It is one thing to be unhappy with and to disagree with the decision that has been made; to voice your dissatisfaction; and to try to find a better solution. It is a much more serious matter to intentionally spread false rumors. If you choose to continue to intentionally spread false information I will seek legal advice as to how you can be held accountable.
RUMOR: The school district is paying for Ms. Barajas’s doctorate program.
FACT: The school district has not paid one penny towards her doctorate program, nor intends to.
RUMOR: The only reason MES is going to have a STEM wing is that it is a thesis project for Ms. Barajas.
FACT: Having a STEM wing in MES has nothing to do with a thesis. All doctoral students are required to do a dissertation. Ms. Barajas is working on a doctorate in Educational Leadership. When she is at the stage of writing her dissertation (2 or more years from now) by requirement it will be about educational leadership theory, not about a STEM school. The STEM initiative in our district was publicly discussed for over a year – long before it could be predicted that Ms. Barajas would be working on a superintendent internship. I delegated this project to her because she will be the only elementary principal left in our district next year, because she has had the opportunity to visit elementary STEM schools in several states, because she has read and understands the empirical research behind the success of the STEM initiative, and because she has the dedication, competence, and skills necessary to work with staff to make this successful. Is it counting towards her superintendent internship? Yes. Is it a requirement for her doctorate? No.
RUMOR: We would violate fire code by exceeding capacities as set by the Schools Facility Board.
FACT: Exceeding capacities set by the Schools Facility Board is not a fire code violation. We have our schools regularly inspected to ensure the safety of our students, parents, and employees – and will continue to do so. I explained that I use those capacities because that is what the State recognizes. They represent capacity as determined by everything under a roof. This includes things like offices, gyms, and cafeterias. The purpose of those capacities is for funding purposes, not to determine fire code standards. Before funding was cut, you had to demonstrate that you exceeded those capacities in all schools in the district before you were eligible to build a new school. In the forums I also explained that when you look at functional capacities (i.e. the number of classrooms), both First Ave and MES would be able to accomodate our kids – and still maintain our target ratio of 18 in K; 21 in grades 1-3; and 24 in grades 4-6.
February 26, 2010 at 2:53 pm |
Great Job and THANKS for the information on setting rumors straight
February 26, 2010 at 4:15 pm |
Dr. Rickel,
I’m so proud of how you have handled these accusations, with great professionalism and grace. Instead of ignoring these falsehoods, you have met them head on, nothing dispels the lies like the truth itself. I understand that we are in a difficult situation, however, we should act as mature adults and not resort to malicious gossip. Reacting negativetly does not solve anything, it just makes an already difficult circumstance worse, and is a terrible example of behavior for our kids.
February 26, 2010 at 4:43 pm |
It is easy to find all sorts of excuses why this should not happen, and point fingers. The fact is, the Federal Government is broke, the State Government is broke, enrollment is down and the funding is just not there.
How many voted “NO” on propositions to increase funding for our schools when they should have voted “YES”. It is a shame that we are not pulling together in rough times to get thru this and lay a little blame on ourselves.
What has the towns (San Manuel and Mammoth) done to increase our enrollment since BHP shut down? San Manuel does not want to incorporate, I am sure this is not helping either. BHP wants to build homes but what about businesses and corporations? Without these, homes will stand empty as they do now.
We have to get our enrollment up! Shipping our kids to Hayden, Oracle and Kearny just because we are “upset” or our “feelings are hurt” is not the answer either. Have you compared the schools SAT scores and have these other schools achieved the National and State educational honors that our schools have?
When I was in school, it was the Oracle-Mammoth-San Manuel Unified School District. “Open-enrollment” came into play and severly crippled rural school districts across the state. Parents pulled their kids for numerous reasons to go to CDO ect., only compounding the enrollment problem. If we achieve TOP educational standards and TOP atheletic programs, there should be no reason to send our kids to different schools.
I have heard some say they have, or are going to move their kids because of a better education. I just don’t get this statement! Both my kids have been straight “A’s” since they started school, not even a “B”. This has been accomplished by our educators, my kids, and my wife and I. We utilize the internet to check grades, communicate with the teachers and ALWAYS making sure they are doing what needs to be done. We do not always see eye to eye with the school district and our oppinions may differ, but we have ALWAYS come to an agreement that is in best interest of our kids. You can not expect the Superintendent and educators to do it all, you have to take responsibility also.
I have heard many say “cut Dr. Rickels pay” and pay should be based on enrollment. I strongly disagree with those! We strive for our kids to get a TOP education so someday they can have a TOP job like Dr. Rickel. That sounds a little hypocritical when you think about it.
With the new Obama administration (like him or not) schools are going to get funding on educational performance. What that means is, you are going to get what you pay for! Dr. Rickel and our educators have made great strides in achieving educational goals and have exceeded National and State standards!
If we cut the pay of our Superintendent and educators, we WILL LOSE far more in National and State funding when our education levels drop!! Again, you will get what you pay for!
I have heard many say that Mammoth has a “better facility” with a gym and cafeteria. I am not going to argue about that, it is a very nice facility and fairly new. However, the bottom line is funding! Do we really need to run two cafeterias and do we really need a gym right now?
Why can’t we ask Dr. Rickel what we can do to HELP and start helping OUR kids and OUR communities? It is easy for anyone to sit back and do nothing, it takes us as PARENTS to get involved!
February 26, 2010 at 4:48 pm |
Now that the Facts have been stated; the rumors can be set aside and the focus can be redirected back on to our students. STEM is not an experiment. It is an intergrated hands-on approach to learning. I have seen 3 and 4 year olds grasp this curriculum with great success. I am very excited that K-6th children will have the opportunity to take part in this learning experience.
February 27, 2010 at 10:29 am |
Dr. Rickel
At both forums you stated that your plan will save around $350,000. I know that a parent requested for you to post it on the blog. Could you please post it so that we can see where the cuts are coming from?
Thanks,
Annette
February 28, 2010 at 9:31 pm |
When looking at the numbers below, people must remember that they include the savings from salaries and benefits. Often people think only of salaries and either don’t realize, or ignore, the cost of benefits that the district pays. This cost is 18% if the employee doesn’t get health insurance, 32% if they do. The amounts below indicate the actual savings based on salaries and benefits. The reduction of 4 teachers is based on the 4 least-paid teachers. The savings could actually be larger if: a teacher that gets paid more than the entry level salary retires/resigns; or a teacher that gets paid more than the entry level salary is RIF’d.
Reduction of 4 teachers due to combining all but one wing of MES: $163,000 (Still maintains targeted class sizes)
1 Principal: $82,771
1 District Maintenance: $32,884
1 Building Maintenance: $24,753
1 Custodian: $13,000
1 Computer Lab Aide: $9595
Utilities: $14,608 (This is an estimate of saving one third of last year’s MES total utility cost of $43,824 for water, electric, and gas.)
TOTAL: $340,611 (at least).
February 28, 2010 at 2:47 pm |
Ron, Doing a great Job people cant even see the good that the school district has done. Look at the awards that have been won and where we rate with other districts
March 1, 2010 at 8:53 am |
I would like it to be known that I support Dr. Rickel, Ms. Barajas and the School Board in their efforts to meet the current budget challenges. The challenges are real and the decisions are difficult. I know that Dr. Rickel’s proposal was made with the greatest consideration for the well being of every student affected. Dr. Rickel is an honorable man who is trying to make the best out of a very serious budget crisis. All along he has stated that the the primary considerations for making these decisions are to disrupt the fewest students possible, protect academics, maintain programs, and impact the fewest employees. I think the Mammoth STEM proposal made by Dr. Rickel and accepted by the school board follows these primary considerations 100%.
When I posted my comment regarding the facilities at Mammoth I stated from the start that I did not know all of the facts involved. I believed at that time that we were at the beginning of a process and wanted to voice my support for the fine facility that is MES. I wanted to state my concerns regarding accommodating students within the rooms available. I should have realized that all of the pros and cons had been carefully considered and were evaluated closely by our administrative team prior to submitting the proposal to the school board. I did not intend to second guess Dr. Rickel’s proposal for I truly believed that it was the beginning phase of the process. I also did not intend for my support for MES as a facility to suggest that FAE was anything less then a excellent school with wonderful children.
I believe that Ms. Barajas will do an excellent job of developing and implementing the proposed plan. She is an intelligent and talented principal who is dedicated to this community. The STEM proposal will keep MES open AND will provide students with a unique opportunity to excel in academics. Similarly, FAE has always been an excellent elementary school and will continue to be. The parents in this school district are very fortunate to have two elementary schools of such high standards for their children to attend.