Unadorned Facts And Statistics...

"...This is not a 1 Year Phenomena....." 

Michael Roth, Interim Superintendent of the Englewood Public Schools - Addressed the public at the Englewood School Board Meeting, October 16, 2014.

This is what the Interim Superintendent had to say about Test Scores.

"Since we received the scores, we’ve been very concerned. We have been taking them apart trying to find out, what went wrong, what is not going right. However, there are 2 particular areas.

1 is from 3^rd to 4^th grade in Language Arts. The other one is going from 6th to 7^th grade in mathematics. 

Where the other scores went up a couple of points or down a couple of points, those 2 specific areas fell off a cliff. They didn’t go up or down by 1 or 2 points. They went off by almost 30 points. We’ve been trying to pull it apart. 

We’ve gone back to approximately 2006 so far.

That’s been happening in Englewood every single year. I don’t wanna give you a glib, answer. Right now, I am as confused as you. It doesn’t make sense that on the other years, there is fluctuation of a couple points, which is normally what you expect.  If you’re getting better, you’ll see a certain trend going upward. If there is a problem you will see a certain trend going downward. You never see a 30 point drop. I mean, it just doesn’t happen, and yet…

I don’t accept that as an answer this is not a one year phenomena. This has been happening, or close to it, for every single year. There is always a reason. There is a cause and effect. We’re going to have to find it. We are going to work to find it and I don’t want to give you a glib answer. I just don’t know. 

That’s why I wanted people to see unadorned facts and statistics. So we can dedicate ourselves to doing something about it. It doesn’t do any good to not face the facts. And that’s what it is…it is a very fair question. And I’m going to have to come to you with some answers. But I just don’t have them now. I don’t have them now."

Stephen Brown was School Board President 2006 - w/vice President Glenn Garrison

"                              "     2007 - w/vice President

Glenn Garrison was president in 2008 - w/vice President Stephen Brown

Henry Pruitt III was president in 2009 - w/vice President Stephen Brown

Stephen Brown was also President of the Board of Education in 2012 - 2013 and spearheaded the Outsourcing of irreplaceable student support staff.
The people of Englewood voted Stephen and Glenn off the School Board in 2013.

These 2 SEEK members are the architects of the present situation and cannot be trusted to 
correct it. They are clearly part of the problem.

History cannot be changed simply because 2 SEEK Candidates want to turn back the sands of time and rewrite it for themselves.

The graph below was copied from a page from 

FAST = Fiscal Accountability Starts Today

http://www.dontbankruptus.com/efast/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/New-Jersey-District-School-Spending-and-Ranking-Analysis.pdf

 ",,,,And how are the children?"

Look Back and Learn from Past Mistakes

History is a good teacher. Some people still do not know the FACTS. There is a formula for how

Superintendents are paid in the State of New Jersey. We have just gone through nearly 4 years of SEEK Board Members refusing to follow the laws of the state of New Jersey.

Look back and remember why Glenn Garrison and Stephen Brown were not re-elected in 2013. These 2 people have no remorse for wrong decisions made in the past. Both of these people spent 9 years on the Board and watched the Test Scores drop so low that our High School is now designated a FOCUS SCHOOL.

The decision to Outsource deprived children of vital in class support. Test Scores dropped even lower. These 2 are the manufacturers of the "failure factory" that they created through neglect while they spent time on everything except student academic improvement.

The people who created the problem cannot be trusted to correct it. Do not be fooled by these 2.

http://4thwardunited.blogspot.com/…/life-in-engleworld-who-…

                                      "....And how are the children?"

Friends Across Party Lines: Is it Possible?

Professor Dierdre Paul

It was Monday night, October 27, 2014.  I had just finished another day of battening down the hatches outside my home. The pool boy quit and the lawn man is under paid. I was tired and drained by a hard day's work. A friend called and said that her husband wondered why no one from Englewood was in attendance at a political forum. Truth be told, a forum was the last thing I wanted to witness. I was all set to watch this week's episode of The Good Wife while enjoying a massage in my ijoy chair. I said, yeah, sure, I know why folks aren't there.

Congressman Bill Pascrell, Jr.

The event had been billed as a meet Congressman Bill Pascrell, Jr. type thing. I mean, why? So I had not planned to go. Another friend called and gave me a whole new perspective. He said that Dr. Dierdre Paul was going to debate Congressman Pascrell. Now that is a horse of a different color altogether. I threw overlarge jeans on over my pajamas and rushed to the church with my camera. This, I wanted to see.

I wanted to witness this intelligent, well spoken African American woman and Professor at Montclair State University debate the seasoned over the hill Congressman. Yeah, I said that. My blog, my opinion.

Dierdre speaks with a Teaneck Resident

Dr. Paul's wrap up explained what type of Republican she is. I agree, Dr. Paul is a different kind of Republican. Congressman Pascrell is a different kind of Democrat. Listening to the 2 of them go back and forth, it was difficult at times to decide who was the Republican and who was the Democrat. In my ripe old age, I am becoming a much more discerning voter. I vote people and issues, not parties. The old man did not seem to understand that much of his talk when referencing the Home Mortgage and Student Loan situations show him to be too much Republican for the Democrat in some of us. His language was condescending at times and so were certain responses.

Pastor Taylor looks on.

I guess that is the way some male politicians respond to intelligent African American Women. Right, Mr. Skurnick? Some politicians really need to polish up their filters or just get some,especially since they find it really easy to criticize the populace. I was not impressed by him or his message. What was his message anyway? (Crooked Bankers are a fact of life so make sure you can afford that home before taking out a mortgage.) Someone please tell Politicians that the middle class is disappearing? Or is it gone already? How many families actually make that much money today? $250,000 per household, per year. That means that teachers are not middle class. Are you middle class? If not, just understand that 98% of the Politicians are not addressing us. Are we chopped liver?

Is that the reason that the people in attendance  were not from Englewood? I wonder.

John Babb, Pastor Taylor, Theresa Thomas, Richard Stanard

Dierdre and I have had conversations about Vouchers and we do not agree. That is the nature of friendship. Individuality is a virtue to some. Pascrell supports Charters and I don't like those either. Neither of them seem to get the fact that both of those institutions are financed by the same special interest groups/private industry that fund PARCC and the Common Core. Rich folks making money off Public Education. Every Tom, Dick and Jane thinks they can run a Charter and do a better job than the Public School System. Where does that leave the public schools that everyone seems more than willing to watch decay?

I am proud of my friend. It is not everyday that an African American Woman decides to take on such a fight when she knows full well that she lives in the middle of Democrat country.

I wish she was still a Democrat so we could fight together on issues other than education. Even Education seems to be going partisan lately. I also wish that the conditions that drove her to the other side did not exist. Oh Well. I have never voted the way my union or anyone else told me. I have always voted the way I wanted based on the people and the issues. I hope that African Americans will begin to read and vote the issues as well. There are far too many Liberals who see themselves as our natural born saviors and leaders or who feel they know better than we who should be our leaders. I prefer to choose my own, thank you very much.

Good luck, Dr. Dierdre Glenn Paul. I know that you are a different kind of Republican  and I am proud to call you friend.

".........................And how are the children?"

What Does Homecoming Mean In Your Town?

It is time to become good hosts. 

Participate in teaching the young 

the true meaning of Homecoming.

Wikipedia

The Free Dictionary -

         1. a return to one's home.

2. an annual event held by a college, university, or high school for visiting alumni.

Florida State - Understanding the True Meaning of Homecoming

HBCU -  The True Meaning of Homecoming

Some cities are going back to the tradition of parade..

In the beginning, when the tradition was new, schools hoped that if they made the alumni happy they would donate. That sounds reasonable to me. So what happened in Englewood?

Do not SELL YOUR VOTE for something that belongs to you already!

Look to the future.

Let Paradise Stand: Forget the Parking Lot

McKay Park is located in between 2 streams or brooks running north and south. This photo was taken while standing on the 2nd street bridge looking toward Palisade Avenue. This is the brook on the eastern side of the Park. 

For all those who live up stream of MacKay Park. Repair of the walls enclosing the brook will not guarantee that we will not see this again. If more of the grassy areas of the Park are taken away we lose more of Mother Nature's Sponge and increase the risk of this happening again. This area of the town is and always has been low lying. Englewood is built on a river bed. Nothing we do will be able to change that HISTORY. Ignoring it will only cause more problems. The homes along the West Side of the Park and the homes on the East Side will be negatively impacted. We do not need any more concrete in MacKay Park.

On The Job Training: Participate In The System

All past wrongs will never be solved in one night.

Prioritize.

Take a deep breath.
Make a list.
Put that list in priority order.
What is most important to address right now?

Breathe....I am trying to take my own advice...

While shopping at Costco, I met a former Board Member. She had previously asked me to join her
"Adopt a Classroom" program. I told her that I was comforted by the idea that such programs existed and held her hand a bit longer than I had previously intended.

She advised me to change my tone. She said that everything I complained about was crucial to be corrected and that people are turned off by the tone. She added that she thought I was intelligent and had the good of my community foremost in mind as a  motivation when speaking at Board Meetings.

She said that the children would surely suffer if we were not heard, so we had to change for the good of the children. At the time, I was pissed that she thought she could tell me what to do or how to say anything  But, in the end...

I was a Theatre Major... I watched other members of the Community speak like crooning Jazz singers and they got what they wanted. I could do that. Basically ask for the same thing but in a tone that they consider benign.

Breathe and Prioritize.

A couple of weeks later the Superintendent recommended that this Board Member's program be abolished and the Board of Education voted to end the program. This was a free Volunteer Program with qualified members of the Community who helped children in the Elementary School classrooms.

It is hard to maintain that. Jazz who.........? 1, 2, 3, 4....Breathe....

Prioritize....!

Part of the frustration is dealing with being angry about too many wrongs at the same time.

Prioritize...

I am game to try this if you are.
Put that list in order.
Would you like to compare priorities?

Breathe...

Speak up about your priorities like the crooning Jazz Singer and we will see if that works.


...And how are the children...?

Former School Board Member Shirley Smith's Lawn Sign Party Fundraiser

Lawn Sign Party

Thursday, October 9, 2014

7:00 PM

374 Palisade Ave

Englewood, NJ

Checks should be made out to:
Friends of Betty, George and Kevin. 
Treasurer: Philip Beamer 
270 Rosemont Place 
Englewood, NJ 076310

Introducting Shirley Smith.....

She has been active in her Community for 57 years. For those of you who are not aware, there is a tireless woman living in Englewood's 4th Ward who has served the Public School District for over 50 years. She started her service as a Paraprofessional. She was a classroom aid at Quarles School. Shirley Smith spent 12 years on the Englewood School Board. She was appointed and also ran her own campaigns after the Board was changed into an elected Board or Type II School District by popular vote.

She was on the Board when the subject of Outsourcing came up. She witnessed the discussion of "window shopping". She watched from the audience as the Board Majority voted, with only George Garrison III abstaining. After she retired from the Board in 2012, she watched as the District abolished the positions of Secretary and Paraprofessional.

"Education is very important to me. The system is not doing what I expected it to. Our children are not getting what they should. We have a lot of work to do to make this district better and  we should not be making excuses about parent involvement. We need to just do whatever we have to to make sure all of the children get a good education." Shirley Smith

Left: School Board Candidate Kevin Lake
Right: Jack Silverman.
"You finally have a  candidate I can support,"
says Jack Silverman.

Smith decided to retire from the Board and work with members of the Community to bring about change in the Englewood Public School District. She is a member of the Recreation Advisory Board and the Traffic Advisory Committee for the City of Englewood, New Jersey. She supports the safe routes to school programs. She is actively involved in activities that will insure that children who have a long lonely walk to school are safe. She feels this is a safety issue and wants to protect children from traffic accidents and stranger danger.

"Even though I am off the School Board I am still actively involved with the children of Englewood." Shirley Smith

Shirley supported Carter, Feinstein and Pazant in last year's school Board Elections. She worked the campaign and was instrumental in the final push to get the word out into the Community. She was there in the final hours, the day before the Election in 2013.  

George Garrison III, Betty Griffin and Kevin Lake 
attend Celebration and Presentation of the 
Martin Luther King, Jr. 
Maquette to the Englewood Public Library

This year, Mrs. Shirley Smith supports candidates, Betty Griffin, George Garrison III and Kevin Lake in their campaign to become members of the Englewood School Board. She feels that these 3 Candidates are the ones who will be able to help put the board back on track. When asked about her service with George Garrison III, she says that Garrison III is a changed person. When he was involved with SEEK, he was new to Englewood. 

George Garrison III poses with
Jeanette Curtis and his
2 daughters.

Mrs. Smith invites you to a Fundraiser in her home to support the candidacy of Betty Griffin, George Garrison III and Kevin Lake. Meet and speak with the Candidates about any issues or concerns you have with the Englewood Public School District. They need to hear what you think the problems are. They need your input and they need your contributions.

Betty Griffin and Anthony Cureton, President
of the NAACP

Most of all, they need your votes. Please attend and give what you are able. I think a Lawn Sign costs less than twenty dollars.

Shirley C. Franklin, the first female mayor of Atlanta, Georgia spoke at Rutgers University’s Run Sister Run conference that encourages women to take an active part in politics. She says that Candidates should never refuse even 1 dollar from Residents, because if a community person gives you 5 dollars or even 1 dollar, that person is going to vote for you. I think she has something there. So please attend our Lawn Sign Party.

Bring your support..

Scott Reddin and George Garrison III

Recreation Advisory Board
http://cityofenglewood.org/content/1441/1760/1781.aspx

Traffic Advisory Committee
http://cityofenglewood.org/content/1441/1760/1784.aspx

Run, Sister Run!
http://www.pinterest.com/plumwalk2/run-sister-run-the-power-of-women-in-politics/

Shirley C. Franklin - 1st female Mayor of Atlanta
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shirley_Franklin



...And how are the children?

Join the Conversation: You are the Subject

FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER...

THE ENGLEWOOD SCHOOL BOARD ELECTION 

WILL BE PART OF 

A GENERAL 

NOVEMBER ELECTION.

VOTE NOVEMBER 4, 2014 FROM THE BOTTOM UP!

For the first time ever the Englewood School Board Elections will be held in November. November 4, 2014. Voters will be required to make many more choices, because the ballot will be filled with new choices. Make the choice to change your thinking and start at the bottom with the issues that affect you on a local level. All politics are local.
Senator - 
Congress -
County Executive -
Freeholder -
City Council - 
School Board - Start here - This is the BOTTOM LINE on having your say on November 4, 2014.

Line 1 Betty Griffin

Line 5 George Garrison III

Line 6 Kevin Lake

...And how are the children?

MacKay Park:What Does the Future Hold for Our Park?

The City Council recently voted to spend $18,000 

for a study to determine what will make MacKay Park better.

MacKay Park was designed by Donald MacKay. 

He gave it to the people of Englewood as a Christmas gift in 1906...

..."1906 Christmas gift to the City of  Englewood was a large tract of land in the Fourth Ward to be used as a Park. MacKay purchased this land from W.W. Phelps. This entrance includes the only remaining (of six) Phelps gatehouse. Later, more land was added to the Park. In his will MacKay bequeathed $10,000.00 for maintenance..." Images of  America: Englewood and Englewood Cliffs

The Park has undergone a lot of changes NOT in MacKay's plan.
More change is coming.
Decisions are going to be made.
Do you want to be part of the change?
This is a chance for you to have your say.
What do you think will make YOUR MacKay Park better?

What would make you and your family want to get more use out of our Park?

Here are some of my thoughts on the fly...What are yours?

• We must begin with a clean slate: No discussion of the Master Plan
• Let us have true dialog that is not directed by the Mayor or anyone else.
• Re-install the bridges
• Reassess the idea of locking off the Elmore Ave. gate
• Turn the gatehouse into a Museum of Englewood History making it an educational institution.
• Reattach the small Park Area on Elmore Avenue to the Park creating a sitting area for Elmore Avenue residents. Install an attractive footbridge into the Park. (Many people do not even know that this build-able lot is actually part of MacKay Park
• Replace the grills
• Repair bathroom facilities in Arena, pool area and picnic area
• Repair water fountains
• Redo the lighting design
• Make the Arena a year round facility that serves the entire community
• Allow more use of the park by Englewood residents
• Post signage as to when play by Englewood's children is not just allowed, but encouraged. (This is required anyway.)
• Post signage with positive messages
• Create a garden area
• Listen to the MacKay Park Legacy Committee with more serious ears. They cared about the Park before anyone else was paying attention.
• Movies in the Park
• Band shell with music in the Park

What are some of your ideas? No one will ever know what you want if you stay at home.

Come out the way you did for the first Master Plan Meeting. If we do not continue to have our say, our ideas will always be ignored.

...And how are the children?