Failing Grade

Submitted by lmcshane on Tue, 08/14/2012 - 06:02.

 

 

 

How bad is the administration at Cleveland Metropolitan Schools? 

 

 

As kids and parents are now scurrying to identify and plan their routes to and from school,  CMSD directs high school 9-12 graders to a building they also propose to senselessly demolish in October.

http://www.cmsdnet.net/Schools/SchoolList/School%20Detail/JohnMarshall.aspx

http://www.cleveland.com/sunpostherald/index.ssf/2012/08/clevelands_john_marshall_high.html

http://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2012/08/cleveland_schools_must_be_clea.html

No directive for 9th grade students planned to be housed in the former Hawthorne elementary school circa 1917 (and sized for elementary students--$$ spent on this school also planned for eventual demolition).

 

This would all be comical, if this were not the truth.  Your tax dollars--call Frank Jackson and Martin Sweeney and demand that the district retain high school operations at John Marshall High School.  This is your tax dollar squandered by fools and incompetents.

If you are an attorney who can put an end to this madness, please contact Satindur Puri (216) 251-3978
https://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/160386844035662/

 

 
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Support Brown and Puri -Demand Accountability

Submitted by lmcshane on Sun, 08/26/2012 - 08:51.

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A Bailout is Not the Answer
 
Homeowners Deserve a Risk Management Assessment  
   
    In November 2012, Mayor Frank G. Jackson and several public officials, law makers community advocates are pushing for a Cleveland school levy on the November 2012 Ballot. The problem with this levy is three fold. First, it is clear and obvious that the way our schools are funded is unconstitutional. Home owners (alone) should not be responsible for educating Cleveland’s young people. A fair amount of Cleveland home owners do not have school age children. To target a population suffering from economic turmoil is a travesty. It is unbelievable to expect anyone to take this levy seriously. Home owners are barely able to pay their mortgages and to financially bully them into a local school taxed mandate is not a fiscal responsible practice. To date, it has not been explained why home owners should be responsible for a $60 million dollar deficit that was caused by poor risk management, meager leadership and pitiable oversight. To issue Cleveland Municipal School District a bailout is irresponsible. It’s not about the children while lay-offs are still occurring within the district. Simultaneously, CMSD recently hired a Chief Academic Officer with an annual salary of $200,000(Cleveland Plain Dealer June 2012). This is an apparent contradiction to the proposed financially strapped district and clearly exposes a need for best practices.

     Secondly, risk management over haul is warranted. CMSD is a public entity. For years, CMSD has struggled in this area. As such, the district has neglected to employ drill down methods to understand and publicly explain how spending spiraled aimlessly. The continue failure to manage and measure public funds should be internally investigated by an outside non political organization. The institution of claw backs ranging from raises, bonuses and promotions should be examined and established. The effects of educational hiccups will aid the transformation with slight interruption. This will command new leadership,executive and mid-level management accountability, openness, compliance and transparency while assuring tax payers that real change is under way. Home owners need to know how the district will emerge from fiscal malfeasance and what will preclude future losses and poor performance?

   Lastly, the appointed school board should perform as advocates for the Mayor, tax payers and the community. Tough questions must be driven for real solutions and results. The appointed board must conduct themselves as fiduciary agents. They must protect the goods and services of our education system.
     A levy is not a determinate factor for fixing our school district. Throwing good money after bad financial decisions, amount to insurmountable financial losses, and public deception. To deceive the public by edging law makers to pass an education transformation bill so that it can sit on the anchor of a proposed school levy that will less likely benefit the children of Cleveland is shameful. It would have been plausible to introduce new and inviting human capital (who live in the district) measures to talk  about what really needs to be fixed before asking a targeted few for more money. It is a granted assumption that we will not produce smarter children with a levy however we will see growth in political manipulation and a strong decline of public trust.
   Tax Payers merit a workable model. Home owners deserve risk management preventative measures – a risk management accountability overhaul.
   
  This op-ed was submitted to the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Unfortunately it was not selected for publication. Team Brown will take this issue directly to voters and aggressively canvass Cleveland neighborhoods - WARD by WARD and corner by corner. Home Owners have a right to ask questions: Where's the accountability?

 

Designed to FAIL -CMSD First DAY

Submitted by lmcshane on Sun, 08/26/2012 - 08:47.

http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2010/12/kasich_would_have_state_take_o.html

The question: Are the PD|GCP and Jackson|Sweeney playing into the scheme??? State take-over?

 

If you are an attorney who can put an end to this madness, please contact Satindur Puri (216) 251-3978

Phillip Morris recounts one student and parent experience as they make their way to a rubble-strewn lot...

Sickening: http://www.cleveland.com/morris/index.ssf/2012/08/eugene_johnsons_first_day_of_k.html

 

COUNCILMAN SWEENEY RIGGED 5 TO 4 VOTE TO DEMOLISH HISTORIC JOHN MARSHALL HIGH SCHOOL IN CLEVELAND, OHIO AT JANUARY 12, 2012 CLC MEETING:

*Two Top City Officials -- Director of City Planning & Manager of Architecture – who should be preserving our heritage voted for demolition of 80-year old landmark at the January 12, 2012 Cleveland Landmarks Commission meeting.

* Councilman Sweeney dismissed our petitioners (over 2,400) -- as not representative of the community.
According to the Councilman -- most of the people in his ward want a new school -- but he never presented any petitions for a new school.

*A member was absent. While quorum was still satisfied, Councilman Sweeney brought in Councilwoman Phyllis Cleveland as a one-day replacement  -- not clear under what rules of the Commission -- and she also voted for demolition.

*Time limit for speakers, in the public session, was 2 minutes. I spoke for 2 minutes but Councilman Sweeney was allowed to speak for 18 minutes without any objection from the Chair while the SAVE JOHN MARSHALL campaign was denied the basic right to speak about inaccuracies and mathematical contradictions in the School District’s financial numbers.

* Chair of CLC was aware of errors in financial numbers -- but she permitted the vote to proceed anyway.

Councilman Sweeney, also Council President, very aware of protecting basic rights of individuals, demonstrated no outrage when the right to speak in City Hall was denied.


*Councilman Sweeney, who likes building new schools in his ward, was quoted on cleveland.com on January 19, 2012 – saying that a new John Marshall will be “state-of-the-art” -- is not aware that 83-year old John Hay High School, with an auditorium and a swimming pool was renovated in 2006 to 21st century learning standards and forgot to mention his “state-of-the-art” school in addition to destroying our heritage will not have an auditorium, underground track, or swimming pool.


*Due process was denied to petitioners who want renovation. Concerns of the community who have rejected the new school in three successive zero votes were ignored. A box, weighing 7 pounds, containing petitions/ documents was given to the Commission.

Satinder P.S. Puri
Retired Structural Engineer,Community Volunteer at Riverside School
13217 Cooley Avenue
Cleveland, Ohio 44111-3312

Tel. (216) 251-3978
e-mail: spspuri9 [at] sbcglobal [dot] net