Peduto's Schenley plan praised, panned - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review A Pittsburgh councilman's last-ditch plan to save Schenley High School got a sharp rebuke from school Superintendent Mark Roosevelt but praise from parents fighting to keep the Oakland landmark open.Frankly, what Mark Roosevelt says any more is not going to matter.
Schenley will either be open again in September or it will be open again in a future year. Schenley is too important to be closed. The future school boards will re-do what he wants to do -- if this board doesn't do it anyway.
What is preposterous is how an entire high school reform task force can do work for a couple of years, with hand-picked mandate from Mark Roosevelt. Then, Mark Roosevelt tosses their suggestions out the window.
On one meeting, the work of one person (Mark Roosevelt) tries to take down the legacy of 91 years and academic success of many students and families each year.
What is preposterous is how clueless Mark Roosevelt is. And, his out-of-town consultants and out-of-town advisors are out-of-touch. The golden parachute from Mark Roosevelt is preposterous.
To begin to build new high schools -- rather than use the capacity of what is already built -- is preposterous. To close 22 schools and make some K-8 one year and then to try to open new schools and make then for grades 6 to 12 another year is preposterous.
Roosevelt dismissed parts of the plan as "preposterous."
What is wrong is Mark Roosevelt.
"From what I can tell, this is a couple students who did some work," Roosevelt said. "Almost every fact throughout the thing is wrong. In some places it's so preposterous. As a paper for a college term paper, it would barely pass muster."
Roosevelt is wrong because Roosevelt didn't do his homework.
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7 comments:
John K. says: Peduto is wrong. If he supports leasing out the school building then he ought to support leasing out the entire Pittsburgh Public School system. Get rid of the egos on the school board as well as the teacher's union. Both of whom bear the sole responsibility for a gradutation rate of 52.8%, the debt and the violence.
Anyone running the numbers can clearly see that leasing the entire school system out to The Sylvan Learning Center produces better results as well as lowers cost per student by $3,000. So lease the buildings and lease the education and you get a better result.
Too bad Peduto is beholden to the Teacher's Union. Oh well.
So John K, twisted as always, you're remarks say in the end that Peduto is right. You want him to lease and he takes the first step. So, Peduto is not wrong.
John K. says: Nope Rauterkaus, read the entire post. Peduto only goes so far. He won't go the rest of the way. All he will do is rebuild a failing institution. My point, if leasing the building works then go all the way, dismantle the school board, get rid of the teacher's union in Pittsburgh, lease out the entire school system to Sylvan and save $3,000 per student. Peduto will never do that because he ain't going up against the teacher's union. So he contrives this plan, which saves no one money, and pacifies the teachers union as well as voters. Come on Rauterkaus, make the tough choice. You always tell us how you would do that as Mayor.
I hadn't heard that Sylvan takes every student who walks in the door. Didn't know that Sylvan does special education. Don't think they've got an autism program or speech therapists. Did know that they can refuse to take or "fire" any student they please.
Not even apples and oranges, more like apples and a purple magic marker.
John K. says: And therein lies the problem. Folks like you insist on taking every student who walks in the door regardless of their effect on other students. You don't have the courage to apply standards and rules. Sylvan does it for $3,000 less per student and at least the quality education is guaranteed. Like I said, it is not Schenley it is the School Board. Nothing but local positions that people use to weld power over other people. What a bunch of pathetic lives. Take a leadership role and act like a leader or get out of the game. Close Schenley, Bob Barr would concur.
There is John K's solution. Put those that don't fit onto a junk pile.
A factory that make inferior products has 'rejects.'
People are not the same.
Furthermore, this factory makes quality outcomes. Better than the rest.
John K does have a point that it is the problem of the board and I'll extend that to the superintendent. The problem isn't with Schenley. But, they made the problem Schenley.
So, you the board wants to fix a nonproblem. John K wants to go with a mindless solution that also fixes a nonproblem. Then real problems elsewhere are sure to get worse. Quality everywhere is sure to go down. The scrap heap of life is sure to escalate.
I have solutions for the real problem -- both with the board and with the board's operations and with the administration. At the momment, those system problems take a backseat to the problems of people, students and a scrap-heap / reject mentality.
for John K -- I thought of you when I saw this article:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/12/AR2008061203681.html
"Mandated Tutoring Not Helping Md., Va. Scores"
Turns out that private tutoring isn't really a cure-all or even a cure-most.
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