Open Letter to Secretary Skandera

Parent Amanda Woeger submitted this letter to State Education Secretary Hanna Skandera and invites anyone who agrees with it to use it as well.

Amy Lane Resigns

Arlan Ponder posted on his blog, http://voteforarlan.blogspot.com that Amy Lane resigned after Monday night's school board meeting.

In my opinion, Amy was a competent, professional administrator. I have not always agreed with everything Amy has said, but I have never, NEVER been treated unprofessionally or discourteously by her.

I will preface my next remark by saying that I have not talked to Amy about her reasons for resigning.

I pretty much expressed my opinion back in my June 17 posting when it looked like her new title was "special education coordinator" versus "assistant superintendent." I think she got jerked around and could only take so much. She got pushed to the point of leaving, and our school is NOT better off because of it.

Hancock's Cut in Pay Comes With Fewer Days Worked

At Monday night's meeting, Mr. Hancock offered to take a 5% cut in pay and associated benefits, citing the savings to the school at around $5000. What few people caught was his proviso that it be accompanied by a 5% reduction in the number of days worked.

Here is a copy of the new contract. The line at the very bottom was not on his last contract, which I posted on June 7th.

Cloudcroft School Board Approves 4-day Week

Here is the Alamogordo Daily News article covering Monday night's meeting.

Here is the powerpoint presentation given my Mr. Snoddy to support the 4-day week. Here is the handout Mr. Snoddy provided.

The podcast of the meeting can be found at http://cmsbears.podbean.com. The horrible acoustics in the commons make it hard to understand the podcast at times. I'd suggest getting in a quiet place and using headphones. I will be making a formal request to the school to move these large meetings to the middle school cafeteria, as I understand that people who were at the meeting were also having a tough time hearing what was said.

A Way Ahead for Resolving the 4-Day School Week Issue

The author of this letter is Paul Benshoof. He has also sent this letter to:

Cloudcroft School Board President Bill Denney Cloudcroft School Board Vice President Jackie Cates Cloudcroft School Board Treasurer Doug Porch

Cloudcroft School Board member Gerold Green Cloudcroft School Board member Arlan Ponder

And cc’d:

State Senator Vernon Asbill

State Representative Nora Espinoza
State Representative Yvette Herrell
Secretary of Education Hanna Skandera
Deputy Secretary, Finance and Operations Paul J. Aguilar
Public Information Officer Larry Behrens

Cloudcroft Superintendent Tommie Hancock

Lately, there has been a lot of discussion in the community about a proposed 4-day school week for the Cloudcroft School System.  As a parent concerned about my son’s continuing education in these schools, I—as well as nearly 100 other interested community members—attended the last School Board meeting where this subject was on the agenda.  Unfortunately, the board suddenly decided to defer discussions on this topic to the following week, citing that they desired community feedback and the current attendees did not adequately represent the community.  I’m not sure what type of audience constitutes adequate community representation, but this move signaled that either (1) the board was unprepared to discuss the topic or (2) they didn’t really want feedback from that particular cross-section of the community.  I find both of these options unacceptable and hope the board can correct this perception at next week’s hastily scheduled meeting.  Since I personally will not be able to attend this meeting, I thought I would use this message to share my thoughts regarding the 4-day school week and the board’s decision-making process in hope that we can find a way ahead.

The 4-day school week proposal is a complex issue that deserves dedicated attention.  On the surface, a shortened school week appears to be at odds with U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan’s push for a six day school week to keep up with educational attainment of students from Europe and Asia.  Currently, overall U.S. academic performance appears to be languishing, with some reports suggesting that we are “less than average” when compared to international academic statistics.  Despite this, most of us understand the fiscal limitations we currently face, and something obviously needs to be done.  Perhaps a compressed school week will help reduce the financial burden, but right now the community is unclear as to how much it will help and what unintended repercussions will endure because of the change.  

To gain the community feedback the board claims to desire, there first must be some information on which the community can provide feedback.  However, discussions on the proposed 4-day school week between the board and the community have so far merely been speculative and/or emotional with very little hard data to back up asserted benefits and drawbacks of the proposed schedule.  Certainly, such data exists, since the board members repeatedly suggest that they’ve been studying the proposal for a lengthy time.  This data presumably includes historical case studies from other schools that have implemented a compressed school schedule, an analysis of relative pros and cons, and the board’s conclusions/recommendations based on that analysis.  These recommendations should include a proposed implementation plan, projected savings and other benefits, mitigation strategies to minimize potential problems, and metrics to evaluate the decision once it is put into service.  Without this data, the community cannot provide constructive feedback and, quite frankly, the board cannot make an informed decision.

In lieu of the board’s data, I have tried to collect some of my own.  My Internet search reveals that some schools have implemented a 4-day school week with some degree of success, while others have failed.  However, long-term implications on academic performance remain sketchy at best.  The data supports both academic increase and decline, which suggests that a 4-day school week implementation strategy must be well-conceived in order to be effective.  This is paramount and cannot be neglected: academic performance must remain the priority around which all other decisions are based!  In other words, we cannot afford to compromise our academic quality for the sake of saving money or any other perceived benefits.  In addition to reports of substandard U.S. performance in the international community, New Mexico is ranked last in the nation in terms of state education according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), and our elementary school is not even within the top third of the state (137/377).  In a school that is already struggling to succeed, our elementary school students are probably the most vulnerable participants in a 4-day school week schedule, as their attention spans might not be ready for longer school days.  Hence, a well-thought implementation plan is essential to ensure elementary classrooms are engaging enough to support prolonged school days so that academic performance is maintained (if not improved).

Our Middle and High Schools seem to be performing substantially better (top 10% and 13% in the state, respectively), so we certainly do not want to impose schedule changes that disrupt these achievements.  Our best teachers will surely welcome longer class periods in order to maximize the classroom experience.  However, my first hand observations sadly suggest that other teachers struggle to fill their current class time with substantive curricula, so it could be a challenge for them to make longer class periods productive. Again, a successful implementation plan is key to maximizing educational benefits and minimizing wasted time, but I have not yet seen such a plan.

It is clear that some board members favor the proposed 4-day schedule, but they have not clearly indicated the rationale behind their advocacy.  Curiously, other board members have not expressed any position at all.  However, if the board really wants meaningful community feedback, then we need to understand their thoughts and concerns.  We can’t comment on a position that hasn’t been revealed, whether it be to criticize or endorse it.  Furthermore, if I suspect a conflict of opinion, I don’t see it as my responsibility to convince board members that they are wrong if they have no desire to convince me that they are right.  A responsible board member will present his/her views in writing to the public and see if they stand up to scrutiny.

In the meantime (while I wait for clearly articulated positions from the board members), I have heard some well-reasoned concerns from the community voiced at board meetings.  These concerns have garnered support from (at last count) 105 petition signatories who anxiously await a thoughtful school board response that directly addresses these concerns.  A thoughtful response will point to qualitative data and the board’s comprehensive analysis to support its conclusions.  As of yet, I have not seen it.

In summary, without a clear understanding of the board’s proposal, all the community can do is ask questions and voice speculative concerns.  We cannot reasonably provide feedback on a plan we have not seen, so for the board to request community feedback in the absence of a published plan is counter-productive.  Furthermore, without a clear understanding of each board member’s individual view on the subject, the community cannot effectively engage the board in discussions to illuminate key issues and concerns and help formulate an agreeable plan.  To this end, I urge the board to release their plan to the public, coupled with the analysis and conclusions that underpin their recommended approach.  Additionally, I recommend that each board member document his/her position in detail and allow the community to review it.  Not only will this help alleviate the perception that the board is formulating its opinion(s) on absent or incomplete data, but it will inevitably stimulate relevant community feedback and meaningful exchange among both parties, thus increasing the chances of a course of action acceptable to all. 

How About Looking at Some Other Options?

Imagine my surprise to find an Agenda with Action Items posted for Monday night's "Special" school board meeting! Feel free to go back and listen to the last board meeting, where they said they wanted to have a special meeting just to get feedback from the community re the 4-day week. "no agenda, no action items." http://cmsbears.podbean.com. One of the action items, by the way, is a vote on the 4-day week. Supposedly one of the school board members asked that an executive session regarding the removal of the superintendent be added to the agenda. It's not on the agenda.

To add insult to injury, they have also changed up the Resolution. (Here is the old resolution). While they cite a survey conducted by the school as showing 80% for and 20% against, a show of hands at the last school board meeting was not considered "representative" enough to even be taken, and the petition with 86 signatures was somehow left out of the wording of the resolution.

Teachers say they are supporting the 4-day week because they don't want to see another teacher fired. Is that something like blackmail? Why is it either a teacher or the 4-day week? Why isn't anyone looking at the quantifiable and more significant cost savings of reducing administrators? Don't forget, teachers are also saying that "over recent years the morale of the district seems to have suffered." My observations would support that statement.

The smoke and mirrors of moving Ms. Lane to Special Ed is insulting to our intelligence. Looking on the school's website, she still has the curriculum responsibilities in addition to special ed. She's just been stripped of the title of assistant superintendent. This is a wash in terms of budget savings and a sham in terms of "reducing" administration...and probably an insult to Ms. Lane, who has worked pretty long and hard for this school, and has pretty long and deep roots within this community.

I know other ideas were floated when budget cuts were discussed. One of them was to remove Hancock and give the title to Ms. Lane. (roughly $130K savings). Another was to have 2 principals and 1 Superintendent. Since Renteria was the last in he would be the one out ($88K savings plus benefits). We only have 400 children in the entire school, we could probably struggle by with 3 administrators, especially if we could line up administrators that could boost morale and respect the staff.

All of this started with a budget crisis, so don't forget that this is all about money now. It has nothing to do with anything else. The "savings" with a 4-day week are not quantifiable. The impact on the quality of education is not quantifiable. Removing Hancock or Renteria is quantifiable, and I doubt that the loss of either would be felt in the classroom. Nothing personal...it's all about the numbers now.

If everything is supposedly on the table, then the board needs to be considering ALL options. But until this Board steps up and starts writing their own Agendas, the "options" will continue to be those that are filtered through the Superintendent's office.

ADN Opinion Piece "Cloudcroft Schools' Budget Shortfall is Questionable at Best"

This opinion piece, "Cloudcroft Schools' Budget Shortfall is Questionable at Best" was in the Sunday Alamogordo Daily News.

Special School Board Meeting Scheduled for June 20, 2011 (and me venting about it!)

The school board has decided to hold a special meeting this Monday to get additional input from the community regarding the 4-day school week. The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. in the High School commons. There are no action items, and I don't know if there is even going to be an agenda.

There was a lot of talk from the School Board at the last meeting about getting everyone's feedback (on something the board has already voted to approve.) But when it was suggested by a community member that the Board take a show of hands to see how many of the roughly 60 people present were for or against the 4-day week, they wouldn't even call for that show of hands. What is that saying to the people who have been showing up at these meetings trying to be heard? Personally, I think that is demeaning to them and someone, ANYONE, on that Board should have at LEAST respected those present enough to call for that show of hands.

When one parent noted that he had emailed the individual Board members repeatedly and never gotten a response from any of them, there were just mealy mouthed excuses..and that was just from the few Board members who at least have the gumption to open their mouths at these meetings.

I'm starting to get the impression that the only "feedback" that is going to be considered is that which agrees with what the Board has already voted to do. Each Board member was given copies of the petitions that have been circulating to remove the Superintendent (100 signatures) and reject the 4-day week (86 signatures). Does that count as "feedback?"

School Board Meeting June 13, 2011

The podcast is finally up for this meeting. You can listen at http://cmsbears.podbean.com.

Here is the Alamogordo News article when it is published.

There was a lot of discussion at this meeting, so I once again urge you to listen to the podcast.

AYP Results for Schools with 4-day Week

One argument that school officials have used to support moving to a 4-day week is that others who have a 4-day week are meeting AYP. Unfortunately, this appears to be based on old information. According to PED data, 14 of the 25 schools with 4-day weeks have gone from meeting AYP to NOT meeting AYP. Did the 4-day week contribute to this decline in performance...who knows? Is it the direction I want to see Cloudcroft schools go...no.

Comparison of AYP

Agenda for School Board Meeting to be held June 13, 2011

Here is the agenda for Monday night's meeting.

Superintendent Hancock's Contract

There was some discussion in the comments section of a previous post about the validity of the petition to have the Superintendent removed. I decided to request a copy of the Superintendent's contract utilizing the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Here is a copy of the contract as provided by the school pursuant to this request.


Here is a link to the New Mexico Administrative Code which is referenced on the petition. The biggest difference I see between the contract and the one shown in the administrative code is that the language "provided there is no other position for which the administrator is qualified, consistent with the academic necessities of the district." is not in Mr. Hancock's contract.


I'm not a lawyer, but I wanted everyone to have easy access to the information.

Article from Ruidoso Free Press

This article appeared in the Ruidoso Free Press yesterday:
Carrizozo, Cloudcroft Eye 4-Day School Week

Cloudcroft School Board to Again Vote on 4-day Week

This information is from Amanda Woeger:

This email was received in response to a Freedom of Information Act request sent via email on May 20^th, 2011 and via certified letter on May 26^th, 2011.  The request was in regards to a written resolution the Cloudcroft Board of Education is to provide to the public prior to voting on a 4-day condensed year schedule.  

The email from Mr. Hancock states that in order to comply with the law the Board will again vote on the resolution at the June 13^th meeting.  It also shows that the Board did go ahead and vote on a measure without regard for the legal process under which the 4-day schedule is to be implemented (6.10.5.8 NMAC).

This is simply one of many examples showing a lack of understanding of the gravity of the current budget situation and how it affects the community.  The leadership on this issue must be greatly improved in order to save our school in the long run.

It is important that we make our presence known at the next board meeting in order for our elected representatives to understand where the community stands on this and other issues. 

Amanda Woeger

On Fri, Jun 3, 2011 at 11:03 AM, T Hancock wrote:

I received your letter today (June 3, 2011) asking for a copy of the resolution for the 4 day week.  As you know the Board did have action items on the May agenda and made  motions to approve the items and did approve the items.  The items were the proposed measures to cut our budget which included a 4 day week and the calendar which reflects a 4 day week.  Our attorneys have advised and are preparing an official resolution to ratify both actions approving the 4 day week and it will be on the June agenda.  As soon as that ratification resolution is adopted you may request a copy and I will be happy to give you one.  I am sorry that there was not an earlier response, I was not aware  the request had not been addressed. 

Tommy Hancock, Superintendent

Cloudcroft Municipal Schools

PO Box 198

Cloudcroft, New Mexico 88317

575-601-4416

thancock@cmsbears.org

Sideliner Meeting Tonight at 6 p.m.

This information comes from Paul Comino:

Sideliner meeting Tuesday the 7^th 6:00pm  at the High School Commons. 

Please come and see how you can help.  We have a great core of folks that have jumped in and are making things happen.  I do not have everyone’s email, so many do not even know that we are working to improve our sports program. 

We will only get out of it what we put into it.  There are lots of High School athletes (and their parents)  that do not even know that we are currently selling cookie dough, need their help at fundraisers coming up.  Please help get the word out.

Alex Miller has already sold 24 tubs of cookie dough.  That is awesome just a few days into it.  Goal is for each athlete to sell 20 tubs.  Keep up the great work Alex!!!!!!!!!

I will have catalogs at the meeting.  I need you to get them to any students that are part of the cloudcroft sports program.

This is a open Sideliners meeting.  Get involved and make it a success!

Thanks,

Paul