Comments on: BHS science lab debate: What Shirley said

By: jeanine Castello-Lin

jeanine Castello-Lin — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 02:10:37 +0000

Hi Shirley,
I met you at the marathon SGC meeting, was glad to see your concern there and, after reading your comments at the Board Meeting, very glad you represent us on the School Board. Many thanks for speaking out for the need for amity in the school community and your appreciation of those students who have tried to foster community value — at expense of their education and with little recognition to show for it.
I also wanted to take this opportunity to draw your attention to another facet of the redesign plan: the new bell schedule proposal, which would delay lunch by a whole period. If morning nutrition is a problem for students (as my daughter says it is — she has trouble concentrating at the end of 3rd period on late start days), I can’t see that delaying lunch by a whole period can help. Even if a nutrition break of 15 minutes is planned between 2 & 3 periods, the cafeteria certainly cannot serve everyone in that time. The plan would then be relying on students bringing snacks from home — a very iffy proposition. And even then, would the snacks (chips perhaps) really be nutritious enough to sustain the students through another period? I know the science lab issue has been first priority, but I wouldn’t want the new bell schedule to slip by unnoticed– it could have serious ramifications on students ability to concentrate and perform in their 4th period.
Thanks for your timely interventions,
Jeanine Castello-Lin

By: Roxanne

Roxanne — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 07:42:23 +0000

Let’s hear it for Shirley Issel, a breath of fresh air.

By: Mr. Woolsey

Mr. Woolsey — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 05:39:41 +0000

Is truancy that bad? Maybe having the kids on the street – after age 16 anyway – is better than having them in class being disruptive.

Losing the science labs will be a shame – science and math were the only subjects at BHS where kids got a real education. Spanish was a waste and English non-existent. I didn’t have high hopes for BHS, but the English program was shocking.

By: laura menard

laura menard — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 01:12:43 +0000

Hey Lance,

I think you missed one of the main points Shirley made, the board was being asked to review a plan without any data, in particular, attendance data. She sharply criticized the continued failure of administration to address such basic practice as data collection and analysis. She emphasized the most obvious but largely ignored fact, that a student cannot achieve if they don’t attend class.

In the last couple of days during my mid day walk, I have counted 200 plus BHS students truant hanging in all the usual spots during 4th-6th periods.

Same old same old. Just as Shirley admonishment was the same old, same old. Actually Wed meeting was tame compared to past tensions, the board was united.

By the way, my oldest now an employed chemist, was truant 55 periods in 45 days during his freshman year. He had three F at the quarter. That year the auto dialer was busted until the school reviewed first quarter results, school attendance was even worse in 2000. His small school instructors and admin were no more help than the school, which was no help at all.
It was on me to monitor, find, threaten, and discipline the kid.

BHS still does have any truancy intervention plan, the DA has attended meeting with the district and city recently, admonishing Slemp’s administration for failure to address truancy.

The Safety committee has been trying to address truancy for three years, last week’s agenda included a discussion with the district attendance and welfare reporting staff, Slemp told his subordinates to cancel district staff attendance at the meeting. Parents were forced to repeatedly ask Amy Frey the latest administrator in charge of attendance to explain how the high school reports and identify chronic truants. Frey answered she was new to the job and did not know anything. We have heard that song before.