When TUSD’s Maria Menconi was asked by a Board member if the district’s curriculum was aligned with state standards, she replied that the current “curriculum is the state standard.” However she and Pedicone admitted on several occasions and again last night that they have not ascertained what curriculum is offered throughout the district, or in some cases if there is one at all.
In other words, they do not know what exactly it is that they teach, but they asked the Board to declare that whatever it is that they do teach is in alignment with state standards. In a 4-1 vote, the Board agreed to go along with the fraud.
But it is only a small fraud
After all, it is only a small fraud, and the lie really doesn’t hurt anyone. Menconi convinced the Board to go along by telling them that the “Declaration of Curricular and Instructional Alignment to the Arizona Academic Standards” form, was simply a formality that the state should have done away with long ago, and the deadline was October 15 so they really had no choice, or time to dally. Agree to affirm alignment with state standards and we can get our money and all is good.
Judy Burns, Miguel Cuevas, and Adelita Grijalva needed no convincing; the likelihood that they would be held personally responsible for cheating kids out of a quality education, exploiting kids, or illegal activities is slim to none.
Dr. Mark Stegeman asked Menconi what he would say to someone if confronted with a question about his role in falsely affirming that the curriculum was in alignment, “Am I just supposed to say, well staff told me it was okay?” She replied that yes in fact that is all he needs to say. He was the lone “No” vote.
Miguel deserves a fun trip and an education too
Telling his fellow Board members that he was sorely inexperienced for his position and travelling to conferences provided that needed experience, Miguel Cuevas begged for his trip to Boston to attend the National School Board Association conference. He argued that he made many sacrifices for the Board and deserved a trip.
Pedicone pleaded his case, and Judy Burns who had just two weeks ago voted against the trip because she went to one NSBA conference and found it unhelpful and the district couldn’t afford it, argued this time that as the largest school district in the area, the district should be represented at it.
Stegeman argued that he has never seen any of the other Board at the local Pima County school board meetings that at $30 a meeting cost 1/100th of the $3200 cost for the one trip to Boston. He told the group that if Miguel needed experience with other Board members and districts, the monthly meeting could provide that. Stegeman is the only TUSD Governing Board member who attends those meetings.
Miguel’s trip to Boston was approved and Pedicone will dip into his own Superintendent fund to join him. Pedicone stated, “If one of my Board members goes, then I must go.” Moreover, that was really, what it was all about for Hicks. The NSBA is the foremost head hunting service for public school superintendents, if a superintendent hopes for a good job in the future, they don’t ever miss the annual NSBA networking gala.
We don’t care about teachers, we have places to go
While voting to spend more money on travel, the Board appeared to ignore the pleas of current TUSD employees, formerly with Rincon, who asked that the Board pay their bills. It seems as if the district, when firing experienced teachers to replace them with inexperienced teachers, failed to pay those who had been victims of the unnecessary “turnaround” at Rincon.
The district had decided last year to secure heaps of grant money by declaring Rincon a failing school despite its good performance. Millions of dollars poured into the district as a result, at the expense of kids and teachers. Rincon was one of the few TUSD secondary schools to make Adequate Yearly Progress, proving in the starkest way that the so-called turnaround was unnecessary and punitive for those teachers.
Who needs real goals when we can just make stuff up?
The Board voted to accept the Superintendent’s new goals in a 4-1 vote. The goals are vague and few are measureable. Rich Kronberg, of TU4Sd addressed the goals in a speech to the Board prior to the vote, “In the current era, the public comes to expect accountability for student learning in terms of test results. These may be AIMS tests scores and graduation rates for students, or they may be the results on high stakes tests that determine whether schools make Adequate Yearly Progress. You have shown a willingness to hold teachers accountable.”
“I would suggest that as you move forward with adopting goals for the superintendent you keep the same mindset. Ultimately, his tenure, and your judgment in hiring him, will be a function of how well students perform on these high stakes tests.”
Kronberg then offered suggested goals,” One goal should be a significant increase, perhaps 20%, in the percentage of TUSD schools making AYP. Another should be a significant reduction in the percentage of students, perhaps 10%, failing to pass AIMS tests. I would also suggest that a third goal…which has a direct correlation to student success… is a significant increase, say 5%, in the percentage of TUSD’s budget that goes into the classroom as defined by the State Auditor General.”
Several people in the room laughed when Kronberg stated, “ As your chief executive officer, Dr. Pedicone has many responsibilities, such as making sure his staff knows how to count instructional hours and see that students are picked up and dropped off by TUSD’s busses, but none is more important than the academic performance of students.”
The district was fined this year over $1 million for failing to provide adequate schools hours for students. Parents and Board members have complained about inability of administrator Candy Egbert to manage the bus schedules, and get kids to schools and from school in a reasonable period of time.
We don’t need a real reason to spend money. We want to go to Boston!
“I also want to apply the rubric of measurable academic achievement to the Governing Board. I notice that out of state travel to a national school board association event is listed on your agenda. I would ask you to consider whether this trip…or any other out of state trip by elected leaders or TUSD staff… will have a measurable and immediate impact on student achievement. Unless you can answer that question with a “Yes, it certainly will,” then the trip should not be funded by TUSD. In more than 30 years of tracking student progress and school governance I have never seen significant positive impacts on student success come from attending such meetings.”
His words fell on deaf ears, it is business as usual. The State’s report cards for schools districts came out yesterday. TUSD is failing most of its students. The students, parents, teachers, and taxpayers are not failing them.
From yesterday’s article TUSD’s Governing Board agenda tonight raises questions
The Board has until October 15 to affirm to the State that its curriculum is in alignment with state standards. The affirming document reads:
Declaration of Curricular and instructional Alignment to the Arizona Academic Standards
All public schools (including charter schools) must submit annually to the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) a Declaration of Curricular and Instructional Alignment to the Arizona Academic Standards for language arts (Reading Standard Articulated by Grade Level 2003 and Writing Standard Articulated by Grade Level 2004), mathematics (2008 Mathematics Standard Articulated by Grade Level), science (Science Standard Articulated by Grade Level 2004) and social studies (Social Studies Standard Articulated by Grade Level 2005) referred to in this document collectively as the :”standards.” The Declaration requires affirmations from the governing board, superintendent, and principal (equivalent charter school officials), regarding the alignment of curriculum and the evaluation of instruction to the Standards.
The documents raises many questions:
Adelita Grijalva has stated that the board has failed to review and approve over 80% of the curriculum, is it possible to make this affirmation without that approval, if in fact that approval is required by state law?
If in fact the Board has not reviewed the curriculum, how can it honestly affirm that it complies?
Maria Menconi stated in her testimony that the district’s administration is still in the process of determining what the curricula is and that there is no standard curriculum adopted for various areas of instruction. Is it possible, for a district to affirm compliance with standards if they are unable to ascertain what they are using to meet to standards?