Entry #6 - Oct. 12, 1998
"I'm committed to the city's kids, having grown up here myself,
but I'm more than a little anxious about our future. . .Charter schools
are popping up all over and concerned parents are buying all their claims.
. .If the charters get the kids whose parents act as advocates, who does
that leave in the public schools? The kids with the greatest needs, the
ones with no one to act as advocates will get left behind."
I knew this was going to be a hard week because my mural project was slated
to begin, but I was totally unprepared for the news I got first thing Monday
morning. My principal made a special trip to the Annex to let me know that
he was a finalist in his bid for a suburban principalship. Even though we
work very closely and I also consider him a friend, I had no idea he was
even thinking about leaving.
Taking a deep breath, I congratulated him in a tone that I hoped sounded
sincere. After all, this was a colleague and a friend, right?
A delegation from the suburbs was coming to observe and interview some of
us today, Friday. My principal would then go and spend the day with their
team on Monday, a holiday for us. It was their impending visit which prompted
his "news."
Monday is a bit of a blur at this point. By day's end everyone had heard
about Friday's visit and some were already speculating about who our next
principal would be. I regained my sense of humor and told folks I intended
to lie to the interview team in hopes of holding on to our principal, but
all kidding aside, I was plenty worried.
Changing leaders sets you back, even if the replacement is wonderful. You
have to go through a period of adjustment, getting used to the person's
style and priorities. Things that were assumed or at best confirmed through
an email message may now require a meeting or at least a delayed response.
In short, it's a nightmare when it happens at the beginning of the term,
but now, when we've barely gotten started . . . let's just say I got a headache
and fell asleep by 8pm!
We have a great staff and we'll muddle through, but who wants to muddle?
It's really bad for morale. You make all sorts of plans, hold summer practices
and then lose your team captain after the second game. Now, even if he stays,
we'll all be looking over our shoulders waiting for the next opening. Two
days ago the local paper ran a story about all the suburban administrative
vacancies and since he's certainly qualified, it's just a matter of time.
Staff members are sad, worried, angry, disappointed, anything but happy.
Some teachers are quietly making their own plans to leave at the first opportunity.
The lure of the suburbs looms large. The pay is better, the classes are
smaller and the grass is always greener. On the other hand, our contract
is only funded through the end of this term and the State is threatening
a takeover which would basically erase our rights if we keep asking them
for more money, or dare to strike etc. I guess that wasn't really the other
hand was it?
I'm committed to the city's kids, having grown up here myself, but I'm more
than a little anxious about our future as public school employees. Charter
schools are popping up all over and concerned parents are buying all their
claims about more discipline, more computers and smaller class sizes. Most
parents don't know that the teachers are mostly new and mostly unprepared
to run their classrooms, let alone a whole school.
If the charters get the kids whose parents act as advocates, who does that
leave in the public schools? The kids with the greatest needs, the ones
with no one to act as advocates will get left behind.
At the same time, funds and programs are being slashed. It feels like fighting,
first with one hand tied behind your back and then with both tied. Is that
a fair fight? Is giving the kids with advantages more advantages, democracy
in action? I don't think so and the kids know it's not, from a very early
age.
Tomorrow is Phila. CARES day and we'll be planting shrubs and painting a
mural at our school with the help of business and community volunteers.
I support these programs and my shovel is already in the car, but flashy
band aids are no substitute for full funding and support of quality public
education for all. I do believe my kids can succeed, but I'm mighty tired
of all the curve balls that get thrown at them every step of the way.
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