Submitted by John Arbeeny.
On 9 January 2023 I gave a six-minute presentation to the School Board which followed the outline of my article in The Suburban Times on 21 December 2022 entitled CPSD Inside Schools November 2022 issue. What’s missing? Academics.
I pointed out that out of 8 full pages of glowing endorsements for CPSD only one small paragraph, 3” x 3” dealt with academic “Assessment”. It dismissed CPSD’s academic decline to COVID “…along with many comparable school districts.”. Taking comfort in the company with other failing school districts does not bode well for CPSD’s future. Aiming for the lowest common denominator is likely to achieve just that.
Ignoring academic achievement reporting goes beyond just “Insides Schools”. It is absent on the CPSD website and as a School Board meeting agenda item. My review of Board meeting minutes as far back as 2017 confirms this. This same paragraph directs parents, who might want to find out about their child’s school academic performance, to the OSPI website, an extra step laid on parents to obtain what should be easily obtained on the CPSD website. I’m sure that CPSD keeps these records or maybe not.
Director Anderson, with a second from Director Wagemann, made the following motion during Board Member Reports at the end of the 9 January 2023 Board meeting.
“Director Anderson moves that the district provide and regularly update on the district website, data that can be tracked per individual school that specifically addresses academic performance: English Language Arts (ELA)/Math/Science, Discipline, Attendance and Graduation Rates as applicable.”
Simple enough motion, yes? The response from Directors Pearson and Jacobs was anything but while Director Veliz sat silent during the ensuing debate.
A transcript of Directors Pearson’s and Jacob’s comments are available upon request from the author via Facebook Messenger.
Director Pearson stated that she could not support the motion because there was some kind of unspecified “narrative” behind it without explaining what the narrative was. Indeed it appears her narrative for rejecting the motion was to avoid personal, Board and District embarrassment over poor academic performance. She used an analogy comparing a child confronted by parents for a failing grade with the District staff, ostensibly all adults, confronted with the District’s academic failure. She claimed she was all for transparency, not hiding this data, and suggested that parents could search for the data on the OSPI website. However, it has been my experience that when you make things harder than necessary they don’t tend to get done.
Director Jacobs dwelt on the theme of COVID recovery. She claimed assessment scores had decreased during COVID and that publishing District schools’ academic statistics now “…is too soon“ and should be delayed until after schools have recovered from COVID, without any date certain. Director Jacobs apparently doesn’t realize that the District’s academic decline started long before COVID. This academic decline began in 2017, long before COVID which hastened it until the present.
The reality is that the Board members in opposition really have very little choice in the matter. Up for consideration at a 23/24 January 2023 School Board retreat are revisions of District Policies 1005- Planning and Key Functions of the Board; and 2004- Accountability Goals.
Policy 1005 states that the Board will: ”…adopt(ing) a system of continuous assessment of all conditions affecting education, including assessments for measuring staff and student progress towards goals. The public will be kept informed about programs and progress.”
Policy 2004 states, “Once a year the district will issue a report to parents and present it in a public meeting. The report will include the following:
- The district’s improvement goals.
- Student performance relative to the goals.
- District and building plans to achieve the goals, including curriculum and instruction, parent and guardian involvement, and resources available to parents and guardians to assist students in meeting the state standards.”
“Annually, the district will report the district’s progress toward meeting the district and building goals in a news release to local media. The report will also be included in each school’s annual school report.”
Objections by Board Directors to requirements already in Board policies makes you wonder whether they read, let alone abide by their own policies. These policy requirements do not appear to have been accomplished even once as I reviewed Board minutes back to 2017. It is every parent and tax payer’s right to know how the District is performing academically. The Board owes that to us: it’s why they were elected. Transparency is as transparency does.
Dear Mr. Arbeeny,
Rather than reading a litany of non-productive complaints and the regurgitation of data already available to the public from you about the CPSD Board, what are YOUR suggestions to improve student academic performance? It would be nice, for a change, to read intelligent, creative, thought-provoking feedback and realistic, workable solutions from you as a concerned citizen of the Clover Park School District.
Sincerely,
Fellow concerned Lakewood citizen
At least Mr. Arbeeny doesn’t hide his commentary behind the ridiculous pseudonym of “Fellow concerned Lakewood citizen (FCLC)”. What civic cowardice. FCLC is probably a shill for the CPSD directors, the teacher’s union, the CPSD Superintendant, or all of the above.
Just a thought. Perhaps the person responding was contacted and had their social media perused as I did when responding to a letter in this forum? I no longer use my full name for this reason.
This well said article clearly was stating a factual account of neglect from the schools, trolling the author for calling attention to this certainly isn’t helping, and you CLEARLY missed the entire point of what he was calling attention to.
Perhaps you can take a moment and read it slower, I’m sure you’ll be satisfied if you do. “If you really are a “concerned citizen “ why aren’t you “concerned “ with the disturbing facts presented in this article? I’m thinking it’s because you’re a board member in question just trying to denigrate mr. Arbeeny for standing up for the students. He gave his name, and laid it out there, you didn’t. And why didn’t you write how you think this should be fixed?
I’m sure it’s just a misunderstanding though, RE -read it, slowly, I’m certain you’ll understand and be very pleased and will get what is going on here.
Remember, life is a blessing, live it all out!!
Have you looked up the data? Bet you haven’t nor have many parents who wouldn’t know or have the time to go researching on the internet. The first step in solving a problem is to admit you have a problem and then define the scope of that problem. Board members Pearson, Jacobs and Veliz have habitually avoided doing this. Indeed prior Boards back to at least 2017 have avoided this based upon their minutes. It’s their job in reference to their own policies which they neglect to follow and their duty to the citizens who elected them.
Perhaps you haven’t been keeping up to date with the 27+ motions that Directors Anderson and Wagemann have made in the last year+ to improve academics, of which only 8 passed. I’d be happy to send that to you if you make the request via Facebook Messenger along with a full accounting of CPSD “good, bad and ugly” academic performance by District, school in ELA, math, science, attendance and graduation rates. How about the rambling transcript of Directors Pearson and Jacobs comments on why now is not the time, if ever to deal with academic performance. Unfortunately I don’t have a transcript of Director Veliz comments since he had none. Message me.
This problem is not going away turning a blind eye to it. Until it’s laid out in full detail before the public and the chips let to fall where they may, this District will continue its inevitable decline into the foreseeable future. It’s not about embarrassing anyone, the Board or District: it’s about our children’s future. The time to deal with this is now!
Amen CLC!
Mr. Pfeiffer, Are you saying that people in this community have not been personally targeted for expressing their opposing views to far right extremism? There is quite a collection of documented evidence being gathered to prove the relentless attack on Clover Park employees, non partisan board members and citizens who dare speak up. I was labeled a “white savior lady” for daring to share examples of how equity could help struggling students based on my years of teaching with high risk students . They attacked my reputation as a teacher without knowing one single fact about my 40 years in this district. One of their leaders said I must be a greedy union member just in it for the money. The nastiness of these sad folks is alarming.
We have had nutty people show up at school board meetings and threats made. One lady came with a paperbag over her head and caused quite a scene. She later bragged about it and it was disturbing to see she held a position in the Pierce County Republican Party. We now have a police officer assigned to every board meeting.
We have people in this community associated with QAnon, calling librarians and teachers sexual “groomers”, and “pedophiles” and claiming “indoctrination” is the entire goal of school policies. They will deny it, but it is easy to research based on their own history, actions and words. Their movement had become so toxic that they simply pretend to be these new groups. However, their message is the same. They have posted pictures of the devil to depict our Clover Park school board president and openly depicted her as evil that must be removed. They see themselves as on a “mission” to rid our children from evil public schools and to restore “parent rights”. Currently, electing board members to take control of our school district is their main goal.
A few of these very same far right political women actually joined forces to intimidate a dinner held for Clover Park district employees of color. They used their large social media accounts to call this simple dinner a “racist” event and then they showed up to the event to watch them…a form of intimidation. Luckily, they were recognized, photographed and the evidence is in the correct hands along with social media documentation. This is what is happening in our Lakewood.
So, before you attack those who fear putting their full names down when commenting, perhaps you need to wake up to the fact that we have people inside and outside of Lakewood who are displaying deeply disturbing behavior consistent with a national extremist political movement to attack public schools, unions, teachers, librarians, school board members, and anyone who stands in their way.
Is that all you have Cheri? Unfounded conspiracy theories and rants? How about dealing with the issue of the public’s right to know how their schools and District are doing academically? Do you agree or not? Should that data be listed on the District’s website instead of shifting that responsibility to the public?
Real simple questions.
Real simple answers: yes or no.
Care to address them?
Mr. Arbeeny,
You seem overly defensive. Why? I was explaining to Mr. Pfeiffer why writers may feel intimidated and here you are, jumping in to attack me personally. Very odd behavior and a great example to prove my point! Perhaps my examples hit too close to home? Do you really believe no one has kept documentation in order to make these types of claims? You actually believe the need for police presence at our school board meetings is some type of joke and just a conspiracy theory of mine? The actual documentation of name-calling and sick intimidation of public school educators are also just a joke to you? Why are you so sure this is not a real problem? You sound very defensive and that is often quite telling. I find it odd that you want to make sure people believe I’m making this up. Why?
Never underestimate the body of evidence people have gathered, Mr. Arbeeny. Your need to control the narrative is quite evident and sounds a bit desperate. Cover-ups usually fail. The truth always comes out in the end…all in good time.
Yet again.
Real simple questions.
Real simple answers: yes or no.
Care to address them?
Mr. Arbeeny,
It is obvious you are unable to follow or comprehend the different concerns responders to letters bring forth. Show some respect to Mr. Pfeiffer’s need to be concerned with people not posting their full names. That was his concern. I answered him with what I know to be true and have witnessed with the hope that this information just might help explain to him and others why people are reluctant to use their full names, especially considering the crazy behaviors witnessed at school board meetings and on social media. Everything isn’t about your need to control every conversation, Mr. Arbeeny. Move along and badger someone else.
Arbeeny,
I am curious how you keep interpreting the data wrong. One can go to YouTube and see that you, Wagemann, and Anderson have too much time on your hands. Meeting after Meeting, the district has had to have someone come in and show the actual data because of all your false assumptions about what you are looking at and the intentional false narrative you all are attempting to put out into the community because you want to push a far-right political agenda that will never serve the community as a whole or our schools well. You have no idea what you are talking about, and anyone who chooses to follow you is following an ideology, not your expertise. It’s no secret that the numbers could always be better as long as we are not at 100 percent. It’s also no secret that you can’t change that without equity. Anderson says he gets it at the school board meetings, but he is also the poster child for a far-right group countering equity behind the scenes. My question is, where is the real solution? Week after week, you post these long letters void of truth, and you talk about children as if they are robots and not actual humans with their own real-life experiences that some grown adults would probably lose their minds if they had to deal with some of those same situations. This is not 1950. Times have changed.
You have no clue what children need to succeed. Your children are how old? Today’s kids aren’t even figuring out math problems the same as when your children were in school. You can holler you have grandkids, but unless you are raising them, it’s not the same thing. Your letters to the times exude no compassion or empathy for children who have no control often over their bodies or their situations. If their parents don’t have it, the children should suffer, is what your articles say to a community of families that are living below the poverty line and fighting their best fight to survive. You are out of touch. When was the last time you had to experience living below the federal poverty line? Arbeeny, you are no expert on education. You can’t even correctly interpret the data. But meeting after meeting, the Lakewood Cares clowns show up to put on a circus wasting everyone’s time and the district’s resources, forcing all of us to have to listen to you yelling and watch Anderson and Wagemann be disrespectful and combative to their board peers and any experts in the education field who have to be brought in to provide the truth because you all intentionally don’t get it and continue to spread disinformation to push your narrow-minded agenda deliberately. At the same time, you yell about the data and have no real working solutions. We hear you, and it’s clear you have no idea what you are talking about.
Insulting ad hominem attacks such as calling CARES members “clowns” only reveals the weakness of your argument. Your alleged conspiracy theories about CARES have nothing to do with the real problems the District faces. Do you even recognize that the District has problems? Specify please. I’d love to hear your solutions. Solutions are motioned at nearly every Board meeting by Directors Anderson and Wagemann yet typically voted down by the Board majority. Check out the minutes since December 2021 if you’re really interested.
Are you content with the District’s downward trend over the last 6 years to 27 percentile? How much lower are you willing to go before you address problems? How about Clover Park High School at 3 percentile? Or Tyee Park Elementary falling from 54 to 6 percentile in just 6 years and no one notices? Or is only District “happy data” permitted to be discussed?
Interpreting the wrong data? Please identify that wrong data and the “right” data that CARES should be interpreting. Indeed the data is so “secret” that the Board majority, Directors Pearson, Jacobs and Veliz are opposed to posting it on the District’s website despite policy that requires it.
There’s a lot in this article that you could have addressed but didn’t. The questions raised by this article remain unanswered.
Should District academic data be listed on the District’s website instead of shifting that responsibility to the public?
Real simple questions.
Real simple answers: yes or no.
Care to address them?
“it has been my experience that when you make things harder than necessary they don’t tend to get done”.
Great quote John.
That has been my observation of most governing bodies today.
Too busy being busy to focus on anything meaningful enough to make a positive difference, taxing and borrowing to fuel their machine.
Success over time is derived from economy of motion and efficiency, not volume of energy.
Stands to reason that these woke eco/social-warriors and such just don’t understand the math behind that, while they save the planet from those of us who do.
It’s a quote I came up with from my experience restoring vintage cars and motorcycles. When you put the battery underneath the front seat in a bolted down battery box (my 1939 Plymouth!) guess how often you check the fluid level in the battery?
You don’t!
Same thing with expecting the public to do the District’s work in chasing down academic statistics. The District owes the public a “one stop shop” for academic statistics instead of requiring the entire adult population of the District to over load the OSPI site with data requests individually.
I attended the meeting in question and heard your speech Mr. Arbeeny.
Yes, I do believe the academic material should be available and yes I think it is important. I also know that someone setting up individual online information status testing is a constant moving target and would involve development and maintenance. This suggestion involves more money and administrative time that would be costly in an already stretched budget. At this moment I’d rather see money put into improving academia. One of the board responses was that parents would need greater explanation to fully understand the data. That point was actually proved later in the meeting.
The evening in question there was an informative presentation regarding Lake Louise Elementary School. Significant scores, activities and programs were described of a concerted effort by the entire school staff. Programming sought to improve the learning and social emotional well-being of students and was proving successful.
Interestingly, Mr. Wagemann did not easily understand the information posted and required more in-depth explanation of the well illustrated and spoken description of the information. I can see why graphs might need to be clarified by laymen as stated earlier during the meeting.
It was a bit confounding that Mr Wagemann questioned use of the Skyward Communication System used by the Clover Park to contact and share information with parents. I’m not sure why he was surprised and needed clarification? There has been previous meetings when it was discussed and has been in existence for many years.
I thought I received yearly information with scores and goals? All information is welcomed, but my greatest focus was always my own child and the actions needed for their success, not others scores.
As for a comment by Mr. Arbeeny that on base military schools did better – I do have a thought on that as I did have children attend on base. I noticed a difference the first week my children transferred off base. Schools on base were much more community and socially based. There was a much higher rate of two parent homes, there was a more common work mission which was passed onto family and by virtue more structural commonalities. The PTA’s and Booster clubs were better supported and the military sense of family was apparent. The first week one of my sons came home from a “civilian school” at Lake Louise he reported a fight. I asked him about it and he stated it was two mothers and not children. I knew then that there would be more challenges.
I found that the greatest diversity has been socio-economic factors which schools have thrust upon them. Teachers struggle to meet the needs of children from many walks of life and divergent values to include homeless, poorly parented, intelligent children with learning disabilities and disabled. Yes, data reveals levels, but it doesn’t always present the where and why’s of data results.
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for your contribution to the discussion! This is exactly want I have looked for: an intelligent rational discussion on the issues even between people who don’t often agree! I’m going to print your response and respond in kind tomorrow morning as I’m currently watching tonight’s Board workshop. Look for it!
First off, thanks for being concerned enough to attend CPSD Board meetings and taking the time to respond to my article.
Statistical analysis is an important step in any system design. Without the hard data you have little to go on. Actually it doesn’t take that much to retrieve OSPI and other source data on a website. I did it in a couple of hours and plan to have it listed on the soon to be activated Lakewood CARES website. The OSPI data essentially changes twice a year so this is not a burdensome requirement. Some of the data, particularly the Student Growth Percentile is very confusing as it purports to show relative not actual growth without any relationship to meeting OSPI standards. A topic in itself for another article.
Director Wagemann’s questions are exactly the ones that should have been asked by other Board member but were not. The only “dumb questions” are those not asked. I had many of the same questions myself. Directors Pearson, Jacobs and Veliz had little to say other than superficial congratulatory remarks that added nothing to the discussion. If each Board member had spent just 5 minutes substantively questioning the presentation Director Wagemann wouldn’t have had to do so.
Your comments on the 6 JBLM elementary schools are particularly valuable. CARES has a strong military representation with 140+ years of combined military service. CARES too has postulated that this success was most likely based upon the very things you mention: community, discipline, 2 parent families, PTAs, work ethic, etc. We’ve encountered these characteristics during our service and you’ve confirmed those notions. These schools in particular deserve more Board and administration attention to determine what works when it comes to academic excellence and how that can be used to transform the District. Their success is clearly internalized rather than externally mandated by the District. The flip side of “civilian schools” is also unfortunately apparent often as the antithesis of JBLM schools.
I do not blame the teachers for the challenges they face nor do I blame the children and parents. Unfortunately the District on many levels represents a system that is very flawed and in need of redesign from “how Board elections are conducted” to “the lack of transparency”. Systems can only achieve what they are designed to achieve, nothing more. When they fail it’s because they are designed to fail. Simply adding more money, people and “stuff” to a failing system only allows it to function poorly, often more poorly, faster! The passengers, our teachers, students and parents, on the District “bus” cannot reach their common destination if the bus driver, the Board and administration are headed in the wrong direction.
Yes, school must be looked at as an entire system in order for it to function properly.
It takes only one defective part in your automobile to leave you stranded on the side of the road.
Subsequently focusing on that part while neglecting the rest will leave you stranded again.
This is life, and this is what school is supposed to prepare our children for, especially at the elementary and high-school level.