Comments for Higley Schools Blog

Comment on About Higley Schools Blog by Polly

Polly — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 00:07:09 +0000

Just want to say that the bullying continues in this district regarding teachers. Interesting cases going on at this time! It is shameful to the extent that this district will go to get rid of wonderful, think out of the box, teachers.
I honestly don’t know if I want to continue to have my children attend school in this district based on my knowledge of what goes on behind the scenes. We teach our children that bullying is not acceptable and yet the administration/HR does it on a daily basis to it’s employees; that my tax money pays to have.
Very dissapointed!!

Comment on Higley K-3 override is defeated by AZFAM

AZFAM — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 03:12:09 +0000

I had the same questions, Pamela.

Comment on Higley K-3 override is defeated by Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 02:47:52 +0000

Can someone please explain to me how the district can afford to hire more people? As noticed today, HUSD currently has openings for 22 different positions in just the classified area of their website. They recently hired a new Director of Community Education ( a position in which was just eliminated a year ago to save money) and the ENTIRE IT department that was “reorganized” must reapply for their positions…Considering most of this department walked out early this fall, wouldn’t they cherish and thank those that did not walk? Where is the funding coming for all these new positions? What are they thinking????? Sorry HUSD, don’t ask me for another dime.

Comment on Higley K-3 override is defeated by Pamela

Pamela — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 03:12:34 +0000

I have been giving it some thought and our household is considering calculating the amount that we would have paid in taxes, had the override passed and donating that amount to our childrens teachers in a giftcard for supplies. We believe this way it will actually be used for the classroom, for items that are needed and there is no chance of Dr. Birdwell getting her hands on it. Perhaps, it will inspire others to do the same.

Comment on Higley K-3 override is defeated by azfam

azfam — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 02:52:25 +0000

Thats the way Birdwell works. The majority of her new hires are friends or family members. She creates positions, and then strategically places her “followers” in those spots. She seems to be telling us that HUSD has money to keep hiring district level employees, but there is no need for, or money for extra staff at the schools? Then why did she ask for an override? Birdwell seems to make no sence whatsoever, and the schools and the kids are the ones paying for her foolishness. I am so fed up with HUSD leadership and the board. I wish my kids attended a different school district.

Comment on Higley K-3 override is defeated by Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:08:13 +0000

If you notice on East Valley Tribune, there is an article about the override that did not pass. There is quite a bit of information on there and people discussing this exact situation. How can we afford to bring on TWO additional directors. We created new director positions in June, hired people in as director 1 and within 2 months, gave them an increase and a title of director 2.

The current openings are for an IT director and a Community Education Director. What happened to the previous IT director and entire IT team? Is there nobody that has proven themselves that deserves a promotion from within? As for the Community Education opening, we had a wonderful person in that position in 2009 that was demoted and moved to another campus and brought in a supervisor to deal with those duties. I am now viewing the job requirements and duties and this is the exact responsibilities of the person currently doing the job. Is this person just going to slide into the new director position? Why bother posting positions if you are going to pick who you want anyhow and not the most qualified?

Comment on Higley K-3 override is defeated by azfam

azfam — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 07:17:30 +0000

If you check HUSD’s website under employment, you will see two director positions open. One is a new position, and one is a replacement position for someone they fired for no apparent reason other than Birdwell’s own paranoia….

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Pamela

Pamela — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 18:24:45 +0000

azfam, I am confused, as I thought, from the listserve email that this was a topic that was going to be discussed. Considering the district has not fully convinced me where this money is going, I am going to have to vote by following my heart and try to determine if this is in the best interest of my children. Thank you for following up on this for me.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by azfam

azfam — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:45:34 +0000

Pamela, Birdwell did not discuss this money at the forum.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Pamela

Pamela — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:31:50 +0000

Azfam, that sounds too good to be true. I would be very curious to see how that turns out and can only pray that this will go back into the schools and benefit the children. I sincerely hope that this will NOT go into more district office staffing. Unfortunately, I was unable to sit in on the superintendents presentation tonight, however, anyone that may be able to share the information would be greatly appreciated.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by azfam

azfam — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 00:05:30 +0000

HUSD just got over $1 million back from the Department of Education for their student membership numbers, along with more than half a million dollars from correcting audit errors from the previous year.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Stacy LaGoy

Stacy LaGoy — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:03:36 +0000

I received this via HUSD listserve….There is the first of a series of community forums with Dr. Birdwell this Wednesday, October 28th at 7:00 at the district office. The topis of this forum are acedemic achievement, classroom expenditures and technology integration.
If you have questions, comments and/or concerns bring them and ask. It is always best to get information from the source.
See you there.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Geoff Johnston

Geoff Johnston — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 05:17:54 +0000

Sheila: A “YES” vote on the tax increase will do nothing to solve the bigger funding issues created by federal and state governments

True. It won’t solve world hunger either. But it would fund the local k-3 grades a little better and would help HUSD improve. If the issue is return on investment the question is what improving HUSD might do to increase housing values in the district. I don’t have any hard numbers on that — I just think it stands to reason that a stronger HUSD will help home values.

there is an inverse correlation between school funding and student achievement. If you don’t believe me, compare school performance results from a heavily funded place like Washington DC and a much less heavily funded place like Utah

Well it seems to me that there are lots of other factors that might play into the performance of kids in poor urban areas like DC versus places like rural or suburban Utah. I doubt anyone would seriously argue that children in DC perform worse than children in Utah _because_ those inner city districts were saddled with some extra funding…

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Sheila Nelson

Sheila Nelson — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 16:34:32 +0000

A “YES” vote on the tax increase will do nothing to solve the bigger funding issues created by federal and state governments–that’s where the money is, and that’s where our efforts would create the biggest pay-off.

Additionally, there is an inverse correlation between school funding and student achievement. If you don’t believe me, compare school performance results from a heavily funded place like Washington DC and a much less heavily funded place like Utah.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Stacy LaGoy

Stacy LaGoy — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 05:17:24 +0000

twoboys,
You are right on. 2006…120,000,000 voter aproved bond. This can only be used to build.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Stacy LaGoy

Stacy LaGoy — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 05:11:24 +0000

Pamela,
I will bring your questions to the district. Please email yesforhigleykids@gmail.com with you contact info. Let’s get in touch.
Stacy

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Pamela

Pamela — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 05:01:31 +0000

stacy, that would be wonderful if you could present them to the district. I have contacted one of the secretraries there for stuff in the past and after several requests for public information and have been told I must fill out some request forms and forward them to the HR department Director, unfortunately, I have never received those requests. Please don’t misunderstand me or my thoughts, I am simply wanting some sort of answers or guarantee that each penny that is supposed to go for the K-3 kids actually goes to the kids and not for more unneeded bodies, expenses etc. I love the school, I love the teachers my children have had and the ones in their futures. I WANT to see them succeed and know that many of them struggle financially to do what they love, teach. I would hate to see any of them leave to go to districts that can offer them a better opportunity, or what they may not be getting at HUSD. I am afraid that we will lose more if the funds are not going to the right places. Is there not something that the parents and public can vote on as to where the funds go or how they are spent? I think that could make a difference in the voters. Allowing others, who have their own ideas, to spend the money could be a bad decision, in my opinion.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Geoff Johnston

Geoff Johnston — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 23:03:56 +0000

Thanks for the comment twoboys. That jibes with what I have heard about construction funds as well.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by twoboys

twoboys — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 22:40:06 +0000

It’s my understanding that the construction projects were paid for with the bond money from a few years ago. That came from a totally different bucket of money and if it were up to the district, they would have thrown that towards kids and teacher salaries. However, according to state law, bond money is already earmarked. It is frustrating to see new buildings and such being built when money could be better used, but it’s the legislature and state policies that are the bigger issue here. Help the kids/teachers and vote yes on the override. It’s pennies per person.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Stacy LaGoy

Stacy LaGoy — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 07:50:18 +0000

Pamela,
Would you mind if I copy and paste your questions to District for answers?
Stacy

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 22:51:52 +0000

My complaints are not with the district management, they are with the money management. Like I have said over and over, I am willing to form a better opinion if I am shown EXACTLY where the money will be going. I would not buy a house or car without knowing what I am paying for, so why would I just hand over funds for my childrens education without asking the questions?

The district should be able to show us where they plan to spend the money on specifics and sell us on the override. That is all I am asking.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Geoff Johnston

Geoff Johnston — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 21:41:44 +0000

Pamela,

I understand that you have complaints about the district management. What I don’t understand is what your specific complaints have to do with voting YES or NO on this specific k-3 override. Are you under the impression that voting NO will somehow punish district leadership or something? If so I think you are mistaken. A NO vote will mostly punish the k-3 children in our district and their teachers.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 21:33:03 +0000

Geoff, the questions I have could easily be answered if the district were willing to be open and honest with their answers. I live in the district and have yet to receive ANYTHING in writing, mail or email explaining what their goals, plans or intentions are. As mentioned, I have attended board meetings that often show fancy powerpoints but don’t really answer the questions for the general publics understanding. I have found better campaigns while strolling the campus with my children at their school in which the students are running for school class offices. While I understand that the school, district and teachers are unable to advertise, so to speak, I would really like to see something from the district selling us on why we should vote yes on such an important issue. As we all agree, the students and their education should be the number one priority, now show me how that is going to be achieved. Don’t simply tell me curriculum enrichment, salaries etc. Show me the dollar figures and what will be spent on what and how much. My gut feeling tells me that a good portion of that would be spent on new administrative fees and positions that we currently do not need.

I am open to being swayed if the answers are provided, however, time is a ticking so to speak.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Geoff Johnston

Geoff Johnston — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 21:12:45 +0000

Pamela,

Those are good questions about the details. Hopefully someone more in the know can point us to some answers. I am glad to see you are not set on voting NO though.

I sometimes get the impression that some people have a beef with district leadership and are more interested exacting revenge than doing what is best for the kids. I think that is problematic. Sure there are problems with the district but I fail to see how voting NO on this override will do anything to help solve those problems at all.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Geoff Johnston

Geoff Johnston — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 21:08:30 +0000

azfam,

How do you think voting NO will help solve the problems you noted?

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 19:17:05 +0000

Geoff, Again, this is just my opinion. I am speaking on MY feelings about this override and can only assume that there are others with questions as well. I attend the board meetings and can watch slide after slide on a powerpoint presentation and have found that they can say what they want on any subject, provide whatever survey results or paint sunshine on a picture of a storm, bottom line is, I don’t feel comfortable with what I am seeing or have seen in the past.

Let me say that I have reviewed the Q&A on HUSD’s website. From MY understanding, it lists that the following is what it will be used for:

1. salaries, benefits and programs SPECIFICALLY for k-3
2. Reducing class sizes k-3
3. Enrich Curriculum
4. Provide instructional support

Yes, each of those would be nice, but I would like to see numbers to accompany each. Whose salaries will be increased? I know that the teachers at our school took a pay cut this year. Are we going to bring in new teachers at higher salaries? Are the teachers going to get what they deserve? Benefits: Will the teachers actually get the same type of perks and benefits that the directors are getting? We are currently paying for many directors families health insurance as well as life insurance exceeding 200K each. (mind you, this has been in effect for quite some time) as well as company cars, laptops etc. Last time I checked, each person had a desktop for their office, why the need for both. Programs: What programs? explain which they are actually going to bring to the classrooms.

Reducing class size would be beneficial but I would like to know actual numbers. What are they currently at vs. the intended number. Where will they house the additional classrooms or do they plan to bring in portable classrooms or remodel each school for additional space?

Enriching curriculum: We currently have at least 3 Director 3 that are in charge of curriculum in one way or another and I am sure there are assistants or other departments that are in charge of development and such. How do they plan to enrich the current curriculum? How many more staff members will be brought on board for such?

Providing instructional support: How do they intend to do such? Does this mean adding an aide in each room or hiring a trainer and holding more “group classes” for the teachers?

The outlines look intriguing, but I would like details. When do they plan to put this into effect? I would be more inclined to vote yes if I knew the funds were going towards something like text books so each child could have their own to bring home for homework. I would like to see more electives in the K-3 as well. The specialty classes we are offered need to be expanded, however, I am sure they will ask for more funding for that next year.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by azfam

azfam — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 18:39:33 +0000

It’s my opinion that Denise Birdwell could have spent the money that HUSD had on the classrooms and the teachers, and she chose not to do so, and the board allowed it to happen without question. She is a master at manipulating data and figures, and she focuses her efforts on personal PR. I do not think she has the best intention for Higley kids, and I will not vote to give any more money while she is managing it. I was not in favor of Birdwell becoming the superidendent (nor was I a fan of Lutrey). When that position changes, maybe my opinions will change.
I do feel sorry for the HUSD students who are the victims in this political mess.

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Geoff Johnston

Geoff Johnston — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:44:37 +0000

Pamela,

How do you think voting NO will help solve the problems you noted?

Comment on Message from Yes for Higley Kids by Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:26:01 +0000

while I agree there is a need for more funding for the district, I am very inclined NOT to vote in favor of such. Regardless if it is going to be less than last years taxes, I have not witnessed the district spending money where it actually counts the most. I don’t think my children would have cared if we had the old bus barn, the old district offices or even an extra child or two in their class. The numbers than are forcasted for class sizes are not going to change enough to make a real difference. I do understand that the numbers that we are receiving funding for are far less than what we currently have, however, perhaps they should not be building as rapidly as we are. We opened a high school at only Freshman and Sophmore level, we have a new k-8 school that is far from capacity and we are CONTINUING to bring in new district employees for insanely high salaries plus perks. We are doing nothing to improve teacher/employee morale and we are spending large amounts of money to investigate employees for frivolous things. I am tired of having to read about the district each day in the paper. I wonder how many parents are looking at other schools for their children for the upcoming years.

I understand that the original post is the opinion of one parent, and I respect that. I would hope that my opinion is also respected. It is a tough time for all and for the district to ask for ANOTHER override at this time, when the last one barely passed, seems crazy. Surely, I am not alone in my thinking.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Stacy LaGoy

Stacy LaGoy — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 03:29:03 +0000

The tax rate for Higley has dropped $.90 since last year. This is due to the state lowering the QTR and not allowing districts to levy for excess utilities. After adding in the additional $.23 cents for the override our tax rate is still $.67 lower than last year.
As Geoff has earlier pointed out this is not the topic at hand. Thanks for letting us cary on.
I am avaliable at yesforhigleykids@gmail.com for further discussion.
We all want the same thing, the best education for our children.
Thanks for your feedback and comments.

Comment on An end to rotating start times at HUSD? by Pamela

Pamela — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 16:21:42 +0000

My children have been in the district for over 5 years and we have ALWAYS had the same start/end time. We have NEVER rotated since I have been in the district. It is something that comes up each and every year. To state they are putting an end to the rotating start times is confusing since this is something that has remained the same for quite some time.

I would, very much, welcome a year round schedule as well though. It is nice that Chandler has an additional week for fall and spring. It would be great to have time off when it is cooler here to spend outdoors, instead of the longer summer with the heat to deal with.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Pamela

Pamela — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 06:07:41 +0000

my question, Ms. LaGoy, is do we know how many of those other AZ districts currently are continually letting valued, long term staff members go and bringing in high paid people in, creating new positions, and additional perks? Unfortunately, I do not know that. All I can do is worry about my children, in this district, that are going without the basics unless, we the parents, donate them. Perhaps if the economy was better and I was receiving the perks that some of our district employees were receiving, I would not feel so bad about a slight tax increase to fund the schools. In the case of our household, our property value is about 40% less than what we bought it for, our utilities continue to rise and the cost of living is much higher than what we have coming in. It would seem that perhaps the district should look at other ways to save money and not bring on so many chiefs/directors etc for a while before asking for more money.

Wake up Higley! It barely passed last fall, things have not gotten better for anyone and you have not proven yourself responsible with the funding you have gotten thus far. If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck…..

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Stacy LaGoy

Stacy LaGoy — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 21:50:25 +0000

89 school districts in Arizona have a funding question on the ballot for this November.

Comment on Bus driver still getting press by azfam

azfam — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 05:37:52 +0000

http://license.icopyright.net/user/viewFreeUse.act?fuid=NTE3OTYxNw==
Interesting take by the EVT on HUSD’s override

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by azfam

azfam — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 05:20:14 +0000

I am with Chris on this… HUSD would not need to ask for more money if they knew how to spend it on the kids in the first place.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Geoff Johnston

Geoff Johnston — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 19:44:16 +0000

Sorry Chris — it got caught in moderation. Should be ok now.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Chris

Chris — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 04:41:00 +0000

I hope my postings make it in to the Higley Blog this time. The last time I or friends of ours tried posting items. They were never posted. Who decides what gets posted or is the person who is in charge of this blog allowed only to post what Dr. Birdwell or board members allow. That is why I have been staying away from this site lately, because the general public isn’t allowed to post what they are feeling.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Chris

Chris — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 04:36:31 +0000

I plan to vote no to this override! My family here at home has 6 votes towards Higley district. I will not approve this due to district is too top heavy. We need to stop hiring directors, and coordinators. And stop adjusting staff wages to along with job title changes. My wife works for this district and she did not get no raise this year. They were told there would be no raises this year since there is no monies. But then they are adjusting certain staff wages. That doesn not seem fair.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Stacy LaGoy

Stacy LaGoy — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 21:33:54 +0000

Regarding the override…This is a K-3 override. Arizona statue is very specific on these funds. These are not funds that can be used in any other maintenance and operations expense. I have had several conversations with the HUSD CFO, Kent DeYoung, about this topic. As a parent of HUSD children there is no choice but to vote “YES” for this override. The tax rate that the district levies on homeowners has dropped over $.90 this year due to the State lowering the QTR and the district not levying for excess utilities. This override adds an additional $.23 to the tax rate, still over $.60 lower than last years tax rate. It is a drop in the bucket that adds up to over 1.4 million dollars for K-3 education.
We need to hold the district accountable, ask questions, seek answers. At the same time we need to give our children and our community quality public education. More cuts from the State are imminent; we need to protect HUSD’s youngest learners.
As I said, as a parent in the district there is no other choice but a “YES” vote.

I do think the K-3 override will pass because we live in a community that values education and is willing to invest in education.

Stacy LaGoy

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Geoff Johnston

Geoff Johnston — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 21:12:12 +0000

In this economic environment I think another override will be very tough to pass. But who knows, in off year elections the turnout can be unusual.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by azfam

azfam — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 21:06:50 +0000

I am trying to look at the big picture. The district is asking voters to approve another over ride this fall. Do you think they have a chance of getting it? (It barely passed last time) I do not think it will pass, and it is disheartening to me since my children are in the k-3 classes that will be affected.
I am troubled by the way the district handles their monies, and I am disturbed that our board members seem to be entranced by Denise, the way the last board was entranced by Joyce.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Geoff Johnston

Geoff Johnston — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 23:19:36 +0000

Yes, well the issue of whether other director level employees are a good value for the district is a worthy topic. But of course it is not really the topic at hand in this thread.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by azfam

azfam — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 16:01:26 +0000

I am not seeing “we get what we pay for” with the other directors that are in place now….with Ciriculum, Technology and HR, the directors were hired as Director 1. Within months they were promoted to Director 2. What did they do that was so magnificent that they deserved a pay and title raise? Also- if we get what we pay for, then why did one of the Directors (who was on Birdwell’s cabinet) decide to leave HUSD so suddenly? In my opinion, he was the only director there who earned his pay.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Geoff Johnston

Geoff Johnston — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 02:23:33 +0000

Seems like the argument for a director level person here is: You get what you pay for.

Again, the salary will be moot if this person brings a million bucks in. Heck, if they can bring more than a million bucks paying half a million in salary would make sense.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by azfam

azfam — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 00:53:18 +0000

I have to agree that the position is needed, but the salary seems insane. HUSD hires directors non-stop. Why not hire coordinators and managers? The salary and the benefits the school pays out for a director position are outrageous. I don’t think it’s the time for HUSD to gambling with tax payer money, espcially since I just got a pamphlet in the mail that they are asking for another over ride this school year.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Geoff Johnston

Geoff Johnston — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 21:07:10 +0000

I suppose we will have to wait and see if the gamble pays off. If the new director drums up more than a million extra dollars for HUSD in the next 12 months you can bet that every other district around will be copying us. If she brings in $81,000 I guess they will let her go and count it as a failed experiment. In other words, it is entirely a return on investment question. I suspect the potential reward justifies the risk in this economic environment.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Pamela

Pamela — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 14:45:08 +0000

Geoff, Don’t get me wrong, we are in need of someone to drum up funding for our district, however, I am questioning why they must have a director for such. Why are we paying someone 80k when surrounding districts are paying the same position so much less? What we have seen in the past, is that directors then need an administrative assistant and so forth. Where are these funds coming from?

I have recently met with all of my chidren’s teachers to ask what I can do besides volunteering my time. They have all said similar things, but the biggest is donating paper. Now, you cannot tell me that the school district didn’t anticipate our teachers needing copy paper for the classrooms. Two years ago, the school ran out of paper in January and it was rationed for the remainder of the year. School has been in session 2 months and already they are in need of paper? How do they expect students to learn if they can’t even bring home homework packets? It’s bad enough they don’t have enough text books in most classes for a child to bring one home, should they need to.

Bottom line, yes, we need someone to lead this challenge. I just question how we are going to afford it and why NOBODY is asking.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Geoff Johnston

Geoff Johnston — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 07:40:47 +0000

BTW Pamela — I think you have the wrong idea about the fund raising. As I understand it, the funds this new director is supposed to drum up are not supposed to come from parents and families in the district. Rather they are supposed to be raised from sponsoring corporations and other donors.

If this was just a director in charge of candy bar sales (or whatever) it would be a ludicrous hire.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Geoff Johnston

Geoff Johnston — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 05:06:25 +0000

Well there is no question it is a gamble. I suppose we will have to wait to see if the gamble pays off on this one. I suppose I just like that in such unusual times the district is thinking out of the box.

Comment on Higley hiring a new director in charge of fundraising by Pamela

Pamela — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 05:01:06 +0000

Although I think having someone in charge of fundraising, I do not think the timing is right. Our district is struggling to purchase necessary supplies for our classrooms, our teachers are asking parents for donations and have very few aides to help. We keep hearing that the district needs more money yet we have enough to create a new position. A position in which our district is paying almost 3 times what other districts are paying the same position. How does this make sense? Why is the board not questioning what the public clearly sees?

In my day, we paid supply fees, book fees, locker fees, lab fees etc. If the fundraising is the only way they think will bring in extra money, then perhaps they should look at what is coming in from such. I have children of my own. On our street alone, 18 of 22 houses also have children that attend our school. Our neighborhood has over 100 houses and more than 80% house children from our school. How does that work with fundraising? It means a lot of children get very discouraged that there is nobody to sell to and in return, it becomes the parents job to try to sell to our coworkers, extended family and friends. I, personally, would rather write a check to the teachers of MY CHILDREN to use in the classroom for stuff they really need. I would feel more confident that they will be able to spend it properly. I feel that thus far, the district is once again proving they have no interest in the children and that this is just another position created to pad someones pocket.