A vote for Bellus and Brimhall is a vote for lies and censorship

At the October 28^th Gilbert school board meeting, the ultra-conservative majority voter 3-2 to censor the district’s current biology textbook.

Apparently it didn’t matter that:

•  The textbook has been used in the district since 2006 without incident
• The textbook is used by many other schools in the state including Benjamin Franklin charter
• The district superintendent informed the board that the textbook complied with Arizona law
• Chris Kotterman Deputy Director Arizona Department of Education informed the board that the textbook satisfied ARS 15-716
• The board’s own attorney informed the board that the textbook complied with Arizona law

At the most recent candidate forum, each of the candidates were asked if they would support censorship of any books currently in use in the district.  All of the candidates including Ron Bellus and Dawn Brimhall indicated that they WOULD NOT.  And yet, these candidates were celebrating the censorship decision after the board meeting.

A vote for Bellus and Brimhall is a vote for more of the same: ideology over education.  Please do your research and vote for candidates that support public education not tear it down.

Attrition comparison with surrounding districts

In the opinion section of today's Arizona Republic, a letter writer claims that teachers are leaving Gilbert in equal or near-equal proportions to other districts.

In fact, the data shows that this is decidedly FALSE!

Retirement + Resignation numbers for certified employees are available from the BoardDocs sites of the Mesa, Gilbert and Chandler School Districts.  The data for Higley is not currently available on-line.

The total number of certified employees for 2014 is available from the Arizona Department of Education

As you can see, the % attrition in Gilbert is significantly higher than surrounding districts.

Hopefully with a new Superintendent and a school board election in November, we can turn this around!

Attrition Update - End of July

As of the end of July, 328 certified employees have resigned or retired from the district in 2014.  This is more than 13% of the total certified staff and an annualized turnover rate of almost 25%.
Please be informed and vote in November, the future of our District depends of YOU!

Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice

Tonight at our school board meeting, the board majority:

1 - Repeatedly utilized Robert's Rules of Order as an excuse to limit discussion.

2 - Reinstated a teacher who had previously resigned while on a performance plan, concluding that additional follow up on performance concerns was not necessary.

3 - Refused to re-hire another teacher, concluding that additional follow up on performance concerns was necessary.

4 - Continued to expend time and effort to dismantle an English curriculum which has raised test scores and repeatedly been given high marks in 3 separate feedback surveys of teachers, students and parents.

Yes, I got carried away with my applause during the meeting.  However, I refuse to accept that these actions by the board majority are right, moral or in the best interest of educating our children.

The blog title is a quote from Barry Goldwater's acceptance speech as the 1964 Republican Presidential candidate.

Attrition Update - End of June

Well, we finally cross over the 300 number.  As of the end of June, 301 certified employees have left the district in 2014.  According to the department of education, GPS had 2564 certified employees for the 2013-14 school year.  This means that almost 12% of our teachers have left the district this year!

Please remember this when you vote in November.

Is Ron Bellus anti-business?

At the school board candidate forum on Thursday night, Ron Bellus indicated his opposition to Arizona College and Career Ready Standards.

Businesses and Business organizations across the state have come out in favor of the standards including:

• Arizona Chamber of Commerce and Industry
• Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce
• Arizona Business and Education Coalition
• Southern Arizona Leadership Council
• Arizona Public Engagement Taskforce

Here are a few interesting links as well:

• Graduatepreparedaz
• AzEdNews

Is Ron Bellus anti-business?  It will be up to you to decide and vote accordingly in November.

Fact check - Andy Biggs and % school funding

During the mid-May school board meeting, Julie Smith went to great length to defend Andy Biggs and public school funding.  She claimed that public school funding has been flat at 41% of the total state budget for more than a decade.

The azleg.gov numbers tell a different story.  The red text is mine, everything else is straight from the then and now comparison published on the site.

Also, I am not sure but suspect that the percentage of the K-12 money going to district public schools has declined by more than the illustrated 5% due to shifts in money to charter schools and empowerment scholarships.

Whether you think this is good or bad is your own opinion, however, please get the facts straight!

Attrition Update - May 13th board meeting

There has been a suggestion that since the end of April attrition numbers had decreased, that the exodus from Gilbert Public Schools was slowing.  Unfortunately, the reason for the low numbers was vacation and a short work week.  The mid-May numbers continue to show an alarming trend.  Attrition to date in 2014 is up 176% over 2012!!

It's not the public comment, it's the board!

Dr. Rice was interviewed and quoted several times yesterday regarding the new public comment policy.  He made two points to which I would like to respond:


"Meetings would drag on for hours and this keeps them on track"

• Yes, meetings certainly drag on for hours
• No, the public comment is not responsible
• The January 28th meeting was 4hrs in duration and had 51min of public comment
• The February 11th meetings was 4hrs25min in duration and had 59min of public comment
• The Dec 10th meeting was 5hrs46min and had 33min of public comment
• Public comment was 16% of these 3 meetings
• There have been 2 meetings since the new policy was put in place
• The April 8th meeting was 2hrs50min in duration and had 30min of public comment
• The April 22nd meeting was 3hrs51min in duration and had 25min of public comment
• Public comment was 16% of these 2 meetings

• What does make meetings drag on for hours?
• Breaks that take too long
• Board member discussion - especially on non-education topics

"Several of our teachers went to a conference.  When they were introduced as being from Gilbert, other teachers snickered and giggled.  Other teachers told them that our board meetings are really entertaining."

• Dr. Rice is absolutely right and we should be embarrassed.  However, it is not the public comment that others are laughing at.  It is the behavior of majority board members acting in ways that are detrimental to public education.

Please don't penalize the citizens of Gilbert for the behavior of a few board members - we are suffering enough already!

Burk, Colvin and Smith vote to spend $361/hr on Lawyer

At the March 26th Board meeting, the GPS board voted 3-2 to hire a lawyer at $361/hr instead of using a lawyer that has already been paid for through the Trust.

Watch the details below:

Attrition comparison - Gilbert vs Mesa

There was quite a bit of discussion at the last board meeting about attrition.

Below is a comparison of Mesa vs Gilbert Public Schools attrition.  Mesa has about twice the number of employees as Gilbert.

Additional data that says our GPS 2014 attrition data is abnormal and needs to be addressed.

Attrition Update - March 26 Board Meeting

Below are the update attrition numbers as well as my comments to the school board at the March 26th meeting.

Good evening, Board members, Dr. Rice, thank you for the opportunity to speak with you this evening.  My name is Blake Sacha.

I am here again tonight to talk about attrition.  Unfortunately, no additional attrition information has been provided by the district since the last board meeting.  Therefore, I must again provide you with data which I have been able to gather.  In 2012, 211 certified employees resigned or retired.  In 2013, 264 certified resigned or retired.  This is an increase of 25%.  In the first three months of 2012 51 certified employees resigned or retired, in 2013 this number was 47 and in the first three months of 2014 91 certified employees have resigned or retired.  This is an increase of 94%.

I hope you will all agree that an increase in attrition of 94% is a significant problem with a multi-year impact on the education of our children.

I would ask you to take the following actions

1. Request an open letter from Dr. Kishimoto to all employees talking positively about the future – done by Dr. K
2. Discuss attrition at the next board meeting - review the complete data and have a constructive and open discussion
3. Remove all items from the board agenda other than budget approval and development of a hiring/retention plan until these items are complete
4. Request a review of a hiring plan at the next board meeting - provide teachers and the community with a Principal hiring time line – started by Dr. Rice
5. Conduct exit interviews to understand why teachers are leaving
6. Pull in the date to offer contracts to teachers – started by Dr. Rice

2^nd, I would like to address the police investigation as it relates to attrition.  Ms. Burk indicated at the last meeting that the information which she and Mr. Colvin released to the police was the result of public records requests which she submitted.  If so, that information was publically available information and therefore should be immediately released to fellow board members and the public.

Instead this information has been used to link attrition to this police investigation.  Sources released information to blog sites implying that the attrition is due to fears regarding the police investigation.  I can only speculate regarding these sources but Mr. Colvin and Ms. Burk appear to be the only ones with access to this information.

The result of these rumors, innuendo and potential libel are that the 94 people who have resigned or retired in 2014 have been cast under suspicion.

Who does this include:

• Wendy Peterson, who didn’t work in the district in 2011
• Jane Hecker, who was lauded by members of this board three weeks ago

This needs to stop and it needs to stop tonight with the release of all information that was or is public record.  I have submitted a public records request for information currently in the possession of Ms. Burk or Mr. Colvin pertaining to this investigation which is or was public record.

Will you agree to take these 6 actions regarding attrition?

Will you release these documents this evening?

Will you do what is best for students and teachers?

Our teachers are our schools - Please take action

Below is the email that I sent to our school board, town council, Superintendents and local media.  Please share if you support.

I found out after school today that 6 more teachers have resigned from Campo Verde High School either effective immediately or at the end of the year.

 

Currently available attrition data:

	2012	2013	2014	% inc
Certified Employees	211	264		25%
Certified Employees - 1st 3 months of the year	51	47	55*	15%

           * - through 2.5 months number is 45, I personally am aware of 10 teachers leaving, actual number is probably higher

 

Despite our differences, I believe we can all agree that this kind of attrition is bad for our students, bad for our teachers and bad for our community.

 

I would recommend the following actions:

1. An open letter from Dr. K to all employees talking positively about the future (everyone that I know who has met her has been impressed)
2. Discuss attrition at the March 25th board meeting - review the complete data and have a constructive and open discussion
3. Remove all items from the board agenda other than budget approval and development of a hiring/retention plan until these items are complete
4. Request a review of a hiring plan at the March 25th board meeting - provide teachers and the community with a Principal hiring time line
5. Conduct exit interviews to understand why teachers are leaving
6. Pull in the date to offer contracts to teachers

• Many other districts are offering contracts earlier.  Teachers that don't want to leave are doing so because they are concerned about not having a contract.  I know that we have significant budget concerns.  However, given the number of teachers leaving, I think it would be unlikely that this would cause the budget to over run.  I wouldn't favor it, but you could do this by subject area if necessary; offering contracts earlier to teachers in more difficult to fill areas.

 

I would ask you to seriously consider these suggestions.  We have a significant problem and it needs to be addressed quickly.  It will take many years to replace the lost experience, and we need to start now.

March 11, 2014 GPS School Board Meeting

I filmed tonight's special board meeting since there was no livestream.

A few questions to consider as you watch the video:
- Dr. Keegan's letter stated that the School District had not been contacted by the police.  What type of investigation can have been initiated without the police contacting the District?
- Why such a hurry to do this tonight in an emergency meeting with 1 board member unable to attend?
- Is it appropriate for individual board members to release information to the police and not share it with fellow board members?
- Claims have been made by others that this investigation is somehow responsible for the 25% increase in certified employee attrition.  Do you believe this?
- Will the Arizona Attorney General's office investigate complaints of Open Meeting Law and Conflict of interest violations in regards to the release of this information to the police prior to board action?

Dr. Keegan says Board Members were acting in an individual capacity in filing police report

A few updates regarding the police report discussed at the GPS Board Meeting on Tuesday night.

Board Ethics Policy - BCA

• Recognize that decisions should be made only after discussion at publicly held board meetings;
• Avoid being placed in a position of conflict of interest, and refrain from using their Board position for personal or partisan gain;
• Take no private action that will compromise the Board or administration, and respect the confidentiality of information that is privileged under applicable law;

Ms. Stacy Burk at the board meeting on Tuesday - "Open Meeting Law violations are very serious"

Boards members discussing whether or not filing a police report was discussed as a board.

Letter from Dr. Keegan in response to my Public Records request - "The records that have been provided to the Gilbert Police Department were from Board Members working in an individual capacity"

If potential criminal actions occurred, they should be followed up on and in the appropriate manner.

Has there been a violation of Board Policy or Open Meeting Law?  At this point you will have to make up your own mind.  When you do, please remember to speak out and vote!!

Gilbert vs. Mesa property taxes

During public comment at the March 4^th GPS board meeting a member of the public stated: “I could go across the freeway and live in Mesa and have my property taxes cut in half”.

I have provided the 2013 property taxes for both Gilbert and Mesa below from the Maricopa.gov site.

As you can see, property tax rates are nearly identical.

2013 TAX RATES - MARICOPA COUNTY, ARIZONA

District                                 City                       Primary                Approx                  Secondary                                                                                          Rate                     Residential             Rate

                                                                                                     Primary

                                                                                                     Rate

Mesa #4 Unified                Gilbert                  7.8577                   5.9583                   4.6405

Mesa #4 Unified                Mesa                    7.8577                   5.9583                   4.3541

Gilbert #41 Unified            Gilbert                  7.4779                   5.7198                   4.7093

Gilbert #41 Unified            Mesa                    7.4779                   5.7198                   4.4229

                                                Primary                Secondary

Unified School Districts

Mesa #4                                    4.7751                   2.6671

Gilbert #41                                4.3953                   2.7359

CITIES AND TOWNS

Gilbert                                       0.0000                   1.1500

Mesa                                         0.0000                   0.8636

http://www.maricopa.gov/Finance/PDF/Tax/TaxRateBklt2013.pdf

Expect Less Gilbert

As a business executive for 28 years, I understand a few things about expectations and performance.  I believe that one of the best things that you can do to improve performance is to provide clear expectations that are above the current level of performance.  This is the purpose of the Common Core State Standards.

I have watched with great interest as several members of the Gilbert School Board have taken a stand against Common Core and several of our state legislators are supporting legislation to limit its implementation.

Why would anyone want our children and our teachers to expect less?

The pro and con arguments have been well publicized in other places.  So, I want to focus on one question - What specifically do you disagree with?

Common Core standards exist for Math and English Language Arts.  If you hear someone discussing concerns regarding Science or History, you will know that they have not even read the standards.

The standards don't tell teachers what or how to teach.  They do describe the competency that a student should have when they complete a particular grade level.  Below is an example of ELA Grade 2:

• CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

I have provided the link to the standards below - please see for yourself.
http://www.corestandards.org/

How about it Ms. Burk, Mr. Colvin, Mrs. Smith, Mr. Farnsworth, Mr. Biggs and Mr. Petersen; can you provide a specific example of a standard that you disagree with?

If not, then please join me in supporting more than 83% of our teachers who believe that these standards will have a positive impact on students.

• 
  

Retaliation and "The List"

At the GPS School Board meeting last week, many GPS staff members who spoke out mentioned a fear of retaliation from board members.

There has also been discussion about a supposed "list" of certified personnel that one or more school board members may vote not to renew their contract.

I have copied some relevant board policy below.  (highlights are my own, policies are copied directly from GPS website)

My interpretation:

•          GBA Harassment covers actions by board members
•           GCB clearly differentiates the Superintendent evaluation from all other personnel.  Policy specifically calls out that the Board shall evaluate the Superintendent.  For all others, board policy indicates that they shall be evaluated.
•           BCA indicates that the board should delegate authority for administration of schools to the Superintendent.
•           BCA calls out impartial evaluation of all personnel.
•           Nowhere does board policy call out the need for the board to review and approve contracts on an individual basis.  Common practice in other districts is for them to be done as a group as part of the consent agenda.  Non-renewals would be the responsibility of the Superintendent prior to board review.
•      Principal review guidelines are very detailed.  Have board members reviewed all of this information prior to voting?
•     If a board member is going to vote not to renew someone’s contract, what information is it based on?

Are board members overstepping their authority or violating board policy?  

If you believe so, please contact them by phone or email and let them know you are watching.

GBA - General Prohibition Against Unlawful Discrimination and Harassment

·         The District recognizes its responsibility and is committed to maintaining an employment environment for its staff that is free from unlawful discrimination and harassment, including, but not limited to, race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, veteran status, or religion towards fellow employees The District prohibits discrimination and harassment by District employees. This policy also covers harassment by third parties not directly subject to District control when such persons are engaged in work related/school-sponsored activities.

BCA – Board member ethics

·         Recognize that decisions should be made only after discussion at publicly held board meetings;

·         Render all decisions based on the available facts and independent judgment, and refuse to surrender that judgment to individuals or special-interest groups;

·         Work with other board members to establish effective Board policies and to delegate authority for the administration of the schools to the Superintendent;

·         Support the employment of persons best qualified to serve as school staff members, and insist on a regular and impartial evaluation of all personnel;

·         Remember always that a board member's first and greatest concern must be the educational welfare of the students attending the public schools.

GCB - Evaluation

·         Superintendent - The Board shall evaluate the Superintendent and review the Superintendent's contract annually by December 31. The term of the Superintendent's contract shall be determined by the Board. In accordance with statute, the term may be for any period not to exceed three years.

·         Assistant and Associate Superintendents - Assistant and Associate Superintendents shall be evaluated annually on or before April 1. The Board shall annually review the contracts of these employees in April. The term of such contracts shall be determined by the Board. In accordance with statute, the term for Assistant or Associate Superintendents may not exceed one year. 

·         Principals and Directors - Principals shall be evaluated annually on or before April 1. The Board shall annually review the contracts of these employees in April. The term of such contracts shall be determined by the Board. In accordance with statute, the term for a Principal or Director may be for any period not exceeding three years. 

·         Assistant Principals - Assistant Principals shall be evaluated annually on or before April 1. The Board shall annually review the contracts of these employees in April. The term of such contracts shall be determined by the Board. In accordance with statute, the term for Assistant Principals may not exceed one year.

·         Teachers and Other Certificated Personnel - Teachers shall be evaluated in accordance with the District's evaluation system. The Board shall annually review the contracts of Teachers and other certificated personnel in April. The term of such contracts shall be determined by the Board. In accordance with statute, the term may not exceed one year.

Attrition?

Since the school board meeting on Tuesday, several people have been asking questions about attrition.

Here is what I have been able to determine:
- Each board meeting on the consent agenda the employment changes are approved for both certified (teachers and administrators) and classified (support staff) personnel.
- By going through each agenda item, I was able to tabulate the turnover (resignation and retirement) information for the last two years.
                             

This data does a pretty good job of illustrating the concerns raised at the Tuesday night board meeting.  

Attrition of certified personnel increased by 25% from 2012 to 2013.  Classified personnel increased by 18%.

If you are concerned about these numbers, please let the school board know that you expect them to take action:

- Provide annualized turnover data for the past five years

- Conduct exit interviews with those that are leaving

- Place this on a future board agenda for discussion

- Take action to prevent our best and brightest from leaving

Professionalism and respect for others

Council members Mr.Eddie Cook and Mr. Ben Cooper each spoke at the board meeting on Tuesday night. They talked about the need for strong Gilbert Public School and the need for Board members to work together to get things done.

Working together requires professionalism and respect.  I have highlighted a few examples of recent behavior that I find unacceptable.

Board President Ms. Staci Burk at the beginning of Monday nights special session:
                    Watch at 12:50
                    Ms. Burk - "POINT OF ORDER"
                    GPS Board Meeting Video

Board member Mr. Daryl Colvin responding to public comment and an audience containing many of our best teachers:
                    Watch at 1:48:10
                    Mr. Colvin - "Are you the kinds of people we turn our children over to that exhibit this kind of                       behavior"
                    GPS Board Meeting Video

Board member Mr. Daryl Colvin discussing policy GBEAA, Staff conflict of interest and what to do with gifts that are delivered to staff:
                    Watch at 55:02
                    Mr. Colvin - "You do the logical thing and send it to the school board"
                    GPS Board Meeting Video

If you find it unacceptable as well, please let your board members know.

Police called for applause?

During the public comment at the GPS board meeting on Tuesday night, members of the audience were clapping to express support for public comment speakers.

Board President Staci Burk declares a brief recess and she and Mr. Colvin discuss calling the police.

If you listen closely at 1:27:40, you can hear the following conversation:
- Ms. Burk - OK we are going to take a moment of recess
- Ms. Burk - Daryl wants the police called
- Mr. Colvin - I am going to call the Gilbert PD, we are going to clear this room

                    GPS Board Meeting Video

Fortunately, the meeting continued, the public continued to comment and hopefully board mmbers heard the public loud and clear.

School Choice and my bathtub

Recently, GPS school board President Staci Burk has been supporting HB2256.  In summary, this would allow public school money to go to Private or Religious schools.  This is a misguided attempt to improve education by offering additional choice.

If I come home one night and find my bathtub leaking, I could do what this bill suggests and install another bathtub or I could fix the leak in the one I have.

According to the ADE website, there are currently 45 schools in Gilbert that offer 7^th grade. 

                Latest ratings - A – 13     B – 11    C – 8      D – 4      F -1         NR – 8

We don’t need a 46^th or 47^th alternative for our children.  What we need to do is work together to improve the C, D and F schools that we already have.  However, improving these schools is much harder work than waving the school choice flag.

Please let Ms. Burk and our legislators know that you want them to spend their time working on specific actions that actually improve education.

Shame on you Mr. Colvin!

Please excuse this slightly longer post - there has been a lot going on with the Superintendency search.

After conducting interviews with the 8 semi-finalists, the board selected 2 finalists - Philip Hickman and Christina DeJesus-Kishimoto.  The minutes have not been approved, but it appears this selection was done on a 4-1 vote with Colvin, Tram, Humphreys and Smith approving.

Now the board will be meeting in special session on Monday, February 10th at 5:45 pm to re-consider this vote.  Snapshot of agenda below:

keep it secret?

The agenda for the board meeting on Tuesday, February 11th at 7 pm as already been posted.  Snapshot of agenda below:

I am already confused, but it gets better.  On a local facebook site, Mr. Colvin is openly advocating for a different candidate and talking down about the two candidates that he voted for as finalists!

Please take time to attend the board meetings on Monday and Tuesday and let them know:

1. Dwayne Farnsworth with no educational background is not the right candidate for Gilbert Public Schools Superintendent..
2. You are embarrassed by board members lack of preparation and inability to conduct a Superintendent search. 
3. You expect board members to live up to their transparency promises and keep the process open and free from political overtones.
4. You expect board members to listen to the community survey input they requested and select a Superintendent with strong leadership skills, communication ability and a background in education.

We can do better but only if the people of Gilbert show up and voice their opinions!!!

Blog Topics?

Do you have a proposed topic for a future blog?

Post your suggested topic and I will add it to the list.  Unfortunately, the list of potential topics is quite long.

Where is Dr. Keegan?

At the school board meeting on Tuesday, Dr. Keegan (interim Superintendent) was absent from his usual spot on the dais with the school board members.

Apparently one of the school board members complained about him being on a equal level with the board members.  Rather then create controversy, Dr. Keegan volunteered to sit in another lower location.

Anyone care to guess which one of our school board members complained?
How does this lack of respect look to potential Superintendent candidates?
What does any of this have to do with education?

Who is Dwayne Farnsworth?

What do we know about Dwayne Farnsworth, school superintendent candidate?

• Married to Julie Farnsworth
• Cousin of Eddie Farnsworth
• Endorsed Julie Smith for School Board in the last election
• According to Karen Schmidt, lists Andy Biggs as a reference
• Lawyer at Farnsworth Mortensen Law Offices
• BS in Accounting from ASU and JD from UA
• Likes Liberty Storm with Shane Krauser on his facebook page
• Thanks Eddie Farnsworth and Andy Biggs on his facebook page
• Hooray! I received a great birthday present from the Governor of Arizona and the Arizona Legislature yesterday. The Governor signed my Exemptions Bill on my birthday! Big Thanks go out to Representative Eddie Farnsworth and Senate President Andy Biggs for sheparding the legislation through the process.

Maybe I am missing it but I don't see any education qualifications.

What do you know about his qualifications to run a school district?

School Prayer Legal Fees

How much did the district pay in legal fees for the preparation of the invocation resolution and board policy?

I finally received my FOIA information.

The District was billed 15.6hrs in legal fees for the work done by lawyers to prepare the invocation resolution and board policy.

GPS paid $89,235 for pre-paid legal services in 2014.  The per hour cost was not made available. However, average legal fees are $200-400/hr.  Assuming $300, the invocation process would have utilized more than 5% of the pre-paid legal services.

During the board meeting, Ms. Burk asserted that the Trust to which GPS belongs would pay if the District is sued.  After reading the trust documents, I am not so sure.
          Exclusions to coverage include:
          2.2 To alleged and/or actual liability of a covered party which is caused by or done at the direction of           such covered party with the covered party's knowledge that the occurrence, offense or wrongful act             would violate the rights of or injure another person or organization.

Are board members complying with board policy BCA Board member ethics?

• Render all decisions based on the available facts and independent judgment, and refuse to surrender that judgment to individuals or special-interest groups;
• Remember always that a board member's first and greatest concern must be the educational welfare of the students attending the public schools.

Is this the appropriate use of our limited financial resources?

If you are concerned, please let board members know how you feel.

Superintendent Candidates?

Who are the candidates for GPS Superintendent?

The AZ republic posted profiles of the five finalists on January 24th.

• Rosanne Fulton, Christina DeJesus-Kishimoto, Alan Dale Robbins, Norman Ridder and Philip Hickman

On January 30th, reporter Karen Schmidt tweeted out three additional candidates

• Michael Sentence, Gregory Wyman and Dwayne Farnsworth

Why were 3 additional finalists added after the list of finalists was released to the media?

How were the 3 additional finalists selected?

How many of these finalists were on the list of 10 recommended candidates from the search firm?

How can we review the resumes of the 3 additional finalists?

Why does it feel like additional candidates are being slipped in at the last minute?

Why Now?

Why am I starting this blog now?

Attending School Board meetings since the election have made me sick.  Individual political agendas are being prioritized over the education for our children.

I have tried being positive, speaking up and offering suggestions.

It hasn't had any impact, so I am going negative.