Acting Superintendent of Schools Fran Rabinowitz wants $251.5 million to operate city schools in the budget year that starts July 1, a five percent increase. From Linda Conner Lambeck, CT Post:
The city school district needs $7 million more in 2015-16 just to keep things running as they are, according to a budget plan developed by interim Schools Superintendent Fran Rabinowitz.
A $12 million boost, according to the superintendent, would give the district a fighting chance for improvement by supplying more nurses, smaller class sizes and more hands in the classroom that she and others say are essential.“I try to be as realistic as possible,” Rabinowitz said in delivering a budget plan to the city Board of Education weeks before it is due to the city.
Full story here.
Fran Rabinowitz, it’s your turn to “be realistic.” We have a school system with a 70% H.S. dropout rate and those who make it through are barely literate. The students are a disgrace, as are the parents and you want me to pay higher taxes to continue this joke.
I have been hearing this old story for years, too many years.
What do you do with the money you don’t have to spend on the 70% who drop out? Lunch meetings or nice trips away from here to learn how to “improve” the education system?
Black Rockin,
I understand your frustration. But watch what you say! The students are not a disgrace and neither are the parents. I put six kids through the Bridgeport Schools. None them are a disgrace to Bridgeport or to me.
Kailey is a successful college grad, doing what she loves … teaching. And doing it at a place that is near and dear to her, Bassick High.
Nora is a successful college grad. Living and working in Vermont. Functioning in society and paying her bills. Living a happy healthy life with people she loves.
Alex spent five years traveling with Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus. He is well respected and known in his field. He is now living in Houston doing what he loves, and is doing very well financially.
Grace is a successful college grad, living in Syracuse and working at a homeless shelter. Dedicating her life to a life of service.
Magee is a junior in college in upstate NY. Preparing to become a teacher. Bridgeport would be lucky to hire her.
Aileen is a sophomore in high school. Doing well and working part-time.
Is that disgraceful to you? These are only six examples of success stories from the Bridgeport schools. Look deeper. You maybe pleasantly surprised at what you find.
I was at the last BBOE meeting where Fran Rabinowitz gave her 2015/2015 Budget PowerPoint presentation. I remember thinking what planet is she living on that she thinks Mayor Finch is going to raise taxes by $7 million in an election year. She indicated she expects an additional $5 million from the state and an additional $2 million from the city. She is also asking for an additional $5 million from Mayor Grinch for initiatives she wants to fund.
She is living in a fantasy land.
Black Rockin, the BPS dropout rate is nowhere near 70%. In addition, High Horizons, Multi-Cultural, Park City all perform on par with Trumbull and Fairfield schools. There are many wonderful, intelligent, articulate and engaged parents within the BPS. You really shouldn’t paint everyone with the same brush.
Although the enrollment in the elementary schools is on the increase, not decrease, the BPS doesn’t receive an increase in the MBR or ECS based on enrollment.
Maria I am only quoting the WSJ. Not you.
So, since you know, what is the dropout rate?
How many of these elementary students are on welfare, or kids of illegal parents, either way my taxes continue and continue.
Superintendent Rabinowitz and BOE Chairman David Hennessey should go to the Stafstrom fundraiser party tonight and ask, for the record, if Steve Stafstrom (if elected to the CGA or not), Lieutenant Governor Nancy Wyman, House Speaker Brendan Sharkey and Majority Leader Joe Aresimowicz will promise to ensure vBridgeport’s budget meet the state minimum budget requirement (MBR), i.e., municipality pays at least 20% of its public education budget annually in cash. If all four agree to that on record, then I’ll donate to Steve’s campaign.
To call the kids a disgrace is downright wrong. In most cases calling the parents a disgrace is wrong. What you should be pointing out is the BOE and the teachers are not doing their jobs. The teachers blame the BOE, the BOE blames the taxpayer and the circle jerk continues.
Their really is no grading system for teachers so when they have tenure they are basically safe with a job for life. The BOE never gets enough money and they have done nothing major to keep kids in school. They have not changed their curriculum in high school in years. They are too busy fighting to lead a failing system. The high school system is geared for kids going to college where they take bullshit courses, get a bullshit degree and become a coffee person at Starbucks.
Andy, to your point on the “teachers.” You did see this, right?
Evaluations: city teachers make grade
Linda Conner Lambeck
Published 11:41 pm, Monday, October 13, 2014
www .ctpost.com/local/article/Evaluations-city-teachers-make-grade-5820684.php
As acknowledged in the article, there’s room for improvement.
But that we have a city administration that undermines the public schools–making our municipality the only one in the state that has for two consecutive years FALLEN SHORT of meeting its MBR -while the mayor actively promotes charter schools is wrong.
Say what you want about your own kids, mayor, but that’s the record, and it’s all there.
Here’s one for a good fireman, Andy:
If my house catches fire, and my wife and I run and pour buckets of water on the fire and it doesn’t go out … THAT doesn’t mean water doesn’t put out fires. It means we need more water.
And let’s hope if this were a real event, the fire department, trained and funded, would soon appear and put out the fire professionally. We’re relying on you to do so. And we’re relying on you to do so immediately, without first stopping and asking me for my credit card or finding out from the mayor if you can barter with me or with another city entity for your services now.
Like your fire dept, the education dept deserves at the very least of what’s required … at the very least.
Pete, I read you attachment and have to ask, if all these teachers passed their evaluations then why are we losing so many kids who quit? With the track record the BOE has, I am not sure money is the answer to their problems. Thanks for the reply.
Pete, your analogy is perfect. We are now in the third year where Mayor Finch will not meet the MBR. Please remember that Fran Rabinowitz publicly supported, and Dave Hennessey, Hernan Illingworth, Joe Larcheveque and Andre Baker actually cast a formal vote to support allowing Mayor Finch to ILLEGALLY and UNLAWFULLY underfunded our schools. So much to talk to voters about and so little time.
Sorry, Kenneth Moales voted to allow Mayor Finch to illegally underfund our schools too!
Well, well, well; the teachers got a raise, everyone else is talking about furloughs and the BOE is $7 mil short. How much of that $7 mil went to those raises? Charter school Fran has done such a good job she make you miss Vallas. It was Sauda Baraka who brought Fran here and this budget shortage happened under her watch. Sauda let Finch underfund the BOE even since she has been on the BOE. She and her cohorts participated in turning most BOE meetings into a vaudevillian fiasco. Sauda Baraka should step down immediately, before she bankrupts education in town and turns the entire system over to the charter school corporate profiteers.
BOE SPY, are you living in any type of reality?
I would also ask how many class periods go for the endless line of cupcakes that come into your classroom every time a kid has a birthday? How many class periods go to concerts, fairs, field days, fund raisers, book fairs and other events that are less educational than assessing student achievement? Test-taking is a skill. Students will need to take and pass tests throughout their educational career. Knowing how to take and pass them is an advantage to a student.
BOE SPY, shame on any teacher or school that allows their students to have enjoyable activities in their schools. Heaven forbid children actually enjoy coming to school because of enrichment activities and plain old fun.
Hey, way back when we did not get recess if our work was not done. That was back in the nose-to-the-grindstone days. How much fun should you get to have when you have a 70% dropout rate? More importantly, how much fun will the rest of your life be? It is called ‘tough love.’ You get that from your father.
The abundance of tests has little to do with helping children, it has everything to do with testing companies making billions of dollars on creating and grading the tests. Pearson’s profits have skyrocketed under the “deformer’s” focus on administrating test after test after test.
Common Core is completely tied to the testing frenzy.
Is every teacher doing it throughout every lesson? We did not always have these tests. For a long time the teachers would just tell us how the students are doing. Come to find out, some kids were getting to high school and couldn’t read. I guess the kids forgot how because it could not be some of the teachers were lying. If everything you say is true I am sure all your students did just fine on their test. My point is, how can we get an honest assessment of how the kids are doing from grade to grade in comparison to other students across the country? If students came to your class unprepared from the year before, would you confront the teacher from last year? Then, without the test scores it would be your word against theirs.