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Channel 15 (ABC)

Here is a press release:

HUSD JOINT SEPARATION STATEMENT
December 19, 2008

The Higley Unified School District (HUSD) Governing Board and District Superintendent Dr. Joyce Lutrey have amicably agreed to terms of separation upon Dr. Lutrey’s request. Both the Governing Board and Dr. Lutrey support this separation and are confident the district will continue to make great strides with the district strategic plan* underway and a strong leadership team in place.

The Governing Board and Dr. Lutrey have worked as a team to manage the district’s fast growth and build a strong foundation for the district. In just eight years, HUSD has grown from one school to nine, received North Central Accreditation as the first k-12 district in AZ to do so, achieved two Excelling school labels from AZ State Standards, and surpassed the Arizona average in every subject area tested in every grade level at every district school.

These successes provide the perfect opportunity for Dr. Lutrey to seek opportunities outside the district to advance her career knowing the district is making great strides with a goal and plan in place to achieve Excelling labels for every district school. She believes the district is well positioned to move forward as a new Governing Board takes shape in January 2009.

Dr. Lutrey will officially depart the district June 30, 2009 and will work with the Governing Board and the cabinet to complete district projects from December 19, 2008 through the June 30, 2009 date.

Beginning December 19, 2008, Dr. Denise Birdwell will assume Dr. Lutrey’s daily duties as the Governing Board determines who will assume the Superintendent title beginning July 1, 2009.

The Governing Board wishes Dr. Lutrey well and thanks her for the dedication and commitment she has provided the Higley community over the past five years.

Dr. Lutrey wishes to thank the community, the Governing Boards, the students staff and families for their support. She wishes them all well for the future.

Here is the link to Emily Gersema’s article on it over at that AZ Republic, complete with another rehash of the tired old story about Kim Anderson’s brother, and with utterly moronic and unmoderated reader comments below. (Lovely)

This is communication from me (Venessa Whitener)to some of our legislators. There has been input going back and forth regarding the financial hurdles we face NOW. This next year will be more difficult as the State will cut even more funds in Education. It is our responsibility to inform our representatives and offer our solutions. Lets please put our efforts into positive solutions and accurate information.

Contact Kirk Adams, Rich Crandall, Lorin Hendrix, Thayer Verschoor all at
http://www.azleg.gov

Thank you so much for responding. I always represent a broad base of community members, teachers and staff. I would like to offer some perspectives from a growth district representing the concerns of our community.

It is one thing to talk of cuts and then have to make them from a current budget; most districts can deal with that. A growth district is already so far behind the majority of districts that we can barely stay afloat. These are perspectives, suggestions and concerns for specifics:

-Growth-As you know growth districts do not receive funding for ADM growth until the following year. So this year we are absorbing costs for about 700 students. We have dealt with this before, but compounding the cuts hurts too much. We have to use our Bond funds to build 2 new schools because of the moratorium enforced by School Facilities Board. Now how does our community react when we can now go to them for more bonds to make up for cuts from the state? I have confidence that they would be supportive, but we would be over taxing our constituents because of the burden of taxing for new schools. This burden is so unfair to growing districts. Charter schools get immediate funding (real time) ours is delayed an entire fiscal year. (I am glad though we do receive it. Even if it is a whole year later)

-Growth districts are penalized when it comes to entitlement funds. Title II and Title III Funds are based off of the 2000 census. Our district alone should be receiving 200% more funding according to our current numbers. This is a disservice to these students. In 2000, our population was 1000, now, 2008 is 10,000. We are meeting so many needs based on a number that has no relevance to our population. (Older districts do not mind this at all because they are losing student numbers but keeping the same funding, especially when it comes to Title 3 or ELL funds, if you were losing children but getting the same amount of dollars from 7 years ago, would you speak up, NO)

- Excess Utilities, another way to HURT growth districts. Again, based on a number irrelevant to growth districts. This has been improved minimally, but for example, these numbers are based on 2 yrs. previous, well since 2005, we have added 4 more schools, a warehouse and a district warehouse. Our district almost doubled in size square footage wise in 3 years, but only has half the amount of funds to pay for it.

- Soft Capital, (classroom supplies) how can you take a cut when the number has not increased since 1996? I know 10% cut is proposed, then allow us more flexibility in M & O or go for more override capability.

- Tax credit donations- Our community is begging to be able to use these funds in the classroom. I understand inequality issues, but we are missing an opportunity to use these funds more effectively and for better purposes than for extracurricular activities.

( I see this is where the general obligation bonds could come into play) and/or if CUTS have to be made in soft capital, let the districts be able to use tax credits to subsidize soft capital and/or use tax credits to subsidize sports and arts programs that may have to be cut due to STATE BUDGET DEFICIT

-Teacher Pay/ Taxes/Bonds/ Career Ladder -Our community KNOWS we are growing and struggling and is willing to help out until we stabilize and/or are properly funded. Our community has asked for more obligation bonds so we can better pay our teachers just the current rate as Gilbert or Chandler. WE CANNOT pay our teachers similar to surrounding districts because we constantly have to make up for the shortfalls listed up above. Therefore we cannot attract teachers and retain them when they can always go to Mesa and Chandler for more pay and career ladder, another INEQUALITY. If older districts can have Career Ladder, than let the newer districts pass bonds to make up the difference ( equal to career ladder) AND/or cut Career Ladder (everyone on the equal playing field and save the state $$) and use tax payer bonds to supplement teacher pay and pay for performance or reinstate the Arizona School Tax for Career Ladder.

These are just ideas to think about! I like to present all sides.

I spent 3 years teaching in Philadelphia and its suburbs. I saw a lot of wasted funds, but I also saw a lot of struggling blue collar communities who put their money where their heart was; in its children. They were willing to literally invest in their children. If constituents are willing to offer help, we need to give them opportunities to support our children financially. If they wanted to increase teacher salary, they put it up to a vote.

-This brings up the “Arizona School Tax”. Why is the perception that Adams and Burns are so set on repealing this. Can someone explain why reinstating this is so negative. We cannot afford to do away with this. I obvious do not grasp this issue because I do not understand the reasons for repealing it. Can you help me understand this? (Unless of course you are going for a general statewide sales tax increase that would be funneled into Education)

- Full Day Kindergarten- Majority of the public does not realize that we have had full day kindergarten for 3 years and have NOT been funded by the Sate. The money for teachers, double classroom space and supplies comes out of our pockets. You know this. I am supportive in whatever decision you make in this area, just STOP districts from having to pay for it without funding from the state when Gov. mandates it. I did my Master’s thesis on this topic and am in agreement that low socio-economic, bi-lingual, ELL and Special Education children benefit from full-day kindergarten. Anymore questions just ask!!!

Thank you for listening, I hope this was not the same “woe is me saga” you hear over and over again. There is a sincere attitude from the public that wants what is best for our children and want to improve the situation. Our state is now full of people coming from all over that notice their property taxes are much lower here in AZ than in their hometowns. Then they realize what deficiencies our schools have and see the correlation. Yes, I am a native to Arizona and pride myself in low property taxes, but our students cannot get the upper hand they deserve and meet the expectations from parents, teachers and nationwide expectations without the proper and FAIR funding.
You TWO both know firsthand the potential that lies within the children of this State.

My point in all of this, we WILL make the cuts and will do it responsibly, but PLEASE, if we are all in this together, then level out the playing field. Growth districts CANNOT keep up in this game unless our older districts and legislature meet us half way and until we enlist our local community members who want to get in the game and fight for our students.

I can offer more details and suggestions if you wish, a phone conversation may be best. This e-mail does not intend to relay any negative offense; we know tone and context are distorted in e-mail. My intentions are true and I know yours are too. Thank you for your time and if I may be of any help, please call.

Venessa Whitener

Well it looks like the issue will be discussed tonight at the board meeting — largely behind closed doors in an executive session.  See this from the agenda for tonight:

11.0 Executive Session – Legal Advice
11.1 Pursuant to A.R.S. §38-431.03(A)(3), the Governing Board may Convene in
Executive Session for Legal Advice from the Attorney of the Public Body
Regarding the Superintendent’s Employment and Contract

12.0 Action and Information Items
12.1 Possible Action to Direct Attorney of Public Body Following Discussion in
Executive Session

Now I am all for a win-win exit strategy. But there are a growing number of people who are concerned that the current board is going to make the departure package too sweet. People who think Ms. Lutrey has done an atrocious job are especially worried about this. I am inclined to wait and see what the proposed deal is before getting too worried about it, but this is a big deal for the district so you interested stakeholders may want to keep an eye on this one.

Thanks to all of you who voted for me. I was just edged out by Paul, Greg, and incumbent Denise Standage.

Higley USD - school board
4-year term
100.0% of Precincts Reporting
(12 of 12 Precincts)

And more thanks for your Yes votes on the budget override. That is huge. Nearly 16,000 votes were cast and it won by only 200! Awesome stuff. Here is that results page.

100.0% of Precincts Reporting
(12 of 12 Precincts)

With the Budget override passing and Paul and Greg getting elected this is a great day for HUSD.

I’ll plan to try keep you updated on the results as they come in tomorrow throughout the day.

There are a few odd questions this time around that had me scratching my head at first. I discovered a few days ago that most or all of the questions were written by students so that helped explain things a bit. Here are the questions we received and some of my thoughts in response:

1) As of October 21st, Higley is still trying to hire a high school math teacher and has multiple openings for special education teachers. How will you specifically address the problem of not just finding qualified candidates for these positions, but hiring great teachers and retaining them in HUSD?

It is not the job of the school board to find, interview, and make offers to teachers and staff members. There are plenty of full-time administrators with nice big salaries that we pay to do that. As I understand it, the governing board approves or disapproves the candidates that the administration presents for hiring. I do think it is the job of the board to represent the desires and interests of the public and oversee the administrators in the job they are doing. I believe that by demanding that the top administration create an enticing work environment at HUSD we will be better able to attract and retain top quality teachers.

2) Is there something HUSD differently than other school districts to attract the best candidates?

I think HUSD has a lot of things going for it that could and should be attractive to talented teachers and administrators. We have a young, vibrant, and educated pool of families living within our district boundaries. I have seen evidence that we have many quality teachers living in HUSD boundaries that are currently working for other districts. Because our housing prices are generally lower than the prices in places like Chandler I think we have the advantage of being closer to the homes of many teachers than some districts. My take is that as the image and culture and morale of teachers and staff in HUSD improves we will be able to entice more and more talented people who would prefer to work closer to their homes than to commute out to Chandler or Mesa or wherever.

3) The candidates identified 4 major issues in HUSD. They were (1) Communication, (2) Teacher retention, (3) Leadership at the building and district level, and (4) public perception. How would you address and solve these 4 issues.

I think these issues are all part of an overall single issue. I think the solutions to all of them start at the top. The overall culture must flow from the board and the superintendents down through the staff. As communications increases and faith in leadership increases the public perception and teacher retention will automatically improve. I think it is the responsibility of the superintendent and assistant superintendents to drive these cultural changes and it is the responsibility of the board to ensure they do just that.

4) After you implement a change within the district, how do you plan to follow up and monitor that change?

The board can only do so much. As I mentioned, the board is composed of five unpaid volunteers who oversee the well-paid full time district management. The most extreme thing the board can do is hire and fire a superintendent. Short of that the board can mostly apply pressure on the superintendent to carry out the wishes of the public.

5) How are you going to affect the students and let them know you are working for students and supporting them?

Mostly I plan to leave my proverbial door open all the time for input. I will continue to run Higley Schools Blog if I am elected and continue to elicit feedback from anyone interested in giving it — including from students. That feedback will be important input into my decision making.

6) Do you support the HUSD Override election? What have you personally done to promote the override election?

Absolutely. Type in anything related to Higley Schools in Google and you will see my blog on page one with numerous plugs to vote YES on the override. I have received more than 500 visits in the last three weeks alone and the traffic is increasing as the election approaches.

7) The residents of the Higley Unified School District are being asked to renew the budget override in this election. While many would agree that fully funding our school is a necessity, others would argue that funds are mismanaged, and that there needs to be more responsibility and transparency in how the money is spent. What would you do as a member of the Board to ensure that the money is spent responsibly?

I think this gets directly back to the communications issue. As we are very transparent about where the money is being spent and how it is being spent we can assuage the fears of the public about waste. I plan to use my blog to point out where the public records can be found and explain whatever details I can if I am elected.

8 ) While budgets are admittedly tight, as one travels from school to school there are glaring inconsistencies in the school sites. A good example would be the disparity between WFHS and HHS. While WFHS has new computers and proxima projectors in each room, HHS is working with old computers and no proximas. What would you do as a member of the board to ensure equity between all of the schools, both elementary and secondary?

I’m not sure this is something the board would get directly involved in. If there are complaints from HUSD stakeholders that make sense we would apply pressure on the district administration to at least fully explain, and hopefully rectify any unfair practices in the district.

9) What do you feel are you roles and responsibilities as a board member and what is your responsibilty to students, staff, parents and district staff?

I think my responsibility would be to represent the will of the stakeholders in HUSD. That would likely include making sure that the voices of the people carry great sway in the important decisions made in the district. Further, it would include making sure that as many of the facts as possible are being shared and communicated to all stakeholders when differences of opinions arise concerning district decisions. Obviously not everyone will be happy with every decision, but I do think the board acts as a proxy for the people to ensure that district management is not making all decisions unilaterally or in opposition to the will of the majority of stakeholders.

As I have mentioned in the past, it is crucial to the health of Higley Schools and thus to the home values in the HUSD boundaries that this continuation of the Budget override on the ballot Nov. 4 passes. Tell everyone you know in our district to vote YES on the Higley Schools budget increase.

If you are wondering… VOTE YES! It will not change your taxes now (since it has been in place already for years) but it will help us improve Higley Schools and that in turn will increase your home values.

Here are some quotes she got from me:

“A high level of distrust” between parents, teachers and administrators comes from a lack of communication, Johnston said.

“I think the administration has done an atrocious job at marketing itself to teachers and families,” Johnston said. “It’s created an utter lack of communication between families, teachers and administration, and caused a tremendous problem and culture of distrust.”

Johnston said teachers and families don’t feel supported by district administration, and they need to feel that their opinions matter. He said some parents feel their concerns are being dismissed.

“The way you make parents happy is to listen to them,” Johnston said. “Parents are the customers. An unhappy customer will be 10 times more vocal and will have more memory of their bad customer service.”

I then went to a “meet and greet” sponsored by the folks at ChangeInHUSD and met with more former and current HUSD employees and their spouses about the upcoming election.  The reports are pretty much what I always hear from insiders: Employee morale is low, leadership and vision are severely lacking, there is no consistency in programs, support for teachers and staff is erratic at best, money is being wasted because of the general chaos, etc.   Yet the promising signs were there as well: There are a ton of talented people who would prefer to work at HUSD rather than commuting to other districts — they are just hoping the district can pull its crap together finally and give them a reason to come back.

Change in HUSD is coming but it will come a lot faster if you can tell your friends to vote for Geoff Johnston (me), Greg Land, and Paul Howell.  Plus be sure you tell everyone you know to vote yes on the HUSD budget increase or the new board will have its hands tied financially from the get-go.

With a new board that demands far greater accountability from district management and the budget override being renewed, I believe HUSD can turn around very quickly.

The Arizona Department of Education released results this week showing whether districts and their individual schools have achieved Annual Yearly Progress - the federal measurement of a school’s improvement.

Federal officials determine whether a school made AYP based on student achievement on the state’s standardized test, Arizona’s Instrument to Measure Standards.

In the Gilbert area, Higley Unified School District’s two high schools and seven elementary and middle schools all achieved federal AYP for the 2007-08 school year, when more than 9,400 students attended the district.

See the entire article here.

The same goes for Johnston, a political newcomer and concerned parent who wants to make a difference by tapping parent and teacher groups to improve communication. He understands that boosting parent satisfaction starts at the top and trickles down to teachers, students and parents.

It is an interesting mix they recommend. It sounds like they would like to see some differing or even opposing views on the board and that is why they are recommending the incumbent, Standage. See my opinions on the candidates here.

Friends and neighbors,

I am hoping everyone is planning on voting in this upcoming election on November 4, 2008. There will be a lot of important issues on the ballot, turnout is predicted to be high and lines could be long. It is important to be informed on all the issues you are voting on and I would not want anyone to feel rushed for any reason, including if they stood in line longer than they had planned on. I have gathered the following important links and information for voter registration, early voting and identification requirements at the polls. I hope you find this helpful and please forward it to anyone you feel might be interested.

Deadline to register for election is October 6, 2008. This is important if you have moved and did not update your voter registration or if you have not voted before.

To verify your registration status: https://recorder.maricopa.gov/earlyvoteballotnet/voterreglookup.aspx
To register to vote: http://recorder.maricopa.gov/web/regform.aspx

Early voting begins October 2nd, 2008. Deadline to request an early ballot is October 24, 2008. You can request them at:
Maricopa County Elections Department
510 S. 3rd Avenue
Phoenix, AZ 85003
602 506-3535 or 602 506-1511
Or: https://recorder.maricopa.gov/earlyvoteballotnet/evbrequest.aspx
Internet, phone and written request can only be accepted up until October 24, 2008. Should you wish to vote after this time frame, you may be able to vote at one of the election offices in person up until the October 31, 2008. For additional information please call 602-506-1511, T.D.D. 602-506-2348.

To be placed on the permanent early voting list: https://recorder.maricopa.gov/earlyvoteballotnet/permanentevlist.aspx

Early ballots must be received in the office of the County Recorder or be deposited at any polling place no later than 7:00 pm on November 4, 2008.

For information on assistance services for voting: http://recorder.maricopa.gov/elections/assistance.aspx

Where do you vote (polling place locator): http://recorder.maricopa.gov/pollingplace05/pollingplace.aspx and a sample ballot will be mailed to you 11 days prior to the election and your polling place address will be listed on the mailing label.

Acceptable ID at the polls:

The elector shall announce his/her name and place of residence to the election official and present one form of identification from List #1 OR two different forms of identification from
List #2. [A.R.S. § 16-579(A)]

LIST #1 - Sufficient Photo ID including name and address
•Valid Arizona driver license or non-operating identification
•Tribal enrollment card or other form of tribal identification
•Valid United States federal, state, or local government issued identification

LIST #2 - Sufficient ID without photograph bearing name and address
•Utility bill of the elector that is dated within ninety days of the date of the election. A utility bill may be for electric, gas, water, solid waste, sewer, telephone, cellular phone, or cable television
•Bank or credit union statement that is dated within 90 days of the date of the election
•Valid Arizona Vehicle Registration
•Indian census card
•Property tax statement of the elector’s residence
•Tribal enrollment card or other form of tribal identification
•Vehicle insurance card
•Valid United States federal, state, or local government issued identification
•Voter Registration Card / Recorder’s Certification
•Any “Official Election Material” mailing bearing your name and address

An elector who does not provide sufficient identification shall not be issued a regular ballot, but shall receive a provisional ballot and will have five (5) days after a Federal General election and three (3) days after any other election to provide sufficient identification to the County Recorder in order for their provisional ballot to count.

Poll workers are available to assist voters with language translations, instructions on process, and with the physical act of voting.

The above information was taken from the Maricopa County Recorders and Elections Department web site; http://recorder.maricopa.gov .

For those that live in the Higley School District boundaries, I would greatly appreciate your support and vote for my bid to become your representative on the school board. Regardless whomever you vote for, please support the Override for our schools. It is important to remember this is not a new tax but a continuation of the current school funding that was previously approved by the voters. This funding is for the M&O or Maintenance and Operations of the school programs in the Higley Unified School District. Our students, schools, teachers, staff and community will all feel the positive impact of continuing this funding for education.

Thank you for your time and please exercise your right to vote, it has been purchased, protected and maintained by the blood and lives of armed forces and many others that have gone before us.

Greg Land
info@vote4gregland.com
480 988-2674
CornerStone Inspections
16442 E. Elgin Rd.
480 892-7113

Here are the questions that each of the candidates will be asked tonight and some of my thoughts on the subjects:

1) Is teacher input a component you’ll find useful in your decision making? If so, how will the input be obtained?

Yes, teacher input will be a vital data point for me if I am elected to the governing board. As I have stated elsewhere, good teachers are the core of a good district. If we take care of our good teachers and listen to them and do what we can to support them the word will eventually get out that HUSD is a great district to work for. That will attract more and more good teachers and we will see an upward spiral of district improvement. Better and happier teachers, leading to happier and more confident parents, leading to more students returning to the district, etc.

Teacher input is obtained by communicating directly with teachers. I have heard rumors that teachers are currently discouraged from talking directly with board members. If that is true I find it unacceptable.

2) How important is the override to the district and how will the board utilize the additional funding if it passes?

The override is deeply important to the district. It provides the extra funds necessary to pay our teachers competitively and to keep other programs running. This relates directly to my answer above.

3) The board set quality communication as a goal for the district several years ago. How do you propose to help the district do a better job of communication?

I believe that district must be much more aggressive than it has been in its communications and marketing efforts. I think the internet is an underutilized communications method in HUSD. With my history in marketing/communications I hope to help the district a lot in this area. (One major change that I would push for is to make the district and school email announcements “opt out” instead of “opt in”. That is, every parent with an email on record should get them unless they consciously choose to opt out of the announcements. That would probably make a ten-fold improvement in communications alone.)

4) If elected, what are the benchmarks you will use to decide if your term as a board member was successful?

I think the most telling statistic is the percentage of children living in the district boundaries that actually attend HUSD schools. I am not certain we have access to that data but if we do I think that is the crucial measure of success or failure. For instance if 80% of eligible students living HUSD boundaries are now enrolled in HUSD schools that means that 20% are attending other districts, charter schools, or are being home schooled. If that 20% raises from year to year the I would consider that a failure. If that number decreases I would consider that success. Attracting more students means that more and more parents are gaining trust in HUSD to provide their children with a quality and safe learning environment. That sort of improvement will be good for our children and good for all of our home values as well.

5) How are you qualified for this board position? What activities, training or leadership capacities have you had in the past, and how do they apply to the position you are seeking?

I have spent the last 12+ years running, managing, or working in fast growing internet businesses. I have seen the struggles growing organizations deal with and have helped overcome those struggles in the past. My masters degree in business helped train me in organizational development issues as well. In addition, I have worked in many leadership roles in my church over the years so I have some experience in working in volunteer organizations. With any successful organization there must be accountability at all levels and I am not the type to shy away from the sometimes difficult tasks of holding all parties in the organization accountable for their performance.

On top of that, my four children are going to be products of the HUSD educational system so I have a deeply vested interest in making HUSD the best district in the West.

6) Describe the top three educational challenges the Higley School District will face in the coming years and explain your strategies to overcome those challenges.

I will need to do more research with the teachers to see where problems might be now or where they could be in the future. I do know that there have been significant complaints about the special education programs at HUSD and I think they will be at the top of that list.

7) What effect has the emphasis placed on high results on the AIMS test had on Higley schools and personnel? Do you think it should be a high school graduation requirement?

Once again, I will need to do more research with the teachers before committing to any position on AIMS testing.

8 ) How will you communicate to teachers and staff that you value what they do for children?

Well, I would tell them. But more than that I would fight hard to be sure that teachers and staff were as shielded from bullying as we demand that our students are shielded from bullying.

If you’re like most people, you’re worried about your slumping home value. And if you’re like most people, you’re weighing which presidential candidate will best protect your property values - among other things.

In reality, though, other elective offices and ballot measures could have far greater impact on whether your biggest single investment swoons or soars.

Ironically, you’ll find those candidates and measures at or near the bottom of November’s ballot.

Savvy voters might do well to vote from the bottom up, or at least not skip those often-overlooked races at the tail end.

We’re referring to school-board races and school-finance issues, as well as legislative contests that have a direct bearing on the quality of our schools.

In the Higley School District we have a serious marketing problem. One of the things I think I would bring to the Higley School Board is a marketing savvy that is severely needed. Public schools need “butts in seats” to receive state and federal funding. Yet parents have choices about where to send their kids. If HUSD doesn’t convince local parents that its schools are the best option more and more parents will send their children to other districts and charter schools. That means less money to attract and retain the best teachers and that creates a downward spiral. Conversely, a strong district with solid teacher morale and well-designed policies and programs attracts the best teachers and having the best teachers will convince parents to send children to HUSD schools. Creating a culture that attracts the best teachers starts with the governing board but at the ground level it largely is the responsibility of the Superintendent. Our new board must insist on greatness from district administration.

The other thing that will dramatically help HUSD is to renew the budget override on the ballot. Tell everyone you know to vote yes on the HUSD budget override. It may do more to prop up your home value of the next few years than any other vote you cast.

Oh, and of course tell your friends to vote for Geoff Johnston!

A huge influx of children in Higley’s elementary grades has led district officials to shuffle some elementary classes into bigger rooms and add new sections to even out class size.

Several parents worried the past two months that some of the youngest classes with more than 25 students are too big, interfering with learning and teachers’ classroom management.

…

Steve Nance, HUSD’s curriculum director for grades K-8,acknowledged parents were right to be concerned lately. He said, though, that changes have been made at these schools:

• Chaparral Elementary: Added a kindergarten section.

• Coronado Elementary: A fourth grade class was combined with another after the teacher agreed to take on a newly added section of kindergarten.

• Cortina Elementary: Added a kindergarten section.

• Gateway Pointe Elementary: Added a kindergarten.

• Power Ranch Elementary: Moved a kindergarten class into a larger classroom once used by the music teachers. Added a first grade section.

• San Tan Elementary: A third grade teacher agreed to lead a sixth grade section because of smaller-than-expected turnout in third grade and larger-than-expected turnout in sixth.

With all the changes, kindergarten sections now average about 25 students.

“Hopefully, we’ve stabilized for the year,” Nance said.

The Higley Education Association (HEA) will host two Higley School District Governing Board Candidate Forums where all five candidates running for the Board will be present. There are three seats for which the five candidates are running. To be able to make an informed decision, please attend one or both of the following forums:

September 23 - Power Ranch Clubhouse “Barn” located on Ranch Road between Germann and Pecos at 7:00 pm

October 28 - The Small Auditorium at the Higley Center for Performing Arts at 7:00 pm

Apparently current board member and board candidate Denise Standage is feeling miffed that she was not endorsed by the folks over at Change In HUSD.   (Yeah, you read right…  the incumbent candidate is irked about not being endorsed by a group called Change In HUSD…) Well more specifically, she is miffed that after she missed the appointment they went ahead and made their endorsements anyway. We get this gem of a quote from the article:

Standage thinks that she and the mothers are at odds solely because she supports Lutrey.

In the current political climate, she said, “that’s political suicide.”

Anyhow, it is interesting to read in the article how people have gone about dismissing the concerns board member Kim Anderson has brought up over and over throughout the years.  Apparently when she complains about the culture in HUSD that is driving the best teachers away and keeping morale low her complaints are dismissed as actually being some personal vendetta over her brother losing a job years ago.

Oh the drama of it all.

Look, it is not hard to see results.  If a lot of good teachers have left that is not because Ms. Anderson has a personal beef with Ms. Lutrey.  It sounds like the company line right now is “The district has released data showing that retention actually is on the rise”.  That is good news.  However, since I know of good teachers that left in disgust or who felt railroaded I read that to mean “HUSD doesn’t suck at retaining teachers as much as it used to”.  I hope I am just being cynical though…

Anyway, here is my honest take on the candidates based on what I know so far:

Greg Land - I’m a fan of Greg Land. I hope he is elected to the board. Greg served on the HUSD governing board from ‘02 through ‘06 (I believe) and ran for re-election two years ago but lost the seat to Vanessa Whitener. He is rather fed up with the lack of progress the district has made in that time and has decided to volunteer again. Greg would bring a few useful things to the HUSD governing board in my opinion:

1) He has previous HUSD board experience which can’t hurt
2) He brings a deep desire to dramatically change and improve the district
3) He is a parent of 2 students in the district
4) He is a strong supporter of athletics and would push to be sure HUSD sports programs are not short-changed
5) He provides experience in the construction industry which is quite useful in a board that must make construction decisions

Paul Howell - I met Paul for the first time last week in a group interview with the AZ Republic folks and was very impressed with him as well. I hope he is elected to the board too. After meeting Paul I suspect the folks over at Change In HUSD got their endorsements right by endorsing Greg, Paul, and me for the open seats. Here are the useful things Paul would add to the HUSD board:

1) He has four children in the district so he has a vested interest in improving HUSD
2) He is an experienced teacher with the Mesa school district by profession and has a doctorate in educational supervision and administration so he brings a very useful insiders perspective
3) He is a reasonable and intelligent man who sees the need for real changes in the district

Taunya Lofgreen - I haven’t met Taunya and don’t know very much about her. I am told she is also running on a change platform so that is a good thing. [Update: I met Taunya at the first forum and she is indeed interested in changes in the district so I am pleased about that.]

Denise Standage - Ms. Standage is the lone incumbent board member who is running again. She is also the lone board candidate I am going to recommend against. While people who have spent time with her tell me she is a very nice person, as a candidate she has a few knocks against her in my book:

1) Rather than send her children to HUSD schools she reportedly home-schooled them and she currently has no children in the district
2) She has a reputation for being completely in the pocket of Superintendent Lutrey. The reputation is likely well earned with her visits to schools at the side of Ms. Lutrey and the clear camaraderie the two display in board meetings.

To me, if voting for the other candidates are votes for change in HUSD then a vote for Ms. Standage is a vote for same ol’, same ol’. But of course that is just my opinion.

Geoff Johnston - That’s me. Here are the reasons I think I would be a good candidate for one of the open spots:

1) I have three children attending HUSD schools now and have a fourth that will start kindergarten next year so I have a vested interest in and am deeply committed to fixing what is broken in HUSD and helping the district to become a premiere district in the West
2) My professional experience, after I completed an MBA in ‘96, has been with growing internet companies so I have some experience with growing organizations and the challenges they face
3) One of my titles along the way was VP of Corporate Communications; and since communications (especially with the public) has been a problem at HUSD in the past I think I could help a lot there
4) My BA degree is in music and I would work to be sure the arts are not short-changed in the district

Anyhow, there you have my frank takes on the situation. The HUSD candidates will be on the ballot in the big general election coming up in November so may we all choose wisely for the sake of our children.

Is that the best we can do? Really? We get the distinction of not being the worst district this veteran teacher has seen in decades of dedicated service as a teacher?

Something needs to change in HUSD if that is the best we can say right now.

Now I know that the issues at HUSD can’t justly be pinned on any one person. However I also know that the buck stops somewhere so if things aren’t working then it is the responsibility of the public to elect board members that will change things and the responsibility of the board to enact those changes. As I have mentioned in the past, I figured that rather than just complaining about these problems I would volunteer to help change things for the better myself. That’s the sole reason I am running for the governing board.

Change can happen in lots of ways of course so it is my plan to do whatever is in the best interests of the stake holders in HUSD — that includes children, parents, teachers and other staff. Obviously these sorts of things take a lot of work but I have hope that the new board will be up to the task.

The leaders of Change in HUSD and PAC (Parent Advisory Council)-HUSD have joined forces for the purpose of endorsing 3 candidates for the November school board election. Together with a panel of parents and community members they invited candidates on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings this week to meet and answer set questions regarding issues of concern that have been expressed by parents and community members in each organization. Questions touched on treatment of teachers and staff, hiring practices, following district policies and procedures, Special Education IEP’s, why the candidate is running for HUSD school board and what goals he/she has for HUSD if elected to the board.

After careful consideration, Change in HUSD and PAC-HUSD feel that candidates Geoff Johnston, Paul Howell and Greg Land best represent the parents these organizations have been in communication with. The candidates strongly believe that morale and trust need to be re-established in the HUSD community and are prepared to work to that end. The common threads between these candidates are 1) a belief that our children deserve the best leadership possible and that leaders need to be held accountable, 2) their ability to analyze information and make fair judgments and 3) a shared pride in our community and the vision that our school district can be a premier district in the State of Arizona. “I believe Geoff Johnston, Greg Land and Paul Howell are the candidates that parents and community members have been looking for. They’re committed to bringing about the positive change that Change in HUSD and PAC-HUSD are looking for and we’re happy to stand behind them,” said Stacey Christensen of Change in HUSD. Michelle Rigby of Change in HUSD states, “I am confident that Greg Land, Paul Howell and Geoff Johnston will be able to have a great working relationship with existing board members Kim Anderson and Venessa Whitener. There are good things happening now in HUSD and I believe these candidates will expand those positive elements. Our district has a great future.”

Regretfully, incumbent Denise Standage canceled her interview due to a scheduling conflict. The interview panel felt confident in their assessment of Standage based on her voting record, interaction at public meetings, and previous conversations with members of Change in HUSD.

Following this endorsement, Change In HUSD and PAC-HUSD will be active in spreading the word about candidates Geoff Johnston, Paul Howell and Greg Land, so community members can make an informed decision. Information about the three candidates, as well as how to get involved with each candidate’s campaign will be posted on www.ChangeInHUSD.blogspot.com.

Dear Higley Parents and Community Members,

Please join us for the Groundbreaking Ceremony for Centennial Elementary School on Monday, September 8th at 6:00 pm at Ranch House Parkway and Fenceline Parkway. Centennial school will open in August 2009 as we celebrate the 100th anniversary of our school district.

The school was designed by Gilleland Brubaker Architects and will be constructed by DL Withers Construction. The new two story design will accommodate 1250 students.

Sincerely,

Dr. Joyce Lutrey
Superintendent
Higley Unified School District

[UPDATE]

Dear Higley Parents and Community,

There is a date change for the Groundbreaking Ceremony for Centennial Elementary School. It will be Tuesday, September 9th at 6:00 pm at Ranch House Parkway and Fenceline Parkway (south of Pecos Road).

We hope you will be able to join us.

This new school will do a lot to relieve the overcrowding issue Power Ranch Elementary if currently facing.

And if you are not signed up to get the HUSD email announcements yet see here.

The land is reportedly located just east of Cortina near Rittenhouse. It sounds like the idea is just in the nascent stages and there are some issues with both budget and the lot, but I thought our readers would be interested nevertheless.

Here are some good ones:

- One teacher told me that she was chewed out severely for speaking with a board member at all without an administrator present. Yup — apparently it was a no-no for teachers to have any direct contact with governing board members.

- Another told me that he was forced to sign off on false documents regarding the tools provided for a special needs student. He said that is a regular practice in the district.

- Still another told me that he filed three grievances with the administration and nary a one made it to the board where they belonged.

- Several have recounted case after case of being bullied and intimidated by administrators for all sorts of things. Some have described the vindictive streak Ms. Lutrey has shown with any and all teachers who dare cross her or her lieutenants in any way.

Now I don’t want to be a Chicken Little with these sorts of reports but when I hear personal testimony with my own ears from teachers or former teachers who I believe are trustworthy I have all kinds of reasons to be concerned.

HUSD has a major problem. I suspect it will take some major management changes to solve that problem. The new board will need to step up and drive that change come next January.

What do you think? Do you have stories that will offset these horror stories I have heard? Or do you have some horror stories of your own to share? Sound off in the comments either way.

I’m seeing a major morale problem at HUSD among teachers. Now admittedly I have not surveyed a lot of teachers in other districts so it is possible that low teacher morale is a problem plaguing our neighboring school districts as well, but I suspect the issue is especially bad in HUSD these days.

Here are some of the themes I have heard from our teachers:

1. We are not allowed to speak our minds. If we speak up about anything we face real retribution from the administration.
2. If we don’t kiss up to the current administration we find ourselves on the black list.
3. We don’t get trained on the tools we are supposed to use. This makes our jobs very difficult to perform well.
4. Some of our favorite colleagues have been essentially railroaded out of the district by the administration.

Now I am aware that these sorts of complaints can be self-feeding and that a certain level of Chicken Little hysteria can occur in these sorts of situations. But I don’t think we can ignore the way these teachers I have encountered are feeling about their work environment. These are the types of things that concern me most about our district and the responsibility for these kinds of problems rests squarely on the shoulders on the district administration in my opinion. If teachers don’t trust the administration it is the responsibility of that administration to:

A. Prove to the teachers through their actions that they are and always have been trustworthy. If they actually have been trustworthy all along and teachers don’t know it then there is a serious communication gap.
B. Become more worthy of the teachers trust. My guess is that the administration has lost the teachers trust through not being trustworthy. That is, I suspect that there has been a somewhat oppressive and retributive regime in place in HUSD for a while and the low morale is a consequence of that flawed management style.

This problem can be solved in a couple ways off the top of my head — get new administrators or require current administrators drastically to change their ways. I’m fine with with either option though I suspect that the former is a more likely solution than the latter.

What have you been hearing? Is there a real teacher morale problem in HUSD or is my sample of teachers horribly skewed? If the morale problem is real can blame be justly pinned on the administration or should the buck stop elsewhere?

See the EVTribune article on the subject here. The AZ Republic article on the subject is here.

The current change is a pilot program that is scheduled to be evaluated by the new governing board in January.

What do you think? Are there all sorts of nutjobs out here in HUSD I would have to deal with as a board member? (Not that it will stop me from running but I don’t relish the thought either…)

Anyway, it now sounds like the administration is considering stiffing the firm they hired to conduct the survey. Here are some excerpts from that editorial:

The Higley Unified School District inappropriately, if not illegally, used a veteran political pollster to conduct a telephone survey of residents about a proposed budget override — after the school board already had committed to placing the measure before voters in the Nov. 4 general election.

Now, the district wants to compound that error by reneging on its contract to pay the pollster $10,500 for work already preformed.

…

District officials say they didn’t violate that law because the board approved a contract with pollster Bruce Merrill to conduct the survey on June 26, a week before the board decided to call the budget override election. If that interpretation is wrong, district spokeswoman Sara Bresnahan told Ringle the district will try to avoid any sanctions by refusing to pay Merrill.

What a mess.

This appears to be another in a long line of fumbles and gaffes by the HUSD administration. I’d say it really is time to start looking at changes in the leadership of the district.

1. The district will get significantly more state money to pay for two things — Teacher’s salaries and school maintenance.
2. Currently about 76% of override money goes to help hire and pay teachers so if this override fails we will have less to pay current teachers in HUSD and less to hire new teachers
3. The rest of the override goes to maintenance costs like sports gear, musical equipment, etc. Without the override those programs will suffer as well.

In other words, the override money gives HUSD a fighting chance to stay competitive with other districts in salaries and that helps with retention and recruiting.

Here are some important facts about the override:

- It is not a new tax or new expense to residents at all. It is simply an extension of the existing override.
- Because the override allows for 10% above the district budget to be used for salaries and maintenance the bigger the district gets the more of a difference it makes.

Here is a brief description of the override that the AZ Republic published:

Budget override

• Allows a district to spend slightly more than its state-approved budget. The amount of an override is capped through a state formula, the revenue control limit.

Increases funds for certain spending categories. For example, Higley’s override would support maintenance and operations, which mostly covers teacher salaries and classroom costs.

Sources: Arizona Association of School Business Officials, Higley Unified School District

It will likely be near the end of your ballot so after you vote for the president be sure you vote yes on the Higley override as well. (And cast a vote for Geoff Johnston for the Higley Schools Governing Board while you are at it…)

The Higley teachers’ association is hosting an informational session Monday about the school district’s seven-year, $4.5 million override that will appear on the November ballot.

Monday’s meeting will start at 7 p.m. at the Power Ranch Clubhouse, 4444 E. Haven Crest Drive in Gilbert, southwest of Germann and Power roads.

Questions? Call teacher association president Dan Lawrence at 480-250-8820.

The override on the November ballot is given this explanation:

Budget override

• Allows a district to spend slightly more than its state-approved budget. The amount of an override is capped through a state formula, the revenue control limit.

Increases funds for certain spending categories. For example, Higley’s override would support maintenance and operations, which mostly covers teacher salaries and classroom costs.

Sources: Arizona Association of School Business Officials, Higley Unified School District

I’ll be there tonight so I hope to meet some of you too.

The cons the board discussed focused on the potentially high costs of background checks (at least $25 per volunteer according to estimates given there) and the risk that creating barriers to parents volunteering would do more harm than good.

The decision from that meeting was to look at setting up a pilot program and evaluate the subject after testing was in place.

Geoff Johnston, 38, runs an internet consulting business. He has been involved in several startup businesses, and said his experience fits the Higley district with its growth environment.

“From my take, a school board isn’t all that different than a board of directors,” said Johnston, who has an MBA from San Diego State University and a bachelor’s degree in music from Brigham Young University. “I would like to see our schools getting so good that families that have left the district will come back.”

He has three children at Cortina Elementary School. Samantha is a sixth-grader, Erin is in fourth grade and Quinn is in first grade. His daughter, Josie, will be in kindergarten next year.

Yep — sounds about right. Nice work Hayley.

Last week one of the candidates, Carolyn Starr decided to pull out of the race. Here is a link to a write up on that from the Arizona Republic (combined with another very odd and sad story actually).

I haven’t see the email Carolyn sent around announcing her decision to withdraw from the election but I am told she threw her support behind me and Greg Land. I am very appreciative to her for that vote of confidence

Basically it looks like this is what happened. The district wanted to know how interested people are in renewing the existing budget override that helps pay for the HUSD expenses. So there was talk of paying for a poll in May. But district attorneys warned that any such polling must happen before the override ends up on the ballot. Any polling using public funds after that date is a violation of law. Here is how Hayley explained things next:

In May, Higley board member Kim Anderson asked district officials if the district had done any polling to seek public opinion on support for a budget override election. The issue was then tabled after Giel explained that such polling cannot be done after an election is called.

On June 12, the board was told by Superintendent Joyce Lutrey that a survey was being done, and two community input forums were planned to let the public know about the override. Then, on June 26, the board agreed to ask voters to renew the $4.85 million maintenance and operations budget override.

Anderson said longtime pollster Bruce Merrill told her this week that the district sent an e-mail to him to go ahead with the survey June 30.

The phone survey was then conducted Aug. 8-10, Merrill said.

That was about two weeks after the election was called and more than two months after Giel had warned the board about conducting such a poll after an election is called.

“I believe that at the end of the day, it was staff mismanagement to blame, not Bruce Merrill or ASU,” said Anderson, who has been investigating the issue. “The buck stops with Joyce Lutrey, and this board has not held her accountable.”

Lutrey did not return a phone call Friday for comment.

Ouch.

I’ll keep you posted on this one. It looks like it won’t be disappearing quickly.