Charter School Blues...
Interesting story in the Bee today about apparent financial abuses at a statewide charter school. Among the allegations: conflict of interest, faulty accounting practices, and excessive compensation for executives.
Oh, and it's not VAPAC. ( Is it us or does this seem to be the operational model of choice for many charter schools??)
Read about it here: http://www.sacbee.com/content/news/story/14292737p-15132036c.html
We tend to get wistful this time of year. Sac High has been closed since '03. St HOPE continues to operate in spite of dwindling enrollment. Now they've taken over a school in New York. We find it interesting that the New York project is characterized as a "partnership" with St. HOPE given 2 years to hammer out the details before, presumably, a final agreement is made with regard to their running of the school in conjunction with the city's Education Department (New York Daily News 7/24/06). Seems like a sane approach by a school board -- better than handing over a school in its entirety to an unproven entity like our local school board. Funny how there is no mention of this arrangement in the Bee, but there is that great quote from Mr. Johnson referring to the Sac High proceedings as a "takeover." And a takeover from which he admits he is still trying to recover.
On another note...
Once again the Bee is doing battle with that evil teachers union. This time over surplussing. Now we agree that hiring and promotions at all levels of government employment are fraught with rather bizarre rules governing the movement of employees from position to position or department to department, but allowing a principal to create his or her own fiefdom is even more distressing. We are not saying that there isn't room for improvement in the situation, but oversight is needed lest a principal pack a school with his or her cronies regardless of competence.
Of course, we are used to dealing with questionable competence from some administrators.
Feel free to comment...
http://scusdwatch.proboards100.com/
Oh, and it's not VAPAC. ( Is it us or does this seem to be the operational model of choice for many charter schools??)
Read about it here: http://www.sacbee.com/content/news/story/14292737p-15132036c.html
We tend to get wistful this time of year. Sac High has been closed since '03. St HOPE continues to operate in spite of dwindling enrollment. Now they've taken over a school in New York. We find it interesting that the New York project is characterized as a "partnership" with St. HOPE given 2 years to hammer out the details before, presumably, a final agreement is made with regard to their running of the school in conjunction with the city's Education Department (New York Daily News 7/24/06). Seems like a sane approach by a school board -- better than handing over a school in its entirety to an unproven entity like our local school board. Funny how there is no mention of this arrangement in the Bee, but there is that great quote from Mr. Johnson referring to the Sac High proceedings as a "takeover." And a takeover from which he admits he is still trying to recover.
On another note...
Once again the Bee is doing battle with that evil teachers union. This time over surplussing. Now we agree that hiring and promotions at all levels of government employment are fraught with rather bizarre rules governing the movement of employees from position to position or department to department, but allowing a principal to create his or her own fiefdom is even more distressing. We are not saying that there isn't room for improvement in the situation, but oversight is needed lest a principal pack a school with his or her cronies regardless of competence.
Of course, we are used to dealing with questionable competence from some administrators.
Feel free to comment...
http://scusdwatch.proboards100.com/
posted by All of Us at
6:19 AM
12 Comments:
Charter schools can be incredible and credible means to educate todays students. But unfortunately power corps some before it is known.
Strotton and Aguilar have gone from VAPAC to CKM at the recommondation of SCUSD administrator, former St. HOPE principal and Sac High/VAPAC alum Allen Young.
He will now be the principal of the Met here in Sacramento. Check the Met on line and you'll see a school that has worked across the nation.
The De La Cuestas have essentially taken their ball (with was never really their) and chosen not to let SCUSD play. As a result they have no players and the school will not open this fall.
In short they have slit VAPAC's throat via the ignorance and stupidity that must run in the family.
Our efforts now lie with Sac High and bringing it back to SCUSD. St. HOPE plans to celebrate the 150 year anniversary of the school-but didn't it close in 2003?
SCUSD will watch the modernization efforts come just in time to take it over again.
To save face, KJ and crew will deem SCUSD ready for the challenge of maintaining Sac High and leave the campus for brighter Oprah-filled pastures. KJ's financial shell game, charter misteps and rommancing of seemingly anyone with a pulse will go unnoticed by all but a few.
What a waste...
I'm just curious where you heard that vapac won't be open in the fall? I know they've continue to enroll new students and that many students are leaving, but many planned to stay.
How do you know that Mr. Stratton has gone to CKM? How does someone verify this?
I was at CKM yesterday and he is going to be teaching there as well as Agular
Met principal Allen Young made sure both Stratton and Agular (sp?) were hired.
Why would anyone send their kid to VAPAC? The rich arts curriculum? The demanding scholastic rigor? Maybe incestuous leadership.
No Stratton, Agular, Fox, Sirrad, Melchor, Seigert, etc.
Just the De La Cuestas. Sounds lame. If they could even get the school up and running by Sept,I STILL wouldn't send by kid there.
So what's left for arts schools? Natomas charter-too far. Sac High School of the Arts with no Modlin, Young, Dimas, Carroll, Cuellar, Fie, etc. No music program at all. Solid dance though. Because of remodeling there's no kiln, wood shop, etc.
In short. NO VAPAC NO SAC CHARTER HIGH.
Aguilar, Stratton, Sirard, Tackit, Zungri, and Sosa (supposedly) all gone. Along with Fox, Kapp et. al. from the previous year... Gee Whiz, maybe those digruntled teachers were right. Maybe the DLC's are self-interested... However, it looks like the VAPAC Board and the DLC's and the sycophants will stay the course. Score a "moral" victory at the expense of the students.
I'm sorry but to the parents who have supported the DLC's and their policies through this whole fiasco, what are you thinking? Last year the exodus was blamed on "bad" teachers out to destroy the DLC's and the school. So they left. Now the other half or your staff is leaving, including the DLC's biggest cheerleader Stratton. What'e the explanation this time?
Sad thing is that all of this could have been resolved if the personality cult that the DLC's built around themselves had pulled their heads out of their nether regions and thought critically about the situation, something workable could have been salvaged. But to the folks at DLC High.. I mean Karen Ryan High..er I mean VAPAC, Whose fault is it this time?
Two answers: Mr. and Ms. De LA Cuesta. Period.
Well, does anyone know what is going on with vapac? Open? Closed? No one answers the phone - but that is nothing new.
Let's take a wild guess. NO MORE VAPAC...
The De La Cuestas have taken a school that they never knew how to run and ran it to the ground.
SCUSD got wise a bit late and now they have no art school.
Options? Sac City College and/or wait until VAPAC reopens at the SCUSD run Sac High in two years.
It's interesting to talk with students that are returning. They believe they have a dependentcharter that SCUSD has nothing to do with. If you call SCOE, they claim to have no knowledge of vapac being under their umbrella. Funny, I think I saw many, many vapac positions posted on scusd employment site today.
So what is real?
Just wondering what lie the incest twins are up to now.
Will vapac be able to find that many teachers in such a short amount of time? It seems that nearly every possition is vacant. I bet in many of the classes they end up having a string of substitutes like they've done in various classes over the past few years.
Curious to hear how the first week of school goes, my kids however will not be returning to the vapac mess.
My son in was Waldorf and then VAPAC but now I have him at the Met and he loves it.
There's more art there then any school I know of.
The teacher/advisors are great and there are only about 150 kids from 9-12 grade.
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