#hsvboe gives north Huntsville students, principals, teachers, elected officials, clergy, community leaders, and taxpayers the middle finger...again

The educational quality of Huntsville City Schools has not improved over the past two years. All that has improved is Wardynski’s ability to pretend that it has.~geekpavaler

OK, so I think I've calmed down enough to blog about the latest developments in the ongoing saga of the Huntsville City School system, and the desire of the Board of Education, City of Huntsville, the Chamber of Commerce, the PTSA, the board of Realtors, the media, and the business community to gain unitary status in name only, so they can self segregate without impunity.  Ironically this is a school system that used to have a reputation for diversity and academic excellence.  Being employed by Huntsville City Schools used to be a sought after privilege.

When I say the status quo wants a unitary school district in name only, it's because they think it's perfectly natural for schools to be identifiably white/black/brown/poor.  It's not their fault parents live in districts with failing schools.  If they want their child to attend a good school they should move into a district with good schools.  It's them there housing patterns (they created) in the name in urban renewal that are the cause of the self segregation.

The schools in north Huntsville are failing because of crime, and that's what the black clergy, elected officials and community leaders need to concentrate on instead of demanding equity and worrying about names of buildings, and rock quarries.  Typed with much sarcasm.

The children in north Huntsville don't want to learn, they are all aspiring gang members and thugs, whose parents want free stuff from the government so they use their money to  buy beer, guns, get their hair and nails done, and make babies out of wedlock.  It's makes no sense to throw good money after bad trying to educate them.  Snark

This is who they are and what they do.

The ACLU and a State Senator request information regarding the school districts monitoring of some students social media accounts and expulsions, they tell them to shove it.

The community organizes a march and a petition to keep the name and legacy of J.O.Johnson High School, they violate their own naming policy and rename the school, despite the fact they let other new schools keep their names after protests.

Black elected officials write a letter to the federal desegregation judge complaining about not being heard, they accused them of stealing money and trying to hurt the children.

Black ministers organize a mass community meeting in support of the  of the justice department, they stage a stand in the school house door, and a coup d'etat of the J.O.Johnson PTSA.

Parents and citizens try to address the board with their concerns, or generate a petition calling for the resignation of the superintendent,  they deny parents that right (pun intended) unless they live in Huntsville proper because it interferes with board business, and citizens have to write down their questions on index cards and have them read (if they are lucky) by the Director of Community Engagement, whose job it is to not only read the questions, but to write speeches for Board members, and send out mass emails ordering teachers and principals to attend a rally on the school house steps


North Huntsville Clergy and Community Leaders demand the resignation of Dr. Casey WARdynski and demand equity for north Huntsville schools, they extend his contract, make it ever green , without public comment.

Who the heck do north Huntsville elected officials, clergy, community leaders, and citizens think they are?  Taxpayers?  What gives them the right to demand anything?  Don't they know they need to government to take care of them?

About that Director of Community Spying.....
In a previous post, The Composer made a  tongue in cheek referral to David Driscoll as the Director of Community Spying, but when you look a little closer you find the characterization has a ring of truth.

Let's recap:

Who is David Driscoll?  According to his LinkedIn profile he is a former radio personality/sales director and President of the The Driscoll Group  consulting/business services. According to AL.com his firm does consulting work for Huntsville City Schools.

McGinnis, Wilder and Ferrell on Thursday issued a statement through the Driscoll Group, which does consulting work for Huntsville City Schools, in support of extending Wardynski's contract. 
"We believe extending Dr. Wardynski's contract an extra year is the right thing to do for the school system," the statement read. "With the ongoing court case, the construction of multiple schools and rapid changes being made to better educate our children, we feel that keeping the same team together is critical.

The Driscoll Group Facebook invites readers to check out the website they designed for soon to be former school board member/President, and failed State Senate candidate, David Blair. 

The counter protest in support of Casey Wardynski was organized and led by James Lomax,  whose LinkedIn profile says he was previously employed by the Driscoll Group.

Lomax, a young politically-active Huntsville resident who, until August, worked for the Driscoll Group, said he organized the rally because he worries that all of the negativity toward the superintendent will "scare him away."
"Casey Wardynski coming here has really changed the landscape of the school system," Lomax said. He said Wardynski has done an excellent job since becoming superintendent. 
"You don't fire someone doing a good job," Lomax said.

Back to the Director of Community Spying....remember when Casey Wardynski was invited to attend a town hall meeting in north Huntsville organized by Councilman Richard Showers, which he refused to attend, but said he knew everything that was said because he said "he had people there"?  Don't know about people, but I know one person that was there, and at all other community meetings.....
David Driscoll.

Enter the New South Slave Catchers, I mean, Coalition

In order to justify giving her constituents the middle finger again, District 1 school board member Laurie McCaulley claimed she received 3 emails against, and 30 emails in favor of extending Warydnski's contract.  None of which she produced.  What she did produce was an email she claims she received from the Huntsville Madison County Chapter of the Alabama New South Coalition the night before the vote, but AL.com reports the press release is dated the day of the vote.  Oh what a tangled web we weave....

Fellow blogger Field Negro awards Field Negro and House Negro status for behavior that merits the special designation.  Eye (pun intended) am going to start calling out Slave Catcher behavior.  What is a slave catcher you ask?  I turn the floor over to Field Negro:

You see a house Negro simply stayed in the house with massa, and he liked the house and everything in it. He would do everything to stay in the house, and would protect the house at all cost because he had a stake in it. It was where he lived, and it was where he found comfort. He would never speak against massa like the field Negroes, because he didn't want to risk losing all of that. But, even worse than the house Negro, was the slave catcher. This was the Negro who searched hardest to find us when we ran away. It was the slave catcher who the master would give the whip to tear into us when we stepped out of line. It was the slave catcher who ran right behind the blood hounds and in front of the master, when he thought one of us was hiding in the woods. It was the slave catcher who always did the master's most barbarous and sadistic deeds that even the master would not do. The slave catcher hated us even more than the master did. Who knows why? Maybe some sick demented sh#t in his past, maybe some psychological sickness that prevented him from wanting to be a part of something he has no control over. Or, a sick desire to be accepted by only those who didn't look like he does. Only the slave catcher and his shrink knows for sure.

The behavior of district 1 Board Representative Laurie McCaulley, and Wilbert Brownlow, incoming President of the Huntsville Madison County Chapter of the New South Coalition, have earned them the title of  Slave Catchers of the Week.  Just because you like being in bondage doesn't mean the rest of us want to remain in bondage.

This is not the first time Casey Wardynski has used media driven, racial stereotypes, to skeer the BeJezzus out of white folks to get his way

Internal documents explaining Huntsville Superintendent Casey Wardynski's supper secret spying without a warrant program, obtained by AL.com, show examples of four different students posing on Facebook with handguns. None are on school grounds. Three are listed as expelled. One was referred for counseling (I wonder where?).  All the students are black/brown.

Students posing potential problems have already been identified before their social media accounts are reviewed, Wardynski said.

 

Students like Auseel Yousefi, who Wardynski claims the NSA (National Security Agency) contacted him about because of his foreign connection, which he admits set Operation #SpyGate into motion. 

 

With the lone African American School Board member ( who didn't know nothing until she did know something) at his side, Wardynski skeers, I mean defends Operation #SpyGate, also known as the social media monitoring program.

"Children are very brazen about the information they put on Facebook. It is stunning to watch a video of a child, who is 13, do a beatdown on a 12-year-old." said Huntsville City Schools Superintendent, Dr. Casey Wardynski. "The child's comrades have submachine guns and handfuls of $100 bills while making threats. When you see that as a superintendent, you don't let that come in your schools. It poses a threat to your school order, discipline, and safety."
The superintendent said he didn't mention the program to students and parents because it would undermine what the program was used for.

Un Huh.  My question is where are 12 and 13 year old children getting submachine guns and handfuls of $100.00 bills from in this economy?  And why weren't parents and law enforcement notified of these brazen acts?

Here’s the picture that accompanied the text that Dr. Wardynski was using to justify the $600,000 fence around Lee High School

Evidently Dr. Wardynski didn’t see it as he didn’t comment on it, but I see a faceless figure, probably male, approximately six feet tall wearing stained jeans, a dark tee-shirt underneath the scariest item of clothing known to at least parts of America: the Hoodie.
Yes, in order to convince the board to support the new fence around Lee High, he showed them a picture of a person in a hoodie. (Truthfully, I think the board had already made up their minds on this matter. I think this was intended to drive the need for a fence home to the general public.)

Eye report. You decide.
#hsvboe

#hsvboe...Anything "some students" say on Social Media can, and will be, used against them

Seal of the National Security Agency

I have a ritual to help me decide the topic of my daily blog post.  First, I log on to my blog and scroll down the blog roll.  Then I log on to Facebook, followed by Twitter,  and lastly,  Al.com.

What I saw posted in the Alabama Today section about HCS Superintendent Casey WARdynski   made my Eyes get bigger,  the hair on the back of my neck stand up, and had me pacing the floor muttering expletives. 

A secret program to monitor students' online activities began quietly in Huntsville schools, following a phone call from the NSA, school officials say.
Huntsville schools Superintendent Casey Wardynski says the system began monitoring social media sites 18 months ago, after the National Security Agency tipped the school district to a student making violent threats on Facebook.

There are so many things wrong here I don't know where to start, so I guess I will start by saying Freedom isn't Free.

Since the inception of the Patriot Act and the revelations of warrant less surveillance, I've long held Big Brother  is watching every move we make, but like a good citizen I adopted the if you aren't doing anything wrong you don't have anything to worry about meme.  To my knowledge, expressing opinions via social media, blogs or forums is not against the law.  I falsely assumed we had this little thingy called freedom of speech in the United States of America, and anything we said in these forums couldn't/wouldn't be used against us.   Wrong.

Regardless of how the program started, Huntsville City Schools began scanning Facebook and other sites for signs of gang activity, watching for photos of guns, photos of gang signs and threats of violence.

This superintendent is consumed with the idea of gangs and considers himself an expert.

The four students from Lee High School who filmed a fight in a school bathroom and posted the video to YouTube did so as a gang initiation, Huntsville's superintendent said.
Dr. Casey Wardynski said the fight, which came to light Jan. 20 after the video went viral, wasn't an ordinary skirmish between students. 

"It was a gang initiation; these students went to lunch together afterward," Wardynski said.

 The superintendent said there is zero tolerance in the district for gang activity.

"There will be no gangs in our schools," Wardynski said.

Gang is the new Black 
When asked at a community meeting why students in north Huntsville are required to wear school uniforms,  in a rare moment of candor the superintendent said that was the only way school administrators could tell the gang members from students.

Here's the school district's explanation of how the program got started:
About a year and half ago, Wardynski said, the NSA called Huntsville and reported a high school student had threatened on Facebook to injure a teacher.
Al Lankford, the city's longtime school security officer, told AL.com that he took the NSA phone call. He said security officers went to the high school and eventually searched the boy's car.

Huntsville City Schools

"We found a very good size knife and the student was expelled," said Wardynski, a former U.S. Army colonel appointed as superintendent in Huntsville in 2011.

Big Brother isn't coming, he's already here.
Why was the NSA watching what this student posted on facebook?  The above article says the knife was found in his car but that's not what the initial news reports said.

 A Huntsville City Schools spokesperson said security workers found a knife and gun in a student’s possession Monday at Butler High School.
Additional search procedures were implemented, and no other prohibited items were found.  The male student was charged with two Class III violations of the Huntsville City Schools Student Code of Conduct.

So which one is it, was the knife found in his car (perfectly legal), or in his possession?

The NSA is focused on foreign intelligence. Vines said any information about a domestic safety issue would be sent to another federal agency, like the FBI. "Moreover, NSA does not make recommendations regarding school safety programs," said Vines via email.

"There was a foreign connection," said Wardynski, explaining why the NSA would contact Huntsville schools. He said the student in Huntsville had made the online threats while chatting online with a group that included an individual in Yemen.

There is just one little problem with this scenario...the NSA denies they contacted Huntsville City Schools .

NSA did not acknowledge placing such a call. "The National Security Agency has no record that it passed any information to the Huntsville school district, and the description of what supposedly occurred is inconsistent with NSA's practices," said Vanee Vines, public affairs specialist with the NSA, on Monday.
The NSA is focused on foreign intelligence. Vines said any information about a domestic safety issue would be sent to another federal agency, like the FBI. "Moreover, NSA does not make recommendations regarding school safety programs," said Vines via email.

So who are you going to believe Casey Wardynski, or the NSA?  I'll take the NSA for 100 Alex.

 Board members Topper Birney and Laurie McCaulley, contacted for this story last week, said they were unaware of the monitoring program and the board was not briefed. The city system web site contains no operational information on SAFe, but displays a logo and lists three staff members. Those include two security officers and consultant Chris McRae.

What did BOE members know and when did they know it?
I can understand the weakest links Birney and McCaulley) not having a clue about this program, but what about David Blair, Dr. Jeannie Robinson, and Mike Culbreath?  Did they know?  Did they authorize the hiring of a full time staff to do nothing but investigate what students and other private citizens do online ?

There is disagreement on the Huntsville school board about whether or not Superintendent Casey Wardynski informed board members that the district had begun secretly monitoring student activity on social media.

Psst! The key word here is SECRETLY.  If you tell people what's going on it's not a secret.

Both Blair and McCaulley voiced concerns about the information provided to AL.com and the subsequent media attention the program is receiving.
Blair said students intending to do harm at school might be less likely to put information about their intentions online if they know the district is watching.
"This kind of stuff puts kids in danger," Blair said.
McCaulley said that whoever leaked the security presentation to the media may have broken Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) laws because the presentation included pictures of students.
She said, however, that the program itself has worked by letting the district know about students who may have been planning something dangerous on campus. The documents obtained by AL.com showed pictures of four different students posing on Facebook with handguns.
Three of those students were subsequently expelled and the fourth was referred for counseling.  
"This is a program that works to save kids," McCaulley said

Preemptive Strike!
Are they out of their cotton picking minds?  Do they honestly believe this program has saved kids?  Saved them from whom?  Saved them from what?  Expelling students who may (or may not) have been planning something dangerous and referring the counseling isn't helping them, or anybody else.   And why weren't parents notified of any potential threats of violence?

Although this information is just hitting the fan, it's not new.  CaseyWardynski is doing the job he was hired to do. 

Casey you have to break the mold and prove you're not afraid of minorities, democrats, liberals, aclu (sic) types and the entire entitlement crowd! Do that, and you'll be doing the job you were hired to do! Oh yeah, not to mention striking down all racial transfers. And that includes allowing not allowing whites to racially transfer either. If you don't like where your child goes to school, move to where they can be zoned into a school of your preference, that's what I had to do!

The Alabama ACLU asked Huntsville City Schools about their social media policy  three months ago.

The American Civil Liberties Union wants to know if Huntsville City Schools is snooping on students.
The group published an open letter (PDF) to Superintendent Dr. Casey Wardynski Tuesday, which includes a public records request for information on any disciplinary actions taken against students based on their social media activities.
The ACLU said other schools around the country are punishing students for comments made on social media critical of schools, even if the comments are made after school hours on private property.
There is no indication of any specific complaints against Huntsville City Schools at the present time.
Tuesday afternoon, WAFF also mailed a public records request for the same information. We will keep you updated on how the district responds.

The letter said the program can constitute a students right to privacy and freedom of expression online.  It also said suspensions and expulsions are often meted out in a disproportionate manner that negatively impacts student of color.  Look at the pictures presented in the article and you will see this to be true.

It ought to be against the law to lie to taxpayers

Someone is lying about the origins of a secret student social media monitoring program started by the Huntsville City Schools and "needs to lose his job," a national First Amendment expert said today.
"Lying to the public should be a firing offense," according to Frank LoMonte, executive director of the Student Press Law Center in Washington.

Lying to the public is par for the course in Huntsville City Schools, and if that doesn't work, blame it on the black guy.

There's a third possibility, U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks (R-Huntsville) said today. "The school system is telling the truth as they understand it," but the call "could have been anybody, misrepresenting their status."
"If there is proof that the NSA actually made the phone call," Brooks said, "it would behoove the Congress to ascertain whether the NSA has a program consistent with that phone call."
To start an inquiry, Brooks said he'd need the name of the person who called and that person's phone number, "If he's keeping good records, he should have that phone number and that name," Brooks said of schools' security officer Al Lankford.

 Why the Pinnacle Hypocrisy matters:

Wardynski said the city used the SAFe program to break up a gang called the Wolfpack, with six or seven members -- all related to each other through family -- in various schools. The students were expelled and placed in alternative school and boot camp programs.
"People are very good about 'If you see something, say something,'" said Wardynski.
Wardysnki said the monitoring program is limited to threats against schools, and students are expelled from neighborhood schools and placed into alternative programs. Asked if school officials are also searching online for photos of alcohol, drugs and sex, Wardynski said: "None of that."

One of the many, many, things wrong with the Pinnacle Policy is the denial of students right to equal protection under the  law and due process.  I turn the floor over to The Mertz Center Monitor.

To be continued.....

Hey Brian, this post is just for you #KeepJohnsonsName

Remember when I said this?

 Why is it when student's, alumni, and any number of councilmen and officials call to inform the Superintendent he is making a gargantuan mistake changing the name of Lee High School, he acknowledges his mistake and backtracks on his proposal, but when J.O.Johnson High School alumni and students protest, and any number of councilmen and officials call to inform him he is making a gargantuan mistake changing the name of Johnson High School,  he violates district policy and changes the name of not just Johnson but Davis Hills Middle School too?  This is indeed the Pinnacle of Hypocrisy.

 Last night the Huntsville City School Board of Education violated their own policy on the Selection of School, Facility, and/or Property Name (Policy 2.9, presented September 5, 2013) by concluding the process and voting on the new names approximately three weeks before they were allowed to do so.

And you said this?

Also, did the J.O. Johnson students get up and walk out of class in protest of the name change like the Lee students did? I have seen nothing about students protesting the J.O. Johnson name change.

Well here you go.



Again, if it's not hypocrisy what is it?
RedEye

The Pinnacle of Hypocrisy Huntsville City Schools Style ~Friday Edition #hsvboe

Superintendent Dr. Casey Wardynski answers questions from the press following Thursday night's Huntsville school board meeting. (The Huntsville Times/Michael Mercier)

Why is it when a longtime HCS teacher  is accused of violating district policy, everyone immediately calls for her (or his) head, but when a private company does the same thing, or usually something far worse, everyone rushes to defend it? This is indeed The Pinnacle of Hypocrisy.

Pinnacle is a privately run alternative campus that often takes in children who’ve been expelled from Huntsville City Schools.
Huntsville city has no direct authority or oversight of pinnacle

Why is it when student's, alumni, and any number of councilmen and officials call to inform the Superintendent he is making a gargantuan mistake changing the name of Lee High School, he acknowledges his mistake and backtracks on his proposal, but when J.O.Johnson High School alumni and students protest, and any number of councilmen and officials call to inform him he is making a gargantuan mistake changing the name of Johnson High School,  he violates district policy and changes the name of not just Johnson but Davis Hills Middle School too?  This is indeed the Pinnacle of Hypocrisy.

 Last night the Huntsville City School Board of Education violated their own policy on the Selection of School, Facility, and/or Property Name (Policy 2.9, presented September 5, 2013) by concluding the process and voting on the new names approximately three weeks before they were allowed to do so.

Why is it public officials, and citizens expressed environmental concerns about unsafe traffic patterns, heavy trucks sharing roads with school buses, and  air quality at two schools located two miles from an active rock quarry in New Hope, but those same officials say the air quality is safe at two schools located less than half a mile from an active rock quarry?  This is indeed the Pinnacle of Hypocrisy.

 Other elected officials speaking against the quarry were Mark Russell, president of Huntsville City Council, Madison County District 3 Commissioner Eddie Sisk, state Sen. Paul Sanford, state Sen. Shadrack McGill, state Rep. Wayne Johnson, Gurley Mayor Rob Sentell, Gurley Councilman Robert Wren.

So much hypocrisy, so little time.

#hsvboe

An open Letter to Mayor Tommy Battle

Bob Gathany / The Huntsville Times Huntsville Mayor Tommy

Dear Mayor Battle,

It's me, RedEye.  How's that "One City, One Vision "  thingy working out for you?  The reason I ask is because it appears you have a new Battle Plan, one that doesn't include residents/taxpayers who live/work/play in north Huntsville.  Or, should I say, those who try to live/work/ play in north Huntsville?  In case you haven't notice, the quality of life is on the decline in north Huntsville, but I digress, the purpose of this letter is to address the J.O.Johnson name change controversy,  which I know you are aware of, because representatives from your office attend community meetings, marches, and school board meetings.

During the Huntsville City Council meeting Councilman Richard Showers  said the following in regards to the J.O. Johnson issue (emphasis mine):

7:30 pm. During council comments, Richard Showers said Johnson High School supporters opposed to changing the school's name were treated "less than a dog" at last week's Huntsville Board of Education meeting.
Despite a petition signed by about 1,500 people wanting to keep the Johnson name on a new northwest Huntsville high school on Pulaski Pike, the school board voted to name the new school for Mae Carol Jemison. A Decatur-born astronaut, Jemison was the first black woman to travel in space.
Johnson supporters "were talked down to (at the school board meeting) as if they were animals," said Showers. "I couldn't believe this was happening in this city."

Former J.O.Johnson assistant band director Reggie Hill said changing the name of a failing school does not address the underlying problems. "Are we really going to fix any issues by simply changing the name of the school?" said Hill.

Michelle Watkins said new and expanding industry will continue to avoid northwest Huntsville as long as there are "substandard" public schools. "A name change does nothing if the stigma remains the same and the resources continue to be focused on other areas," .


Casey Brown, president of the J.O. Johnson Alumni Association, said the school board "actively ignored" the wishes of 1,500 people who signed a petition opposing the name change.
"If we're One Huntsville, how come no one in northwest Huntsville has their vote respected or their word respected?" He then asked where you stood  on the Johnson name change?

And you, Mayor Battle,  said this:

While not addressing the name change directly, Battle said he believes Superintendent Casey Wardynski is attacking the problem of "disparate" schools through better technology and an aggressive student assessment program. Some struggling schools in northwest Huntsville have posted 25 percent gains in reading and math, he said.

Well, I guess it depends on what your definition of attacking the problem of "disparate" schools IS.  If you believe  Wardynksi  is attacking the problem of "disparate" schools by replacing books with laptops/IPads (without parental input), replacing certified teachers with Teach for America Teachers (in north Huntsville Schools), and testing instead of teaching, I have some swamp land in Arizona to sell you.

"We have to have good schools; we have to have schools that are equal," said Battle.

 In order to have good schools, all schools have to be good.  In order to have schools that are equal, all schools have to be treated equally. The J.O. Johnson name change issue is a prime example of separate and unequal treatment.  Case in point, Lee High School.

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- Students marched from the current Lee High School to the new one this morning in reaction to a proposal to eliminate the Lee High School name when a newly constructed replacement school opens in the fall.
Superintendent Dr. Casey Wardynski showed up at the protest and talked to the students, convincing them to go back to class and promised no repercussions for the walk-out.
"These young people obviously have an opinion," Wardynski said. "I think the way that young folks express themselves is important, but there is a safer way to do it."
The 250 or so students walked out of the current Lee building at about 8:05 a.m. and around to the front of the new building. They stopped there and started chanting "Lee High School!", "Save Our School!" and "Show your L!"
They went back to class after Wardynski walked into the middle of them and told them he appreciated their opinion and would not punish them for protesting.

Compare and contrast the treatment of Lee High protesters with the treatment of J.O.Johnson protesters.

First, they stacked the agenda with long presentations, and seats were saved for teachers/employees prior to the public being allowed to enter the board room.  Second, citizens were told to write down their questions on cards to be given to the board members and they would decide which ones were to be read or answered.  Citizens were not allowed to ask questions of the BOE.  A handpicked Pastor was "asked" and allowed to speak, however Reverend Mark Johnson, nephew of J.O. Johnson left because the BOE kept changing the rules and he thought he wasn't going to be allowed to speak.

Compare and contrast the outcome of the Lee High School name change controversy with the outcome the J.O.Johnson name change controversy.(Emphasis mine)

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- Dr. Casey Wardynski, Huntsville's new superintendent, backtracked on his proposal to change the name of Lee High School Thursday night following a day of protest by students, alumni and parents.
Lee High School students carried signs boasting "General pride" and beseeching the school board to keep the school's name as board members walked into their meeting. It was the second, albeit smaller, protest of the day as students and alumni expressed anger over Wardynski's proposal.
Wardynski was considering a name change in conjunction with moving both Lee and New Century Technology High School students into the new facility.
Initial reports indicated that hundreds of students might converge on the Annie C. Merts Center. The protest outside fizzled to about a dozen students, though parents and students packed into the board room for the meeting.
In the end, Wardynski heeded the opinions of the students -- and the school board -- and announced that the words "Lee High School" would be added back to the new school's facade, where they had been removed earlier in the day. Audience members in the board room and in the hallways of the Merts Center cheered.

So why is Lee allowed to keep it's name after protest but J.O.Johnson is not?  Here's why:

 "There's been any number of councilman and officials call to inform me that I've made a gargantuan mistake," Wardynski said, to applause from the crowd that made him smile. "Thank you for acknowledging my mistake."
Wardynski said that while the objectives of the new school is to increase student achievement and give students a bright future, another objective is to be a good neighbor.

Oh really? A number of council and officials called to inform Wardynski it would be a gargantuan mistake to change Lee High Schools name, but the same council (with the exception of  Showers) and officials are quiet as a mouse when it comes to J.O.Johnson.  Evidently it's not important to a "good neighbor" to ALL anymore.

Mayor Battle, north Huntsville residents voted for you in record numbers both times because you promised there would be One Huntsville. Now don't get me wrong, north Huntsville taxpayers aren't asking for special treatment, nor are we asking city government to take care of us, we are asking for equal treatment because we pay taxes and vote too.  We love the city of Huntsville, but we have to ask, does the city of Huntsville love us?

And no, a meeting to discuss renaming Church street after Rev. Joseph Lowery is not going to appease us, if you can discuss renaming Church Street you can discuss renaming J.O.Johnson High School.  Now if you want to discuss renaming Pulaski Pike or Meridian Street after Rev.Joseph Lowery......

Sincerely,
RedEye

What is Wrong With This Picture? Hint~The young people are protesting about something.

Fist Dap Hans offmyschool

"Those who make the rules get to break the rules"

Superintendent Dr. Casey Wardynski answers questions from the press following Thursday night's Huntsville school board meeting. (The Huntsville Times/Michael Mercier)

Did the Huntsville City Schools Board of Education violate it's own naming policy, and does the local  news media even care?

If get all your news from AL.com, or the local television stations, you are aware of the J.O. Johnson High School closing/renaming controversy, and calls for the resignation of school board representative Laurie McCaulley.  If you've been reading this blog, or The Geek Pavaler's blog, you would know that in their haste to treat the taxpayers of District 1 like second class citizens, the HCS BOE violated it's own naming policy.

Last night the Huntsville City School Board of Education violated their own policy on the Selection of School, Facility, and/or Property Name (Policy 2.9, presented September 5, 2013) by concluding the process and voting on the new names approximately three weeks before they were allowed to do so.
On September 5, 2013, the board met and discussed during their work session a new policy entitled, “Selection of School, Facility, and/or Property Name” (Policy 2.9). This policy was necessary to ensure that the process of receiving new names for schools would be as open to the public as possible. Laurie McCaulley, who was at that time serving as the School Board President, assured the public present that evening that the public would have every opportunity to “have input on these changes.”

Now you would think this would be breaking, front page news, but there's not been a mumbling word about this in the mainstream media. I wonder why?  Usually the news media is all over it when students, principals,  parents , teachers,  coaches,  and  support personnel  violate HCS/ BOE Policies.

I  wonder why the media is silent when the school board violates it's own policy?

Culture of fear of reprisal develops in which teachers, principals, staff, even parents feel afraid to speak up against the policies of the district or the superintendent.

Ballooning of the central office at the same time superintendent makes painful cuts to schools and classrooms.

Superintendent attempts to sidestep labor laws and union contracts.

Superintendent lays off teachers for questionable reasons.

Your school board starts to show signs of Stockholm Syndrome. They vote in lockstep with the superintendent. Apparently lobotomized by periodic “school board retreat/Broad training” sessions headed by someone from Broad, your school board stops listening to parents and starts to treat them as the enemy. (If you still have a school board, that is — Broad ideally prefers no pesky democratically elected representatives to get in the way of their Supt's and agendas.)

 Local newspaper fails to report on much of this.

 Local newspaper never mentions the words “Broad Foundation.”

 Broad and Gates Foundations give money to local public radio stations which in turn become strangely silent about the presence and influence of the Broad and Gates Foundation in your school district.

 “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
― Edmund Burke

The mis-education of black/brown/poor students in Huntsville, AL Part 2

Huntsville Superintendent Casey Wardynski, center, and school board president Laurie McCaulley, right, listen Monday afternoon as Huntsville resident Carlos Mathews talks about the choosing of possible names for a new northwest Huntsville high school to replace Johnson High. Behind Mathews are pictures of astronauts Ronald McNair and Mae Carol Jemison, whose names may grace the new high school and a new junior high to be built on the same campus. (Crystal Bonvillian/cbonvillian@al.com

Sigh..... Here we go again.
What's in a name?  Military officer, turned School Superintendent,  Col. Casey Wardynski wants to create a new identity for J.O. Johnson High School  by changing it's  name, but I don't think Wardynski will be forced to  backtrack from the idea this time because the game is rigged. See photo above.

This is the prevailing sentiment of the al.com commentators

 Change the name so the school and area can move forward.Johnson is one of the worst schools in the state for education and violence. A new name may not help because most could care less about getting an education but it's a start toward a new direction.

 Say you had a bagel business by the name Johnson's Bagels. It becomes known for failure, and needs to close. Any worthy consultant would immediately tell you the brand is dead; if you want to move forward, you HAVE to rebrand. Same with a school. It fails, rebrand, refresh, and try it again-- the right way.

 Grissom does not have a history of failure and crime!!!!! Most of those kids care about being educated and it shows because Grissom is always at the top in the state!!!!! Johnson has shown it does not care about education. The majority of those students do not care. We could take all the ones who do care and put them at other schools and take the students that don't care from all schools and put them under one roof!

 The new school needs a name change so that it won't be associated with the reputation of violence and educational failure at Johnson.

 Via the Keep Johnson High Schools name  Facebook group;

According to Ms. Jennings, he is not responsible for the name change. She said there is a "community group" who has proposed the change. I asked her what was the name of the group, but she said she did not know. She told me the reasoning behind the name change, which is exactly what Ms. McCaulley explained to me--running from the negative stigmatism J.O. Johnson currently holds. I explained to her that just because Johnson may be a failing school today does not mean that it will be a failing school tomorrow. In fact, Johnson has not been a failing school for most of its history. There is nothing that suggests it will forever be a failing school. In fact, the opposite holds true.

She suggested I write Dr. Wardynsai explaining this in an e-mail and she promised to share the with the "community group" before Nov. 7. But as far as she knows, the name change will in fact take place.

So now we know, it doesn't matter how many town hall meetings are held, or how many names are on a petition, the anonymous community group will win because the committee is stacked with people chosen by Wardynski (see photo above)

Both Showers and Harrison complained that none of the school board members, nor Wardynski, attended the meeting. Board president Laurie McCaulley, who represents Johnson High, told Alabama Media Group earlier Monday that she had not been invited.
Harrison said everyone was welcome at the meeting and pointed out Carlos Mathews in the crowd. Mathews is the chairman of the committee tasked with suggesting names for the new high school and junior high.
Harrison pointed out, however, that Mathews doesn't live in District 1, where Johnson is located.
"He didn't go to school in this district, either," one man yelled out from the audience.

New Rules, hand pick a committee giving the appearance of diverse viewpoints, while stacking the deck with people  in favor of your point of view and hope the people won't notice because after all, they are Johnson grads nod nod wink wink.   Wardynski isn't going to make the same  mistake twice.

 "There's been any number of councilman and officials call to inform me that I've made a gargantuan mistake," Wardynski said, to applause from the crowd that made him smile. "Thank you for acknowledging my mistake."

Does Wardynski honestly believe if he changes the location and name of a school he will get different results?  Maybe it's the fact Wardynksi is not a certified educator, or an experienced superintendent,  that prevents him keeps him from realizing it's not what name is on the outside of the building, it's about  what's happening inside the school building,  inside school board meetings,  and inside  the state legislature.

Alabama, by law, must now rank all public schools based on reading and math skills. It's the only way to determine which schools are "failing."
There was no such ranking system before the Alabama Accountability Act of 2013. No existing test provides a school-wide score to allow for ranking, especially between different grade levels.

Perhaps the community should change the identities of the Superintendent, the school board, and the state legislature  in order to increase student achievement and give students a bright future.

I'm just saying....

  

"When you talk about the law discriminating, the law granting a privilege here, and a right here and denying it there, that's a civil rights issue. And I can't take that away from anybody." - Rev. Joseph Lowery

Huntsville Sitty School Daze Redux

Chapman  students show off WiFi on school Buses

In case you haven't noticed I haven't posted anything new in several days.  Contrary to popular belief I do have a real life off line, and this is one of those times when my real life and my blog life collided and my real life won, as it should be.  I have no illusions as to my influence in this great big world of ours, I am humbled when I check in to find you are still reading, and I'm amazed by what you are reading.   Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your continued support and encouragement.

Thanks to the *cough* non traditional media I have been keeping up with the disgrace known as the Huntsville City School system.  I am shocked and ashamed by the actions of those in positions of power who place profits over the well being and safety of children.   We really have to question the priorities of those who have no problem providing free Wi Fi to the disadvantaged but are against them having access to quality affordable health care, but I digress.

It is the duty of the public school system to provide a safe, orderly environment that is conducive to learning.

It is the duty of the mainstream media to inform the public when elected public officials  actions, or in this case, non actions, betray the public trust, not cover for, and enable them.

Compare and contrast this headline from today's The Huntsville Times,

Protest held outside Huntsville school's central office over alleged assault at Butler High School

With this headline from the February 4, 2012 edition of the The Huntsville Times

Huntsville superintendent:  Fight at Lee High School was gang initiation

Note the Butler High School incident is "alleged" while the fight at Lee High school is stated as "fact".

Righty's getting it wrong to the rescue!  This is the mentality those elected to represent ALL citizens pander too.

 And herein lies the problem with that

Casey you have to break the mold and prove you're not afraid of minorities, democrats, liberals, aclu types and the entire entitlement crowd! Do that, and you'll be doing the job you were hired to do! Oh yeah, not to mention striking down all racial transfers. And that includes allowing not allowing whites to racially transfer either. If you don't like where your child goes to school, move to where they can be zoned into a school of your preference, that's what I had to do!

All Politics is Local

What if the Security Officer forces parent to stop recording Huntsville board meeting issue is being used as a media enabled weapon of mass distraction from the fact HCS superintendent Casey Wardynski used a photo of a young man wearing a hoodie to justify  building a $600,000  fence around, and installing a guard shack, I mean welcome center, at the new prison, I mean  Lee High School?

The four students from Lee High School who filmed a fight in a school bathroom and posted the video to YouTube did so as a gang initiation, Huntsville's superintendent said.
Dr. Casey Wardynski said the fight, which came to light Jan. 20 after the video went viral, wasn't an ordinary skirmish between students.

"It was a gang initiation; these students went to lunch together afterward," Wardynski said.

Not so, says the certified gang expert

"We have gangs in our schools," McDuffie said Monday. "That's not a hidden fact. It's here, and we know it's here."
McDuffie declined to call the incident at Lee "gang-related," though.
"It has all the earmarks of a gang-related incident, but we can't say for sure," he said. "The reason we can't pinpoint it is that there's no concrete evidence."

What if the reason parents were met with metal detectors at the last school board meeting is because they got wind the Concerned Parents of North Huntsville (i.e. black) were being encouraged to to attend to the school board meeting to protest black students being forced to wear orange jump suites, I mean uniforms to schools?
 
Huntsville/Madison County NAACP Branch

May 3.There is an important school board meeting for the Huntsville City Schools on Thursday, May 3rd at 5:30 p.m. The main issues are the building of the fence and guard shack at the new Lee High School and other impending changes for next school year including changes that MAY result in a proposed stoppage of transfers to other schools in the district as well as why schools in the North side of town... will wear uniforms while the south will not. Your presence and voices are needed. Our children need strong, intelligent cheerleaders. . Your attendance will be greatly appreciated. The meeting will be held at 200 White Street Huntsville, AL 35801.  This information is via Concerned Citizens Of North Huntsville organization.

What if Al Langford is the fall guy?

When asked if he agreed with Lankford's decision to stop Winn from recording the meeting, Blair declined to discuss it.
"I'm not going to Monday morning quarterback the actions," Blair said. "We're there to do the business of the board, to move the school system forward. I'm not going to second-guess Al's decisions."

Does David Blair think tax payers are stupid enough to believe Al Langford has decision making authority and the power of the purse?  Does David Blair think the tax payers haven't noticed longtime, African American teachers/principals/administrators employed by the Huntsville City Schools are being fired/demoted and being replaced by friends with no training or experience?

In the army we call that whining.

In the civilian world we call that Intitimidation.

Today's Must Read

Principal  Signs Contract, Then Looks at Map