tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post3043586352793245647..comments2023-06-24T10:52:34.846-04:00Comments on EducateHilliard.com: If a Tree Falls at Camp Joy…Paulhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05960574627644930183noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post-77741555244334322692008-08-06T22:14:00.000-04:002008-08-06T22:14:00.000-04:00It was reported in the Hilliard Northwest News tha...It was reported in the <A HREF="http://www.snponline.com/articles/2008/08/06/hilliard_northwest_news/schools/hlcampjoy%20_20080806_1114am_2.txt" REL="nofollow"><EM>Hilliard Northwest News</EM></A> that Camp Joy for 2008 is officially dead. The numbers tell an interesting story.<BR/><BR/>Camp Joy has always been primarily funded by the $140 participation fee paid by the kid's family. That part of the $188,000 needed to fund the program should have been the easiest part. I thought it would be the last $50,000 that the school district normal invests that would be the challenge.<BR/><BR/>But it turns out that only 350 of the 1,236 6th graders paid their $140 fee by the deadline, leaving the fundraising effort $121,000 short.<BR/><BR/>Certainly part of the difficulty was that this all took place during the summer break, but those 1,236 families had to know all this was going on - most if not all received letters from the fundraising group.<BR/><BR/>So what does this mean? How can a program which has been seemingly so successful for so many years just die? Is there really that little support, suggesting the Board made the right decision in cutting the funding? Or did these families feel the $140 is money they could better use for other things (which doesn't bode well for levy passage)?<BR/><BR/>Or is this just another example of chronic apathy? That's what I fear...<BR/><BR/>PLPaulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05960574627644930183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post-24402320857543109112008-07-18T19:56:00.000-04:002008-07-18T19:56:00.000-04:00Thanks for doing so. I don't think there has a off...Thanks for doing so. I don't think there has a official statement from the HEA as to the yea/nay count on the contract vote, nor do I think one is forthcoming. It may or may not have been as close as we have been led to believe.<BR/><BR/>There are few occasions when a strike is desired - by either side - but sometimes that's what it takes. Note that a strike by employees isn't the only nuclear weapon on the battlefield - the employer can choose to lock out employees if there is no contract, which in the case of our schools would mean having the Board choose not to open the schools even if the teachers are willing to work without a contract.<BR/><BR/>In other words, there is a balance of power.<BR/><BR/>Either action would cause havoc in the community, and it would take years to recover, if recovery is possible at all.<BR/><BR/>But as was the case in the Cold War, it does no good to have the weapons unless the other side believes you'll use them if sufficiently provoked.<BR/><BR/>We have our own Cuban Missile Crisis developing before us. I hope the leaders on both sides are up to it.Paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05960574627644930183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post-57579668796553185292008-07-18T17:57:00.000-04:002008-07-18T17:57:00.000-04:00You make a good point, Paul... Just a few thoughts...You make a good point, Paul... <BR/><BR/>Just a few thoughts rambling around in my head... <BR/><BR/>Some critics would consider Camp Joy 'fluff' (I don't) and complained had it not been cut. Others complained that it shouldn't have been cut. HCSD is being criticized by some for the new HEA contract as being too kind to the teachers. I'm curious, how many of those same people would've been upset with HCSD if there were a long, nasty strike? If the new contract was so good for the teachers' pocketbooks, why did it (reportedly) narrowly pass?<BR/><BR/>There are certainly valid criticisms to be made of the BOE and HCSD. However, I just thought I'd express a few thoughts & questions from a different point of view.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post-30238062399479750132008-07-17T23:13:00.000-04:002008-07-17T23:13:00.000-04:00That's good for this year's 6th graders, but what ...That's good for this year's 6th graders, but what about coming years? Will this set the precedent of making Camp Joy an off-budget program? If so, what else might the Board choose to make a Pay-to-Play program? <BR/><BR/>Certainly, one way to preserve maximum dollars for salaries and benefits is to cut things that parents will rise up and fund anyway...Paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05960574627644930183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post-21108125781241770482008-07-17T20:58:00.000-04:002008-07-17T20:58:00.000-04:00If a Tree Falls at Camp Joy....Just maybe someone ...If a Tree Falls at Camp Joy....<BR/><BR/>Just maybe someone will hear it... At least according to the Hilliard Northwest News. Perhaps Camp Joy isn't dead after all. We'll see.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post-65264096346724390432008-07-04T10:16:00.000-04:002008-07-04T10:16:00.000-04:00The last official agreement filed with the State E...The <A HREF="http://www.serb.state.oh.us/sections/research/web%20contracts/07-CON-01-0735.pdf" REL="nofollow">last official agreement</A> filed with the State Employee Relations Board by Canal Winchester Schools indicates that their current contract is in force until June 10, 2010. It doesn't contain any language saying it may reopened for salary negotiation, but they may have a side letter to that effect.<BR/><BR/>I've seen other contracts where multiple salary tables are included, with one set if a levy passes by a certain date, and another if not (see <A HREF="http://www.serb.state.oh.us/sections/research/WEB%20Contracts/03-MED-10-1232.pdf" REL="nofollow">Hamilton Local</A>)<BR/><BR/>That's certainly an option our Board could have pursued. Who knows if they even considered it as an option...Paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05960574627644930183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post-88841585457132356152008-07-04T09:51:00.000-04:002008-07-04T09:51:00.000-04:00Paul, brief details in the Dispatch this morning.C...Paul, brief details in the Dispatch this morning.<BR/><BR/>Canal Winchester teachers accepted zero regular raise, step raise intact, and teacher license reimbursement to help pass levy in the their district in the fall<BR/>It has a reopener.<BR/><BR/>So how does this get explained away ?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post-42942403111903385342008-07-04T09:48:00.000-04:002008-07-04T09:48:00.000-04:00But if you think the school you send your kids to ...But if you think the school you send your kids to is wasteful, the approach I'm advocating gives you the freedom to go find another school.<BR/><BR/>In our current system, you get one choice - where to live. After that, all the choices are made for you: which school building, which teachers, which textbooks, etc.<BR/><BR/>If you find you've made a bad decision about where to live, or the school district changes for the worse in your opinion, you have to move to fix it.<BR/><BR/>We've gotten so used to this being the way things work that we're brainwashed into thinking it's the <STRONG>only</STRONG> way things can work.<BR/><BR/>Just as $4/gal gas is forcing people to think differently about transportation (for the better I believe), I think the rapidly escalating cost of our public schools is driving us to a tipping point as well - when folks will begin to say "enough - let's do something different!"<BR/><BR/>I think this is when Americans are at our best -- when we're shaken out of our apathy by a shared disaster, be it economic, natural or political.<BR/><BR/>That shared disaster may well be our public school system.Paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05960574627644930183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post-65610660588249013602008-07-04T09:32:00.000-04:002008-07-04T09:32:00.000-04:00I have mixed feelings about the charter and privat...I have mixed feelings about the charter and private schools, as I was also educated in the Catholic system.<BR/>It would appear in many instances that there is even more waste in some of the charter schools than with the public ones. No doubt some great academies would be created, and as long as everyone would have access,<BR/>not just gifted, athletes etc I can support that. No matter what the system we do have a spending problem, an unfunded mandate problem, and a bloated education dept in this state. The bureauacrcy<BR/>sorry about the spelling, in our stated education dept is way over the top. New rules, more money to be spent. The gov. asked each dept in the state to submit some ideas for cuts. Guess which dept chose zero !<BR/><BR/>I am also torn by Camp Joy. An absolute great experience without question. But given the economic uncertainty is it absolutely necessary. I think the "effort"<BR/>to keep it by very positive parents and well meaning supporters was purposely torpedoed to show us the pain. Except the pain is not equally spread. I feel badly for the parent group who have put in a valiant effort. They should be<BR/>congratulated. I also hope they remember who sold them down the river, and it was not the voters.<BR/><BR/>The smart play would have been<BR/>a reduced 3 year deal, a 5 mill levy that would be an easier sell.<BR/>instead of premium compensation.<BR/><BR/>The heavy hand is coming, athletics,music, busing etc.<BR/>Never a thought about a smaller pay increase. <BR/><BR/>The raises handed out will be remembered by the electorate like an elephant. The actions of the HEA this year and the district puts the "its for the kids" as moot.<BR/><BR/>Of course all of us are to blame for voting for names on the ballot instead of ideas. Quit voting<BR/>for the name folks, in fact if you see a familiar last name, vote NO<BR/><BR/>On an encouraging note, the city council president did mention growth as it affects schools and expenses in the This week article.<BR/><BR/>Anyone want to join the Peoples<BR/>Revolutionary Task Force ? Name taken from an old Clint Eastwood movie lolAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post-36796614981464696492008-07-03T17:56:00.000-04:002008-07-03T17:56:00.000-04:00*Sigh* Great blog & post. Why can't we have politi...*Sigh* Great blog & post. Why can't we have politicians like you instead of the losers we have?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post-81612777115039394642008-07-03T16:09:00.000-04:002008-07-03T16:09:00.000-04:00Really? Are you saying I should have less control ...Really? <BR/><BR/>Are you saying I should have less control of what gets fed into my kids' brains than what gets put in their stomachs?<BR/><BR/>I agree that there should be curriculum standards, and that schools and teachers should be licensed with the state. But these things should specify the <STRONG>minimum</STRONG> curriculum, not what else the school chooses to include. If the kids have a free choice where to attend school, there is no forced religious education.<BR/><BR/>I bring food stamps in as an illustration because I think we would all agree that food is one of the basics of life, more important than even education. Yet people are free to choose where to buy their food and what food to buy. For those who cannot afford to buy the food necessary for basic nutrition, we supplement their own money with food stamps.<BR/><BR/>Why can't education be that way? Instead of taxing me and telling me which schools my kids have to attend, let me choose and pay for it out of my own pocket.<BR/><BR/>For those families who can't afford it, we'll provide some or all of the tuition with a scholarship. We already know how to do this. With two kids who have completed college, I know all about the <A HREF="http://www.fafsa.ed.gov/" REL="nofollow">FAFSA</A> process.Paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05960574627644930183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post-53274975139554527242008-07-03T15:12:00.000-04:002008-07-03T15:12:00.000-04:00If my money is going to be used to fund schools, I...If my money is going to be used to fund schools, I want to maintain my "say" in the curriculum. This is why I disagree with vouchers being allowed to be used in private schools. I lose the opportunity to monitor the curriculum. I agree completely with the idea of funding the individual child to attend the Public school of his choice. I don't really get the food stamp example. What you choose to eat is different from what you are taught.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post-51629351289042620512008-07-03T14:20:00.000-04:002008-07-03T14:20:00.000-04:00How did we get to this frame of mind that when the...How did we get to this frame of mind that when the state takes money from me in the form of taxes, then gives (some of) it back in the form of school funding, it somehow has been rendered unusable to pay for religious schools, as though the government treasury exists to filter out all ideologies other than those approved by the state? <BR/><BR/>Should we prohibit the use of food stamps to buy kosher meat? Of course not. Food stamps are used to buy food in privately owned markets, and religious affiliation is not a restriction. The only concern is public health.<BR/><BR/>Same thing with education. Let's make sure all kids can attend school, even if financial assistance is required, and let's be sure those schools teach established basics, enforced by curriculum standards and standarized testing. <BR/><BR/>Beyond that, it's the parent's choice where their kids go to school and what ideologies are taught. <BR/><BR/>The more we Americans sit back and let the government take our money and limit our choices, the faster our liberty evaporates. <BR/><BR/>The answer is not more government, it's less.Paulhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05960574627644930183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4289345346387194350.post-2405599417709923082008-07-03T12:14:00.000-04:002008-07-03T12:14:00.000-04:00The Camp Joy decision was made before school got o...The Camp Joy decision was made before school got out. It's too bad that the word of a fund-raising committee and needing to send in the fee did not reach the parents of incoming 6th graders before everyone left for the summer. It seems fair to set a deadline for raising the $50,000 funded by the school, but when, in the past, was the $140 due from parents? Certainly it was not in July of the prior year. The district should give some slack on that part of it. Perhaps get a commitment from parents the first week of school. It will be interesting to see how this turns out. <BR/><BR/>As for funding of vouchers, and charter schools, I would support that if the schools followed a state-established curriculum. I have always disagreed with vouchers being used for religious or idealogical schools where I as a taxpayer would not have control of what my money is going toward teaching. And that is coming from a Catholic with 12 years of Catholic school!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com