Sunday, February 22, 2015

LETTER FROM FORMER SANTA FE TEACHER- What's behind this?

This letter posted by Dr. Sutherland on her blog is from a Santa Fe teacher.  Some question its validity because of the push by the Mayor and others to get someone else.  Since other board members don't share much we are left to assume but the wording sounds like what someone posted on the newspaper in Santa Fe and what we have said we don't need.  We don't need someone who is only for cookie cutter programs.  We want Boyd or whomever with a blank piece of paper and takes notes on what our district needs. 

Write these down:

*Stop the Bullying/Retaliation
*Stop the testing
*Train us on time and effectively
*We need new people at the top.


We don't need to be an experiment.  Read up on what we provided as the basis for his training at Harvard and similar programs.  If he is truly interested in Fort Worth ISD then hear out the teachers, students and parents and create a plan based on that.  Not on what you hear from the current cronies or some board members.  We are tired of the same governing styles... I would say to reach out to Dr. Reid in Keller ISD, a prominent superintendent in the state.  Read the work he and colleagues are doing in regards to education.  You want a true leader.. check him out.  Perhaps he can mentor Boyd and speed him up on how our state runs things. 

Read letter below:

Communication from former Santa Fe teacher

by Ann Sutherland on 02/22/15
This was sent to board members on Sunday, Feb. 22:

Recently, many of us who live in Santa Fe have read articles regarding Joel D. Boyd’s impending move to the Fort Worth Independent School District.  So much of the rhetoric attributed to Mr. Boyd, subsequent to the announcement, is a carbon copy of Mr. Boyd’s words when he was selected to lead the Santa Fe Public School District approximately three years ago.  During his tenure, nothing here has changed, except SFPS has lost hundreds of qualified teachers and administrators.  I suspect if Mr. Boyd becomes the leader of FWIDS, the same will be true for your district three years from now.

I was heartened to read comments from members of your Board when they referred to Mr. Boyd as being Harvard “trained,” rather than Harvard “educated.”  There is a difference – something people in Santa Fe failed to notice when Mr. Boyd was hired.  The program from which Mr. Boyd attained his on-line doctorate, has, I believe, lost its affiliation with Harvard, perhaps because Harvard no longer wants the negative association with this type of program.

I also noticed your district is focused on the academic growth of students in Santa Fe, specifically, the graduation rates.  This is an area which deserves your attention.   The growth in SFPS, referenced by Mr. Boyd, is highly influenced by students graduating from on-line courses, taken at schools converted to promote virtual learning. Students review the same questions repeatedly, take the same rote “tests,” day after day, and eventually some pass the “test,” and some finally graduate. 

In addition, many of these same students were actively recruited from the city’s two high school campus.  When the recruiting took place, many of the current on-line students were currently enrolled at the high school sites. They were offered electronic devices to enroll in the on-line programs, and were quickly accepted into the virtual programs.

There is also a great deal of controversy, and many questions around the people with whom Mr. Boyd has contracted or attempted to hire to administer programs or obtain services.  A name you may want to remember is Joseph Wise.

In the spirit of transparency, I was, until May of 2014, employed by SFPS.  I left my ten-plus year teaching position to pursue other interests.  I wish the best to the students and teachers in SFPS, and can say in all honesty, they are not receiving the “world class” education promised by Mr. Boyd when he rushed to Santa Fe in 2012.


24 comments :

  1. Um, it's not very "transparent" for the "letter writer," who claims to have left the SFPS, to send an anonymous letter in an attempt to smear Mr. Boyd. And it's not responsible for a Board Member to publicly circulate such a letter without being able to disclose the author or its authenticity.

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  2. Are you kidding? Now you want to censor what information the Board provides the Public? I get it: as long as the Board does not look like fools - AGAIN! To coin Betty Brink's phrase, a "ship of fools". As a Taxpayer, I EXPECT and DEMAND that my elected official fully disclose any and all information. That is transparency. Ann is NOT doing anything but. If anyone looks like an idiot in this it is Norm Robbins and Ashley Paz. Robbins should have been the FIRST to disclose this - not doing the usual - hiding under a rock. If you want names, look at all of the previous entries posted on this blog from every place this guy has been. This is all just too suspicious. Smells like MJ all over again. I for one DO NOT wish that experience on this ISD again.

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  3. Sorry but it's not very "responsible" for the Board to keep this from the public they were elected to serve.

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  4. This is a real person, as other board members can easily verify, who did teach for ten years.

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  5. concernedcitizensfortworthisdFebruary 22, 2015 at 6:00 PM

    Remember that the doesn't do much disclosure of anything. So unless they come around and say something then this is all we have. Remember they want Sutherland to hush.. Why not use the money you are paying The Communications Chief and do a radio spot.. it's faster than her publishing something.

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  6. Well, well, well..it surly looks like our lovely board didn't do their homework...maybe the need to take the bus so they can use the time to study up on their "boy"...time management!

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  7. I'm so disgusted with Ashley Paz I could spit. Fooled me. What a fraud. A closet MJ supporter no less. Very disturbing. I feel like organizing a recall. At the time I was sick of Juan's blind adherence to Jason Smith's B.S.

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  8. It wasn't anonymous. She gave her name and I checked it out.

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  9. Good for you Ann. Bravo!

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  10. Here's my take on this, take it for what you want! To: Ann, the BOE does things behind your back all the time. There's a reason for that, because you are the only one, who tries to make them accountable. You're in the minority, especially since we lost the support of Ramos, Paz and Avila, if we really even had it to begin with. Being a BOE member here of late doesn't give them a true paycheck, but they make up for it in hiring relatives, getting cushy jobs, hiring friends, kickbacks, just to name a few. The BOE knows EXACTLY what they are doing trying to hire Boyd. This district is like the Salvation Army of Public Education. The Board knows the type of person they want and why they want them...to keep the corruption as it is. The Board is ignorant, but not stupid! Look at the people this Board has hired for notable positions. MJ (part of the 7th street gang, and fellow Californians), Sorum (7th SG and also an MJ minion), Hank Johnson (fiscal issues in the former district he worked at before FWISD), Nipple Pincher (hired by MJ and also part of the Californians), Mary Bull (fired Super from CA for bullying), the almost hiring of the Dallas Assistant Principal, who was in legal trouble (but wasn't, b/c we all make a huge stink about it), etc., etc. I don't know if our district takes after Jerry Jones (Mr. Salvation Army himself) and his mindset of hiring throwbacks or they take after us! Boyd will be hired, make no mistake, because it is who THEY want and to hell what anyone says. It is NOT a mistake; they know no one can shut them down, because no one has been able, to date! Thanks, Ann, for trying to make a difference.

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  11. Gee Tobi, What are you hiding? For the Children! Vote Joel Aguilar! Para los niños! Voto Joel Aguilar.

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  12. That information was not included by "Concerned Citizen." I guess mentioning that fact didn't CC's purpose. Thank you for clearing things up. I was not in any way suggesting that board members be censored as "Taxpayer" so quickly attacked in rebuttal. I would just ask why didn't you include the author's name in your post, or did you do so and CC just omitted that fact? Or did the author ask that it not be used? If so, that again begs the question as to why since the letter states they no longer work in the SFPS.

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  13. OK, so it's good to know this person's SFPS employment was vetted through the SFPS human resources department and that the Board didn't just take someone's word for it before releasing the letter. And I'll ask this question another way: why can't we know the name of the author/accuser? In no way does it seem right to release the accusations yet not say who is making the accusations. In my humble opinion, people shouldn't be able to cast accusations from the shadows without being held accountable for what they're saying.

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  14. Why aren't you asking that question of yourself, Tobi?

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  15. Yeah. So why aren't YOU using your real name? Another coincidence I guess. Karma is coming fool and she has your number.

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  16. Tell you what Aguilar...opps, I mean, Ignorant...if you and "Concerned Citizens" want to come out of the closet and be fully transparent, I'll be happy to reveal who I am. And no, I won't go first, because I'm sure I could trust you guys about as far as I could throw you.

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  17. Still waiting for the name of the author. If you can release the letter, certainly you can name the author since they said they no longer work in the SF district. Please don't pick and choose what facts to leak out. Either all or nothing.

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  18. Why don't you release her name yourself? Better yet, look in the mirror and ask YOUR Board Member.

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  19. Oh, my, I haven't heard that comeback before. Can you people not understand that there are legions of people out here who have different opinions? You must be a Tea Party member. They can't accept alternative viewpoints or suffer respectful debate, either.

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  20. I didn't write a letter to Ann and, supposedly, the other board members and have the letter publicized without my name attached. Where is the accountability?

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  21. I agree. We need the name of the author so we can judge for ourselves.

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  22. To Educate This 15, I am not surprised that you are clueless for Ann's rationale for not posting the SF former teacher's name! Let me help you out a little, Can you say Palazzolo? I don't know the man personally but, it isn't difficult to see how we treat people who tell the truth.

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  23. No, Educate This 15 you are mistaken! There are legions of people in this district who are tired of the corruption! You will see! Mark your calendar for March 21st! Whoever you are, I suggest that you crawl out from under your rock and check out the BOE. Unless, perhaps you are already there! :)

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