Stuck in Gear

Recently the citizens of Danville were encouraged to read “Switch” to find out how to reinvent the city. The purpose was to set Danville on a new direction that would move it away from a strictly manufacturing economy to a mixture of high tech/renewable energy/ information based structure that would increase the job market. In addition it was the belief that this “switch” would radically change the future of Danville and set it on the path to prosperity.
One major part of this change would involve radically changing the direction of the mindset of the citizens of Danville which is a challenging task. A subsection of this would be to radically change the educational system in the city. This change alone would be a challenge due to the current direction of the school system.
The DPS system unfortunately is stuck in reverse and can’t seem to move forward. Like a bad transmission it requires a major overhaul and rebuilding of the major parts of the system. As in a rebuilding of a transmission you have to discard the old broken parts and introduce new updated ones to the system. In most cases the main control systems need replacement. In the case of DPS the leadership needs replacement.
In order for DPS to be in synch with the reinventing of the city a new mind set is needed, No longer can they look at themselves as a group just “getting by” but as an integral part of the repackaging of the city.
Danville needs a school system that is open, honest, and willing to change. That is not true now. The system is bogged down with old ideas, lack of accountability, finger pointing leadership, and a board that operates like a McDonalds (We want it OUR way). As a result the students get cheated, the teachers get cheated, and the city gets cheated.
Until the city government realizes DPS is part of the problem and not part of the solution they will never “switch” to a new economy.
Like that broken transmission it needs to be rebuilt and the old ideas, leadership, and board hauled away to the nearest junk yard. Such “recycling” will provide a decent smooth ride the children of Danville.

Convocation Chaos

While flipping through the tv channels I happened upon the Diane and Sue Show on the local government channel. This particular fabrication….errr….episode was about the convocation that is held at the beginning of each year.
For those who do not know what a DPS convocation consists of just imagine a mega church service without the collection plate (that has already been passed around the city council). All employees are required to attend this Amway style meeting to hear the latest indoctrination by the wizard behind the curtain. All the bright and shiny faces attend clutching their “bible” (DPS employee manual). Their eager eyes look longing towards the stage as they await the words of the “chosen”.
This year the meeting topped all the previous ones. Not only would the captive audience be mesmerized by the words of the exalted leaders but a new twist was added. In addition they would be showered with the words of two success stories in the form of two graduates of Danville Public Schools. So who would these honored quests be? Out of all the many graduates which ones would be chosen?
In a page right out of Saturday Night Live the special quests were a school board member and the son of a school board member! How self serving can one organization become? How many times can they pat themselves on the back? It must be a real strain getting your arm in a position like that. How condescending can one organization get?
Thousands of graduates with much more meaningful success stories could have been chosen but they resort to their own little clique. But should we expect any less?
The tenor of their “party” was diminished somewhat with news from the state that the eternally troubled alternative school (what are they calling it now?) had failed so miserably that it is in trouble of being taken over by the state. Despite numerous revivals, changes in administrations, restructuring of classes, changes in focus, it still is what it has always been, a miserable failure. So what to do next? I’m sure their will be another name change. This is what they usually do to try to reinvent a school. A rose by any other name….. Isn’t the definition of insanity doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome? If that was true the school should be a mental hospital or did they already try that route?
So the new year starts and the same old tired ideas are being recycled as a new step forward. Well guess what? Your can repackage crap and its still crap. Until the school board is replaced and the top administration replaced their will be no improvements. It is time the citizens in Danville said enough is enough. Cut off the head of the snake and let it whither and die. Replace it with a board and administration that are not out for themselves and know how to take responsibility. Then and only then can the employees of DPS attend a convocation that may have some real meaning.

A New School Year

As a new school year begins all eyes turn towards DPS and what bag of tricks they have up their sleeve this year. As a parent I look forward to what ludicrous and ridiculous polices, edicts, or decisions that would give Jay Leno enough material for a month. Life, liberty, and common sense are in jeopardy when the DPS administrators gather……
So where to begin? How about wasting money….again. Take a tour down Memorial Drive and look at the new Taj Mahal being built at the softball field at Langston. This building rivals any structure ever built on DPS property (I exclude Galileo, the most magnificent of all wasteful construction due to the fact it is NOT on DPS property, go figure that one.) An exterior of beautiful rock, central air conditioning, and architecturally exquisite design this building could be a model for future educational structures that could educate our children in pleasant surroundings. But wait, this isn’t a school, it’s a bathroom. Yes, a bathroom, locker room, and concessions stand for the softball field. All this at a field that is used perhaps two months a year. I imagine the teachers working in twenty plus year old trailers at Johnson are cringing a little. Who is in control here? Where are the priorities? Hello, anyone home?

To continue the march of the ignorant lets turn to parent conveniences. As a parent of a student starting a new school I looked for the bus schedules to find the stop nearest our home. After searching the newspaper for a schedule I contacted the school to find out when the schedules were going to be in the paper. I was informed the schedules have not been printed for several years. Here is how the conversation went:
Me: ”Why are they not printed anymore, is it a budget issue.”
School: “No, the paper printed them for free.”
Me: “So why are they not printed then?”
School: “Well the central office says it is a security issue.”
Me: “How is it a security issue?”
School: “ Err, well child molesters could see where the buses went and stopped and could
prey on the children.”
Me: “Geez, well could they not just follow the big yellow vehicle anyway.”
School: “ Well I guess they could ….but security is important.”
Me: “Yes but could a child molester just see where the buses are going anyway ?”
School: “ Yeah but it would not be printed.”
Me: “ So how do we find out the stops?”
School: “Call transportation services”
Me: “How many students ride buses?”
School: “About 4,000 I think.”
Me: “So 4,000 parents are to call transportation”
School: “Well….err…maybe. Some already know.”
Me: “Can you tell me where the closest stop is to my house?”
School: “Yes, I think …maybe….I’ll have to see.”
ME: “So how do you know I’m not a child molester?”
School: “Well…I…you see….well I really don’t but this is what we are supposed to do.”
Me: “Does this make any sense?”
School: “I really can’t answer that.”
The lemmings are running the district. If they all follow each other over the cliff I feel the intelligence level of the district may go up about fifty points.

So during the simmer the “dance of the lemons” took place. This is where administrators, teachers, etc are swapped among schools to move the incompetence around. Principals make quiet deals among each other in a “I’ll take yours if you take mine” scenario. Some teachers have been known to move around to five different schools in five years. So check your child’s teacher, have they been on the passport to incompetence? If so you are in for a rough year.

Finally, as a precaution be sure your child is in a school where the administrator has a clue what they are doing. Now I realize that knocks out a lot of schools but the administrator is the instructional leader of the school. Poor principal, poor instruction. It does not matter how good the teachers are, if they are hampered by a leader who should have been weeded out by Darwin then you are treading on educational thin ice.

Well there are always the private schools. Such a shame to have to say that in 2011 but it is a fact of life. Danville, wake up. Only the citizens can change this situation. Lets elect some school board members who have a clue about education or in fact a clue about anything besides their own egos. Will the last student leaving DPS please turn out the lights.

DPS Yard Sale

In order to address the financial problems of DPS I suggest that the Concrete Queens and the worker bees get together and have a yard sale to raise some money. This way the board can get rid of old unused items and at the same time raise a little money.
A table could be set up labeled “Magnet Mess”. This would feature all the equipment that was purchased with magnet money that is no longer being used. Hmmm on second thought you may need eight to ten tables for all that crap. Since no one I believe is still using the magnet themes there should be a lot available. However a lot has already been torn out and thrown away since it was purchased through shady dealings from a northern Virginia company that had a special relationship with the former magnet mistress that the superintendent allowed to run rough shod over people and budgets. Wouldn’t that make interesting reading for someone to go back over the magnet budget and see just what happened to all the money. Eight million just doesn’t buy what it used to. Step right up, get your barely used Montessori furniture while it lasts! This table should sell well. Too bad they can’t sell all the ridiculous training that was paid for by the district.
Another table could feature slightly used administrators. There should be a lot to sell on it since I believe the average experience of an administrator in Danville is something like thirty minutes. In the last six years the district has gone through administrators like water. I believe the main criteria for hiring was that they be at least room temperature. And the board sees no problem? As Sarah Palin would say, “How’s that superintendent working out for ya?” Another one bit the dust again this week as an elementary principal was escorted out of the building after being given thirty minutes to gather her belongings and turn in her keys. I’m surprised they just didn’t create a central office position and move her there.
The next table would feature about fifty 800 lb bags of rubber mulch. That was another idea that worked out well. Go by any elementary school and see how well that idea worked.
The last table would feature new ideas, creative programs, fiscally responsible projects, strong leaders, and positive views. But wait, that’s right, this table is empty since such things don’t exist in DPS.
Bring your own bag, the superintendent will help you carry your purchases out to your car while telling you how good things are going. Errr, by the way, there is a no return policy.

And the Merry Go Round Keeps Turning

Just when you think its safe to sit back the city drops a new bomb on us all. I am talking about the YMCA debacle. After weeks of anticipation and hype worthy of a carnival barker, the YMCA committee announced a new site in Danville near the white mill for a new Y. Heralding it as a renaissance for the downtown the required group of dignitaries and publicity prostitutes gathered under a tent and patted each other on the back for such a wonderful decision. Not only would the site revitalize the downtown it would be a nice addition to the white mill site to hopefully attract a new business to the building. All the players saw it as a good thing right?
No, that was not right. A few “movers and shakers” on the Y committee objected to the site from the beginning. They continued to throw monkey wrenches into the machine until it finally broke a gear and ground to a stop. With internal threats and “or else” conversation the committee revered itself and the project imploded. On the surface they claim “higher then expected construction costs” but what real reason lurked behind the surface……politics of course. Several influential members were pushing other sites that had high placed ambassadors.
The committee knew the asking price, they had estimates on site development so the cost should not have been a surprise to anyone. They also claimed that fundraising was not an issue either. So what changed? Nothing changed except that a few influential people got their way….again. All this happened at the expense of the residents of Danville and the surrounding areas.
The committee has been left red faced and shocked by the turn of events. The most shocking has been the general public’s condemnation of the committee’s decision to pull out. These elite individuals are so used to being worshipped that they cannot bear to hear that their reputations are being tarnished. But so goes things in Danville.
Keep swimming in the river kids…..the grown ups have taken their flotation devices and gone home.

On the school front the city council has again caved into the school board’s ridiculous budget without a whimper. After all the hand wringing by the concrete queens the budget not only was passed but increased by $600,000. While other departments suffered through state cuts and local cuts the school board whined its way to more money with threats of massive layoffs. One particular lie was their highly reported budget “cut” of reducing a principal position at Bonner. They claimed they made this gesture to show the public just how frugal they were being. Unfortunately it was all smoke and mirrors. Yes they cut the principal job, then turned around and gave that principal a newly created central office position at a higher salary AND hired another assistant principal for Bonner! Is this the new math they are talking about? If it is we don’t need it! This is just ANOTHER example of how the school board and administration of DPS pulls the wool over the eyes of the city council. Someone is asleep at the wheel. Wake up and see what is happening! Just more of the same…smoke and mirrors folks….smoke and mirrors.

It Pays to Plan Ahead, It Wasn't Raining When Noah Built the Ark"

School districts, especially DPS, have a hard time with a simple concept--planning. You would naturally assume that a district whose main function is education would be good at something as basic as this but they are not. It appears their long term goals never extend beyond the end of the week. To actually plan a long term strategy is so foreign to them you might as well be speaking Russian. DPS, its board and administrators, have no experience with this concept and therefore they are so far behind the learning curve that it often seems they have never heard of the term
Unfortunately the latest budget woes brings this issue to the surface and makes it even more obvious that they are incapable of implementing, or even understanding, this basic of all concepts. It is a problem that a lot of school districts must deal with but in Danville it is crippling. Planning is one of the most important project management and time management techniques. Planning is preparing a sequence of action steps to achieve some specific goal. If you do it effectively, you can reduce much the necessary time and effort of achieving the goal.
Planning is also crucial for meeting your needs during each action step with your time, money, or other resources. With careful planning you often can see if at some point you are likely to face a problem. It is much easier to adjust your plan to avoid or handle a coming crisis, rather than to deal with the crisis when it comes unexpected. The old adage, “ Poor planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part.” Is never more true then in the case of DPS and budgeting. Alan Lakein a well-known author on personal time management, including How to Get Control of Your Time and Your Life, states, “Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now”. I firmly believe the upper administration of DPS should take this quote to heart and start dealing with issues that are facing them in a reasonable, professional, and sane way. This is because their recent action only illustrates their lack of understanding of this concept of planning.
Recently they announced that because it is a bad budget year (when has a school district ever said it wasn’t a bad budget year……) several capital projects would be put on hold. They give the reason for this is because funding is not available for the projects because they used the money for instructional purposes. Well first this can’t possibly be totally true because some of the money from the state has earmarks for capital projects only. If they used it for instruction they violated state law. Of course with all the recent budget juggling they have done it may be more then just this issue that needs to be scrutinized. DPS has a history of playing fast with money and adhering to the Houdini Accounting Process (now you see it, now you don’t…..).
Let’s look at recent decisions. They announced they are putting off needed capital repairs such as the Park Ave HVAC replacement. This is where the planning concept spins right over their head. Park Ave is a school on the western part of the city that has managed to maintain a healthy enrollment to the point of being pretty full. Being located in the only area of town with open land suitable for residential development and the only location in Danville where building is actually taking place should make it a strategic part of a long term “plan” of school building management. GWHS also as the flagship school of the district fits well into the overall strategic plan for long term pupil management.
Yet these schools appear to be the victims of the school boards short sighted attempt to control their hemorrhaging pocketbook.
On the other hand DPS is investing $300,000 plus in a landlocked, outdated, under utilized school in an area of declining population with no viable possibility of reversing the trend. The school Woodrow Wilson, was actually closed in the late 90’s because of it was obsolete (history repeats itself doesn’t it…..) Long term planning? No. Short sighted shoot from the hip action? Yes.

Also in a continuation of the Impulse School of Budget Directing they are also in the process of spending god knows what resurfacing the track at Langston. As far as anyone is aware the Langston track hosts no athletic teams, no games are played there, and basically the field in unused except by a small group of students from the alternative school. Not to say the track did not need resurfacing (I use it myself) but on a priority list this project should have been placed just above tearing down the unused greenhouse at Gibson (a whole other Magnet School fiasco……)
As if this isn’t enough, ground was recently broken on bathrooms and equipment storage rooms and concessions stands at the Langston softball field. Do I even have to explain the fallacy of such a project is a tight budget year ? Again, it may have been needed but in light of economic conditions I believe the district could have survived a few more years without them.
An old Chinese proverb states, “When planning for a year plant corn, when planning for a decade plant a tree, when planning for a lifetime train and educate people.” DPS must get out of the corn planting stage. Lead, follow, or get out of the way. The students deserve no less.
As a footnote if the present school board member running for city council supported these irrational decisions then he is surely someone who is not needed on city council. When a cancer is present we don’t introduce it to another host we fight it where it is. The city cannot afford any more short sighted people in leadership rolls.

The Ringling Bros. Report

It appears the obvious has happened. As predicted in the last post the made up job posted several weeks ago went to..…ta da…..an administrator already in the district. This is Danville’s modus operendi. When a person becomes too incompetent to do their job they are transferred or promoted.
So while the asst. superintendent is pulling the wool over city council’s eyes telling them they cut an administrative position she conveniently leaves out the fact they created another one! So send in the second team to deliver the news. You can’t be accused of losing the game if you never play. Doesn’t the council think it’s a little strange that the district sends in a second hand messenger? Well you can’t really blame the superintendent since last year the council grilled her like an angus meat hamburger. So to avoid third degree burns she sends in, well, ground chuck. The really sad thing it that council appears to have bought the dog and pony show.
In the meantime the cuts proposed have led to a game of musical chairs in the Concrete Palace. Everyone is scrambling to be sure they have a seat when the music stops.