The Fall of CMS, Good for Charlotte?

[dubone]

Break it up or reconsitute it (ie. fire most downtown staff and superintendant, and carefully rehire)

[uptownliving]

It's uncalled for!  Putting TRAILERS outside of a school that hasn't even been finished yet?  That is absurd, I really hope that NoMeck breaks away from CMS.  The school system in Union County (where I reside) isn't much better though, most if not all of our schools have trailers in rows.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Its not just the suburban schools that open brand new with trailers....Piedmont Middle school just finished a huge renovation and expansion project...when it opened in Jan sure enough there were 6 trailers outside that are still there today and being used.

[monsoon]

Its not just the suburban schools that open brand new with trailers....Piedmont Middle school just finished a huge renovation and expansion project...when it opened in Jan sure enough there were 6 trailers outside that are still there today and being used.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Not the same issue. In Piedmont's case the trailers were already there. But planning and building a new school that requires them before it is finish is really bad planning and like everything indicates the Board has little regard for the North. Of course no one expects to see trailers at the new school in 2nd Ward.

[uptownliving]

Actually the trailers were not there during the renovation....they were moved to the school after the renovation and expansion was completed.

As far as your opinion that the School Board has little regard for the North....they just recently added 6 security guards at Hopewell High School and North Meck. Also they have taken measures to improve their customer service.

I think that is really silly if they did not take up the Huntersville mayor's offer of free cops for the schools.

[monsoon]

Again, the additional cops was made after the extreme incompetance and lack of attention to the bussed in violent kids made it into the news. CMS completely ignored the problem in the schools until it became a problem warranting coverage by the local paper.

Silly doesn't even begin to describe how bad they are in ignoring the Mayor of Huntersville. If that doesn't show disregard, I don't know what does.

[tuthdoc]

Hi All - this is my first post but i have been reading all of this with much interest. I just have a couple of comments.

I am moving from NY to NC this summer(yes another transplant) mainly due to quality of life issues, schools and business opportunity. I don't want to invalidate anyone's comments - especially since I may not have the full picture yet. I do want you to know a little bit of what's happening in other areas and why we are choosing to come to Charlotte. I think it may help shed a little positive light on your schools:

Right now where I live in NY (a very nice section of Nassau County on LI), our school tax is $6,400 a year. The total tax burden on my home is $8,900. My house is a 1800 sq ft split built in 1958 on less than .25 acres. My office, in the same town, is located in a home on about .2 acres. It is in a business overlay district and the taxes on that home are $14,600 a year!! It will be reassessed next year for a "library use fund" of $400 more. The spending, per child, in the school district is $17k - very high. Keep in mind that the district next to ours was just audited and $11m has been found to be "missing". We all know that our money is being wasted, and far more than in CMS! Look at the mess NYC schools are in!! Money diverted to pay tax certiories to cover state Medicaid shortfalls, gross misappropriation of funds and schools that are falling apart!

Our schools here perform in the 65th percentile while many schools in CMS are in the 90's. Spending, per student, is lower in CMS. The school tax, however, is MINISCULE compared to the Northeast and West Coast. After doing research for months, I can only say that with the amount of money flowing in, they appear to be doing an excellent job for the most part. There are some very talented people who really want our kids to do well. This is not to say that things couldn't be better. You will find waste and mismanagement at all levels of any governmental institution - the nature of the beast, I suppose.

In any event, CMS is experiencing big-time growing pains. From the outsider's point of view, I think they will solve this with contruction and some re-districting. It will take time but as growth stabilizes, they will catch up. In the meanwhile, they are building some state-of-the-art facilities (our schools were built in the 20's) and kids seem to be doing well both statistically and otherwise.

I don't know what the answer will be - splitting off may ease the burden in the North by having their own administration directly accountable for the tax dollars in their district. It may, like it did here, just add another layer of inept beurocracy and a doubling of costs for services that will have to be duplicated within a separate district. Remember that if a split happens, things you may take for granted like school bus contracts, deferred and ongoing maintenance costs, building of new infrastucture will all have to be addressed and may cost more due to decreased volume. Like someone else said; it's easy for politician's to blame CMS as long as they have no accountability on their own. Once you have spent tens of millions splitting off, what happens if they can't get the job done???

Easy on the flames - just trying to put a "glass is half full" mentality into it...

Ryan

[monsoon]

Welcome to the forum tuthdoc! We welcome differeing opinions and perspectives here and you certainly did that in your response. It does help to keep things in perspective on how fortunate that we do have it in the Charlotte area compared to other areas. I hope we see more of you around here.

[orulz]

Here in Raleigh the schools that are being built are just getting bigger and bigger. I expect it's the same in Charlotte. While I understand the issues of cost and efficiency, I don't like the idea of elementary schools with more than 1100 students. I'd rather see smaller districts and smaller schools - but with growth happening like it is, I seriously doubt that we'll ever be able to head in that direction.

[dubone]

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/new...on/11086696.htm

My wife works in the system, and from everything i have heard in the last few years, this article is the absolute truth. The district monitors and controls everything the teacher must say or do, giving them worksheets with exact quotes, like "teacher must say: '.....'" and "teacher must write: '...' on the board". Teachers get fired or reprimanded if they do not comply with these, they audit and monitor like hawks. As a result, they comply, but then get blamed when the poorly crafted scripts fail to inspire the students, and fail to meet test scores. It is the single most common reason i have known of teachers to quit CMS and quit teaching altogether. So, most of the turnover is corrected by hiring non-certified teachers that rely on the scripts...

I guess paint-by-numbers is good art, too, according to CMS management.

[uptownliving]

As expected the seccesion movement didn't get very far in the NC Legislature. It was overwhelmingly defeated in committe yesterday. Looks like this effort is back to Square 1.

[dubone]

lately, i am much more in favor of the high-powered task force with business leaders, etc., taking a look at the management of the system. Charlotte's management talent are definitely in the business world, and that is the best hope at getting meaningful reforms in the management of one of the largest school districts in the country.

2 poorly-run school districts would be as bad or worse as 1.

[DigitalSky]

I think it's too bad the discrict won't be divided up. CMS is one F'ed up school system lol. http://www.wcnc.com/news/topstories/storie....1b64dcc74.html

[monsoon]

I believe there is more than one NC congressman who was planning to file a bill.

[uptownliving]

All of the bills have to start in the Education Cmte....which voted 30 something to 1 to defeat this bill....so looks like they have a long road ahead of them if they want to be succusful.

[monsoon]

Unless they start in the Senate.

[uptownliving]

The Education Cmte in the Senate doesn't have any members from Mecklenburg County.

[Raintree21]

Unless they start in the Senate.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Does it matter if they start in the Senate? It still has to go through the House, and hence the house committees to be approved, right? So as long as there is such strong disapproval of splitting CMS up in the House, it will never happen.

[uptownliving]

I think if North Meck really wants to make this happen they are going to have to create a statewide political revolution. It's possible to do but will take a lot of effort and money to accomplish. They will have to find and help get elected a couple hundred people that are sympathetic to their cause all across the State.

Meck is not the only county in the state that has had failed attempts to deconsolidate the schools. A similar attempt failed in Wake Co not too long ago.

[monsoon]

Does it matter if they start in the Senate? It still has to go through the House, and hence the house committees to be approved, right?  So as long as there is such strong disapproval of splitting CMS up in the House, it will never happen.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Very true, but it avoids having the deal closed by one legislator as what happened in this case. Though he may very well lose the next election over this issue so it would become a moot point.

[Raintree21]

Black will allow deconsolidation talk

MATTHEWS, N.C. -- House Speaker Jim Black reversed course Friday, announcing that he would allow supporters of the Mecklenburg County Education Freedom Act to be heard in Raleigh.

The surprising decision came a day after members of the House Education Committee voted 36-1 against the measure, which would allow Mecklenburg County residents to vote on whether to break up the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school district.......

[monsoon]

Yep, it is back on the table again. Support for de-consolidation is pretty strong.

[DigitalSky]

here we go again.

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/liv...on/11375480.htm

RALEIGH - Backers of splitting up Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools said they expected a state House committee to oppose their attempt to divide the school district at a public hearing Tuesday.

But they did expect the chance to speak.

And many said after the hearing they didn't get it.

[uptownliving]

On WBTV they reported that School board member Larry Gaverau and Commisioner Jim Puckett had to be escorted out of the hearing by the Seargant at Arms.

[monsoon]

Apparently Rhodes along with other state legislators are going to introduce legislation that would allow any county in NC to vote to break up their school system.

The stunt by Gauerau and Puckett go the movement important airplay that it needed.