Joan Harrell in charge of elementary education. Hopefully she will work herself in a lather and self-implode...and then Dr. Johnson will not know what to do with herself.
Maybe Sara Bogard at Tech will do something other than water plants and work on the plants and bushes....She might even get involved in the Eduational program at Tech..that would be cause to shoot off fireworks.
I'm a parent in the IPS district and currently in school to be a teacher, and I think charter schools are the future, whether we want them to be or not. They provide parents with options, and they can try programs that districts cannot because of teacher's unions and school boards. We can scream about them until the cows come home, but I can't imagine that voters will suddenly go backwards on this. Obviously, I could be wrong, but that's my two cents.
Charter schools are a sham. Any school that can reject students who are a challenge is not a real school. It is just an elitist place for parents who want to brag that their children are in a school with good scores. Of course, they SHOULD have good scores as they remove any students who are struggling. Even then many of them have scores worse than public schools. Perhaps that is because so many of their so called teachers are not even trained to be teachers.
You're an idiot. I'm pretty sure I know who you are because you're the only one I know that's a) stupid enough to believe that and b) stupid enough to think other people are stupid enough to believe that. There are smart arguments for and against charter schools. Learn about them before you join in a grown-up conversation.
Why do people have to resort to name calling?!! Can't we just have a conversation?
My problem with dismissing charter schools as a whole is that it ignores the concerns that have created the need/desire for charter schools in the first place. If certain charter schools are doing illegal things (selection process or hiring unlicensed teachers) then obviously that needs to be reported. But I think most of them are just as legitimate as IPS. Some are doing good things, some aren't. I think practically speaking, they are the ones doing the hiring, so new teachers have to be open minded to them.
Could you please name the principal or the school, where the principal needs to grow a pair, in order to handle discipline? There are so many principals at IPS schools who need to grow a pair(including several male principals) and handle the discipline that is ruining over 90% of the IPS schools!
Li Yen Johnson's Florida properties (two lots in the Ft. Lauderdale area) have been foreclosed by Huntington Mortgage Company as of 4/23/10. One would think that she surely earns enough money to pay her monthly mortgage, even on vacation property. Foreclosures wreck a credit score.
My sister and I both live in the same neighborhood in IPS. Both of us put our names in for a couple of charter schools, and her kids got into the best one, and my kids went to the other one. She's really happy with hers, but mine was a mess. I put my kids back in IPS. So I think it just depends that's all.
Is she married? If her husband lost income, or if they lost investment money or if there was some unexpected major expense, they wouldn't have been able to sell their properties in this market. That's what's such a shame. Real estate was always considered a smart investment, but this last recession has hurt a lot of people who really weren't dumb with their money (along with a lot of people who WERE dumb with their money of course). I'm a teacher and one of five siblings (all of us in our 30s) and in the last two years, I went from being the lowest paid to the highest paid (their incomes all went down, mine didn't go up much). This economy has been tough on many many people. I'm certainly not passing judgment on the victims of it. I'm just thankful I'm not one (yet? knock on wood, lol)
People rely too much on credit. Everybody wants to live the lifestyle of someone who makes twice what they make. So you got people making $30,000 a year with $100,000 in debt. You got people making making $200,000 a year who are a million in debt. And then when anything goes wrong, they're screwed. Old ways aren't always better, but one old fashioned idea I truly believe in is living within your means. Save up and then buy things, rather than buying it on credit, gambling that your finances will always be the same or better.
No, Johnson is not married. She earns approximately $117,000 in annual salary from IPS...has assets in excess of $900,000; however, has debts in excess of $800,000. Appears she bought rental properties as investments in both Florida and California...bought them at inflated prices and had them mortgaged, now the bottom has fallen out of the real estate market.
Charter Schools need to have more than the Mayor's Office's over seeing their actions and results. Some are a excellent idea and allow parents to send their children to a normal township type school with good results. Many others are nothing but a sham and give jobs to some select members of the community, who lack a degree from any place.
Li Yen Johnson was foolish about buying property on margin, always pay cash for your homes. I am in a good position, mostly cash, some stocks, and four retirement incomes coming in now. I live in a modest home, 2,500 sq ft that was paid for in 1984, and able to save most of my income. Does this mean that Li Yen will not dress up as much for work, I loved her Jade outfit?
Amen,you are buying on margin, hoping and praying that the home has a higher value when you sale. Must folks have a 3% to 5% margin on the home, which his eaten up with interest, closing costs, and loss of value of the home.
Dr. Johnson is not the only Ed Center person to spend more than they earn. A few years ago Jane Ajabu filed for personal bankruptcy and had X number of dollars taken out of her IPS paycheck each month to satisfy certain of her creditors.
The property that Li Yen Johnson had foreclosed because she could not make the payments on her $117,000 annual salary is located in Fort Myers not Fort Lauderdale.....image making that kind of money and not being able to pay your bills...certainly shows poor management skills. I suspect that she spent way too much money on clothes.......and failed to pay her mortgage.......so the taxpayers have to pick up her deliquency. This is white collar welfare which makes Li Yen Johnson a welfare queen.
Johnson also had a mortgage on California property that is default. She may have a high IQ, but her common sense is lacking. Having $70,000 in credit card debt is over the edge for even the biggest of spenders. It will be a long, long time before her credit score permits her getting any loans or credit cards. Good credit has become so important during this down economy that many employers do a credit check on prospective employees.
While a foreclosure is obviously going to hurt anyone's credit, i would imagine that impact it would have on future employment would be minimal. Like the poster above said, most people have a mortgage, assuming their money situation will stay the same or get better. This mortgage crisis didn't start with Johnson, and it won't end with her. And while it's funny to giggle at the wealthier losing their wealth, we as teachers should be aware that it's killing the tax pool that funds education.
Li Yen Johnson is still a taker and not a giver. She lives off of taxpayers via her salary and even her multiple foreclosures......How can any intelligent person have that much credit card debt??? Maybe all the traveling she has done on the IPS checkbook should have been cancelled and she could have stayed home and gotten a second job. Many teachers work second jobs.......
Nobody cares, but the blogmaster really, really, really wants this to be the topic of conversation. If we keep contesting this garbage and starting more intelligent conversations, the crap will stop or the blog will shut down.
My sympathies and well-wishes to everyone going through tough financial times -- teachers, administrators, and everyone else.
So kind of along the same lines as charters, do you think the magnet school expansion is a good thing?
Foreclosures and bankruptcies do indeed destroy a person's credit. As somebody wrote above, it is very common for companies (in the private sector) to check a job candidate's credit history. If the job candidate has a poor credit history and a low credit score (i.e., bankruptcy, collections, late payments, etc.), then the company tends to believe a candidate who cannot manage his own financial affairs would not be adept at managing company finances. Try renting an apartment anywhere with a low credit score, or try getting a loan anywhere with a low credit score.
I do think the magnet school expansion is a good thing. I think it allows for some option programs without turning everything into a free-for-all. And the district still retains the money with magnets, instead of losing money to the charter schools.
Copied and pasted from an Online article... Re: the importance of a good credit history and score _________________________________________________
Just as lenders may see you as a risky borrower if you have a poor credit score, employers may also view you as a risky employee.
If you're interviewing for a position that involves finances, confidentiality, and handling money then it's likely that your employer will run a credit check before they make you a job offer. Some companies check applicants' credit regardless of the specific position under consideration.
K.E. Varner, author of The Insider's Guide to Credit Repair, sums up the concept like this: "Overall, it's a reflection of a person's character. That's the assumption these companies make. Given everybody is equal in their backgrounds and skill set, if one person has a better credit score, you're probably going to be better off with that person."
Yes, magnet school teachers use the same pay schedule as other IPS teachers. Magnet school teachers have a little better job security than other new teachers (when a traditional school closes, layoffs of new teachers doesn't include magnet school teachers. They form their own pool and are only laid off if that specific magnet school needs to lay off.)
District pay scales are often available at township websites. In the indianapolis metro, Washington Township, Hamilton County and IPS have the highest starting salary ($35,811, $35,713, and $35,684 respectively). Greenwood and Greenfield are lowest ($32,033 and $31,903).
Many insurance companies now want to see your credit report as they believe that it is an indicator of character and ability to accept responsiblity. I think it is also. You would think that after Eugene White allowed Li Yen to travel all over the world with him that he would be willing to help out on her mortgage.
Regarding the salary info above, IPS might have one of the higher starting salaries, but the environment is a big factor too. Consider the increased support for teachers, the few extra bucks doesn't really matter.
Speak for yourself about the few bucks not mattering. The difference between $35,684 and 31,903 is $3781, or 300+ per month. Not to mention, I'm sure Greenwood and Greenfield teachers would love to talk with you about all the support they supposedly get!
But the choice isn't whether to keep the caring students and parents in regular IPS schools or move them to magnets. The choice is give them magnet options or lose them to charter schools or to some of the districts that don't charge tuition for out-of-district transfers. Magnet schools keep the students (and student funding) within IPS.
I'm anxious to see enrollment numbers this fall. Last year, the numbers seemed to indicate that magnets were slowing the exodus out of IPS. It will be interesting to see if the data supports that or contradicts it.
LOL! Why are you all waiting until now to have a good discussion! We haven't had one in months, and now you all start one when I'm on my way out the door! I'm undecided about magnets. And charters. I'll read one thing or hear this-and-that and be for them and then read something else and hear such-and-such and I second guess myself. I imagine I'll adjust to anything though.
The "hood" mentality I am seeing is not about positive parenting, setting a good example or being a contributing member of society. It is all about "ME" and don't forget it!
Uh, have you taught in Greenwood or Greenfield? You wouldn't believe the ignorant, hateful, racist, sexist, homophobic garbage that passes for decency. And if you correct their children or try to teach them to think critically, you're anti-Christian or un-American. And they definitely have their share of single-parent families, drugs and alcohol, and welfare families. I didn't say I loved the hood mentality. I said I find it easier to take than the redneck mentality.
Yeah, I think you'll have your good and bad in any district. Look at what happened in Carmel. Yeah, I'm another one who will take my flawed urban kids over the flawed suburban kids.
Whether a person is described as being "redneck", "from the hood", "trailer park trash", or "hillbilly", it all boils down to the same common denominator...they are ALL narrow-minded, have tunnel vision, refuse to acknowledge the differences in culture, etc., etc., and etc. I've taught in the rural South and in the inner city, here in IPS. I have found that ignorance is the same no matter how you dress it up, color its skin, or listen to its speech patterns.
Good post. I also think it's a matter of perspective. Many of us are more comfortable with urban ignorance than rural ignorance or vice versa. Probably has to do with where we come from ourselves.
Some added thoughts about "redneck mentality" vs "hood mentality"...
When I was teaching in the rural South and working primarily with a student population having a "redneck mentality", I learned that the "redneck" kids thought all African-Americans were "ghetto or from the hood". On the other hand, teaching here in IPS, I've learned that the "hood kids" tend to believe that all white people are "rednecks". Both groups have such narrow minds and limited areas of experience with people who look different, talk differently, dress differently, etc.
As a white person, I realized long ago that one can take the person out of the "trailer park", but it's hard to take the "trailer park" out of the person. I wonder if the same holds true for African-Americans. Just curious to hear what others experiences are.
In my experience, kids are kids. Kids then, kids now, kids there, kids here. All of them are both special and flawed and all of them come from special and flawed families and special and flawed cultures. And they all want to be respected and all of them want to fit in and all of them want to feel smart and do things that they find interesting. I think the "culture clash" between teachers and students is much more about how adults are different from kids than how kids are different from each other.
InIPS, I have yet to hear of coaches permitting perverts from inflicting sexual deviant attacks on other students on the bus. I also have not heard of a principal and or school board trying to cover it up or pass it off as "horseplay". I am so glad that my kids do NOT go to Carmel schools or that I teach in that kind of culture.
Ex-Substitute Teacher Accused Of Molesting Girl, 13
INDIANAPOLIS -- A man was arrested over the weekend on suspicion of molesting a 13-year-old girl while he was a substitute teacher at her Indianapolis middle school last year.
Police said Larry Wilcoxson, 27, is accused of molesting a Longfellow Middle School eighth-grader three times in June 2005. He was arrested Saturday and was being held in jail Monday.
Wilcoxson was fired from his substitute teaching job in February (2006) after being accused of exposing himself to a female custodian, 6News reported. _______________________________________________
It took this 13 year old female student's mother one entire year of reporting this molestation to the principal, Phyllis Barnes, and to the IPS Security Officers at Longfellow before the mother finally filed a Civil Suit against IPS, the IPS School Board, and IMPD. The Civil Suit charged that the defendents did a shoddy job of their investigation, that they made light of the child's claim of abuse at school, and that the mother was only trying to get Wilcoxson because he was a relative of an NFL player. Not until a year later when an IPS female custodian reported that Wilcoxson had 'exposed' himself to her at school, was this man fired.
IMPD was released from the suit by the Plaintiff. IPS and the IPS School Board finally had to 'settle' monetarily with the mother and child because they'd not taken the child's complaints of being molested seriously and had not investigated the complaints properly.
I have read a lot of comments about hillbillies, white trash, and the ghetto mentality in this post. It sounds as if you are talking about children living in poverty. I taught at an elite private school before I taught in IPS. The kids in this school also had a lot of problems with family issues and substance abuse. The attitude at the private school about substance abuse was that kids will be kids. When urban kids do the same things, their behavior is seen as some sort of culturally-induced social pathology. When kids at the private school sold drugs at school, they weren't arrested or expelled. Their parents made large donations to the school to buy the school's silence. I had some students who were essentially abandoned by their workaholic parents and raised by nannies. The biggest difference between the wealthy kids and the urban kids in IPS is that the wealthy kids' parents had the money to pay for individual tutors, psychologists, and whatever the else that their kids needed whereas IPS parents often don't have the financial means to get the support that their kids need. Even when they reach out to the court system or social service agencies, they often get little or no support.
re: "When kids at the private school sold drugs at school, they weren't arrested or expelled. "
Like they are disciplined in any way in IPS. In our quest to be politically correct, God forbid that someone be expelled for selling drugs at a school. We talk a big game but the fact is they are reluctant to expel anyone out of fear of lawsuits by The Urban League and others.
"Like they are disciplined in any way in IPS. In our quest to be politically correct, God forbid that someone be expelled for selling drugs at a school. We talk a big game but the fact is they are reluctant to expel anyone out of fear of lawsuits by The Urban League and others."
Really? Maybe the quest is to keep kids in school whether that is in their home school or an alternative setting. If these young people are not in school, then where are they? Think about that.
@@I have read a lot of comments about hillbillies, white trash, and the ghetto mentality in this post. It sounds as if you are talking about children living in poverty. ____________________________________________
Yes, it can be a matter of poverty; however, there are countless rednecks, hillbillies, and hood people who have deep pockets. It's more a matter of 'mindset', 'attitude', and/or 'behavior'.
I've known lots of folks who would be considered redneck or hillbilly and even refer to themselves as rednecks despite their healthy bank accounts. These are folks who had redneck grandparents, had redneck parents, grew up in a redneck neighborhood, went to school with other rednecks, and then who happened to have enough smarts to 'hit it big' with some job endeavor. Some of us would call these people the 'nouveau riche'. Rich rednecks usually drive expensive luxury cars, live in large houses typically furnished in a gaudy fashion, still speak using bad grammar, and still maintain their redneck mentality despite their money.
Likely as not, there are similar instances of hood people who get rich, but they still maintain their 'hood mentality' and drive big flashy expensive luxury cars, live in big houses furnished with flashy items, etc.
You can take a man out of the 'redneck area', but it's an entirely different matter to take the 'redneck' out of the man. Mindsets, attitudes, and behaviors are extremely hard to change, even with a fat bank account. No, poverty is not always the cause of students performing poorly in school or behaving rudely in life.
Look at some of the IPS adminsitrators for redneck and hood mentalities. Li Yen Johnson even had her Florida home foreclosed. How could someone with an education have &70,000 worth of credit card debt??
I have never in my 17 years of teaching in IPS known a student on public assistance who drove an Explorer. Never once. Some people can't find real evidence to support their stereotypes, so they have to make them up.
I have three summer school students whose family is on assistance that were dropped off in nice SUVs today and they are all wearing new jordans. Not a made up story. This happened and it is ridiculous.
Just because you say it's not made up does not mean it's not made up. When someone says they know "three" examples of some situation, that's a common psychological indicator that the person is lying -- in the future try using two or four :)
The same financial documents that would allow someone to finance a vehicle would prevent people from receiving assistance. When you see the child driving or riding in an expensive vehicle, it likely belongs to the child's noncustodial parent, grandparents, bf or gf of the parent, uncle, aunt, neighbor, etc.
The three students are siblings. One suv dropped them off. After school however, Someone else picked them up in a different although equally nice suv. Just to clarify doubter.
I learned a long time ago, it is about a "future" oriented mindset versus a "present" oriented mindset; that's why the amount of money doesn't necessarily correct the "problems." But, that whole future oriented is pretty middle class and folks like to be where they are comfortable.
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Arlington Community School with all of the administrators will be a huge flop for Dr. White.
ReplyDeleteMary Busch will attempt to tell the 2 new school board members how to vote and behave on the board.
ReplyDeleteJoan Harrell in charge of elementary education. Hopefully she will work herself in a lather and self-implode...and then Dr. Johnson will not know what to do with herself.
ReplyDeleteI can only hope my principal will grow a pair and actually do discipline.
ReplyDeleteMaybe Sara Bogard at Tech will do something other than water plants and work on the plants and bushes....She might even get involved in the Eduational program at Tech..that would be cause to shoot off fireworks.
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing what you find online when you google someone's name, like Li Yen Johnson.....www.review.net/legal-notice-uploads/2010-4-23-Lee1.pdf
ReplyDeleteCharter schools....are they our future?
ReplyDeleteI'm a parent in the IPS district and currently in school to be a teacher, and I think charter schools are the future, whether we want them to be or not. They provide parents with options, and they can try programs that districts cannot because of teacher's unions and school boards. We can scream about them until the cows come home, but I can't imagine that voters will suddenly go backwards on this. Obviously, I could be wrong, but that's my two cents.
ReplyDeleteCharter schools are a sham. Any school that can reject students who are a challenge is not a real school. It is just an elitist place for parents who want to brag that their children are in a school with good scores. Of course, they SHOULD have good scores as they remove any students who are struggling. Even then many of them have scores worse than public schools. Perhaps that is because so many of their so called teachers are not even trained to be teachers.
ReplyDeleteYou're an idiot. I'm pretty sure I know who you are because you're the only one I know that's a) stupid enough to believe that and b) stupid enough to think other people are stupid enough to believe that. There are smart arguments for and against charter schools. Learn about them before you join in a grown-up conversation.
ReplyDeleteWhy do people have to resort to name calling?!! Can't we just have a conversation?
ReplyDeleteMy problem with dismissing charter schools as a whole is that it ignores the concerns that have created the need/desire for charter schools in the first place. If certain charter schools are doing illegal things (selection process or hiring unlicensed teachers) then obviously that needs to be reported. But I think most of them are just as legitimate as IPS. Some are doing good things, some aren't. I think practically speaking, they are the ones doing the hiring, so new teachers have to be open minded to them.
Could you please name the principal or the school, where the principal needs to grow a pair, in order to handle discipline? There are so many principals at IPS schools who need to grow a pair(including several male principals) and handle the discipline that is ruining over 90% of the IPS schools!
ReplyDeleteLi Yen Johnson's Florida properties (two lots in the Ft. Lauderdale area) have been foreclosed by Huntington Mortgage Company as of 4/23/10. One would think that she surely earns enough money to pay her monthly mortgage, even on vacation property. Foreclosures wreck a credit score.
ReplyDelete@It's amazing what you find online
ReplyDeleteIt is also amazing that this lady cannot live on $117,000 per year and that bankruptcy proceedings were filed voluntarily in July 2009.
My sister and I both live in the same neighborhood in IPS. Both of us put our names in for a couple of charter schools, and her kids got into the best one, and my kids went to the other one. She's really happy with hers, but mine was a mess. I put my kids back in IPS. So I think it just depends that's all.
ReplyDeleteIs she married? If her husband lost income, or if they lost investment money or if there was some unexpected major expense, they wouldn't have been able to sell their properties in this market. That's what's such a shame. Real estate was always considered a smart investment, but this last recession has hurt a lot of people who really weren't dumb with their money (along with a lot of people who WERE dumb with their money of course). I'm a teacher and one of five siblings (all of us in our 30s) and in the last two years, I went from being the lowest paid to the highest paid (their incomes all went down, mine didn't go up much). This economy has been tough on many many people. I'm certainly not passing judgment on the victims of it. I'm just thankful I'm not one (yet? knock on wood, lol)
ReplyDeletePeople rely too much on credit. Everybody wants to live the lifestyle of someone who makes twice what they make. So you got people making $30,000 a year with $100,000 in debt. You got people making making $200,000 a year who are a million in debt. And then when anything goes wrong, they're screwed. Old ways aren't always better, but one old fashioned idea I truly believe in is living within your means. Save up and then buy things, rather than buying it on credit, gambling that your finances will always be the same or better.
ReplyDelete@Is she married?
ReplyDeleteNo, Johnson is not married. She earns approximately $117,000 in annual salary from IPS...has assets in excess of $900,000; however, has debts in excess of $800,000. Appears she bought rental properties as investments in both Florida and California...bought them at inflated prices and had them mortgaged, now the bottom has fallen out of the real estate market.
Charter Schools need to have more than the Mayor's Office's over seeing their actions and results. Some are a excellent idea and allow parents to send their children to a normal township type school with good results. Many others are nothing but a sham and give jobs to some select members of the community, who lack a degree from any place.
ReplyDeleteLi Yen Johnson was foolish about buying property on margin, always pay cash for your homes. I am in a good position, mostly cash, some stocks, and four retirement incomes coming in now. I live in a modest home, 2,500 sq ft that was paid for in 1984, and able to save most of my income. Does this mean that Li Yen will not dress up as much for work, I loved her Jade outfit?
ReplyDeleteI guess that good ol Li Yen wasn't as "intentional and thoughtful" as she could have been. Couldn't have happened to a nicer person.
ReplyDelete"buying property on margin"
ReplyDeleteIsn't that a mortgage? If so, there are millions and millions of foolish people in our country.
Amen,you are buying on margin, hoping and praying that the home has a higher value when you sale. Must folks have a 3% to 5% margin on the home, which his eaten up with interest, closing costs, and loss of value of the home.
ReplyDeleteI see fireworks at Shortridge when the student count is way too low to keep all of the staff.
ReplyDeleteDr. Johnson is not the only Ed Center person to spend more than they earn. A few years ago Jane Ajabu filed for personal bankruptcy and had X number of dollars taken out of her IPS paycheck each month to satisfy certain of her creditors.
ReplyDeleteIs Michael Sertic going to be able to handle all the jobs he will have next year at Tech? I predict fireworks!
ReplyDeleteThe property that Li Yen Johnson had foreclosed because she could not make the payments on her $117,000 annual salary is located in Fort Myers not Fort Lauderdale.....image making that kind of money and not being able to pay your bills...certainly shows poor management skills. I suspect that she spent way too much money on clothes.......and failed to pay her mortgage.......so the taxpayers have to pick up her deliquency. This is white collar welfare which makes Li Yen Johnson a welfare queen.
ReplyDeleteJohnson also had a mortgage on California property that is default. She may have a high IQ, but her common sense is lacking. Having $70,000 in credit card debt is over the edge for even the biggest of spenders. It will be a long, long time before her credit score permits her getting any loans or credit cards. Good credit has become so important during this down economy that many employers do a credit check on prospective employees.
ReplyDeleteI guess no more shoe shopping for a while, eh?This has made me smile since I found about it.
ReplyDeleteWhile a foreclosure is obviously going to hurt anyone's credit, i would imagine that impact it would have on future employment would be minimal. Like the poster above said, most people have a mortgage, assuming their money situation will stay the same or get better. This mortgage crisis didn't start with Johnson, and it won't end with her. And while it's funny to giggle at the wealthier losing their wealth, we as teachers should be aware that it's killing the tax pool that funds education.
ReplyDeletewho cares?
ReplyDeleteLi Yen Johnson is still a taker and not a giver. She lives off of taxpayers via her salary and even her multiple foreclosures......How can any intelligent person have that much credit card debt??? Maybe all the traveling she has done on the IPS checkbook should have been cancelled and she could have stayed home and gotten a second job. Many teachers work second jobs.......
ReplyDeleteNobody cares, but the blogmaster really, really, really wants this to be the topic of conversation. If we keep contesting this garbage and starting more intelligent conversations, the crap will stop or the blog will shut down.
ReplyDeleteMy sympathies and well-wishes to everyone going through tough financial times -- teachers, administrators, and everyone else.
So kind of along the same lines as charters, do you think the magnet school expansion is a good thing?
Foreclosures and bankruptcies do indeed destroy a person's credit. As somebody wrote above, it is very common for companies (in the private sector) to check a job candidate's credit history. If the job candidate has a poor credit history and a low credit score (i.e., bankruptcy, collections, late payments, etc.), then the company tends to believe a candidate who cannot manage his own financial affairs would not be adept at managing company finances. Try renting an apartment anywhere with a low credit score, or try getting a loan anywhere with a low credit score.
ReplyDeleteCouldn't Eugene White pay some of her bills. She is his Deputy....isn't she?
ReplyDeleteI do think the magnet school expansion is a good thing. I think it allows for some option programs without turning everything into a free-for-all. And the district still retains the money with magnets, instead of losing money to the charter schools.
ReplyDelete"Couldn't Eugene White pay some of her bills. She is his Deputy....isn't she?"
ReplyDeleteWould Andy Taylor be responsible for Barney Fife's debt? I don't think so.
How much US government cash is channeled into magnets? They used to be cash cows, then the milk quit producing.
ReplyDeleteMagnet school teachers are on the same pay scale as other IPS teachers, right?
ReplyDeleteIn this case, I think Eugene White is more like Barney Fife!!!!
ReplyDeleteCopied and pasted from an Online article...
ReplyDeleteRe: the importance of a good credit history and score
_________________________________________________
Just as lenders may see you as a risky borrower if you have a poor credit score, employers may also view you as a risky employee.
If you're interviewing for a position that involves finances, confidentiality, and handling money then it's likely that your employer will run a credit check before they make you a job offer. Some companies check applicants' credit regardless of the specific position under consideration.
K.E. Varner, author of The Insider's Guide to Credit Repair, sums up the concept like this: "Overall, it's a reflection of a person's character. That's the assumption these companies make. Given everybody is equal in their backgrounds and skill set, if one person has a better credit score, you're probably going to be better off with that person."
I have a question about pay scales too. How do you find out district pay scales for teachers?
ReplyDeleteYes, magnet school teachers use the same pay schedule as other IPS teachers. Magnet school teachers have a little better job security than other new teachers (when a traditional school closes, layoffs of new teachers doesn't include magnet school teachers. They form their own pool and are only laid off if that specific magnet school needs to lay off.)
ReplyDeleteDistrict pay scales are often available at township websites. In the indianapolis metro, Washington Township, Hamilton County and IPS have the highest starting salary ($35,811, $35,713, and $35,684 respectively). Greenwood and Greenfield are lowest ($32,033 and $31,903).
Many insurance companies now want to see your credit report as they believe that it is an indicator of character and ability to accept responsiblity. I think it is also. You would think that after Eugene White allowed Li Yen to travel all over the world with him that he would be willing to help out on her mortgage.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the salary info above, IPS might have one of the higher starting salaries, but the environment is a big factor too. Consider the increased support for teachers, the few extra bucks doesn't really matter.
ReplyDeleteI have the same problem with magnets as I do with charters, they pull out many of the students who care and parents who care.
ReplyDeleteSpeak for yourself about the few bucks not mattering. The difference between $35,684 and 31,903 is $3781, or 300+ per month. Not to mention, I'm sure Greenwood and Greenfield teachers would love to talk with you about all the support they supposedly get!
ReplyDeleteBut the choice isn't whether to keep the caring students and parents in regular IPS schools or move them to magnets. The choice is give them magnet options or lose them to charter schools or to some of the districts that don't charge tuition for out-of-district transfers. Magnet schools keep the students (and student funding) within IPS.
ReplyDeleteI'm anxious to see enrollment numbers this fall. Last year, the numbers seemed to indicate that magnets were slowing the exodus out of IPS. It will be interesting to see if the data supports that or contradicts it.
ReplyDeleteLOL! Why are you all waiting until now to have a good discussion! We haven't had one in months, and now you all start one when I'm on my way out the door! I'm undecided about magnets. And charters. I'll read one thing or hear this-and-that and be for them and then read something else and hear such-and-such and I second guess myself. I imagine I'll adjust to anything though.
ReplyDeleteGive me the "hood" mentality over that "good old boy" mentality any day of the week!!!
ReplyDeleteDo you mean the hood mentality that:
ReplyDeleteEmbraces the smallest effort for the biggest reward?
is about exploiting the weaknesses of others?
supports the government paying the bills and solving my problems?
AND supports resolving differences through violence and hostility?
This is the hood metality that you'll take any day of the week? No wonder IPS is so screwed up.
The "hood" mentality I am seeing is not about positive parenting, setting a good example or being a contributing member of society. It is all about "ME" and don't forget it!
ReplyDeleteUh, have you taught in Greenwood or Greenfield? You wouldn't believe the ignorant, hateful, racist, sexist, homophobic garbage that passes for decency. And if you correct their children or try to teach them to think critically, you're anti-Christian or un-American. And they definitely have their share of single-parent families, drugs and alcohol, and welfare families. I didn't say I loved the hood mentality. I said I find it easier to take than the redneck mentality.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I think you'll have your good and bad in any district. Look at what happened in Carmel. Yeah, I'm another one who will take my flawed urban kids over the flawed suburban kids.
ReplyDeleteWhether a person is described as being "redneck", "from the hood", "trailer park trash", or "hillbilly", it all boils down to the same common denominator...they are ALL narrow-minded, have tunnel vision, refuse to acknowledge the differences in culture, etc., etc., and etc. I've taught in the rural South and in the inner city, here in IPS. I have found that ignorance is the same no matter how you dress it up, color its skin, or listen to its speech patterns.
ReplyDeleteGood post. I also think it's a matter of perspective. Many of us are more comfortable with urban ignorance than rural ignorance or vice versa. Probably has to do with where we come from ourselves.
ReplyDeleteLong live the BAT.
ReplyDeleteSome added thoughts about "redneck mentality" vs "hood mentality"...
ReplyDeleteWhen I was teaching in the rural South and working primarily with a student population having a "redneck mentality", I learned that the "redneck" kids thought all African-Americans were "ghetto or from the hood". On the other hand, teaching here in IPS, I've learned that the "hood kids" tend to believe that all white people are "rednecks". Both groups have such narrow minds and limited areas of experience with people who look different, talk differently, dress differently, etc.
As a white person, I realized long ago that one can take the person out of the "trailer park", but it's hard to take the "trailer park" out of the person. I wonder if the same holds true for African-Americans. Just curious to hear what others experiences are.
In my experience, kids are kids. Kids then, kids now, kids there, kids here. All of them are both special and flawed and all of them come from special and flawed families and special and flawed cultures. And they all want to be respected and all of them want to fit in and all of them want to feel smart and do things that they find interesting. I think the "culture clash" between teachers and students is much more about how adults are different from kids than how kids are different from each other.
ReplyDeleteInIPS, I have yet to hear of coaches permitting perverts from inflicting sexual deviant attacks on other students on the bus. I also have not heard of a principal and or school board trying to cover it up or pass it off as "horseplay". I am so glad that my kids do NOT go to Carmel schools or that I teach in that kind of culture.
ReplyDeleteFrom Channel 6 News on 7/25/06
ReplyDeleteEx-Substitute Teacher Accused Of Molesting Girl, 13
INDIANAPOLIS -- A man was arrested over the weekend on suspicion of molesting a 13-year-old girl while he was a substitute teacher at her Indianapolis middle school last year.
Police said Larry Wilcoxson, 27, is accused of molesting a Longfellow Middle School eighth-grader three times in June 2005. He was arrested Saturday and was being held in jail Monday.
Wilcoxson was fired from his substitute teaching job in February (2006) after being accused of exposing himself to a female custodian, 6News reported.
_______________________________________________
It took this 13 year old female student's mother one entire year of reporting this molestation to the principal, Phyllis Barnes, and to the IPS Security Officers at Longfellow before the mother finally filed a Civil Suit against IPS, the IPS School Board, and IMPD. The Civil Suit charged that the defendents did a shoddy job of their investigation, that they made light of the child's claim of abuse at school, and that the mother was only trying to get Wilcoxson because he was a relative of an NFL player. Not until a year later when an IPS female custodian reported that Wilcoxson had 'exposed' himself to her at school, was this man fired.
IMPD was released from the suit by the Plaintiff. IPS and the IPS School Board finally had to 'settle' monetarily with the mother and child because they'd not taken the child's complaints of being molested seriously and had not investigated the complaints properly.
Phyllis Barnes...surprise!!!
ReplyDelete" In the first place God made idiots. This was for practice. Then he made School Boards."
ReplyDeleteMark Twain
How could any young female teacher feel safe while teaching at Shortridge....?? A school to be avoided.
ReplyDeleteI have read a lot of comments about hillbillies, white trash, and the ghetto mentality in this post. It sounds as if you are talking about children living in poverty. I taught at an elite private school before I taught in IPS. The kids in this school also had a lot of problems with family issues and substance abuse. The attitude at the private school about substance abuse was that kids will be kids. When urban kids do the same things, their behavior is seen as some sort of culturally-induced social pathology. When kids at the private school sold drugs at school, they weren't arrested or expelled. Their parents made large donations to the school to buy the school's silence. I had some students who were essentially abandoned by their workaholic parents and raised by nannies.
ReplyDeleteThe biggest difference between the wealthy kids and the urban kids in IPS is that the wealthy kids' parents had the money to pay for individual tutors, psychologists, and whatever the else that their kids needed whereas IPS parents often don't have the financial means to get the support that their kids need. Even when they reach out to the court system or social service agencies, they often get little or no support.
They somehow (most of the time), have the means to buy air-jordans.
ReplyDeleteand carry cell phones!
ReplyDeletere: "When kids at the private school sold drugs at school, they weren't arrested or expelled. "
ReplyDeleteLike they are disciplined in any way in IPS. In our quest to be politically correct, God forbid that someone be expelled for selling drugs at a school. We talk a big game but the fact is they are reluctant to expel anyone out of fear of lawsuits by The Urban League and others.
"Like they are disciplined in any way in IPS. In our quest to be politically correct, God forbid that someone be expelled for selling drugs at a school. We talk a big game but the fact is they are reluctant to expel anyone out of fear of lawsuits by The Urban League and others."
ReplyDeleteReally? Maybe the quest is to keep kids in school whether that is in their home school or an alternative setting. If these young people are not in school, then where are they? Think about that.
Expulsion from a regular school and placed in alternative school would be great if it was ever done.
ReplyDeleteThen maybe you should teach in a school where you are physically and verbally abused on an almost daily basis.
ReplyDeleteOr come teach the Phoenix Academy. It's SOOO fun.
ReplyDelete@@I have read a lot of comments about hillbillies, white trash, and the ghetto mentality in this post. It sounds as if you are talking about children living in poverty.
ReplyDelete____________________________________________
Yes, it can be a matter of poverty; however, there are countless rednecks, hillbillies, and hood people who have deep pockets. It's more a matter of 'mindset', 'attitude', and/or 'behavior'.
I've known lots of folks who would be considered redneck or hillbilly and even refer to themselves as rednecks despite their healthy bank accounts. These are folks who had redneck grandparents, had redneck parents, grew up in a redneck neighborhood, went to school with other rednecks, and then who happened to have enough smarts to 'hit it big' with some job endeavor. Some of us would call these people the 'nouveau riche'. Rich rednecks usually drive expensive luxury cars, live in large houses typically furnished in a gaudy fashion, still speak using bad grammar, and still maintain their redneck mentality despite their money.
Likely as not, there are similar instances of hood people who get rich, but they still maintain their 'hood mentality' and drive big flashy expensive luxury cars, live in big houses furnished with flashy items, etc.
You can take a man out of the 'redneck area', but it's an entirely different matter to take the 'redneck' out of the man. Mindsets, attitudes, and behaviors are extremely hard to change, even with a fat bank account. No, poverty is not always the cause of students performing poorly in school or behaving rudely in life.
Look at some of the IPS adminsitrators for redneck and hood mentalities. Li Yen Johnson even had her Florida home foreclosed. How could someone with an education have &70,000 worth of credit card debt??
ReplyDeleteLet's look at the number on assistance who wear jordans and drive explorers with 22" rims though.
ReplyDeleteI have never in my 17 years of teaching in IPS known a student on public assistance who drove an Explorer. Never once. Some people can't find real evidence to support their stereotypes, so they have to make them up.
ReplyDeleteI have three summer school students whose family is on assistance that were dropped off in nice SUVs today and they are all wearing new jordans. Not a made up story. This happened and it is ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteJust because you say it's not made up does not mean it's not made up. When someone says they know "three" examples of some situation, that's a common psychological indicator that the person is lying -- in the future try using two or four :)
ReplyDeleteThe same financial documents that would allow someone to finance a vehicle would prevent people from receiving assistance. When you see the child driving or riding in an expensive vehicle, it likely belongs to the child's noncustodial parent, grandparents, bf or gf of the parent, uncle, aunt, neighbor, etc.
The three students are siblings. One suv dropped them off. After school however, Someone else picked them up in a different although equally nice suv. Just to clarify doubter.
ReplyDeleteI learned a long time ago, it is about a "future" oriented mindset versus a "present" oriented mindset; that's why the amount of money doesn't necessarily correct the "problems." But, that whole future oriented is pretty middle class and folks like to be where they are comfortable.
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ReplyDelete