Critics and candidates for public office tend to scour the data for weaknesses that might be exploited for their own political gains. School reformers look to the data to argue for more adequate and equitable support for the schools and their vital mission in support of our citizens and our economy. Still others look at the school data and marvel at the public's general lack of understanding about just how far American schools have come.
Following a JCPS Board of Education resolution in support of their immigrant students (consistent with the 1982 Supreme Court decision in Plyler v Doe) Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin chose the critic's route and flung hyperbole at the district calling JCPS an unmitigated disaster. The timing is also contemporaneous with Education Commissioner Stephen Pruitt's order to audit the management of the district, which has put Superintendent Donna Hargens under the microscope. It's a hot time in The Ville.
In Plyler v. Doe, (457 U.S. 202 (1982)), SCOTUS ruled that any resources which might be saved from excluding undocumented children from public schools were far outweighed by the harms imposed on society at large from denying them an education.
As a candidate, comments like Bevin's would be expected. But as a governor, not so much.
This from Joe Gerth at the Courier-Journal:
Matt Bevin is courting 'disaster'
It’s a damn good thing business leaders around the country don’t have the internet.
‘Cause if they did, they’d probably read that the Jefferson County’s public education system is a “disaster” and an “absolute unmitigated mess.”They’d know that if they opened shop in Louisville, they’d find the students here wouldn’t be prepared to go to work for them and don’t have the skills necessary, because the education they got here is a “disaster.”These aren’t the words of unscrupulous business recruiters from Cincinnati or Indianapolis, or Birmingham or Chattanooga.They’re the words of Matthew Griswold Bevin.The Governor.Of Kentucky.There are issues in the Jefferson County Public Schools. We know that.Far too many of the district’s schools are underperforming. In fact, 18 of them are considered persistently low-achieving schools based on annual tests, according to the state Department of Education website. There are only nine other such schools in the rest of the state.But there’s no district in the state that’s anywhere near as large as Jefferson County — and that poses problems all its own. Students in Jefferson County schools speak 136 different languages and 7 percent of them have limited ability to speak English.And more than 60 percent of students are on free or reduced-price lunches, meaning that they live in homes with low incomes — a key indicator that puts them at risk of failing in school.The state Department of Education announced Tuesday that it was undertaking a full-blown management audit to see if it needs to step in and handle the district’s finances, administration, operations and other responsibilities.Students have been physically abused at the hands of teachers and administrators, and the district hasn’t done an adequate job of tracking and recording instances in which school personnel have had to restrain students.But an “absolute, unmitigated mess?” A “disaster?”Nope.The district, overall, meets the proficiency standard.DuPont Manual High School has 44 national merit semifinalists this year. It is one of four Jefferson County schools that have gold or silver status in U.S. News & World Reports' national rankings. Those four schools — Atherton, Brown School and Male are the other three — rank in the top 12 of all Kentucky High Schools.Doss High School, which is one of the under-performing schools, recently posted the seventh-largest gain in overall achievement of any high school in Kentucky.
Western High School students — also on the list of under-performing schools — saw students complete 1,606 dual-credit hours last year. More than half of the 2016 graduating class received college credit and 10 students this year are on pace to graduate with not just a diploma, but an associate’s degree as well.
And this:
Gov. Matt Bevin calls JCPS an 'unmitigated disaster'
Gov. Matt Bevin called Jefferson County Public Schools an "unmitigated disaster" Wednesday and blasted the state's largest school district for poor educational results in some of its schools.And this:
Bevin, in a morning interview with conservative talk show host Leland Conway, said that "JCPS is a disaster in terms of the educational results. They have more failing schools than the entire rest of the state combined. It is an absolute, unmitigated disaster …"
He also took the JCPS board to task for passing a resolution Tuesday that calls JCPS a safe haven for immigrant students and their families. Bevin said the resolution was illegal and "a smokescreen … a distraction from the fact the system is broken."
Bevin did say JCPS has some schools that "are gems, some of the finest schools – arguably the finest schools in the state." He said the district needs to focus on why some schools are so good, yet others have "failed generation after generation."
"These are the things that JCPS needs to focus on, not trying to skirt the law to win kudos from their liberal friends," Bevin said.
JCPS Superintendent Donna Hargens responded to Bevin's comments, saying that "JCPS has many of the top schools in the state and it also has the challenges of educating students who come to school with a variety of social and emotional needs." She said the district is proud of its inclusive and diverse learning environments.
"The doors of our schools are always open, and JCPS welcomes a collaborative and constructive conversation with Gov. Bevin about how we can continue boosting student achievement, not only in this district, but throughout our commonwealth," Hargens said in a statement.
A JCPS spokeswoman said that Bevin has not visited any JCPS school since becoming governor. Bevin’s children were enrolled in Portland Christian School when he was elected governor in 2015.
Rob Mattheu, parent of a freshman at duPont Manual High and a frequent attendee at JCPS board meetings, said he was disgusted when he saw news reports of Bevin's comments Wednesday.
"We all agree (JCPS) could be better," Mattheu said. "But the way of fixing that is not just saying it's a disaster. ... You have to be a fair critic of what's going on and understand the challenges they face."
Mattheu said he is tired of politicians and others "attacking JCPS with no real knowledge of the system." He noted that JCPS has to educate every child that comes to it, regardless of their background. Mattheu invited Bevin to talk to parents and teachers in Jefferson County to get a clearer understanding of the challenges the district faces.
Gay Adelmann, co-founder of the community group Dear JCPS, said there "absolutely" are problems with JCPS and that "district leaders most definitely need to be held more accountable."
But, she said, "we don't need state leaders who don't understand the complexities of our district coming in and constantly dismantling things that are working, making change for the sake of change."
Bevin's comments about schools in JCPS that have failed "generation after generation" echoes sentiments made by former Kentucky Education Commissioner Terry Holliday in 2013 when he derided the lack of progress at some JCPS schools as "academic genocide." (Holliday in later months applauded gains made at some of those schools.)
Brent McKim, president of the county's teachers union, said that JCPS faces "more challenges than any other Kentucky county," but that JCPS has been improving "faster than the state in many ways." He said JCPS parents and students need more support and resources from Bevin, "not criticism of the schools where educators are working their hearts out to help all their students succeed."
He added that "the governor fully funding the (Kentucky) Teacher Retirement System helps us attract and retain good teachers."
Sadiqa Reynolds, president and chief executive of the Louisville Urban League, said that people should stop "political grandstanding" and instead work together to focus resources on how to help children.
"The governor should be encouraging the school boards to get behind their leaders and execute a plan with equity and closing the achievement gap in mind," Reynolds said in a statement.
She also said that "children benefit from being exposed to people who are different from them. Failing at this, we risk growing them into myopic tyrants who lead in ways that endanger us all."
She said "we should be ashamed" that declaring schools to be safe havens is even a question.
The school board on Tuesday evening approved the safe haven resolution in a divided vote, with three of its seven members abstaining and four in support. The resolution says that JCPS will resist requests from federal immigration officials to share data or resources — unless compelled by a valid court order — that could help identify students or families who are potentially undocumented.
It states that JCPS employees, contractors, volunteers and others cannot disclose information about a student or family's immigration status to Immigration and Customs Enforcement without a valid court order or permission from a parent or guardian. And, among other things, it says immigration enforcement personnel can't be given access to JCPS campuses without the superintendent's review and approval.
The resolution lays out what has already been district policy and practice. Board member Lisa Willner on Tuesday stressed that the board is "not advocating for disobeying federal law, state law, local law."
Board Chairman Chris Brady, who proposed the safe haven resolution, said it is meant to reassure students and families that JCPS is doing everything it can to provide a safe, welcoming environment that is conducive to learning.
Brady said Wednesday that he did not hear Bevin's interview on the radio but said that "anyone can review the resolution and note that it adheres to the rule of law."
Indeed, K-12 student information is already protected by federal and state privacy laws. In addition, public schools in the U.S. may not ask about the immigration or citizenship status of students to establish local residency, thanks largely to a 1982 U.S. Supreme Court case that ruled that children are entitled to a free public education regardless of immigration status.
Board member Steph Horne abstained from the vote on the resolution Tuesday, saying that she had concerns that passing such language could cause unnecessary problems and draw ire from state and national leaders.
"Setting up our board of education as an antagonist against our governor and president is a fight that is not in the greater interest of our students," Horne said. She added that one of the board's duties is to not take actions that could "put JCPS or students at risk of a cutoff of state (or) federal funds."
Also in Wednesday's radio interview, Bevin asked why JCPS was still busing children.
"Are we really helping these children by taking them from one community, putting them on a bus … to another community where arguably they should be getting a better education but frankly they may or may not be, and then pulling them out of there before they can participate in any kind of extracurricular activities …" Bevin said.
Bevin said such students "don’t actually belong to any community anywhere." He called them "educational nomads that are moving around on JCPS buses."
He called busing "an antiquated approach that frankly needs to be re-examined."
Brady said that, as a parent of JCPS students, he's thankful the district has an assignment plan that gives him a choice of where to send his children.
"All of our students in JCPS and those in public schools across the state need the governor's support, not attacks," Brady said. "We welcome the opportunity to have a constructive conversation and (find) common ground from which we can work to benefit all students."
#NotADisaster: JCPS teachers respond to Bevin
In response to Gov. Matt Bevin labeling Jefferson County Public Schools an "unmitigated disaster," teachers and administrators on Thursday started a social media campaign refuting the remark and inviting the governor to visit.
Hundreds of JCPS teachers, principals and parents posted photos of classrooms and students accompanied by the hashtag #NotADisaster. Some also added the hashtag #wearejcps.
A JCPS spokeswoman said Wednesday that Bevin has not visited any JCPS school since becoming governor. Bevin’s children were enrolled in Portland Christian School when he was elected governor in 2015.
Robin "MeMe" Ratliff, co-founder of teacher-led connection group JCPSForward, said she isn't sure who first started the hashtag but, "by this morning it was going pretty hard." JCPS educators began spreading word of the movement to each other via direct message, email and text message.
"It was an extension of the anger lots of folks are feeling with the state of the government in general, not just in Kentucky but across the nation," Ratliff said of the hashtag. "I think you're seeing teachers use social media not just for the Kardashians but as an advocacy resource — standing up for your profession, standing up for what you believe in and for public education."
Kelly Armstrong, a special education teacher at Semple Elementary, was one of the teachers who joined the campaign to firmly challenge Bevin's perception.
"I'm a 16 year special education teacher and my classroom is NOT an unmitigated disaster. Come visit. #notadisaster," she wrote on Twitter.
Bryan Quillen, a 10th grade English teacher at Fairdale High School, tweeted, "Hey @GovMattBevin. Maybe you should stop by Fairdale HS. I would LOVE to see you eat your words. Room 218. #notadisaster #wearejcps."
Southern High School teacher Alison Moore posted photos of her AP U.S. History students working and "discussing Social Darwinisim and laissez-faire capitalism" along with the hashtag.
Hite Elementary School computer teacher Beth Kolodey tweeted a photo of her third-grade students building geodesic structures along with the hashtag.
Kolodey is a JCPS graduate, as are her husband and their two children. She was an accountant before switching into the teaching profession in the early 2000's, a change she said was inspired by the need to make a difference.
"I think it's one of the most important things we can do for our future generations, to protect our children by educating them," Kolodey said.
Ratliff said the quickness with which the #NotADisaster spread "goes to show the passion and collective pride that JCPS educators have" and demonstrates the ferocity with which they reacted to Bevin's comments.
Bevin, in a morning interview with conservative talk show host Leland Conway, said that "JCPS is a disaster in terms of the educational results. They have more failing schools than the entire rest of the state combined. It is an absolute, unmitigated disaster …"
Bevin also slammed the JCPS board for passing a resolution Tuesday that calls JCPS a safe haven for immigrant students and their families. Bevin said the resolution was illegal and "a smokescreen … a distraction from the fact the system is broken."
Bevin's statements "invalidated and degraded the work of 6,700 educators in our district," Ratliff said.
Terry Brooks, the executive director of Kentucky Youth Advocates, said Thursday he agrees that there is a lot of great work happening on JCPS campuses, saying five of his grandchildren go to the district’s schools. And he said those successes should be noted and rewarded. But he said just looking at the “individual heroes” does not give a big enough look at how well the district is performing as a system.
“Folks rightfully say we have great teachers and principals,” Brooks said. “At the individual classroom and school level, there are a myriad of school successes. But they’re in spite of the district’s leadership, not because of the district’s leadership.”
Brooks also pointed to a recent district survey that found that only half of school-based certified staff think that JCPS Superintendent Donna Hargens and other central office administrators are providing effective leadership in support of schools.
Hargens responded to Bevin's comments Wednesday, saying that "JCPS has many of the top schools in the state and it also has the challenges of educating students who come to school with a variety of social and emotional needs." She said the district is proud of its inclusive and diverse learning environments.
"The doors of our schools are always open, and JCPS welcomes a collaborative and constructive conversation with Gov. Bevin about how we can continue boosting student achievement, not only in this district, but throughout our commonwealth," Hargens said in a statement.
Ratliff said she is going to Frankfort later this week to invite Bevin to attend a JCPS professional learning event Feb. 24-25 in Louisville.
"I don't need the governor to do a whole school tour," she said. "I'd be happy if he just came to one school and actually talked to educators and students."
Kolodey said she thinks Bevin visiting a school would be a great start.
"It's easy to condemn," she said, "but it's harder to be part of a solution."
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