Check out The Herald's interviews on this week's Rock Hill football games here:
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Best reform in education? End poverty
There is an interesting article in the DeMoines Register about the biggest affect on education. Read it at this address:
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080817/OPINION03/808170318/-1/LIFE04
Select parts are below:
RICHARD DOAK • August 17, 2008
You can't concentrate in school if you hurt. Or if you're hungry. Or abused. Or worried about your parents being evicted. Or if your parents are druggies who take the Ritalin that was prescribed for you. Or if your older sister entertains gentlemen callers in the next room all night. Or if your mom has a new live-in boyfriend every few months. Or if your job-losing parents keep moving you from school to school with long truancies in between. Or if you don't know where you'll be sleeping tonight because your dad's in prison and you get shuffled from one relative to another, and no one really wants you.
Any teacher in Iowa can tell stories that both tug at the heart and stir anger. Such stories are probably more common, in large and small schools alike, than Iowans would like to believe.
What's remarkable is not that the stories are commonplace - anyone who knows a teacher has heard them - but that they are heard so little in the public discussion about education………...
If fundamental improvement is going to occur, it must happen primarily outside the classroom.
The most firmly established link in education research is the correlation between family income and student test scores. Poverty is the single biggest predictor of low scores. It's a greater factor than class size or per-pupil spending.
Low scores are not a sign of a poor school. They are a marker of an impoverished neighborhood.
A student's low scores are not evidence of bad teaching. They're most likely a reflection of the child living in poverty.
Yet this overwhelming truth is virtually absent from the political debate over education………….
Finland, South Korea, Canada, Japan and other countries that outperform the United States in education are not as wealthy as America, but their gaps between rich and poor are not as wide. The wealth they do have is more evenly distributed. So is their student achievement.
Politicians dodge issue of educational underclass……………………..
The political establishment has not faced up to the problem. Looking at poor student achievement, politicians find it convenient to blame the schools, bash teachers and demand non-solutions such as vouchers. The political right chants a mantra that is uttered like one word: thefailingpublicschools.
Wrong. It is not the public schools that are failing. It is the larger American culture and economy……………….
Perhaps politicians fall back on non-solutions because the real solution - ending poverty and the conditions associated with it - seems impossible……………..
No law could persuade every couple to delay childbearing until they are financially secure. No government program can ensure that every parent provide a secure, stable, encouraging environment. No magic wand can rid America of the family-destroying ravages of drugs. No public policy can undo the damage done by incompetent parents or those who are scornful of education. No amount of scrimping can make the minimum wage a living wage…………………..
Richard Doak is a retired Register editor and columnist, a lecturer in journalism at Iowa State University and an adjunct in history at Simpson College.
Rock Hill Family Resource Center - Dolly Parton Imagination Library Kick-Off, Friday, Sept.12th
We are so excited about our Dolly Parton Imagination Library kick-off tomorrow, Friday, September 12th. We will begin the day at 9:00 AM with a balloon release (fully biodegradable) in the courtyard. We will have “VIR" Very Important Readers join us throughout the day to read to the children. Dr. Moody will be our first “VIR” at 9:00, Fred Faircloth – Coca Cola Bottling Company @ 10:00, Jim Vining – School Board and Early Learning Partnership Board @ 10:30, Johnny Barnes - Comporium @ 11:00, Stephen Cox - Early Learning Partnership @ 11:30, Senator Wes Hayes @ 12:00, Carey Smith - RH City Manager @ 1:00, Manning Kimmel - WRHI @ 1:30, Gale DiGiorgio @ 2:00, LauraBree Monday - CN-2 @ 2:30, and Kashaka Kikelomo – YC First Steps at 3:00 PM. We will have a variety of activities for the children, snacks and drinks donated by Coca Cola Bottling Company of Rock Hill. We hope you will drop in between 9:00 am and 4:00 PM to support this wonderful community project.
“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.” ~Anne Frank~
Cindy Hunt
ParentSmart / Rock Hill Family Resource Center Rock Hill School District Three
217 Orange Street
Rock Hill, SC 29730
Phone 803-981-1917
Rock Hill Schools Information for September 11
Boston Brass Coming to Rawlinson Road
Rawlinson Road Middle School will host the Boston Brass as Artist in Residence on Thursday, September 18. The professional brass quintet will provide a master class and band clinic. At 7:00 p.m. in the school auditorium, the quintet will perform in concert and one piece will include the eighth-grade bands from Rawlinson Road and Dutchman Creek. Admission will be $10 for senior citizens and students (grade 1 through college) and $15 for adults. For more information or to order tickets, contact Mike Doll, Rawlinson Road band director at 980-2104.
Dedication of Mount Holly Elementary and Dutchman Creek Middle Schools
October 5th is the date for the dedication of Mount Holly Elementary School at 1:30 PM and Dutchman Creek at 3:30 PM. School tours will be available after the ceremonies.
South Pointe Presents "You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown!"
The South Pointe Theatre Department, under the direction of James Chrismon, is inviting school groups to their 9:00 a.m. October 8 school-day performance of "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown!" Peanuts characters will be singing and dancing, and sets and costumes that are bright and colorful will be crowd-pleasers. The cost will be $2 per student. Reservations should be made because seating is limited.
Cross Town Football Battle to Renew Friday Night
District Three Stadium will be rocking Friday night when Rock Hill Hosts cross town rival Northwestern. Fans will need to arrive early for the 7:30 PM kick-off to avoid traffic, parking, and ticket line issues (not to mention finding a seat). This, plus the South Pointe/Clover game should be the two top games in the state.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
2008 PACT Results Have Been Released
You can view the 2008 PACT Results by going to this site: http://dev.ed.sc.gov/topics/assessment/scores/pact/pre2008/ and looking up the South Carolina District or School that you are interested in.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
September 8 Board Work Session Notes
Action Item: The Board met in executive session for personnel discussions. In open session, the board voted 6-0 (Silverman was at the Rock Hill High School Open House) to support the administration's acceptance of a teacher resignation.
Other items:
The Board Heard the Castle Heights Middle School Administration describe "Making Middle Grades Work". This program, similar to "High Schools that Work" is geared to the middle school area. The are using the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) and the Urban Learning Leadership Center (ULLC).
The Board received a budget update. It appears that 07-08 revenue was $3.3 million more than budgeted and expenses were $1.4 million less than budgeted for a revenue in excess of expenditures of $4.7 million. The 08-09 budget was under-funded by $2.3 million, the Education Finance Act funding was reduced by $1.2 million and the EIA funding was reduced by $1 million which has resulted in a $4.48 million shortfall. All of the 07-08 overage will be applied to the 08-09 shortfall. There are $200,000 remaining in the innovation funds which the Board approved for the 07-08 year. The administration will spend these funds as follows; Hire a SASI coordinator ($75,000); continue Saturday School ($30,000); and Professional Development ($95,000).
The Board received an update on the final 2005 Referendum Bond Sale. A chart was presented showing the largest debt service requirement to come in 2009 (56.8 mils) and there is not an appreciable drop until 2017. This makes major capital expenditures before then unlikely unless there is a large increase in property value within the district.
The Board received an update on 4th high school discussions with York Tech.
The Board received updates on SAT/AP/IB scores and new technology which has been added since the end of the 07-08 year.
The Board got a "hands on" demonstration of the new software program SAS has developed for the district. This program allows administrators to easily get data by student, school, and district. This should help with the remediation programs. The administration is not aware of another program like this in the state of SC. SAS developed the program specifically for the district at a cost of $200,000. There is an annual maintenance fee of around $50,000.
Rock Hill Schools Information For Wednesday, September 9
Rock Hill and Northwestern Football Teams Set to Play this Friday, Sept. 12 at District Three Stadium
The normal season ending game will be played the third week of the season. Both teams are high scoring and undefeated. A large crowd is expected for the 7:30 pm kick off. Get your tickets in advance at the high schools. Tickets will be $7. A keepsake souvenir, compliments of Founders Federal Credit Union, will be given to the first 4,000 fans who attend
November Election
Be sure to sign up for Walter Brown's Blog to stay up to date on the latest election news and how the election will impact our schools. The address is: http://rhgrassroots.blogspot.com/
Free Books from Imagination Library
Parents of children from birth to age 5 can register their children on Sept. 12 to receive a free book each month from the Dolly Parton Imagination Library. Registration will take place between 9:00-5:00 at the Rock Hill Family Re-source Center (intersection of Black and Orange streets). A balloon release will take place at 9:00 and a number of community leaders will read to children through-out the day. For more information, call Parent-Smart at 803.981-1557.
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