Indiana School Data Released Today:
There are 21 individual Indiana public schools which have been on Academic Probation for 5 consecutive years.
Of that 21, seven (7) are IPS schools.
Six Indiana public schools have been on Academic Probation for 4 consecutive years. Three out of those six schools are IPS schools.
Link to IDOE data released Tuesday:
Five years on Probation --- http://www.doe.in.gov/pl221/2010/Probation_Year_Five.xls
Four years on Probation --- http://www.doe.in.gov/pl221/2010/Probation_Year_Four.xls
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
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Call Bennett's bluff. I'm anxious to see what the state thinks it can do better. If the state can turn the schools around, we win. If the state fails and has to admit that they don't have all the answers, we still win.
ReplyDeleteI read both spreadsheets. I noticed that Gambold Middle School which will be closed is NOT one of the 10 IPS schools on Probation.
ReplyDeleteGo figure out our nonsense with this decision. Closing a school that is NOT on Probation and sending those students to Northwest which has been on Probation for five years in a row. Yeah, that makes for good educational logic, doesn't it?
Also, notice that all these schools on Probation for 4 and 5 years in a row all fall under Eugene White's tenure as our Super. White has some real braggin' rights for sure.
I'm not a huge White fan, but the probation has nothing to do with his tenure and the timing of NCLB. The IDOE changed the website to hide data from the general public, but IPS has actually improved dramatically in regard to graduation rate and ISTEP scores since White became superintendent. Now you don't have to credit White for that (plenty of people will accept credit -- parents, teachers, Bennett, Daniels, Obama, Bush, etc.) and you can blame white that MORE progress hasn't been made. But he took over a dead school system. He didn't kill it.
ReplyDeletehttp://mustang.doe.state.in.us/SEARCH/snapcorp.cfm?corp=5385
ReplyDeleteIt looks like the slow improvement started before White and even before NCLB. I'll be honest, that's not what I expected to see when I Googled the data. I'm not an IPS teacher. Does anyone know what started the improvement?
First, we ALL know how Eugene manipulates and massages stats. He is also known as a liar. As much as I would like to think that this improvement is real, Eugene stats are always phony.
ReplyDeleteBut, let's keep creating new 100,000+ positions. Let's keep giving raises too!
ReplyDelete$100,000 positions - I apologize for the error, and hope the spelling and grammar police do not accost me.
ReplyDeleteIf you do a little more research, you might be surprised how far they have moved with their bluff.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.theindychannel.com/education/25881134/detail.html
ReplyDeleteWhite's interview explaining his attitude regarding education.
Once again, I DO NOT believe the state will takeover a single IPS school. It's all bluff to put pressure on IPS. The reason they won't is-how will the state explain their failure? Mitch, Tony and his cronies won't risk that!
ReplyDeleteAll of us teach in IPS know there are issues beyond our control that are keeping our students from becoming successful students. The state won't allow IPS to say back to them "We told you so."
BTW, Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!!!!!!
I agree with the post above, except that we have two schools that might be taken over by for-profit-group are Manual and Howe. They will stay away from Arlington and the few remaining middle schools.
ReplyDeleteIf IPS is not ran by the state in the next 3 years I will be shocked. Its all heading that way and Dr. White knows it and he will jump ship before it happens.
ReplyDeleteSome IPS schools will be taken over by the state. Bennett and Daniels had hundred of thousands of dollars of campaign contributions by charter and for profit schools. It is pay back time.
ReplyDeleteIt won't happen. It will not happen. To fail in such a public forum would be devastating for a politician and not a one of them has the balls to do it. There will be stalling, delays, second chances, etc.
ReplyDelete"I'm not a huge White fan, but the probation has nothing to do with his tenure and the timing of NCLB. The IDOE changed the website to hide data from the general public, but IPS has actually improved dramatically in regard to graduation rate and ISTEP scores since White became superintendent. Now you don't have to credit White for that (plenty of people will accept credit -- parents, teachers, Bennett, Daniels, Obama, Bush, etc.) and you can blame white that MORE progress hasn't been made. But he took over a dead school system. He didn't kill it."
ReplyDeleteBaloney....If he had provided any real leadership, any well thought out programs that affected student achievement there would have been progress. Good test scores are the result not the goal of education, and likewise a high graduation rate is the result of quality programs that authentically engage students in learning. Instead we have manipulation of statistics, programs that run for a year and are then dumped, and programs that are educationally unsound, like Springboard, which teaches skills in isolation, and is sold as a program to get your kids to past the test.
@Baloney....If he had provided any real leadership, any well thought out programs that affected student achievement there would have been progress. Good test scores are the result not the goal of education, and likewise a high graduation rate is the result of quality programs that authentically engage students in learning. Instead we have manipulation of statistics, programs that run for a year and are then dumped, and programs that are educationally unsound, like Springboard, which teaches skills in isolation, and is sold as a program to get your kids to past the test.
ReplyDelete_________________________________
Good post. You're talking about the same Eugene White that I know.
Eugene White has made things worse in IPS. He has jumped from one program to another while paying his cronies big money to come in for training and implementation. Before the program has a chance to make a difference, he switches to another program and another crony is brought in as a consultant. He has surrounded himself with mindless minions would are afraid to offer any opinions. He has created an aura of fear, intimidation and arrogant in the system from top to bottom. Morale is horrible. The spirit of IPS has been killed and Eugene is getting rich doing it. He is a phony and we have a spineless school board that allows him to do it. One more school board election and the puppets will be gone from the school board and perhaps then some real improvement can take place.
ReplyDeleteSo, I could be wrong, but when I looked at the calendar for next school year, the third grading period is 11 weeks long. Anyone else count the same number of weeks as I did....?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.in.gov/idoa/proc/bids/rfp-idoe-4/
ReplyDeleteThe key words are " is eligible." I will have to see it actually happen to believe it.
ReplyDeleteRight now I am concerned that teachers will not get a paycheck after Dec. 30 until January 28!!!!
ReplyDeleteTeachers will still get paid during January. That memo was for classified staff (i.e. teaching assistants) not certified staff, as teachers are. We get that memo every year....
ReplyDelete@http://www.in.gov/idoa/proc/bids/rfp-idoe-4/
ReplyDelete_______________________________________
Read the above...saw one page where groups interested in being the turn-around operators or managers had signed in for a meeting...only names that were familiar were: Edison and Tindley
Baker And Daniels? What are they doing there?
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info on pay.
ReplyDeleteTindley's stats are very good. I wonder if they could pull off a turnaround of an IPS high school.
ReplyDeleteEdison (magnet schools on the south side), Tindley and Edicians (charter school company, including Herron) all have had success with populations that traditionally don't do well in IPS (racial minorities, low-income, urban, special ed, ESL, etc.) To me, those are strong names in Indianapolis education. White Hat is a charter school company with schools in Ohio, and American Quality Schools is a charter school company with schools in Northern Indiana. I can't find anything on Singular Learning, but Schmidt's e-mail address is from Schmidt Architecture, which is an Indiana Archiecture firm. That may or may not be relevant. The Corydon Group is a Government Affaris Firm that helps companies with the bureaucratic part of state government. The Urban League is an African-American advocacy group -- Jamie Garwood is involved with the Fort Wayne branch. Baker and Daniels is a law firm that does community involvement projects within IPS and Fort Wayne Community Schools.
ReplyDeleteSorry, I left off a comma between Tindley and Edicians, and it makes it look like I think they are partners. They are not. Tindley is short for the Charles A. Tindley Accelerated School, a charter school in Indy. Edicians is a separate company with several charter schools, including Herron High School in Indianapolis.
ReplyDeleteI think anyone who doesn't think the state is actively planning to take over at least some of these schools is delusional.
ReplyDeleteI know two sets of parents and two teachers who don't think Herron High School is all that some believe it to be and they certainly do NOT provide the required services to special needs students. They are either ignored or quickly counseled into returning to the public schools.
ReplyDeleteWe know you don't like charter schools. Isn't it fortunate nobody is forcing you to put your kid in one. If you know people who would rather send their kids to IPS high schools versus Herron, fine. I don't know a single one. I do know students who drive 40 miles a day to attend Herron. My kids are in an IPS magnet, but for high school, I'll try for Herron. It was voted #26 in the nation in Newsweek's "America's Best High Schools" list. http://www.newsweek.com/feature/2010/americas-best-high-schools/list.html That's pretty strong. (Zionsville was #605, Hamilton Southeaster #1188)
ReplyDeleteBoth Herron and Tindley have their own problems, Tindley had to answer to the Charter School Board, which just rubbered stamped their actions. Both schools dump the students after ADM, they have them resign to keep their records clear for being picked up by IPS.
ReplyDeleteAgain, nobody's taking away your right to boycott Herron and Tindley (even it's based on your fabricated reasons that don't show up on the school migration stats).
ReplyDeleteThey are your children. You can claim that you are home schooling them and do nothing. That happens frequently. It does not help to use baseless claims and manufactured stats from marketing ploys to make Tindley or Herron or any other school appear to be something it is not.
ReplyDeleteWell, there are always going to be the horror stories and gossip. But statistically, both of those charter schools (and home-schooling for that matter,lol) blow IPS out of the water in every conceivable demographic, including special ed. Repeating what you heard about so-and-so who knows someone who sent her kid to such-and-such school... or what your neighbor said about her sister who said she was homeschooling but didn't do anything... it doesn't change real data -- statistics, trends, etc. You're exhibiting the lack of critical thinking and ability to objectively research issues that plagues so many of our schools.
ReplyDeleteYou dismiss the fact that many of us are in IPS schools who receive the "push outs" from Herron and other charters. They do not want to deal with the special needs students and the expenses associated with them. I have a copy of a letter from a prominent charter school which states that the student must withdraw and return to the public schools. The child's misdeed was that he had missed his 7th day of the semester. This is not gossip or third hand or any of your other snide scenarios. Talk to the teachers and administrators and see what FIRST HAND stories they can tell you about the charter schools throw away kids. This happens especially after ADM day.
ReplyDeleteCHANGE OF TOPIC Since IEA never communicates with us, can anyone confirm or refute the rumor that IPS teachers are going to be forced onto the state's health insurance program starting January 1, 2011. I understand that it is quite expensive and the teachers will have to pay the first $3000 to $4000 dollars of office visits and prescriptions before the insurance starts paying anything. Does anyone know or know how the state's insurance works. Too bad we belong to a union that won't communicate with us.
ReplyDeleteIPS has established a group of high schools, more specifically the community high schools, that now serve to house the 'throw away' students that the IPS magnet schools and the charter schools do not want.
ReplyDeleteI'm not the person you were originally arguing with, but I agree that objective data trumps personal experience, even if it's firsthand. Drawing conclusions based on personal experience is biased because our memory is biased. We remember the things that support our preconceived notions.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the OP, I'm cautiously optimistic that the state will do a better job than IPS has done. The fact that IPS can't do what suburban districts do is due to demographics and parent involvement. The fact that IPS schools don't do what most poverty-stricken urban schools even do is due to poor management, inefficient allocation of resources, and ineffective staff. The takeover will likely address these.
I have a question. Isn't the funding formula based on the previous year, not the current year? Meaning ADM in September determines the funding IPS receives in the 2011-2012 year, correct? If that's the case, then next year, won't IPS receive far more funding than it should? If the state takes over all of the eligible schools, at current enrollment figures, IPS would lose 20% of its students but still get the funding for them. At 10,000 per student (an absurdly conservative estimate), that's over 6.5 million EXTRA dollars.
ReplyDeleteI'm quite sure the letter didn't state the child had to return to IPS. It likely simply stated that he could no longer attend that particular charter school. There is nothing legally to keep IPS from putting a firmer attendance policy in place. I think most of the township schools will fail a student after 10 days missed per semester. And contrary to your posts, when students do leave charter schools, they almost always leave for another charter school. The scenario of a student leaving a charter school for IPS is so rare that it often doesn't even show up on migration reports, which document anything over 5 students.
ReplyDelete"And contrary to your posts, when students do leave charter schools, they almost always leave for another charter school. The scenario of a student leaving a charter school for IPS is so rare that it often doesn't even show up on migration reports, which document anything over 5 students."
ReplyDelete...we get charter school kids all the time on the west side. That's why the teachers can't stand charter schools. These kids are usually two grade levels behind, or are a discipline problem OR their parents NEVER show up for meetings. The other joke is the number of HOME schooled kids from other states. Horrible. Many of them two grade levels behind. These parents or grandparents mean well but we have NO proof where these kids have been- no grades no paperwork. We allow Cleatus and Jethro and his cousins to home school. Can't wait till the welfare/vouchers come into play.That will really screw things up when these kids move 3 times a year on average. Schools will have to hire MORE clerical to keep up with the increased paper load. Egads!
I have no dog in this fight, but if you read the post about objective data trumping personal experience, and then read the post right above mine, it's laugh-out-loud funny. Don't get me wrong, kids educated in homeschools and charter schools might be awful. I have no clue. What I do know is posting something on the Internet doesn't make it true, even if you say a bunch of people see it all the time. I'm not saying anything that other people haven't been saying, but it was just funny to see this particular post after the post about objective data versus personal experience! :)
ReplyDeleteHe/she has to use personal experience, because nothing objective supports her absurd statements. A nationwide study of homeschoolers showed that the average homeschoole student performs two grades above grade level. That's AVERAGE. Most people who homeschool do so because they are very invested in their child's education. Very, very occasionally you'll get someone who wants their teen to babysit their baby, so they say they're homeschooling and then don't do anything. But anyone with any experience at all with homeschooling knows that is the very rare exception to the rule.
ReplyDeleteHe/she hopes if he/she keeps posting bullshit, people will believe him/her. It used to be that only very occasionally would someone challenge this nonsense. Now his/her posts get refuted almost the instant he/she posts it.
When do we get to vote in a new IEA president? Since the IEA is for teachers then we need to take back our Union.
ReplyDeleteOH, by the way now teachers have to keep double taps on absent students. We have to call the home. We have to go into the attendance records and mark the student excused. Just one more thing the union allowed to happen. Don't secretaries do anything anymore? I don't mind taking attendance on the hard drive and keeping a record in my grade book, but call home. When am I suppose to do that? Help me out here.
I saved a copy of the letter from the Metropolitian Charter School. They do not say the student must return to IPS but merely the student must return to a PUBLIC SCHOOL. If IPS could shove out the door every student when he/she missed the 7th day or the 10th day and then do the ISTEP testing, we would see major improvments. That is not the role of schools either public or the pretend Charter schools. They are in it for the money so they engage in this practice in order to manipulate their stats.
ReplyDeleteWhy would the student have to return to a public school? What business of Metropolitan is it if they attend a public or private school? The student could attend a private school, another charter school, their boundary school, a magnet school, an alternative school, a township school that accepts out-of-district students, or even homeschool if they want. No school has any authority over where a student attends school. They only have authority over their particular school. Metropolitan can kick out students or attendance violations, but they can't say where a student can or can't attend once they leave.
ReplyDeleteAnd many public schools have attendance policies. That's not just a charter school thing. If you want IPS to change their attendance policy, bitch at them.
Public, charter, whatever! We need to make sure that all kids get educated; whatever it takes. But, just because it's a charter doesn't mean that they aren't cooking their books like IPS...if IPS does it you can bet charters do too.
ReplyDeleteThe kids at Tech all said that if they didn't pass the inspection last week a charter would swoop in and take over...from the mouths of babes!
ReplyDeleteI hate to split hairs, but I keep noticing a tendency to refer to charter schools as separate from public schools. Charter schools ARE public schools. They just aren't part of any district -- they are like their own tiny school district, with all the same legal requirements as every other Indiana school district. They are nothing like private schools. Magnet schools are kind of a blend of private and public, and I think many people confuse magnet schools and charter schools in regard to legality and state regulation. Off my soapbox now. Carry on.
ReplyDeleteMagnet schools are no way a blend. They are totally 100% public schools. You are confused.
ReplyDeleteI wish someone would give us an answer about when we can vote for the next IEA president. How can you NEVER hear a word from the person you elected into office--even when you file a grievance? I am not sure if the UniServe director is any better. I am so disappointed in the both of them!
ReplyDeleteI'm not confused. Legally both charter schools and magnet schools are 100% public schools. I understand that. But magnet schools can be exclusive, and charter schools cannot. Many people mistakenly confuse them. A magnet school can require certain grades, test scores, recommendations, or auditions in order to qualify for enrollment and to stay enrolled. Charter schools have to take in everyone, regardless of past behavior, grades, etc., just like a boundary school.
ReplyDeleteYou really are confused. You first state that Magnet Schools are a blend of private and public schools. FALSE. Now you state that charter schools take anyone just like a boundary school. You totally ignore the fact that a boundary school cannot just tell a student to go away or to leave and go to another school. Public boundary schools must accept and keep everyone. There are rare instances when an expulsion happens but ask any teacher how difficult and rare that is. You sound to me like you are a charter school employee or an apologist for the failing charter school movement.
ReplyDeleteYou're the one confused. The state laws for IPS and charter schools are EXACTLY the same. Check for yourself. Magnet schools have to follow some, but not all, of those laws. In that way, they are similar to private schools who also have to follow some, but not all, of the state laws that apply to public schools.
ReplyDeleteTraditional public schools expel students all the time for behavior and attendance. IPS just has extremely liberal policies. But that's not the fault of charter schools. That's the district. I understand you specifically are anti-charter, but I was speaking about the general public who I think often confuses the two concepts. And I'm actually an IPS teacher. But being an IPS teacher doesn't change laws or word definitions, does it? And do you have any source for your assertion that the charter school movement is failing? Because the reason I educated myself on these things in the first place is because they seem to be such a major force in public education nowadays that I could no longer consider myself an education professional unless I understood them. They are being promoted by both political parties at the national and state level. And here, locally, as we've been discussing, charter schools will be involved in the state take-over of several IPS high schools next year. If that wasn't enough, I'm sure you're aware that there was a highly-publicized educational documentary that heavily promoted charter schools (Waiting for Superman). I haven't seen the movie, and can't speak for its quality. I'm just saying that not only do I see absolutely indication whatsoever that the charter school movement is failing, everything I see points to the movement rapidly growing and gaining popularity. On a personal level, I have mixed feelings about charter schools. But on a personal level, I have mixed feelings about IPS as well.
Once more for review:
ReplyDeleteBoundary school: public school, part of a school district, that educates students living in a particular geographical area, with no other requirements for admission.
Magnet school: public school, part of a school district, that educates certain students who apply. Typically requires certain grades, behavior record, etc. for admission.
Charter school: public school, not part of a school district, that educates anyone who lives in Indiana, with no other requirements for admission.
Private school: A school that is funded privately, that educates certain students who apply. May require certain grades, behavior record, or other criteria for admission.
@ Once more for review: Great recap. Much more clear and succinct than my overly wordy posts! lol
ReplyDeleteRe: Boundary Schools
ReplyDeleteI am always amazed at the number of parents who do not research the 'boundary schools' before they rent an apartment or buy a home. There are reasonably priced and affordable apartments and houses available in many areas that have excellent schools. I am not a real estate agent, by the way, just a parent of school aged children.
Magnet Schools in IPS no longer have entrance requirements. They are open enrollment. Some may manipulate the enrollment process but it is open enrollment process.
ReplyDeleteThere are some really great neighborhoods in IPS. The cheap neighborhoods in the township districts are high-crime. Also, I think many people really believe that if they're involved in their child's education, it doesn't matter what school they go to. In my own neighborhood, the far majority of students START at the boundary school. But within a year or two, they switch to magnets, charters, private schools, get them into Lawrence or Warren (legally or illegally I don't know) or homeschool them. Only rarely do they move. In most cases, it's cheaper to pay for private school than for the higher mortgages and property taxes for a similar neighborhood in the townships.
ReplyDeleteMagnet schools DO have entrance requirements. Some have rules against entering after 2nd grade. Middle School and High school have eligibility requirements and require teacher recommendations as well as high ratings in math, language arts, science, and social studies for "Attendance/Punctuality" "Commitment to personal excellence" "Desire for increased knowledge of subject matter" "Accepts academic challenges" and "Overall academic achievement in this subject area." Those are quoted directly from the magnet school application. http://www.magnet.ips.k12.in.us/fileadmin/Assets/Magnet/App-%20ENGLISH%202010-2011.pdf
ReplyDeleteThe magnet program application also states,
ReplyDelete"Student academic records will be reviewed to determine eligibility for magnet programs". This is how they keep the troublemakers out. A kid who causes trouble doesn't get the grades needed to get into a magnet school. Very similar to a private school, picking and choosing which students they will take.
@many people really believe that if they're involved...
ReplyDeleteWe were similarly disillusioned. After watching what families with older kids were going through at the boundary school (#60), we had second thoughts. I'm still angry that the new Reggio School is only for kindergarteners next year. My kid will be in first grade, so he won't get to go to the Reggio school three blocks away. Many neighborhood families are angry that our kids are being excluded from the new program. They'll have to fill the school by bussing kids in from all over the city. Meanwhile, we'll continue bussing ours out of the neighborhood to the nearest safe school. I'll just call "Sour grapes" and say that IPS will probably abandon the Reggio school after a few years, or else water it down so much that it will soon resemble the chaotic, violent School 60 anyway.
Are you sure? We were told that the Reggio Program WIll include both kindergarten and first grade. But remember, the current, violent "boundary" monsters will still be there in grades two through six. School #60 will remain an out-of-control mess until it is totally converted into the Reggio model.
ReplyDeleteOf course, IPS will abandon Reggio just like everything else they have started. Give it two, maybe 3 years.
ReplyDeleteI fear that Reggio will go by the wayside just as the 'small schools' at the secondary level did and so many other IPS initiatives. For you young parents out there, please remember that your children are the most important things you'll ever have in your lives. Better to extend yourselves on monthly rent or mortgage payments than to put your trust into IPS. I'm serious and not trying to be flip. I'm a grandmother now, an IPS teacher, and also very pragmatic. If you're a parent who's posting on this blog, then you're likely an involved, caring parent. I would not wish for any of my grandchildren to attend any IPS school for any length of time. Think and plan ahead, please.
ReplyDeleteIt seems silly to me to avoid the city just because the IPS boundary schools aren't very good. As others have mentioned above, there are options for good schools (magnet, charter, private, etc.) And if you move out of Indianapolis, you might escape some of the "ghetto" influences, but you'll pick up some "redneck" influences and some "WASP" influences.
ReplyDeleteWhite flight led to failing schools and money flight killed it more. If you are a parent with middling income and a sense of pride stand up for your neighborhood and the notion that we can have excellent public schools if we demand them. We need not pay Papists and snake handlers to educate our kids and we need not cower in the face of the violent, disrespectful and ignorant paupers. Don't sacrifice your child and their education to a losing battle, but there are schools and neighborhoods that are worth fighting for and are at the heart of this struggle. Throw some elbows for public ed. And blow up the township system. Time for a county-wide school system, with an elected executive who we can vote out every four years.
ReplyDelete