My boys go to a school that wound up on the news tonight. The story was about how the Charter school CEO came down to the high school and fired the principal and VP on the spot. The reality of what happened is somewhat different. Both P and VP are out and the CEO did come down there and handle it personally–handled it badly I might add. Still, beyond that lies a lot of media spin and the anger of parents and teachers who, though badly mishandling the situation, have every right to be mad.
My boys are in the k-8 side of the school. The pair that go there have never known another k-8 school. Now at least one of the boys seems to be on the verge of losing his teacher to this situation, given that many reports are surfacing that she has or will soon quit. This is the part that gets me angry and compels me to walk back through the story to find out the truth. See, I believe schools are really about teachers and without good teaching the school has little value. This teacher is one of four my son has had in his time there, and it doesn’t appear that any suitable replacement can be called up and brought to speed quickly. The other one is already dealing with a parade of substitute teachers as the result of a maternity leave, and isn’t learning much of anything this year. Still, this school and this community of parents seems worthwhile.
The real issue for me is how this got so out of control. I stand by the teachers and they in turn stand by the P and VP, but why did it spiral? A lot of people became vocal and someone called the news, that’s why. Now it is out of the hands of the parents and in the hands of a media hungry for a story and a resolution–no matter what that resolution winds up being. I’m worried the fallout will continue to spill over the the elementary side, and if that becomes the case, my boys will looking for a new school for the first time.
Some Thoughts:
- I’ve given it a lot of thought and I believe there is something to why I’m disappointed about this year’s tackle season and team. At first I thought it was just about my kid’s lack of playing time. The main player went from scoring touchdowns on practically every carry to not being allowed to touch the ball and instantly becoming the lightest lineman on the team. He isn’t built that way, and the reasoning the coach gave, though cogent and valid in regards to the way he runs a team, is not at all sensible to me. You should not penalize a kid for not playing defense the way you want by taking him away from the position/side of the ball he is actually passionate about. I sat and watched him, learning all the weaknesses and things he needed to develop as a player and realized that there are absolute deficiencies in his game, but he is not being coached on how to correct them. In truth, the problem this year is coaching. I fear the coach has too much going on in his life, so as a result the players spend a significant portion of practice standing around or engaging in 11 starters on whatever bench player is left–usually my two boys. The starters learn the play beats and get a confidant rhythm against a D that is undermanned and outsized. It is basically an ego stroke for the starters and a pain clinic for the bench players. I am fully done with the whole experience this year and need to tune it out, before I get even more upset. Hopefully they win the championship like the boys want. Short of that, the season is largely a bust.