Is It Over Yet?

Dr. Gordon 2015 Graduation Ceremony

I am thoroughly disgusted with the antics of our present Superintendent and Board of Education. As late as January 25, 2019, the Superintendent and Englewood Board of Education filed tenure charges against Dr. Noel Gordon after having fired him effective June 30, 2018. Dr. Gordon has not been paid and has no medical benefits since June of 2018. Positions in which he had tenure were abolished in order to make sure that he would not be able to return. (The Positions of Assistant Principal and Director of Guidance were eliminated) Both of these abolished positions are needed in a Public School District. Compare this situation and our present organization chart to those in schools that work.

August 13, 2018 the NJ Commissioner of Education ordered the Superintendent and the Englewood Board of Education to reinstate Dr Gordon. The Superintendent had already written Dr. Gordon a letter informing him that his position as Director of Guidance had been abolished and that his employment would end as of June 30, 2018. I had no idea that they filed against the man again in January of this year. Dr. Gordon no longer works for the District, yet they filed tenure charges against him in January of 2019.  He was not an employee, so why was this vote to file anew not taken in public? What were they thinking? 

Dr. Noel Gordon in attendance

at DMHS Graduation

in 2014.

Everyone wonders why the scores are going steadily down. It follows, that when the folks in charge exhibit the characteristics for which they are charging others they wish to torture, there exists a serious problem. 

Education has not been a priority in this District since October of 2015. These people don't care about Test scores, Academic Achievement or the emotional health of students. It seems they only care about retribution and being right. Well, the train has left the station on them being "right", because they are wrong. 

Read this latest Document. Notice that the State of New Jersey has decided in favor of Dr. Gordon, again. What does it take to end the torture? How much of our tax money are we going to allow to be flushed down a black hole? 

Our School District desperately needs the suspended Personnel back at work? Our new high school Principal needs an experienced and supportive staff in order to put the school back on track to "Academic Success".

July 27, 2017 the State placed full blame for the supposed "transcript irregularities" and grading scandal on the Superintendent and the Board of Education. Read that here. Headlines at the time read, "3000+ grade changes". That was a very bad joke and terribly short sighted. In a failing school containing over 1,100 students, 3,000 grade changes is a conservative figure. This writer wants to know why there seems to be a media black out of the events in the EPSD recently. We want to know why no media source has found it peculiar that the auditor who found the irregularities actually ended up getting Dr. Noel Gordon's job. We want to know why this very important fact was not considered news worthy. Perhaps it was put in the same category of the current Board Member, who is running for re-election, who entered into a contract with the School Board on which she was serving, and proceeded to hide 96 children from the Health Department.

The tenure charges were filed after the state found that the Board and Superintendent broke the law. Read these charges that were filed wholesale against all suspended Personnel. Keep in mind that tenure charges must be filed individually. Why is it that our Superintendent, Board and Board Attorney did not know the procedure for filing tenure charges. Did they ignore the law?

Summary of Legal Requirements for Teacher Evaluation and Tenure Cases

How is it that we continue to employ persons who cannot follow directions?  When students do not follow directions, they generally end up failing the course. 

A current School Board member is running for re-election based on the QSAC Scores. (The QSAC is basically a report card for how the School Board is doing its job. (It is a School Board self assessment.) The test scores of the students are at an all time low and this Board member is using the results and congratulating herself on being able to get high QSAC scores?  What about the fact that she voted to move forward on the tenure charges each time the opportunity presented itself?

Is it more important that the Board gets high scores or that the Students get high scores that are not exaggerated or made up?

Put the suspended back to work. 

Stop wasting our tax dollars.

Stop fudging the numbers.

Stop supporting a School Board Member who has really shown conduct unbecoming. How can we take seriously any vote that Angela Midgette-David has taken in her 3 years on the School Board? How can we take seriously any action that this Board has taken?

Did this Board Member, through her actions, compromise and bully the Superintendent, the Business Administrator, the Board Attorney, the local Health Department, the Police Department, the State Health Department, Parents and other employees of the EPSD? Stop  her, since the present Board members do not seem to have the courage.

End the farce that in my humble opinion equates to Union Busting!

2014 Graduation Ceremony

Far left, Superintendent Donald Carlisle, Former Principal Peter

Elbert, Former Principal of Alternative School Joseph Bell.

It should be noted that Peter Elbert and Joseph Bell were

Co-Presidents of the Administrator's Union.

Joseph Armental 

Assistant Principal DMHS

Jamayla Scott

Nicole Cartwright
Guidance Counselor

Not pictured.

Venus Rose

Louis Sanchez

Suspended also were 2 non tenured Guidance Counselors. All suspended Personnel have filed charges against this Superintendent and Board of Education.

It is time that this came to an end. We are  paying the salaries and benefits of 2 sets of employees. It is damaging lives and compromising the operation of our entire School District.

Are You Ready to Vote For A Change?

Right to Left, William Feinstein, Suzanne Mullings & Samuel Trusty

"...As an alumnus of the Englewood School System, I have a vested interest in the welfare of Englewood’s educational condition.

I want the children of Englewood to find the same delight in their educational experience that I had the opportunity to experience. I will dedicate time to advocate for our children and their future by improving the educational foundation the district provides to ensure our children are viable participants in the national workforce..."

Suzanne Mullings - Candidate for Englewood Board Education

"...We need school board members who will work for all our children. I will fight to ensure that every child receives the highest quality education. I will work to create an environment and culture that is conducive to teaching and learning, creating a positive experience for all students, teachers, administrators and parents. We need change to restore competence and confidence to the Englewood Public School District..."

William Feinstein - Candidate for Englewood Board of Education

Bill Feinstein is not new to the City, the School District or the race for equity in our Schools.

https://plumwalk2-justsaywhen.blogspot.com/2016/11/just-in-case-missed-candidates-forum.

"... As a board member and policy maker my number one priority will be to ensure we are Providing EVERY child with the BEST education to prepare them for success.    

While doing that, we must also balance the interests of all stakeholders including, Our Students & Parents, our Teachers & Administrators and The Englewood Taxpayer.  I look forward to your questions and to discuss the future of the Englewood Public Schools..."

William Feinstein

Claiming a future for our Children

https://plumwalk2-justsaywhen.blogspot.com/2017/10/claiming-future-for-our-children.html

I am very passionate and committed to the success of the Englewood Public Schools. I was fortunate to receive a great education that prepared me for the world outside of Englewood and I want every child today to receive that same great education and experience. As a community we have a responsibility, to ensure that each child is given that same opportunity from day one. We must put a very strong emphasis on early education. When a child falls behind in the early grades, it becomes extremely difficult, if not sometimes impossible, for that child to catch up.

William Feinstein

Englewood Farmer's Market: What happened to our Country Fare?

The empty wet hole where my grandchildren's 

beloved playground used to stand.

Recently, while photographing the Depot Square Playground, I decided to do a little shopping at our 

Englewood Farmer's Market. I was very disappointed in the prices and the participation. I found myself wondering, "where are the farmers"? There was only one Farm represented, a bakery, a soap salesman and a food truck. I attributed it to the fact that it was an overcast day. and the fact that the Park 

has a very dismal look without the Playground equipment.

I purchased 5 sweet potatoes and some fresh ginger. I could have purchased these items at Shoprite, but I wanted to give some business to the Farmers.

Those 5 sweet potatoes and piece of ginger 

cost $7.55

 As it is, these 5 potatoes and piece of ginger cost $7.55. I almost walked away without the vegetables when I heard the price, but I am forever conscious of the plight of farmers. I grew up on a farm and still grow vegetables to this day. This was a difficult season. The rain and the overabundance of the Mexican Bean Beetle, plus the Deer grinded our Community to a near standstill. Needless to say, I was not happy at the cost, even under these circumstances.  I left the area wondering how much each vendor was required "to pay for the privilege to set up shop" in the park.

There is also something else the folks who make the decisions did not take into consideration. The playground was a bonus attraction to persons visiting the Farmer's Market. The large number of vendors filled the small Park and gave the visitors a feeling of a Country Fair. My grandchildren loved it. They played in the playground while I shopped and took photos.  The present appearance of the Park is not a good companion to a poorly purposed Farmer's Market.

Alstedes seems to be the only farm participating.

Compare to 2012

Was it the weather, the cost of the space rental, the planning or the dismal appearance of the site?

That hefty $7.55 for such a small amount of produce

may be a factor for some, I'm just saying.

This is Your United States Post Office!

Do you know who owns the building that houses the United States Post Office in Englewood, NJ? On August 27, 2019, I spoke to Residents as they entered the building. They all had the same disgust as I that the building and grounds have been allowed to fall into such disrepair.

Are the powerful in Englewood doing this own purpose? Will this be the next place to become part of the famous "Opportunity Zone"? One of the Residents told me that he heard that the building was for sale and that the Annex would be the only brick and mortar place that we would have to serve as our Post Office.

Has United States mail become obsolete? Are they going to force us all to pay our bills and communicate online in the near future? The Englewood Public School District recently instituted a mandatory filing out of important student forms online. If Parents do not fill out forms online, the student schedules will not be available to the Parent.  Last year, Parents and Guardians in a Title I School District were locked out of Genesis all year long. They were in effect being blackmailed into filling out forms online. What about important medical forms? What happens if a child is seriously ill and the Parent or Guardian did not have the where with all to fill out the form online or did not have a computer. These forms may not be filled out on a cell phone.

Tonight I received a call from a Parent who was trying to fill out the application for Free and Reduced lunch on line. Keep in mind that the Free and Reduced Lunch Program is Federal. Is it a bit outside of the law to mandate that Recipients of Title I Funds to fill out these forms online. This particular parent was having a serious problem because there was no way to send the form to anyone after filling it out. He said that there was no recipient listed to whom the form should be sent and there was no submit button. Do you see the problem here?

 Going paperless is given as a choice from many bill collectors. They give you the option of going paperless, yet they use 5 and 6 pages to give you a bill. Are they urging you to go paperless so they can fill your email with all manner of ads to purchase other products?

There is a 5 year Strategic Plan to revive the United States Post Service. It will supposedly make our US Postal Service "Future Ready". Did they let the local Government in on this plan?

 Our Mayor is always pushing for New Residents. They actually advertise programs and events designed to welcome "new residents". Is this an inviting site for a "New Resident". I wonder how "new residents" feel when perusing this train wreck. One would think that when inviting one into your home, one would clean it up. This property is assessed at 2.7 million dollars and does not pay any taxes. It says that the owner is the United States of America. Who exactly is the United States of America? What is up with the United States Postal Service.

 Is this the sign of the times. I also visited the one in Teaneck Avenue near the Bank. The property is not well maintained there either. Is the Post Master General in charge of all of this?

"The Postal Service’s Five-Year Strategic Plan, covering the fiscal years (FYs)
2017 to 2021, is intended to provide our stakeholders, including Congress, our
employees, our business partners, our customers and the American people, with: A comprehensive mission statement covering the major functions and operations of the Postal Service. An identification of those key factors external to the Postal Service and beyond our control—both in the external business environment and forecasted trends—that could significantly affect the achievement of the overall goals and objectives. A description of the Postal Service’s overall goals and objectives, aligned with national performance assessment goals and objectives. A description of the program evaluations used in establishing or revising overall goals and national performance assessment system objectives. This document satisfies the reporting requirements articulated in Title 39 USC Section 2802. "

 I had to call out for service once inside the Post Office. It took a while for the Postal Worker to come to the window. As I purchased my stamps, I asked who was responsible for maintaining the exterior of the building. She said the custodian.

 I suggested that perhaps someone should remind the Custodian of what is contained in his job description, because he clearly was not doing a very good job of maintaining the grounds.

This old shed and the truck parked beside it are serving as habitats for rodents of all kinds. One does not think of a United States Post Office looking like this. The old Post Office out in the Country where I am from in North Carolina looks like a mansion compared to this. Check out the front of the truck in the photo below. It is literally being overgrown by weeds. Is this a sad reminder of what is happening to our Government and our Country?

Was the Resident correct in what he had heard? Are they selling the building that houses The United States Post Office in Englewood, New Jersey? 

Is everything in Englewood, New Jersey for sale, including the people?