Lebanon Proof

Signing Off...

2008-11-15T12:25:00.000-08:00

This blog was originally created to support the no on the recall campaign.

It served its purpose. We got some truth out there in the midst of the poisonous pool of information that permeated this community for too long.

I do want to apologize for casting any aspersions on Mr. Bray, my question was more about the idea that the district had issues with content on computers. It is not my issue, nor my concern. Mr. Bray is a competent and solid technology expert who has provided much support to the teachers and students of this district.

However, my time is done now.

I do not want to degrade down to the level of the lebanon truth blog that seeks out issues just to hurt people.

Not to sound to X-filesish... but the truth is still out there, someone else needs to pick up the baton and keep looking... hopefully they will be powerful enough to bring those who have done such great damage to light in such a manner that vindication will be had for the victims of the Robinson regime.

A personal message to LT... you certainly can keep on with your venomous attacks and continue to move for the disintegration of a healthy community... or you can decide to let the community work towards resolution and closure on a very painful time in our history and sign off as well.

I acknowledge my part in the hard times we have had. I accept that I allowed myself to justify continued blogging because I thought "someone has to counteract that other blog" because I truly believe in everything I have said here. But to continue now, would be total selfish desire to hurt people who have hurt people I care about and I end up no better than LT.

I will trust in the new strength found in the board leadership and I wish Lebanon the best and hope for a positive future.

Responding to more comments...

2008-11-15T12:10:00.001-08:00

My goodness. I spend a couple of days out of state and things sure do pile up. I apologize for the delay in responding to some of the comments out there...

1. I appreciate Mr. Bray's response. I have always found him to be a reliable source. So, the rumor, that I posted as a rumor has been dispelled. I do appreciate truth.

2. It is never libelous to state that you have had heard a rumor.... semantics are important.

3. I have reported rumors in the past.

4. I find it interesting how adamantly defensive the commentors have become about this blog. I have found significantly more evidence to the inappropriate things happening in this district over the past decade, than proof of positive things coming out of what we were doing in the past.

If you ascribe to the belief that we were on the "cutting edge of school reform" in my opinion you were blinded by a charasmatic leader who got you to drink some metaphorical kool-aid that caused you to be incapable of ever seeing anything but the truth he led you to believe which makes you an unreliable witness.

If you were deeply damaged and publicly maligned by powerful employees of this district there seemed to be a revenge aspect or a simple, "you are not one of us, therefore we must discredit you" sort of "put people in their place" mentality of those in power.

The chicken's head has been cut off, but the body is still writhing and causing damage as it tramples through the barnyard....

Welcome new super...

2008-11-12T17:03:00.000-08:00

Don't forget to come to the board meeting at 6:00pm to meet the new super.
It is important for the community give their input and support.

Rumors...

2008-11-10T15:33:00.000-08:00

A few new rumors...

1. Rumor has it that the new super will be in charge immediately after confirmation...who will that most effect?

2. Rumor has it that the director of technology erased a lot of files relative to the high school from a middle school teacher's computer.... what was that about?

3. Rumor has it that there is a million dollar grant for agriculture programs at seven oak, but there is some friction with the high school agriculture teacher... what is going on?

What do we know about the new Interim?

2008-11-08T21:37:00.000-08:00

Oh to be fly on the wall as the Board deliberated. I truly wonder what was it about this man that got their attention? His bargaining ability? His experience with budgets? His experience with personnel?

If anyone knows anything about him...Please feel free to let the rest of us in on it!

More about the schedule...

2008-11-07T10:42:00.000-08:00

One of my commentors made a comment that leads me to believe that I have not addressed their issue. I am sorry you felt that way.

I have tried to make sure I don't make the same mistakes that the other blogger has in printing things that there is little or no proof of without labeling it clearly as rumor... so I verify and ask questions.

Here is what I found out yesterday:

1. Kim Fandino asked to discuss with administration before the board meeting to be able to mitigate the problem because she did not want the schedule to be a board action and wanted to present a united response to the board. As of yesterday, no building principals have ever discussed the issue with her. She also did apologize at the board meeting for any contention that had come from this.

2. She has asked people to look at the schedule, or has asked people to just be willing to look at it in departments and view it with objective eyes... your comment today leads me to believe there might be a misunderstanding around this.

3. She stated clearly at the board meeting that it was supposed to go to the teachers in departments as a draft and that the teacher assignments were designed to lessen the number of types of courses each teacher had in any given day. She also said that the departments should look at who should teach what, she actually said that who teaches what wasn't the important thing other than that teachers should teach what they love.

4. Rumor: I heard that she would like the opportunity to address the staff and answer all questions and concerns about what happened. (Opinion: they probably won't let her because they might come off not so well once the faculty hear the whole story.)

5. She may have made a mistake in giving a parent group a copy of the schedule, but how could she know it was a mistake up front? Who would ever believe that the a high school schedule would be such a big deal. The only reason this was a problem was because the administration appear to have no intentions of fixing the problem or they simply could have nipped everything in the bud by saying, "we are taking this to the faculty for input and if it has merit, we will try to do it." No harm, no foul. But, apparently, they were so mad at Fandino (without ever talking to her) that they decided to make her an example.

Before I make my next statement, I do not want to be a hypocrite, I have indeed called people out on this blog. However, there have been facts attached, or I have clarified them as rumors with sufficient circumstantial evidence. I have never made up a fact to try to sway my readers to my perspective and get people to hate others like the other blogger has done.

People need to stop hating each other. "Let him who has not sinned cast the first stone..."

Sorry, but I refuse to jump on the anti-fandino wagon. I have seen how she cares about teachers and kids and I know that anyone who has actually worked with her on something that is good for kids has found her to be a passionate advocate whose bottom line is kids. Sometimes I may disagree with some points, but never her motives. Anyone who is willing to face all of her detractors and answer all questions is a braver person than most and the cowards who would attack her with lies deserve no credibility.

There are plenty of people out there for themselves, and I think they are the ones attacking people like Ms. Fandino.

If the interim superintendent reads this blog...

2008-11-06T17:47:00.000-08:00

It was recently discovered that some of the LHS counselors told students that they could get credit for taking the same required class twice and it would count as taking "both" of the half credits required in that area.... a specific example.... taking Health 1 twice and pretending that it counts as Health 1 and Health 2. (Since a prominent citizen's son is one of the vicitims who just found out that the Health class he has been taking all trimester long will not count (as he was told by his counselor apparently) he now has basically forfeited the opportunity that he could have had during this trimester to take something he needed or wanted, he now, as a senior must give up something he had planned.

I blame the grown ups for that one... but he will be the one that pays.

I have heard rumors (and I repeat, these are second hand rumors, not first hand, albeit from reliable sources) that credit has been given to kids who needed things to graduate by secretaries and counselors who did not want the kids to be banned from graduating. The hitch is that no class was apparently taken...and in other cases apparently grades were changed on transcripts without the teacher's knowledge.

It seems to me that we need several audits:

1. An audit of courses and transcripts for the issues listed above.

2. A special ed audit.

3. A forensic audit of all the books... (unless the audit we just did meets that level of investigation).

4. A testing audit.

And we need some surveys:

1. A survey about administration (from the teacher and staff perspective).

2. A survey about teaching and effectiveness (from the kids perspective).

3. A survey about the morale and climate of each building.

4. A survey of the community needs relative to the district.

Welcome Mr. Interim, we really need you, we just hope we got it right!

The rest of the story...

2008-11-06T05:22:00.001-08:00

After writing my last posting, I read the articles in the paper and then I was contacted by someone who made a comment that interested me and peaked my interest so I contacted someone who was present at the Board meeting and a couple of teachers at the high school.... It would seem that the pattern of harassment toward Ms. Fandino did not stop with Mr. Robinson's departure...

Here are some facts:

1. The administration was going to be changing the schedule anyway.

2. She approached administration and asked permission to work on the schedule, she was given the blessing and data by the administration.

3. She took used a math formula to calculate how many classes are needed based on how many kids there are that wanted or needed each class.

3. She stated at the board meeting that the intent was for departments to decide who taught what and in fact actually was quoted by one listener as saying, "I could care less who teaches each class, but we all know that if someone loves what they are teaching they do a better job than if they are teaching a class they don't like."

She mentioned that the intent of the draft was to create a place for each class and then you can swap the classes in any given period between teachers. Which, by the way, is how it was done for years and generated very positive relations with the teachers.

4. She did check with people in most of the core subjects to see what preferences there were and tried to reflect that.

5. Now here is the crux of the issue. She gave administration the schedule proposal BEFORE anyone else saw it. Apparently she had asked administration to stop by to talk about it, but when they never showed, she emailed it.

She was contacted by the math mom later that evening who requested that Ms. Fandino help her understand the scheduling issue because that group had been talking about it already, and wanted to have a clear perspective on what can and cannot be done. According to the math mom, Ms. Fandino was clear that she had given the schedule to the administration and that it was simply a draft that she had created and wanted to get in the hands of teachers.

Also, it should be noted that the math mom showed it to others, what happened from there was not Ms. Fandino's doing.

6. BUT here is what was really upsetting to the administration... she actually talked to students, teachers and parents as she worked on the schedule. She stated at the board meeting that these were drafts and that in fact she had adjusted the first draft after hearing from the parents in the math group.

She purposefully tried to get input from those who had been left out of the schedule creation to get what she referred to as a "fresh perspective."

That makes sense. According to Mr. Kelley, the current schedule was created by 8 people who took several weeks to make something that is full of flaws and problems. According to Ms. Fandino she started the process last Wednesday and worked about 6 hours.

Also, she stated that not one of the administrators came to her to discuss the proposal ever.

It would seem that the administration got showed up by Ms. Fandino and rather than work with her, they decided to use their favorite play from the Jim Robinson playbook, discredit those who have upset you and make them look bad.

- - - -

In short... Ms. Fandino tried to work with those who had been disenfranchised in order to do what is best for kids, administration didn't like it, they went after Ms. Fandino, history repeats itself.

What's up with the LHS schedule?

2008-11-05T17:27:00.000-08:00

So apparently Kim Fandino, former union leader, made a schedule for the high school. It was brought to the board and there will be a board work session discussion about it on the 17th.

I have discussed the scheduling issues before, but the interactions at the board meeting seem to beg further questions...

1. According to Ms. Fandino, the administration knew that there was a problem and they were going to work on it. If they knew there were issues because staff brought them up last year, why did they wait until there were only a few weeks left to address the issue?

2. Who made the current schedule? If it is as bad as I hear, they probably should not be the ones working on things like this. According to a former registrar, the administration set the schedule before there was a decent percent of matches for the students. According to at least three unhappy teachers at the high school Mr. Finch made it very clear that there would not be any changes when the schedule first came out, and held to that for most of the teachers until there were apparently legal issues with who had what license.

3. Why did the administration let Ms. Fandino work on the schedule and then leave her hanging out to dry in front of the public? She stated that they had not contacted her at all about the schedule. Maybe they could have worked together? Or are they so unprofessional that they would snub her just because her schedule was better received?

4. Ms. Fandino also stated that she viewed the schedule as a draft for the departments to discuss. I hope that happens. It seems like the people who are doing the work are often left out of the conversation.

Bottom line.... do we need a new schedule? If so, why not work together openly to make it happen? Isn't about the kids needs anyway? Why are the grown ups making it so hard?

Okay, so you want to debate...

2008-11-02T20:00:00.001-08:00

The last few commentors assume that I have not spoken with people from the opposite view point.... Actually, I have discussed these issues with several teachers who disagree with one or the other of the points I have made, but not one of those people has disagreed with everything...the debate rages around the "water cooler" on most of these issues, but there are more things that make sense from my perspective that seem to resonate with more people.

What is frustrating is having community members who have not spoken with any teachers besides the one that has been theorized to be the other blogger and others who only think like her and they honestly believe that they are getting an objective view.

I have actually had conversations with that particular teacher and her like-minded friends. None of them were employed when much of what was done well was going on here. They do not know what 15 years ago looked like. I walked the halls of LHS when things were different in a good way.

Just a note about the graduation requirements that we are not offering.... the loss of the advanced programs makes it difficult for people to graduate with honors, and it is a shame that people would be okay about decreasing the opportunities of our advanced students and not just have them graduate with the lowest common denominator education that they have been forced to embrace by the current administration.

About the seniors and "leaving them alone." I am not advocating any changes other than a schedule fix that would allow them to get all the classes they need to graduate because according to several advisors at LHS there were very limited offerings of some important classes, like Algebra 2 etc. students were not able to find classes they needed or wanted to complete the second half of a course because they are scheduled against each other. How does rearranging the schedule with the SAME classes offered, just more available, hurt the seniors? Leaving the schedule alone will cause them more trouble.

Answering reader comments...

2008-11-02T07:59:00.000-08:00

1. The Special Ed issues. It is a fact that some students IEPs are changed by the district after having been approved. IEPs are not always followed, teachers are not given information about IEPs in some cases, and the law that requires that they not be displaced more than 2 years from their peers are violated.

2. The testing issue... this is a question that has never been answered by the district...

Do we test by age (if we are an ungraded system) or by grade (if we "have grades") according to several teachers we do not have grades (which means we should test by age), and yet, we test by grade (which means some students will never be tested and makes it look like our test score percentages are not accurate.)

3. The Green Acres Principal's actions are related to calling out staff members publicly when they don't sign up for voluntary activities, talking about them with other staff and parents, and in general creating an atmosphere of intimidation. He is actually remarkably similar to Jim Robinson...the philosophy is interesting, but the implementation alienates everyone you need to succeed and dooms things to failure.

4. Missing classes at LHS.... If you want, you can look at some of my earlier posts for more, but here is a short list....

On the advanced end....AP Chemistry, Advanced LA 9, Advanced LA 10, Advanced Global Studies, Advanced Freshman Science, Advanced Government, Advanced Economics, Advanced Personal Finance...

On other fronts, Freshman Core, the reluctant learner program, the credit recovery program, an entire alternative high school program.

All of the family and child classes are gone.

We now have 1 art teacher for the entire school.

The auto shop is gone, the welding program is half time and the architecture and other vocational programs are decimated.

Please keep asking your questions. I will continue to seek out answers.

For those of you with short memories...

2008-11-01T17:05:00.000-07:00

I know we are all fixing our eyes on this Tuesday and the bigger, nation-wide, situation, but we need to remember that we are looking for an interim superintendent this week and the reason is because the community (as proven by the other recent vote) wants us to stop the educational nonsense that has been pushed on our kids for years and bring some semblance of normalcy... unfortunately, even though this has been fast, there is still a need to get some things fixed faster than may be possible...

The principal of Green Acres has been using heavy handed tactics with his staff and wonders why the morale in the building is so low.

The LHS schedule needs to be fixed by second trimester so that kids at the high school might actually be able to take classes they need to be on track for graduation.

The financial situation needs to be resolved.

The Special Ed. situation needs to be resolved.

The testing issues need to be resolved.

Whoever is selected will have a lot to do right away if we are to help the kids we have right now and not make them wait while we get our collective acts together.

The OSBA agenda...are they friends of the CARES group?

2008-10-30T06:03:00.000-07:00

Things that make you go hmmmmmm.....

Knowing that there is a strong push from the community for an interim candidate from the inside, why would Betsy (the OSBA representative), promote a qualification on the list for the screening committee that would negate any candidate that has any history or agenda with the Lebanon Schools?

We desperately need someone who already knows what the problems are here so they can resolve them quickly.

With a broad interpretation, this means that no one who has ever heard or spoken to anybody who knows anything about what has been going on here would be eligible because that technically is history.

Also, (and just because this had made me feel a bit facetious) any decent administrator would have a plan (otherwise known as an agenda) for Lebanon.

Thank goodness our board was wise enough to see through her veiled attempt to keep people from within out and strike that line from the document before they approved it.

Philosophical Differences....

2008-10-29T05:57:00.000-07:00

Here are the main philosophical questions that this community needs to address in order to find unity and be able to repair the damage that has been done....

1. Do we believe in discipline and consequences for inappropriate behavior? (If so, we need to hire administrators who also believe that, not people who enable and excuse behaviors and feel that discipline is primarily punitive.)

2. Do we believe that social development of students is as important, if not more important, than academic development? (If so, we need to stop "moving kids" based on test scores and find ways to provide what kids need where they are and help nourish and support their interpersonal relations.)

[Things that make you go hmmmm...: Why force the academies on high school kids because "the small group of student with the same teachers for four years is best" when at the elementary they are dividing by ability? Which group do you think could better handle the separation from their friends? The 7 year old, or the 17 year old?]

3. Do we believe elementary kids should have PE every day? Obesity and childhood diabetes are on the rise, physical activity helps with ADHD and other attention issues, students think better when they have had physical exercise, there are statistical correlations between physical activity and student achievement, etc.... (If so, maybe we should have full time PE teachers in each elementary school building rather than TOSAs at the district office.)

4. Do we believe every student should have MUSIC? (If so, maybe we should have full time MUSIC teachers in every elementary school building.)

[Things that make you go hmmmmm.....: I have heard that there are like 14 teachers on the TOSA list, if you traded 10 of them for PE and Music specialists you would still have 4 to invent programs and run programs that were invented to give them jobs. Didn't there just used to be two? There were two who ran the testing and were the Math and Language Arts specialists at the DO and did an exceptional job, why aren't they there any more??? Maybe they weren't in favor any more, or others who stood out more in their allegiance to Mr. Robinson usurped them?]

5. Do we believe in "advanced" classes? (If so, we need administration that does too, not people who say, "if it's good enough for one student, every student should have to take it.")

6. Do we believe that disruptive students should be removed from classrooms so that the rest of the students can learn and the teacher doesn't have to spend most of their time managing behavior rather than teaching? (If so, we need administration that believes in alternative programs and we need to return some here.)

7. Do we believe that LHS is just a basic lower-level school designed to feed kids to LBCC as soon as possible and only offer lower level classes and let LBCC teach the upper-level stuff no matter how old the kid is? (If so, we need to schedule enough advanced classes that we can accommodate our students needs at the upper-level and we need to have students take courses from LHS teachers until they are eligible to graduate, and have them go to LBCC for the continuing ed offered afterwards.)

[Things that make you go hmmmm...: According to some of the LBCC teachers the LHS kids do not have the study skills, the academic skills, nor the social skills to truly make it in college...shouldn't we make sure they are ready at LHS before we get a really bad reputation?]

8. Do we believe in quality teaching? (If so, we need administrators who know how to evaluate, not intimidate and can evaluate people based on their actual teaching ability rather than their support of administration.)

9. Do we believe kids should be able to get the classes they need? (If so, we need someone who knows how to create master schedules to do it, not people who schedule required classes against each other so students have to choose one subject over another and only offer one section of needed classes in an entire trimester. Apparently, current administration relies to heavily on the computer program to do it and they set the schedule with the lowest percentage of good matches in the history of LHS scheduling.)

10. Do we believe that students need to be in small focused groups with the same teachers so that they can build a strong academic foundation? (If so, we need to bring back freshman Core.)

(Things that make you go hmmmm...: Do the academies still "exist"? I mean the names are still there, but students take any classes they want, administration has directed all teachers to coordinate the curriculum so there are no differences across academies, all students will have the same requirements, Mr. Finch makes all the decisions... only in dress and behavior (cliques) do we really have them any more, and those are the two most damaging aspects of the academies.)

11. Do we believe in our kids? (If so, we need to get into the buildings to support our schools... have you volunteered lately?)

12. Do we believe in this community? (If so, we need to address the philosophical differences and fix the problem immediately.)

More comment dialog...

2008-10-28T06:20:00.001-07:00

To the student of the teacher who helped you with your subject while the fight happened, there were other teachers standing in their doorways, also, the violence and swearing should have caused kids to respond and call teachers out to help, but they tend to just watch anymore as well....

As far as "attacking" teachers... It is a fact that some teachers are not just allowing liability, they are causing it. They are the minority, but their reputation is what is damaging teachers' reputations here. They have been allowed to do this for years by the administration and therefore I hold the administration primarily responsible. I believe that most of those teachers are simply not aware that their actions are not acceptable in schools because they have never been taught otherwise.... that again is the fault of the administration.

I will just say that there are some teachers who need to be called to a higher level of professionalism, and that starts with the rules being laid out and enforced at every level because apparently altruistic professionalism is not present very much any more... it seems that it is pretty much every person for themselves unless there is a negative consequence...

More responses to comments...

2008-10-27T17:38:00.000-07:00

I thank the former student who was here ten years ago for writing, I hope they will write again, but I would like to address the distinction between a couple of our statements...

1. You stated that kids went to Seven Eleven with permission.... it has always been true that some students leave campus without permission.... I seem to remberer that one supposed "Senior Skip Day" the administration showed up at Sheri's during first period to catch some of the "skippers."

Some teachers have allowed kids to go get food and drink as well... (for the record, I do not think that is professional and boy that is a lawsuit waiting to happen.)

However, I stated that some teachers now SEND kids and forgive tardies in exchange for drinks.

That is a pretty big difference.

2. In terms of kids getting away with things... I guess I could be more clear... ten years ago, IF a teacher reported any of those things, they were addressed by administration. Now they are not. If the teachers let them get away with things back then, that was their own, individual, unprofessionalism, not a systematic lack of authority as there is now.

3. There have always been teachers who push the limits, or pick and choose which rules they will follow because they do not agree with them. The difference has to come from the expectations of leadership.

There are some teachers who have been here for that long and longer.... A few of them have fallen into some bad habits... however, with the right leadership they would remember having been under good direction and come back into the right manners in most cases.

I fear for those who have only ever known chaos and disorder. many of them have never known how wonderful it can be to work in an emotionally safe, positive working atmosphere with competent leadership and clear direction. They cling to the only thing they have known, like a child who doesn't want to remove a splinter out of fear of the pain.

Ask someone who worked here when Dale Koger was the principal about effective administration. The picture they have is very different...

PS. Former student, who were your freshman Core teachers and did Core help you?

Responding to this and that...

2008-10-27T05:15:00.001-07:00

Amidst the rants of the other blogger and the comment about the OSBA from one of the commentors it seemed important to get some facts straight before I made this posting....so here goes.

1. According to a Lebanon citizen, an OSBA representative explained that any eligible candidate with no negative evaluations is eligible for placement in any pools they might create, they could possibly set themselves up for litigation if they did not include his name in a pool for which he was eligible. Therefore, would they not have to include other names that might have similar negative possibilities?

2. The other bloggers rant about the changes to "10 years ago" for LHS begs the question, "how was education different then?" I asked a few people who were there then and either still work there or substitute there.

Here are some comparisons...

Ten years ago...alternative programs and credit make-up options were offered for students who struggled or made poor choices, or just plain didn't fit in a regular setting. Now...there is no where for these kids to go except drop out or if they are lucky get one of the spaces at the Community Services Consortium, or remain in the classes they act out in. (Apparently, once they figure out that they will not be removed, they can become very difficult, because they know nothing will happen to them.)

Ten years ago...administration removed disruptive students from classrooms with out the teachers having to jump through several hoops. Now...teachers are expected to keep students no matter how disruptive they are because there is "no where else to put them." (See loss of alternative programs above.) And on top of that they are marked down in their evaluations if they acknowledge a problem in their class.

Ten years ago...advanced classes for all grade levels in Language Arts and Social Studies, as well as several other subjects ON TOP OF the AP classes that were offered, some of which we no longer offer. Students specialized in subjects and received certificates in multiple areas for going all the way through an advanced sequence of classes and maintaining a 3.5 GPA in that area. Now...APLA, AP Calculus, AP Biology and a handful of College Now courses which are pretty much only for Seniors and maybe a few Juniors are all that are offered at LHS. Students have no lower grade advanced classes to provide scaffolding for advanced study and provide a program that is consistent with the needs of students heading to university (not just community college.)

Ten years ago...freshmen took "Freshman Core" which had every freshman taking Language Arts, Social Studies, Science and Core Skills (similar to study skills) ALL YEAR LONG for half the day in the SAME group of kids with the SAME three teachers. Now...in the academies, students might take 2 semesters of LA, 1 of Social Studies, 1 semester of Science, and there is no guarantee that they will have the same teacher.

Ten years ago...school would start with over 400 brand new students to LHS. Now...schools starts with less than 300.

Ten years ago...there were 8 secretaries and 4 counselors. Now...there are 13 or 14 secretaries (depending on who you ask) and 5 counselors.

Ten years ago...the teachers knew and respected each other and would jump in to help when there were problems. Now...teachers stand in their doorways and watch as others get injured trying to break up fights.

Ten years ago...teachers were regularly observed and supported and critiqued for their performance. Now...teachers are only observed when administration absolutely has to.

Ten years ago...teachers would never send kids to the Seven Eleven during class time and excuse tardies as long a the kids brought them a drink back, they would never encourage kids to miss class if there was going to be a substitute the next day, they would not ignore policies and directives. Now...there are no consequences if you are a friend of the administration, or they are not comfortable with confrontations. (Note: that is supposedly why admin gets paid more, their job in not supposed to be easy or fun all the time, and you have to be the grown-up and hold others accountable.)

Ten years ago...teachers knew what to do during fire drills, pep assemblies, duty, fights, etc. Now...they don't.

Ten years ago...students didn't get away with swearing, dress code violations, breaking rules, violent behavior, vandalism, insubordination, defiance, intimidation and harassment. Now...they do.

Ten years ago...the administration respected the teachers and staff.... enough said.

What a strange catch 22....

2008-10-24T20:45:00.000-07:00

Isn't it ironic that Jim Robinson would make one of his resignation demands be that the Board must use the OSBA for their employee search when he himself would probably be a candidate that the OSBA will put forward in some other unsuspecting district?

I guess what I am saying is that there is nothing I can trust or believe about OSBA recommendations if they could ever, in good conscience, promote Jim Robinson as a candidate for any position after the things he did here.

I suggest the Board remember that and stick with candidates who they know they can trust and not blindly follow the OSBA's recommendations.

Things that make you go hmmmm.....

2008-10-23T19:14:00.000-07:00

Why are the administrators in the district out of the buildings more than in?

Why are the TOSAs (teachers who are on special assignment rather than having regular assignments) pretending to be administrators when the administrators are out when they have no training?

Why did a student who attacked another student and a teacher who was trying to stop them get to come back a little while later and finish the job? (beating up the the other student)

Why are teachers being asked to do the same staff development activities that they have done over and over and over before?

What is the district going to do about the inexperienced and unprepared administrators?

Why does the high school need 13 secretaries to do what 8 used to?

If the high school teachers are being told to align all of the curriculum building-wide, the advisories are now grade level specific, and kids can take whatever classes they want, why do we still pretend that the academies aren't DOA?

Why is the district trying to cutting back on the social studies curriculum requirements?

Why don't we have an alternative program for the kids who don't do well in regular settings? (We used to...)

----

I guess what I am really asking is, why aren't we talking about what is going on within the buildings and not just on blogs and out in the community? When is the acting superintendent going to address anything that is on the minds of the parents, teachers and students in a manner that makes sense and can help to promote positive change?

Let's get this show on the road...

Other Local Politics... Part 2

2008-10-22T21:36:00.000-07:00

One of the commentors has added a link to the money trail for Sherrie Sprenger who is running to try to be elected to the seat she was appointed to.

https://secure.sos.state.or.us/eim/cneSearch.do?cneSearchButtonName=search&cneSearchFilerCommitteeId=12916

I have spoken to this situation before, but now that the ballots are out it bears repeating.

Sherrie Sprenger as a Board member of the LCSD was an unfaltering supporter of Jim Robinson and even when faced with court rulings against the district and knowledge of illegal bargaining and discrimination and harassment tactics used by Mr. Robinson chose to ignore any and all stakeholders and constituents that did not agree with Mr. Robinson.

Is that the kind of leadership we want in Salem? A puppet of the party leadership? I would prefer an independent thinker who feels like Lebanon and the rest of this portion of the state is more important than their own political aspirations.

Make no mistake, Sherrie Sprenger is a veteran politician, with rhetoric and patented answers at the ready. She does not care what the people think, only her peers.

Election data and the question of apathy...

2008-10-19T20:10:00.000-07:00

Some recall election data....

There have been some questions about the cost of the election. It is not posted on the Linn County website, but the elections office department phone number is 967-3831, and the last I heard the exact cost had not been figured yet.

Also, if you look at http://www.co.linn.or.us/elections/ElectionArchive/20080520results.HTM
you can see down at the bottom a vote relative to the City of Lebanon in May of 2008 (which was a primary election as well) in which only 3398 people in Lebanon voted.

And, http://www.co.linn.or.us/elections/ElectionArchive/20070515results.htm shows the last school board election with 3959 voters in Lebanon total.

And yet if you look at the number of voters that can be found for the recall election (which can be seen at http://www.co.linn.or.us/elections/ElectionArchive/20081007Results.htm) you see that there were 6350 votes cast.

No one can convince me that there was voter apathy about this situation. It would seem to me that there was much more voter interest than there has been in a long time.

However, there is still apparent apathy in that there has not been more outcry to the Board, either in support or opposition and so I want to hold a few of you accountable...

If you care about what is going on in our schools, speak up! Right away... don't wait and think to yourself, "oh, there are others who are talking and the vote should be enough to get things going," it is not enough. Mr. Alexander and Mr. Wineteer still need support to move things along and fix this district for out kids and teachers. Ms. Shimmin and Mr. McUne are well meaning, but they tend to be tentative and overly worried about appearances to "both sides."

In a normal situation that would be fine, but in this case one "side" was controlling and bullying the rest of the community for years and really should not be allowed much say for awhile while the victims get a chance to have the major problems fixed.

The problem is that there is a clear majority and they need to hear from you so they can feel confident in their votes.

Come to the board meeting tomorrow and put your effort where your beliefs are.

Let's shut down the remainder of the apathy and make history here.

Let's get Lebanon moving in the right direction by starting where it matters most, with our kids!

From within vs. from outside....

2008-10-18T09:07:00.000-07:00

The Lebanon Community School Board has to make a series of important decisions...

First do they bring up someone from within the organization to take over for the interim...

or do they throw the dice and hope to find a person that they can trust from the outside?

Let's look at some possible outcomes...

1. They do an expensive OSBA managed search and hire a stranger, he or she comes in and can immediately tell what has been going wrong and they have the vision and knowledge of staff to reallocate personnel and funds and right the wrongs that have been done and get this district back on track, all the while bringing everyone back into the fold and nurturing a sense of community and making all things right with the world... (okay, a little facetious, I know, but there are those who believe all that is possible....in my opinion, they are the same people who felt that the CARES group was right... or they are very nice people who are incredibly naive because they have no clue how deep the problems are here.)

2. They do an expensive OSBA managed search and hire a stranger, he or she comes in and can tell that there have been problems and so they begin to ask people how we do things and the people they ask are those who are currently continuing what was left by Mr. Robinson (he may be gone physically, but he still runs this district through Mr. Kelley and the others) and they are able to mislead the new person just as smoothly as they mislead this community for years and the new person, because they are new and so some would think that there is "no way they could be tainted", then turns around and works against the change this commuity is calling for without people realizing it until we have allowed the Robinson philosophy to fester for another couple of years and our students and teachers still suffer and there has to be another vote of no confidence or recall election to get back on track.

3. They consult OSBA about the procedures and legalities of interim leadership and then select someone from within who already knows what is going on, the mere mention of their appointment assures that the current administration has no doubts that things will change and we can make plans for next school year in a timely fashion and with the input of those in the trenches and get them ready for what is coming.

4. The Board can allow CARES infested committees to select the new interim (see above #2).

There are of course variations on a theme for each of those ideas, but I think you get my gist.

I just have a couple last thoughts on this...

- The board should not worry about how the new person will impact "the administrative team" because the fact of the matter is that the problem is the administrative team. Mr. Kelley and his friends on the CARES group should not be taken into consideration in this situation.

- Since you can't please all of the people, the board should try to please the majority, and that is the people who wanted Robinson gone and defeated the recall just so this board could get on the stick and DO SOMETHING fast, before our kids have to suffer anymore.

Let's talk about Mr. Sansom...

2008-10-17T05:35:00.000-07:00

Several people have decided to continue Mr. Robinson's practice of attacking those who might get in the way of their particular agenda by immediately attacking Mr. Sansom.

I was asked a by a couple of commentors about Mr. Sansom and so I made a few phone calls.

Here is what I learned.

In a past district Mr. Sansom found himself much in the same position as Mr. Kelley does right now...he was given a direction and task and found himself out of favor with many people when he did the job he was supposed to do.

He was directed by elected leadership in that district to make certain that certain things happened, to "take care of business" and it was not expected that he would necessarily be able to stay in that district after the job was done. Of course people were not happy with him, teachers were not happy with him, anyone who did not know the directions he was given would have thought poorly of the situation. But conversely, he did just as he was supposed to.

The CARES group contingent should understand this sort of situation. They have been advocated for keeping Mr. Robinson because he was doing the work the Board asked him to do (please note, I am referring to the prior Boards headed by Sherrie Sprenger, Tom McHill and the like, not the current Board - which by the way seems to be functioning very well as a group now that the oppressive leadership of before is gone...) Would it not be hypocritical of them to punish one man for doing as directed and advocate for another who did the same thing and even more, because Mr. Robinson also manipulated his contract and connived his way into an iron clad "I have ultimate power" kind of role?

Let's talk about his tenure as a principal.... According to staff at Seven Oak, his meetings could go a little shorter (but that is no different than any other building) and he could stand to communicate more clearly (but it appears that he communicates more effectively and clearly than several other principals in the district.)

HOWEVER, every other complaint that I heard about Mr. Sansom can be directly attributed to the direction he was given by (guess who...) Jim Robinson.

Come on CARES people... give up the ghost...Mr. Robinson is gone...You lost the election by a statistically significant margin...oh, and by the way...

Don't think it wasn't noticed how several of you area trying to manipulate things still by positioning yourselves on district committees.

People of Lebanon wake up! We need to change NOW... or this group will weasel their way in to the programs from the inside and make it LOOK LIKE "the community" wants things.

The world is run "by those who show up" so make sure plenty of people on the winning side of the recall election get on the committees to counteract those who would "stay the course" Robinson set.

So many meetings...so little time...

2008-10-16T05:17:00.000-07:00

Community Forum...Board meeting...parent-teacher meetings...another Board meeting....Wow, I need to catch my breath!

BUT.... what is the desired outcome of all these meetings?

(At the risk of sounding like a current presidential candidate...)

Change...

It is as simple and as complicated as that.

We want change...

Change in direction (no more SAS, no more lowest common denominator education at the high school...etc...)

Change in leadership (no more "administrative team" being more important than competence, no more administration that ignores behavioral issues, no more incompetence, no more additional administration period (a decrease would be great...and fiscally responsible...)

Change in instruction (teachers being truly evaluated based on their abilities, not their relationship with administration....)

Change in curriculum (actually it isn't a change, but a return to the programs that used to be here and work and were stripped away...)

Change in communication (communication would be nice...even poor communication, because that would be a step up...)

Change in tactics (no more harassment and intimidation, no more "beatings will continue until morale improves" staff development, no more letting people with no experience "run" things, no more secret meetings trying to decide "what to do" about people who are not "on board"...)

Like I said, it is as easy and as complicated as that...we need change.

BUT...we also need someone to step in who will not need to waste time getting to know the system or "coming up to speed."

Just a thought: Last night we found out that Mr. Ed Sansom has applied for the interim superintendent. He certainly knows what is going on in this district, so much so in fact that he himself was a victim of Jim Robinson and Steve Kelley. He also has experience in this kind of position, so he has the qualifications. It is an interim position. We need it filled now... not have weeks or months of more continued Jim Robinson leadership (he may be gone, but nothing has changed...yet) and we need someone who knows the real issues...Maybe this is the guy for this moment, in this district, to help these kids and teachers get back to the true business of education.

Attacking the kids....

2008-10-13T18:42:00.000-07:00

The "math mom" has been the topic of much controversy and that is understandable.... at least in Lebanon in 2008. She questioned the powers that be and pushed hard against the apathy of the administration when it came to math scores and failing grades.

The fact of the matter is that the new building policy is yet another attempt to cover up the failing grades of students. If you have them retake and retake and retake a class until they pass it and you cover up the "f"s with a "no pass" grade it does a couple of magical things...

1. It decreases the amount of "f"s the school has... (but it does not decrease the level of failure.)

2. It increases GPA...(and we thought 8 valedictorians was too many? Now we could have dozens... but is that fair to those who actually passed EVERY class they took?)

3. It makes the transcripts of LHS unreliable as sources of data.

4. It feels like "cooking the books" in yet another area.

So, anyway....

Math mom asked the questions and the answers exploded in the administrators' collective faces...

So, she moved into the forefront of the battle and found herself another victim of "the other side" which (as unfair as it should be) is the status quo for those who stand up.

However, the other blog apparently allowed Math Mom's daughter to be publicly attacked and maligned with libelous postings....

Talk about crossing the line.

Thank goodness, supposedly, some people stepped in and the posts were removed...

Mr. McUne gave us a good message at the last meeting... "let's act like big boys and girls."

I am willing to be argued with and held accountable for the accuracy of my messages, but I will not attack the children or spouses of people I disagree with... and no decent person should allow it to happen again.

So... what was that recall election all about anyway?

2008-10-12T18:44:00.000-07:00

Okay, it would seem that the obvious to some is escaping too many people.

The recall election was about one thing to one group and a totally different thing to the other...

The CARES group (PAC members and those who ascribe to the same philosophical paradigm) initiated the recall because they knew that there were now enough board member votes to get Mr. Robinson out the door... They were afraid that their friend/leader could possibly be removed and they believed (erroneously) that they were in the majority. They hoped they could spread enough rumor and innuendo to get all of those who were not paying attention to vote against the "loose cannons" Alexander and Wineteer.

The people who actively opposed the recall (no name, because there were multiple groups who for multiple reasons were in agreement) believe that the direction of the district is wrong, the leadership is out of control and the impact on our students is detrimental.

The removal of Robinson, in and of itself, was only necessary because he refused to listen to anyone and was a roadblock to fixing the district.

However, if anyone believes that the removal of Robinson without a complete change in what is going on is what the recall was about.....this community just wasted over a quarter of a million dollars.

There must be change...otherwise, we could have kept Robinson and saved money.

The recall was about removing Robinson only so that the district can change direction.

There is a community forum being held at the American Legion on Tuesday evening at 6:30pm. It is designed to offer an opportunity for input regarding the changes to come.

If you have ideas, or concerns, or questions...or if you just plain care about our kids, this will be a great opportunity for you to be heard.

I hope to see you all there.

Where is the line?

2008-10-12T09:26:00.000-07:00

After hearing that another blog has decided to attack the person that they believe is doing this blog I notice there is a definite line that each "side" has drawn in the sand and whenever they walk up to it, it is okay, but the other will say, "you have crossed the line."

Therefore I will define my "line."

I believe that if there is a person or position that needs to change, alter or be eliminated, I will address that issue.

I will not attack the people who disagree with me. I post every comment (except for one that was requested that I not post it and one that a person repeated the exact same post, I believe in error). I would only not post something if it were libelous or slanderous or had inappropriate language.

I will debate the issues and I will continue to call out those who are not seeing what I consider to be the writing on the wall. The community has spoken. It is time for the teachers to speak and be heard (the ones who have been silenced). It is time for the community to be heard (the ones who have been intimidated into silence). It is time for the parents to sit down and talk with the teachers without administration present and work through some details.

I will state it here and clearly.... The current administration and several teachers have engaged in actions and processes that were designed to silence those who have now been vindicated by the recent turn of events. The voices need to be heard.

And....on another note...tying up loose ends...

1. The teacher who reported the torch is the source for the prior rumor... the administrator came back to the teacher and told them that they had spoken to the student and they were very sorry.

2. The math teacher mentioned by one of the commentors has a very bad reputation among students, and the point of the posting I made was that there is no way to judge teacher quality, nor is there any way to guarantee any kind of expertise in a subject as long as we make all of the teachers teach everything.

3. Just ask a few of the employees who have tried to speak up in the past and been punished. You will get an earful of facts, not rumor, nor innuendo.

But I digress yet again...

2008-10-11T18:35:00.000-07:00

The original intent of this blog was to provide proof to counteract the negative (and now proven minority) view that was being pushed as the only way to go in Lebanon. I will continue to provide links and other documents when I can, but right now the conversation is more about the opinions of those involved as to what direction we should go. We can provide research that supports every single position in the community, that isn't the point. The true question is, what system or program is best for LEBANON kids?

I admit that the negativity is contagious, I have fallen into the trap as well, and while I definitely believe there is still a long way to go to get our schools back in good shape, I want to recognize the common effort that brought us all the way we have indeed traveled since the problems that prompted the votes of no confidence and the strong community reactions to what was going on.

We have made a bold choice. We now need to make sure that we don't just allow another single individual to "rule the roost," we need to have a leader who will listen to ALL sides and create conversations that make it possible for logical solutions to our problems.

I apologize in advance if anyone feels threatened or upset, because that is not my intention.

The fact of the matter is, if I could just wave a magic wand, there would be many people who are currently employed in the district who would suddenly find themselves placed in jobs elsewhere, and not in Lebanon... however... in all fairness, they should have the opportunity to improve, change and/or decide to leave on their own.

However, it would appear that many of them did not realize that the vote last week was an indictment, not just on Mr. Robinson, but on many things happening in the district.

A few of you have expressed support for the SAS and the academies, but I would wager that you are not aware of all the side effects these programs have caused.

The SAS has created special education violations, 11 year olds in High School (who then fail miserably), 14 year olds in elementary school (who also fail miserably), students who were "moved up" who have huge gaps in their curriculum and social skills, children whose home situations provide no permanance (who need to feel safe, and like they belong) being yanked, yet again, from a group that they have developed relationships with just because they got different test scores, etc.

The academies have created four deeply engrained cliques that have embedded negative stereotypes into the curriculum and the relationships. When students say things like, "we're physical kids, we don't care about graduating" or "we don't do homework in Info.." they are promoting very negative behaviors as the status quo. Teachers who are mediocre at best find themselves "the veteran teacher" with the most seniority in their academy and therefore the administrators who have no experience evaluating rely on them for advice about the curriculum. This has created a steep decline in coherence and effectiveness of instruction. The teacher in the academy with the most students enrolled in the advanced courses was one assigned to the advanced program, even if they had no experience with the course and the best teacher in the area was in the building. (e.g. Mr. Selby and Mr. Helland no longer teaching Calculus classes or Ms. Williams not teaching APLA.) How can that be what is best for kids?

Prior to the SAS and the academies there were probably about 15 to 20% of our students who were in serious need of interventions and special attention. We then changed 100% of the program to accomodate approximately 15% of the students. We have lost most of the vocational program, the alternative education program, The vast majority of the advanced program that used to exist, 50% of the athletic program, 70% of the PE, Music and Counseling programs.

How can the existence of the problem ridden academies and SAS be worth the losses?

We have administrators who play favorites with those who supported Robinson's agenda and punished those who spoke against it.

We have directors who have created more programs to justify their continued employment.

We have leadership that has allowed such chaos to rule that it is virtually impossible to have professional conversations.

What we need is a strong change of direction with very clear expectations, goals, and expected outcomes. We cannot afford to have this, "Think outside the box and do whatever you want until you are told 'no'" kind of leadership any longer.

We need to move swiftly, but with care and consideration.

Our students deserve better.

When will they learn?

2008-10-10T13:53:00.000-07:00

One would think that those administrators and staff left behind after Mr. Robinson's flight from the district would be looking to see what happened and starting dialogs to open conversations and trying to discover the issues that they have been ignoring for years. However, behaviors have been eerily quiet and secretive.

The community has spoken by a two to one margin. The silent majority has been freed up to speak, but those in power continue to maintain the same behaviors... this is what got Mr. Robinson to the point where he ended, but these people do not have the same kind of iron clad contract that he did and in fact several of them are probationary.... you would think they would be trying to figure out how to get on the right side of the issues, rather than continuing to push their previous agendas...

When you look at some of behaviors below, it makes you wonder what else is going on.... and how will we ever get to the bottom of it all?

Spoiler alert!!!!

The following comments are rumor and innuendo, but from very reliable sources. The purpose of writing them here is to bring to light some of the issues that have been hidden behind the protection of Mr. Robinson. If you do not want to read hearsay rumors, stop reading now.

Reports from the different buildings have brought some strange rumors and curious sightings...

The head high school administrator is not the only one whose behaviors leaves much to be desired...

Apparently, Mr. Robinson and a distraught administrator were meeting in the administrator's office the other day (after his resignation). Secretaries, teachers and students were present when he came out.

Supposedly, a student turned a lighter and an aerosol can into a flaming torch at school and the new administrator of one of the LHS systems deemed him repentant and sent him on his merry way with no consequences.

Same administrator has apparently, also dealt with several serious behaviors in the same way... she has been dubbed "a walking liability." (Word to the wise, racist harassment, vandalism, intimidation and violence are things that should never be ignored and should always have a consequence.) Word has it that she also talks about the performance of staff with other staff...

According to some employees, the facilities director might also want to think about how he treats employees. Heavy handed leadership won't get far without Mr. Robinson's protection.

The special education director (who has no prior experience with Special education) has made some pretty inappropriate comments in meetings and has allowed parents to believe that teachers are the problem in circumstances where she has made the mistakes.

So where do we go from here???

And so it goes...

2008-10-09T22:09:00.000-07:00

The people of Lebanon have been through the ringer. Mr. Robinson is gone, but the people of Reedsport say that a decade later they are still recovering from his short tenure there. What this means is that we will be feeling the effects of this administration for a long time to come.

However, we have a choice... we can choose to sit and wallow in bitter resentment over the situation, or we can take a look around and find some common ground to stand on (kids) and then find ways to agree on a course of action. There are things that we can agree upon.

Here are my suggestions:

1. Let's talk to retired teachers and current teachers who were here before Robinson came and discuss things that worked well that were thrown out during his tenure (advanced programs, freshman core, alternative education etc.) See if we can find some of those babies that got thrown out with the bathwater and bring them back.

2. Let's look at effective models that are out there and actually use some of the strategies for the things that we struggle with.

3. Let's bring back teacher leadership (department heads, committees that have power headed by teachers etc.) and use the expertise we have here in the classroom.

4. How about a closer relationship between the city and the schools? It seems that we should be working together to build up Lebanon!

5. We need to remember that the only key to school success is teacher buy-in. If teachers believe in what they do, they can get the kids to buy-in.

The teachers in Lebanon, for the most part, do not buy in to the loss of social development support and the Special Education violations...they do not buy in to the idea that we cannot afford PE, music and counselors at each building, but we can afford teachers who aren't in the classroom... they do not buy in to the waste of resources and teacher abilities due to the academies...they do not buy in to administration that does not back them up nor seem to be able to provide solid leadership in any area.

Let's find programs that parents can support and teachers can buy in...then we will be able to find more success than failure, more joy than fear, and more anticipation and less dread.

Responding to Comments...

2008-10-09T06:20:00.000-07:00

1. I never said that the CARES PAC was responsible for the eggings etc.... I have always maintained that the CARES "group" (for the purposes of my blog) encompasses anyone who ascribes to the same philosophy as those that have been poisoning our community for years via their PACS.

2. The only "my way or the highway" people I have heard about in the last years are Mr. Robinson, Mr. Finch, Mr. Bogatin and a few others who actually no longer work or serve here... Mr. Wineteer and Mr. Alexander have tried for years to work with anyone who wants to head away from the direction Mr. Robinson was headed and they were shut down unilaterally by whoever was the Board chair (most recently and notably Sherrie Sprenger - another "my way or the highway" individual who is no longer here because her political aspirations were tarnished due to her involvement in Lebanon).

3. Where will we get 67 students???? well...remove the SAS and the elementary and middle school students will return AND... at the high school alone, the district document that I was shown in June of 2007 showed a loss of 450 students at the high school alone.... the academies are all but dead at this point anyway... kill them completely, bring back advanced programing and alternative ed. and to quote a famous movie "If you build it... they will come."

Vindicated...

2008-10-07T21:51:00.000-07:00

The wait is over and the results are in...

Mr. Wineteer and Mr. Alexander will remain on the Lebanon Schools Board and Ms. Shimmin and Mr. McUne find themselves able to feel confident in their ability to represent the community as they try to work forward from the problems left in the wake of Mr. Robinson's regime.

The Lebanon community has spoken with a two to one margin in favor of supporting the current board and the direction they have chosen to move. It is time for the CARES PAC to recognize that they do not speak for the community and this recall was nothing more than a true waste of taxpayer money. Political and legal bullying needs to stop.

It is time to put down the weapons and pick up the tools to start rebuilding our schools district and the community as a whole. Who will take the first step and start the conversation?

Sixty Seven Students...

2008-10-07T17:36:00.000-07:00

67 students.... Do you know how much money 67 students would bring to Lebanon Schools? Well, each student is worth more than $6000, so if you do the math... 67 students would bring $402,000 to the district.

It seems to me that the concerns about the cost of last night's buy-out are yet another smoke screen designed to make others look bad and create an atmosphere of fear and concern.

Along these lines, according to witnesses Mr. Fisher made a serious deviation from a prior position he had held to very strongly... he is quoted as having said that they should have "just fired him" and saved the district money.

There is no conceivable way that Mr. Fisher would have voted to do that because he supposedly believed that legally they could not do that. So, why the Hail Mary at this point? It would seem that he was making one last ditch effort to keep Mr. Robinson. If he could change direction and tactic and get two others on the board to vote to not approve the deal with Mr. Robinson, he would not have resigned and we would still be in turmoil today.

Everyone seems to have been concerned about the finances in the district. (Judging by the amount of groaning and squirming at the district office around this audit they are in there would appear to be cause for concern.) However, when you look at things from a broader perspective based on real numbers and data, not the fantasy spreads that the district office produces for Board meetings, things are much more simple.

How are we going to pay for the buy-out?

Sixty seven students.

Waiting....

2008-10-07T13:53:00.000-07:00

The actions taken at last night's board meeting have created a sort of limbo in Lebanon that will last until about 8:30pm tonight.

Mr. Robinson deciding to take the money and leave was not surprising considering the mountain of questions that are starting to arise...people are asking questions and words and phrases such as "forensic audit" and "IDEA violations" etc. should send people running for the hills if even only half of the allegations made over the last few years are true.

However, last night's action is still in a void until today's vote is completed and we know whether we have a community united or divided.

Anything but a landslide on one side or the other will mean that we have a lot of hard work ahead of us. If the "yes" side wins, they will surely feel that it validates all that Jim Robinson was doing and will try to continue down that path. If the "no" side wins, they will surely feel that we need to clean house and start over with many things.

Only if the vote is so overwhelming that we can legitimately say the other side is a small but vocal minority will we be able to move in either direction with confidence. No matter which side wins... if it is close, we better start working together, or soon we will find ourselves in this same position, once again.

Apparently intimidation is not enough...

2008-10-05T18:10:00.000-07:00

Historically, when a group in power finds itself losing ground and falling out of favor with the public there is a pattern of behavior that ensues: disinformation, intimidation of those in opposition, harassment of those in opposition and (if allowed to go that far) eventually physical attacks and destructive behaviors.

Apparently the CARES group's loss of influence over the community coupled with the strong sentiment in opposition has pushed them over the edge and they are no longer satisfied with intimidation and harassment tactics.

It has unraveled into the realm of property damage...and it is escalating.

At this point the weapon of choice is eggs.

Eggs may seem harmless enough when aimed at simple signs such as the No on the Recall signs, but when aimed at a board member's home, as they were last night, they become destructive messy goo that hardens and can cause expensive damage to paint jobs, wire screens and electrical wiring and boxes. Not to mention scaring little children who live in the home and placing the fear of what could come next into the spouses of our elected officials.

And... the force exposes the proximity of the assailants. They had to have been trespassing, which is illegal as well.

It sickens me to see the depth of the division in this community. Can't people see that they have allowed an educational philosophy to destroy a community, to pit neighbor against neighbor and friend against friend. If at any point in the last decade Mr. Robinson had genuinely cared about the community, he would have stopped everything and pulled everyone together and said, it is not worth the damage that is being done to keep forcing the issue. However, that is not what he said, what he said many years ago was, "if people don't like it, they can leave," and that has been his motto ever since.

This has gotten to the point where it is beyond ridiculous and at this point, I am half expecting some other blog to come up with a conversation about the ever honest and upright money reporting CARES group having budgeted properly and reported the egg budget to the secretary of state's office.

Listen carefully people.... Jim Robinson is not worth it.

This community is worth fighting for together, not against each other.

Oh how the rumor mill goes...

2008-10-04T18:56:00.000-07:00

Apparently the CARES group has finally realized that their arguments so far have fallen on deaf ears and are resorting to feeding on the voters' financial fears....

The other blog is crying wolf about all of the firings people are theorizing will happen at Monday nights meeting, and then bemoaning the cost of all those firings.

Chicken Little... the sky IS NOT FALLING...

1. Jim Robinson can be fired outright for a variety of reasons and the savings from not paying his salary will pay for any legal fees.

2. Steve Kelley and Mark Finch and any other employees will probably not be fired. Whoever is placed in charge; however, could reassign duties and allow them to work to the end of their contracts and see if they are capable of making the change. (I personally would want to make sure there was a close scrutiny on their actions.)

3. And if you like irony... those teachers and classified employees who have vilified the union for years might find their jobs protected by their contracts.

4. And I repeat myself.... as students return to the district, the money will come with them.

Do not let the CARES group deceive you... they are running scared and losing ground.

Okay... we know what we don't need...

2008-10-04T10:55:00.000-07:00

I think we have pretty well covered all the reasons why Mr. Robinson and those who ascribe to his philosophy on education need to go...but what next? What needs to happen to "fix" things?

Here are a few suggestions, please feel free to weigh in!

1. We need PE everyday, Music two or three times a week and Art at least once a week K through 12.

2. We need smaller class sizes

3. We need to keep good teachers use them as models and mentors to new teachers. (Not just those who know "which side their bread is buttered on.")

4. We need counselors in every school.

5. We need people who can make decisions quickly and effectively without having to get the go ahead from the Superintendent for every little thing. We need principals who actually know what they are doing so the superintendent can allow them to do their jobs without concerns for the day to day functioning.

6. We need the SITE councils to function as parent advisory opportunities, or create parent advisory forums where they can come and express concerns. BUT, then the input needs to be addressed and if possible used.

7. We need to protect the developmental and social stages of our most vulnerable students. We need to stop dividing up student peer groups based on test scores. Stable peer support is one of the most needed aspects in a child's life right after adults who care about them.

8. We need a leader we can trust.

But Joyce, you repeate yourself....

2008-10-01T18:21:00.000-07:00

According to Joyce Weatherly in her letter to the editor in today's Lebanon Express, "The School Board recall is about the indefensible actions and antics of Rick Alexander and Josh Wineteer. Contrary to what some people want you to believe, it has nothing to do with the current administration." http://www.lebanon-express.com/articles/2008/10/01/news/opinion/letter02.txt

The content in this letter has been repeated over and over again by Ms. Weatherly and her other CARES cronies in a manner that begs addressing....

If you take the time to peruse some of my prior blogs you will find web addresses and citations that allow you to see government website information about the illegal bargaining, civil rights violations and other "indefensible actions" of the superintendent as well as the secretary of state's webpage proof of the seven PACs created by the secret society that we refer to by the acronym CARES which encompasses all of those who have been deceived by the rhetoric of a charismatic but dangerous leader.

I have always backed up my statements and beliefs with logic and rationale that I am willing to place against the innuendo and vacant attacks made by the CARES group. Their smoke and mirrors whining "they broke rules, they broke laws, they mismanaged money...." on and on without any proof.

So I'm asking.....

WHERE is the proof to back up all of the allegations that this group consistently makes as they besmirch the reputation and good name of two public officers who have been battling against the inappropriate and unethical actions of a renegade superintendent?

1. What board policies have been violated?

2. What laws have been broken?

3. When did Mr. Wineteer and Mr. Alexander and any third board member ever have an unofficial board meeting without public knowledge?

4. Where is the check from the district funds showing an extra expense going to Sand Ridge?

Here are the answers:

1. None
2. None
3. Never
4. It does not exist.

I urge you... if you are reading this, please check the facts for yourself!

I would like to commend the article written by Larry Coonrod for today's Lebanon Express. It was fair and even handed. But you don't have to believe me, take a look for yourself.
http://www.lebanon-express.com/articles/2008/10/01/news/local/local03recall.txt

Talk is cheap.... facts are not...

It's time for the CARES group to face the facts...and stop the innuendo and lies.

Backpeddling at its best....

2008-10-01T05:53:00.001-07:00

I am always amused at how slander, when asserted by people with a political agenda, converts into begrudging truth when the persons delivering the message are pushed for proof. Such is definitely true about the "information" that the CARES group et. al. have been spewing for years.

But let's take a look at some specific cases....

Original message - Tre Kennedy swore up and down that his business (a law firm) was a totally separate entity and had nothing to do with his personal choices and actions relative to the recall effort.

New message - Well.... the law office address being used as the address for the PAC was just an oversight.

Original message - Mr. Wineteer and Mr. Alexander had illegal "meetings" that violated public meetings laws.

New message - Well... maybe they didn't violate law, but it really makes us mad that they talk about issues that we don't like.

Original message - Mr. Wineteer and Mr. Alexander violated board policies.

New message - Well... maybe they didn't violate the policies, but they violated the "spirit" of the policies.

Original message - Mr. Wineteer and Mr. Alexander diverted funds from our kids to go to the charter school.

New message - Well... it is too bad that the charter school has had to give up their high school and has lost enrollment and millions of dollars due to the contract that the board majority worked out with them at no additional cost to the district.

Inflammatory language is used when people want to make a point.

People have used it at times when they feel passionate about the issues.

However, it is only acceptable as a debate tool if everyone has the opportunity to debate the issues from their perspective without fear of retaliation and attack.

When a small group uses not only inflammatory language, but also lies and negative innuendo, to manipulate a town's political and social well-being without allowing for a fair debate, it is unethical, pure and simple.

Double take on the arguments in the recall....

2008-09-30T18:02:00.000-07:00

Awhile back, former board member and Jim Robinson supporter Warren Beeson wrote a guest editorial to the Lebanon Express about the recall efforts expounding the rationale behind it. I have reporduced the list here with some editorial changes [in boxed parenthesis] indicating the way many people believe would be a more honest interpretation of the situation

€ [Jim Robinson] has a long-term pattern of rash and irresponsible actions that violate School Board policies, violate contracts, are potential conflicts of interest, and bring potential financial penalties to the district.

€ Alexander & Wineteer have consistently placed their personal agendas [of honest leadership and fairness to those who work in the district schools, including the charter school, with and for our communities kids] above the interests of the district regarding Sandridge Charter School and PIE; such as [discussing an] increase funding to Sandridge when all other district schools are facing budget cuts [and then making the necessary changes so that there would not be a negative financial impact and voting on that revised contract.]

€ [Jim Robinson] has acted in reckless disregard of legal advice and/or refused to obtain legal counsel, such as by [violating bargaining laws, violating civil rights of employees, exposing students and staff to asbestos, violating federal special ed and testing laws] (in fact, [working in coordination with] the School District's attorney [without the input of the board.]

€ Alexander and Wineteer have consistently made last-minute changes to board meeting agendas in order to spring surprise proposals on the other board members, the administration, and the interested public [Because Chair Sherrie Sprenger refused to put items they requested on the agenda].

€ [Jim Robinson] has cost the district thousands of dollars in unnecessary legal expenses with hasty, ill-considered, reckless, and irresponsible actions. [The majority of the Board was not]violating the superintendent's contract by putting him on administrative leave, [however, reversing the decision due to harassment] is one example [of the undue pressure brought against the public servants trying to do what is best for students].

€ They have [tried to stop] numerous administrative and personnel actions [that wer expensivew and detrimental to the district and have been unable to stop Jim Robinson's] violations of board policy and existing contracts, leaving the district subject to litigation; for example, by [illegal] negotiations [with employees and they have tried to work out a fair] contract renewal with PIE outside the established process [since Jim Robinson refused to treat the Sand Ridge group appropriately and ignored the desire of the board in the negotiations].

€ [Jim Robinson's] agenda of [chaos] prevents the community from moving forward to achieve better educational opportunities for all Lebanon students.These actions (and their potential future decisions) have serious legal and financial consequences for which Lebanon residents will pay the price.

It is up to the citizens of Lebanon to decide which version is more accurate...

Reponding to this and that...

2008-09-30T06:43:00.001-07:00

I am glad to offer a forum for debate... I will also (as Dennis stated) retract when wrong and fix when necessary...however, to date, I do not feel any content here requires either action since the arguments coming forward are full of the same rhetoric that Mr. Robinson has been feeding the community for years...

First, Dennis, I place you in the same category as your mother for one reason, and one reason only.... both of you "attack" (my choice of word) people you have not had conversations with. I know both of you and am in fact on a first name basis with both of you and have found this fact to be true. That is why I was disappointed to see your webpage following the same sort of hearsay model as your mother's writings.

Second.... the money that comes from the government CAN, I repeat, CAN be used to purchase classroom teachers if the district will guarantee small class sizes. Mr. Robinson refuses to do that, so therefore, the commentor is correct... in that case, using the money to purchase teachers would be illegal.

Also.... the TOSA issue... take three... They can only help some, and there is no guarantee that those who need it will get it.... while smaller class size would help everyone.

And, just a tag.... there are some teachers out there who have cushy positions and favorite classes and programs because they have supported Mr. Robinson and the district programs, even though they are considered by many of their peers as inappropriate choices for those classes and programs due to their lesser educational skills than some peers who have "rocked the boat" and are now being retaliated against in the district's attempts to get them to be quiet or resign or retire.

Fear and Retaliation in Lebanon #2

2008-09-28T20:56:00.001-07:00

Well, the Jim Robinson supporters are in fine form yet again...

AK Dugan (potentially yellow journalism's newest convert) and her son Dennis continue to feed the fear of the uninformed citizens of Lebanon with the newest attacks on those who are fighting against this recall.

They are trying to make the good citizens of Lebanon believe several things about those that are against the recall...

1. It is organized...
2. It is expensive...
3. Mr. Wineteer and Mr. Alexander have "received monies" that should be reported.
4. and supposedly...the actions are illegal.

As I see it, there are a few minor details they have ignored...
1. There are many different kinds of signs and messages out there.... Some are obviously stenciled and others are obviously hand painted. Some have one tone, some have another.

2. It is amusing that the "yes" side seems to believe that every thing has to be store bought or professionally manufactured. Apparently, a lot of people on the NO Recall side appear to have talents (such as painting) and left over items (such as paint and wood) that the other side does not possess.

Let's figure the cost of one the signs.....

-old sign from previous election..... free
-paint left over from your trim.... free
-nails left over from you last project.... free
-friends to help you put it in your yard.... free

Telling the world that you are against the tyranny of a small group of special interest people..... PRICELESS.

3. Unless we are going to say that Senators Obama and McCain should report the monies received from the citizens of Lebanon for the signs that we have placed here in our yards, there is no way you can blame elected officials for the free speech of individuals.

4. There is nothing to indicate that these people have done anything illegal; however, can anyone tell me... is placing personal message signs for elections on city and county land illegal? If so, then the "yes" people have crossed the line...

Overall...

It seems to me that these other people might just be jealous that their opposition does not have to create multiple PACs to shelter their secret society, pay signature gathers, shell out money for mailings, coerce people to support them nor threaten anyone to garner votes.

What the many individual citizens on the NO on the recall side are doing doesn't have to be against the law.... however, people usually accuse others of things that they themselves do... so maybe there is a subliminal message to be had here.

Can we afford more teachers?

2008-09-28T15:54:00.000-07:00

I enjoy a good debate and some of the comments here have encouraged some great discussions. The most recent comment talks about the value of the TOSAs (Teachers on Special Assignment) and affirms that the community would support another bond if it were for teachers...

There are not enough TOSAs to make a serious impact on the district....they can only help so many, and the commentor was correct, there are many teachers who do need the help, but unless administration identifies that fact and requires it, most of those who "need it most" will never ask for it.

In my opinion, we could add more teaching staff easily with current funds (even considering the 2.9 million dollar deficeit we have incurred under Mr. Robinson's leadership - which I state as a fact because the loss of students and the loss of money have a statistically significant correlation...) if Mr. Robinson were willing to re-allocate funds away from administration and new programs (on top of old programs) and toward the hiring of more teachers.

But, I hear you protesting, he did cut us by 1 whole administrator at the high school!

You need to go back further in the memory of the district to see the real change. We used to have 6 directors district-wide. The assistant Superintendent had 1 full time secretary. The high school had 1 principal and 2 vice principals (cheaper than "administrators") and 1 half time Activities Director/ half time vice principal.

If you go back even further... we had close to ninety teachers at the high school alone...(now 64 more or less)...we had PE and Music in EVERY elementary school. We had middle school sports. We had an alternative high school here in Lebanon.

What we have lost is almost unfathomable... and yet... we continue to take from the buildings and add to the district office and its new programs...and the fact is that this community will not support a new bond as long as Mr. Robinson is managing the money and the allocation of funds.

What are the non-classroom teachers "teaching"?

2008-09-27T18:39:00.000-07:00

The title is a question posted on this blog...

Here is my answer (to the best of my abilities since I am not one of them and know only what I have seen and heard from reliable sources)....

Some of the TOSAs (Teachers On Special Assignment) are "literacy coaches" who train their peers in effective reading strategies for them to use with their students.... some actually work with students as well.

Some are "peer coaches" who are supposed to watch their peers and give feedback to them.

Some are math specialists who work district wide training teachers in good math strategies.

Some work on different district programs creating staff development presentations or other trainings.

All of them are teachers who had good reputations in the classroom.

The problem is that, apparently, the trainings and staff development are a "scatter shoot" approach that many teachers resent and therefore do not benefit from them.

Also, the class size issue begs the question...yet again.... which would truly help our students more?

From what I have heard from teachers all the way from Kindergarten to the High School, there are more people who wonder what these TOSAs are doing, than those who know and value it...

The non-classroom teacher issue....

2008-09-26T18:46:00.000-07:00

I received a comment that was concerned about the message sent by my list of teachers not in the classroom. Very specifically they spoke about Debbie Price (who is an excellent teacher) doing some teaching of their kids and the possibility that the others are teaching as well.

There are some that are "teaching" and there are others who have to create new programs and things to do in order to be viable and keep their position. More than one of the special "teacher on assignment" people on the Student Acheivement team has expressed concern at the lack of clarity in their positions as well as the need to "create a reason" for them to be doing things.

The larger concern... which is more important? Smaller class sizes district-wide by having every available person in the classroom, or having a few specialists that are used to back-up rhetoric on a failing system.

These are all good teachers...but where would they make the most impact?

The message fit me to a "tee"...

2008-09-25T19:46:00.000-07:00

It was a pleasant surprise to run in for a few items from the Safeway this afternoon and see several people sporting messages against the recall!

Those who have been hiding in fear of retaliation and abuse are finally returning to the light.

It reminds me of the scenes in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe where Christmas is coming and then the winter is melting and the people are coming out from hibernation to celebrate the loss of power of the evil Snow Queen.

And yet, it is scary to know that there is still a small but tenacious group of people clinging to a delusion about a man whose true colors have been exposed over and over and over...

You wonder when you know that these are people who usually are quite level-headed and, pre-Jim Robinson, commanded a lot of respect in this community, how is it that they could be so deceived for so long....

It makes me wonder.... what is the magic ingredient in Mr. Robinson's Kool-Aid?

Other local politics....

2008-09-25T05:37:00.000-07:00

It is hard not to notice that the large "yes" on the recall sign out on Denny School Rd. and Hwy 34 is accompanied by a sign in support of Sherrie Sprenger...

This should not surprise anyone.

As we vote for a representative this year, I am encouraging all of my fellow constituents to vote for anyone but Ms. Sprenger for some very specific and logical reasons...see if you agree....

1. Ms. Sprenger was NOT elected to her position, she was appointed (so don't think of her as an "incumbent").

2. I believe that she sought endorsement from the teacher's union when she ran for school board...and boy didn't that turn out great for them?

3. She has received money from one of those small special interest groups that are in collusion on the recall.

4. When a board member, she was easily seduced by the charasmatic Mr. Robinson and shut out parents, teachers, and community members.

5. She allowed our schools to deteriorate to the level of "public embarassment across the state".

Do we really want someone like that "representing" us at the state level?

More facts....

2008-09-24T06:44:00.001-07:00

For those of you who don't peruse the comments, I am repeating a reecent comment here in this post. My goal has always been to provide proof for people to research.

Thank you for the comments!

"To check out who owns certain properties in Linn County, go to www.co.linn.or.us. Click under Depts/Services and then choose Assessor. You can then search by anyone's name or specific address under account detail. This gives details on every property in Linn County. It has some great info!"

What is up with the district office?

2008-09-23T06:42:00.000-07:00

There is apparently a lot of nervous activity at the district office recently...the question is, where all the nervousness is coming from.

Some people think it is just relative to the people who are afraid that new leadership might 1. decrease the number of people working outside of the classroom, and 2. realign staffing for more financial efficiency to free up more money for the schools. While this is almost a given (as soon as a logical person) has control over the district, there might be other reasons for district employee nerves...

Some people have suspected for years that there might be money issues that are difficult to explain...

Others think that maybe the potential Special Ed violations have finally caught up with someone...

And some also believe that the rumor of funny numbers for testing may finally have reached high-up ears...

Whatever it is, it sure has caused a ripple.....and considering the great job that Mr. Robinson has done of insulating himself with human shields, the only question left is, "Who will take the fall?"

Rumor and Rationale #3

2008-09-22T05:52:00.000-07:00

Rumor has it that Linda Darling is the owner of the piece of land on the corner of Hwy 34 and Denny School Road that is currently sporting a sign supporting the recall.

Why would she be in support of the recall?

Oh yes, Ms. Darling is one of the people this blogger noted earlier that has benefitted from being a staunch Jim Robinson supporter.

I know many people wish they could land a job as a Director of finances in a multi-million dollar budget enterprise with a simple Bachelors Degree. It just goes to show, it's not what you know, but who.

The bigger they are...

2008-09-21T15:03:00.000-07:00

We are all familiar with the concept, "the bigger they are the harder they fall."

Well brace yourselves.... The concept of Mr. Robinson is much bigger than the role that he plays.

For years this community has been held hostage by a controlling interloper who was able to schmooze his way into the hearts and minds of some of the pivitol community leaders.

Make no mistake, Mr. Robinson is a very smart man. He probably did his homework to such an extent that he would know which church to attend, which insurance agent to choose, which clubs to attend, which stores to shop in and which neighborhood to inhabit in order to meet the people he would need to win over in order to provide a buffer for himself and his unorthodox leadership style that he had tried to implement and failed in two prior communities.

When he goes, the ripple effect and the aftershocks will be intense and painful...but the alternative is much more dangerous.

So, as I said, brace yourselves....

What's your "sign"?

2008-09-20T21:27:00.001-07:00

Hopefully you have all noticed a few new things to look at as you drive around Lebanon....

After the discouragement I expressed in my last posting.... I decided to drag myself out for some errands and my mood lifted significantly!

All I can say is....

Thank you, thank you, thank you!...to whoever took the time and energy to demonstrate that Mr. Wineteer and Mr. Alexander are not alone!

For a while people have been trying to convince us that this community is divided, but that image is faulty in that it implies equal division....

I think the closer to accurate view of this as a community is that it has a gaping wound, but the majority of the body is healthy and well and just waiting to get rid of the infection and heal the sore spot.

Let's keep the brave healers and allow them to do what is needed to cure this community!

What a shame...

2008-09-20T10:03:00.000-07:00

I find it discouraging to know that so many people have bought in to the long standing presupposition that Mr. Alexander and Mr. Wineteer being on the board is a problem just because Jim Robinson has painted them in a negative light....

Truly, what have they done to deserve to be removed unceremoniously from the board....

They have questioned administrative decisions.
They have complained about administrative actions.
They have refused to back down to bullying and harassment.
They have tried valiantly for years to remove Jim Robinson from the almost unlimited power he was given by prior board members.
They have tried to stop the sale of Lebanon school buildings.
They have tried to reinstate alternative education in Lebanon.
They have tried to meet with teachers and parents to see what they can do to help.
They have answered phone calls and met with anyone who has asked them to discuss concerns.

In short, they have done everything they can to not be yes-men who bow down to the intimidation tactics of a tyrannical leader.

I think they deserve the opportunity to finish what they started.

About enrollment at LHS...

2008-09-18T18:53:00.000-07:00

There was a comment made about making sure my numbers for enrollment at LHS were accurate...

Let me put it this way...

According to high school sources there are two kinds of Freshmen:

1. Those who have finished 8th grade and are ready to move up to the high school, these are called incoming freshmen.

2. Those who did not pass enough classes to have enough credits to move up to sophomore level, these are called repeaters and are not really freshmen.

Unfortunately, these same classifications occur for every grade and therefore no "enrollment" numbers are ever very clear.

What is a fact is that there were less than 300 "incoming freshmen" this year at LHS.

The 450 number was found by counting the number of highlighted students in a graduation requirements spreadsheet created by the district office in June of 2007. The highlighted students represented students who had been enrolled at LHS and no longer attended. According to the district office spreadsheet that number was over 450.

What matters...

2008-09-17T17:34:00.002-07:00

There have been a few comments about whether identity should be revealed...

Here are my thoughts...

The identity matters less than the content.

This blogger has tried diligently to check facts before posting, spoken to multiple sources, researched web pages and clarified points as necessary.

The content on this page can be verified and determined by individuals who choose to look.

No one has been named who is not directly linked to actions or activities without sufficient evidence to the concept.

If you find my information faulty... let me know, I will recheck my facts, and if I am wrong, I will offer retractions.

So far, I believe my content withstands argument, therefore my identity is irrelevant.

Disinformation continued...

2008-09-17T17:34:00.001-07:00

Mr. Sweeney went on to describe those who intentionally try to mislead the public...
He called them Disinformationalists...

http://www.whale.to/b/sweeney.html

1) Avoidance. They never actually discuss issues head-on or provide constructive input, generally avoiding citation of references or credentials. Rather, they merely imply this, that, and the other. Virtually everything about their presentation implies their authority and expert knowledge in the matter without any further justification for credibility.

2) Selectivity. They tend to pick and choose opponents carefully, either applying the hit-and-run approach against mere commentators supportive of opponents, or focusing heavier attacks on key opponents who are known to directly address issues. Should a commentatorbecome argumentative with any success, the focus will shift to include the commentator as well.

3) Coincidental. They tend to surface suddenly and somewhat coincidentally with a new controversial topic with no clear prior record of participation in general discussions in the particular public arena involved. They likewise tend to vanish once the topic is no longer of general concern. They were likely directed or elected to be there for a reason, and vanish with the reason.

4) Teamwork. They tend to operate in self-congratulatory and complementary packs or teams. Of course, this can happen naturally in any public forum, but there will likely be an ongoing pattern of frequent exchanges of this sort where professionals are involved. Sometimes one of the players will infiltrate the opponent camp to become a source for straw man or other tactics designed to dilute opponent presentation strength.

5) Anti-conspiratorial. They almost always have disdain for 'conspiracy theorists' and, usually, for those who in any way believe JFK was not killed by LHO. Ask yourself why, if they hold such disdain for conspiracy theorists, do they focus on defending a single topic discussed in a NG focusing on conspiracies? One might think they would either be trying to make fools of everyone on every topic, or simply ignore the group they hold in such disdain.Or, one might more rightly conclude they have an ulterior motive for their actions in going out of their way to focus as they do.

6) Artificial Emotions. An odd kind of 'artificial' emotionalism and an unusually thick skin -- an ability to persevere and persist even in the face of overwhelming criticism and unacceptance. This likely stems from intelligence community training that, no matter how condemning the evidence, deny everything, and never become emotionally involved or reactive. The net result for a disinfo artist is that emotions can seem artificial. Most people, if responding in anger, for instance, will express their animosity throughout their rebuttal. But disinfo types usually have trouble maintaining the 'image' and are hot and cold with respect to pretended emotions and their usually more calm or unemotional communications style. It's just a job, and they often seem unable to 'act their role in character' as well in a communications medium as they might be able in a real face-to-face conversation/confrontation. You might have outright rage and indignation one moment, ho-hum the next, and more anger later -- an emotional yo-yo. With respect to being thick-skinned, no amount of criticism will deter them from doing their job, and they will generally continue their old disinfo patterns without any adjustments to criticisms of how obvious it is that they play that game -- where a more rational individual who truly cares what others think might seek to improve their communications style, substance, and so forth, or simply give up.

7) Inconsistent. There is also a tendency to make mistakes which betray their true self/motives. This may stem from not really knowing their topic, or it may be somewhat 'freudian', so to speak, in that perhaps they really root for the side of truth deep within.

I have noted that often, they will simply cite contradictory information which neutralizes itself and the author. For instance, one such player claimed to be a Navy pilot, but blamed his poor communicating skills (spelling, grammar, incoherent style) on having only a grade-school education. I'm not aware of too many Navy pilots who don't have a college degree. Another claimed no knowledge of a particular topic/situation but later claimed first-hand knowledge of it.

Here is the first paragraph of the introduction to Mr. Sweeney's (at the time of the article) unpublished book, Fatal Rebirth. It seems appropriate.

"Truth cannot live on a diet of secrets, withering within entangled lies. Freedom cannot live on a diet of lies, surrendering to the veil of oppression. The human spirit cannot live on a diet of oppression, becoming subservient in the end to the will of evil. God, as truth incarnate, will not long let stand a world devoted to such evil. Therefore, let us have the truth and freedom our spirits require... or let us die seeking these things, for without them, we shall surely and justly perish in an evil world."

Disinformation in Lebanon

2008-09-17T17:34:00.000-07:00

Back in the 1990s a writer came up with a theory about how people got away with covering up the truth... It turned into the piece,"Twenty-Five Ways To Suppress Truth: The Rules of Disinformation (Includes The 8 Traits of A Disinformationalist) by H. Michael Sweeney"
which can be found at http://www.whale.to/m/disin.html

It is interesting how many of the 25 activities delineated in this piece can be found in the situation in Lebanon from all sides of the issues.

What is more interesting is the alarming percentage has been coming from the District Office and the CARES group as a team.

Let's take a look at the steps...

1. Hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil. Regardless of what you know, don't discuss it -- especially if you are a public figure, news anchor, etc. If it's not reported, it didn't happen, and you never have to deal with the issues.

2. Become incredulous and indignant. Avoid discussing key issues and instead focus on side issues which can be used show the topic as being critical of some otherwise sacrosanct group or theme. This is also known as the 'How dare you!' gambit.

3. Create rumor mongers. Avoid discussing issues by describing all charges, regardless of venue or evidence, as mere rumors and wild accusations. Other derogatory terms mutually exclusive of truth may work as well. This method which works especially well with a silent press, because the only way the public can learn of the facts are through such 'arguable rumors'. If you can associate the material with the Internet, use this fact to certify it a 'wild rumor' from a 'bunch of kids on the Internet' which can have no basis in fact.

4. Use a straw man. Find or create a seeming element of your opponent's argument which you can easily knock down to make yourself look good and the opponent to look bad. Either make up an issue you may safely imply exists based on your interpretation of the opponent/opponent arguments/situation, or select the weakest aspect of the weakest charges. Amplify their significance and destroy them in a way which appears to debunk all the charges, real and fabricated alike, while actually avoiding discussion of the real issues.

5. Sidetrack opponents with name calling and ridicule. This is also known as the primary 'attack the messenger' ploy, though other methods qualify as variants of that approach. Associate opponents with unpopular titles such as 'kooks', 'right-wing', 'liberal', 'left-wing', 'terrorists', 'conspiracy buffs', 'radicals', 'militia', 'racists', 'religious fanatics', 'sexual deviates', and so forth. This makes others shrink from support out of fear of gaining the same label, and you avoid dealing with issues.

6. Hit and Run. In any public forum, make a brief attack of your opponent or the opponent position and then scamper off before an answer can be fielded, or simply ignore any answer. This works extremely well in Internet and letters-to-the-editor environments where a steady stream of new identities can be called upon without having to explain criticism, reasoning -- simply make an accusation or other attack, never discussing issues, and never answering any subsequent response, for that would dignify the opponent's viewpoint.

7. Question motives. Twist or amplify any fact which could be taken to imply that the opponent operates out of a hidden personal agenda or other bias. This avoids discussing issues and forces the accuser on the defensive.

8. Invoke authority. Claim for yourself or associate yourself with authority and present your argument with enough 'jargon' and 'minutia' to illustrate you are 'one who knows', and simply say it isn't so without discussing issues or demonstrating concretely why or citing sources.

9. Play Dumb. No matter what evidence or logical argument is offered, avoid discussing issues except with denials they have any credibility, make any sense, provide any proof, contain or make a point, have logic, or support a conclusion. Mix well for maximum effect.

10. Associate opponent charges with old news. A derivative of the straw man -- usually, in any large-scale matter of high visibility, someone will make charges early on which can be or were already easily dealt with - a kind of investment for the future should the matter not be so easily contained.) Where it can be foreseen, have your own side raise a straw man issue and have it dealt with early on as part of the initial contingency plans. Subsequent charges, regardless of validity or new ground uncovered, can usually then be associated with the original charge and dismissed as simply being a rehash without need to address current issues -- so much the better where the opponent is or was involved with the original source.

11. Establish and rely upon fall-back positions. Using a minor matter or element of the facts, take the 'high road' and 'confess' with candor that some innocent mistake, in hindsight, was made -- but that opponents have seized on the opportunity to blow it all out of proportion and imply greater criminalities which, 'just isn't so.' Others can reinforce this on your behalf, later, and even publicly 'call for an end to the nonsense' because you have already 'done the right thing.' Done properly, this can garner sympathy and respect for 'coming clean' and 'owning up' to your mistakes without addressing more serious issues.

12. Enigmas have no solution. Drawing upon the overall umbrella of events surrounding the crime and the multitude of players and events, paint the entire affair as too complex to solve. This causes those otherwise following the matter to begin to lose interest more quickly without having to address the actual issues.

13. Alice in Wonderland Logic. Avoid discussion of the issues by reasoning backwards or with an apparent deductive logic which forbears any actual material fact.

14. Demand complete solutions. Avoid the issues by requiring opponents to solve the crime at hand completely, a ploy which works best with issues qualifying for rule 10.

15. Fit the facts to alternate conclusions. This requires creative thinking unless the crime was planned with contingency conclusions in place.

16. Vanish evidence and witnesses. If it does not exist, it is not fact, and you won't have to address the issue.

17. Change the subject. Usually in connection with one of the other ploys listed here, find a way to side-track the discussion with abrasive or controversial comments in hopes of turning attention to a new, more manageable topic. This works especially well with companions who can 'argue' with you over the new topic and polarize the discussion arena in order to avoid discussing more key issues.

18. Emotionalize, Antagonize, and Goad Opponents. If you can't do anything else, chide and taunt your opponents and draw them into emotional responses which will tend to make them look foolish and overly motivated, and generally render their material somewhat less coherent. Not only will you avoid discussing the issues in the first instance, but even if their emotional response addresses the issue, you can further avoid the issues by then focusing on how 'sensitive they are to criticism.'

19. Ignore proof presented, demand impossible proofs. This is perhaps a variant of the 'play dumb' rule. Regardless of what material may be presented by an opponent in public forums, claim the material irrelevant and demand proof that is impossible for the opponent to come by (it may exist, but not be at his disposal, or it may be something which is known to be safely destroyed or withheld, such as a murder weapon.) In order to completely avoid discussing issues, it may be required that you to categorically deny and be critical of media or books as valid sources, deny that witnesses are acceptable, or even deny that statements made by government or other authorities have any meaning or relevance.

20. False evidence. Whenever possible, introduce new facts or clues designed and manufactured to conflict with opponent presentations -- as useful tools to neutralize sensitive issues or impede resolution. This works best when the crime was designed with contingencies for the purpose, and the facts cannot be easily separated from the fabrications.

21. Call a Grand Jury, Special Prosecutor, or other empowered investigative body. Subvert the (process) to your benefit and effectively neutralize all sensitive issues without open discussion. Once convened, the evidence and testimony are required to be secret when properly handled. For instance, if you own the prosecuting attorney, it can insure a Grand Jury hears no useful evidence and that the evidence is sealed and unavailable to subsequent investigators. Once a favorable verdict is achieved, the matter can be considered officially closed. Usually, this technique is applied to find the guilty innocent, but it can also be used to obtain charges when seeking to frame a victim.

22. Manufacture a new truth. Create your own expert(s), group(s), author(s), leader(s) or influence existing ones willing to forge new ground via scientific, investigative, or social research or testimony which concludes favorably. In this way, if you must actually address issues, you can do so authoritatively.

23. Create bigger distractions. If the above does not seem to be working to distract from sensitive issues, or to prevent unwanted media coverage of unstoppable events such as trials, create bigger news stories (or treat them as such) to distract the multitudes.

24. Silence critics. If the above methods do not prevail, consider removing opponents from circulation by some definitive solution so that the need to address issues is removed entirely. This can be by their death, arrest and detention, blackmail or destruction of their character by release of blackmail information, or merely by destroying them financially, emotionally, or severely damaging their health.

25. Vanish.

So the question is, which of these actions have you experienced?

So which ones are not connected to CARES?

2008-09-17T15:31:00.000-07:00

A comment on one of the DH Articles stated that this blogger should check his facts about who is involved with CARES.

Please believe me. I checked BEFORE I wrote.

But let me clarify for those who skim rather than read...

"So..... who CARES???? and who else is involved in all this PAC activity?" are the two questions that were asked in an earlier blog (see Theory #2 - Smoke and Mirrors)

"Who CARES?" is related to the members and supporters of the CARES group.

"Who else in involved in all this PAC activity?" relates to those who are directly connected to any one of the seven PACs.

Here is the rationale for those who have been named on this blog as either CARES or other PAC contributors, supporters (or received anything positive from those groups) that appear to be coordinating efforts and funds:

1. Michael Farnsworth is a treasurer of several of the PACS
2. Dave Benneth is a treasurer of several PACs and has spoken at board meetings as a representative for CARES.
3. Catherine Watts has spoken at board meetings as a representative for CARES
4. Jennifer Walter has spoken at board meetings as a representative for CARES and contributed money to the PAC.
5. Connie Schmidt and her company contributed money to the PAC.
6. Warren Beeson has made public statements of support and written letters relative to the CARES group and its work.
7. Dr. William Barish contributed money to the PAC.
8. Carol Chevernak is the director of a PAC
9. Lou and Kim Masog's family business and Mr. Masog personally contributed to PACs.
10. Sherrie Sprenger received funds from PACs and her recall effort was thwarted by a PAC.
11. Steve and Leigh Kelley have hosted CARES meetings and Ms. Kelley and her son recieved monies from the PACs for signiture gathering.
12. Joyce Weatherly has spoken at board meetings and publicly as a supporter and contributed money to the PAC.
13. John (Tre) Kennedy is the CARES PAC creator
14. Chris Fisher's recall effort was thwarted by a PAC.
15. Tom McHill's recall effort was thwarted by a PAC.

And I must reiterate my concern that such a small group has been able to dismantle the public forum that used to exist for dialog and debate with its fear and retaliation tactics.

But I digress...

2008-09-17T06:04:00.000-07:00

Boy is it hard to stay focused on providing "proof" because there is so much inuendo and fodder for rumors in this situation... But I thought I might add a few links for people to be able to look at things for themselves.

Don't believe this blog just because you like or agree with the content.

Let's all be responsible and do some research so we can all say...
"I know for a fact."

1.Here is the district phone directory....see for yourself how many teachers, administrators, District Office personnel etc. that there are in our district.
http://www.lebanon.k12.or.us/telephone/telephone_2007-08.htm

2. The district rhetoric on the SAS and the other "priorities" here in Lebanon:
http://lebanon.or.schoolwebpages.com/education/components/scrapbook/default.php?sectiondetailid=5541

3. Oregon Department of Education 2007-08 Test Results for Reading, Writing, Math and Science article with links below to results.
You can also look around on this page to find older documents for comparison over the years.
http://www.ode.state.or.us/news/releases/default.aspx?yr=0000&kw=&rid=660#top

4. Where you can find the lawsuit results from the Employment Relations Board:
Scroll down to UP 033-04 for the Classified illegal bargaining case. and
Scroll down to UP 004-06 for the Certified free speech case.
http://www.oregon.gov/ERB/bdordlst.shtml

5. I could not find the asbetos complaint ruling from when they stripped the asbestos tiles with kids in the building on the OSHA webpage. If any of you come across it, I would love to post it. There was a fine imposed.

Let me know if there are other things you would like facts on.

Irreconciable differences...

2008-09-16T05:37:00.000-07:00

The Albany Democrat Herald posted an article about the Board Meeting at 9:35 last night:
http://www.dhonline.com/articles/2008/09/16/news/local/6loc01_resign.txt

It seems to be a clear and concise piece of information that gives a lot of evidence to the current status of the situation:

The DH reports, "According to the statement, board members want the superintendent's resignation because 'the current working relationship is irreparable" between them and members are concerned about further harm to district and community morale.According to the statement, board members want the superintendent's resignation because "the current working relationship is irreparable' between them and members are concerned about further harm to district and community morale."

Later in the article Mr. Robinson is quoted as saying, ""I'm always prepared to work on my relationship with folks," he said. "I never consider any relationship to be irreparable."

This all reminds me of episodes on Divorce Court.

Couples arrive before the judge, they cite irreconcilable differences and then the battle begins...

Husbands and wives swear up and down that they are the ones who are willing to try to work it out after having pushed their spouse to the limit of human endurance. At some point, both sides give up all pretense...they stary filing restraining orders and lawsuits...

The insults fly, the accusations are hurled, backs are stabbed and at the end you have a bloody mess with parents who hate each other even more trying to work out visitation schedules and alimony.

The only difference here is that eventually Mr. Robinson will have to give up his rights to the children.

He will retire one day... he has talked about the fact that he is eligible now.

The question remains, is it about what is best for the kids?

If so, Mr. Robinson needs to acknowledge that a change to whatever "custody" in store is better for them than to remain in a contentious, legally tenuous situation.

The community wants custody of their kids back...

Will he go gracefully? Theories abound...

2008-09-15T22:30:00.000-07:00

Well...

You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink....

What will Jim Robinson's next move be? In the conversations that were to be had after the eventful one-item meeting this evening, theories were running rampant, but three themes kept reoccuring....

Theory A: Jim will resign with dignity accepting the unanimous vote as a sign that his time is up and he and the district need to part ways.

Theory B: Jim will put off meeting about it until the recall vote to see how the community really feels and then decide.

Theory C: Jim likes to win and he believes that the community would rather keep him than pay for a long protracted lawsuit. So he will push this to the end.

Any other theories out there?

Are you in the know?

2008-09-15T22:27:00.000-07:00

If you did not receive phone calls or text messages this evening, you may not be in the know...

The Lebanon School Board apparently voted this evening in a unanimous 5 to 0 vote to bargain a resignation with the superintendent.

Why fight the recall? ...A recap

2008-09-14T20:39:00.000-07:00

1. Every other board member (aside from the new member) has been supported by or financially benefitted from the 7 PACs run by the small group trying to hijack the community.

2. They are not: yes-men, rubber stamps, puppets nor pawns.

3. They listen to anyone who wants to speak to them.

4. They are willing to engage in dialog and debate on any topic that is important to the community.

5. They have served tirelessly as defensive shields for the students, parents and staff of Lebanon schools to the best of their abilities. (For no compensation and admidst slanderous attacks.)

6. They stand up to Jim Robinson and district staff and ask for truth and honest data. (Although more often than not, the information is incomplete, not forthcoming, and in some cases, blatantly misleading.)

7. No one in their right mind would stay in there for this long under the barage of attacks unless they were not convinced that they were doing the right thing.

8. AND Finally - They represent the majority of the community, not a vocal, abusive minority.

Should he stay or should he go...

2008-09-14T20:37:00.000-07:00

If you look at the Board policy of the Lebanon Community School District, Code: CBRelative to the Superintendent it states in its entirety..

"The superintendent is the district's chief executive officer and has, under the Board's direction, general supervision of all district schools, personnel and departments. The superintendent is responsible for managing the schools under the Board's policies and is accountable to the Board for that management.

The superintendent may delegate to other district personnel any powers and duties imposed upon the superintendent by Board policies or by vote of the Board. Delegation of power or duty, however, will not relieve the superintendent of responsibility for action taken under such delegation."

Somewhere along the line, Mr. Robinson has crafted an interesting contract that would appear almost iron clad to the casual observer. It requires that he be physically renewed on three separate occasions during three different years in order to actually be non-renewed. It gives him unlimited power to manage staff and programs.

It has gone through a series of changes since he was hired, here are a couple of favorites....

1. One year the district did NOT pay his PERS, the next year the word "Not" was removed increasing his salary by 6% on top of the regular pay raise cost of living he got.

2. He convinced the board to let him live outside of the city and changed the contract to reflect it.

HOWEVER..... all is not lost.... There is one key word in the contract that makes all the difference. The superintendent can be fired outright with no buy out if the Board believes that there is enough "CAUSE" for a judge to uphold dismissal.

Apparently, the board knows they have cause, but Mr. Robinson has already told people that he has about 50K set aside just to launch a legal attack against dismissal and therefore the Board is concerned about the cost of a prolonged, protracted legal battle for the district.

I guess my thought is that the return of 500 or so students to the district would more than cover the cost of the legal proceedings...

Who are the victims du jour?

2008-09-14T20:05:00.000-07:00

Well the other blogger has yet again turned on a person who has spoken out...(don't forget my earlier entry about retaliation such as this being the modus operandi of this small group trying to run Lebanon)...

Today's main course for the other blogger?

A parent, of all people, whose child was shafted at Lebanon High School. She wants to know why.

However, because the only strategy this administration knows for communication appears to be "divide and conquer" anyone who resists is deemed a problem and should watch out... they too will soon be negatively "blogged."

Don't worry Ma'am, you are in good company!

Many of the best people I have ever met are vicitims of the cyberbully and the intimidation of the district administration.

Just a quick comparison...

2008-09-13T21:59:00.000-07:00

Do we have too many administrators? Judge for yourself....

The School Directory for the state of Oregon can be found here:
http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/page/?id=1495

The Directory includes information such as number of students and a list of important people in the district. The names for the Canby District are from the ODE phone list, the names for the others are found on the district websites for each district.

CANBY School District - Total Number of Students - 5044

1. Superintendent Deborah Sommer
2. Business Manager David Moore
3. Human Resources/Personnel Hank Harris
4. Curriculum and Assessment - Mary Hochstetler
5. Special Education Sondra Strong
6. Technology Joe Morelock
7. Safety/Facilities Wayne Layman

Greater Albany Public Schools - Total number of students -8949
http://albany.k12.or.us/

1. Superintendent: maria.delapoer@albany.k12.or.us
2. Assistant Superintendent: Steve Kunke steve.kunke@albany.k12.or.us
3. Director of Business and Operations: Russell Allen russ.allen@albany.k12.or.us
4. Director of Special Programs,Ryan Mattingly ryan.mattingly@albany.k12.or.us
5. Director of Human Resources: Randy Lary randy.lary@albany.k12.or.us
6. Director of Curriculum & Instruction: Diane Smith diane.smith@albany.k12.or.us
7. Director of Facilities: Jim McGowan jim.mcgowan@albany.k12.or.us Special Programs

Salem-Keizer School District - Total number of students - 39469
http://www.salkeiz.k12.or.us/

1. Superintendent: Sandy Husk (e-mail: husk_sandy@salkeiz.k12.or.us)
2. Deputy Superintendent: Glenn Gelbrich (e-mail: gelbrich_glenn@salkeiz.k12.or.us)
3. Chief Operations Officer: Rich Goward (e-mail: goward_richard@salkeiz.k12.or.us)
Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment : John Weeks (e-mail: weeks_john@salkeiz.k12.or.us)
4. Director of Elementary Education: Steve Larson (e-mail: larson_steve@salkeiz.k12.or.us)
5. Director of Facilities: Luis Caraballo (e-mail: caraballo_luis@salkeiz.k12.or.us)
6. Director of Human Resources: Mary Cadez (e-mail: cadez_mary@salkeiz.k12.or.us)
7. Director of Student Services: Ruth Gelbrich (e-mail: gelbrich_ruth@salkeiz.k12.or.us)
8. Director of Technology: John Cuddy (e-mail: cuddy_john@salkeiz.k12.or.us)
9. Director of Community Relations and Communications: Jay Remy (e-mail: remy_jay@salkeiz.k12.or.us)
10. Director of Bilingual Services and Compensatory Education: David Bautista (e-mail: bautista_david@salkeiz.k12.or.us)

Lebanon Community School District - Total number of students - 4336
http://www.lebanon.k12.or.us/

1. Superintendent - Jim Robinson 451-8511 ex.224
2. Assistant Superintendent - Steve Kelley 451-8511 ex. 223
3. Director of Business - Linda Darling ex.233
4. Administrator of Special Education Programs Laurie Glazener ex. 236
5. Director of Nutrition Services - Pam Lessley ex. 237
6. Director of Operations - Larry Tilford 259-8911 1110
7. Director of Student Achievement - Jan Zarate ex. 270
8. Director of Technology Services Brian Bray 259-8993 1008
9. Transportation - Maggie Estes -259-8931 1131

Another Interesting Fact:

Certified Teachers who are not in the classroom here in Lebanon:

1. Benneth, Cathy Program Consultant (*Retired teacher from Lebanon)
2. Cady, Cindy Literacy Coach (part time Title I teacher)
3. Chambers, Deanna Instructional Consultant/Peer Coach
4. Default-Toomb, Tami Writing TOSA
5. Ernst, Marla Math TOSA
6. Geoghegan, Tim Student Achievement Specialist
7. Kreder, Beth Student Assessment Specialist
8. Price, Debbie - Literacy Coach
9. Richards, Kai School Psychologist
10. Ross, Tracy - Instructional Coach
11. Seward, Jody - Instructional Coach
12. Spiker, Sue Program Consultant (*Retired teacher from Lebanon)
13. Stockdale, Erica Special Programs Consultant
14. Urban, Peg School Psychologist
15. Vore, Joe Math Instructional Coach

Let me explain the math behind rumor #5

2008-09-13T20:11:00.000-07:00

I know that last rumor was a bit confusing... but then that is why it has been allowed to continue.... No one gets it, so no one questions it.

Try this....

First understand the "benchmarks" in Lebanon

Early benchmark 1 (educationally equal to kindergarten and 1st grade) Usually 5 and 6 year olds
Mid-benchamark 1 (same level as 2nd grade) Usually 7 year olds.
Adv. benchmark 1 (3rd grade) Usually 8 years old.

BIG IMPORTANT HIGH STAKES TEST

Early benchmark 2 (4th grade) Usually 9 year olds.

NEXT:

Lets say that we have 100 8 year olds in Lebanon.

3 of them are in early benchmark 2 and will not be tested on the high stakes test.
17 of them are in mid-benchmark 1 and will not be tested.

80 of them take the state's "Third Grade" test and of them

60 meet and 15 exceed! Whoo Hoo!

Our district might report that 75% met and 18.75% exceeded for a total of 93.75% meeting or exceeding.

That looks great until you remember that we were supposed to test ALL 100 8 year olds.

So technically 60% met and 15% exceeed and therefore only 75% met or exceeded and suddenly the numbers aren't so cool.

Teachers have stated over the years that the district has in the past not tested students with the age level tests. Has that practiced stopped or are we still cooking the books?

Rumor has it #5

2008-09-13T19:51:00.000-07:00

Rumor has it that the Student Achievement System was designed to make it possible to improve our test scores without improving the students...

Why would people think that?

If you ask the federal government, or the State of Oregon Department of Education when students should be tested they will tell you you either test by grade or by age. If your school has grades you test grades 3, 5, 8, and 10. If your school is ungraded you test ages 8, 10, 13 and 15.

What happens if you have ungraded schools where you place students "where they belong" academically, but you test them by grades?

You have 8 year olds not taking the test because they are placed with 7 year olds in a class that will be considered 2nd grade who then miraculously move on to be with their own age the next year and will not be tested again because they are "no longer 3rd graders."

According to the district...we do not have grades, we have benchmarks......
Now look at the records...do we test all of the same age students with the same tests?

Technically we should be.

Our SAS reminds me of something.... Oh yes....
The Houston Miracle! You might want to take a look at these articles: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3403664/
http://www.resultsforamerica.org/calendar/files/Document1.pdf
http://nochildleft.com/2003/sept03miracles.html

Rumor has it #4

2008-09-13T19:34:00.000-07:00

Rumor has it that John (Tre) Kennedy (Business partner of Tom McHill who is the legal counsel for the other blogger) has offered to act as a mediator between the district and various entities....

What's wrong with that? one might ask....

When Board Directors Alexander, Wineteer and Shimmin tried to place Mr. Robinson on leave and tried to limit the influence and scope of his control over the district they were met with threats of lawsuits for trying to interfere with Mr. Robinson power.

Unless Mr. Kennedy was representing Mr. Robinson (which we know he does not), he would appear to be trying to lure people into looking like they were "trying to interfere" so that Mr. Robinson could increase the realm of his threats to litigate.

Rumor also has it that a community member who was approached believed that Mr. Kennedy was indeed the district representative.

Mr. Kennedy might want to make sure that he clearly states his role, scope of influence and motives when approaching highly charged political situations in Lebanon.

Fear and Retaliation in Lebanon

2008-09-13T07:04:00.001-07:00

Many have wondered why there is so much noise from the Jim Robinson camp and so little opposition voiced publicly. People whisper in the parking lot and at the grocery store but beg, "don't let anyone know that I said something, I don't need the negative attacks!"

The district swears up and down that they want to hear from everyone but in just about every case, the people with major concerns who speak up receive retaliation.

Let's take a walk down memory lane....

1. Bo Yates, Rob Allen, Boys and Girls Club leadership and the coaches of the district: This group has been hit hard with insults and attacks from the other blogger, and even though he had been authorized by the district to work out a solution, Bo Yates was smacked with a TSPC complaint by district office administration in an attempt to discredit him.

Let's not forget the complaint was dismissed by TSPC.

2. Debi Shimmin, Josh Wineteer, Rick Alexander: This group have been trying to require that the district follow law and ethics, they have been seeking to stop the violations of special education law, testing laws, bargaining laws, free speech laws, and the disregard by administration of the value of staff loyalty and participation in the decisions that impact them. This group has been harrassed by the other blogger, had recall efforts placed against them and Jim Robinson regularly threatens to sue Mr. Alexander and Mr. Wineteer, and in fact HAS filed lawsuits against them as well as the district. They received threatening phone calls and messages and have had to hire personal lawyers to defend themselves for protected actions taken lawfully as board members.

Let's not forget that Jim Robinson has never won a lawsuit against them.

3. Kim Fandino and the teacher union: Granted Ms. Fandino has been a thorn in the side of the district for a long time due to her constant reminders of legal concerns, the grievances and lawsuits brought against the district, her comments about the teacher turnover, the crowded classrooms, the misdirection of district funds, the intimidation and harrassment of administration toward teachers and staff, the issues around bargaining over the years.... oh, and the 81% of the teacher vote of NO CONFIDENCE in Jim Robinson in 2004 that was never truly addressed by the school board.

Ms. Fandino has been attacked by the other blogger, had a letter placed in her file for almost three years for speaking to a board member, has been insulted and even threatened in public board sessions by audience members who are from the CARES group, and has been publicly maligned as an individual for actions she was required by law to perform as a part of her elected position.

Let's not forget that the union won the lawsuit and the letter had to be removed from her file and District policy was ruled illegal on its face.

4. The Bauers: These two employees were asked by the district to go to a conference several years ago. The paperwork was filled out by the district. They requested reimbursement that was less than the "per diem" expenses that board policy allowed for. However, they had recently filed personal complaints about things relative to their own children's education in Lebanon and were now "on the radar." As I am sure you can guess... they had a complaint filed against them by district administration relative to their reimbursement request. The complaint contained many inaccuracies and false accusations. However, district administration saw fit to allow a copy of it out to the other blogger even though it had not been ruled on.

Let's not forget that the complaint was thrown out by the government agency.

5. Ed Sansom: This administrator has spoken up about concerns and obviously did something to annoy the district because although there are other administrators that have been complained about repeatedly, they are protected by district admin. But, poor Ed, he must have done something because not only has he been blogged and possibly has had mis-information about him spread intentionally, but the district office wants to fire him.

Now don't get me wrong, poor administration and poor teachers should not be working in schools... however, Mr. Sansom has a much better reputation among those who count (teachers, parents and students) than several other administrators. Why was he singled out?

Let's not forget the main issue cited as reasons for the non-renewall..... Communication.... isn't that kind of like the pot calling the kettle black?

6. In general, almost every person who has spoken up at a board meeting in opposition to the direction of the district has been blogged negatively by the other blogger.

So fear and retaliation reign supreme in Lebanon.... ain't free speech great?

About the math meeting...

2008-09-12T18:00:00.000-07:00

Cheryl McAllister did a nice job of explaining the bigger picture with the math situation at LHS in her letter to the editor for the Democrat-Herald.

The math issue is actually secondary to the bigger issue of communication with and from the district. Once again they got it wrong.

This district likes to pretend that each person with a complaint is "just one disgruntled person" not a representative of others, nor the tip of an iceberg.

When they can say... "Only a few complaints were made" after a meeting where maybe 5 people spoke but 100 were vigourously nodding their heads... it makes it hard to believe that they really want to hear anything.

The parents wanted a forum. The district wanted an opportunity to portray their detractors as uncontrollable, overly-emotional, uninformed people. The district won.

If this had been an arm wrestling match the district would have had Arnold Scwartzenegger as their "facilitator" and they would have been requiring the community to have their arms strapped down to the table. The community would have complained, but the district could still say, "we offered them the opportunity, and they chose not to take it."

Who foots the bill #2?

2008-09-12T17:46:00.001-07:00

Along with the recall effort which will be paid for by the district, long-time community member Lynden Brown has been asking repeatedly at board meetings for information about the cost of things in the school district and the list would appear to be growing, so one should really be wondering....

How much does it cost?

1. The recall
2. The failed lawsuits
3. The failed arbitrations
4. The lost students
5. The training required to bring unexperienced employees up to speed
6. The extra administrators
7. The teachers who aren't in the classrom
8. The travel for large teams to go to recruiting fairs
9. The nice lunches provided by the district for district meetings
10. The constant massive remodeling and movement (furniture and construction) at LHS.

VS.

What is the cost of:

1. An effective alternative edcuation program
2. More teachers in the elementary classes
3. Department heads at the high school
4. Club advisors
5. Middle school sports

What's up with the Superintendent?

2008-09-12T17:32:00.000-07:00

Things that make you go hmm...

According to the Lebanon Community School Board agenda there is an executive session planned for Monday night followed by an open session with one agenda item.

It is an action item having to do with an action on the Superintendent.

Theory #2 - Smoke and Mirrors

2008-09-12T06:02:00.000-07:00

If you look at the earlier posting with the directions on how to look at the Secretary of State's elections information webpage a very interesting concept that has been floating around the community starts to gather substance and clarity....

It is the same small group of people who have created SEVEN different political action committees which are designed to do the following things:

1. Allow them to move funds from one issue to another by transfering funds from one PAC to another so people do not have to have their names mentioned multiple times in coordination with the contentious issues.

2. Allow them to hide behind the cover of an unknown number of people in a group to make the group "seem" bigger... (could be just 1 person technically, but doesn't it sound impressive to say "the committee"?)

So..... who CARES???? and who else is involved in all this PAC activity?

Michael Farnsworth (treasurer, former board member, JR supporter), Dave Benneth (treasurer, JR supporter), Catherine Watts (blogger contributor - fact, JR supporter), Jennifer Walter (blogger creator - rumor, JR supporter), Warren Beeson (former board member, JR supporter), Dr. William Barish (former board member, JR supporter), Carol Chevernak (Dr. Barish wife), Lou and Kim Masog (LHS administrator and spouse, JR supporters), Sherrie Sprenger (received funds from PACs, recall effort thwarted by a PAC, former board member, JR supporter), Steve and Leigh Kelley (Assistant Superintendent and spouse, JR supporters), Joyce Weatherly (JR supporter), John (Tre) Kennedy (PAC creator and Business colleague of Tom McHill, JR supporter), Chris Fisher (recall effort thwarted by a PAC, board member, JR supporter), Tom McHill (recall effort thwarted by a PAC).

Is anyone else willing to add their names to this list????

Theory # 1 - It's all about 3 votes

2008-09-12T05:50:00.000-07:00

So what is all of the fuss about? Why has this division in the community?

It could be about Jim Robinson and his need for three votes on the Lebanon School Board to keep control of the school district.

He has often said that he does not need the community, he does not need the parents, he does not need the teachers, he does not need the students....

... he needs three votes... and he currently has lost them... he wants them back....

his friends are working hard to get them back....

It was easy when it was just "one rogue board member" (Rick Alexander)

It was in jeopardy when Winteer and Fisher were elected on a J.R. needs to go platform and Alexander was reelected with 75%.... but Mr. Robinson knew he only needed to sway one of those men and he chose the one who demonstrated weakness and the ability to confuse easily.

He got his third vote back in Fisher and could then dismiss Alexander and Wineteer and try to discredit them as self-interested.

Then (unfortunately for Mr. Robinson) Ms. Shimmin was elected and she was not going to be a puppet. She was immediately attacked by the anonymous blogger and people from the CARES group (see other postings).

Mr. Robinson's group of friends had to take over the fight more agressively to get that third vote back, but unfortunately in the midst of the storm Sherrie Sprenger had to bail or potentially lose the other election she wanted to win that had more power and influence.

She was replaced by a fourth vote on the opposite side.....

Now it is all about a small group of bullies trying to force their way back into control because they can't win on the merits of the issues.

It is not about good schools...
It is not about good community...
It is about 3 votes.

Rumor and Rationale #3

2008-09-11T20:49:00.000-07:00

Rumor has it that district personnel are connected to the blog....

Why would people think that?

Conversations from meetings of only teachers were blogged.
Conversations from meetings of only administrators were blogged.
Conversations in district committee meetings were blogged......
Conversations among district employees only were blogged.....

....someone from each of those groups has to be sharing....

Things that make you go "hmm".... Who has most benefitted from the creation of the blog?

Rumor and Rationale #2

2008-09-11T20:44:00.000-07:00

Rumor has it that the Lebanon CARES group is connect to the anonymous blog....

Why would people think that?

1. Ms. Watts (a money contributor to the CARES group) yelled out in a public board meeting that she had contributed and would continue to contribute to the blog.
2. The Blog and CARES mimic each other often in their message.

Rumor and Rationale #1

2008-09-11T20:34:00.001-07:00

Rumor has it that Jennifer Walter is the annonymous blogger in Lebanon...

Why would people think that? Could be because the annonymous blogger has the following characteristics in common with Ms. Walter...

1. Has an in depth knowledge of Social Studies and Language Arts curriculum at LHS.
2. Has demonstrated negative behaviors toward the following people: the mayor, Bo Yates, Rick Alexander, Josh Wineteer, Debi Shimmin, several teachers at LHS as well as Kim Fandino the union president, Rob Allen and the coaches in the district, among others who have been attacked on the blog.
3. Has a knowledge of legal procedures and process.
and....
4. Students in her classes who have read the blog say that Ms. Walter's comments on the blog often mirror comments made in her class.

Who foots the bill?

2008-09-11T20:12:00.000-07:00

The Lebanon Community School disctrict will foot the bill for the recall election according to the Albany Democrat Herald...

How can a group that CARES about our children want to use school money for a vendetta against two members who are up for reelection in a few months anyway?

A smattering of facts...

2008-09-11T19:11:00.000-07:00

Jim Robinson was non-renewed from both of his prior districts and was declared retaliatory by board members in those districts.

Lebanon High School alone is down 450 students in enrollment and the freshman class which used to come in each fall with 375-400 students started this year with less than 300.

The following are some of the classes that used to exist at Lebanon High School that were destroyed by the administrators of the academies because they didn't believe in "advanced" classes. (Mr. Finch is one of those administrators): Advanced LA 9, Adv. LA 10, Adv. LA 11, Adv. LA 12, Adv. Global Studies, Adv. US History, Adv. Government, Adv. Economics, Adv. Personal Finance.

There are students in the elementary schools that are as much as 4 years older or younger than the kids in their class since we do not have "grades". (Note* this is illegal if the students are Special Ed students)

Special Education student IEPs are changed without the authorization of the parents.

Personal friends of Jim Robinson get really cool high paying jobs in Lebanon. Steve Kelley (promoted from Dir. of Curriculum to Assistant Superintendent), Jan Zarate (promoted from teacher to Director of curriculum), Linda Darling (hired as Dir. of finance with no prior experience), Kim Masog (LHS Academy Administrator with no high school experience) et. al.

There are more administrators in Lebanon than we need.

Follow the money

2008-09-11T17:55:00.000-07:00

In examining the Oregon Secretary of State webpage related to the financial activities of political action groups there is a disturbing almost incestuous relationship between seven different PACs.

If you go to https://secure.sos.state.or.us/eim/jsp/CEMainPage.jsp and type in the name
"Lebanon CARES" you will start down a trail of links that when compiled give you the following information:

While Mike Farnsworth is the treasurer of Lebanon CARES and the two committees created to recall Lebanon School Board members Alexander and Wineteer...

Mike's PACs:
1. Lebanon CARES PAC
2. The Committee to Recall Rick Alexander, Director Zone 2
3. The Committee to Recall Josh Wineteer, Director Zone 5

Lebanon CARES member Dave Benneth is the treasurer for four other PACs (all can be researched by placing the name of the committee in the search spot on the secretary of state webpage).

Dave's PACs:
4. PAC - Building Schools - Building Futures (Objective: Oppose the Recall of McHill, Sprenger and Fisher)
5. PAC - Citizens for Truth and Jobs (Objective: Support or Opposition of Specific Candidates)
6. PAC - Friends of Sherrie Sprenger
7. PAC - Friends of Debi Shimmin

If you look at the financial acitivity of each of these PACs on the Secretary of State's website you also find that:

1. The Lebanon CARES PAC gave money to both recall effort PACs (Alexander and Wineteer) AND the Building Schools - Building Futures PAC.

2. The Building Schools - Building Futures PAC gave money to Lebanon CARES PAC, Friends of Debi Shimmin PAC and Friends of Sherrie Sprenger PAC

3. The Citizens for Truth and Jobs PAC gave money to Friends of Debi Shimmin PAC and Friends of Sherrie Sprenger PAC

People associated with the PACs:
1. Lebanon CARES PAC - Michael Farnsworth (treasurer and contributor), Dave Benneth (spokesperson at Board meetings), Connie Schmidt and her business Lebanon Animal Hospital, Catherine Watts, Dr. William Barish, Masog Mink Ranch, Joyce Weatherly, Zachary Webb, Jennifer Walter and John Kennedy (business partner of Tom McHill).

2. The Committee to Recall Rick Alexander, Director Zone 2 - Lebanon CARES (see above)

3. The Committee to Recall Josh Wineteer, Director Zone 5 - Lebanon CARES (see above)

4. PAC - Building Schools - Building Futures (Objective: Oppose the Recall of McHill, Sprenger and Fisher) - Lebanon CARES (see above), Carol Chervenek (wife of Dr. Barish), Friends of Sherrie Sprenger (see below), Friends of Debi Shimmin (see below)

5. PAC - Citizens for Truth and Jobs (Objective: Support or Opposition of Specific Candidates) - Friends of Sherrie Sprenger PAC (see below), Friends of Debi Shimmin PAC (see below)

6. PAC - Friends of Sherrie Sprenger - Dr. William Barish, Citizens for Truth and Jobs PAC, Building Schools - Building Futures PAC

7. PAC - Friends of Debi Shimmin - Citizens for Truth and Jobs PAC, Building Schools - Building Futures PAC (It should be noted that Debi returned money to the Building Schools group - it is denoted as an expenditure AND a contribution)

Lebanon Proof

Signing Off...

Responding to more comments...

Welcome new super...

Rumors...

What do we know about the new Interim?

More about the schedule...

If the interim superintendent reads this blog...

The rest of the story...

What's up with the LHS schedule?

Okay, so you want to debate...

More answers to comments...

Answering reader comments...

For those of you with short memories...

The OSBA agenda...are they friends of the CARES group?

Philosophical Differences....

More comment dialog...

More responses to comments...

Responding to this and that...

What a strange catch 22....

Things that make you go hmmmm.....

Other Local Politics... Part 2

Election data and the question of apathy...

From within vs. from outside....

Let's talk about Mr. Sansom...

So many meetings...so little time...

Attacking the kids....

So... what was that recall election all about anyway?

Where is the line?

But I digress yet again...

When will they learn?

And so it goes...

Responding to Comments...

Vindicated...

Sixty Seven Students...

Waiting....

Apparently intimidation is not enough...

Oh how the rumor mill goes...

Okay... we know what we don't need...

But Joyce, you repeate yourself....

Backpeddling at its best....

Double take on the arguments in the recall....

Reponding to this and that...

Fear and Retaliation in Lebanon #2

Can we afford more teachers?

What are the non-classroom teachers "teaching"?

The non-classroom teacher issue....

The message fit me to a "tee"...

Other local politics....

More facts....

What is up with the district office?

Rumor and Rationale #3

The bigger they are...

What's your "sign"?

What a shame...

About enrollment at LHS...

What matters...

Disinformation continued...

Disinformation in Lebanon

So which ones are not connected to CARES?

But I digress...

Irreconciable differences...

Will he go gracefully? Theories abound...

Are you in the know?

Why fight the recall? ...A recap

Should he stay or should he go...

Who are the victims du jour?

Just a quick comparison...

Let me explain the math behind rumor #5

Rumor has it #5

Rumor has it #4

Fear and Retaliation in Lebanon

About the math meeting...

Who foots the bill #2?

What's up with the Superintendent?

Theory #2 - Smoke and Mirrors

Theory # 1 - It's all about 3 votes

Rumor and Rationale #3

Rumor and Rationale #2

Rumor and Rationale #1