02.26.12
Posted in Uncategorized at 6:02 pm by Administrator
I have been under the weather during the beginning of the 2012 Connecticut Legislative session. As a result, I have been confined to watching the public hearings on education reform via the CT-N Connecticut network (www.ctn.state.ct.us)/, and what I am seeing as a parent, tax payer and resident of Connecticut greatly concern me.
In my opinion, some Connecticut decision makers are throwing groups of people “under the bus” i.e. teachers, parents, working class families and community, as a means to fix our k-12 public schools and stabilize our economy.
Yet, we all know and history clearly shows that the “blame game” approach is an ineffective tool and has never solved a crisis in our state or country to date!
If we are to blame some, then we as parents, care givers, tax payers, and voters must share in that blame because children do not vote therefore children depend on the adults to make ‘what’s best for kids’ decisions”. As tax payers and voters we must accept the fact that we allowed law makers to engage, for decades, in irresponsible spending practices of our tax payer investment and we allowed failing schools to be an acceptable investment of our tax payer dollars. It’s time to change the way we do business.
I will admit, as a parent, afraid for my children’s future that I fell into the “blame game” thinking, but after taking “emotions” out of the discussions for a moment I was able to see that, for the most part, people care for children.
Yet “survival of the fitness” mode and fear has over taken over the legislative process and caused us to “fight against each other”. Anything divided will not stand!
It’s clear we must change the way we do business to better protect children and our most vulnerable populations but we must also be willing to first acknowledge that we all must share responsibility for the State of Connecticut schools and our economy.
In closing, if we are to move forward towards a stable economy and investing in our future workforce , we must acknowledge our shortfalls as a state and then with fidelity work with a shared accountable purpose and approach to improve educational outcomes for ALL children from Birth – College Graduation.
So what could “solution building” “look like” and mean for taxpayers, decision makers and families across Connecticut.
- 1. Stabilizing the Economy and Reforming Education means decision makers, as a whole, must first acknowledge that they failed to demand a fiscally and outcomes driven accountable educational and economic system and as a results Connecticut failed to equitable educate all of its children and laws were enacted that protected the educational and economic rights of some constituents better than others.
- 2. Taxpayers, active and non active voters, parents and guardians of children must acknowledge that we did not collectively work together and demand responsible spending and results from our “hard earned” tax payer investment from those we elected into office to represent our voice and community needs at the State and Federal level.
- 3. Now that we acknowledge that we failed to protect many Connecticut children, our most vulnerable populations and the tax payers investment we must then begin working towards increased voter turnout, smart spending which includes fiscal discipline, and best practice approaches toward ensuring the vast majority of Connecticut children have access to high quality equitable education opportunities, and the tax payer, and voters will hold themselves and their elected officials accountable for their decisions. If elected officials choose to ignore the will of the people then they must face the consequences that their constituents will get together and vote for another candidate that will listen to the needs of the people.
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02.19.12
Posted in Uncategorized at 10:13 pm by Administrator
THE CONNECTICUT PARENT’S UNION ASK WHY KEY EDUCATION STAKEHOLDERS ARE AGAINST FAMILIES AND PARENTS HAVING POWER TO ENSURE GREAT SCHOOLS FOR ALL CHILDREN?
Is it a testament to the potential success of the Connecticut Parent’s Union and similarly structured parents unions for helping to improve educational outcomes for all of our children, from cradle to career, when key education decision makers lead an anti-parent and family power attack by filing a State of Connecticut ethics complaint against an all volunteer, year-old, parent lead, grassroots organization?
The attack on the Connecticut Parent’s Union, outlined in a http://jonpelto.wordpress.com/2012/02/16/malloy-to-join-anti-teacher-anti-union-forces-at-capitol-rally/, looks like a play by play scenario, outlined in the AFT National training power point presentation entitled” How Connecticut Diffused the Parent Trigger” http://rishawnbiddle.org/outsidereports/aft_parentpower_guide.pdf
As a parent and the Founder of the CT Parent’s Union, the only question I have for the status quo; why can every area of public education advocate for their needs excepts students and their parents?
The New York Governor Andrew Cuomo recently said the following:
“I learned my most important lesson in my first year as Governor in the area of public education. I learned that everyone in public education has his or her own lobbyist. Superintendents have lobbyists. Principals have lobbyists. Teachers have lobbyists. School boards have lobbyists. Maintenance personnel have lobbyists. Bus drivers have lobbyists. The only group without a lobbyist? The students.”
As it relates to the State of Connecticut, by any measure, a vast majority of our children are not being well-served by the traditional public schools that are supposed to prepare them for college and career success. Fifty-one percent of Connecticut’s black fourth-grade students read Below Basic — or levels of functional illiteracy — on the 2011 National Assessment of Educational Progress, the federal measure of student achievement and school success, versus just 15 percent of their white counterparts. That is a wider achievement gap than the already-horrible national average. In fact, the average black fourth-grade student in Connecticut reads four grade levels below their white peer, a statistic that is absolutely shocking.
Connecticut’s low-income students, including young boys, are poorly-served by our education system. Forty-one percent of white male fourth-grade students on free- and reduced-lunch plans were functionally illiterate. So where 62 percent of their black male schoolmates, and 41 percent of Asian fourth-grade students. But it’s not just our children from poor and minority backgrounds who don’t get the education they need. Just 41 percent of students in Greenwich would have outperformed their peers in Singapore, according to the Global Report Card, a report on American student performance in an increasingly-global economy.
Meanwhile we have education committed parents and grandparents such as Marie Menard and Tonya McDowell being prosecuted by school districts and local governments for meeting the educational needs of their children and grandchildren.
These are parents and families who are being told by those who are supposed to also care for our children that they should simply be content with sending their kids to schools regardless of the quality of teaching or the conditions of the school.
Furthermore, we also have great teachers working in our schools who find themselves threatened by layoffs because they don’t have as much seniority as a colleague who may or may not be as good at helping kids learn. These great teachers also have to work alongside other teachers who make children clean toilet bowls, put children in cement “scream rooms”, and are not as effective at classroom management as the more effective teachers.
Connecticut tax payers bear a high cost for an educational system that isn’t doing the best for our kids. As Governor Dan Malloy rightly stated last week, we have out-of-work men and women who can’t gain employment because they don’t have the education that employers need. In turn, the costs end up being borne by all of us in higher taxes and in an economy that remains weighed down by the effects of ineffective schools. We cannot continue to deny families the ability to give their children the schools they deserve. We cannot stick with a status quo that doesn’t work for our future employees and taxpayers. And our children deserve equitable access to high quality education and life opportunities.
Our children need school reform in Connecticut and need it now.
The Connecticut Parents Union has been successful so far because families and others, all coming from different political perspectives and economic backgrounds have volunteered their time, effort, and own considerable resources to its success. This includes RiShawn Biddle, who has served on our ad hoc advisory board, who proudly discusses his affiliation with CTPU and other organizations, and who has dedicated his life to helping families and high-quality teachers help children get high-quality education. It also includes Michelle Rhee, who began her career as a teacher helping children in Baltimore’s school district and now continues her work helping children as the leader of StudentsFirst.
Most of all, we have been successful so far because of the vast majority of parents and other caregivers, throughout Connecticut and abroad, who say enough is enough.
The Connecticut Parents Union doesn’t care if you are Democrat or Republican, or if you are liberal or conservative. All that we care about is whether you care for our children, and want the best for them. We will work with anyone and everyone who wants equal educational opportunities for all children.
“Education reform means putting kids first when adults are making ‘what’s best for kids’ decisions,” said Gwen Samuel, Founder of the Connecticut Parent’s Union. Failing schools should never be an option within any education reform plan.”
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01.01.12
Posted in Uncategorized at 9:53 pm by Administrator
2012 will be known as the year of the “Push Back” Parent. It will be known as the time that parents will, more visibly and consistently, ”push back” against and strive to change the laws that deny our children access to equitable high quality educational opportunities! This includes school residency/zip code education laws.
The fact is, within Connecticut and across the country, too many students are not graduating from high school and college with the skill sets that they need to become productive citizens, engaged community leaders, and participants in a trained and qualified workforce. Needless to say, this has serious impacts on our state’s economy
** Remember OUR kids don’t vote nor do they make the educational decisions that impact their lives but WE THE PARENTS does**
1. This “push back” starts with parents and community registering to VOTE and making sure we hold each other accountable to get to the voting polls in November. No More Excuses unless you do not care what happens to YOU, your children, your family, the most vulnerable i.e children, seniors, people with disabilities…
2. Parent’s, our children and we, are the only “blocks of people”, with NO legal power to make educational decisions that impact our children’s overall well being in public schools!
But, collectively, we the parents,’ have the power to change that! We actually have the power to reform and/or shut down low performing schools. We really do! Take a guess who makes up the majority population within America’s public schools…you guessed it…our children!
This is not radical talk its “real” talk! Who will PROTECT our children if we don’t?
3. Stay tuned for voter education and registration, legislative and advocacy trainings dates in YOUR area! In English and Spanish.
In closing, as I reflect on the reality of education in our communities today, educationally speaking, our kids are in trouble! That means their future is in jeopardy thus continuing to put our state & country’s economy in “crisis”
That’s why I am reflecting on these quotes:
”I for one believe that if you give people a thorough understanding of what confronts them and the basic causes that produce it, they’ll create their own program, and when the people create a program, you get action.” Malcolm X
Education then, beyond all other devices of human origin, is the great equalizer of the conditions of men, the balance-wheel of the social machinery.
Horace Mann
Individual rights are not subject to a public vote; a majority has no right to vote away the rights of a minority; the political function of rights is precisely to protect minorities from oppression by majorities (and the smallest minority on earth is the individual).
Ayn Rand
People pay for what they do and still more for what they have allowed themselves to become. And they pay for it very simply; by the lives they lead.
James A. Baldwin
Now I say that with cruelty and oppression it is everybody’s business to interfere when they see it.
Anna Sewell
The ultimate tragedy is not the oppression and cruelty by the bad people but the silence over that by the good people.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Education is our only political safety. Outside of this ark all is deluge.
Horace Mann
A teacher who is attempting to teach without inspiring the pupil with a desire to learn is hammering on cold iron.
Horace Mann
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11.19.11
Posted in Uncategorized at 8:04 pm by Administrator
As we all know communities across the country are facing the impacts of the current educational and economic crisis, this includes the significant increase of intact homeless families, but arresting parents, the primary care givers of children for the “theft of a free education” will not improve our educational and economic challenges.
Even with the arrest of “infamous” parents such as Tanya McDowell of Norwalk CT, Akron Ohio mom Kelley Williams-Bolar and Grandmother Marie Menard of Stratford CT for “stealing a free education”, the fact still remains, too many students in this country are not graduating from high school and college with the skill sets that they need to become productive citizens, engaged community leaders, and participants in a trained and qualified workforce. Needless to say, this has serious impacts on our state and country’s economy. Is this the fault of parents?
Parents and Guardians of Children:
- Would you send your child to a school that systematically did not enforce bully prevention policies?
- Would you send your child to a school that chronically failed to meet school goals in core subjects like reading, math and writing?
- Would you send you child to a school that had 30-40 children in a classroom with one teacher and no support staff?
- Would you send your child to a school that you know had crumbling walls, unsafe levels of mold, asbestos…?
- Would you send your child to a school that had no books, technology, the arts…?
- Would you send your child to a school that had over 500 children and one nurse (part time)?
Many of us, as parents, will answer NO to these questions, yet we send our children to some of these types of schools with these types of conditions everyday because of where we live or our zip code.
And for those parents that answer NO to these questions and choose to use another address of a friend or family member to ensure the safety and educational well being of their child, you may face criminal charges and prosecution.
And for those that say, “I have choice”, how much choice do you really have? You put your child’s name in a pool/lottery and cross your fingers and hope you get chosen. Is that really choice? It sounds like psychological torture to me; to know my child’s access to a great school depends on the luck of “chance”
This cannot continue! Parents who choose to do what’s best for their child’s education and life well being, by choosing a quality school, regardless of zip code, should not face the possibility of being arrested and prosecuted.
Why do I say this? In many states, across the country, school district residency laws are written to arrest and convict parents or guardians of children that choose to send their child to a school that may do a better job at meeting their child’s academic and life needs, regardless of zip code.
For parents, these are very tough choices. We can choose to deny our children access to a great education by continuing to enroll them in seriously low performing schools, try to find enough money to move to a more affluent neighborhood (good luck with that ) or face possible jail time or probation for using another address, in another zip code, just to get a chance at a good education! Wow, talk about terrible options!
It’s time to change school district residency law by looking at the unconstitutional way of how school districts, law makers, law enforcement and prosecutors “select” who they will arrest and we need to aggressively transform how we fund education.
First, parents, guardians of children, community leaders and social justice advocates must collectively work together and address this unconstitutional, school district, residency law challenges in ALL states.
Second, we must bring this “unequal protection” argument before a state supreme or federal court.
In the case of the grandmother, Ms Marie Menard, the CT Parent’s Union has retained council on her behalf and filed an “unequal protection” lawsuit. In July of 2011, Attorney Josephine Miller gave notice to the Stratford Superintendent and the Stratford Local Board of Education and filed a civil lawsuit on behalf of Ms. Marie Menard.
The civil lawsuit was originally filed in Bridgeport Superior Court. The Superior court transferred the case to a New Haven Federal Court and it alleges the following violations regarding Ms. Marie Menard:
- Violation of equal protection laws because a vast majority of parents found to not live in a school district are just get asked to leave the school with no arrest being made. This shows an inequitable enforcement of residency rules regarding school attendance.
- Stratford School District did not follow the States educational due process statute, Conn. Gen. Stat. Section 10-186 that prescribes a two level due process procedure for determining residency. Both the Stratford and Norwalk passed over this law and rushed into criminal prosecution. These quick decisions disregard the educational best of interests of children and their families when states’ attorneys rush to criminalize conduct which should first be subjected to careful and thoughtful administrative review.
3. Intentional infliction of emotional distress. Imagine being told to take a plea or face a jury trial which can convict you up to twenty years. What choices did any of these parents have?
What makes the Menard and McDowell Connecticut arrests unique? In the two Connecticut arrests, there exists a two level administrative due process procedure addressing residency. In both of these cases they were passed over and a rush to judgment and heavy handed prosecution was the end result.
Third, parents, registered voters and tax payers must work together and collectively hold state and federal government accountable in holding local school districts accountable for better academic outcomes because a large portion of the funds that most local school districts receive come from the state and federal government. Which we all know is funded by Tax payers!
Fourth, parents and tax payers need to advocate for per pupil funding to be attached to each child (money follows the child) to ensure tax payers of one school district are not paying for children from other school districts.
Fifth, parents and tax payers must work together and demand options. Our country is founded on consumer choice and parents should have the right to choose a good school for their child regardless of where they live.
In closing read this article by Brian Lockhart who covers the Connecticut General Assembly in Hartford Connecticut. http://blog.ctnews.com/politicalcapitol/2011/06/09/bill-resulting-from-homeless-womans-arrest-in-norwalk-fails-in-house/
And take a look at the Connecticut Office of Legislative Research report about how other states penalize parents and/or guardians of children who “falsely claim residency within a school district”
| May 5, 2011 |
|
2011-R-0214 |
| CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR FALSELY CLAIMING RESIDENCY WITHIN A SCHOOL DISTRICT |
| |
| By: James Orlando, Associate Analyst |
You asked about criminal penalties in other states for lying about residency to send a child to another town‘s school district.
SUMMARY
We found specific laws addressing false information supplied in the context of residency for school enrollment in six states and D. C. Most of these provide for prison terms and fines for falsely claiming residence for school purposes, and a few explicitly provide for repayment of the costs of student attendance. Other states punish this conduct under crimes that generally apply to falsifying documents.
Criminal prosecutions of the parents involved in the alleged address falsification appear to be rare, but not unprecedented. We found several examples. Charges typically involve falsifying records or theft of services. Currently, a homeless woman from Bridgeport who sent her child to a Norwalk school is charged with first-degree larceny for the value of education her son received from Norwalk.
In 2009, a woman in Rochester, New York allegedly lied about her children‘s residence to send them to another district and was arrested and charged with two felonies: third-degree grand larceny and first-degree offering a false instrument for filing (Eddy Ramirez, Schools Crack Down on Boundary Hopping, March 2, 2009, available at http: //www. usnews. com/education/articles/2009/03/02/schools-crack-down-on-boundary-hopping).
In January 2011, an Ohio woman who falsified residency records so that her children could attend another school district was convicted on two counts of record tampering. She was sentenced to 10 days in jail, placed on three years‘ probation, and ordered to perform community service. The judge declared a mistrial on other counts, including grand theft and fraud (Ed Meyer, Mom Jailed for Records Falsification, Jan. 19, 2011, available at http: //www. ohio. com/news/114189939. html).
Many school districts across the nation take various measures to verify students‘ addresses beyond requiring documents to prove residency. These efforts may include hiring private investigators to ascertain where students live and setting up anonymous tip lines. When districts determine that an out-of-district student is attending a district school without authorization, the district will typically expel the student (see Ramirez article above).
Some school districts have adopted policies regarding residency verification specifying that parents who falsify documents may be referred for prosecution. For example, the Broward County (Florida) School Board‘s policy states that the district “may provide information to the appropriate county or state agency for prosecution for any fraudulent information knowingly submitted. ” The policy also cites state statutes on knowingly making a written false statement with intent to mislead a public servant in the performance of official duties (Fla. Stat. § 837. 06) and perjury by false written declaration (Fla. Stat. § 92. 525) (Broward School Board Policy 5. 1, available at http: //www. broward. k12. fl. us/sbbcpolicies/).
PENALTIES RELATED TO FALSELY CLAIMING RESIDENCY
Arkansas
Arkansas law provides that anyone who knowingly gives a false residential address for purposes of public school enrollment is guilty of a violation and subject to a fine of up to $ 1,000 (Ark. Code Ann. § 6-18-202(f)).
District of Columbia
In D. C. , anyone (including a school official) who knowingly supplies false information to a public official in connection with student residency verification is subject to up to 90 days‘ imprisonment, retroactive tuition, a fine of up to $ 500, or any combination of these (D. C. Code § 38-312).
Illinois
In Illinois, with certain exceptions (e. g. , certain children placed with foster parents), a person who knowingly enrolls or attempts to enroll in a school on a tuition free basis a pupil known by that person to be a nonresident of the school district is guilty of a class C misdemeanor (punishable by up to 30 days‘ imprisonment, up to a $ 1,500 fine, or both).
Anyone who knowingly or willfully presents to any school district false information regarding a pupil‘s residency to enable that pupil to attend any school in that district without paying nonresident tuition also commits a class C misdemeanor.
Illinois law specifies that these and other residency provisions do not require a homeless child‘s parent or guardian to pay tuition in connection with or as a result of the homeless child‘s continued education or enrollment in a school that is chosen in accordance with any of the options provided by law (105 Ill. Comp. Stat. 5/10-20. 12b; 105 Ill. Comp. Stat. 45/1-10).
Michigan
In Michigan, it is a misdemeanor, punishable by up to 20 days‘ imprisonment, a fine of $ 5 to $ 50, or both, to do any of the following:
1. to refuse to give a school census enumerator the necessary information for the compiling of the census;
2. to intentionally give the enumerator false information as to the (a) name or age of a school child or (b) names or residence of the parents or guardians of a school child; or
3. for a school census enumerator to (a) perform his or her duties carelessly or negligently or (b) include in the census list names of school children who are not actually residents of the city or district (Mich. Comp. Laws Serv. § 380. 1812).
Missouri
In Missouri, it is a class A misdemeanor (punishable by up to one year‘s imprisonment, up to a $ 1,000 fine, or both) to knowingly submit false information to satisfy student residency requirements or waivers of such requirements. Missouri law also explicitly allows a school district to bring a civil action to recover the costs of school attendance from a parent or guardian who submitted such false information.
In addition to other exceptions, Missouri‘s residency requirements do not apply to homeless children (Mo. Rev. Stat. § 167. 020).
Oklahoma
In Oklahoma, if a school district policy allows someone to establish residency by affidavit (this applies to certain adults other than parents or legal guardians claiming to have custody of a child), it is a misdemeanor to willfully make a statement in the affidavit which the person knows to be false. Violators face up to a year in prison, up to a $ 500 fine, or both (Okl. St. tit. 70, § 1-113(A)).
Pennsylvania
In Pennsylvania, a child who lives with someone other than a parent can attend school in the caregiver‘s town of residence if the caregiver provides (1) appropriate legal documentation to show dependency or guardianship or (2) a sworn statement with specified information. Someone who knowingly provides false information in the sworn statement for the purpose of enrolling a child in a school district for which the child is not eligible is guilty of a summary offense. Violators face (1) paying tuition costs; (2) up to 240 hours of community service, a fine of up to $ 300, or both; and (3) paying court costs (24 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 13-1302).
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09.09.11
Posted in Uncategorized at 10:56 am by Administrator
Over the last several weeks, I have had writer’s block and I am still perplexed by this question: Why do parents have to make a choice between protecting their children’s educational rights and supporting effective teachers?
Another way to frame this question; why is it that when some parent’s advocate for their child’s well being and educational rights we become anti-teachers? We become the target of major stereo-types, perceptions, name calling, degradation, intimidation and fear tactics, i.e. a National anti-parent presentation at a 2011 National Teacher Union’s Conference. This presentation was a “how to” guide to defeat parents (suspense music playing)
It is hard for me, as a parent, to fully understand how “some “ individuals, not just teachers, entrusted with our children, can be so threatened by a parent or a guardian of a child who only want the best for the child.
You would think, to improve parent and teacher relationships, it would be a logical, common sense approach and much more productive, if public policy makers, and educators would try and understand that it’s the LOVE that a parent has for a child that moves them into their diligent advocacy towards protecting that child’s educational rights.
A strategic and wise public policy maker and educator would help translate and channel that parent’s love into a meaningful SUPPORT for effective teachers because you have our most precious commodity in your care. Parents would clearly support that effective teacher, two hundred percent, because we would clearly comprehend that when teachers are successful in the classroom, the chances are the child will be successful in the classroom and in life.
So for me; I ask and try to answer, why is this logical approach to parent –teacher partnerships not happening with fidelity and parents are met with such resistance?
I continue to research what are parents obligated to do towards meeting the well being of their child. How far are we to travel to protect our loved ones? The answer is quite simple. Our children do not vote, can’t go to a doctor’s visit under a certain age without a parent or guardian, do not sign medical release forms, can’t go on a field trip without a parents or guardians permission therefore the logical conclusion is parents are responsible for the WHOLE child so why would an educator think we would not want to know what is happening in the classroom and demand accountability?
To make matters worse; this obligation should be understood by many public policy and educators anyway because many of you are PARENTS yourselves. So why do you distinguish your LOVE and obligation for your children from the vast majority of parents of which you have their child in your school and in your classroom?
Please note: Parenthood does not come with a manual of set instructions. For the vast majority, it comes with maternal instincts that can and will be influenced by positive external/internal factors and/or negative external/internal factors. None the less, these influences will play a major part towards a child’s development, that is understood but that is not the ending of a child’s story.
As the book I am writing will clearly outline and in part entitled: instead of judging me, the parent, on what I do not know, teach me, so that I can learn to be a better support for my child because for every adult living and breathing everyday should be a day of learning.
In closing; it’s not just LOVE that sends a child to school it’s the LAW as well! So let us be clear, whether a school is a quality school or systemically low performing a parent MUST send their child to school or opt to home school (either way the tax payer foots the bill). With that kind of pressure of maybe a parent being arrested or child welfare intervention educators should “get it” that parents MUST be engaged in the classroom!
Mandatory School Attendance Age: Under current law, until July 1, 2011 students must stay in school until graduation or age 18. But starting July 1, 2011, a student may drop out at age 17 if his/her parent or guardian personally appears at the school district office and signs a withdrawal form. After the 2012-2013 school year the school dropout age reverts back to age 18. (Connecticut State Department of Education)
Compulsory Education: More than 150 years have passed since Horace Mann helped Massachusetts establish a statewide system of education that eventually led to the requirement that all children attend public school. In 1852, Massachusetts became the first state to pass compulsory school attendance laws, and by 1918, all states required children to receive an education.
Compulsory Education Requirements: Today, every state and territory requires children to enroll in public or private education or to be home-schooled. More than half—32 states—require students to begin their education by age 6. Some states’ set their age requirements as low as age 5 and as high as age 8. All children are required to continue their education into their high school years, with 26 states setting the cutoff age at 16. The remaining states require students to stay in school through age 17 or 18.
Compulsory education laws vary greatly from state to state. While some states use a student’s date of birth to determine the beginning and ending dates for compulsory education, other states require a student to begin school if he or she will turn 6 during the school year and require a student to remain in school until completion of the school year in which he or she turns 17. Four states—Arizona, Montana, Vermont and Wyoming—require students to remain in school through a specified grade. Most states allow parents to petition their local school board or principal for a waiver of these requirements under certain circumstances, such as enrollment in a vocational education program or an institution of higher education or early completion of required coursework. http://www.ncsl.org/IssuesResearch/Education/CompulsoryEducationOverview/tabid/12943/Default.aspx
In English law Parental responsibility is a legal phrase used to define who has the rights and obligations in making decisions which affect the child’s life. Parental responsibility includes the following legal rights and responsibilities:
* Providing a home for the child *Having contact with and living with the child
* Protecting and maintaining the child * Disciplining the child
* Choosing and providing for the child’s education *Choosing the child’s religion
* Agreeing on the child’s health and medical care *Consenting to medical treatment for the child
* Accessing the child’s medical and educational records *Naming the child
* Responsibility for the child’s property *Allowing confidential information about the child to be disclosed (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parental_responsibility_(access_and_custody)
So the bottom line: a child’s well being is not negotiable. One may not like the color of my skin, my social class, the size of my waist line, the color of my hair or my belief/value system but the fact remains, too many students in this country are not graduating from high school and a career/technical college with the skill sets that they need to become productive citizens, engaged community leaders, and participants in a trained and qualified workforce. Needless to say, this has serious impacts on our state economy.
Equation for Success: Empowered Students + Engaged Parents + Effective Teachers and Administrators = A Qualified Workforce & Tax Paying Productive Citizens
This formula for success is a Win for EVERYONE!
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07.12.11
Posted in Uncategorized at 12:31 pm by Administrator
In a recent article entitled Legislative Momentum Stalls for ‘Parent Trigger’ Proposals, you will read about a few states (California, Connecticut and Mississippi) that currently have implemented some form of a Parent Trigger law. A law that gives parents legal power, to recommend various school improvement models, to help turn around systemically low performing schools that are not meeting the educational needs of their children.(http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2011/06/15/35trigger_ep.h30.html?tkn=XORFIhwDqmh1IDpLqJVPpmdv6%2BsnKXZdRuKV&cmp=clp-edweek)
Yet, there are many states that have encountered various road blocks when trying to implement, some form of Parent Trigger law, to give parents a legal say in their child’s education.
The public policy decision making bodies, better known as the status quo, within the current educational systems, imply that parents are not “capable” of making good educational decisions for their children therefore we, the parents and tax payers, MUST accept any and all decisions that they make on behalf of children.
The defenders of “no fiscal accountability for student outcomes” expect parents, in many cases, to place our children in dangerous, poorly staffed, extremely low performing, non welcoming, and no fiscal and staffing accountability, school systems.
The status quo expect parents to sit quietly on the side lines, while our children, are denied their right to a quality education; the type of education that will give them a fair chance at life. I did not say life was fair, but the Constitution guarantees that our children have access to a free and appropriate education.
As a result of this article and the defenders of “no fiscal and results based accountability”, I say to parents today; whether there is a parent trigger law in your state or not, our children need us to PROTECT their educational right to access the type of quality education that exposes them to the skill sets needed to graduate high school prepared to enter and graduate from a technical or career college.
We know every child will not go to college, but that does not mean they should not have access to a high quality education.
Our children need to graduate with the tools needed to navigate the civic engagement process i.e. voting.
Our children should have access to a fiscally accountable, safe and nurturing home, school, and community environment that fosters high expectation of all stakeholders and learning. Anything less is unacceptable!
Public policy makers and school districts need to be held accountable to ensure they are maximizing the tax payer’s investment into the public school system.
Furthermore, if we are to stabilize our economy, America needs a qualified workforce. They need our children graduating with strong skills ready, willing and able to earn a career.
It’s with these words that I state, parents; we are a living and breathing parent trigger.
Here’s why. If you knew something or someone was going to harm a child, the vast majority of parents would spring into “action” to protect that child from harm.
Why, because the threat of harm, to a child, “triggered” us into action to prevent the potential harm from happening to our most precious asset…our children.
If we saw a speeding car headed towards a child, parents would run like the wind to get that child out of harm’s way. We run to PROTECT that child.
We take our children to the doctors to get immunization shots to PROTECT our children from particular diseases.
When there were alerts about various strands of bacteria that were harmful to adults and our children, such as, E-coli and Salmonella, we taught our children to wash their hands more frequently and we, as parents, took more precautions when preparing food. We did this to PROTECT our children.
We teach them about “stranger danger” because we want them to be safe where ever they are: the park, the movies, with friends. We teach them to PROTECT them.
It is with these sentiments that I stand with all parents in hopes of “triggering” the instincts to PROTECT our children, from a vast majority of schools, that are failing to meet the quality of education needed for our children to become productive citizens in life, because if they graduate high school, unable to read, minimal problem solving and analytical skills, and unable to do grade level math, what are their chances to be successful in life!
Parents our children need us to become the Parent Trigger!
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06.01.11
Posted in Uncategorized at 11:06 pm by Administrator
Being a parent is a labor intensive and a very tough job. After all, we are responsible for nurturing and shaping the minds, values and behaviors of our country’s future leaders, teachers, doctors, scientist etc… Isn’t that the reason a parent is called a child’s first teacher?
Parents have the responsibility for choosing the best doctors to meet their child’s medical needs; we choose what stores to buy healthy foods to meet their nutritional needs; we choose what programs they watch on television, we choose what friends they are allowed to visit and “hang around with”; so the bottom line is we as parents are to set the boundaries at home and within the community to support their academic and life needs.
Yet, if a parent chooses the best educational public school to send their child, based on their academic needs, the chances are likely that you may be violating a local school district residency law and subject to be arrested, unless you are a choice district. Yes, parents, homeless parents and grandparents are being arrested for sending their child (ren) or grandchildren to a school out of district; to a school of their choice.
In January of 2011, an Ohio mom, Kelley Williams –Bolar was arrested and convicted for sending her children to an out of district school. She stated she made a choice in the best safety and academic interest of her children; which by the way, is the responsibility of a parent.
In April of 2011, a homeless Connecticut mom, Tanya McDowell, was arrested for first degree larceny for the “theft of an education” for her 5 year old son. Her child was removed from the school. To add more injury to this injustice, Ana Marquez, the mother of two young children ages 4 and 6, who was nice enough to allow homeless Ms McDowell to use her address to receive school mail on behalf of Ms. McDowell’s son was evicted from her public housing apartment and forced to live in a homeless shelter.
The end results for Tanya McDowell, two homeless persons have now become five homeless people; two adults and three children all because of a simple fact; parents want what’s best for their children. No hidden agendas, just wanting to give their children access to an effective school that teaches the necessary skill sets needed to graduate high school and a career or technical college and engage in the civic engagement process like voting.
Well you may not have heard about a second arrest and conviction in Connecticut in 2011. Marie Menard, a grandmother, property owner and taxpayer in Stratford and her daughter Ana Wade, a young mother in Milford, were also arrested and charged with stealing an education.
In both Connecticut cases, the parents had a right to an administrative due process hearing yet these hearings addressing residency were passed over and a rush to judgment and heavy handed prosecution was the end result.
Law: Conn. Gen. Stat. Section 10-186 prescribes a two level due process procedure addressing residency, among other things. If after a hearing held before the local board of education a parent or guardian is aggrieved by that decision, said parent or guardian may appeal the decision to the State Board of Education which will conduct a new hearing. The State Board shall hold a hearing and render a decision. The State Board decision may be appealed to the Superior Court. If a board of education prevails at the hearing before the State Board of Education, the local or regional board may seek to recover the amount of assessment for tuition through available civil remedies. See Section 10-186(b) (4). Therefore, the board of education does not file larceny charges against the parent of the child due to the fact that the due process procedure provides a civil remedy enabling it to recover the assessment for tuition
Furthermore, there should be no questions regarding choice in Connecticut because an analysis of the State of Connecticut using almost any indicator of socio-economic progress quickly reveals stark contradictions in the fortunes of its residents.
Connecticut, one of the richest states in the nation is also home to some of the nation’s poorest cities; it is home to some of the most prestigious Universities and schools in the nation, yet its academic achievement gap is among the highest in the nation, observable between rich and poor students, and between white students and students of color. Therefore, the only sensible thing to do is to give parents access to a high quality school of their choice or implement a “money follows a child” to a school of the parent’s choice!
You can’t have it both way!
What else is a parent to do when school districts are not being held accoutable for outcomes? School districts get funding whether students achieve or not! Staff, teachers and administrators gets paid whether they perform or not!
As parents, registered voters and tax payers, we all understand our country is facing the severe impacts of this education and economic crisis, but arresting parents, the primary care givers of children for “theft of an education” will not improve our educational and economic challenges.
It will take fiscal and results based accountability, transparency and effective home, and community and school partnerships to turn around a vast majority of America’s low-performing schools.
In closing, parents must ask themselves this question: Why do we leave sole decision making power regarding our children’s educational well-being in the hands of educators, administrators and public policy makers alone? Even though we may know some of those decisions are fiscally irresponsible or they put our children at risk.
The answer: parents don’t leave it solely in the hands of educators, administrators and public policy makers and for that we may be subject to arrest for being the responsible adult and choosing the best schools for our children. This cannot be allowed to continue; the arrest of parents for wanting a good education for their child.
The days of blindly trusting educators, administrators and public policy makers are over.
Parents are learning to read and understand data such as reading levels and advance placement courses. Parents are learning what a high-quality school looks like. Therefore, low performance will no longer be an acceptable option of choice for our children.
Hold on, this is not the ending of this story.
Parents, guardians, and families are becoming an organized power base that votes thus can and will level the playing field within the public policy making arena thus ensuring that each student has access to the skills needed to graduate high school and able to attend and graduate a Technical or Career College.
Parents know all too well that America needs access to a highly qualified work force to help stabilize the current economic meltdown and our children are the quailed workforce you are looking for and need.
Note: Every child will not attend college but that does not mean they should not have access to a college ready academic experience!
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05.15.11
Posted in Uncategorized at 9:12 am by Administrator
As a parent, we constantly worry about our children’s well-being. To the best of our abilities, we strive to meet their educational, emotional and physical needs.
As a parent/children/family advocate, I constantly fight for ensuring great schools are accessible to ALL children.
My equation for success: Engaged Parents + Empowered Students + Effective Teachers & Administrators = Raised Student Achievement & a Qualified Workforce In Your Community Your State, and Your Country
As a parent, we should be demanding a welcoming school environment that appreciates and embraces the enrichment that various social classes, diverse children and their families bring to the school culture.
As a parent, we long for the day where parents, family and students are seen as a value added resource towards raising student achievement versus an “unfunded mandate”
Yet, sadly that day has not come for a vast majority of schools across the country
“In an article published in Phi Delta Kappan back in 1991, Martin Haberman, a professor at the University of Wisconsin, coined the phrase ‘pedagogy of poverty.
’ Based on his observations in thousands of urban classrooms, Haberman described a tightly controlled routine in which teachers dispense, and then test students on, factual information; assign seatwork; and punish noncompliance. It is a regimen, he said, ‘in which learners can “succeed” without becoming either involved or thoughtful’–and it is noticeably different from the questioning, discovering, arguing, and collaborating that is more common (though by no means universal) among students in suburban and private schools.” (http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/bill-mahers-real-time-education-debate-failure/2011/05/14/AF0EvU3G_blog.html
With that said, let me tell you about an enlightening family centered experience that I had at the Children Medical Center in Hartford. This journey gave me a picture of how ALL schools in Connecticut and across the country are supposed to behave like.
It reminds me about how Professor Martin Haberman describes the behavior of suburban and private schools and how they create classroom environments that nurture their students to question, discover, argue, and collaborate and by applying those attributes they foster meaningful learning.
This blog is about my daughter and myself and our recent medical journey. There was no fast talking, quick fixes, bureaucratic approaches to meet my child’s medical needs; just good ole fashion straight talk combined with “we can get through this procedure by working together” via nurturing, accountable, effective and supportive solutions.
The Journey: Several months ago, my daughters school educators and myself, noticed my daughter’s leg was starting to grow “kind of” crooked (bowing like a c).
The school officials, doctors and dear ole mommy were puzzled, thus began the immediate medical journey of diagnosing the problem and putting the needs of my child first.
From day one, the first moment my daughter’s ailment was noticed, the school took immediate action. We developed an educational and physical needs plan to support her.
She went from walking the stairs to riding on the elevator to get to class. NO long meetings, or stall tactics or a “Ms. Samuel, the policy forbids us to do xyz” They put my child’s needs first
The school and I worked together at the school and home level to ensure she was able to stay educationally engaged as I worked through MRI’s, Cat Scans and numerous doctor visits as each day brought more and more pain and puzzlement.
The weeks leading up to the surgery were filled with counsel sessions with doctors and support to prepare my daughter, her family and me for this pre and post operation.
Then finally, the day of the surgery was here. Nurses showed both of us pictures of the operating room and presented the actual items that would be used i.e. oxygen mask, gowns, and they still created a welcoming environment for question and answers. We played “I spy” with the nurses and we had a spelling bee with the key word being anesthesia.
My daughter got to choose how she traveled to the Operating Room (OR), she chose a Barbie Car, and I got to go in the OR until she was sleep. I cried, and a nurse consoled me as I was led to the engaging family lounge.
Once I was escorted to a family lounge, I was greeted with a phone for updates, a tracking ID number for my child and up to the minute progress reports. Family members saw a big LCD screen updating us on our child’s progress and a nurse called me during surgery to give an update. WOW! It was all about my child and her well being, with the family role clearly defined and supported!
Post surgery was just as supportive.
In closing, my daughter is doing fine and still recovering. I encourage you to support your local children medical centers with donations, toys, plushy stuffed animals and letters of support. I am so grateful for health insurance because I can’t imagine this journey without health insurance. Something tells me there would have been no journey without health insurance.
Furthermore, parents are not the enemies of teachers, educators, administrators, and elected officials, we want to support you in the journey of educating OUR children.
The Children’s Medical Center is just another example of a family centered welcoming environment that can be replicated in our schools. Working together is clearly the path of least resistance thus placing all the adult stake holders in a better position to meet the needs of the ultimate stakeholders/end-users…the children!
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04.21.11
Posted in Uncategorized at 2:51 am by Administrator
Parents, guardians and tax payers, why do we allow people, who never step foot in a school, make ALL the decisions on behalf of our children in school? Even though we know some of those decisions are fiscally irresponsible or they put our children at risk
Would you take your child to a doctor that YOU know has a history of malpractice or treating their patients bad? You wouldn’t!
Would you knowingly make your children drink spoiled milk, or eat rotten food? You wouldn’t!
Yet, we send our children to some schools that we know are dangerous, staffed poorly, extremely low performing, non welcoming, no fiscal and staffing accountability; one gets paid whether their students learn or not.
Why? We, as parents, don’t want to get in trouble? We don’t want to make waves? It will get better one day? Well that day has NOT arrived and our kids are not graduating high school with the skills needed to attend or graduate college nor are they able to navigate life productively. The reason being, the adults are not making children friendly decisions to help them get a great education.
Then to add salt on the wound, if a parent puts their child in a high quality school that may be in another school district they will be arrested and prosecuted to the full extent of the law!
This is NOT okay! Parents, we can no longer turn a blind eye or ignore the situations our children face everyday.
If school leaders are not going to demand fiscal, staffing and results based accountability for our children then give us choice and attach each child with their per pupil amount.
Lawmakers can’t have it both ways! Either demand accountability of education leadership or give parents choice. If not, parents will take it! These are our babies and their lives are our responsibility.
Quality blind education will continue until parents demand different. We must demand access to excellent schools.
That means, as parents, we can no longer have ANY reason why we don’t visit our child’s school or support them at home and in the community. If you can not support your child’s homework needs, let’s work together and find someone that can.
In closing, Parents are team players and we want to partner with educators, teachers, administrators, community and law makers to ensure better outcomes for all students.
But the days of blind trusting you are over; we are reading and understanding data and what quality looks like in the school therefore low performance will no longer be an acceptable option for our children.
You are right, these are OUR children and we are responsible for their well-being!
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04.09.11
Posted in Uncategorized at 1:24 am by Administrator
First, I want to send out a heart felt ‘Thank You” to all who walked me through a tough challenge I was facing regarding my child’s school. I felt a teacher’s “intervention methods” to redirect my child’s “non violent behavior” was extremely offensive and it made my son feel awkward.
After a few days of critical reflection, supportive feedback and trying to put myself in the teacher’s shoes, I believe, now more than ever, we must ensure teachers get the appropriate, ongoing professional development needed to ensure they can be an effective teacher.
The million dollar question: what is the definition of an effective teacher? And who is responsible for that definition: is it the parent, the child , the teachers union, the teacher, the school district, the tax payer that pays for the public education system, the federal government, or is it a discussion that should be had and decided by all of the above.?
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