You have to be kidding. You need to speak to someone that can explain to you about the bill. You have it all wrong. Juan is against? Juan wants to hurt? Juan has it out for? The problem with the bill is that is makes no sense and is another anti-teacher person trying to say that we (teachers) are not doing a good job. I would love for the County or the state to come into my school. They would do what? You really think you can cure the ills of society by taking over a school. The problems are so deeply inbedded in our families. I teach at Tehipite. I would love for you to come down and hang out for a day and see what it is like. I tell you what??? Wear a red shirt. lol

Mr. Boren are you really as blind as you seem? FUSD is not doing terrific but it's a lot better than the entity you propose to take us over. The Fresno County Office of Education's scores (reported in the Fresno Bee Aug. 16) on the California State Test are as follows:
3% English, 1% Math, 2% Science (5,8,10), 2% Science (9-11). FUSD's scores:
29% English, 28% Math, 24% Science, 19% Science (9-11). I won't insult your intelligence with a comparison spread but it's obvious that FUSD is doing something right that Fresno County hasn't figured out yet!! I'm like every other teacher in this district. Come in to my room for the whole day, sit and watch what kinds of students, behaviors and learning difficulties that I deal with on a daily basis and tell me how I can make the gigantic changes you and others, that don't work in the schools on a daily basis, continually spout should be made. Today my students told me of the police action that they woke up to at 3:30 this morning and then came to school "ready to learn." We all want accountability but it has to be reasonable. How are these students supposed to be 'ready to learn' when all they can think about is "I hope my Grandma and small nephew are ok!" and that "the bad man doesn't come back tonight!"? I'm sure you don't go to bed worrying about these things. Get out of your office, come into the schools you slam so easily and actually witness what is happening. Not for an hour, not for a morning but for a week or more. There is alot of good teaching and lots of good teachers working as hard as they can for FUSD. Progress IS being made, slowly, but it is happening. Don't just talk to your wife and a few teachers on the north end of town come down into the trenches, shadow us, the custodians, the principals, the secretaries and anyone else working at the "worst of the worst" and personally witness our lives for awhile and then tell me, I'm only looking out for me and not MY KIDS!!

Maybe it's time to get a grip on this "accountability" obsession. We already have laws in place where the state or the feds can take over a school or district that is messing up. How will adding one more entity that can take over and run a school make anything better? There are many reasons kids don't do well in school. Lack of another entity that can take over a district is probably pretty low on the list.

If we are really serious about improving education, how about getting the whole community involved? There are programs of that nature that have been successful in other parts of the country (eg. the Harlem Children's Zone). Just telling the schools to "get it done" and threatening them with a sledgehammer if they don't is not very constructive or helpful. Maybe we should offer a helping hand instead of treating the people trying to educate our kids as if they were the problem.

AB 1403 is small in scale. It deals with a few school districts in Fresno and Tulare County whose children perform at the lowest levels in the state. Given that many of these districts have a long history of instability, it is only reasonable to help make sure any fledging reform efforts are sustained over time.

AB 1403 allows county superintendents to play an active role in the oversight AND support of these districts. They are far better suited than the State Superintendent to play such a role.

County superintendents have a keen insight on what these districts need and a strong incentive to work in COLLABORATION with these districts to improve local performance. We elected them and trust their judgment.

Instead of encouraging flexibility and innovation at the local level, 100 different state funding streams require local districts to implement very similar programs no matter what may be their most pressing local needs. Under AB 1403, districts can redirect state categorical funds to proven educational strategies that will improve student learning rather than Sacramento's latest fad. What a big help.

Every day we hear the frustration of families who realize that their children are being short-changed educationally but feel powerless to do anything to deal with the problem. Sadly, our jails, unemployment and welfare lines are full of these children, many of whom are now young adults.

We must all work together to improve the situation rather than play the blame game. We must demonstrate a real commitment to these students and to their families by providing substantive local interventions now before another generation of students leave these schools wholly unprepared for college or for a career. Amy A.

Teachers and schools are already accountable. I teach elementary school in FUSD, and I assure you that FUSD educators at the elementary level constantly think about accountability and improving our schools. Every working moment is geared toward improving our school's test scores and helping our students learn more and better. Trust me, we think of little else!

Arambula's bill is a goofy idea. Giving the County Superintendent the power to control the district will result in less focus for our own district, a new learning curve for the district leaders (No! Please! Not again!), and will further the lack of leadership consistency which is part of the problem to begin with.

If the County took over our district, the Fresno voter's influence would be seriously diluted. The school board is accountable to the voters of the Fresno School District area, but the County Superintendent is accountable to the voters of the whole county. Can we expect the County Sup to be as responsive to the needs of Fresno students as our own local school board would be?

The task that lies before FUSD is daunting. In the past, FUSD and California in general were doing such a lousy job of educating the children that we have a lot of ground to cover to reach our goal.

The poverty rate is the highest of any US urban area. Many children have not yet mastered English. Many parents are illiterate or functionally illiterate.

There is a lot to overcome.

I can personally attest that the school where I have taught for ten years has undergone an amazing metamorphosis. When I first began there, they gave me a key to a dirty classroom that had a set of ancient social studies books and two ratty old dictionaries, and they wished me luck. I spent $3000 that year on supplies and materials and struggled to invent a curriculum.

Now things are 180 degrees different. My classroom is clean, full of materials, and I have plenty of direction and help from site and district administration. I still have to buy supplies, but I no longer have to pull curriculum out of thin air. I work harder than ever, work smarter than ever, and my hopes are higher than they have ever been.

It can be done, and we want to do it. We are going as fast as we can.

If you really want to help, Mr. Boren, you should spotlight local schools and what they are doing to change and improve. Your paper should spotlight the schools that have the biggest problems to conquer. Some of the things--the disorder, the crime, the out-of-control behavior--that go on at elementary schools on a daily basis would curl the Bee's readers' hair.

You think FTA is part of the problem and that you are part of the solution, but I am not so sure! Why don't you try pulling an oar instead of working to replace the captain?

As a superintendent, my career is based on working with schools that are low-performing and in the SAIT and Program Improvement (PI) process. While it is true that there are laws on the books, the CDE does not have the manpower to effectively monitor every school in sanction. They are understaffed, overworked, and underpaid when compared to us in the field. Their one size fits all mentality at times does not match with the unique needs of the Central Valley.

Sanctions are meant to be severe and demanding. When I have a school that enters the process, I ask the SAIT and the State for the most critical, unkind, and demanding process they can muster. This urgency places the accountability on everyone including Board Members. After all, it is the leadership of that Board past and present that placed the district in harm's way. When a district enters sanctions, they have forfeited their right to make decisions regarding the direction that school is going to take in terms of academics. That remains the same whether the county is involved or not. The critical point here is that the county has a much better view of the dynamics of that particular district and can effectively support them in ways that the State can not even consider. I like that concept a lot and see tremendous value.

My first hand experience has given me a solid knowledge of all aspects and fiscal concerns of the sanction process. I truly wish that categorical flexibility was in the hands of the county. Oh what we could have done, and the money that could have been saved. Stay and rescind authority is something I totally stand behind as well. If a district is not performing, particularly after having ample opportunity to improve, their authority should be diminished and placed in the hands of competent professionals. Or, even better, let the county come in and help you develop a plan to pull yourself out of the quagmire you chose to enter, just like AB 1200. The counties don't want to be involved here unless it is the last resort, and they will pull out as soon as they see the necessary progress. I have worked with both county superintendents, and this intervention would be in place only in severe situations.

At this time, the majority of school districts opposed to this bill are those who are exactly in this severe condition and do not wish to have their agendas impacted. This bill would provide a sense of immediacy that these districts need to understand. Shelving students in order to protect politics is unacceptable and accountability must be rigorously enforced if the legislative intent of the sanction and PI programs are to be honored. The State Superintendent insists that more local control is on the way. How long must we wait? Will this program be the same as others? Can our students afford this kind of delay? No! The process is to be taken seriously and without surreptitious conduct. The counties can help in a positive and meaningful way, and the students will benefit.

Finally, take a look at those who opposed this bill at the Senate Appropriations Committee last Monday Morning. Fresno Unified teachers, Fresno Unified Board members, California Teachers Association, California Department of Education, California School Boards Association, and the Association of California School Administrators gave a no unless amended. What do all of these groups have in common; Politics! Maintaining the status quo! Campaign contributions! Their lobbying efforts were based on the fear that they would have to be held accountable by a system other than one they control. That is the bottom line! As both sides lobbied for and against this bill, it was a case of parents, administrators, students, and rural superintendents vs. the combined machine of the aforementioned associations. What is it about better performing students and improved accountability that has them so concerned? Hmmm....... I guess they don't get it!

I'm sorry, Mr. Hudson. I was going along with what you were saying until you decided to diss just about every educational professional in the state (other than yourself).

I'm looking for an honest, balanced reason to favor this bill. Dismissing the concerns of the its opponents (which looks like a pretty distinguished list to me) as "politics" doesn't fit that criteria.

Can't you honestly address their concerns without the hyperbole?

Mr. Boren needs to talk to teachers, especially those who have worked in Fresno County for 30 years plus and they can tell you about the students they serve and how hard the teachers work and the challenges they face daily. Educating students is a team effort, teachers, students, and parents,administrators (and the village). Parents are vital for students to succeed in school and we know what has happened to the family unit. Teachers are not politicians and we don't run for office but we must have credentials, be finger printed, and yet we are treated like we are the enemy. Teachers are the most dedicated, principled, sincere, and caring people and yet when we support or oppose a piece of legislation we are the bad guys. Who better than us to know what is right for kids and teachers.
So now the bureaucrats want to tell teachers how to teach and how fast to teach and tell students they must learn faster and better. When the legislature gets their teaching credentials then maybe they will be able to offer up better legislation for schools. We are the PROFESSIONALS and we should be treated as such. We may not be paid CEO salaries (it would be nice) but we are capable of imparting knowledge in our classrooms. In every society in the world educators are revered and respected I wonder how many feel appreciated. Incidently, teachers can't do everything in an eight hour day, ask the many parents who must supplement their children's education or help their kids after school and at night. Parent involvement is paramount. Maybe Mr. Arambula and Mr. Boren
should be Big Brothers for some kids in Fresno so they can experience first hand the problems of our children and let's see if they do a better job. By the way, witness the high incidence of teen pregnancy in Fresno, it hasn't changed much over the years according to the latest news report and we are still higher than the state and national averages. Maybe the County Office (or the legislature) should start monitoring families and set standards and benchmarks and accountability on how parents raise their families,yet we know most of them are doing the best they can.
We have a difficult job and we know the rules. Give us the kind of money we are spending on the war in Iraq and maybe we could really do a good job. By the way, do Mr. Boren and Mr. Arambula have hot and cold running water in their restrooms at work, we don't.