Monday, March 26, 2012

Education: Windham Public Schools Part 1 0f 8


What comes first, dollars or sense, Part 1
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Greenwich and Windham, Connecticut are miles apart geographically and economically. Greenwich is the state's most wealthy town while Windham is one of the poorest.
Greenwich, known as the front door to New England, is blessed by location and leadership. Situated between the financial centers of Manhattan and Stamford, it is served by Route 95, Am Track, and Metro North, as well as Westchester and New York City airports. The libraries, recreation facilities, senior services and safety department are touted as the best in Connecticut. Connecticut Magazine, in its November 2011 issue, ranks Greenwich the number one town to live in by population group.
Greenwich Ave. is a tree lined street similar to Willimantic’s Main Street, but it is populated with upscale shops and shoppers. Many Greenwich stores have secondary locations in Palm Beach, Aspen or even Dubai. Around the corner on West Putnam Avenue, you can purchase any exotic car made. Currently on the Miller Motor Car Co. lot there are nine Rolls Royces for sale — fewer than usual because of a slowdown in the economy.
Greenwich's assessor recently released September’s real estate transactions. Headlined in the Greenwich Patch, an electronic news site: "Of 35 real estate transactions, eight were under $1 million.” A rare occurrence for Greenwich. TheGreenwich Times reports a stock broker and town resident is sentenced to eleven years and fined $50 million for insider trading. The November elections see several candidates that are hedge fund managers in real life.
Greenwich does more than its fair share to support the state budget. Greenwich contributed $2.3 billion, 12% of the state budget, to Hartford in 2010. In return, the state sends back $18 million. The next highest contributing town, Fairfield, sent the state 20% of Greenwich's contribution (2009-10).
Windham's beauty stands up to any New England town. Its Victorian neighborhoods are second to none. It's a picturesque rural town made up of three villages and the city of Willimantic. Enthusiastic citizens and community groups assure continual cultural, artistic and family events such as the Boom Box Parade and Third Thursday. It is served by secondary roads and the New England Central and P&W serve a sparse industrial base. Windham Airport, is underutilized and under-promoted. Two interstate buses stop daily —down from five four years ago. Windham's retail district has lost its prominence over the years to competition on the outskirts of town. Unfortunately, few new stores and fewer shoppers have replaced those lost.
Two towns so different share a common problem — both have failing school districts. After 20 years of deterioration the State Department of Education took over the Windham district in May 2011. An AP story picked up by newspapers across the U.S told of Windham's taxpayer refusal to support its students and repair the highest achievement gap in Connecticut. Windham citizens took the news in stride; they knew it was coming. At the same time, May 2011, Dr. Sidney Freund, Greenwich's superintendent tendered his resignation less than two years into a three-year appointment and eight months after receiving the Superintendent of the Year Award from the Connecticut Parent Teacher Students Association. Greenwich's citizens were flabbergasted.
Future blogs will consider what went wrong. Greenwich, unquestionably a town that has the ability and will to give its students the best education in the state. Greenwich, which spends $4,000 more per student than the average Connecticut school district. Greenwich, which currently is constructing a $29 million theater/music addition to its high school. Greenwich, which in 2006 hired the then State Commissioner of Education to replace the former superintendent who had said, "Enough." We'll look at both Greenwich and Windham schools — the cast of players … the role they play — and determine which comes first — dollars or sense?
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Thursday, March 15, 2012

Education: Windham Public Schools Part 2 of 8



Greenwich: So Much, So Little, Part 2

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Money alone can't buy a good education.  Greenwich's school district is ranked 46th in the state last year, according to an analysis of test scores by education website Schooldigger.
The fourth superintendent in 11 years resigned in May. Including interim superintendents, Greenwich has seen eight administrators go through the Board of Education's revolving doors in 12 years. The last superintendent’s resignation came after months of political in-fighting and bickering among town administrators and board members, harassing emails, and an inability to move ahead on decisions. "I was starting to feel handcuffed by the board's inability to work as a board. I found myself getting my job done in spite of the board rather than with the board." Said dissident board member Marianna Ponns Cohen,"The superintendent's cover-up is like Watergate. There's no transparency or accountability and some of the things he did were illegal."
Of the state's 167 districts, Greenwich is the highest spender on education, shelling out nearly $18,000 per student to keep class sizes small and be able to offer classes in  Mandarin Chinese and Shakespeare competitions. Windham Schools spend $4,000  less per student, but still more then the average Connecticut school district.
 In 2009, the district launched a three-year improvement plan to boost test scores but failed to meet 44 of 53 achievement targets in its first year of the implementation. Greenwich Schools ranks among the worst districts in the state when it comes to the average gap between the performance of low-income and minority students and their affluent, white peers. “In fact, we're seeing districts with less local resources producing better results," said Jenn Alexander,Director of Research and Policy with education advocacy group ConnCan. Windham's achievement gap is ranked last in Connecticut and is one of the worst in nation.
"Greenwich schools are facing a crisis," said Sue Rogers, a mother of two and president of the Parent Teacher Association Council for Greenwich Public Schools.  "We have no leadership from the board and no stability." Steve Anderson, the board of education's chairman and a supporter of  former superintendent, Dr. Freund, blames the board of education for his departure. "I view this as a board failure absolutely, and that weighs heavily on me," Mr. Anderson said.
Mr. Anderson proposed a formal code of conduct for the town's other board members.  "We have to start at the basics again, re-establish board expectations," Mr. Anderson said. "We as a board and a community need to spell out what the goals are for superintendents and then give him the right amount of space within certain guardrails to let him strive for the goals." A search committee has been formed and it's expected that a new top administrator will be in place within a year with a substantial pay increase from the $230,000 Dr Freund was paid.

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What comes first, dollars or sense, Part 1

Greenwich: So much so little, Part 2

Windham's school board, Part 3

Windham's board of finance, Part 4

Windham's town council, Part 5

Windham's students, Part 6

Windham Education: What Went Wrong, Part 7

Conclusion, Part 8
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Education: Windham Public Schools Part 3 of 8



Education Windham Schools, Part 3

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Windham schools are not alone missing goals set by the government's No Child Left Behind mandate. 

Forty seven percent of Connecticut Schools did not achieved Adequate Yearly Progress (FY 2010-11), nor did these schools meet the requirements of the law. This is a long way from the benchmarks the state department of education is required to meet. 

Windham region schools, including Coventry, Bolton, Lebanon, Mansfield, Willington, Reg.#8 (RHAM), and Region #19 (E.O. Smith) failed to reach goal.

As the school years progress, expect more schools statewide to join the ranks of Windham and other schools not achieving AYP, because, in 2014, every student in the US is expected to achieve the goal set by the Federal Government — an unrealistic expectation.

Many Connecticut schools have suffered or will suffer a bump or two in their progression to meet government goals. In all likelihood, those bumps will occur in the districts’ middle schools. Middle school is a difficult time in a student's educational career, as they begin the path to adulthood. Unlike in Windham, these bumps manifest as more of an inconvenience that will be acknowledged and solved with proper management tools, skills and a willingness to use one’s imaginations.
Windham's path to goal has been disappointing. Where many schools have experienced a "bad school year," Windham's test scores have not improved since the enactment of NCLB in 2002.

While the district elementary schools have shown some improvement, that improvement has not been sustainable.

The middle and high schools have performed poorly since 2002 and have never come off NCLB. Rules state that if a school has poor test scores for three years in a row parents can opt to send their children to another district school. However, there is no place for our kids to go as all schools are failing in district.

In early 2011, the State Board of Education released a comprehensive report on the failings of Windham schools. The report focused on Windham’s Board of Education. Unlike Greenwich, New London and Bridgeport's failing districts where personality conflicts on boards of education are identified as contributing factors to the districts’ failures, Windham's board of education works together, respects and is considerate of fellow members, and contributes an inordinate amount of time to our students. 

Windham's problems are centered on management techniques — or a disregard for them.(Read the State Report)

Management is both an art and a science. It is the art of making people more effective than they would have been without a good manager. The science is in how you do that.

There are four basic pillars to good management: plan, organize, direct, and monitor.

These four lynchpins apply not only to educational management, but to everything from a child's lemonade stand to the Pentagon.

If applied and followed, chances of success improve.

While the Windham board of education would hardly qualify to manage the Pentagon, there is little likelihood they would succeed in managing a simple lemonade stand, either.

However, the Windham board of education would make an excellent case study in how not to manage an educational organization.(Read the State Report)

School board members DO NOT:
·         Implement policy; school boards make policy and superintendents carry it out.
·         Manage the day-to-day operations of the school district; school boards see to it that the district is managed by professionals.
·         Evaluate staff, other than the superintendent, nor do they become involved in employment interviews, other than those for superintendent.

School board members DO:
·         Hire and evaluate the district superintendent.
·         Provide guidance in the development of the budget to ensure funding needed to meet board established goals.
·         Approve the budget.
·         Monitor the budget.
·         Set salaries for employees.
·         Approve purchases.
·         Establish and approving policies.
·         Approve curriculum materials.
·         Adopt the school calendar.
·         Review regulations for compliance with policy.
·         Approve personnel actions based on the superintendent's recommendation.
·         Close or construct schools.
·         Assess board effectiveness.
·         Monitor progress toward goals.

Windham school board members DO NOT:
·         Communicate between school district  officials and town officials (mayor, town council members, town manager). Communications range from non-existent to unproductive, and often lead to tensions and hostility, making difficult problems even more severe. 
·         Take criticism lightly. Every criticism is viewed as an insult; each opinion is viewed as a challenge to authority. Conversely, the board of education is quick to lay blame away from its door and on to factors like adverse media coverage, state mandates, parents, taxpayers, town hall, and the state board of education.
·         Project a cooperative attitude. The school board must reach out to external stakeholders and constituencies. The Board should play a key role in soliciting community support to both inform the public of important school matters and to build public confidence in the efficacy of the schools to reach established goals. Unfortunately this has never been the Board's strong suit. (Read State Report)
·         Stand up and admit they have made mistakes in managing our schools. To their credit, Greenwich, Bridgeport and New London's boards of education take the brunt of the blame for their failed school districts and dysfunctional boards. They understand their immense responsibility and admit they have failed their children. On no occasion has Windham's school board admitted a mistake or wrong decision.

Meanwhile, our kids continue to fail. In May 2011, the State Board of Education moved in and took over Windham's schools and announced the future appointment of a Special Master. The Associated Press distributed the story of a failed Windham School District. A failed district — "due to the taxpayers’ refusal to support their children."


In late August 2011, the Special Master arrived. Steven Adamowski, the recently retired Superintendent of Hartford's improving school system, blew into Windham like Katrina blew into New Orleans.


A no-nonsense educator, he didn't come to make friends or to coddle its citizens, the school board, the unions, or politicians downtown.

He won't be elected Cupid.

He's here for our kids.

He's here to make our schools the best possible.

He will fix what is broken and address what has been ignored.

He will fight for every dollar to accomplish his mission and will allocate and prioritize those dollars.

He's not a newcomer to budget cuts; he has come to live with them while continuing to make Hartford schools a showcase for improvement. 

"It's not the amount of money; it's how it's used." (Steven Adamowski)


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Education: Windham Board of Finance Part 4 of 8


Windham Board of Finance

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After the school budget went down by a wide margin in the early summer of 2011, board of finance member Chuck Pennywell coined a new phrase:


“We [the Board of Finance] are the only friends they [the Board of Education] have.”

Leaving that meeting it started. I was hooked — and am still plagued — by that song.

First it was a hum. By the time I arrived home, it was a full blown concerto.  

Burt Bacharack's Thats What Friends Are For:

For good times
and bad times,
Know you can always count on me,
For sure!
That's what friends are for.

Windham's board of finance — the bedrock of town government through 80’s and 90’s due to a series of dysfunctional boards of selectmen (now known as the town council) under the Pawelkiewicz and Paulhus administrations.
The BOF took the lead, steering Windham through the troubled waters of a poor town scraping together the funds to balance the budget and maintain a respectable bond rating.
Indeed, under the able and conservative leadership of John French, and later Andy Carey, the townspeople went to bed each night knowing Windham was in capable hands.  That was the case until the spring budget season of 2010.

Shower time is a hoot, if not demented. There I am with nothing but a bar of soap. I walk into the shower and there's Arthur Fiedler (don't like the new guy) and the Boston Pops. We are on the Esplanade; it's the Fourth of July and it's raining. I'm nervous, but I don't drop the soap. When the crowd sees me they go nuts. The Pops play; I sing:

For good times
And bad times,
I'll be on your side for evermore!
That's what friends are for.


Barbara McGrath and her board became “friends” of the Board of Education. She and her majority put on their rose color glasses and became advocates of the BOE.

She claimed that she and her board knew all about education because they attended BOE meetings. (Records show that Mr. Pennywell and Anita Sebestien attended one meeting on March 10, 2010.) 
If they understood the protocol of those meetings they would have realized that BOE meetings are only for show.
All decisions are made in sub-committee, where there is little public or media observation, and then brought back to the main board for rubber stamping — usually by a unanimous board.
The sudden friendship is mystifying, because Chairman McGrath four years prior was responsible for bringing the State Board of Education to intervene in the Windham district and for the ensuing Cambridge Report.

As budget season turned into Christmas season, I was still in the grips of that song. I made an appointment with a psychiatrist. We sat in his well-appointed office; I knew there would be a huge co-pay.

He asked what the problem was. I explained,

He wanted to hear me sing.

We walked over to a concert grand nestled in the corner of the office — a Yamaha, (Don't people buy American anymore?).

Doctor Feelgood sat down, flipping the tails of his tuxedo to each side. It was then that I noticed his likeness to Burt Bacharack.

He played, I sang:

Keep smiling.
Keep shining,
Knowing you can always count on me,
For sure!
That's what friends are for.

After, he asked if I wanted to do a couple show tune duets? I said no, I wanted the dreaded prognosis. He told me to take two aspirin before performing — my throat seemed scratchy, especially while hitting the high notes. He suggested that I retain a voice coach or, better yet, get out of the music business altogether.

On the way out of the office, Dr. Feelgood's nurse presented me with a huge bill and informed me, "Today's visit isn't covered by insurance."

Keep smiling.
Keep shining.  
MY backside! 

The board of finance sent the first of five budgets to referendum as presented by the board of education in the spring of 2010 with the following comment from Chairman McGrath: "We'll leave it up to the voters. If they want cuts, we will cut."

The budget failed, and the Chairman made good on her promise.
She cut $1000 from a $40 million school budget. 
Mrs. McGrath and her board were going to split Windham into parts.
There was no use arguing. The board would look at you with  glazed stares. They weren't listening; their minds were made up.
The $1,000 cut was voted down near the end of June. The headlines started to appear in state papers: "Windham Residents Refuse to Support Education." Bad publicity again, and we were just feeling whole after the unjustified Heroin Town series.

Three more referendums failed until the fifth passed in the fall of 2010.
In December 2010, the State report on Windham School's Governance and Leadership was published — a supplement study to the Cambridge Report The board of finance apparently never bothered to read those reports — nor the State Board Of Education Statistics on the Windham school district.If they had, they would have realized that:

  1. Ourshools had the widest achievement gap in the United States,  
  2. Our kids were not graduating on time if at all,  That an inordinate number of our kids were destined to become a burden on society because they never learned  to read, to write, or to balance a checkbook,
  3. That teacher and staff morale was at an all-time low, and
  4.  That the BOE was mandated by the state to attend school management classes (Lighting Training) because "they never got it."

Superintendent Ortiz reported to the State Board of Education on November 1, 2010 that Windham district teacher turnover was projected at 80% over the next five years. (See last
Paragraph) She further said that the entire educational process needed change,  including governance structure, decision-makers, and union contracts. 

Mrs. McGrath and her board of finance had completely changed stripes going into fiscal year 2010-11 budget season.
Pouring money into a broken system time and again isn't a solution. If we have a problem, we fix it. But first, it must be acknowledged.
It's not how much money we have, it's about how we spend it. We live by that axiom in our daily lives. 
If brown, scummy water comes out of our faucet, it's a health issue. Our well-being is at stake, therefore the problem must be fixed immediately. Similarly, if the fire truck is late to put out your house fire, it's a safety issue. The problem must be acknowledged and addressed.

They were no longer the keepers of our financial security.They were now "the Board of Finance/Advocates for the Board of Education." Not advocates for education, but advocates for the board of education.  

If the finance board advocated for education they certainly wouldn't advocate for this school board. The board of education was shoveling money into an endless hole, and the board of finance provided the shovels.

We demand that lifestyle glitches are promptly addressed by our government. But, the most important function of local government — educating our kids — is put on the back burner.

The breakdown of the school district is not acknowledged, nor is it addressed. It is left up to a board of education with questionable-to-no management skills — a board of education that is unable to manage a successful lemonade stand and a board of finance "that just wants to be friends." 
With the arrival of the Special Master in late August and the election of four new BOE members in November 2011, there is hopeful speculation that Windham's education escalator will reverse direction to an onward upward motion.
The BOF has also seen its chairman choose not to run for a second term and the addition of two new members.  
The BOF must return to its old job of watching over Windham's finical security. “Friendship” is not part of the job description, nor is overseeing a school system.
The BOF is not a social service agency, nor is it an educational institution.
It's time for Windham taxpayers to support our kids and our schools and give the Special Master time to undo what the BOE spent 20 yrs doing.

Education is expensive. But, it’s cheaper then ignorance. (Paraphrasing Derek Bok.)
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