From the looks of the online comments on The WaPo website, it seems like Rhee has lost favor with many of her former supporters. I remember when Rhee first came to DC to reign as Chancellor of our public schools over two years ago. At that time Rhee's support base consisted of many willing to give her the benefit of the doubt despite her obvious lack of credentials and experience in public education . Fast forward to 2009 and take a look at the latest newsworthy event about Rhee's de-throning of another favored DC principal, Patrick Pope who has been principal at Hardy middle school for over a decade. The official announcement by Rhee to remove Pope came last Friday, December 4. Despite this announcement, Rhee claims that Pope will be allowed to retain his current post until school years end in June 2010. Pope has been offered a promise of developing a new arts school even during a school budget deficit while lesser experienced principal Dana Nerenberg of Hyde-Addison will be his successor.
Well today
WaPo writer Bill Turque wrote a story in the metro section titled:
" Replacing Principal At Hardy Is Decried ." I am so glad that the
WaPo editorial board got around to featuring a story on this very hot topic. For a minute there I thought that the story would remain buried on the DC Wire blog. I know it's hard for the editorial board to print any news that isn't favorable to Rhee. What a sigh of relief for those of us who want to follow the news. Just click on the title of this article and you can read it in its entirety.
What's of interest are the 'too many for me to count' negative comments from WaPo on-line readers about the Hardy middle school story. This litany of remarks brings to mind images of Rhee's slow but certain crash and burn. When will it come ? I think if Rhee continues down this slippery slope, she just might not make it to June. Wishful thinking or reality ? So it seems the general public has had it up to here with Rhee and quite a few maintain that Fenty has lost their vote as well. Here's a sampling of what the people are saying about Rhee, courtesy of the WaPo :
missbei: It is clear that Pope does not want to leave Hardy. While some erroneously believe that he is receiving a "promotion" to be head of a magnet school that doesn't have a building or budget, in fact he had no choice other than unemployment. Pope could spend the next year helping the new principal transition while also planning the magnet school, but Rhee won't allow it. She wants him to have nothing to do with the school he has worked 11 years to develop because of promises she made to neighborhood parents. Rhee has not given Pope a budget or any details of how he can build the magnet school. Starting a school from scratch may be exciting for some, but real leaders like Pope know that working with staff, families and students for 11 years to develop and improve an existing school is more rewarding. Rhee's insistence that she made Pope an offer and he accepted is disingenuous. Really she gave him an ultimatum. There is a difference.
wordwise1: It's a shame that Chancellor Rhee seems to get away with whatever she wants. She terminates teachers, administrators, and staff w/no logical reasons, just dishonest excuses, and says that she wants white parents to return to DCPS. She makes disrespectful comments to the press about a current principal who has demonstrated his commitment to the students and parents in DCPS for many years. Thankfully, the Hardy parents are strong and determined enough to not let her walk down this road easily. Indeed, it's a shame what Mayor Fenty allows Rhee to do that is damaging and costly to our students, educators, and city. He does not get my vote this time.
hello101 : Chancellor Michele Rhee is a very divisive person and has again demonstrated she is not good for DCPS. She has never been a principal or certified as a teacher. She needs to move on. This action to remove Patrick Pope, an outstanding, experienced principal is not new. The parents and students at Hardy EC deserve their principal back.
Rhee has also told the teachers and staff at the community of The “NEW” Walker-Jones School that Principal Grant who is BLACK that he would not be returning for the SY 10-11. He is going to be replaced by an “inexperienced” principal Melissa Martin and from Scott Montgomery ES. She has never made AYP and she also is from the New Leaders Program. It's about time folks see what is going on with our community and how Rhee has lied to the teachers, principals, students, and the community. She is destroying DCPS and we can’t wait until 2010.
edlharris : Go to http://georgetownmetropolitan.com/2009/12/04/breaking-news-pope-to-leave-hardy-to-form-new-arts-and-music-magnet-school-hyde-principal-to-replace-him/ for another write-up along with an audio recording of the first 1 hour and 10 minutes. Listen especially at 1 hr 1 min 45 sec as Rhee acknowledges that her deputy misled the NAACP.
wtf1: Dear Hardy parents: Be vigilant because what she is proposing is the same exact thing that she did with Adams Elementary. The Oyster parents wanted a middle school to transition their kids too and Adams was predominantly black and they told the parents that their children would be welcome; but in the end the didn't accept but two students (I'm serious) -- just two and none of the teachers. They even told the teachers that they could work in the new school. They shipped them all out. I think one teacher got a job at the elementary school. They just wanted the building and at one point said that's all that they want was an empty building. The parents who are from the Oyster community where persistent in their pursuits to take our school and they did. It's the same thing that they are proposing for you. They'll say that all children are welcome and that all teachers can stay; but as they get closer and closer to the date they'll make provisions (like change the focus of the curriculum) to make it less and less attractive to you. Set a precedent and don't let them take your school and do what they want with it ! If the neighborhood children want to go to your school then they have to just go with your kids. They are attempting to whitewash your school and don't think it's not racially motivated because it is. Those parents want the school but they don't want their kids sitting next to yours in class.
noodles_20009 : Well guess what. My child is in private and we want to return to public for high school. But I cannot abide Chancellor's Rhee's management style. She is a breaker, not a fixer. She alienates, she infuriates, she obfuscates. And I ask: How many in-boundary applicants were rejected during Pope's tenure? We applied to Hardy, it is not a confusing process in the least. We chose private over Hardy because of Rhee. She is continuing the great tradition of inconsistency and havoc, which is what drives many white middle and upper middle class to private or other jurisdictions, like Montgomery County. Plus the racial subtext here is appalling. Rhee, a product of private day school by the way, demonstrates once again that she is clueless and not fit for the job.
oldmh: White middle class former Hardy parent here: I attended the meeting at Hardy last night and came away with a strong impression of Michelle Rhee as someone who doesn't know how to manage adequately. She said that she had a high regard for Pope and that's why she wanted him to start a new middle school. She wanted us to believe that she was not replacing him because of complaints from in-boundary families. But her actions suggested otherwise.
For example, she admitted that her deputy lied recently when she said there would be no staff changes at Hardy because she thought it would be better to announce it all at one time at this meeting. Given that Rhee had earlier met privately with Key Elementary parents about Hardy but had canceled a meeting with Hardy parents, it appeared as if she cared more about Key parents than Hardy parents.
A good manager would recognize that her actions have been misinterpreted and would work proactively to address that problem. But she expected the audience to accept that she really really didn't mean it that way and she spent a fair bit of the evening smiling and even laughing which infuriated the audience. A good manager recognizes that treating people this way destroys her credibility.
Rhee could have handled this transition entirely differently. Instead she has thrown a school which was working well into upheaval and she has poisoned the well for the new principal. And now she will go to the national audience and talk about how she really really cares about students when the reality is that she is a bad manager and a poor leader.
Educate2Elevate :The decision that is being made regarding the Hardy Middle School is clearly racist at its core. Mr. Pope is too inclusive in his approach (read "he likes people of color too much) and therefore must be removed. The Hardy community has had access forever to "their school." A new building and a rough economy are strong motivators to reclaim "their" school. I wonder what the fathers and mothers of the civil rights movement would think about this shift backwards? I wonder what our President thinks of this decision? I wonder what our mayor in this election year is thinking about this? What is the council thinking? Is Washington, D.C.'s educational system going to be the next battleground for civil rights in the new millennium ? Blacks and whites and all others alike should be listening and watching. We might find ourselves ashamed of ourselves. Ashamed that we have allowed politics to overshadow ethics. Who is currently advising the Chancellor? Is she listening to wise counsel? Is she distracted by her personal life? All I can say is WOW!!!
Are you ready for Rhee to crash and burn? I know I am.
Posted by The Washington Teacher, featuring Candi Peterson, blogger in residence, comments courtesy of WaPo website
This is another example of Michelle Rhee bashing DC teachers all across the country rather than taking responsibility for the fact that she is an inept manager and only made student achievement in DC public school worse in her tenure. (Check out NAEP scores for DC black students and how the achievement gap is worse than when she came). Rhee has to go around on the talk circuit and convince others because no one in the DC area is listening anymore to her rhetoric. Rhee like the mayor only have one weapon which is to fire thousands of DC employees. Their goal is to destroy all unions in this city and privatize city government.
The DC city council has promised long ago an independent evaluation of our public schools as well as an internal audit. To date we are still awaiting this to happen. Many of us believe that the results will demonstrate Rhee’s exaggerated claims of student achievement and fiscal MISMANaGEMENT.
My question is what is taking so long City Council member Brown.
Signed, sick and tired of being sick and tired of Rhee and Fenty
Chancellor Michelle Rhee spoke about everyone being accountable but herself. I think her
performance is more important than anyone she spoke of during the interview with Mr. Cooper.
What I noticed was that Rhee’s answer to practically every question was “Human Capital” (I think that’s Rhee’s management-speak for “teachers.”)
Cooper asks what’s next in education? And Rhee answers, “I think one of the things were going to see over the next few years is a real focus on teacher quality and human capital in schools.”
Cooper asks about changes in education and Rhee answers, “I actually don’t think it’s going to be something in the realm of computers or smart boards…. I think the real innovation is going to happen around accountability for the adults in the system…with the focus on human capital…. How we change the ways teachers are thought about in society, how they’re compensated; how they’re evaluated…. That’s what’s really going to drive the innovation going forward.”
Cooper asks about creative solutions to education and Rhee answers, “It’s absolutely the human capital. It’s the quality of educators in the classroom and leading our schools…. “
Why even go to do the trouble of bringing in students to comment, when they were just used as shills for Rhee to put down teachers. When the first student commented on older teachers who “have connections,” Rhee saw an opening to blast unions: “It’s a significant problem that in this country right now we have a dynamic where you can be incredibly ineffective. You can, you know, actually take kids backwards in terms of their academic achievement, every year, year in and year out and still have a job.” [I think she should be required to present the data that proves she has kept teachers on the payroll who have taken kids backwards over a period of years, and then explain why she didn’t put those teachers on the 90 day plan and have them fired.]
When the second student suggested more technology for the future, Rhee disagreed, suggesting more focus on human capital, of course.
This interview was a farce. Anderson Cooper simply provided a forum for Rhee to publicize her only plan for reforming DC schools — firing teachers.
When Chancellor Rhee arrived in town she did not create an education plan. After much criticism, she created an educational plan 18 months into her term. Her educational plan included a plan to get rid of a significant share of her teaching workforce through buyouts, layoffs, terminations, etc.
Chancellor Rhee has since fired a significant share of teachers, administrators and school staff without due process and without regard to their performance ratings. Rhee believes in firing probationary teachers without regard to performance, seasoned administrators with schools that have made documented gains and the list is endless. Rhee recently terminated 388 teachers and school staff via a reduction in force in November ‘09 after school started which has created over sized classes & teachers teaching outside of their certification. Rhee hired over 900 teachers this year then argued that she had a budget deficit which caused her to terminate 266 teachers and over 100 school system employees, many of whom were highly qualified and certified. No credible school system in America terminates highly qualified and certified teachers & staff while continuing to hire mainly new teachers who lack experience and are at not highly qualified. This ensures that mostly students of color are more likely to be taught by an inexperienced and un-certified teacher thereby contributing to the increasing disparity in the achievement gap between black and white students. This is also a violation of NCLB. Students of color are more likely to be taught by a teacher who is provisionally certified, inexperienced and lacking in HQ credentials.
Certainly the piece by Anderson Cooper was a farce. I agree with e-favorite that Rhee was simply given a platform to spew her lies and continue to bash public school teachers on CNN as well as give a plug to Mayor Fenty for his next election bid. This is about capitalism and privatization of public education through hefty million dollar contracts to groups like TFA and the New Teacher Project. This creates a revolving door workforce of inexperienced teachers who stay an average of 3 years and leave before gaining the experience, professional development, mentoring, coursework and professional certification to become better teachers.
I do hope that the DC CIty Council in their oversight role of public education will take a stand and continue to investigate instances of fraud within DC public schools. Rhee is still hiring teachers despite the fact that she claims that there is a budget deficit and one that is continuing to grow under her leadership and will require more layoffs in 2010-2011. Rhee more than likely will fire more teachers within this next year.
I support an immediate forensic audit by the DC City Council, like the one conducted in the Barbara Bullock union scandal. I also support getting on with the independent evaluation so that the results can be provided to the public before Mayor Fenty’s next election. What can you do to help facilitate this Mr. Brown and how can we be of help to support your efforts ? It is finally time for some real accountability of Michelle Rhee.
While there is some political hay to be made trashing the chancellor (especially by those who do not support the mayor), the vast majority of residents understand and respect that she came into a system that had been wrecked by adults for political gain. We know that WTU is part of the problem. Unions can be part of the solution and are a great resource for the country, but this union needs to dismantle and a new union formed with legit leadership.
Sorry, Ronnie, I do not “understand and respect that [Rhee] came into a system that had been wrecked by adults for political gain.”
I was very excited when she first came in, because I hoped she’d improve the school system. I could not longer support her when it became obvious that her goal was simply to bust the union for the political gain of adults and didn’t care at all about effects on kids (or she couldn’t have RIFd teachers mid-year, upsetting students learning environment)
I believe the Michelle Rhee feature on Anderson Cooper 360 was both appalling, inaccurate, biased and an example of why I will NEVER support anything Anderson Cooper speaks on, produces, writes, edits, tweets, googles or affirms in any way. It is bad enough that the City Council has allowed her to manufacture RIFs, conduct massive layoffs and to badmouth the citizens and children of the District as well as its workforce. However, when a person like Anderson Cooper gives an educational dilletante so much exposure and allows a platform for her to lie about data with no one to represent the opposite side of the argument, something is very wrong. The only scores that have improved are white students’ scores and that translates to a problem for everyone because all children must succeed!!
Councilman Brown, you were merely ‘present’ the day Peter Nickles became the Attorney General of our nation’s capital. We need you to be present and ACTIVE to rid the city of leaders who operate in the reptilian manner Rhee espouses. Ronnie above posts that the current union needs to be dismantled and reformed into a different organization. While I agree that all organizations have their problems, it is a serious issue that Rhee is unable to respect or follow ANY RULES of any organization and that she is allowed by the supreme legislative body to operate with impunity while breaking the Anti-Deficiency Law and other similar laws.
Rhee cannot be trusted to be responsible for anyone’s children with the destructive decisions she has made while responsible for students in Sacramento. Ms. Rhee was made aware of sexual allegations against her fiance when she was in the position of being a mandatory reporter in Sacramento. She did not. There is no statute of limitations with respect to her failure to act appropriately within the confines of the law. Rhee also interfered in a federal investigation by contacting former Inspector General Gerald Walpin, the man whom President Obama chose to fire or have fired when allegations about her fiance came out. How is this at all acceptable?
People say this has nothing to do with her current position. What a naive perception. It has everything to do with her current position. A woman who is amoral enough to protect a man who prefers little girls to women his own age is now engaged to a woman with a child’s body. If she can interfere with a federal investigation without reproach, what wouldn’t she do? It is clear she has no respect for the City Council or even for the President of the United States if she dares to interfere with an Inspector General. After all, the President did sponsor legislation to protect Inspectors General.
Well, he is another of Rhee’s victims. Is she more powerful than the President? Her level of power reminds me of a poignant scene of the motion picture Malcolm X where a police officer commented “That’s too much power for one man to have.” Rhee is clearly more powerful than the mayor and we all know exactly what he thinks of the City Council, of which he was once a part.
The proper way to effect change is to follow the rules in place while making changes to the process by which things are done. It is no better for a broken system to be replaced by a tyrant, his out-of-control undereducated and underexperienced chancellor and his police chief who allegedly bends the law for the privileged.