As if spending a million dollars on computers for the board and administration in the NEW Mountain Industrial Center offices wasn't enough - now this memo was sent out to DCSS employees -
====================
INTEROFFICE MEMORANDUM
====================
To: All DeKalb Employees
From: Shannon Williams Assistant Director of Staff and Student Health and Wellness
Through: Mrs. Gloria Talley, Deputy Superintendent, Teaching and Learning
Subject: Wellness Center - Opening
Date: 23 November 2009
DCSS Employee Wellness Center
The Wellness Center is FREE for all employees.
You must present your DCSS employee ID badge upon entering the facility. Please bring a towel and water bottle for your workout.
Opening December 1st
Hours: 3:30 pm - 8:00 pm Monday - Friday
The Wellness Center is equipped with the following:
• 1/2 court basketball
• Weight room
• Cybex select machines
• Free weights
• Cardio room
• 5 treadmills
• 4 elliptical trainers
• 4 stationary bicycles
• Training Equipment
• Medicine balls
• Resistance Bands
• Aerobic steps
• Exercise balls
Although there will be staff member available for basic questions concerning equipment use, we do not have certified trainers to assist with individualized programming at this time.
Free group exercise classes on Tuesday and Thursday evenings at 5:30 and 6:30!
The Wellness Center is located at the following address:
Mountain Industrial Center
1701 Mountain Industrial Boulevard
Stone Mountain, GA 30083
(please drive to the back of the building and look for the signs).
If you have any questions, please contact Shannon Williams via First Class
or 6-0142.
========
We all know who this facility was built for. Not the teachers of DeKalb County. I would really love to know where they got the money for all the equipment (I'll bet there'll be another furlough day coming up). I would love to see a sign in list each month to see who really is using the equipment. This is very - VERY upsetting to those of us who scratch and bite to get any kind of equipment for STUDENTS in our schools and have witnessed the decrepit old crap they have to use at Cross Keys, Lakeside and others. Or how about the athletes at Avondale who are working out in a trailer - or in the grass outside the back door? Excuse me while I go have a good cry.
I am all for healthy and fit teachers. They perform better when fit and healthy. And they deserve to be treated well.
ReplyDeleteBut this fancy new center is now right next to the new DCSS Admin Offices. It's obviously not for teachers; it's for all those Central Office administrators making over $100,000 per year, and those administrators who are related to other administrators and BOE members.
The audacity to spend big bucks on this and name a former principal the new "Executive Director of Corporate Wellness" at a high salary who has absolutely no experience in the field, when Cross Keys has holes in the floor and Lakeside has the worst rest rooms in the state is mind boggling.
Yes have incredible nerve, Superintendent Crawford Lewis.
As a teacher, I am ticked. Money spent and equipment purchased should be used for the kids. Teachers make a nice sum of money and if we want to work out, we can afford a gym membership and if we can't because we don't know how to budget than shame on us.
ReplyDeleteI would rather the heating/ac vents in my school get cleaned as the dirt that comes from the blowing hot and cold air is outrageous and unhealthy.
I would also rather have the money spent on this facility and administrator in my pay check or spent on updating and maintaining buildings, as many buildings are in need of roofs (even though they are not old) and need other problems taken care of.
My blood pressure is boiling and all DeKalb tax payers should be burning mad. Lewis and his cronies have got to go.
It is hard to understand the priority setting. I think all reasonable people would love for our public employees to have access to this facility - but not while our school houses do with so much less. It defies reason.
ReplyDeleteWhile at Avondale HS for the shellacking of the Cross Keys Indians fb team, I noted 3 items:
1) The heavy activity to build facilities for DSA.
2) The football squad's use of the fields as a weight room.
3) Cross Keys team having no first aid equipment or staff and the Avondale staff having to run across the field to assist injured Indian players.
The "Have-Littles" having to help the "Have-Nots" is hard to accept while imagining Cybex equipment sitting idle in the new facility at Mtn Ind.
I hope they also have a cardio theater that cycles your "DCSS Beauty" shot in an endless loop. That'd be fair.
Why couldn't the administrators just go over to Miller Grove and use the teachers' weight room there? Hey, since the teachers have their own FREE gym now, can LHS have the teachers' weights out of Miller Grove?
ReplyDeleteGuess CL could no longer afford the $35/month at LA Fitness. It is tough getting by on $250,000 a year.
BOE members approved this?!
Most corporations put in these types of facilities to improve morale -- but only if the corps can AFFORD them! This improves morale only for the administrators who work out of that building and the teachers who work in schools near it -- which schools are those, BTW?
And the comment about "certified trainers" not on board "as yet." More salaries for people who don't impact students.
It's a Fellini movie...
All y'all - fire off a letter to the BOE and ask them what's going on here!
ReplyDeleteHey AJC,or WSB, how about a write-up on this? Please...these are real children who are affected, and suffer from continued poor decisions.
ReplyDeleteCrawford, Pat, and the board... you should be ashamed. Look within yourselves; you are hurting the children you are sworn to protect.
Resign. It's gotten too political. Do it for the sake of the children.
Wait a minute, not only did they buy all the equipment, but there will be a staff member during operating hours from 3:30 - 8:00 pm during the week. Whose relative got that job and how much are they making?
ReplyDeleteThis is beyond audacity.
3) Cross Keys team having no first aid equipment or staff and the Avondale staff having to run across the field to assist injured Indian players.
ReplyDeleteThe "Have-Littles" having to help the "Have-Nots" is hard to accept while imagining Cybex equipment sitting idle in the new facility at Mtn Ind.
---
Hey Kim, the whole reason we have a central DCSS Athletics Dept. is so every high school can have shared revenue. That's why they don't allow individual high schools to have their own stadiums.
I believe that the GHSA requires every team to have an athletic trainer on each team's sideline.
The Cross Keys AD may have a 1000 things to worry about, but making sure there is an athletic trainer with proper supplies on the sideline for every football game is Priority No. 1. Yes, the DCSS is incompetent, but the principal and AD need to step up when it comes to the very basics like this.
Adding salt to the wound!!! I am wonderful!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteTo: All DeKalb Employees
From: Dr. Crawford Lewis, Superintendent
Subject: Holiday Message
Date: 23 November 2009
I want to thank each of you for your hard work and dedication to our students. We have been on a clear path of continuous instructional improvement marked by increased expectations, a rigorous, consistent curriculum based on the Georgia Performance Standards, and the improvement of all academic content areas. Our focus throughout the school year is on seeking proven strategies to help our students achieve academic success and avail themselves of the opportunities a quality education affords. Our data shows that we are making progress toward achieving this objective.
Initiatives implemented by our district in recent years continue to return benefits to our students. Some of these initiatives include Project ICE, America’s Choice, Small Learning Communities (SLC’s), Parent Portal/Parent Resource Centers, Portfolio Assessments and Instructional Focus Walks.
I am grateful for the efforts of our students, parents, teachers, staff and administrators for continuing the daily work of helping our students learn. Every child deserves a quality education, and it is up to us to make that happen – no excuses! Public education is the bedrock of the democracy that we enjoy in this country; and public education must not fail!
So as we approach the Thanksgiving holiday, I hope we will all pause to reflect on what we have to be thankful for in the DCSS. And actually, there is quite a bit. Here are ten reasons that I counted and I am sure that there are many more!
• I am thankful for parents in the DCSS who trust us to take care of their children and provide them with a quality education
• I am thankful for teachers and other staff who work on behalf of our students each day
• I am thankful for the courage that principals show in the face of adversity every day, because no two days are ever alike
• I am thankful for my cabinet and other central office staff for their leadership in developing and implementing effective programs that continue to move us forward
• I am thankful for the BOE for its continued focus and vision on student achievement
• I am thankful and proud of the accomplishments that have been made in student performance, attendance, and student dress over the past five years
• I am thankful for opening two additional schools to relieve overcrowding conditions for the 2009-2010 school year
• I am thankful for the concern shown by the Board, community and employees regarding sustainability of the school system, and
• I am thankful that in the face of the current economy and budget cuts, our students continue to reap the benefits of a well rounded solid education.
When I see the increase in homelessness, foreclosures, and poverty of many in DCSS, the state, and nation, I am thankful that we who work in the DCSS still have a job that allows us to provide for our families and gives us a career that makes a difference in the lives of children and improves the human condition of families in our district, country and state. I am thankful for each of you, and I am thankful for good health – both mine and yours. Be safe, enjoy a well deserved break and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
"I am thankful for my cabinet"?????
ReplyDeleteIt's nice that he's so thankful - now get on over to Cross Keys - tour the entire facility - and let us know what THEY have to be thankful for -- geesh. How can you "lead" a system that is composed of only "haves" and "have-nots" and be so pleased with yourself???
Physical fitness? How about a little fiscal fitness first. If there's a place where corporate wellness is needed it's the DCSS county office, where an overweight bureaucracy is choking our financial arteries- not to mention getting in the way of good teaching.
ReplyDeleteThe healthiest thing we can do for the county is to put some of those educrats back into the classroom for some real exercise.
@Anon 10:45 "I believe that the GHSA requires every team to have an athletic trainer on each team's sideline."
ReplyDeleteI have heard this but that doesn't guarantee the $$$ for it. As for the AD and the Principal, I'll be glad to ask but I'm assuming it is a $$$ issue. Uniforms or a trainer? I haven't seen the numbers but can only guess this is the situation. And from what I've heard, not an exceptional situation to Cross Keys HS.
If it ends up the principal has to choose between an ELL teacher and a trainer, I'm guessing that's why we don't have a sideline trainer or proper first aid equipment. Again, I doubt this is unique to CKHS but common at any Title I HS.
Crawford, translated--
ReplyDelete"I am thankful for the courage that principals show in the face of adversity every day" We are doing our best to misuse funds in an effort to prolong your adversity.
"I am thankful for the BOE for its continued focus and vision on student achievement" demonstrated by allowing those of us at HQ to have our own private spa.
"I am thankful that in the face of the current economy and budget cuts, our students" continue to sacrifice so our relatives can have the best in workout equipment. We are hopeful that the BOE will allow us to expand the non-classroom use of tax dollars from 35% to 40% or more in the near future.
Kim - I watch the guy from Avondale stand at the mic and plead with the board month after month for a place for his football team to work out. I've seen Cross Keys work out room (with equipment donated to the school by a private school parent!) - it's in the back hall next to the "cafetorium". And Lakeside and Chamblee are no better. (Except the PARENTS at Lakeside finally broke down and fixed up the locker rooms as best they could.)
ReplyDeleteI am simply mortified and outraged at this ridiculous spending of our tax dollars on a high-end workout facility for ADMINISTRATORS when still - our STUDENTS suffer from a lack of the same!
I swear - we need to replace every single board member - as they have the power to stop this ridiculous spending and they choose not to! They continue to pat Lewis on the back and turn a blind eye to the construction debacles, nepotism, cronyism, extraordinary bloat and general lack of focus on STUDENTs and the CLASSROOM by the Lewis Administration. ("Cabinet!")
REPLACE THEM ALL.
The following members terms are up in 2010 - please consider funding someone responsible to run for these seats --
Zepora Roberts - District 7
Jim Redovian - District 1
Sarah Copelin-Wood - District 3
Jesse "Jay" Cunningham, Jr. - District 5
Eugene P. Walker - District 9
See - we have a chance to replace over HALF the board next November. Let's work really hard to scope out some terrific new blood.
In fact - I would be willing to lead a tax revolt and go over to that gleaming new facility for administrators and DEMAND that the equipment be packed up and shipped off to SCHOOLS that so desperately need it.
ReplyDeleteHas anyone seen the facility?
ReplyDeleteGet the facts before you rant. The "fancy new center" is built and furnished for all DCSS employees entirely through a generous and unsolicited donation from Kaiser as part of a program to reduce insurance costs via promoting fitness. As with all grants and donations the donor dictates the usage of the gift. The school system would not have opened the center otherwise.
ReplyDeleteAnon 3:23
ReplyDeletePlease provide a citation to show this was 100% a Kaiser gift. If true, Crawford is an absolute idiot for not pointing that out in his announcement of it, which he had to know would go public.
sorry, I should have said Ms. Williams was the one who should have, if true, noted that this was funded by Kaiser.
ReplyDeleteAlso, if it is true, Clew should have asked for that money be used for First Aid kits for the schools in middle and high that did not have one.
ReplyDeleteTo me that would be a greater gift. Something that would actually be used and greatly appreciated.
The gym for a few with very limited hours and not very well located is not.
Here is the press release about the grant:
ReplyDeletehttp://xnet.kp.org/newscenter/pressreleases/nat/2009/072809cbgrants.html
Here is the blurb about DeKalb...
Kaiser Permanente funded a $275,000 grant to the DeKalb County School System in Atlanta, Ga., to build a wellness program for students and staff that will include fitness assessments, health education and a fitness center available to students and staff at two high schools during the school day. The money will also be used to staff programs throughout the system during non-school hours and to support an outreach worker to ensure students are enrolled in a health insurance plan for which they are eligible.
Has any of this happened? This fitness center is not located at a high school, is it?
Wait a minute:
ReplyDelete"Kaiser Permanente funded a $275,000 grant to the DeKalb County School System in . . . to build a wellness program **for students and staff** that will include fitness assessments, health education and a fitness center **available to students** and staff **at two high schools** **during the school day**."
Match those marked phrases:
*for students and staff
*available to students
*at two high schools
*during the school day
with the actual location, and the announcement--to staff:
**The Wellness Center is FREE for all employees.
**You must present your DCSS employee ID badge upon entering the facility
**Hours: 3:30 pm - 8:00 pm Monday - Friday
There's some disconnect here, and that doesn't even get to this part:
"The money will also be used to staff programs throughout the system during non-school hours and to support an outreach worker to ensure students are enrolled in a health insurance plan for which they are eligible."
At best,it was Kaiser dollars and not tax dollars that may have been used in an . . . odd . . . manner. So I guess no one should "rant."
Gee - that's interesting. Even more blatant, IMO. In fact, if Kaiser gave DCSS $275,000 to fund "a wellness program for students and staff that will include fitness assessments, health education and a fitness center available to students and staff at two high schools during the school day," wouldn't this have been the PERFECT opportunity to have directed such a donation to a school like Cross Keys??? Or Avondale??? Or Chamblee??? Or Lakeside??? Or one of several other real high schools with real need for workout equipment?
ReplyDeleteHow much good PR could DCSS could have gotten from a thoughtful, caring act like that?
No - they put it in the very building they work in because gee (wink, wink) - we have two high schools here too! (I'd love to see how much it gets used by the Open Campus and DECA students! And - by the teachers who plan to drive out to no man's land to work out between 3:30 and 8 pm. (Can a middle school teacher even get there much before 6 pm?)
Just because it's a donation - doesn't make it right to keep it for yourselves in your gleaming new offices with your million dollar computers...
Oh the greed. The self-absorbed attitudes. The thoughtlessness. The lack of concern for the students they are supposed to care for. The concern only for themselves and their personal daily rewards. It's disgusting. Free or not - it should have gone to the kids.
No wonder Lewis is so "thankful". I think Kaiser needs to know just how "thankful" Lewis is for their generous gift. Merry Christmas guys at Central Administration!
If the grant was for teachers and students to use, than the equipment should be at a high school. Teachers can go to the high schools where the equipment is located if they want to work out. The grant isn't free if the county has to pay for a worker to man the equipment, that we really can't afford. Just because you're offered a grant doesn't mean that you have to take it.
ReplyDeleteAll aspects of any grant need to be looked at to see what the costs are going to be for the district long term. Free doesn't always really mean free. Fiscal responsibility needs to take place in DCSS.
I almost hate to ask:
ReplyDeletedo BOE members (and family & friends) get to use this facility?
Are we sure about the health club near the county office being built with Kaiser money?
ReplyDeleteHaving written and received several grants over the years, the funding organization is usually very specific about how the money they give is to be used (people who give away large sums of money don't want any bad publicity to wash back on them).
If the stated purpose of the gift was health equipment for the use of students (as well as staff) and it was to be located at high schools, me thinks this may not be the same money.
In my experience, gifting corporations also like to get credit for the money donated (if not in the name, then in the press releases and promotional materials)...again...makes me think it may not be the same money.
Also..interesting that Kaiser was dropped as an insurance option for Dekalb employees this year. Guess if it was their money they will not see any savings (return) on that investment.
Also...how far would $275,000.00 go in building (or renovating), equipping and staffing a fitness center? Having seen the quotes for the CK renovation...doesn't seem like it could possibly cover it all.
Don't assume it is all (at all) Kaiser money....write to or call your board member and ask for documentation.
The two schools were Elizabeth Andrews and DeKalb Alternative both of which are located with the fitness center. Neither have an athletic program. The enrollment of the two schools fluctuates between 950 and 1250 depending on the time of year. Those students have a need for this faciity just as much as any student in the county. Before this grant they did not have it. The grant was location specific. The outreach program to the other schools is the next step and will be funded through the grant. DCSS was not given the opportunity to redirect the grant and indeed most grantors are very specific in their gifts. You don't say thanks for your generous gift but were going to syphon it off for other purposes. It isn't legal or polite.
ReplyDeleteShannon works very hard is not an idiot-she just wanted school system employess to know that the facility is available so that they could use it and so far DCSS employees from other locations are using it.
In fact Shannon Williams is doing a very good job to improve health, nutrition, and physical fitness in the entire county. She works hard to attract donations and grants. She also provideds training sessions for all the health and PE teachers including sessions on how to get grants for their respective schools. Some other schools and centers also have fitness equipment and programs through DeKalb County public health grants.
The usage by the two high schools is also apparent to any casual observer. Go look for yourself rather than believe everything you read or write on the internet. Why not ask her how you can help her attract what your school needs?
YOU ARE KIDDING?! I'm sorry to yell in all caps - but are you actually saying that Cross Keys doesn't have any equipment because they didn't ask the right person?!! Same with Avondale? Lakeside? etc...
ReplyDeleteGive me a break - Elizabeth Andrews (Open Campus) students are not going to use this equipment - they barely attend school half days - and the Alternative School is not located in this building - DeKalb Early College Academy is - and that's a very small program. The Alternative School is in a renovated shopping center on Memorial Drive. So, Open Campus and DECA combined probably doesn't have as many students as Cross Keys alone -- plus Cross Keys kids attend all day and have sports teams!
This ruse is so obvious a toddler could see -- they put this equipment in to serve themselves. Take off those rose-colored glasses Anon - for real.
I thankful that I have the fiscal means to pull my child out of this sinking ship of a school system and place him in private school!!!
ReplyDeleteRegardless of the equipment being a gift. If the county cared about the kids, they would have turned down the equipment, if it wasn't to be for the kids. It's not rude to tell the gift giver thanks, but no thanks. We need equipment for the kids.
ReplyDeleteI don't care which high schools got the equipment, but the equipment should be located in a high school, not in this facility. Taxpayer dollars shouldn't be paid to cover people working at this facility after school hours for teacher and employee use.
If the equipment was truly a gift, this information should have been publicized in the email sent to employees.
Either way it's a bad deal - if it's a gift - then it was misappropriated. If not - then they blatantly spent tax dollars on themselves over very high needs schools (by the way, Open Campus got a brand new facility - isn't that enough for now?? Wouldn't that be reason enough to consider spending this "gift" at Cross Keys?) I mean, why are the Open Campus kids so much more valued than the Cross Keys kids?
ReplyDeleteBoth of the high schools (Elizabeth Andrews & DeKalb Early College Academy) have full-day physical education scheduled in the Wellness Center, so the students who "barely attend school half days" are, in fact, using the gym all day. The two schools share the gym (which only has a half-court) so these students aren't even getting the full facilities that other students get in the district. I'm sure many of you (who appear to want to deny these students a physical education facility at all, even one not funded by non-tax dollars) would be the first to line up at a board meeting to vent about your children not having a "real gym".
ReplyDeleteI am also sure that Kaiser will think twice about awarding grants to DCSS after reading the opinions on this particular blog.
When I get up each morning at 5:30, I think that it can't get any worse. But, alas, I arrive at school and am proven wrong. I've been teaching in Dekalb County for a long time and am absolutely disgusted by the games played by the board and county admins. The pendulum has swung too far in the wrong direction and now it needs to swing back to reality and knock a few people out of the way. This is what happens when government gets too big and too powerful. There may be a "tea party" in the making because we have reached the end of our ropes and our patience. Could we please have leaders who know how to run a successful business? Morale is bad- really, really bad.
ReplyDeleteFYI Anonymous 7:05 -- Cross Keys gymnasium has long been under lock and key - as in "closed" since it is crumbling and unsafe. (There's a hole in the mezzanine floor above!) Their "workout" facility only exists because a private school parent donated some used equipment which is set up in a back hall behind the cafeteria. === Lakeside has been asking for equipment for so long (along with mold removal) that the parents finally went in themselves and cleaned the place and bought what weight equipment they could. (1700 students there!) And yes -- sorry to say - the Open Campus kids do not usually attend all day - plus PE is a freshman requirement and you can't even attend Open Campus (or Eliz Andrews) until you're 16. And the DECA program is more or less dual enrollment with Perimeter - and has - you tell me -- I think around 400 students???
ReplyDeleteGive me a break - and no - I don't think Kaiser will give DCSS any more money - but only because they obviously can't be trusted to spend it where it benefits those most in need.
I may need to make a field trip to see this place for myself -- anyone want to come along?
++++
ps - Don't believe me about Cross Keys? Watch our slideshow - at this link and see if you wouldn't "vent"...
Cross Keys is Still in Limbo
Which we have of course, done many times to the board of education, to no avail. But as you pointed out, they have no power - we should have been asking Shannon Williams or Gloria Talley. Silly us.
If Lewis thinks a gym is going to boost morale he and Ms. Williams are sorely wrong. Teachers don't want a workout center. They want to work where giving children a solid education is valued. They want leadership that will back them and put children first. They want working conditions where they don't have to worry about air quality, due to dirty schools, holes in roofs and ceilings, and dirty and moldy air circulation/heating systems.
ReplyDeleteKaiser won't give DCSS money, because they aren't an insurance company the county works with this year. It has nothing to do with this blog. A Kaiser executive wouldn't have their child in a DCSS school. Let's be honest.
An aside -- As far as "community use" - (consider Atlanta traffic between 4 and 7 pm) - Stone Mt HS is just 2 miles from this facility - works for these teachers. The brand new $52 million Tucker High with it's outdoor track, etc and state of the art indoor facilities is less than 3 miles away. (They don't appear to need anything.) Redan - 6 miles. Crummy Lakeside is 9 miles away, facility-less Avondale - 9 miles, moldy Chamblee - 13.5 miles, decrepit Cross Keys - 10.5 miles, Dunwoody - 15 miles around I-285, built in '72 Cedar Grove - 17 miles, on and on.
ReplyDeleteSo this begs the question - if you were supposed to benefit two high schools (and presumably the most people) why not divide the money - $137,500 for each of two schools that REALLY need and have been asking for equipment for years? Two schools that are geographically separate (not in the same building which conveniently also houses the brand new admin offices) -- schools that could each draw from a wider range and benefit far more students? Heck - I would even go so far as to say that you could divide that $275k into FOUR schools and still manage to make quite a few kids very happy!
Very strange decision-making here.
Oh - and what on earth makes anyone think that anyone at Kaiser would read this blog? Are "we" getting paranoid?
ReplyDeleteDr. Shannon Williams is doing a great job. And she pulls in mucg grant money for the school system with no help from her superiors.
ReplyDeleteBut she isn't even a director; technically she's an assistant director. And Yvonne Butler, a former principal with no health background, is actually above Dr. Williams on the organization chart as C Lew's made up out of nowhere "Executive Director of Corporate Wellness".
DCSS Central Officer is FUBAR.
@Cerebration: " ... Cross Keys gymnasium has long been under lock and key"
ReplyDeleteNot to take away from your point because I agree with you, but to make sure everyone's is up-to-date ... the CKHS gym mezzanine is still off limits to students and cannot be used and there is no plan for this to change after the reno.
And, yes, the "weight room" is actually housed in what was traditionally the senior lunchroom (really a hallway and cafeteria exit). The reno plan moves this into the men's locker room space thus taking away existing uses and making accessibility a little sketchy for visitors and girls.
The actual gymnasium floor is in good shape and in active use while the locker rooms, such as they are, are available to students. I saw the girls' locker room recently dropping off stuff for the cross country team runners we're sponsoring for the Atlanta 1/2 Marathon (t/y for your contributions!) and had to laugh at the rows of shower stalls no one uses - it needs to be gutted.
In short, the reality is perhaps just slightly less outrageous than "under lock and key" - open for business! :)
"I'm sure many of you (who appear to want to deny these students a physical education facility at all, even one not funded by non-tax dollars)"
ReplyDeleteOh, PLEASE
The point here isn't to pit one school against any other (and one could make the reverse argument that YOU want to deny these facilities to CK or any other school) the point is that it certainly does seem an odd coincidence that of all the schools that could have received this equipment it sure does seem an odd coincidence that it's the schools adjacent to the HQ that got this stuff--particularly when one of Crawford's cronies makes a point of letting staff there know of this.
FWIW -- I dug up the chart from the county stating the Oct 2009 FTE counts along with projections (squirrely as they are) and capacity (which is debatable) --
ReplyDeleteStudent Enrollment and Capacity
Seems the October count for Open Campus (Elizabeth Andrews HS) was 615 and DECA was 206. So, I don't know who gave you your student numbers, Anon, but the published total enrollment for these two schools was 821 combined as recently as Oct 6, 2009 (6 weeks ago).
I emailed my board rep, who sent me essentially the same explanation as we have seen here, that the equipment was paid by a grant, and it is used daily by Elizabeth Andrews and DECA. It is not open to employees until school is over for the day.
ReplyDeleteThe questions I have here are - is DECA not a program that is a collaboration between DCSS and GPC, and doesn't that entitle the DECA students to use the GPC physical ed facilities (which aren't too shabby). Might the DECA students be fulfilling their PE requirements with GPC classes (this could be investigated)?
One of the blog entries said that the grant is to "build a wellness program for students and staff.... The money will also be used to staff programs throughout the system during non-school hours and to support an outreach worker to ensure students are enrolled in a health insurance plan for which they are eligible. (italics mine). What if this outreach worker were at CKHS? I know that some of the Elizabeth Andrews students are on their own, and can use this kind of help, too, and I wouldn't deny it to them, but I'm afraid the wealth just won't be spread before the money runs out.
My BOE rep also said that the Director Of Wellness (Ms. Butler) has "either all or part of her salary paid by private or federal grant". He said he would get more details.
Update:
ReplyDeleteHeard further info from Board Rep (Don McChesney). He said Ms. Butler's salary is currently being paid by DCSS (not a grant), but they are applying for grants at this time that will pay her salary and make the program self-sustaining. The after-school wellness center employees are paid by the grant, as is the equipment.
I am not sure whether this thrust / emphasis on wellness is new or not, but I sure hope it expands - there are a lot of kids and families that could use it in many parts of the county. Not only those who are seeing hard times, but even more, those who are new to our country and culture - they need all the help and support we can give them.
Well, he should know - he voted to approve her new position, along with the three others that were created by Dr. Lewis in lieu of a raise (due to the budget) for Moseley, Tyson, Bouie and Mitchell (a lateral move for her).
ReplyDeleteAlso, in referring to old notes, I see that Open Campus was also granted a $295,000 technology package back in May.
Not to whine, but this is what happens when you maintain a scarcity mentality - all the peasants have to beg the king for some bread.
Shannon Williams had to find grant money to pay for her position. Now she has to find grant money for the unqualified Yvonne Butler. Butler is not a grant writer, and has an easy new position with a sweet salary that does not impact the classroom at all. Nice to be a FOC (Friend of C Lew).
ReplyDeleteAnon 3:04 PM
ReplyDelete"I am not sure whether this thrust / emphasis on wellness is new or not, but I sure hope it expands - there are a lot of kids and families that could use it in many parts of the county."
And DCSS should be doing this why?
"Board Rep (Don McChesney). He said Ms. Butler's salary is currently being paid by DCSS (not a grant), but they are applying for grants at this time that will pay her salary and make the program self-sustaining."
ReplyDeleteSo, in the great shell game of DCSS, we'll pay Butler's salary UNTIL a grant pays for it. Now, watch which hat the salary is under, keep watching, oops, what's that over there? Ohh, too bad, you took your eye off the hat. What, now you can't tell which hat the salary is under? Don't worry, we'll keep shuffling until you can guess. And of course, the grant money is being applied for -- which grant money? Which company? We'll get back to you -- just keep watching and oops, what's that over there? Did you see that? Ohh, you took your eyes off again, we'll just have to get back to you.
You are hilarious, No Duh. What an expert analogy!
ReplyDeleteNo Duh is exactly right. The salary will be meant to be paid for by grant. Until it isn't. And it will just get lost in all of the other ridiculous admin expenses that just take away more resources from the classroom.
ReplyDeleteConsider again, the overall bloat that has bloomed under the leadership of Dr. Lewis. This administration never says no - doesn't seem to respect a budget or spend money in the most wise way to benefit the most students per dollar - first and foremost.
ReplyDeleteRework the numbers as if all were steady (enrollments), and add a standard 3% cost of living increase (which is very generous). Even with that -- the budget has expanded far beyond what is reasonable. But the fact is - enrollments have decreased and tax collections are down - yet the bloated budget rocks on!
Instruction - Salaries & Benefits
2004-05 - $449,731,945
2005/06 - $483,326,883
2006/07 - $534,554,082
2007/08 - $550,015,882 (budget)
2008/09 - $553,745,090 (approved budget)
(Could this bloat be due to Gloria's outrageous number of "curriculum specialists? We surely haven't added this many teachers.)
Instructional Staff Services
2004/05 - $14,991,512
2005/06 - $16,258,660
2006/07 - $18,259,790
2007/08 - $17,811,750 (budget)
2008/09 - $17,819,373 (approved budget)
School Administration
2004/05 - $53,520,750
2005/06 - $56,705,573
2006/07 - $62,384,553
2007/08 - $64,385,241 (budget)
2008/09 - $70,198,544 (approved budget)
This last figure is fully $10 million more than if you had factored in a 3% increase year over year for cost of living
Enrollment (Decreases)
2005/06 - 102,330
2006/07 - 101,853
2007/08 - 100,526
2008/09 - 99,893
2009/10 - 97,958 - Official Oct 2009 FTE Count
So we see here that no matter what the public statement is, enrollments are officially down - again.
It is my understanding that the pressure to hire Ms. Butler actually came from a board member not CL. I thought that Ms. Butler was a very good principal. Not sure why DCSS continues to think that it is ok to take the best people out of the schools.
ReplyDeleteEA high school's enrollment will grow during the school year -- probably doubling. I wonder though, if anyone at DCSS thought one bit about where these facilities would have had the biggest impact.
It better not have come from a board member - that would be micro-managing and that is a BIG SACS no-no.
ReplyDeleteAnon 8:16...which board member??
ReplyDeleteCan someone re-post here, the list of embarrassing cases (law suits, investigations, test score fraud, etc)--that was posted several times?
ReplyDeleteThe list essentially tracks stories done mostly on TV (AJC doesn't do much)--and uncovered with this website.
Cere
ReplyDeleteThe BOE will not get rid of Lewis. Parents are wasting their time sending complaints to DCSS BOE. send your complaints to SACS. Say enough to corruption. Get rid of the current BOE with the exception of Bowen and Spears.
Keep Redovian! He gets that there are things that need to change pronto, and will help make those changes.
ReplyDeleteKeep Redovian! He gets that there are things that need to change pronto, and will help make those changes.
ReplyDeleteBut, yet, he has done very little during his time on the BOE - what would that change now?
He's tryisng, trust me. He's not the kind of guy to call out BOe members in public.
ReplyDeleteIt's not a matter of calling out other board members in public - exactly what has Redovian done during his time on the BOE? I do not see that he has done anything other than to name the new Dunwoody ES, "Dunwoody Elementary School".
ReplyDeleteWow. You guys are an angry bunch. I am a teacher who appreciates this new fitness center. It's saving me the $300 that I spend at LA Fitness during the school year. I hope they do more health initiatives such as a weight loss challenge, health buddies, and massages at work. Students are not the only ones who need materials and resources. Why are you all so angry about resources for teachers?
ReplyDeleteWe're not angry - we just think the money should be spent on students first. Go to Cross Keys - check out what their 900 students have for facilities - and then come back and tell us that teachers deserve a fitness center over these students.
ReplyDeleteIt's about priorities. That's all.
Keep in mind that the complaints about Clayton to SACs came from inside (I believe from some board members themselves and some employees).
ReplyDeleteThere was ample evidence of board members meddling... remember the board member who had a high school football coach fired?
SACs is actually very uninterested in much of school's operations. They are interested in micro-managing by board members. Find this evidence (and I think it is out there) and you are on your way. Other wise, you are wasting your time.
Parents have tried to get SACs attention about questionable spending and questionable campaign contributions and have been told that this isn't an area they are interested in.
That makes sense. SACS is about accreditation and the only thing that has an effect on that is if a board member comes in and tries to "do the job" of the superintendent - ie: micro-manage.
ReplyDeleteThus, Kevin Levitas' bill (in the post after this) addresses the other issues legally - ethics, campaign contributions, training, etc and provides a written method for dealing with these issues with individuals.
For SACS to sanction an entire school system because a few board reps have questionable personal ethics or make decisions about funding that seem imbalanced toward one group or another, would be overkill. We've always just needed a method to sanction individuals who don't hold a written standard. Many school systems already have such legislation in place.
Write your state rep and ask them to support Kevin's bill, "The DeKalb School Board Transparency Act".
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
1 To enact the "DeKalb School Board Transparency Act;" to provide a code of ethics for the
2 DeKalb County School System; to provide for prohibited practices; to provide for disclosure;
3 to provide for sanctions on appointed officers and employees of the school system for
4 violations; to provide for an ethics commission; to provide for membership; to provide for
5 appointment and vacancies; to provide for eligibility; to provide for duties and powers; to
6 provide for compensation; to provide for complaints against board members; to provide for
7 hearings and actions; to provide for sanctions; to provide for appeals; to provide for a
8 training program; to provide for related matters; to provide for an effective date; to repeal
9 conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
10 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
No offense Anon 4:41, but saving a teacher money on a gym membership is about No. 8,459 on the list of priorities of parents and taxpayers.
ReplyDeleteMany who post on this blog are pushing for decent school facilities with no leaky roofs, no mold and mildew in HVAC, etc. Well maintained facilities with good air quality help students just as much as teachers.
We also advocate for alean and mean DCSS Central office, instead of the bloated massive mess there is no, with the made up positions for former principals and Gloria talley's mass army of curriculum advisors who add more busy work for teachers and make no discernible difference in the classroom.
I and many others would like a lean and mean bureaucracy and higher paid teachers and more classroom spending. Whine about you gym membership, but it's no one's priority except your own.
Anonymous 441 "Angry" doesn't even come close to the word(s) that can be used to express the disatisfaction, discontent and disappointment in our DCSS leadership.
ReplyDeleteYour sad story about the financial strain placed upon you by your membership to LA Fitness brings a tear to my eye.
Maybe we can organize a fundraiser for this teacher. How about a walk-a-thon. How about having a bakesale or a lemonade stand.
We could stand by the roadside with an empty boot to collect your membership fee!
Better yet, let's finance this teacher's LA Fitness membership through another SPLOST...forget
the often deplorable conditions students and other teachers face each day...at least you will have your precious gym membership.
And you wonder why we might be perceived as an "angry bunch."
Catch a clue teach!
Back to the title of this string: "The Audacity is Astounding". Regardless if the workout equipment was a good will gesture from an appreciative DCSS supplier or the fruits of a grant, for the administration to corral it for their own use is audacious -- and yet another concrete example of central office and BOE selfishness at the sake of those who they supposedly care for.
ReplyDeleteI wonder what the grant application was for? Was it specifically FOR a fitness center that would be shared by high schools and DCSS employees? Or did Kaiser itself decide on those specifications?
ReplyDeleteIf it was the former, then that smacks of audacity. If the latter, then, while it might have been better applied for other high schools, DCSS is perhaps guilty of a little less.
I have written a few grant applications, and I have always had to clearly specify exactly what we were going to use the money for.
Check out the link cited above DeKalb Parent - and see what you think. Let us know.
ReplyDeletehttp://xnet.kp.org/newscenter/pressreleases/nat/2009/072809cbgrants.html
Here is the blurb about DeKalb...
Kaiser Permanente funded a $275,000 grant to the DeKalb County School System in Atlanta, Ga., to build a wellness program for students and staff that will include fitness assessments, health education and a fitness center available to students and staff at two high schools during the school day. The money will also be used to staff programs throughout the system during non-school hours and to support an outreach worker to ensure students are enrolled in a health insurance plan for which they are eligible.
===========
To me, they followed the requirements but they certainly used this to benefit the admin offices - by placing it in their own building, which happens to also house two alternative high school programs - when they are fully aware of just how badly so many regular, full high schools are in need of exactly these kinds of items. It just seems like a thumb to the nose in a way. The mantra is always, "we have plans to spend $20 million at Cross Keys" - but to date, the place is still a crumbling, moldy, health threat to over 900 people. It's so nice to have so many "plans" for others, and then slide in and get it done for yourselves.
Some thoughts and questions about your listing of rising costs Cerebration. I have added percentage increases (roughly claculated) to your list. I tried to set my additons off but failed.
ReplyDeleteSorry.
"Instruction - Salaries & Benefits
2004-05 - $449,731,945
2005/06 - $483,326,883 an increase of 7.4%
2006/07 - $534,554,082 an increase of 2.89%
2007/08 - $550,015,882 (budget) an increase of 10.5% 2008/09 - $553,745,090 (approved budget) an increase of .06% (less than one per cent)
(Could this bloat be due to Gloria's outrageous number of "curriculum specialists? We surely haven't added this many teachers.)"
Instructional Staff Services- Is this the curriculum specialists et al? Where do the state mandated graduation coaches fit? Do the federally funded and mandated ELL and special Ed instructional services go here?
2004/05 - $14,991,512
2005/06 - $16,258,660- an increase of 8%
2006/07 - $18,259,790- an increase of 12%
2007/08 - $17,811,750 (budget)-a decrease of 2.5%
2008/09 - $17,819,373 (approved budget)-an increase of .004% or much less than one per cent)
School Administration-who is this? Is this principals, assistant principals, area superintendents?
2004/05 - $53,520,750
2005/06 - $56,705,573- an increase of 5.9%
2006/07 - $62,384,553- an increase of 10%
2007/08 - $64,385,241 (budget)- an increase of 3%
2008/09 - $70,198,544 (approved budget)- an increase of 9%
"This last figure is fully $10 million more than if you had factored in a 3% increase year over year for cost of living."
The things that come to mind is an increase of over 3% in health insurance for each of the past five years, a decrease in the state subsidy for health insurance, the addition of new positions for any new school as in Arabia Mountain- The teachers should follow enrollment and as students at new schools come from other existing schools the number teachers won’t increase but staffing requirements for principals, assistant principals, counselors, security, janitorial, cafeteria, and secretarial, bookkeeper, and media specialist will be additional expenses.
Other things to note-2007-2008 last year of cost of living raises of 2 to 3% and last year of step raises (based on years of service).
Thank you, Anon! I like it when people try to look at the actual data and reason from there. It's interesting - it looks like Lewis made major budget increases his first few years and the last couple, has pretty much held the line. Oddly, though, he publicly states that he's made significant budget cuts - millions of dollars worth - but I don't see a decrease anywhere. Maybe it's just showing as less of an increase???
ReplyDeleteInstructional Staff Services
ReplyDelete2004/05 - $14,991,512
2008/09 - $17,819,373
School Administration
2004/05 - $53,520,750
2008/09 - $70,198,544
Not only are these huge increases in a short amount of time, the enrollment for the system is shrinking during this same time period??!!
This figure does not include pension benefits, not sure if it includes health insurance.
The lasting legacy of the Crawford Lewis administration will be his buildup of a huge, massively bloated bureaucracy, with tens of millions going to non-classroom spending.
In reading the Kaiser press release, it seems as if they did not really follow the spirit of the grant, and I'm not too sure about the letter of it. The other projects described are aimed at covering as wide a group as possible (e.g. community health initiatives, providing free access to pools for low-income kids, outpatient surgery, continuing ed for nurses), and I would assume that Kaiser meant for this grant to cover as many as possible as well.
ReplyDeletea $275,000 grant to the DeKalb County School System in Atlanta, Ga., to build a wellness program for students and staff
In theory, the fitness center is open to all staff in DCSS, but it is certainly not open to all students.
that will include fitness assessments, health education and a fitness center available to students and staff at two high schools during the school day.
Are they providing this to the students, or is it just a gym?
The money will also be used to staff programs throughout the system during non-school hours
The DCSS memo does not mention ANY programs "throughout the system" - just the availability of the fitness center to a segment of the population (DCSS employees)during non-school hours.
and to support an outreach worker to ensure students are enrolled in a health insurance plan for which they are eligible.
Again, DCSS memo makes no mention of this outreach worker. It would behoove the administration and BOE to clarify if they actually are providing these things - it would certainly help public perception.
My Lakeside student saw two teachers working out with a personal trainer in the hallways after the school day just before the Thanksgiving break. Perhaps the trainer is a part of this program. I don't know.
ReplyDeleteFrom Anon to Anon.
ReplyDeleteLet’s look out the numbers you say are outrageous.
“Instructional Staff Services
2004/05 - $14,991,512
2008/09 - $17,819,373”
This first increase amounts to 18.8% over five years or 3.7% a year on average. When you figure in cost of living raises, step raises, and a steady steep increase in health care benefits costs-It's still better to look year by year.
“School Administration
2004/05 - $53,520,750
2008/09 - $70,198,544”
This increase is 31.1% or 6% a year on average. If it includes all the new principal and assistant principal positions for all the new schools in the past 5 years it is about right.
Moreover, we do not know what instructional and admininstrative positions are mandated and funded by the fed or which ones are mandated by the state and fed and not funded. How many of them are Title I or II and have specific restrictions?
As a volunteer for Knollwood school I'd rather than see every grant as a negative or malfeasance let's think of some positive things we could do. Cross Keys people-Arabia Mountain was partially funded by a small congressional set aside via John Lewis (some people call set asides pork barrel-but how could it be pork barrel if we use it on Cross Keys?). Can we talk to your congressperson to include a set a side for Cross Keys? There are a steady stream of small grant opportunities for health, nutrition, and physical fitness that other schools apply for. Some schools like Knollwood have volunteers help facilitate grant requests. I know that SPLOST will address some of the problem. How can we facilitate that? Let's get together and do what we can.
ReplyDelete"I know that SPLOST will address some of the problem. How can we facilitate that? Let's get together and do what we can."
ReplyDeleteThat's basically why this blog exists. However, we have learned that no matter how much we plead, beg, cajole, argue, scratch and bite, nothing ever really seems to actually get done at Cross Keys. The mantra is "we plan on spending $20 million on Cross Keys" - which has now become Cross Keys with the merged High School of Technology North - the equivalent of two schools. I find nothing but road blocks when navigating DCSS.
Are you serious Anon 8:55 AM???
ReplyDeleteEnrollment is static across the system, yet the administrative personnel and spending is increasing fast. Hey, in the business world, annual 4 or 6 percent increases are pretty darn high, especially when the number of "customers" you serve is static.
And step raises are for teachers, not administrators. Don't support the massive and growing bureaucracy of Crawford Lewis non-teaching personnel.
Enrollment is down. In September, I heard Dr. Lewis state that enrollment was up, however, according to the official October 2009 FTE count, enrollment is down again.
ReplyDeleteEnrollment
2005/06 - 102,330
2006/07 - 101,853
2007/08 - 100,526
2008/09 - 99,893
2009/10 - 97,958
And, don't forget the research done by Kim and Ella (click Mr. Potato Head for the article) -- DeKalb is much more top-heavy than Fulton as a percentage of cost.
DCSS Total Salaries 2008: $682,709,025.22
DCSS Admin/"Central Office" Salaries 2008: $170,590,619.93
Ratio 2008: 24.987%
FCSS Total Salaries 2008 $552,969,891.22
FCSS Admin/"Central Office" Salaries 2008: $56,194,268.83
Ratio 2008: 10.162%
So, basically, we have lost 4,372 students in the last 5 years - an enrollment decrease of around 4% - yet the admin budget has increased by over 30% in the same time frame and the instructional budget to educate 4% fewer students has increased about 18%.
ReplyDeleteRemember - the STEP increase was not given this year as well as the deletion of the retirement matching contributions for teachers. Also - the administrators were supposed to take a 2% pay cut. So - let's see if the budget manages to even hold steady for 2009-10.
Another question - in those schools where enrollment has declined markedly, have the number of admin positions also declined? Does a school need as many APs when it has an enrollment of 700 as it needed when the enrollment was 1200?
ReplyDeleteWe should not assume that every new school needs a full complement of new admins - some should be coming from existing schools.
"We should not assume that every new school needs a full complement of new admins - some should be coming from existing schools."
ReplyDeleteGood point, Dekalbparent. However, that is not how Crawford Lewis thinks. The more administrators he brings on, the more loyalists he has on his side.
"Another question - in those schools where enrollment has declined markedly, have the number of admin positions also declined? Does a school need as many APs when it has an enrollment of 700 as it needed when the enrollment was 1200?"
ReplyDeleteThe overall enrollment decline is less than 5000. Not many of our schools have declined in enrollment by 40% or more 700 devided by 1200). When you spread the enrollment decline around 150 locations it may shift some points and assistant principals. Most of this has been at the elementary level. Elmentary schools have fewer admin staff than middle or high schools. The population trends are producing a ballon or bulge in older students in the next few years-so middle and highschool enrollments will swell and elementary ones will decline. Most of the school balancing (consolidation) needed is at the elementary level. This would save admininstrative and operational salaries as well as some other costs along with secure more state funding (the 450 rule). I personally prefer smaller neighborhood schools with class sizes of 12. We would have to change the state law to do this and it still would cost more money- but it would be a wonderful stimulus package. We'd have to build more schools, hire more teachers, and pay more taxes.
And step raises are for teachers, not administrators. Don't support the massive and growing bureaucracy of Crawford Lewis non-teaching personnel.
ReplyDeleteWrong, everone including janitors are on a slary schedule that includes step raises for length of service.
The issue with declining enrollments is declining FTE budget that comes with the decline in students. We are allotted a certain amount of money from the state and federal governments per pupil (FTE - Full time equivalent). This accounts for probably 75% of the budget - with the rest made up in property taxes, etc. So when enrollment declines, so should the budget and if we have to consolidate schools (which the state also punishes us for have low-enrolled schools) then that's what we should do. It's not rocket science.
ReplyDeletePersonally, the easiest place to chop is the bloat at the top. Eliminate unnecessary positions (health and nutrition guru, expensive "secretaries" and "facilities managers" who were former principals, and at least half of Gloria's "curriculum specialists).
Teachers should not be affected. They should be the LAST to suffer cuts. We can do without a couple of APs and graduation coaches and curriculum coaches - but we can't go without teachers - or the repercussions of low morale.
Lean and mean -- do they know how to do that?
Examples of schools with too many open seats
ReplyDeleteCedar Grove ES - 233 open seats (Cap 888)
Allgood ES - 246 open seats (Cap 753)
Atherton ES - 231 open seats (Cap 631)
Clifton ES - 244 open seats (Cap 647)
Snapfinger ES - 337 open seats (Cap 814)
Wadsworth magnet - 360 open seats (Cap 525)
McNair HS - 692 open seats (Cap 1663)
Stephenson HS - 476 open seats (Cap 2237)
Towers HS - 259 open seats (Cap 1342)
Elix Andrews (Open Campus) 545 avail seats (Cap 1177)
There's a bunch - but you get the idea -
All the interesting links on the topic can be found at this article -
http://dekalbschoolwatch.blogspot.com/2009/10/enrollment-numbers-game-lets-play.html
I was in the area so I drove to the facility yesterday. You go around the building to the back, past the Jim Cherry Center to the sign that very clearly says, "Teachers Wellness Center" - and "You've Arrived".
ReplyDeleteThe place appears to be locked up. Students do not use it, I'm told. They have a gym on the other side of the building. I'm not sure if that's the same 1/2 court gym described in the email or another one.
Wow. Sorta wierd, huh?
ReplyDeleteMy understanding is that this has all been funded by grants. The person running the wellness center is being paid from grants and not taxpayer dollars
ReplyDeleteYes, TO DATE this has all been grant-funded, apparently.
ReplyDeleteHowever:
--staff have been hired. How are they to be paid when the grant runs out?
--just because it is a grant, not tax dollars, does not mean it should not be subject to the same scrutiny of fair use providing the maximum benefit to the maximum number of students first, faculty second, admin staff third that we expect for tax dollars.
@Anon 12/1 9:07: "Some schools like Knollwood have volunteers help facilitate grant requests."
ReplyDeleteThere has been a shortage of folks standing up for CKHS - that is the primary reason I believe it has been neglected for so long ... they could be.
"How can we facilitate that? Let's get together and do what we can."
In our case, you can now direct folks to Cross Keys Foundation
"There are a steady stream of small grant opportunities for health, nutrition, and physical fitness that other schools apply for."
These are precisely some of the initiatives the Foundation will undertake among others.
I think it is fair to be tough with our leadership in DCSS while simultaneously working on positive initiatives such as you mention.
To anyone who says that if you need something you should learn to ask the right people and find a grant writer - I say - you can't be serious. We pay millions in taxes to maintain this school system. I expect equity from our board - and Cross Keys does not have it. We also voted to tax ourselves a penny on the dollar in sales taxes in order to bring hundreds of millions of dollars into the system for construction. Again - I expect equity - again, Cross Keys has yet to have it.
ReplyDeleteSo far it's all been smoke and mirrors. Pitiful.
Cross Keys School Board Representative does not even recommend that donations be made to Cross Keys. He indicates that Cross Keys will be possible be closing as a high school to community members in the near future.
ReplyDeleteIs this why Cross Keys is getting the short end of the stick?
The Plot Thickens:
ReplyDeleteFrom: Postmaster Friday, December 04, 2009 10:52:37 AM
Subject: Wellness Center - Classes and Hours
To: News Flash
====================
INTEROFFICE MEMORANDUM
====================
To: All DeKalb Employees
From: Shannon Williams Assistant Director of Health and Wellness
Through: Mrs. Gloria Talley, Deputy Superintendent, Teaching and Learning
Dr. Vonzia Phillips, Director, Middle School Teaching and Learning
Subject: Wellness Center - Classes and Hours
Date: 4 December 2009
Hours of Operation and Services offered by the
DCSS Wellness Center
Monday-Thursday 3:30pm-8:00pm
Fridays: 3:30pm-7:00pm
(The center is only open when schools are open, the center will not be
open during the winter break)
Group exercise classes will be offered based on the following schedule:
Monday:
5:30-6:20pm - YOGA This class will improve your strength, flexibility and
concentration. Please bring your own yoga mat or towel
6:30-7:20pm - STEP AEROBICS This is an energetic, upbeat aerobics class
that is sure to get your body moving. A great workout for all levels of
fitness enthusiasts, this class combines cardiovascular training and
toning exercises, for a total body workout.
Tuesday:
5:30-6:20pm - INDOOR BOOT CAMP This is a fifty minute moderate to high
intensity workout with energetic music and advanced training equipment.
6:30pm-7:20pm - CORE/STRETCH This class focusing on strengthening and
lengthening the abdominal, hip, back, and buttock muscles. This mat based
class includes many exercises inspired by Joseph Pilates. Core exercises
will help develop better balance and strength.
Wednesday:
OPEN GYM Basketballs, exercise balls, medicine balls, resistance bands,
and dumbbells will be provided for individuals to use.
Thursday:
5:30pm-6:20pm - CORE/STRETCH This class focusing on strengthening and
lengthening the abdominal, hip, back, and buttock muscles. This mat based
class includes many exercises inspired by Joseph Pilates. Core exercises
will help develop better balance and strength.
6:30-7:20pm - INDOOR BOOT CAMP This is a fifty minute moderate to high
intensity workout with energetic music and advanced training equipment.
Friday:
OPEN GYM Basketballs, exercise balls, medicine balls, resistance bands,
and dumbbells will be provided for individuals to use.
Other Reminders:
** Personalized fitness assessments are offered daily and take
approximately 30 minutes to complete. Please inquire when you visit the
center if you are interested in the assessment.
** Please drive to the back of the building and enter through the Wellness
Center door (beyond GLRS).
** Don’t forget your employee ID, water bottle and towel.
** Don’t forget your employee ID, water bottle and towel.
ReplyDeleteReally Crawford, if the taxpayers are footing the bill for this boondoggle the least you could do is supply complimentary water bottles and towel service!
Does anyone really believe this will all be discontinued when the grant money runs out?
ReplyDeleteI'd sure like to know how this gets paid for when all that's available is tax dollars that are supposed to be for the classroom.
I certainly don't begrudge teachers a place to work out. It's a good idea really. However, it should never be implemented unless and until ALL of our students are without similar needs.
ReplyDeleteOur awareness of the needs of Cross Keys as well as letters like the one below state the case --
A Message from the Avondale Blue Devils Touchdown Club
CONDITIONS OF AVONDALE HIGH SCHOOL
There will be a Community Meeting at 6:00 PM on Tuesday, December 8th at Avondale High School in the Cafeteria. Barbara Colman, Interim CIP Operations Officer of DeKalb County School System is going to explain to everyone why the school has not been updated to other school standards and to hear comments and suggestions.
Currently at the school, there is no weight room, wrestling room, band room, showers, lockers, and no storage.
The school needs help from DeKalb County and a good turn out from the Avondale Community and surrounding areas.
If you have questions, please contact Bobby Burgess at bburgess@ppg. com
Bobby Burgess Jr.
Class of 70
I hope some of you bloggers will plan to attend to show support for our DCSS students. We must stand together.
I'm not sure why this is getting done in other counties -- but here's a note from the Forsyth Co schools -
ReplyDeleteForsyth County Public Health is providing FREE H1N1 VACCINES to ForsythCounty children (ages 3-18)
Wednesday, December 9 from 4-7 p.m. @ NorthForsythHigh School Cafeteria
Tuesday, December 15 from 4-7 p.m. @ ForsythCentralHigh School WEST Campus
For pre-vaccination information, directions and required paperwork, visit www.forsyth.k12.ga.us/flu For questions, contact the Forsyth County Health Department at 770-781-6900
I also know of at least two private schools who have given students an H1N1 flu shot.
Has anyone heard of a plan for DCSS to address the issue of flu shots? Are we still "working closely with the DeKalb Board of Health and the CDC" but not actually getting the shots for our students? Why is our "Health and Wellness" leadership so blase about this?
Ok. I was talking today with several teachers from DESA. Didn't they get a building reno before the school moved from Hooper Alexander to Terry Mill or was I just dreaming that?
ReplyDeleteI was told that last week the cafeteria had to be shut down because the roof was leaking, the classrooms have mold growning from the air ducts, and a host of other things.
To top it all off... Three teacher's cars were broken into in the last month.
Come on BOE, get off your duff and do something.
PS - I am not a fan of DESA better use of tax dollars but teachers and students should not have to work in such conditions.
A list of schools who do not have leaking roofs would be shorter than making a list of schools with leaking roofs.
ReplyDeleteLeaking roofs in DCSS are the norm from what I have seen as a teacher. Very sad.
The district is purchasing new textbooks, but doing little about the leaking roofs all over the county. Schools in this condition is one reason we have a shrinking enrollment. People don't want to send their kids to school when their schools are falling apart.
My student at DHHS told me that the roof leaks are everywhere, requiring trash cans to handle them. On more than one floor, which takes some fancy water flow... I said that I thought the roof was supposed to be fixed as part of the reno, and I remembered it as having been done this past summer.
ReplyDeleteMy student said that when they asked, they were told that yes, the repairs had been done this summer, and no more repairs would be done. They told the kids that DCSS had done an infrared picture of the roof, and had repaired the areas indicated by the picture (which, DCSS said, were not very many).
I sighed - infrared pictures reveal HEAT loss, but reveal NOTHING about places where water gets in...
We spend millions and millions on maintenance and Sam Moss administrators, and they can't even maintain roofs without leaks and HVAC systems without mold.
ReplyDeleteParents and taxpayers, demand change now. Leaky roofs will go down as one of the legacies of the Crawford Lewis administration, along with out of control incompetence at the Sam Moss Center.
Parents, tell your high school students to take photo's of leaking ceilings and have them posted on this blog.
ReplyDeleteTeachers, take photo's too and send them here if you feel comfortable doing so.
If we get 20, 30, 40 photo's of leaking DCSS classroom ceilings up here, the AJC and ocal TV will pick up the story and the BOE will be forced to take action.
For once.
@ Cere 1:42pm -- I know of at least two DCSS schools that about a month ago gave the option of getting some kind of flu shot, not sure whether plain or H1N1, for $25 per person.
ReplyDeleteI can tell you that there is a school in DCSS that turned in a work order for 67 leaks in their building.
ReplyDeleteYou should go in and see all the brown tiles in the building because the county ran out of money for new ones to replace when it rains. For a fact mold is growing out of control at that school.
That's interesting, Anon 10:32 PM. Why just a couple of schools? Tell us which ones if you don't mind.
ReplyDeleteCheck out this September 09 article on the subject -
http://www.politicsdaily.com/2009/09/25/free-h1n1-flu-vaccines-for-everyone-in-the-country/
The U.S. government is a ramping up a drive to make sure that everyone in the U.S. who wants the H1N1 influenza virus vaccine can get either a shot or nasal spray for free or for a small charge.
At least 6 million vaccine doses will be distributed during the first week of October, with tens of millions to follow each week. In all, 250 million doses have been purchased by the federal government.
Huntley Hills offered flu shots for $25 dollars at an after-school event, but the flier didn't specify whether it was seasonal flu or H1N1.
ReplyDeleteArrived today:
ReplyDeleteDear Lakeside Families,
Our Partner in Education, North Atlanta Urgent Care (NAUC), has received a large shipment of H1N1 immunizations. They will be at Lakeside this Friday afternoon, December 11th, from 3:30 - 4:30 p.m. to immunize Lakeside families and members of the community. Due to traffic and parking concerns at dismissal, we recommend that community members arrive after 3:45 p.m. to get their shots.
NAUC can give the immunization to anyone over 6 months of age. Anyone under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian to sign the consent form.
The cost is $20/shot. You can pay for the immunizations at Lakeside by cash or check.
North Atlanta Urgent Care currently has a limited number of seasonal flu vaccines available as well. If they have any left Friday, they will bring them to Lakeside. The cost is $25.
NAUC will also have H1N1 and seasonal flu immunizations available at their office at 2700 Clairmont Road any time this weekend or during the week. They invite the Lakeside community to come by their office before Friday to get flu shots-especially if you are interested in the seasonal flu shot, since those quantities are limited.
Their hours are: Monday - Thursday: 9AM - 8PM, Friday: 9AM - 7PM; and Saturday & Sunday 10AM - 6PM. Their phone number is 404-327-8744 if you have additional questions or want to find out if they still have seasonal flu shots.
Remember: Anyone under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian to sign the consent form.
Our thanks to North Atlanta Urgent Care, a great Partner in Education, for letting us know the H1N1 shipment has arrived!
Lakeside High School PTSA
Lakeside High School
Note that this is a Partner in Ed, not DCSS.