When does it get better?

Nice to hear that improvement is happening in some of the schools to the effective level Ms. Andrew. Will try to watch the details, as you suggest tonight. You do understand my frustration and impatience with waiting for years for something good to happen with our schools. The only thing one has to go by is the chart at the top of this page which is self-explanatory and sad after all these years. We taxpayers get tired of throwing money at the problem and seeing no improvement especially after all this time.

It also exacerbates the situation because I was in this school system when it was top-notch and respected in the area. Produced some fine people that went on to be successful. Had 30 per class and the teachers still got the job done. Also had deterrants like Stan Lewis, Dean of Boys, who would crack your behind just as much as look at you. Since the schools took that deterrant out of the schools, the discipline has never been the same and the students are not intimidated any longer. Wrong direction IMO.

"But rest assured,it will get better when the next school levy is passed. It always gets better with a levy.Levies fix everything. "   That seems to be the attitude.  There is no real incentive for improvement when all that has to be done is to put another levy on the ballot and engage in a public relations campaign advertising that the levy must be passed "for the children"  or that if not passed, businesses will not locate here. 

Well, there it is in black and white. The old area school comparison we have been seeing for many many years. And, with the same old results that we have been seeing for many many years. Middletown is ALWAYS on the bottom of the totem pole. Only school in single digits with 5 indicators met. Now....when you bring this to the attention of the superintendent (as I did years ago at the old seniors center when the school folks were having one of their "rah-rah" meetings and Price was still blowing hot air) and you confront him and he says, "well I don't see it that way!", exactly how are you suppose to carry on a conversation with people like that, when you have the cold hard facts in front of you and they still deny that they are performing poorly? It ain't logical thinkin' on their part.

School officials state that the school system was in "flux" and "transition". Nifty little descriptors for avoiding the real explanation to the public I guess. Midd. schools will get 1.4 mil but the levies will keep coming according to Alberico, as the new money is "soft money" and more of your levy dollars are needed to.......perform at the same level as the previous six years which is 5 of 30 indicators met and at the bottom of the list I suppose. When will they actually adopt a viable program to attack the on-going performance issues? Has anyone seen any eye-opening new techniques that really made a difference or has there been only subtle changes that made no impact at all? Why have we been doing the same failed things for at least 6 years in a row, without trying something different and living with the same results? Rasmussen has been a good cheerleader. Now, let's see him make some real changes and correct the Price mess.