Thursday, June 24, 2010

Reasons to Support Public Schools

There are many, many reasons to support public schools rather than charters and other forms of privatized public schools. While this isn't suppose to be an exhaustive list, it surely supports the strength of the system throughout the years.

1. The vast majority of public schools do a decent job of giving students a well rounded education; a wide array of courses and a rich curriculum. I know many charters that can't make such a claim.

2. Public schools don't discriminate among who enters the school. Anyone who enters the doors has the same access to a quality education. I am aware of charters that don't take all 'comers.'

3. Education experts run public schools both at an administrative level and in the classroom.

4. Public schools offer a wide array of activities, sports and other forms of enrichment that many other types of schools don't provide.

5. Because public school are just that, 'public,' they don't have to engage in all sorts of competitive activities to draw students through their doors. Competition may work in the marketplace but this has no place in the realm of education.

6. Contrary to popular belief, public schools often reform themselves from the inside (it is often hard for outsiders to see this) in a variety of subtle ways.

These are but a few of the many reasons why public schools do such an outstanding job of education the youth in America. Making disparaging remarks about public schools, particularly those who are 'failing,' misses the mark. If a public school is failing, closing its doors doesn't address the issue of assisting students in need.

Let's stand up and continue to support public education and, yes, to make improvements where they are needed.

Dick Flesher

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

'Choice' Hurts Students

The idea of people having a 'choice' of where to send their children should a school be 'failing' under the guidelines of No Child Left Behind may sound appealing on the surface but upon closer examination 'choice' really doesn't address core problems and in many cases it creates new ones.

When a school, and its students, receive a 'failing' grade, sending them off to another school doesn't necessarily rectify the real problems. A student who is having difficulty in learning won't necessarily do better because he or she is in a new or different building. Likewise, a poor performing student won't necessarily perform better in a different school with a different system of management. Managerial structure doesn't equate to a richer curriculum, caring teachers, high standards (this is idea is radically different than standardized testing), and parental support.

Allowing parents to have a 'choice' of where to send their children creates a whole new set of problems. In turn, these new concerns hurt learning and the learning community. For one, allowing children to attend any area school means that there is a greater need for costly busing. Along with the cost issue comes the fact that students may travel many miles to a school of their 'choice' which is an hour away from home. This is huge waste of time. If students find themselves in this situation they are certainly less likely to be involved in after-school activities.

Families with multiple students may find that their children are split up under the 'choice' scenario, not exactly what one wants when trying to create a sense of family unity. How would you like to be a parent going to two or three Open Houses or picking up your students from two or three different schools? Not me!!

Here's another huge problem with the idea of 'choice.' In a district where 'choice' is widely practiced where is the sense of community that is created by attending neighborhood schools? I'll tell you where it is...it's lost! Allegiance and loyalty are qualities we all want our children to develop and taking students from their neighborhood school will likely result in lessening the chances of children developing these qualities.

'Choice' isn't the answer. Quality neigborhood schools with a rich curriculum, high standards, bright and caring teachers, and supportive parents will go much further than sending students to a different location.

Dick Flesher

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Calling All Volunteers

As we prepare to take school supplies to the children of New Orleans and Chicago, I would like to ask you to volunteer a few hours of your time to assist us in loading trucks for both destinations. Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated.

In readying for our trip to New Orleans, during the Aug. 8-10 time frame, we will be loading trucks on Friday, August 6th from 9:00 am until we're finished with the endeavor. Hopefully, the trucks will be loaded by 4:00 pm at the latest. As we did last year, we'll provide you with a lunch and we'll be sure to keep you hydrated.

Relative to helping Chicago Public Schools, we will load the trucks on Wednesday, August 18th from 9:00 am until we've completed loading the trucks (around 4 pm). Also, anyone wishing to go to Chicago to deliver the supplies is welcome to join us. I think it is best, for anyone wishing to help us deliver to CPS, to simply meet at our first stop and then tailgate to various stops thereafter. Our first stop on Thursday, August 19th will be at Medgar Evers School, 9811 S. Lowe Ave., Chicago, IL. 60628. We will meet at Evers at 10:00 am on the 19th.

We will be loading trucks on both August 6th and Aug. 18th at 20048 S. Kohlwood Dr., Mokena, IL. 60448. Should you be able to help us you can let me know by emailing me at rich219@comcast.net or calling at 630-863-6035. I will provide directions to Mokena should you need them.

Please accept my thanks for your past help and your willingness to pitch in again this year!! Because of you, we are able to help thousands of children in need.

Many thanks,
Dick Flesher

Monday, June 21, 2010

Children Left Behind - Part II

There are enough assessments and studies of charter schools to literally choke a horse. The Brookings Institution, Stanford University, Harvard University, the NAEP, the U. S. Department of Education, the Economic Policy Institute and hundreds of other schools, think tanks and scholars have studies the impact that charter schools have on learning.

The vast majority of findings that I reviewed found that, nationwide, the performance of charters, with some notalbe exceptions, was anything but stellar. Perhaps the most expansive study of charters was conducted by Stanford's Margaret E. Raymond. Ms. Raymond analyzed data from 2403 charter school (there are around 4600 nationwide in 2010). Ms. Raymond found that 37 percent of charters had learning gains below those of public schools; 46 percent had learning gains that were no different and only 17 percent showed growth that was significantly better than public schools.

The data reveals that, contrary to what many believe, public schools, overall, get the job done just as well as charters. There are public school students, just like charter school students, who perform poorly. People need to know that alternatives to traditional public schools, as they proliferate, aren't the answer. The data suggests that the type of school, structurallly, isn't what makes a difference in student achievement.

What makes a difference in any school are such factors as; parental support of student learning, a rich curriculum, thoughtful and caring teachers, and the proper resources.

Though Schools Count Corp has no control over the first three, of the above elements, we can help with resources. As public schools are attacked for what they don't accomplish, we will continue to aid students and schools that face the perceived panacea that standardized testing and 'choice' will cure the nations public education ills. Up to this point in time, such testing and 'choice' have not proven that they can improve the quality of American education.

Dick Flesher

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Children Left Behind

I've been asked on numerous occasions why Schools Count Corp. continues to aid NOLA schools five years after Hurricane Katrina ripped apart the city and a good deal of its education system.

Part of the answer has to do with the fact that the RSD and public schools simply continue to need our assistance. Too few resources are provided to many of these schools. When supplies do reach these students, all involved are exceedingly grateful for our outreach.

Further, as noted education historian Diane Ravitch points out in her recently published book The Death and Life of the Great American School System, our schools and its teachers are held hostage to standardized test score results. Over recent years this has led to a trend towards merit pay and the creation of all sort of privatized schooling, among them, charters. Often, the latter situation, has led to children, who are disadvantaged, being left out of the loop; that is, left behind. The 'better' performing students in NOLA RSD and public schools, as well as at other inner city public schools in America, are recruited to charters or other privitized schools, leaving lower achieving students to languish.

Can you imagine public school students, staff and school administrators being told that they are doing something wrong or not measuring up because of this so called 'skimming?' How on earth are such schools suppose to have better test scores when they have far too few resources and children who are homeless? How can such schools perform when disadvantaged students really don't have free choice?

It is our goal to assist students, teachers, parents, and school administrators of schools who are at the mercy of the above noted scenario. In short we are doing our best to help students, who have been shortchanged by a failed NCLB and the emerging situation in which a good number of public schools have to fight against the perceived notion that charters are the panacea for its possible ills.

Tomorrow I will comment on how recent studies have indicated that a majority of the nations charters aren't performing all that well.

Yes, schools need improvement. Closing doors, shutting off opportunities and making standardized test results the lynchpin by which success is measured is both misguided and harmful. You'll see just how true this is when I comment on charter performance in tomorrow's blog.

Dick Flesher

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Desperate Need for Folders

As we get ready to aid nearly 20 New Orleans and 17 Chicago Public Schools this fall, we are looking for nearly 15,000 3-prong folders to supplement the many supplies we have already gathered for the students.

In the past, we had no problems coming up with such a huge quantity of folders as Walmart took care of our needs. This year we are having a difficult time finding a supplier who will sell us such a large bulk order at a decent price.

If anyone knows of a source where we can find such a quantity of folders please let me know! Simply call me at 630-863-6035 or email me at rich219@comcast.net and I'll follow-up on the lead.

Many thanks,
Dick Flesher

Saturday, June 12, 2010

School Supplies Aplenty


Since the 21st of May we've been collecting school supplies from over 20 area elementary, junior high and high schools. The donated supplies, many brand new, are many!! These supplies are all a part of our 'Go Green' Program which aids Chicago Public Schools.

Here's just a sampling of the HUGE store of supplies: binders: 2281, notebooks: 3396, folders: 5438, packets of loose leaf paper: 1556, pens and pens: 8500, colored pencils: 3000, colored markers: 7000.

Beyond these massive quantities of school supplies we literally have amassed many thousands of notecards, boxes of glue, boxes of crayons, backpacks, composition books, paint sets, scissors, rulers, graphing paper and more!!

To purchase all of this at retail would cost tens of thousands of dollars. The beauty of this project is that it has so many wonderful facets to it.

By collecting these 'nearly new' products, we are keeping them out of the landfills. In turn, we are doing our part to 'save the earth.' Students at the various schools feel empowered to help others while protecting our planet. Such huge donations allow us to expand beyond our normal operations in New Orleans so that we can aid Chicago Public Schools. Finally, the more donated products we receive we are able to use some of our cash funds in other creative ways to assist children.

To all the schools who have participated in the program; the students, school personnel, volunteers and those who count and pack up the supplies please accept my thanks for all that you have done to make our 2010 'Go Green' Program such a whopping success!

Dick Flesher























Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Thank Cold Stone and Supporters!



A very special thank you to those who volunteered at Cold Stone Creamery in Hinsdale last Friday and to those who stopped by to support us. We also want to thank Joe the manager for all his assistance. Despite the Blackhawks game infringing on our business, we were able to raise just over $400 to send to IMN School in Haiti.

Friday, June 4, 2010

Join Us Tonight! June 4th!

Cold Stone Creamery in Hinsdale
Fundraiser for IMN School
3-10PM

Come Join Us!

Girls Singing at IMN

Classes Singing at IMN

IMN School Opens

Driving into Port Au Prince

IMN School Welcome

Tour of IMN School

IMN School