District Withdraws Proposed Policy on Student Newspapers
From the district:
The district has agreed to withdraw the proposed policy over the student newspapers and will revisit it in 2012.
The Seattle School District today announced that it will withdraw a policy proposal involving school district-sponsored freedom of expression. Interim Superintendent Dr. Susan Enfield said that school board directors and district administrators jointly agreed to revisit the policy, introduced to the Seattle School Board Nov. 2, to ensure that it better reflects the community’s values.
“As we move forward in updating our policies, as chair of the curriculum and instruction policy committee, I will direct staff to ensure that any policy we develop regarding student expression is reflective of the language and values that we share in Seattle,” said School Board Director Harium Martin-Morris.
Based on a shared concern between district leadership and the Board, this policy will be pulled from the current list of updates, scheduled for Board action Dec. 7, and will be revisited in 2012, Dr. Enfield said.
“As a former journalism teacher, it is important for me -- as I know it is for our Board -- that we uphold our practice of trusting our teachers to educate our students on the rights and responsibilities that come with freedom of expression and a free press,” Dr. Enfield said.
I knew she taught LA but she was a journalism teacher? And this was okay with her? Hmmm.
The district has agreed to withdraw the proposed policy over the student newspapers and will revisit it in 2012.
The Seattle School District today announced that it will withdraw a policy proposal involving school district-sponsored freedom of expression. Interim Superintendent Dr. Susan Enfield said that school board directors and district administrators jointly agreed to revisit the policy, introduced to the Seattle School Board Nov. 2, to ensure that it better reflects the community’s values.
“As we move forward in updating our policies, as chair of the curriculum and instruction policy committee, I will direct staff to ensure that any policy we develop regarding student expression is reflective of the language and values that we share in Seattle,” said School Board Director Harium Martin-Morris.
Based on a shared concern between district leadership and the Board, this policy will be pulled from the current list of updates, scheduled for Board action Dec. 7, and will be revisited in 2012, Dr. Enfield said.
“As a former journalism teacher, it is important for me -- as I know it is for our Board -- that we uphold our practice of trusting our teachers to educate our students on the rights and responsibilities that come with freedom of expression and a free press,” Dr. Enfield said.
I knew she taught LA but she was a journalism teacher? And this was okay with her? Hmmm.
Comments
marching
Not Fooled
Well played ;) Still, I'm surprised that HMM would care, since he seemed to have checked out a long time ago. Must be responding to pressure from his supporters.
This blog sometimes crosses the line between responsible and otherwise. I've never been comfy with unregistered blogs. They are always meaner and sensational and downright nasty at times. If you got a big secret- go to the press. A blog should be somewhat civilized and registering makes that happen.
My2sense
Sounds like at Martin Floe Part II; a bad idea stemming from bad information...
I don't always go to the press because many times they don't listen or aren't interested. Parents ARE interested in what happens in this district and it's mostly for them that we write.
I read the PI article and it only mentions the petition. I'm not sure I "forced" anyone's hand.
Again, community input on important issues is vital to a district that parents and the public can trust.
SolvayGirl
Another Martin Floe deja-vu all over again.
This time,however, Enfield used language to separate herself from her initial decision. If you didn't know better (and just depended on this press release)you'd think she had been MIA when the censorship plan was decided upon, and then taken to the board (which, of course, she wasn't).
BTW, I wonder if Enfield has a voodoo doll of Melissa yet.
==another case of misjudgment by the interim, and a slick (but transparent) attempt to deflect blame
First, it would reveal something about her values, her ability to issue-spot, etc.
Second, it would reveal something about her management style (and the values, judgment, and management abilities of those below her who were involved in devising and approving this policy) and the degree to which she delegates her authority to others (I am not trying to say she never should, I haven't really thought through all the ramifications -- but it would be interesting to know.)
Oompah
WV describes the board and staff relationship as ensest.
ALTERNATIVE CERTIFICATION AND TEACH FOR AMERICA: THE SEARCH FOR HIGH QUALITY TEACHERS
Julian Vasquez Heilig*
Heather A. Cole**
Marilyn A. Springel***
To be fair, teachers are one of the most underpaid and undervalued of professions. There is little or no deference paid to teachers by the general public. Everyone has been to school and everyone assumes that they know something about teaching. We have all been a part of the process. However, the same might be said of doctors, dentists, or even police officers, but few people would assume they could do any of these jobs without significant training and experience on the job. In other countries, such as Finland, where students are performing better and there is greater equity in access to quality education, there are more stringent demands on teacher training programs, competition for admission into these programs, and greater pay and prestige for the profession.
===================
The failure to perform the required careful review of all options to close achievement gaps is typical of the respect the laws get from this crew.
===========
WOW so Susan Enfield was a journalism teacher so she reversed the Proposed Newspaper Policy......
Too bad she wasn't a math teacher as there is a whole lot of reversing needed there.
It's a dangerous weapon.
They want us to register our blogs so that later on they can round us up take our blogs away.
When they outlaw blogs, only outlaws will have blogs.
SolvayGirl
A dose of knowledge on the first amendment and schools.
http://www.firstamendmentschools.org/
CJ
The Board is not supposed to meet and make decisions outside of the public eye. There's that whole Open Meetings Act thing. It's a state law.
If Dr. Enfield had said that she or she and her staff decided to defer review of this policy, that would be one thing, but she specifically said that school board directors were involved in the decision. How many? How did they express themselves? Which Board directors were involved and which were not?
Why don't you start your own blog with your own rules? Since everyone obviously agrees with YOUR definitions of "meaner" and "downright nasty", your blog will be a success! or
YouJustWantToBeTheCensor
MGJ wouldn't have pulled this proposal.
Another Kudo to Enfield, IMO.
horizon
TEACH FOR AWHILE - the Garfield Messenger article discussing TFA.
I love this line from the TFA article...
If five weeks is sufficient schooling to enter the classroom, shouldn’t you be teaching your AP classes by now?
"The Board is not supposed to meet and make decisions outside of the public eye. There's that whole Open Meetings Act thing. It's a state law."
The district should provide all the emails between board members and/or the district which led to this decision. This was a policy which was already recommended by the C&I Committee and placed on the official Board Introduction items at the last board meeting, so any changes & reasons to suddenly pull it off the table need to be open to the public to explain how/why they are bypassing the board process on an "emergency type" basis.
Maybe the end result of delaying is the right thing, but management by crisis is not proper leadership by any stretch.
More information here.
- Brian M. Rosenthal
Seattle Times education reporter
http://www.twitter.com/brianmrosenthal
Hey some of us are all for the following of State Laws .... like RCW 28A 645.020 .... that requires you, within 20 days of appeal, to .... file a "Certified Correct" transcript of evidence when a legal appeal is filed.
.... like WAC 181-79A-231 ... a careful review????
Enough of your BS about reflective of "values we share"... How about YOU following laws Before you get all philosophical on us?
"Interim Superintendent Dr. Susan Enfield said that school board directors and district administrators jointly agreed to revisit the policy, introduced to the Seattle School Board Nov. 2, to ensure that it better reflects the community’s values."
...and also:
"Based on a shared concern between district leadership and the Board, this policy will be pulled from the current list of updates, scheduled for Board action Dec. 7, and will be revisited in 2012, Dr. Enfield said."
I still think any & all emails to/from the board/administration/public about this would shed some more light on the decision process that the public deserves.
Is this the type of knee-jerk leadership we can expect every time in the future when something controversial comes up, instead of taking in meaningful input in advance of a decision coming to a final vote?
There was a ruling this summer that held that the district wasn't liable for what was written about the Sisley published in the Roosevelt student newspaper..
Make the principal in charge of reviewing and approving all content that appears in the paper and then you make the school district a party to what's printed.
It's a freakin' bizarre proposal no matter which way you take it.
It sounds like they not only didn't pass it by the general public, but they didn't even get adequate input from a few knowldegeable folks.
Isn't this about par for the course:
"It's a freakin' bizarre proposal no matter which way you take it.
It sounds like they not only didn't pass it by the general public, but they didn't even get adequate input from a few knowldegeable folks."
Yup Bizarre, but just business as usual for this crew.
Director Martin-Morris is quoted as saying "That's the way the process is supposed to work."
No. It isn't the way the process is supposed to work.
One Board member is not authorized to make unilateral changes to proposals before the Board after they have been introduced. He has FAR overstepped his authority.
Can you imagine where this could lead? Director Smith-Blum wanted some changes to the list of Series 2000 and 3000 policies that would be subjected to Phase II review, and she was not granted that authority. That change would have required a vote of the Board as an amendment to the motion. But Director Martin-Morris makes this change with a phone call to the superintendent.
And he says that this is how the process is supposed to work.
I don't know if this tamping down of discussion at Board meetings is to save time or to keep it to a minimum but given that this is the most likely time that the public would listen to issues brought before the Board, I find this astonishing.
All those Board retreats on "governance" and we get this freak show.
Mr Ed
But, this is NOT what the Action Report states- It is a full scale approval of all of the 2000 and 3000 policies, and "will go into effect immediately upon approval by the School Board."
If my count is correct, all together in the 2000 & 3000 series, there are 147 policies (and an additional 42 superintendent procedures which apparently are not even required to be approved by the board), with 29 of those being totally new policies (such as the infamous "Freedom of Expression" policy). Subtract out 8 marked "no change", and 28 marked "phase 2", and that leaves a grand total of 111 new and/or revised policies being voted on and approved, effective immediately, without proper discussion or review!
Despite three C&I meetings, 1 board work session and the 11/02 board meeting there has not been a full review of each and every one of the policies being approved. This is inexcusable! The work session ran out of time and did not even get to any of the 3000 series policies (a whopping 83 policies with 17 brand new ones). In each of the C&I meetings the board members only discussed the policies they thought needed review or clarification, and did not even glance at the majority of the policies (the minutes for 9/26 show that they discussed 5 specific policies).
The district keeps saying that the process and the vote is to facilitate the renumbering system- fine, vote on that but don't approve 111 new and or revised policies with no thorough review.
Too many/too fast!
I suppose that work of this scale could be undertaken by a board who paid better attention to detail, but not by this board.
Not me.... after watching this crew ignore policies and laws for several years .... It is quite obvious that transparency is only an illusion that the District tries to sell.