PeoriaStory

Anti-fracking event

PEORIA -- From a news release:

Illinois People's Action GASLAND II
510 E. Washington Street, Suite 309, Bloomington, IL 61701
Tel. (309) 827-9627 | ilpeoplesaction12@gmail.com | illinoispeoplesaction.org

Dear IPA Supporter,

I want to invite you to a very cool fundraising event to benefit our work against natural gas fracking in Illinois.

This coming Monday, May 20th IPA is hosting Oscar nominated Director of GASLAND II, Josh Fox, and Sandra Steingraber (Illinoisan and founder of NY’ers Against Fracking) in our IPA regional office to help financially support our organizing.

The event will be this Monday at 4pm in our office located at 510 E. Washington Street, Suite 309, Bloomington IL 61701.

Josh and Sandra are helping us in our grassroots fundraising efforts as we campaign to keep our water and land safe from big energy corporations. Bloomington is the first stop on Josh’s national tour of GASLAND II, premiering at the Normal theatre, in uptown Normal IL at 7pm that same evening – plan to attend!

Since our new environmental organizing campaign began just a few months ago, we’ve organized over 1,000 citizens across Illinois on having our voices heard both in the Legislature and corporate offices. We’ve engaged in six direct actions, ranging from the Governor’s office to the Illinois Petroleum Council and other big energy lobbyists.

But we’re funding the campaign directly through our grassroots fundraising efforts, through contributions from people like you!

It takes money to fight money, and we need to ask you for your help again. Many of our major donors contribute at least $100, and we respectfully ask you consider an amount that’s significant to you. If you can’t make the fundraiser please consider making a donation directly through our website.

We look forward to seeing you for this fundraiser this coming Monday, May 20 at 4pm in our offices. Please RSVP to 309-827-9627 or admin@illinoispeoplesaction.org.

Thanks!

Don Carlson Barbara Heyl
Executive Director host

PS: Parking is available behind the building (old Bloomington Jr. High) and along McLean streets. Building is accessible off McLean St with an elevator near the back entrance.

Chris Hedges, truth teller

PEORIA -- Here's a terrific story on Chris Hedges, who speaks the truth when others do not.

It's also a way to listen to the May 15 interview with Hedges on NPR -- if you missed it.

 -- Elaine Hopkins

MACOMB -- Even if you don't live in Macomb, there's an arts event there this weekend that's worth the drive.

It's The Belle of Amherst, starring Rebecca Bean as Emily Dickinson, performed May 17 - 18 in the perfect setting, the beautiful, restored Old Bailey House, 100 S. Campbell in Macomb.

We saw it on May 16, and it's fabulous.  Bean is brilliant as Emily Dickinson. 

Dickinson's poetry sings, as modern and lively as today, while transporting the audience way, way back into the world of our 19th century ancestors. 

The play, by William Luce, was performed on Broadway, and has been filmed, but there's nothing like a live performance in an intimate setting to create a great experience for the audience. This play does it. 

 -- Elaine Hopkins

Here's a flyer about the play and how to get reservations. 

Presents The Belle of Amherst Starring Rebecca Bean as the American Poet, Emily Dickinson Four performances only! Thursday, May 16, 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 17, 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 18, 2:00 p.m. Saturday, May 18, 7:30 p.m. The Old Bailey House 100 S. Campbell Street Macomb, IL 61455 Tickets are $20 General Admission $15 Seniors 62+ $10 Children & Students w/ID Seating is extremely limited Reservations are advised Make your reservations online at StarryNightRep.org or call the box office at 309-255-8570  E-mail: StarryNight@Macomb.com LIKE US ON FACEBOOK

Friend on Facebook | Forward to Friend  Copyright © 2013 Starry Night Repertory Theatre, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you have expressed interest in the activities of Starry Night Repertory Theatre. Our mailing address is: Starry Night Repertory Theatre P.O. Box 6 Macomb, IL 61455 Add us to your address book THIS PROGRAM IS PARTIALLY SUPPPORTED BY A GRANT FROM THE ILLINOIS ARTS COUNCIL, A STATE AGENCY, AND THE TWO RIVERS ARTS COUNCIL, A REGIONAL ARTS ORGANIZATION unsubscribe from this list | update subscription preferences

Quest Charter School, a second gifted school in Peoria?

PEORIA -- Retired Caterpillar, Inc. CEO Glen Barton, the drive and the money behind the Quest Charter Academy in Peoria, spoke on May 14 to a Bradley University Learning in Retirement (OLLI) group about the school.

He had many facts and figures, which I assume are accurate.  He makes a convincing case that Quest will turn low income, mostly African American students, into college-bound students who will become tomorrow's scientists, engineers, and technical workers. 

Their test scores are improving, he said, showing scores that compared the Quest students favorably with other Peoria School District 150 students and Illinois students throughout the state. "We're closing the gap," he said.

"This is an economic development program," he said, of the school's 85 percent low income students. "We're trying to turn them into economic contributors and not a burden on society" headed for jail or public aid.

The school spends $10,000 per pupil, and pays 10 percent of its income to Concept Schools, which in turn pays the principal, the business manager and some of the superintendent's salary, he said, in response to a question.

Concept Schools is said to be part of the Gulen network of charter schools in the US, backed by Turkish nationals. See this article for a definitive look at charter schools in the US, with a few paragraphs on the Gulen network, which this blog has addressed previously.

Local Quest advocates have denied the Turkey connection, but to no avail. It's documented in many news articles.  The school takes students on trips to Turkey, and Barton admitted that one of the foreign languages studied at Quest is Turkish, though it's an on-line class.

Barton said Quest teachers work a minimum of nine hours a day or more, do in-home visits, work after school with school clubs, and in general work pretty hard.  There's little turnover, he said.  Of the"35 or 40 teachers", only five are not coming back next fall, he said.

Students spend 20 percent more time in school than other District 150 students, with a longer day and year. The school has 380 students in grades 5 through 9, and is expanding into the other high school grades to a maximum of 600 students. The students spend the extra time on reading and math, 90 minutes each day on both.

If Barton's test scores are accurate, the school may have found the formula to help these low income, majority-minority students succeed in school: lots of resources, low student-teacher ratio (likely one teacher for 11 students), motivated parents and teachers, and a peer group of similar pupils.

This sounds a little like the New England prep school my grandson attended. It changed his life for the better, dramatically. 

Barton said that 90 percent of the Quest pupils re-enroll for another year.  Those that don't like it or don't fit in obviously drop out, so the school is self selecting the motivated, and the test scores likely will reflect that.

The school takes applications from anyone, and selects students by lottery.  Siblings are also taken first. The demographics fit those of District 150.  The test scores are a little better.

Here's the drawback -- schools like this skim the cream off the neighborhood schools, and deprive the public school classes of their brightest and most motivated students. They also take resources away from the public schools that must teach every child that comes through the door. 

What that means for the kids left behind in neighborhood schools, without their brightest peers to associate with, no one knows. The same criticism can be made of gifted schools, and Quest is this type of school, but self selected, without teacher recommendations or testing to enter.

It's both more democratic and more elitist, at the same time.

We hope someone will follow the progress of these students, to see whether this experiment works as planned.

 -- Elaine Hopkins

8th Grader Attacked, School Punishes Him

PEORIA -- An 8th grader at Manual Academy, attacked by an 18-year-old high school senior who earlier had threatened him, was punished as if he had been in a schoolyard fight with a person his own age, a parent told the Peoria District 150 School Board, during the public comment session at the May 13 meeting.

The parent, Mike Jackson, said his 14-year-old son was suspended for 10 days then forbidden to take a field trip and participate in sports, even though he was the victim of the attack.  The boy's nose was broken in the attack, Jackson said later. 

The boy had reported the earlier threat to school officials, but nothing was done to protect him, Jackson said.

He asked the board why 8th graders are allowed to have contact with high school students in the halls, bathrooms and at lunch, when that is not supposed to occur at Manual Academy. He also said his calls to Supt. Grenita Lathan and others in the administration have not been returned.  

In her response, Lathan said only that Jackson had spoken with other school officials. 

Jackson then said afterwards that was true, but after a discussion, his son, an honor student, was punished and suspended as if to retaliate for his complaint.  He said he thought the attacker was arrested by a school resource officer, but did not know what had happened since then. 

Board member Laura Petelle said the district is readying a bullying policy that should take care of such situations.

Jackson said he has not filed a police report about the incident but may do so.

Another man, Marc Porch, spoke during the public comment period to say "people are concerned about violence in the schools." He also expressed dissatisfaction that the public comments are not included in the web streaming of the board meeting, the reason they are recorded and placed on this blog.  The comments are posted below. 

The usual activists also spoke. Sevino Sierra also said discipline remains out of control in the schools.

Terry Knapp said the teacher evaluation system was never meant to be used to fire experienced teachers without hearings or remediation, as was done last year.  He again expressed concern that these policies will discourage students from becoming teachers.More teachers were fired this year than in the many years when he was the Peoria Federation of Teachers president, he said.

Sharon Crews questioned why the superintendent was allowed to change grades and promote students when that is expressly against published district policy.  Lathan in February said the superintendent could change the grades after Crews questioned why students that were initially retained were then passed on to the next grade level. .

Crews quoted the policy.  A written copy of her remarks is posted below.

Here is the audio recording of the comments:

Dist 150 5.13.2013

 

 -- Elaine Hopkins 

 

Here are the comments of Sharon Crews: 

 

In February, I presented data that revealed that 33 students who were retained by their teachers at the end of the 2011-2012 school year were passed on to a higher grade for the next school year by someone other than their teachers.  I asked who had the authority to reverse a teacher’s decision. 

 

Dr. Lathan responded that a building principal, an instructional improvement officer, and the superintendent all had that authority and that both the instructional improvement officer and the superintendent can overturn a principal’s decision.  Dr. Lathan emphatically stated that a superintendent has the authority to overturn a principal’s decisions in these matters.  In fact, board policy clearly states that the principal’s decision is final—clearly with no pressure from the superintendent. 

 

I was stunned to hear Dr. Lathan’s claims of a policy so very opposed to everything I experienced in my 43 years of teaching.  I am sure you board members must have been stunned, also.  The bottom line is that the superintendent can neither initiate grade or promotion inquiries nor change teacher or principal decisions. 

 

Board policy section 6:28 entitled Grading and Promotion indicates that only a parent can initiate a complaint related to a teacher’s decision about his or her child’s grade or ultimate retention.  In fact, the policy indicates four very specific reasons for a parental request for such an inquiry. 

 

The policy, also, states that parents have only two weeks after grades are issued to request a review.  Parents are first required to have a conference with the teacher.  If the parent is not satisfied with the teacher’s decision, the parent must write a written review request to the building principal, and the teacher is to write a response to the review request.  The principal, the parent(s), teacher, and any other appropriate staff then meet to discuss the review request. 

All of these steps must be reported to the superintendent, who can act only in an advisory capacity in that the policy clearly states that the principal’s decision must be in writing and is final—clearly with no pressure from the Superintendent.  That restriction is proving a bit hard to control—only extreme diligence on the part of the school board will allow our principals to follow policy without interference or intimidation.

 

Board policy clearly states that the final grade assigned by the teacher cannot be changed by any administrator without notifying the teacher.  Also, the policy states that if a teacher decision is reversed, the administrator making the change must sign the changed record.

 

The policy, also, states that a student shall not be promoted based upon age or any other social reason not related to academic performance.

 

Clearly, if the 33 reversals of retentions were handled correctly, there should be 33 paper trails to show that all of the required procedures were followed and initiated by parents.  Of course, I could FOIA that data and lawyers would be asked to find a way to avoid giving me the information.  Or you board members could let us know if you knew retentions were reversed.  If so, what was your justification for allowing policy to be ignored?  On the other hand, I hope that you were not aware and that you have, in the meantime, taken some action to insure that policy will be followed in the future.

 

Briefly on another topic, I hear via the grapevine that Compass Learning will no longer be used in District 150.  Do you have any idea how many No Child Left Behind expensive cure-alls have been purchased by District 150 only to be cast aside when they prove ineffective?  My great fear now is that there is yet another expensive program to be purchased to replace Compass Learning.  On another note, I heard that kids are already ripping off the bar codes from the books—another quarter of a million down the drain.  Please start investing in teachers and stop telling us that District 150 doesn’t have any money when large sums of money are spent so unwisely. -30-