I Believe in the People of Woodstock
By Steven Rosendahl
When I was doing research with Mrs. Rapose on the 9th grade hold back proposal I ran across an article from a district in Massachusetts which was asking for a $13 million dollar BOE budget increase. Because of a $20 million law suit which the town lost, the BOE had to cut its budget by over $10 million.
The superintendent was very innovative and had instituted many improvements in education. He had a level of trust with the community, and was an advocate for students and parents.
This superintendent looked at the cut as $23 million not just $10 million. This is not a good place to be for district administration. After many hours of research, he designed a plan which would be adopted by the townspeople. The plan was to visualize the cuts as a bull’s eye target (dartboard); the center of the target, the bull’s eye, was the students. The next ring was the teachers, the next specials like Spice, music, etc., with district administration on the outside. The mission was to make cuts as far away from the center (students) as possible.
This superintendent’s research was based on the present belief that the old theory of increasing administration does not work. Basically the classroom is where the rubber meets the road, or the front- line teachers are where student progress happens.
The take away from the above example is that our BOE and School leadership seem to be stuck in the past.
Like the 9th grade proposal which Dr. Valentine, the top middle school researcher in the country, stated in a letter to Mrs. Rapose “this is a model that was found to be faulty 20 years ago.”
So here we go again, not one cut that the superintendent has proposed cuts administration, all cuts come at the student level. One more time that Dr. Frank Baran is acting as if in the past.
There is no need to cut Spice or music teachers which directly affect over 100 students.
Cutting the coordinators totally, and cutting administrator salaries which do not touch any students would make this possible.
Coordinators which are usually seen in larger districts with many school buildings, serve as good assets to superintendents. They can be a great resource to district administration, but then many superintendents would also see personal chauffeurs and private cooks as valuable resources. (Please take that as tongue in cheek, but it has been seen in large districts). I have looked and we do provide administrators with gas stipends.
Coordinators are not bad, it is just that when cuts need to be made the teachers are the last place to cut, but in Woodstock we seem to do things the way they did 20 years ago.
Below is a typical statement by districts that have cut coordinators:
“The duties of the coordinators will be adjusted by having a department head supervise math and English curriculum implementation at Weymouth High. The science and social studies curriculum at WHS will be administered by a sole department head.”
It is not a good time to be a coordinator, this is the first place most districts make cuts.
It should also be noted that the state of Connecticut is testing standard course curriculum which it has developed, curriculum is the main job of coordinators. Woodstock like all CT districts was invited to participate. Many surrounding towns are participating, but I have not heard from Dr. Baran that we are.
Please, if you find education the future of the country if not the planet, please let your voice be heard. Woodstock has to come together and stop the BOE leadership and Superintendent from pushing our education back 20 years.
I am making these statements as a townsperson and parent not as a sitting BOE member.
Please take your student’s teacher aside out of the earshot of the Superintendent, and ask them how important the coordinators are (would they rather see teachers or coordinators cut?). This is also something I have just come to learn; the teachers are afraid of retaliation from the administration.
I have had two children go through the Woodstock School system and my third is a 10th grader at the Academy, all did very well. My two older kids were very well prepared for college. This is due to a joint effort of the Elementary school teachers, Middle school teachers, and Academy teachers. This is how Woodstock should view our school system.
This is a team effort and it is time for the BOE to stop pointing the finger at Prop 46, the Townspeople of Woodstock, and Woodstock Academy; for all our troubles and our problems come from within, and we need to take responsibility for them.
I do see hope, until the last election all things Academy were BAD no matter what. At the last meeting four BOE members voted YES to approve the Academy contract and four voted NO- a tie fails. But it would have been 100% NO in the past. The BOE voted unanimously, with Mrs. Paul the chair, abstaining to support the Academy Athletic Fields. The 9th grade hold back proposal was put to sleep after years of using it as a negotiating ploy on the Academy.
I look forward to the next election so we can get back to education and showing the world what a great educational system Woodstock can have, with the BOE and Administration having an educational agenda instead of a control agenda. We need to take a lead from our teachers and focus on education.
Please leave your comments.
Steven Rosendahl
When I was doing research with Mrs. Rapose on the 9th grade hold back proposal I ran across an article from a district in Massachusetts which was asking for a $13 million dollar BOE budget increase. Because of a $20 million law suit which the town lost, the BOE had to cut its budget by over $10 million.
The superintendent was very innovative and had instituted many improvements in education. He had a level of trust with the community, and was an advocate for students and parents.
This superintendent looked at the cut as $23 million not just $10 million. This is not a good place to be for district administration. After many hours of research, he designed a plan which would be adopted by the townspeople. The plan was to visualize the cuts as a bull’s eye target (dartboard); the center of the target, the bull’s eye, was the students. The next ring was the teachers, the next specials like Spice, music, etc., with district administration on the outside. The mission was to make cuts as far away from the center (students) as possible.
This superintendent’s research was based on the present belief that the old theory of increasing administration does not work. Basically the classroom is where the rubber meets the road, or the front- line teachers are where student progress happens.
The take away from the above example is that our BOE and School leadership seem to be stuck in the past.
Like the 9th grade proposal which Dr. Valentine, the top middle school researcher in the country, stated in a letter to Mrs. Rapose “this is a model that was found to be faulty 20 years ago.”
So here we go again, not one cut that the superintendent has proposed cuts administration, all cuts come at the student level. One more time that Dr. Frank Baran is acting as if in the past.
There is no need to cut Spice or music teachers which directly affect over 100 students.
Cutting the coordinators totally, and cutting administrator salaries which do not touch any students would make this possible.
Coordinators which are usually seen in larger districts with many school buildings, serve as good assets to superintendents. They can be a great resource to district administration, but then many superintendents would also see personal chauffeurs and private cooks as valuable resources. (Please take that as tongue in cheek, but it has been seen in large districts). I have looked and we do provide administrators with gas stipends.
Coordinators are not bad, it is just that when cuts need to be made the teachers are the last place to cut, but in Woodstock we seem to do things the way they did 20 years ago.
Below is a typical statement by districts that have cut coordinators:
“The duties of the coordinators will be adjusted by having a department head supervise math and English curriculum implementation at Weymouth High. The science and social studies curriculum at WHS will be administered by a sole department head.”
It is not a good time to be a coordinator, this is the first place most districts make cuts.
It should also be noted that the state of Connecticut is testing standard course curriculum which it has developed, curriculum is the main job of coordinators. Woodstock like all CT districts was invited to participate. Many surrounding towns are participating, but I have not heard from Dr. Baran that we are.
Please, if you find education the future of the country if not the planet, please let your voice be heard. Woodstock has to come together and stop the BOE leadership and Superintendent from pushing our education back 20 years.
I am making these statements as a townsperson and parent not as a sitting BOE member.
Please take your student’s teacher aside out of the earshot of the Superintendent, and ask them how important the coordinators are (would they rather see teachers or coordinators cut?). This is also something I have just come to learn; the teachers are afraid of retaliation from the administration.
I have had two children go through the Woodstock School system and my third is a 10th grader at the Academy, all did very well. My two older kids were very well prepared for college. This is due to a joint effort of the Elementary school teachers, Middle school teachers, and Academy teachers. This is how Woodstock should view our school system.
This is a team effort and it is time for the BOE to stop pointing the finger at Prop 46, the Townspeople of Woodstock, and Woodstock Academy; for all our troubles and our problems come from within, and we need to take responsibility for them.
I do see hope, until the last election all things Academy were BAD no matter what. At the last meeting four BOE members voted YES to approve the Academy contract and four voted NO- a tie fails. But it would have been 100% NO in the past. The BOE voted unanimously, with Mrs. Paul the chair, abstaining to support the Academy Athletic Fields. The 9th grade hold back proposal was put to sleep after years of using it as a negotiating ploy on the Academy.
I look forward to the next election so we can get back to education and showing the world what a great educational system Woodstock can have, with the BOE and Administration having an educational agenda instead of a control agenda. We need to take a lead from our teachers and focus on education.
Please leave your comments.
Steven Rosendahl
Mr. Rosendahl, excellent post. You are a breath of desperately needed FRESH AIR.
You are absolutely correct. The teachers and programs which directly affect the students are top priorities.
Can you tell me if the BOE has approached the WTA to seek contractual concessions? Seems that the teachers would be willing to accept freezes in order to keep their fellow teachers on the job.
The parents of children in the K-8 system need to understand clearly what I said at the last BOE Budget Forum. In 06/07 the Board of Education budgeted for 21 more students than actually attended the Academy; the Academy also returned to the BOE in the same year $41,000.00 in tuition from students that attended the Academy that were not from sending towns. That totals about $226,000.00.
The following year the BOE budgeted for 23 more students than attended the Academy, which was 07/08 school year. The total dollars that were in the budget for two years for students that never attended the Academy amounted to ~$470,000.00. That number was originally budgeted for high school students. It is in the budget every year after 2008, but as a parent, you do not know where it is in the budget, but rest assured it is there. This money was never budgeted for salary, buses or anything else, but now it is free money that they have the right to use by law (not ethically) for anything the want to do. It is your job to look at the budget cuts this way.. You have prepaid their budget by $500,000.00 this year. Therefore, this is not new math, it is a subtraction problem. Subtract the $500,000.00 from the $668,586.00 they are required by the BOF to cut. Therefore, the BOE is only looking for ~$168,000.00 in real cuts. This could easily be reached by terminating Dr Baran for $127,000.00 plus benefits and not giving raises to the Administration. The teachers could keep their raises and the aids can stay along with SPICE and everything else. They've got the money, and by the way, we don’t need any buses.
Well said Mr. Rosendahl. I hope your views will prevail. I admire you for not falling into the "group think" that seems all too prevalent on the Woodstock BOE.
Mr. Shultz, agreed. Unfortunately, the townspeople don't seem to understand this cushion.
The Superintendent/BOE represent the teachers and the WPS, and the union represents the teachers. Then isn't it sad they are not looking out for the greater good of the parents and children. They are only interested in draining the taxpayer for capital gain. This is the example they are setting for the students?
Steve- you make some very good points and deserve credit for perservering in expressing some healthy and needed 'different' perspective on the Board. Keep up the good work.