City with fastest growing crime rate: Monroe, LA (1 Viewer)

[Axehandle33]

I'm from Monroe and lived there till mid 20s, went to public school there. The leaders of Monroe are as bad as you can imagine. They increased sales tax to give fire and police a raise, only to start laying them off a few years later for lack of funding. Then it comes out the increase sales tax money never even went to fire and police. Go to a board meeting or educating meeting with the leaders in Monroe, it's an absolute embarrassment. As I said, I went to public schools, the kids parents on such a high percentage do not care. I have close friends and family who teach at Monroe schools and it is just aweful what they deal with regarding kids who threaten them daily, horrible parents, and no backing from the school board. Racial tension has gotten much worse as the "white flight" to West Monroe and Calhoun continues, there has been alot of animosity from people about that. I'm a black man, but I don't blame people for wanting to get out. People's voices aren't heard and many spent decades trying to keep Monroe a good city only to watch the leaders fail year in and year out.

 

[boutrous]

are you implying that it "goes both ways" to the same degree?
that liberals post straw arguments and HIGHLY questionable "data" to a similar degree that "conservatives" do?

They are now called "alternative facts".

 

[BHM]

They are now called "alternative facts".

I am waiting on Sharon to respond.

 

[boutrous]

I believe our problem with education is that we have tried to make a one size (or one test) fits all system. Instead of helping individuals cull their own talents and learn at their own pace, we have decided that everyone just needs to pass the same test. We are not all the same, our brains are not all the same and our futures are not all the same. Why are we force feeding the same education level to all people? Why do we shame people for not going to college and having blue collar jobs?

 

[livefromDC]

I am waiting on Sharon to respond.

Why? So you can return her thought out, researched and cited responses with your unsupported opinions. Every time she's responded to you in this thread with evidence to back her opinion, you've retorted with nothing. No proof. No articles. No fscts. Nothing but your opinion. Why continue to interact with you?

 

[BHM]

Why? So you can return her thought out, researched and cited responses with your unsupported opinions. Every time she's responded to you in this thread with evidence to back her opinion, you've retorted with nothing. No proof. No articles. No fscts. Nothing but your opinion. Why continue to interact with you?

All I see was some facebook links and one woman's blog. If that is what we call thought out, researched and cited responses then give me a few minutes.

I searched for hard evidence that the charter schools in HR were failing and found nothing. That was why I asked her for other links besides some woman's blog.


I posted school rankings that showed the charters in HR were doing better than most of the public schools there. I contacted my son who lives there and he stated that all three charters were highly ranked. But to you I guess that is nothing. But hey FB links outweigh independent school ranking sites so I guess the charters there are bad. Below is a link to the school rankings in HR.

Highlands Ranch Schools, 1-25 - Highlands Ranch, CO | GreatSchools


The only other thing I saw her post was how the NOLA RSD lost 7 million of assets. The RSD stated that was mainly old computers but I did not not even bother posting that link. But if anyone thinks the public school boards do not lose assets, come hang around with me for a few weeks.




I have posted links to how Truman Elementary continues to fail year after year even after the entire staff was fired, new teachers were hired at an elevated pay scale and on and on. But that always got IGNORED. Just found out while looking for hard data to share about the school that the school was closed reopened as a strictly 4 year development school. Thats how our public school system deals with problem schools.





Oh wait, I missed her post about Lafayette schools being broke. Our flagship high school was run down and we have had hundreds of butler buildings long long long before any charters showed up.


Here is a link to a 2007 study about the terrible conditions of the Lafayette school system.

http://lwvlafayettelouisiana.org/issuesactions/SchoolFacilityStudy.pdf


Current board members are crying that the charters are taking money away from the public school system. Well that is true but they are also taking students as well. Now they want a half cent sales tax just to get rid of the portable buildings that by the way were around when I was in high school back in the early 80's. Below is a link.


LPSS proposing half-cent sales tax to get rid of temporary buildings - KATC.com | Continuous News Coverage | Acadiana-Lafayette

Wednesday night, the Lafayette Parish School Board will consider a ten-year, half-cent sales tax to fund school improvements. Joe Craig, LPSS' chief administrative officer, said that money would go towards getting rid of about 60-percent of the temporary buildings at schools and building permanent structures. Craig said the portable classrooms have been a growing problem for the district for 30 years.

Yeah, a 10 freaking year, half cent sales tax just to get rid of 60% of the portable buildings. Damn charter schools are killing us.

 

[BHM]

In the middle of a another annual budget crisis, what does our school board do? They created a new postion named Academic Auditor at an annual cost of $102,000. How did the school system survive with out this postion all this time?


Academic auditor named for Lafayette Parish



Next up is the fiasco and wasted money and legal fees incurred to fire the Superintendent Pat Cooper.

Legal fees skyrocket for LPSS



This follows a long Lafayette tradition of Superintendent revolving doors.

LPSB searches for yet another educational savior




Another failing school closed. Can't fix it, just close it. NP Moss which was our only recent new school in a long time at the time, was closed and reopened as a career high school.

NP Moss to Close | KLFY

Here is an interesting tidbit from that news story...

If Moss had not been changed, it could have been turned over to the state for being academically unacceptable. board members say they did all they could to save NP Moss Middle School and get their test scores up. The school facility has the best technology and the best teachers, but it still didn't help. And most parents, agree.




Speaking of this new school and severslmothers6, millions were spent on these facilities due to water intrusion and mold. NP Moss had to be closed for a year. We can not seem to even build new schools without major issues.

Waterlogged

 

[BHM]

There you go, a whole load of links and information showing how our public school system is a joke. But let's attack charter schools.

Now let's see if anybody addresses any of these links.

 

[Saint_Ward]

There is your problem right there. And your solution. What exactly have Americans who endured this horrible public education been able to accomplish in the past 50, 60, 100 years? Oh, I don't know. Go to the moon? Win a couple of world wars? Something about technology?

Don't allow yourself to be brainwashed by some narrative designed to induce disruption. Read up on the history of the segregationist motives and religious extremism behind school choice then (A Nation at Risk) and now the resulting money grab.


Same tiring argument yielding the same crappy results.

Need more money but only thru liberal programs.

You're not reading what she wrote at all. Or my brain isn't connected today.

She's talking about charter schools. There are non-profit charters and for-profit charters. They receive state money, but less, and they are subject to less regulations.

They started in 1991 in MN.

So, you're entire argument about public education not being so bad over our history, is kind of her damn point. Why do we need to push charter and private schools?

Am I missing something here?

 

[BHM]

You're not reading what she wrote at all. Or my brain isn't connected today.

She's talking about charter schools. There are non-profit charters and for-profit charters. They receive state money, but less, and they are subject to less regulations.

They started in 1991 in MN.

So, you're entire argument about public education not being so bad over our history, is kind of her damn point. Why do we need to push charter and private schools?

Am I missing something here?

Maybe I am missing what she is saying at well.

First, my argument is that public school has been historically (10-15 years) bad. I posted all those links showing how bad they are. I am now confused as to how you think I am claiming public schools are not historically doing bad?


1. How they always claim they are short on money.
2. When schools continually fail, they just get closed and reopened.
3. Spend $102.000 on new position during a deficit.
4. Complain that charters divert money but fail to mention less students.
5. How portable buildings have been filling our school yards since I was in school.


My argument is that the charters are needed because many of the public schools fail. It is my understanding that she is against charters from her Highlands Ranch Facebook links. Yet those charter schools are top performers.

If I am misunderstanding what she says then let me know. Her is what she said that I am basing my discussion on...

Instead of democratically-elected, minimum- to non-paid school board members, charter schools are run by (whoever) with (whatever) talents and agendas they may desire... They are profit-driven, without the checks and balances taxpayers deserve...

She did also take a stab at the BESE board as well but jut briefly. She then continued on her dislike of charter schools in HR and the 7 million lost by the RSD group in NOLA.

 

[Saint_Ward]

Maybe I am missing what she is saying at well.

First, my argument is that public school has been historically (10-15 years) bad. I posted all those links showing how bad they are. I am now confused as to how you think I am claiming public schools are not historically doing bad?


1. How they always claim they are short on money.
2. When schools continually fail, they just get closed and reopened.
3. Spend $102.000 on new position during a deficit.
4. Complain that charters divert money but fail to mention less students.
5. How portable buildings have been filling our school yards since I was in school.


My argument is that the charters are needed because many of the public schools fail. It is my understanding that she is against charters from her Highlands Ranch Facebook links. Yet those charter schools are top performers.

If I am misunderstanding what she says then let me know. Her is what she said that I am basing my discussion on...


She did also take a stab at the BESE board as well but jut briefly. She then continued on her dislike of charter schools in HR and the 7 million lost by the RSD group in NOLA.

What did you mean by this.

What exactly have Americans who endured this horrible public education been able to accomplish in the past 50, 60, 100 years? Oh, I don't know. Go to the moon? Win a couple of world wars? Something about technology?

To me, that's sarcasm about how we accomplished these great things with "bad public schools".

 

[BHM]

What did you mean by this.



To me, that's sarcasm about how we accomplished these great things with "bad public schools".

Ahhhh, that was not me that said that. It was SharonT in post #27 that made that comment. Looks like my quote tags in post #28 did not capture all her comments so it looks like I said that.

 

[Saint_Ward]

Ahh, OK.

 

[mb504]

Fun-roe? More like Gun-Roe, amirite??!?!!?