Education
Yesterday's Chapel Hill News discussed the possibility of constructing a new elementary school in the Rogers Road neighborhood as if it would bring an instant end to the problems this neighborhood has had for decades of living next to the landfill. While the schools' ability to pay for the extension of sewer to this area would be a tremendous benefit, it's not like sewer acess is the only challenge facing the Rogers Road area.
I was pretty shocked to read this news:
Three students were sent to an in-school suspension classroom after
refusing to take a military aptitude test at Cedar Ridge High School on
Tuesday.
Principal Gary Thornburg said the students were not being
disciplined, rather the in-school suspension teacher was the staff
person available to supervise them.
More than 300 juniors spent two hours Tuesday and again Wednesday taking the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery.
Thornburg
said the test, which the U.S. military calls the ASVAB, is
traditionally administered to juniors at his school. The military
provides the tests, proctors and grading without charge. In exchange,
the scores are sent to military branch recruiters and the school.
- newsobserver.com: 3 decline to take military test, 2/14/08
It turns out people are resisting these tests all around the nation:
I am proud to say that I and my son were part of something very cool. Almost 6 years ago, he was asked to participate in the Chinese-English Dual Language Program at Glenwood. At the time, no one knew much about the program or whether it was necessary.
There were fears by Principals, community leaders, the Latino/Hispanic community and a whole bunch of people with a very limited understanding of the program's educational goals. 6 years later, the programs at Carrboro and Glenwood are still going strong.
Middle School will pose a challenge and I am not sure how it will go or even if it is necessary to continue the program beyond 5th grade. After the first year of begging children to be a part of it, it has become competitive and somewhat elitist from where I sit. This is not Travel (fill in the sport that excludes poor children, so you can brag at the office here). This is something that could be beneficial to the entire community.
Does anyone know this Dennis Whitling fellow? Apparently he is a member of the Orange County School Board, and has been accused (not convicted) of embezzlement by a former employer. I know nothing about this and I don't want to jump to conclusions. Anyone have insights on this?
A Durham Police Department investigator applied in December for access to Dennis Alan Whitling's personal bank account information, writing that Whitling may have stolen more than $58,000 from a law office where he worked from 1984 to 2007, according to a search warrant.
[...]
Tuesday, Whitling slipped into the regularly scheduled Orange County School Board meeting 10 minutes after it started and left the room during the break before closed session at the end of the night. During the time for board comments, he did not offer any comments on the investigation.
School starting times have long been a peeve of mine, even though I don't have kids. When parents work typical office hours, getting kids up and ready for classes that start before 8 am and end around 3 pm has got to be a frustrating ordeal. Of course not all parents work at white collar jobs, but 9-to-5 is probably more common than the agrarian schedule that our school day used to be planned around. Not to mention the impact of dawn classes on the students!
Pages
About Us
OrangePolitics is a not-for-profit website for discussing progressive perspectives on politics, planning, and public policy in Orange County, NC. Opinions are those of their authors. Learn more.
Community Guidelines
By using this site, you agree to our community guidelines. Inappropriate or disruptive behavior will result in moderation or eviction.
Zircon - This is a contributing Drupal Theme
Design by
WeebPal.
