"Persistently Dangerous"
One of the frustrations reporters face with state reports on schools is that the statistics are usually more than a year old. Consider the fact that due to situations in the 2005-06 and 2006-07 school years, Plainfield High School is now branded the state's only "persistently dangerous" school for 2008-09.
We don't know what happened in 2007-08. That will come out in the wash next year from the state. If Plainfield school authorities have relevant statistics for 2007-08, they can certainly bring them forth. It has happened in the past that the state report contained bad news, but the more current local statistics were better.
The designation of the high school certainly makes the task of marketing the district more challenging. Dr. Steve Gallon III has introduced the K-8 grade system in two schools, reconfigured the former Alpha Academy and plans to have a new, free-standing high school of the arts for the 2009 school year. Communications with the public have improved and by now almost everyone knows that Dr. Gallon expects "tangible, measurable" results for his strategic plan. But meanwhile, the sensational label has tongues wagging.
Luckily for the community, this Department of Education declaration, based on the increasingly questioned "No Child Left Behind Act," will soon be buried under the avalanche of information the DOE puts out. Last year, no schools got that label, so the flash of notoriety suffered by those in previous years was extinguished. With any luck, Dr. Brian Bilal will be able to prove the designation is little more than old news.
If there are any updates at the local level, they should be made public. And as Dr. Gallon has proposed for other aspects of district scrutiny, progess should be checked quarterly and appropriate action taken if needed.
Newspapers are duty-bound to report on state DOE findings, even if they are behind the times due to the lag of bureaucracy. With its new communications upgrade, the district is in a good position to talk about what is actually going on now.
--Bernice Paglia
We don't know what happened in 2007-08. That will come out in the wash next year from the state. If Plainfield school authorities have relevant statistics for 2007-08, they can certainly bring them forth. It has happened in the past that the state report contained bad news, but the more current local statistics were better.
The designation of the high school certainly makes the task of marketing the district more challenging. Dr. Steve Gallon III has introduced the K-8 grade system in two schools, reconfigured the former Alpha Academy and plans to have a new, free-standing high school of the arts for the 2009 school year. Communications with the public have improved and by now almost everyone knows that Dr. Gallon expects "tangible, measurable" results for his strategic plan. But meanwhile, the sensational label has tongues wagging.
Luckily for the community, this Department of Education declaration, based on the increasingly questioned "No Child Left Behind Act," will soon be buried under the avalanche of information the DOE puts out. Last year, no schools got that label, so the flash of notoriety suffered by those in previous years was extinguished. With any luck, Dr. Brian Bilal will be able to prove the designation is little more than old news.
If there are any updates at the local level, they should be made public. And as Dr. Gallon has proposed for other aspects of district scrutiny, progess should be checked quarterly and appropriate action taken if needed.
Newspapers are duty-bound to report on state DOE findings, even if they are behind the times due to the lag of bureaucracy. With its new communications upgrade, the district is in a good position to talk about what is actually going on now.
--Bernice Paglia
posted by Bernice at 4:57 PM
1 Comments:
The articles about Plainfield Public School violence was disconcerting since it goes back 3 years. Plainfield High School had alot of problems when Paula Howard was Supt. and Frank Ingargiola was Principal - 2005-2007. But last year and so far, this year, there have been relatively few, if any, incidents. My students and I discussed the report today and they agree - we are not a violent culture nor school - and the public need to know that this relates to a previous administration's lack of enforcement of rules and regulations.
It is stories like this that ruin our reputation as we attempt to improve the culture of the school with a new regime.
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