 13% European and approximately 6% Native American. The examiner said that 81% African was the highest percentage she'd ever seen of an African-American, with most being between 60%-70% African and the rest a myriad of other races. That makes me wonder, is it the color of your skin or the culture with which you were raised that determines most your personal classification of race. Tiger Woods once said that he was Cablinasian, which was a word he devised to recognize his Caucasian, Black, American Indian, and Asian biological heritage. I remember that many in the "black" community were outraged at him for not claiming to just be "black" because White Americans will only view him as a "black man." As someone equally as multiracial as Woods and with a far fairer skin tone, I concur that that is how I am viewed. But he isn't "just" anything, clearly from his Asian mother and apparent other mixtures in his background...and why should he or any who are multiracial (which is nearly all of us) be "just" anything? Thoughts?
New York Times Article: Counting Race Can Throw of Some Number
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/10/us/10count.html
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Harvard Report Questions Value of 'College for All'
Having been an educator in both an urban and suburban settings, there are aspects of this article that ring true. In many of Columbus suburbs, approximately 80-85% of graduating students submit college applications to 2-year or 4-year colleges. With many urban districts across the United States struggling to even graduate that percentage, I guess the big question is if the "college for all" mantra is too narrow and too unrealistic of a goal? More importantly, are schools preparing the students who do not go on to college to successfully transition to the working world? What do you think?
Harvard Report Questions Value of 'College for All'
Harvard Report Questions Value of 'College for All'
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Jefferson Thomas: A Quiet Hero
On the 60th anniversary of nine black students integrating Little Rock Central High School with the support of the National Guard, I find myself reflecting on an encounter I had with a true hero of the civil rights movement. A quiet gentleman who lived among us in Central Ohio in preferred anonymity, but displayed as much courage amid adversity as any man I have ever had the privilege of meeting. A man who unknowingly shaped American history and made equal education and the achievement that comes with education possible for me and many others in my generation. After spending precious minutes with this gentleman, I left with a profound sense of responsibility as I rest on the shoulders of giants on which I and many others stand. I fondly recall a few moments with Mr. Jefferson Thomas.
In February 2009, while still in my tenure as principal of Pickerington High School Central, I was invited by neighboring junior high principal, Chuck Byers, to view a Black History Month project being conducted by some of his students. Mr. Byers knew that I enjoyed coming to programs at Ridgeview Junior High to show support for the future Central Tiger students. The project was held in the Media Center and featured several well-done reenactments by students dressed in-character of several key figures in the civil rights movement. Mr. Byers shared that Jefferson Thomas, who had a relative participating in the project, was in attendance and offered to introduce me.
Most people have no idea who Jefferson Thomas is, or of his historical significance. However, those who know even a little about the history of the civil rights movement in America recognize the moniker "Little Rock 9."
One of the most significant moments that kick-started the legal reformation of the civil rights movement was the historic Brown vs. Topeka, Kansas Board of Education in 1954. That case, led by future first black Supreme Court Justice, Thurgood Marshall, reversed the "Separate but Equal" doctrine from the Plessy vs. Ferguson case more than 50 years earlier. It was easily provable that schools for black children and white children were not only separate but far from equal. In a decision that in 1954 could be considered courageous, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously that even if physical conditions were equal, the learning experience would still be unequal in a forced segregated condition. That decision set off a firestorm not only in the rural South but in many American cities over the next several decades. That storm blew into Columbus in 1973 with Penick vs. The Columbus Public Schools Board of Education federal discrimination lawsuit. Columbus along with many urban school districts attempted to or were forced to comply with the Brown ruling and desegregate their schools. The first major test of this case was in Little Rock, Arkansas where nine students from the all-black Horace Mann High School, were selected to attend the all-white Central High School in 1957. One of those students was sophomore Jefferson Thomas.
When Principal Byers took me to meet the smartly dressed Jefferson Thomas, he was seated with members of his family in the Media Center. The soft-spoken gentleman cordially shook my hand as we were introduced. I remember thinking immediately that I did not recognize him, however, the only images I had seen of him were as a 15-year-old student in the documented footage of the Little Rock 9 from the award-winning Eyes On The Prize series. At this stage of his life, he was well into his 60's. Before our hands parted, Mr. Byers noted that I was the principal of Pickerington Central. It's difficult to explain that moment, but Mr. Thomas struggled mightily to conceal his surprise from that information. His eyes opened wide and focused intently on me as he smiled, regripped my hand and shook it vigorously. I cannot pretend to speak for Mr. Thomas, but I got a notion that he felt a sense of accomplishment. Not specifically about me personally, but for all who may have reached a level of achievement, in part, because of what he endured.
He immediately introduced me to his family and engagingly sat with me for over 45 minutes. The first question I remember asking him wasn't necessarily about his own experience, but that of his parents. I shared with him that as a father of three, there was no way I could let my children be subject to the dangers that he and his classmates faced daily. He said that on the first day of school, September 4, 1957, they were famously barred from entering Central High School by armed members of the National Guard that were called up that day by the governor to deny their entrance. The troops would move aside to let white students enter the school, but would stand with bayonets crossed when they tried to enter. Classmate Elizabeth Eckford somehow did not get the message that the group was to meet at NAACP member Daisy Bates' home to go to school together. Eckford was famously etched into history as the young lady who was filmed walking alone to school only to find herself quickly surrounded by an angry mob that swore at her, shouted racial slurs and spat on her as she sat frightened at the bus stop. With my own daughters in mind, my gut wrenches just thinking of one of them in that position. After realizing that they were not going to be admitted to the school, the group shuffled back into the waiting cars to head back home. When he arrived home, Mr. Thomas said that his mother burst through the door in tears and embraced him nearly to the point of suffocation. When he asked what was going on, they were shown the television as the scene of the mob outside of Central was being replayed. He recalled that he had no idea of the magnitude of the mob around them because the media surrounded them in such a way which actually shielded them from the scene. We laughed as I said that would have been the last day for my child!
I asked him how was he chosen to attend Central, and most importantly why did he want to go? The teenagers had no intention of being civil rights pioneers or aspirations of doing something great; they were just kids who wanted to go to a good school. He also said that he thought far more than nine would be attending Central and that he might not have volunteered had he known there would have been so few going with him. Mr. Thomas shared that initially, there were over 100 students slated to go to Horace Mann who volunteered to go to Central. That number, however, fell quickly as many of the families of the volunteers began receiving harassing calls, death threats, and were even being fired from their jobs. The number, he said, shrank to about 25 when they were forced to sign an agreement that said they would not be permitted to retaliate in any way whatsoever on a white student that may disparage them verbally or physically. In addition, they were not permitted to participate in any extracurricular activities: no dances, clubs or sports. As a result, the final number of "acceptable" volunteers dwindled to nine.
He shared with me what his day-to-day experience was like. After weeks of being banned from attending school at Central, President Eisenhower ordered them admitted and instead of using the National Guard to prevent their entrance, they were ordered to protect them. On September 25, 1957, the nine students integrated Central High School. Each student had a National Guardsman escort them everywhere in the school. After a short while, though, the individual escorts ceased. The students would regularly hear remarks and threats in the hallways, restrooms, and in the lunchroom. He said that inside the classroom was the most normal for him. He went on that he had little issues in his classes and developed decent relationships with some white students and some of his teachers, who he noted were surprised at his level of intelligence.
Thurgood Marshall was their attorney and met with them regularly to ensure that the school was treating them fairly. He said that Martin Luther King spoke to them to offer encouragement to complete their struggle and let them know the importance of what they were doing. At that time, Martin Luther King wasn't yet the civil rights and American icon he would come to be, but an up and coming southern preacher who recently led a successful bus boycott in Alabama. Mr. Thomas chuckled quietly when he reminisced about wondering why Dr. King would want to talk with them because they weren't boycotting anything.
He talked about his experience on the Oprah Winfrey Show when on January 15, 1996, she celebrated the Little Rock 9 and reunited them on air with a few of their white classmates. He recalled the entire event as very emotional. Mr. Thomas remembered that many of the former white students that were invited to attend the show still harbored their racial prejudice and refused to participate. He went on to describe that during the show, a few of the students asked them for forgiveness and apologized profusely, but some could not. Off the air backstage, one former student, in particular, apologized profusely to him, but explained that he could not do so on-air because "I still have to go back to Little Rock after this." Wow.
I asked him if he ever tired of being recognized for something he did as a teenager or talking about his experience as a member of the Little Rock 9. He said absolutely not, and in fact, he watched and read everything he came by regarding the group to make sure the information was accurately portrayed.
After that 1957-58 school year, the Little Rock Board of Education voted to cancel school the next year instead of continuing with their desegregation plan and temporarily shut the four Little Rock high schools down. Mr. Thomas went on to join the military after high school and faced heavy combat in Viet Nam. His post-war work with defense agencies brought him to settle in Columbus, Ohio.
I humbly thanked him for the time he spent with me as I could have listened all day to the stories of his experiences. When I walked out of the Media Center at Ridgeview Junior High School into the hallway, I noticed dozens of posters displayed on the walls of historic people and moments of the civil rights movement to commemorate Black History Month. The first to catch my eye? The poster of the Little Rock 9. Sadly, Mr. Thomas was the first member of the group to pass away in September 2010. I've never been to Little Rock, Arkansas, but if I ever do, I will be sure to visit their memorial outside of Central High School and reflect once again on my time with this quiet hero.
In February 2009, while still in my tenure as principal of Pickerington High School Central, I was invited by neighboring junior high principal, Chuck Byers, to view a Black History Month project being conducted by some of his students. Mr. Byers knew that I enjoyed coming to programs at Ridgeview Junior High to show support for the future Central Tiger students. The project was held in the Media Center and featured several well-done reenactments by students dressed in-character of several key figures in the civil rights movement. Mr. Byers shared that Jefferson Thomas, who had a relative participating in the project, was in attendance and offered to introduce me.
Most people have no idea who Jefferson Thomas is, or of his historical significance. However, those who know even a little about the history of the civil rights movement in America recognize the moniker "Little Rock 9."
One of the most significant moments that kick-started the legal reformation of the civil rights movement was the historic Brown vs. Topeka, Kansas Board of Education in 1954. That case, led by future first black Supreme Court Justice, Thurgood Marshall, reversed the "Separate but Equal" doctrine from the Plessy vs. Ferguson case more than 50 years earlier. It was easily provable that schools for black children and white children were not only separate but far from equal. In a decision that in 1954 could be considered courageous, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously that even if physical conditions were equal, the learning experience would still be unequal in a forced segregated condition. That decision set off a firestorm not only in the rural South but in many American cities over the next several decades. That storm blew into Columbus in 1973 with Penick vs. The Columbus Public Schools Board of Education federal discrimination lawsuit. Columbus along with many urban school districts attempted to or were forced to comply with the Brown ruling and desegregate their schools. The first major test of this case was in Little Rock, Arkansas where nine students from the all-black Horace Mann High School, were selected to attend the all-white Central High School in 1957. One of those students was sophomore Jefferson Thomas.
When Principal Byers took me to meet the smartly dressed Jefferson Thomas, he was seated with members of his family in the Media Center. The soft-spoken gentleman cordially shook my hand as we were introduced. I remember thinking immediately that I did not recognize him, however, the only images I had seen of him were as a 15-year-old student in the documented footage of the Little Rock 9 from the award-winning Eyes On The Prize series. At this stage of his life, he was well into his 60's. Before our hands parted, Mr. Byers noted that I was the principal of Pickerington Central. It's difficult to explain that moment, but Mr. Thomas struggled mightily to conceal his surprise from that information. His eyes opened wide and focused intently on me as he smiled, regripped my hand and shook it vigorously. I cannot pretend to speak for Mr. Thomas, but I got a notion that he felt a sense of accomplishment. Not specifically about me personally, but for all who may have reached a level of achievement, in part, because of what he endured.
He immediately introduced me to his family and engagingly sat with me for over 45 minutes. The first question I remember asking him wasn't necessarily about his own experience, but that of his parents. I shared with him that as a father of three, there was no way I could let my children be subject to the dangers that he and his classmates faced daily. He said that on the first day of school, September 4, 1957, they were famously barred from entering Central High School by armed members of the National Guard that were called up that day by the governor to deny their entrance. The troops would move aside to let white students enter the school, but would stand with bayonets crossed when they tried to enter. Classmate Elizabeth Eckford somehow did not get the message that the group was to meet at NAACP member Daisy Bates' home to go to school together. Eckford was famously etched into history as the young lady who was filmed walking alone to school only to find herself quickly surrounded by an angry mob that swore at her, shouted racial slurs and spat on her as she sat frightened at the bus stop. With my own daughters in mind, my gut wrenches just thinking of one of them in that position. After realizing that they were not going to be admitted to the school, the group shuffled back into the waiting cars to head back home. When he arrived home, Mr. Thomas said that his mother burst through the door in tears and embraced him nearly to the point of suffocation. When he asked what was going on, they were shown the television as the scene of the mob outside of Central was being replayed. He recalled that he had no idea of the magnitude of the mob around them because the media surrounded them in such a way which actually shielded them from the scene. We laughed as I said that would have been the last day for my child!
I asked him how was he chosen to attend Central, and most importantly why did he want to go? The teenagers had no intention of being civil rights pioneers or aspirations of doing something great; they were just kids who wanted to go to a good school. He also said that he thought far more than nine would be attending Central and that he might not have volunteered had he known there would have been so few going with him. Mr. Thomas shared that initially, there were over 100 students slated to go to Horace Mann who volunteered to go to Central. That number, however, fell quickly as many of the families of the volunteers began receiving harassing calls, death threats, and were even being fired from their jobs. The number, he said, shrank to about 25 when they were forced to sign an agreement that said they would not be permitted to retaliate in any way whatsoever on a white student that may disparage them verbally or physically. In addition, they were not permitted to participate in any extracurricular activities: no dances, clubs or sports. As a result, the final number of "acceptable" volunteers dwindled to nine.
He shared with me what his day-to-day experience was like. After weeks of being banned from attending school at Central, President Eisenhower ordered them admitted and instead of using the National Guard to prevent their entrance, they were ordered to protect them. On September 25, 1957, the nine students integrated Central High School. Each student had a National Guardsman escort them everywhere in the school. After a short while, though, the individual escorts ceased. The students would regularly hear remarks and threats in the hallways, restrooms, and in the lunchroom. He said that inside the classroom was the most normal for him. He went on that he had little issues in his classes and developed decent relationships with some white students and some of his teachers, who he noted were surprised at his level of intelligence.
Thurgood Marshall was their attorney and met with them regularly to ensure that the school was treating them fairly. He said that Martin Luther King spoke to them to offer encouragement to complete their struggle and let them know the importance of what they were doing. At that time, Martin Luther King wasn't yet the civil rights and American icon he would come to be, but an up and coming southern preacher who recently led a successful bus boycott in Alabama. Mr. Thomas chuckled quietly when he reminisced about wondering why Dr. King would want to talk with them because they weren't boycotting anything.
He talked about his experience on the Oprah Winfrey Show when on January 15, 1996, she celebrated the Little Rock 9 and reunited them on air with a few of their white classmates. He recalled the entire event as very emotional. Mr. Thomas remembered that many of the former white students that were invited to attend the show still harbored their racial prejudice and refused to participate. He went on to describe that during the show, a few of the students asked them for forgiveness and apologized profusely, but some could not. Off the air backstage, one former student, in particular, apologized profusely to him, but explained that he could not do so on-air because "I still have to go back to Little Rock after this." Wow.
I asked him if he ever tired of being recognized for something he did as a teenager or talking about his experience as a member of the Little Rock 9. He said absolutely not, and in fact, he watched and read everything he came by regarding the group to make sure the information was accurately portrayed.
After that 1957-58 school year, the Little Rock Board of Education voted to cancel school the next year instead of continuing with their desegregation plan and temporarily shut the four Little Rock high schools down. Mr. Thomas went on to join the military after high school and faced heavy combat in Viet Nam. His post-war work with defense agencies brought him to settle in Columbus, Ohio.
I humbly thanked him for the time he spent with me as I could have listened all day to the stories of his experiences. When I walked out of the Media Center at Ridgeview Junior High School into the hallway, I noticed dozens of posters displayed on the walls of historic people and moments of the civil rights movement to commemorate Black History Month. The first to catch my eye? The poster of the Little Rock 9. Sadly, Mr. Thomas was the first member of the group to pass away in September 2010. I've never been to Little Rock, Arkansas, but if I ever do, I will be sure to visit their memorial outside of Central High School and reflect once again on my time with this quiet hero.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Teach Me How To Factor (WSHS Math Rap Song)
Innovative and fun music video created by Westerville South (Ohio) High School math teachers and students about factoring math equations.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
What is on the Horizon for Ohio Public Education?
What is next for Ohio public education? Since the election of Republican Governor-elect John Kasich in November, there has been an abundance of anxiety in Ohio education circles. Many of the education reforms that outgoing Democrat Governor Strickland enacted, such as the evidence-based funding model, have been pledged by Kasich to be undone. With a looming $8 billion dollar budget deficit facing Ohio, cuts across the board are inevitable and necessary.
Ohio operates much in the same way that it has since becoming a state in 1803. There are 88 counties, each with their own government services, 612 or so public school districts, each with their own Board of Education and operational costs, and literally thousands of township, civic, fire and EMS, library, park, etc systems that are all dependent upon tax dollars to survive, and that often replicate or overlap services. It does seem logical that Ohio's governing system is not only outdated, but inefficient and financially unsustainable. Kasich has said that he will look into the possibility of consolidating government services to reduce the cost and burden on taxpayers.
That does, however, include the examination of consolidating public school districts. Home rule has long been a staple of public education throughout the history of the United States. Slowly, as illustrated later, through the power of financial dependence and mandates, communities and public school districts in Ohio have seen control over their local school districts slowly erode. The United States Department of Education, one of the newer cabinet positions in our country's history established in 1980, have imposed legislation and requirements such as the Elementary & Secondary Education Act (ESEA aka No Child Left Behind) that have forced states to comply with its mandates or risk losing federal funding - whose $63.7 billion annual budget most states have now become completely dependent upon. In addition to dependence on federal funding, nearly all of the individual school districts have also become completely dependent upon state funding. In most school districts, over 50% of their annual budget is funded through the State of Ohio. Therefore, when 30 cents of every tax dollar from Ohio's General Revenue Fund is spent on K-12 education, and with the state needing to trim $8 billion in order to balance the budget, it is easy to see why school districts are nervous about their financial future.
Along with the 10% or more funding reduction districts are anticipating from the state, the public has increasingly become tax-weary and have clearly expressed that sentiment with resounding rejections of recent tax levies. In Ohio, school funding is based primarily upon property tax revenue, which the current model has been declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of Ohio. What many people don't realize is that the amount, or millage, that is collected is based upon the tax-assed value of the home. However, as the home increases in value, the collection amount must remain at the value of the home at the time of the levy. Simply put: if your home is worth $100,000 at the time a school levy is passed with you contributing $50 monthly as a result, 10 years later when your home may be worth $200,000 you are still paying the same $50, which mathematically is half of the original millage and is an actual gradual reduction of revenue value for school districts. That is why school districts continually return to voters to approve levies in order to bring collections up to the current home values and/or increase revenue to address the increasing financial needs placed upon school districts. Unlike the private business sector that can create additional revenue by increasing prices or by developing new products, the only way a school district can increase revenue to address rising staffing costs, health care costs, facility operations, transportation costs and to provide services that parents have become accustomed to such as art, music and sports, is to ask its community for more tax dollars.
Many have called our enduring recession more of a "resetting" instead. Many changes have been made to financial systems and other industries that have over time developed unwise or financially unsustainable practices that recently brought us to the brink of worldwide financial chaos. We've been forced to weed out bad business practices and unsound companies in order to "reset" how we function to stay efficient and solvent. Public education will be no different. Over decades, public education has evolved to be "everything to everybody" by providing a wide variety of services to children. In addition to "readin', 'ritin' and 'rithmetic" schools also provide enriching experiences teaching world languages, technology, music, fine arts, athletics and other expected services. However, as many school districts have had their communities send the message of operating within current means without additional tax dollars, some of those services will no longer be affordable to keep. Sadly, many school districts are faced with multimillion dollar deficits and must deal with the difficult task of "resetting" how they operate and the services they provide. In most school districts, approximately 80% of budgetary expenditures go directly to the payment of salaries for staff and health care benefits. The remaining 20% is typically divided among facility operations, maintenance, transportation, food service, and compliance costs associated with state and federal mandates. Therefore, to have any significant reduction in operational costs, there needs to be a significant reduction of staff and services. The elimination of teachers, administrators and support staff in turn means the reduction or elimination of hallowed services and programs for students. When Boards and district officials are faced with gut wrenching choices of cuts, core content areas are what districts must protect, such as math, science, english and social studies and other courses required for high school graduation. Enriching programs outside of the core content that parents want schools to provide their children become no longer affordable. If you've kept up with reduction trends across the state, the first areas that become reduced or eliminated tend to be elementary and middle school "specials" such as art, physical education, and music programs along with secondary electives such as some world languages and other elective programs not required for graduation but that certainly provide a more well-rounded education. Most notably in recent memory were the drastic cost reduction cuts made by the South-Western City School district, which for a portion of the 2009-2010 school year eliminated all athletics and extracurricular programs in the district. Several districts around the state are faced with similar difficult decisions leaving parents frustrated that the services that schools traditionally provided will not be available for their children. Unfortunately, that trend does not look to be reversing soon.
Enough about the depressing financial situation facing our schools and our state. There are also exciting changes coming to the educational system in Ohio that will have a dramatic affect on teaching and learning. When I graduated from high school in 1987, there was relatively no education accountability for schools. There were no state tests and no accountability for the academic achievement of students beyond any that local districts enacted. There was no widely adopted curriculum in the state, which usually caused gross inconsistencies in learning across Ohio. In the early 1990's, Ohio introduced the 4th, 6th and 9th grade Proficiency Tests. The "Proficiency Era" was better than nothing, but still left much to be desired as an achievement accountability measure. For the first time, however, Ohio mandated that students must achieve a minimum testing proficiency level in order to receive an Ohio graduation diploma. Many school districts, especially urban and poor rural districts, scrambled to provide academic interventions for underachieving students that many districts, quite frankly, had not provided to that degree before. From there evolved the reauthorization of ESEA in 2001 which instituted a far greater accountability system in Ohio. Accountability tests were given each year in multiple areas from grades 3 through 8, Ohio Achievement Assessments, with intervention measures mandated for those students less than proficient. At the secondary level, students must pass the Ohio Graduation Test in order to receive a high school diploma. The obvious improvements from the proficiency tests are that the new assessments are in line with a standards-based state curriculum that every district in the state are accountable to. Elementary students are tested annually beginning in the 3rd grade, giving schools a greater opportunity to provide interventions for students.
Perhaps the greatest changes that No Child Left Behind enacted was the use of Value Added measurements in elementary and middle schools, and the accountability for individual student subgroups. Value Added is simply a growth measure that in theory measures the amount of academic growth a student achieves from one year to the next. Therefore, if a student is already advanced, that student and the school are still accountable for growing that student's academic progress. Conversely, if a student performs below proficient, but exhibits great academic gains from the previous school year, the student and the school receive the appropriate recognition for that as well. From grades 3 through 8, the growth of students can be traced back to the classroom teacher allowing schools and districts to determine, based upon assessment results, which teachers have the greatest success growing student learning. That is an unprecedented level of teacher-accountability for student learning in public education.
The most significant evolution resulting from NCLB is AYP or Adequate Yearly Progress. Schools and districts are now not only accountable for the achievement of their students as a whole, but also for each minority or identified subgroup within the schools. Prior to AYP, schools could rest on the test results of the majority, usually White, students and not be held accountable if groups within the school, such as African-Americans, Hispanics, Students with Disabilities or Economically Disadvantaged students, were not achieving. Now individual schools and districts are for the first time held accountable for the achievement of ALL students and parents now have the right to opt out of failing schools if test scores do not improve. As a result, intervention programs such as Response to Intervention (RTI), Special Education services, and intervention-level courses and staff have greatly increased in schools causing, despite popular belief, the highest levels of education for ALL students in our state's history. That is why many have dubbed NCLB not just an educational piece of legislation, but a civil rights legislation as well. Proficiency tests were better than nothing, and No Child Left Behind is better than than proficiency, so what is the next progression for public education in Ohio?
Since the days of Socrates, it has been said that education is the cornerstone of any democracy and that the future health of any nation is tied directly to its education system. Our students today are faced with a world unlike any in recorded history. The amount of "knowledge" is increasing at a staggering rate, and the technological innovations that seem to come daily, have made most of the world's citizens and its knowledge available at the touch of cell phone button. If we are to prepare our students for that world, then our educational system must continue to evolve.
State Superintendent, Dr. Deborah Delisle dubbed the coming progress of Ohio's educational system "Next Generation Learning." We do not want our students to tune out and power off when they enter Ohio's schools, but have their minds and natural curiosity activated. The Ohio General Assembly passed House Bill 1 which fundamentally alters the educational accountability system in Ohio and will have a profound impact on current students' learning experience. Ohio, along with 40 other states, have adopted the national Common Core standards in math and english/language arts and have revised and consolidated the state standards in social studies, science and other elective content areas. The standards are intended to ensure college and career readiness for all Ohio graduates. In March, 2011, the General Assembly will adopt the "model curricula", a web-based tool giving instructional and assessment guidance and support for educators integrating the new standards.
By the 2014-2015 school year, the state will no longer use the Ohio Graduation Test, but will enact end-of-course exams in the core content areas and must adopt a national assessment to comply with the current NCLB mandate of a high school assessment. The desire is to move away from low-level, low-skill bubble-in multiple-choice tests to more performance-based, higher level assessments. Although nothing has been finalized or agreed upon by the Ohio Department of Education, it is widely anticipated that students may have to complete the ACT Common Core End-of-Course Exams at the end of their core content area classes, and the state may adopt the ACT as the new state assessment. In addition to possibly the common core assessments and the ACT, students will also be required to complete a senior capstone project and earn a minimum of four math credits with one of those credits being at least Algebra II or its equivalent. Infused in those assessments and in the expected instructional practices used by teachers are an increase of writing compontents and the use of 21st Century Learning skills: communication, creativity, critical thinking and collaboration. Dr. Delisle is correct and adamant that the days of "rote memorization" is a thing of the past. It is far less important, for example, for students to memorize the Bill of Rights than it is to be able to find them and articulate the impact of those guarantees on our society.
As well, beginning this school year, every school district is required to expand its educational options to include Credit Flexibility. Credit Flex means that no longer will "seat time" be the determiner for a student to qualify to receive a unit of high school credit, but the demonstration of mastery of the content instead. Students and their parents now have unprecedented control over the student's educational programming. If a student is advanced in a subject or content, that student will have the option to "Test Out" of the course to earn credit and move immediately to the appropriate level course. A student may also design an educational program, for high school credit, outside of the curriculum or course offerings of a school. Many schools are currently developing policies and procedures, but no provision in House Bill 1 may have a greater impact on the future structure of secondary education than Credit Flex.
To prepare for these changes, Ohio applied for and was rewarded a large sum of Race to the Top funds from the U.S. Department of Education. Ohio has also embraced STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education initiatives, early college models and is rewarding districts enacting those initiatives with grants and other sources of funding. The goal for Ohio is to increase the number of graduates who are prepared for and enter college without the need for remediation, and are prepared to enter a STEM field of study. The culture of Ohio's students must be WHEN you go to college, not IF you go to college, regardless of the ZIP Code where the student resides. There is a concerted focus from the Ohio Department of Education to also increase graduation rates, and significantly reduce achievement gaps in reading and math.
To realize these ambitious goals, there must also be a large effort to develop high quality teachers through increased professional development, increased access to data, greater public accountability for teachers and school leaders, and working with Ohio's public universities to better align their schools of education's preparation of the next generation of teachers and educational leaders.
Unprecedented times bring about unprecedented changes and Ohio and the nation have the need for and are at the cusp of great educational progress.
Ohio operates much in the same way that it has since becoming a state in 1803. There are 88 counties, each with their own government services, 612 or so public school districts, each with their own Board of Education and operational costs, and literally thousands of township, civic, fire and EMS, library, park, etc systems that are all dependent upon tax dollars to survive, and that often replicate or overlap services. It does seem logical that Ohio's governing system is not only outdated, but inefficient and financially unsustainable. Kasich has said that he will look into the possibility of consolidating government services to reduce the cost and burden on taxpayers.
That does, however, include the examination of consolidating public school districts. Home rule has long been a staple of public education throughout the history of the United States. Slowly, as illustrated later, through the power of financial dependence and mandates, communities and public school districts in Ohio have seen control over their local school districts slowly erode. The United States Department of Education, one of the newer cabinet positions in our country's history established in 1980, have imposed legislation and requirements such as the Elementary & Secondary Education Act (ESEA aka No Child Left Behind) that have forced states to comply with its mandates or risk losing federal funding - whose $63.7 billion annual budget most states have now become completely dependent upon. In addition to dependence on federal funding, nearly all of the individual school districts have also become completely dependent upon state funding. In most school districts, over 50% of their annual budget is funded through the State of Ohio. Therefore, when 30 cents of every tax dollar from Ohio's General Revenue Fund is spent on K-12 education, and with the state needing to trim $8 billion in order to balance the budget, it is easy to see why school districts are nervous about their financial future.
Along with the 10% or more funding reduction districts are anticipating from the state, the public has increasingly become tax-weary and have clearly expressed that sentiment with resounding rejections of recent tax levies. In Ohio, school funding is based primarily upon property tax revenue, which the current model has been declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of Ohio. What many people don't realize is that the amount, or millage, that is collected is based upon the tax-assed value of the home. However, as the home increases in value, the collection amount must remain at the value of the home at the time of the levy. Simply put: if your home is worth $100,000 at the time a school levy is passed with you contributing $50 monthly as a result, 10 years later when your home may be worth $200,000 you are still paying the same $50, which mathematically is half of the original millage and is an actual gradual reduction of revenue value for school districts. That is why school districts continually return to voters to approve levies in order to bring collections up to the current home values and/or increase revenue to address the increasing financial needs placed upon school districts. Unlike the private business sector that can create additional revenue by increasing prices or by developing new products, the only way a school district can increase revenue to address rising staffing costs, health care costs, facility operations, transportation costs and to provide services that parents have become accustomed to such as art, music and sports, is to ask its community for more tax dollars.
Many have called our enduring recession more of a "resetting" instead. Many changes have been made to financial systems and other industries that have over time developed unwise or financially unsustainable practices that recently brought us to the brink of worldwide financial chaos. We've been forced to weed out bad business practices and unsound companies in order to "reset" how we function to stay efficient and solvent. Public education will be no different. Over decades, public education has evolved to be "everything to everybody" by providing a wide variety of services to children. In addition to "readin', 'ritin' and 'rithmetic" schools also provide enriching experiences teaching world languages, technology, music, fine arts, athletics and other expected services. However, as many school districts have had their communities send the message of operating within current means without additional tax dollars, some of those services will no longer be affordable to keep. Sadly, many school districts are faced with multimillion dollar deficits and must deal with the difficult task of "resetting" how they operate and the services they provide. In most school districts, approximately 80% of budgetary expenditures go directly to the payment of salaries for staff and health care benefits. The remaining 20% is typically divided among facility operations, maintenance, transportation, food service, and compliance costs associated with state and federal mandates. Therefore, to have any significant reduction in operational costs, there needs to be a significant reduction of staff and services. The elimination of teachers, administrators and support staff in turn means the reduction or elimination of hallowed services and programs for students. When Boards and district officials are faced with gut wrenching choices of cuts, core content areas are what districts must protect, such as math, science, english and social studies and other courses required for high school graduation. Enriching programs outside of the core content that parents want schools to provide their children become no longer affordable. If you've kept up with reduction trends across the state, the first areas that become reduced or eliminated tend to be elementary and middle school "specials" such as art, physical education, and music programs along with secondary electives such as some world languages and other elective programs not required for graduation but that certainly provide a more well-rounded education. Most notably in recent memory were the drastic cost reduction cuts made by the South-Western City School district, which for a portion of the 2009-2010 school year eliminated all athletics and extracurricular programs in the district. Several districts around the state are faced with similar difficult decisions leaving parents frustrated that the services that schools traditionally provided will not be available for their children. Unfortunately, that trend does not look to be reversing soon.
Enough about the depressing financial situation facing our schools and our state. There are also exciting changes coming to the educational system in Ohio that will have a dramatic affect on teaching and learning. When I graduated from high school in 1987, there was relatively no education accountability for schools. There were no state tests and no accountability for the academic achievement of students beyond any that local districts enacted. There was no widely adopted curriculum in the state, which usually caused gross inconsistencies in learning across Ohio. In the early 1990's, Ohio introduced the 4th, 6th and 9th grade Proficiency Tests. The "Proficiency Era" was better than nothing, but still left much to be desired as an achievement accountability measure. For the first time, however, Ohio mandated that students must achieve a minimum testing proficiency level in order to receive an Ohio graduation diploma. Many school districts, especially urban and poor rural districts, scrambled to provide academic interventions for underachieving students that many districts, quite frankly, had not provided to that degree before. From there evolved the reauthorization of ESEA in 2001 which instituted a far greater accountability system in Ohio. Accountability tests were given each year in multiple areas from grades 3 through 8, Ohio Achievement Assessments, with intervention measures mandated for those students less than proficient. At the secondary level, students must pass the Ohio Graduation Test in order to receive a high school diploma. The obvious improvements from the proficiency tests are that the new assessments are in line with a standards-based state curriculum that every district in the state are accountable to. Elementary students are tested annually beginning in the 3rd grade, giving schools a greater opportunity to provide interventions for students.
Perhaps the greatest changes that No Child Left Behind enacted was the use of Value Added measurements in elementary and middle schools, and the accountability for individual student subgroups. Value Added is simply a growth measure that in theory measures the amount of academic growth a student achieves from one year to the next. Therefore, if a student is already advanced, that student and the school are still accountable for growing that student's academic progress. Conversely, if a student performs below proficient, but exhibits great academic gains from the previous school year, the student and the school receive the appropriate recognition for that as well. From grades 3 through 8, the growth of students can be traced back to the classroom teacher allowing schools and districts to determine, based upon assessment results, which teachers have the greatest success growing student learning. That is an unprecedented level of teacher-accountability for student learning in public education.
The most significant evolution resulting from NCLB is AYP or Adequate Yearly Progress. Schools and districts are now not only accountable for the achievement of their students as a whole, but also for each minority or identified subgroup within the schools. Prior to AYP, schools could rest on the test results of the majority, usually White, students and not be held accountable if groups within the school, such as African-Americans, Hispanics, Students with Disabilities or Economically Disadvantaged students, were not achieving. Now individual schools and districts are for the first time held accountable for the achievement of ALL students and parents now have the right to opt out of failing schools if test scores do not improve. As a result, intervention programs such as Response to Intervention (RTI), Special Education services, and intervention-level courses and staff have greatly increased in schools causing, despite popular belief, the highest levels of education for ALL students in our state's history. That is why many have dubbed NCLB not just an educational piece of legislation, but a civil rights legislation as well. Proficiency tests were better than nothing, and No Child Left Behind is better than than proficiency, so what is the next progression for public education in Ohio?
Since the days of Socrates, it has been said that education is the cornerstone of any democracy and that the future health of any nation is tied directly to its education system. Our students today are faced with a world unlike any in recorded history. The amount of "knowledge" is increasing at a staggering rate, and the technological innovations that seem to come daily, have made most of the world's citizens and its knowledge available at the touch of cell phone button. If we are to prepare our students for that world, then our educational system must continue to evolve.
State Superintendent, Dr. Deborah Delisle dubbed the coming progress of Ohio's educational system "Next Generation Learning." We do not want our students to tune out and power off when they enter Ohio's schools, but have their minds and natural curiosity activated. The Ohio General Assembly passed House Bill 1 which fundamentally alters the educational accountability system in Ohio and will have a profound impact on current students' learning experience. Ohio, along with 40 other states, have adopted the national Common Core standards in math and english/language arts and have revised and consolidated the state standards in social studies, science and other elective content areas. The standards are intended to ensure college and career readiness for all Ohio graduates. In March, 2011, the General Assembly will adopt the "model curricula", a web-based tool giving instructional and assessment guidance and support for educators integrating the new standards.
By the 2014-2015 school year, the state will no longer use the Ohio Graduation Test, but will enact end-of-course exams in the core content areas and must adopt a national assessment to comply with the current NCLB mandate of a high school assessment. The desire is to move away from low-level, low-skill bubble-in multiple-choice tests to more performance-based, higher level assessments. Although nothing has been finalized or agreed upon by the Ohio Department of Education, it is widely anticipated that students may have to complete the ACT Common Core End-of-Course Exams at the end of their core content area classes, and the state may adopt the ACT as the new state assessment. In addition to possibly the common core assessments and the ACT, students will also be required to complete a senior capstone project and earn a minimum of four math credits with one of those credits being at least Algebra II or its equivalent. Infused in those assessments and in the expected instructional practices used by teachers are an increase of writing compontents and the use of 21st Century Learning skills: communication, creativity, critical thinking and collaboration. Dr. Delisle is correct and adamant that the days of "rote memorization" is a thing of the past. It is far less important, for example, for students to memorize the Bill of Rights than it is to be able to find them and articulate the impact of those guarantees on our society.
As well, beginning this school year, every school district is required to expand its educational options to include Credit Flexibility. Credit Flex means that no longer will "seat time" be the determiner for a student to qualify to receive a unit of high school credit, but the demonstration of mastery of the content instead. Students and their parents now have unprecedented control over the student's educational programming. If a student is advanced in a subject or content, that student will have the option to "Test Out" of the course to earn credit and move immediately to the appropriate level course. A student may also design an educational program, for high school credit, outside of the curriculum or course offerings of a school. Many schools are currently developing policies and procedures, but no provision in House Bill 1 may have a greater impact on the future structure of secondary education than Credit Flex.
To prepare for these changes, Ohio applied for and was rewarded a large sum of Race to the Top funds from the U.S. Department of Education. Ohio has also embraced STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education initiatives, early college models and is rewarding districts enacting those initiatives with grants and other sources of funding. The goal for Ohio is to increase the number of graduates who are prepared for and enter college without the need for remediation, and are prepared to enter a STEM field of study. The culture of Ohio's students must be WHEN you go to college, not IF you go to college, regardless of the ZIP Code where the student resides. There is a concerted focus from the Ohio Department of Education to also increase graduation rates, and significantly reduce achievement gaps in reading and math.
To realize these ambitious goals, there must also be a large effort to develop high quality teachers through increased professional development, increased access to data, greater public accountability for teachers and school leaders, and working with Ohio's public universities to better align their schools of education's preparation of the next generation of teachers and educational leaders.
Unprecedented times bring about unprecedented changes and Ohio and the nation have the need for and are at the cusp of great educational progress.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Groups Eye Regulatory Relief Under NCLB
With 2013-2014 looming as the year when schools are accountable for having all identified subgroups reach 100% proficiency, it will be very interesting to watch the actions this congress takes in renewing the expired Elementary & Secondary Education Act (ESEA aka No Child Left Behind).
I surmise that now that the national elections have concluded with the Republican party now in control of the House, the expectation of compromise and effectiveness have been clearly sent by the public. This will be the optimal year, with the presidential election in 2012, to rework and reauthorize the act. Stay tuned.
Groups Eye Regulatory Relief Under NCLB
I surmise that now that the national elections have concluded with the Republican party now in control of the House, the expectation of compromise and effectiveness have been clearly sent by the public. This will be the optimal year, with the presidential election in 2012, to rework and reauthorize the act. Stay tuned.
Groups Eye Regulatory Relief Under NCLB
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Classroom Assessments for a New Century
Great classroom instruction ideas for teachers looking to diversify or increase their instructional methods. 21st Century learning skills and preparation for national and state assessments can coexist. It's not new content, but instructional methods to guide and give content in a manner that will prepare students for the world they will one day face.
Classroom Assessments for a New Century
Classroom Assessments for a New Century
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Merit Pay Found to Have Little Effect on Achievement
Interesting take on a movement sweeping through school districts accross the country.
Merit Pay Found to Have Little Effect on Achievement
Merit Pay Found to Have Little Effect on Achievement
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Closing of Nearly Half of Kansas City Public Schools
Unfortunately, this is an all too common occurrence in American urban schools. Many American city school districts routinely held over 100,000 students, and subsequently had the facilities to house that enrollment. For many of those districts, all too often, enrollment decline was marked by the onset of forced desegregation required by the 1954 Brown vs. Board of Education landmark decision. It happened in cities like Boston, Cleveland, Columbus and Kansas City. As families fled the urban districts, suburban, private and charter school enrollment has soared.
Without question, no one wants to close schools. Schools, along with churches, are a major piece of identification for communities. Schools are what connects people to their community. In barber shops, stoops and some times even unsavory places, there are constant tales of times of past glory connected to school. When schools close, for many communities and individuals, the fear is that their identity will be lost as well.
However, as enrollment declined in many cities, so did the revenue associated with enrollment. In Ohio, for example, each student is worth approximately $6000 in state funding. Therefore, for a big urban district, the loss of even 1000 students, means a reduction of $6 million dollars in state funding. Many urban districts are half or even less than half of what they once were, so the financial impact of the declining enrollment is devastating. Like state governments, schools cannot legally operate in a deficit, so as enrollment declines, unfortunately facilities must close and teachers must be reduced. Schools are a people business, whereas up to 80% of the expenditures of most school districts are personnel related paying for salaries and benefit packages. Facility maintenance is usually the next largest expense. Couple that with many urban school houses being older, less capable of handling modern technology and are less than energy efficient, operating too many buildings become an irresponsible drain on hardworking tax payer dollars.
Most citizens value teachers and understand the incredibly tough task they have. Most educators had a positive experience in schools, which was an influence for them to go into the profession. Most people also understand the impact schools have on the community. However, more than ever, it is important that public officials are responsible and efficient in the spending of taxpayer dollars. Without question, it breaks the heart of the superintendent and the Board of Education in Kansas City to close that many schools. In fact, it was incredibly irresponsible for former superintendents NOT to have gradually and systematically close schools as enrollment declined. However it was the right thing to do and the superintendent and Board should be applauded for their courage to do the right thing in the face of such emotional opposition.
Without question, no one wants to close schools. Schools, along with churches, are a major piece of identification for communities. Schools are what connects people to their community. In barber shops, stoops and some times even unsavory places, there are constant tales of times of past glory connected to school. When schools close, for many communities and individuals, the fear is that their identity will be lost as well.
However, as enrollment declined in many cities, so did the revenue associated with enrollment. In Ohio, for example, each student is worth approximately $6000 in state funding. Therefore, for a big urban district, the loss of even 1000 students, means a reduction of $6 million dollars in state funding. Many urban districts are half or even less than half of what they once were, so the financial impact of the declining enrollment is devastating. Like state governments, schools cannot legally operate in a deficit, so as enrollment declines, unfortunately facilities must close and teachers must be reduced. Schools are a people business, whereas up to 80% of the expenditures of most school districts are personnel related paying for salaries and benefit packages. Facility maintenance is usually the next largest expense. Couple that with many urban school houses being older, less capable of handling modern technology and are less than energy efficient, operating too many buildings become an irresponsible drain on hardworking tax payer dollars.
Most citizens value teachers and understand the incredibly tough task they have. Most educators had a positive experience in schools, which was an influence for them to go into the profession. Most people also understand the impact schools have on the community. However, more than ever, it is important that public officials are responsible and efficient in the spending of taxpayer dollars. Without question, it breaks the heart of the superintendent and the Board of Education in Kansas City to close that many schools. In fact, it was incredibly irresponsible for former superintendents NOT to have gradually and systematically close schools as enrollment declined. However it was the right thing to do and the superintendent and Board should be applauded for their courage to do the right thing in the face of such emotional opposition.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
A Personal Experience of the Inauguration of President Barack Obama
The Inauguration of President Barack H. Obama
44th President of the United States of America
M. Scott Reeves
My journey to the Inauguration of President Barack Obama actually started the year preceding the presidential election, while like most Americans I became enthralled in the intoxicating excitement of the Democratic primaries. My wife, Valarie, and I became “CNN junkies” as we watched nonstop the returns from one of the longest primary battles in history, and became almost intimately acquainted with the eclectic and sometimes embattled mix of political analysts we invited nightly into our home. With as much fervor as any major sporting event, we watched the photo finish that saw Illinois Senator Barack Obama narrowly defeat the Senator and former First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton to become the first African-American nominee from a major party in our country’s history. Had Senator Clinton won, it too would have been historic, as no woman has garnered a major party nomination either.
After watching his acceptance address at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, my wife and I decided at that point that if Obama were to be elected President, we would do all that we could to witness the Inauguration in person. It is a rare occasion in one’s life to have the opportunity to witness something truly historic, and we were not about to miss this chance. Valarie has a cousin, Susan (herein after referred to as just “cousin” – as I happen to like this particular cousin of hers), whose family lives in the Maryland city of Bowie in the Washington, D.C. area. Therefore, travel and accommodations would not be an issue for us.
We watched together as Senators McCain and Obama challenged each other in a series of spirited and occasionally heated debates. The crowds at the McCain rallies seemed to become increasingly aggressive, venomous, and almost desperate as Election Day drew closer. Followers of Obama became fearful as November drew nearer because each passing day saw McCain pull closer to Obama in the polls. Doubt creped in the minds of Obama supporters with increasing talk of the “Bradley Effect,” which is the effect of White Americans proclaiming to pollsters that they would indeed vote for the Black candidate, but not actually doing it when the moment of truth came in the voting booth. The polls were close enough where that phenomenon could potentially cost Barack Obama the election.
After the emotional November election results were announced, we resolved to solidify our plans to attend the Inauguration. Initially we had no expectation of obtaining the rare and coveted tickets; we simply wanted to be a part of history. In fact, we were not even sure how to obtain tickets to the event and didn’t care. We just wanted to go. One evening either in late November or early December, CNN ran a story about solicitors who were selling Inauguration tickets for thousands of dollars on eBay, resulting in a U.S. Representative attempting to rush through legislation to make it illegal to sell complimentary Inauguration tickets. CNN also shared that legitimate tickets could only be obtained from one’s U.S. Representative or U.S. Senator. With nothing to lose, the next day I emailed the United States Congressman of my residential area, Representative Pat Tiberi, to request tickets to the Inauguration. With him being a Republican and myself being a registered Democrat, I did not imagine that obtaining tickets from him was a realistic possibility, especially given the feverishly high interest in this event and the vast number of requests he was sure to get. I never gave it another thought until Representative Tiberi called me a few days prior to my school’s Winter Break in December to inform me that he had granted me two tickets to the Inauguration. I discovered in our conversation that Representative Tiberi played basketball at Northland High School in Columbus in the early 1980’s, which was where I got my first head varsity basketball coaching position replacing his former coach, the classy Art Signore. I didn’t know what surprised me most – that he actually knew who I was or that I was getting Inauguration tickets. Either way, we talked basketball for several minutes and afterwards I excitedly called Valarie to tell her the good news.
A week prior to the Inauguration, it was bitterly cold in Columbus with subzero temperatures shutting down several schools and businesses. Keeping a close eye on the extended Washington forecast, which was thankfully more moderate, Valarie and I took no chances and headed to Dick’s Sporting Goods for “long-john’s” and other cold weather clothing accessories. We departed for the nation’s capital early Sunday morning, January 18, awaking to another blast of bitter cold and a few more inches of ice and snow. We left early enough to reach her cousin’s home in time to catch most of the NFL championship games. Needless to say, driving was slow and stressful due to the inclement winter weather.
Taking it slow and deliberate, we stopped roughly halfway through the trip in Morgantown, WV, to have lunch on the campus of West Virginia University. Neither of us had ever been on the WVU campus before and marveled at their seemingly efficient monorail system that weaved through the hilly campus. We parked on their Ohio State equivalent to “High Street,” which I believe is actually called High Street, and asked for a restaurant recommendation from an elderly couple walking by. Without hesitation, they directed us to the Boston Beanery. I didn’t understand why people were staring at me when I entered, until I realized after we sat down that I was strutting through the eatery dressed in full Ohio State regalia. Lunch was as good as advertised.
Navigating through the Appalachian Mountains was treacherous. As we ascended higher into the range, the weather became like the grand finale of a midsummer fire works show. Like raging Zeus atop Mount Olympus, Mother Nature violently emptied her arsenal of gale force winds and blinding snow that she couldn’t carry over the mountains. The stretch between Morgantown and Cumberland, MD was hazardous with near blizzard-like conditions bringing traffic to a crawl. After passing Cumberland and the Eastern Continental Divide, the weather cleared as suddenly as if we had escaped across the border from the clutches of the oppressive Snow Miser to the moderate and welcoming arms of the Heat Miser. Like stepping from the drab gray Kansan house into the colorful world of Munchkin Land, there was not a cloud in the air or flake of snow on the ground and the surroundings were sunny and green. As we headed closer to Washington, thankfully the temperature slowly began to rise.
Several weeks prior, I was instructed by telephone from Representative Tiberi’s helpful assistant, Allie, to pick up our tickets the day before the Tuesday Inauguration from Tiberi’s office in the Cannon House office building next to the Capitol. Valarie and I thought that day would also be a great opportunity to do a dry run of the D.C. Metro system and plot out our itinerary for the big day. On Monday afternoon, we hopped on the Orange Line train at the Landover station in Maryland and started our “scrimmage” (hey, we’re sports people). Just at the moment the Orange Line transforms from an elevated train to descend underground to become a subway, there is a spectacular view of the U.S. Capitol rising behind RFK Stadium.
We exited the train at the Capitol South station and surfaced to see hoards of people excitedly milling around at every turn. The streets of Washington had not yet closed to traffic for the upcoming event, but the giant metal interlocking security gates were stacked ominously along every street like faithful sentry’s waiting patiently to completely encase the National Mall and the Pennsylvania Avenue parade route. An army of blue Port-a-Potty’s stood in impressive rows by the thousands along the length of the Mall. With our faithful tourist’s map in-hand, we quickly located the Cannon House, which was less than a block from the Capitol South subway tunnel, and searched for an appropriate entrance to the building. We initially walked to the entrance, but quickly noticed that there was a long line to enter the building. As we searched for the elusive end of the line, it kept going and going snaking down the block and around the corner. At every entrance, the line out of the doorway wrapped easily around two corners often forming a double line on the sidewalk with a line from another entrance. By the time we reached the end of our line, we realized that the wait for The Beast rollercoaster at Kings Island amusement park would be quicker than it would be to enter the Cannon House. We worried that we might not make it into the building before the offices closed.
Needless to say, the environment was festive and everyone around exhibited a spirit of kinship and brotherhood. Those in line took the opportunity to greet the people around them and discovered that people were from places as far as Florida and California. No one seemed to mind the wait as we inched slowly forward, yet were thankful as a well-dressed lady with an elegantly draped full length fur, traveled the sidewalk shouting for those in line to call the office of their Congressman to have their tickets brought outside and delivered. As luck would have it, I had Tiberi’s office number in my pocket and within minutes, Allie greeted us outside the office with our Inauguration package. She remarked in amazement that in the few Inaugurations she has worked, none rivaled the interest as this.
I’m not sure what I expected, probably just a pair of tickets akin to those of a sporting event, but what Allie gave me was a large stuffed manila envelop with my name typed on a label in the upper left corner. Like one of the star-bellied sneeches or Charlie when he discovered the golden ticket in his Wonka Bar, the envelope instantly transferred a feeling of excitement and distinction. Looking around, there were but a few similar envelopes in the hands of supporters sprinkled around the Capitol. Valarie and I found the nearest bench to explore the contents of our prize.
Carefully pealing away the gold House Seal not to tear it, we pulled a golden file folder with a blue Congressional Seal emblazoned on the front. Inside we found our tickets and a myriad of information about Inauguration Day. Seeing that our area was the “South Standing –Blue” area, we put off reading the rest of the information until we had a more appropriate (and warmer) location, and set off to find the Blue Gate. The area our ticket permitted us to enter was the southwest Capitol lawn. After milling around the area and taking a few snapshots of the stage and the adorned Capitol, we decided to catch our breath and do a little sightseeing.
We set off down Pennsylvania Avenue toward the White House, which when built in the late 18th Century was the largest residence in the United States, watching the final preparations being made for the upcoming parade. As a former history teacher, the sense of history and who may have seen the very sights I saw or may have stood in the very place I have, always struck a deep chord within me. My wife, on the other hand, has no great love for history, and I can’t imagine those thoughts coming anywhere near her consciousness. Bleachers were assembled down the stretch of road leading to the White House, as well as hundreds of venders setting up to sell their merchandise.
Heading around the White House to the Washington Monument, the Ellipse was filled with soaring kites flying in the air, vendors selling buttons and t-shirts, thousands of camera’s snapping memories of D.C. from every possible angle, and those advocating for D.C. statehood and the prosecution of outgoing President George W. Bush. Seeing the many photographs depicting the alignment of the Capitol, Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial, they appear deceptively close in photos but are actually far apart, as evidenced by our increasingly weary legs. Scanning the scenery around the monument, it is clear that it is the epicenter of Washington. Lining the National Mall from the Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial were gigantic jumbo-trons spaced 50 to 100 yards apart. If only I could get one of those in my basement to watch the game!
By this time, we were chilly, aching for a cup of coffee and ready to head back to her cousin’s home to relax. Locating a nearby Starbucks, we sat down, sipped a little Joe, and reviewed our ticket package. Inside the golden folder was a ton of informational material. There was information about prohibited items, the Metro system and even a promotional guide to the Smithsonian Museums. There was an ecru colored heavy-stock envelope that contained our official invitation. It read:
The honor of your presence
Is requested at the ceremonies attending the
Inauguration of the President and Vice President
of the United States
January twentieth
Two thousand and nine
The Capitol of the United States of America
City of Washington
By the
Joint Congressional
Committee of Inaugural Ceremonies
Dianne Feinstein, Chairman
Harry Reid, Robert F. Bennett,
Nancy Pelosi, Steny H. Hoyer
John A Boehner
It contained photographs of Obama and Biden, color-coded maps of the Capitol showing ticketed areas, and the Inauguration Ceremonies Program. Within the elegant program bordered by a gold braided tassel, contained the events of the ceremony, a brief bio of President Abraham Lincoln commemorating his 200th birthday, and a brief history of the Inauguration Ceremony itself. It was all very elegant.
Ready to relax for the evening, we initially headed for the subway station, but detoured back to the nearby Cannon House to thank Representative Tiberi personally for giving us the tickets. Ironically, by this time there was no line and we were able to walk right up to the security gate. Much like in an airport terminal, we had to strip layers of winter clothing to prove we meant our Congressman no harm. Walking the corridors of the Cannon House to his office, everything was large and impressive. Every Congressman’s office had multiple entries with huge heavy adorned doors and entryways that hung the Representative’s state flag. Spotting the familiar pennant shaped flag of the State of Ohio, we entered Tiberi’s office. He wasn’t in, however Allie, who we seem to have gotten to know quite well, allowed us into his private office and even took a couple of pictures of Valarie and I behind his desk. Again, his office was the picture of opulence. Deeply polished wood paneled walls and shelves containing gifts he had received and many items from Ohio State, including photos of him marching in the Ohio State Marching Band, framed his imposing desk. After thanking Allie repeatedly, we hopped on the Orange Line ending our scrimmage for the day and prepared for the next day’s events.
On Tuesday, January 20, we rose at 5 AM and made it to the Landover station by 6AM, which anyone who knows Valarie and I know it’s a minor miracle for us to be anywhere on time. CNN had been reporting that by that time, hundreds of thousands of people had already descended on the Mall. The Landover station is the second stop on the Orange Line, so despite many people being on the train, there were still a few seats available. Pulling up to the RFK stadium stop, there were acres of tour buses that jammed the lot as far as the eye could see with throngs of people from those buses lined up to further stuff the trains. Due to the ocean of people spilling out of the trains into the stations, several stops of the Metro were shutting down near the Capitol.
Even on the train, there was an atmosphere of electric anticipation. Everyone was joyous. Getting off at Capitol South as we had practiced the day earlier, the volume of people in the station was beyond what I could imagine. Heading up the escalator to the surface, you could see from the deep lavender hue of the sky at the top of the stairs that the sun had not quite risen. The spattering of thousands camera flashes like a swarm fireflies lit up the station and tunnel to the surface as if it were midday. As the crowds ascended to the surface they began to shout in unison Obama’s slogan, “Yes We Can!”
Finally getting to the street level, the volume of people was simply astonishing. Our tickets were “Blue” so we needed to make our way to Washington Avenue where the Blue Gate security checkpoint was located. Arriving in the massive line at 7AM (gates opened at 8AM) we were already several thousandths place in line with people quickly packing in behind us. Being just after sun up, it was extremely cold but the cheerful crowd and our multiple layers of clothing provided much appreciated warmth. Some time around 8 AM, the security gates opened and very slowly, we began to creep forward. By then the line, which was easily the width of the street, stretched behind us for blocks. By 9:30AM we cleared the security gate and bomb sniffing dogs and reached our standing area on the Capitol lawn to scout a place where we had a clear view of the podium through the trees. The space filled in quickly while cameras again were flashing wildly as we pivoted from looking at the jumbo-tron next to the Capitol to peaking around the 6’4” fellow with the high reddish afro about five feet in front of us to view the podium. Everyone in our area gasped each time the jumbo-tron showed shots of all of the people assembling in the Mall. We could not see the Mall from our vantage point, but the number of flag waving people displayed on the screen seemed immeasurable.
After about an hour of gradually being enclosed by more and more revelers, we found ourselves standing at nearly the exact spot we had scouted out the day before. Talk about a good game plan! Right on cue, dignitaries began the procession of entering the Capitol Stage. There were television cameras inside the corridors of the Capitol, so we were able to see on the jumbo-tron all of the VIPs approaching through the building before they actually came out on the stage. The momentum and electricity were definitely building to a crescendo. Around 11AM, screens captured Obama’s motorcade traveling slowly up Pennsylvania Avenue toward the Capitol. As the crowds roared in jubilation you could hear to the side the actual shrill of the motorcade’s sirens inching closer.
The loudest cheers for dignitaries came when former President Bill Clinton and ailing Senator Ted Kennedy entered into the Capitol and onto the stage. A chorus of boo’s rained down heavily when President George W. Bush appeared on the stage. Throughout the ceremony the outgoing President had a definite look of relief to be leaving this “snake pit” of Democrats.
When President-Elect Obama entered the Capitol and appeared on the stage, an estimated 1.8 million people went into a complete frenzy. I cannot begin to imagine what it must feel like for any person about to be inaugurated to behold that sight. After all the preliminaries, songs and tributes, it was finally time for Obama to step to the podium and take the oath of office as President. From our vantage point, we could see the podium and could make out images of people moving enough to tell who was who, but could not make out the details of anyone. When the oath was being administered, I looked mainly at the podium and not the jumbo-tron screen because I wanted to see Obama become President as best I could with my own two eyes. When President Obama finished swearing in, there was an indescribable roar of excitement, relief, and accomplishment. Tears ran down the cheeks of so many, especially elderly citizens who never thought they would live to see the day when an African-American became the President of the United States. With every word of his Inaugural Address transmitting down the Mall, you could hear a pin drop in between the moments of wild cheers for a popular word or phrase. As the ceremony ended, you could hear in the distance cannons being fired with their booming tribute echoing majestically off of the buildings.
Following a poem, benediction and the recession of the new President from the stage, we contemplated hanging around for a while or making our way to the train station. Chilled toes and hands were growing colder, we were hungry and exhausted, and given our relatively close proximity to the subway station, we thought it best to go there right away before a million people beat us to it. Valarie had not eaten or drank anything to that point because she did not want to have to use a Port-a-Potty. I did, and she was probably right. Despite our nearness to the station, the line to go down the subway tunnel stretched for an entire city block in two directions. By the time we reached the tunnel, it stretched for three. The mood was still festive and exhibited a spirit of bonding that is too rarely seen or felt in our country. It was said that on Inauguration Day, not a single crime was reported in Washington D.C. We finally made it back to Valarie’s cousin’s home to eat, nap, and watch the parade knowing that we just witnessed one of the most significant events in our country’s history. We were very proud.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Dear Pickerington Tiger Community - Letter #13
Dear Pickerington Tiger Community – Letter #13
Happy New Year Pickerington Tigers! Where has the year gone! We are now into 2010 and only days away from finishing the first semester. As I write this letter, Pickerington Local Schools are on a 2-Hour delay. This is a great time to remind you to constantly check your local news updates in the morning for the most up to date information. Many of you have signed up for PLSD text updates from your cellular service provider. Keep in mind that when PLSD decides to delay the start of school or cancel school altogether, the district notifies the news media, both television and radio, and the cellular providers. With some providers, the text alerts come very late, which is a function of your provider and not PLSD. Your best bet for the quickest information is to either tune in to the local news stations or you can follow the district on Twitter @PLSD where up to the minute updates are provided.
As I’ve stated, January 21 marks the end of the first semester. Aside from being only a 3-day week, the schedule of each day is amended to account for student exams. In my next letter, I will share the schedule for the exams and reiterate the importance of doing well on each test. The start of second semester also begins the scheduling process for the 2010-2011 school year. In our effort to encourage students to include more rigorous coursework in their schedule, I will be calling upon you in the near future to take a hard look at the requests your students will be making for next year. As I have often times shared, we have made impressive academic gains at Central in the OGT, ACT, and Honor Roll numbers in the last three years and are hoping to increase our enrollment and diversity next year in Honors and AP classes by 10%.
December also brought many traditional holiday events to our school. All areas of our music program held holiday concerts prior to the break. The PHSC Chorale performed their holiday program over 20 times for area schools and organizations. Student Council adopted four families in need and provided heart warming and welcoming relief to those families for the holidays. Several groups and clubs combined to contribute thousands of canned good items to the local food pantry, and this year PHSC started a new tradition of having a Door Decorating Contest where the class with the best decorated classroom door received a complimentary breakfast.
As we come out of the Winter Break, I want to share how proud we all should be of the Pickerington Central Marching Tigers. As most of you know, the band marched in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City in November. Over the break, the band also traveled to Los Angeles to march in the 2010 Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena. I was fortunate enough to have been able to travel with the band and can tell you from first-hand experience that our band is truly regarded nationally as one of the top high school bands in the United States. The weather was gorgeous and the students represented themselves, PHSC and the Pickerington Community at all times with the highest level of class and character. The Marching Tigers are one of only two high school bands in history that have been talented enough to march in both the Macy’s and Tournament of Roses parades in the same year. It was also a thrill for the students to perform “Beautiful Ohio” along side The Ohio State University, Ohio University and Ohio School for the Blind marching bands all together on the same field. The students had a great time at Disneyland and looked sharp marching down Colorado Boulevard on January 1 once again representing Pickerington before an international audience. The response I received from not only the hotel staff, but also parade organizers and casual bystanders about our band were incredible. Kudos to Mr. Sewell and his staff and parent chaperones for organizing such an incredible experience for our students. I would also like to say a special thank you to Glenda England for all of her efforts in making sure that everything went according to plan.
Finally, this Thursday, January 7 is the day PHSC will be administering the H1N1 Flu vaccination in the gymnasium to those students who have previously turned in the permission slip allowing them to be vaccinated. Only those students with permission slips and staff will be permitted to receive the vaccination, as our supply is limited. We should be concluded with the procedure by midday.
I hope each of you had a joyous holiday season and welcome back!
Sincerely,
M. Scott Reeves
Principal, PHS Central
If you BELIEVE you can ACHIEVE you will SUCCEED
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
2010 Rose Bowl Journal - Monday, December 28, 2009
Monday, December 28, 2009
The preparations for this trip have been ongoing for about a year, ever since the Pickerington High School Central Marching Tigers were selected to participate in the 2010 Tournament of Roses Parade on January 1 in Pasadena, California. I thought it would be a nice vacation for my wife and two small children. The trip however, took a fortunate turn when the football Buckeyes won the Big Ten championship after defeating Iowa in November and qualified to play in the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1997. Because of my standing as a member of the Board of Directors of the Varsity “O” Alumni Association, I was able to get tickets to the Rose Bowl for my family.
The day started early, 5 AM to be exact, as our flight was scheduled to depart at 7 AM. Not too bad, except for the fact that I didn’t finally get to bed until after 1 AM. Piddling around packing clothes and watching the movie “Purple Rain” took much longer than I anticipated. My wife didn’t even bother going to bed. Therefore, 5 AM was rough. Surprisingly, my 6 year old daughter, Madison, was up and full of energy. Excitement and adrenaline fueled her for the trip because she went to bed about the same time as I did. Michael dragged himself out of bed, and as usual, took repeated threats of being left behind. Needless to say, by 6 AM we were off. That’s cutting it close, especially given the fact that the security level was raised as a result of the attempted terrorist attack in Detroit a few days prior, but a benefit of living in Gahanna is that the airport is only a few minutes away.
In the airport, we met up with band director Mike Sewell, his family and the early departing PHSC entourage. It was evident from the attire in the check-in lines that the Buckeye Nation was ready to descend on California for the Rose Bowl. Our first connection on our Southwest Air flight was to St. Louis. All was find until we began to land. The change in air pressure wreaked havoc on my son’s ears and he began to panic with tears and snot pouring from his face. Everyone around him tried to give him strategies to relieve the pressure, but once it’s the end of the world for him, it’s the end of the world and nothing can save it. Not soon enough, we landed in the “Lou.”
Our layover was brief and I hit the gift shop for some OJ, trail mix and a USA Today. In the gift shop, I noticed that all of the tourist apparel was either generic St. Louis, the Blues, Cardinals or Mizzou gear. There was no gear for St. Louis University. The only reason I even noticed was that my wife’s college teammate, roommate and BFF is the Head Women’s Basketball Coach for SLU. I sent @shimmy33 a tweet about the lack of SLU gear in the airport. She replied that they must be sold out. She’s a true Billiken.
On the 4-hour flight to Phoenix, our next connection, I was able to get some much-needed sleep. I was partially lifted from my slumber by the pilot’s announcement, “is there a doctor or nurse on board?” Somehow, I was too exhausted to fully awaken, but remember going back into a deep sleep thinking, “that’s odd.” Fortunately, the pregnant passenger, I was told later, was OK. I finally woke with enough time to read several chapters of the book “Outliers” by Malcolm Gladwell. Very thought provoking concepts about success that is a very easy read and highly recommended.
Yet again, the descending plane ravaged the ears of Michael. Like a coach to his player, I tried to pump him up, “don’t panic, use your strategies, you can do it!” I tried to explain to him the science of what was happening to his ears (don’t ask) and distract him with the view of the passing mountains outside the window. No dice. He blew about a gallon of snot out of his nose and caught it with his hand. Of course, we had no napkin. Thankfully, the attendant handed me several napkins and wet wipes. From the middle seat, I noticed I had a new seatmate that I had to reach across from the one I started the trip with. This gentleman strongly resembled the odd brother-in-law-to-be from the movie “Hangover” and was, I’ll politely say, aromatically challenged. He switched seats during the commotion with the nurse who helped the pregnant passenger. Apparently, I missed all of that.
The attendant also offered a trick to help my son with his ears. She gave Michael two paper cups stuffed with napkins soaked with hot water. Possibly the warm fumes would help his ears? Although I recognize his discomfort, I must say he looked utterly hilarious holding two large cups to his ears while tearing and snotting. I think he knew how ridiculous he looked because he blurted a laugh through his tears.
From Phoenix to Orange County, we decided to switch seats and have Michael sit with Valarie and Maddy. Wouldn’t you know it; he slept the entire way, including the descent and landing. Valarie said all he needed was his momma’s touch. Whatever. At least I could peacefully finish “Outliers.”
As always when flying where I have to make connection changes, I hold my breath when the baggage carrel reveals the luggage. Sometimes the bags make the trip, sometimes they don’t. I could immediately tell we were in California by the Louis Vuitton and Gucci bags that aristocratically filed by. Bags made it! We rented a hybrid Nissan Altima and were on our way to the Newport Beach Marriott. The weather was beautiful, making me wonder why exactly I still lived in blustery Columbus. I had never before driven a hybrid car, which at every stop made me think the car had stalled. Motoring by the rows of waving palm trees, an exotic cream colored Ferrari smoked by me as if I were driving in reverse. Altimas are nice, at least in Ohio, but the Ferrari made me feel like Axel Foley in his Nova puttering down Rodeo Drive in “Beverly Hills Cop.” In between the Garmin voice and my wife trying to give me opposing directions, I had an epiphany. I invented a new word – Valeocentric. The meaning of Valeocentric is “the only correct view is from the perspective of Valarie.” I live in a valeocentric world.
The hotel is beautiful and very resort-like. From our 9th floor balcony, you can see Catalina Island and the Pacific Ocean stretching to the horizon. Maddy excitedly announced that we were over a “golf field,” meaning the oceanfront golf course below. Man, I didn’t bring my clubs! After getting settled and realizing we were famished, we ventured out for something to eat. We went to Balboa Island, which was a perfect recommendation from one of the hotel managers, and had pizza and spaghetti on the boardwalk. The highlight was the spectacular sight from the Balboa Pier of the setting sun vanishing behind Catalina Island.
Sunrise in cold gray Ohio – sunset in sunny warm California – not too bad. The day ended with a delicious glass of cabernet, watching Monday Night Football and listening to the kids giggling on the pullout in the other room. Try as I might, I’ll have to catch the result of the game on Sports Center tomorrow. Goodnight.
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