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Sweetwater's Bond Oversight Committee Calls Special Meeting
After reading your post, I really want to know why Dr. Brand didn't know that the district's idea to place a principal on the committee was illegal. Or, maybe he did... and didn't care. One would think they would have consulted with an attorney before trying to float that idea past the BOC members.— August 10, 2012 2:23 p.m.
Sweetwater's Bond Oversight Committee Calls Special Meeting
"...to establish the fact that the committee is an independent entity, and to send a message to the district that the committee wants the long-standing vacancies on the committee to be filled." I attended the BOC meeting. One of the district's solution to high number of vacancies on the committee was to place a high school principal in one of the seats. Yes, you heard me right; a suhsd administrator on an oversight committee. During the tenure of Dr. Gandara, many of these seats were filled with relatives or friends of some of the current suhsd board members. All were "whatever Dr. Gandara wants, Dr. Gandara gets." Under the tenure of the current superintendent, err... contractor, these seats sit empty because the district wants "the right people" on the committee. I believe they want their own people, eg. the principal, so they do no follow-up with any of the regular applicants. Dr. Brand himself has admitted to the fact of this practice.— August 9, 2012 8:01 p.m.
Sweetwater School District Kids Face Bus Cuts
Open boundaries is just another Dr. Brand boondoggle to encourage the parents that send their children to charter schools to return to the SUHSD fold. Some parents put their children in charters or private schools because they think the resident school isn't good enought. But, if there is a chance to have their children attend one of the higher performing schools then they will go for it. Too bad the number of students who will be able to transfer is not what the public has been led to believe. So, the parents enroll the children in their home school, apply for the transfer, only to find out that their choice has been closed due to overcrowding. Did I say boondoggle? If there was even a reasonable effort put forth to help raise the skills of the lower performing students at ALL schools, the district would see greater gains. But, NO! Dr. Brand is always about the money. He is always looking for a new way for the district to make money. Always. Offer iPads and they will return (at a cost in the millions), create a new and exciting charter and they will return (at the cost of millions), create open attendance boundaries and they will return (at the cost of student safety and overcrowded schools). How about creating an environment that encourages them to return because there is something worthwhile to return to. Dr. Brand is the wrong person to be leading Sweetwater. He has brough back his old methods of leadership, and even though they are different than the leadership of Dr. Gandara, the end results are pretty much the same.— August 9, 2012 11:31 a.m.
Sweetwater School District Kids Face Bus Cuts
Wow! This is not only high school. It is middle school as well. And, as to your own son, you only mention he walk home. You say nothing about how he gets to school in the morning. Mayhaps, mommy gives him a ride? Your comment about danger being everywhere is true, but there is no need to add to the danger by putting our younger students on the streets at 6:00 AM. You sir, are an insensitive and irresponsible parent.— August 7, 2012 11:22 p.m.
Sweetwater School District Kids Face Bus Cuts
"Here's the problem with that idea: it is probable that Sweetwater has already been doing that very thing. A sum of approx. $50 million was listed as debt servicing/interest--and that was for one year." and that was only for the State Matching Funds Fund. Last January Dr. Brand said $80 million was the figure.— August 7, 2012 3:44 p.m.
Sweetwater School District Kids Face Bus Cuts
"Rubio pointed out that the state no longer mandates student transportation except for special-education students or students who attend schools that are on the needs- improvement list and therefore are eligible for intra-district transfers." Then don't you think it's time to stop building these super sized schools that draw from an ever increasing distance in the school's attendance boundaries? Here's an idea, why not build ONE super-super sized school in the middle of Chula Vista and have all the students in the city go there. A school built to hold 10,000 students and then squeeze in say 20,000+, and make them all walk to school. Why, the walk will only be about 12 miles for some. No problem. Think of the administrative costs you would save. If I remember right, Eastlake High School was built to hold about 2,100-2,200 students as built. In 2002 Dr. Brand authorized the enrollment to approach 3,400, because the administration hadn't planned for the rapid growth in Eastlake, and hadn't started on plans for Otay Ranch HS. At that time, Eastlake's attendance boundary included homes on Main Street and near the 805. Think about that for a minute. A mandatory attendance boundary that far away and Manuel Rubio wants to remind us that they have no obligation to provide transportation. Does it help matters that Eastlake HS starts school at about 7:15 in the morning? Not hardly. All the students who live at the extreme edge of the boundary have to be walking to school by 6:00 in the morning. Thanks Dr. Brand for yet another non-brilliant idea. Meanwhile, CV Elementary planned for the growth, brought online a new school in the area every 18-24 months; kept the schools small and closer together and kept the walking distances down.— August 7, 2012 9:26 a.m.
Sweetwater School District Kids Face Bus Cuts
erupting... you forget, John McCann also voted no on the raising of mello-roos taxes. Wasn't he a good fiscal conservative with that vote? Oh, wait! I forgot he voted to spend all those mello-roos monies on track serfaces, iPads, an unwanted amphitheater, a telescope at a school that no longer teaches astronomy, and a whole list of things those monies are being wasted on. Yessir! Good ol' Johnny McCann doesn't want his taxes to go up, but he sure like spending that same pile of money on useless things. Fiscal conservative my...— August 7, 2012 9:03 a.m.
Sweetwater School District Kids Face Bus Cuts
Mostly, all you provide is biased inuendo. The only real fact you present is her teacher's association (not a union) association. Yet, even there you stretch the truth. She is a site rep. Site reps are not a "high ranking union member." She gets a well deserved pass because she is a responsible board member. The situation reminds me of that children's song "One of These Things (Is Not Like The Others)" Words and Music by Joe Raposo and Jon Stone. In this case Bertha Lopez is not like the other board members. The other board members are all alike. And, their similarities are not good for the public.— August 7, 2012 8:53 a.m.
Dust Devil Settles in Southwest High’s Dumped-Dirt Debacle
Just the fact that John, Jim, and Ed are involved in finding people to run for Pearl's seat and the seat of Lopez shows just how unethical they are. I would suggest they keep an eye on their own seats and job and keep their noses out of stuff that shouldn't concern them. Finding candidates is for the public to do, not the old cronies who jusy want to continue with their mismanagement of the public trust.— July 31, 2012 10:56 p.m.
Dust Devil Settles in Southwest High’s Dumped-Dirt Debacle
oskidoll... The Emergency Waiver Request for contracts to remove untested soil at Southwest High School was submitted to the Business Services Division of the San Diego County Office of Education on January 27, 2012. (This is the statement written on Resolution 4121) The resolution also states "Staff deemed it critical to make these safety adjustments on order to avoid what could be a catastrophic accident." So, in January of 2012, Dr. Brand states we possibably have a "catastrophic accident" waiting to happen, and by June, 2012, he says "It's a pile of dirt." Since Mr. Gauger says," We have been turned down, or laughed at, at every attempt," in SUHSD's attempt to have the dirt removed, I am of the opinion that there is more to the dirt than the district is telling. If the dirt is clean, then why all the trouble removing it? If the dirt is clean, then why redact all the pages from the soil test report?— July 29, 2012 8:01 p.m.