Anonymous said...
"Fools.
We decided to change the statement into a question.
Fools?
Sound off!
Tuesday, December 26, 2017
Thursday, December 21, 2017
The Irony of the Official News that White has been hired by Mokena School District 159
Last night the director of communications sent out the following email making official what we already knew was happening Wednesday night:
"Dear D181 Families, Staff, and Key Communicators,
The purpose of this communication is to inform you that Dr. White was approved as the Superintendent of Mokena School District 159 at their Board of Education meeting this evening (Wednesday, December 20). His employment in District 159 is effective beginning July 1, 2018.
Dr. White has expressed his continued commitment to District 181 through June 30, noting specifically his commitment to ensuring that current projects continue successfully over the next six months and transition smoothly over to the incoming Superintendent.
Sincerely,
Bridget McGuiggan"
When we read the last paragraph we couldn't help but see the irony in Dr. White's stated "commitment to ensuring that current projects continue successfully over the next six months and transition smoothly over to the incoming Superintendent."
Such a committment flies in the face of the "holiday greetings" Dr. White emailed to the community on Wednesday night. The following paragraph purported to tout the great achievements Dr. White and his team have accomplished on the strategic plan goals, but the reality is that buried non-transparently in this paragraph was the harsh reality that as a result of poor planning and disregard for the capital needs at all the other schools besides Hinsdale Middle School, the district is now faced with a major (and growing) budget deficit of over $1.36 million that will require "cuts" in the near future. Dr. White's emails stated in relevant part:
"I am proud to share that much great work is currently underway in District 181, all rooted in our multi-year Strategic Plan. The Strategic Plan helps us to prioritize initiatives, make effective decisions, and work together toward a common vision. This focus in turn creates opportunities for more efficient spending and better long-term planning. For example, on Monday evening, the Board approved a list of major capital projects to be bid, which we intend to complete this summer. (View the report on BoardDocs). The projects were first identified through a third party assessment, and then reviewed by our Buildings and Grounds Director and District Architect. Then, the list was vetted by our Board Facilities Committee, which is comprised of residents, staff, and Board members. Because our facility needs were carefully prioritized through a data-driven process, we had an informed discussion about 2017-18 and 2018-19 Budget needs, prepared a necessary tax levy recommendation, and received Board approval for the projects to be bid at a time when the bids are most likely to be competitive. We will be able to complete some major building work that had been deferred and help protect the community’s investment in our schools, while maintaining a safe learning environment. This means that we may need to consider making reductions in other areas of the District budget, but it is critical that we invest in the long-term operation of our facilities."
Note the second and third sentences that we have bolded. While true that a Strategic Plan is always intended to "create opportunities for more efficient spending and better long-term capital planning," in our opinion, the D181 Strategic Plan did NOT lead to efficiencies in the Capital Projects planning. In truth, other than focusing on building a new HMS, the real capital needs at 8 of the districts 9 schools were not properly dealt with over the last four years. Not only has the new Chief Financial Officer explained to the BOE (as justification for going into deficit spending and maximizing the tax levy that was approved by them on Monday night) that the annual $500,000 budgeted for capital needs have been woefully insufficient to pay for the capital projects needed at all of the district's school buildings, it now appears that in order to properly address the capital needs, $2 million PER YEAR must be budgeted for the next 5 years. This will, of course, only GROW the deficit each year, unless the district continues to approve a maximum annual levy AS WELL AS make cuts in other areas.
NOWHERE in Dr. White's happy email does he inform the community of the actual deficit, or that it now stands at $1.36 million deficit or that it may continue to grow if capital improvements continue. NOWHERE in his email did he explain the cause of the deficit or the fact that during his tenure the administration failed to properly budget for the capital needs at 8 of the 9 schools. NOWHERE in his email did he candidly explain the ramifications of this poor administrative planning. For Dr. White to casually state at the end of the paragraph that the district "may need to consider making reductions in other areas of the District budget" without mentioning EVEN ONCE that for the first time in several years the BOE had to approve a maximum levy which means that ALL OF OUR TAXES will go UP next year, over and above the HMS referendum impact, AND that despite this maximization, there will still be a $1.36 million deficit, is in our opinion unconscionable and completely non-transparent.
The positive spin of Dr. White's words ignore his failure and that of his past administrators in charge of buildings and grounds to do the necessary work to identify and then properly budget for the capital needs at Elm, Oak, Monroe, Prospect, Walker, The Lane, Madison and CHMS.
To state simply that the district "may need to consider making reductions in other areas of the District budget" is absurd when anyone who has been listening to the growing concern expressed by board members over the last 2 months as the looming deficit was finally exposed knows that the district WILL NEED TO MAKE CUTS! If is not a matter of IF, rather it is a matter of of WHAT CUTS WILL BE PROPOSED to balance the budget, and keep it balanced over the next five years, as the capital work needed at all of the schools is completed.
Will there be a suggestion to cut programs? Will there be a suggestion to increase class sizes to reduce teachers? Will there be a suggestion to cut planned technology expansion? Will there be a suggestion to reduce or stream-line the top heavy administration or hire administrators at lower salaries? Dr. White's "holiday greeting email" didn't mention what might be proposed, but according to the Hinsdale Doings article reporting on the 12/18 BOE meeting at which the new tax levy was approved, the Chief Financial Officer stated:
"We have some ideas about ways to save money and will be talking in the next few months about some additional things that can be done. Ultimately, we will focus on things that have the least impact on the classroom." The article went on to state that: "Dada said he believes District 181 can save about $360,000 with more efficient use of school buses and an additional $211,000 with more efficient recruiting and hiring of new teachers." (Source: http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/burr-ridge/news/ct-dhd-d181-levy-tl-1221-20171219-story.html)
Looking closely at what Mr. Dada stated, alarm bells should be going off. If one of the proposals is to save $360,000 with more efficient use of buses, does this mean that this year's newly implemented school start times will revert back to the old start times? Let's not forget that as a result of changing the start times the bus costs went up. Parents and BOE members clamored for years for a change in start times, which were finally approved last year and implemented this school year. Had the administration properly budgeted for the needed capital improvements at ALL schools, perhaps this is one change and added cost that would NOT have been approved after all.
Similary, we believe that the statement that $211,000 can be saved with "more efficient recruiting and hiring of new teachers" can only mean one thing. No doubt, the proposal would be to hire cheaper, untested, unproven teachers with little to no experience to replace highly paid retiring teachers. We would urge the administration and BOE to exercise extreme caution in going that route, since cheaper is not always better, and inexperienced and new is definitely not as good as an experienced, tested and proven teacher who comes to the district from elsewhere. We have always stated that D181 is not a "starter district" and we hope that the quality of teachers is not negatively impacted as the district takes the difficult steps needed to eliminate the budget deficit.
Since at this point no cut list has been presented to the BOE, we want to suggest one way to trim the deficit. Cut the size of the administrative staff and replace overpaid, possibly unnecessary administrators with cheaper ones. Case in point -- the director of communications who earns over $110,000/year in salary and benefits. Does D181 really need to employ a director of communications who earns that much? We hope that the BOE takes the time to do an analysis of what other high achieving districts pay for such administrative positions BEFORE they consider replacing retiring teachers with cheaper inexperienced teachers. It seems to us if an inexperienced staff member is needed, it should be one who will not directly impact the classroom!
Finally, when will the administration actually prepare the proposed cut list and present it to the BOE for discussion? Will it be in the next 6 months on Dr. White's watch? Or will this be one of the "projects" that he will simply "transition smoothly over to the incoming Superintendent?"
We will be waiting and watching what Dr. White's next move will be, so stay tuned and as always, SOUND OFF!
Such a committment flies in the face of the "holiday greetings" Dr. White emailed to the community on Wednesday night. The following paragraph purported to tout the great achievements Dr. White and his team have accomplished on the strategic plan goals, but the reality is that buried non-transparently in this paragraph was the harsh reality that as a result of poor planning and disregard for the capital needs at all the other schools besides Hinsdale Middle School, the district is now faced with a major (and growing) budget deficit of over $1.36 million that will require "cuts" in the near future. Dr. White's emails stated in relevant part:
"I am proud to share that much great work is currently underway in District 181, all rooted in our multi-year Strategic Plan. The Strategic Plan helps us to prioritize initiatives, make effective decisions, and work together toward a common vision. This focus in turn creates opportunities for more efficient spending and better long-term planning. For example, on Monday evening, the Board approved a list of major capital projects to be bid, which we intend to complete this summer. (View the report on BoardDocs). The projects were first identified through a third party assessment, and then reviewed by our Buildings and Grounds Director and District Architect. Then, the list was vetted by our Board Facilities Committee, which is comprised of residents, staff, and Board members. Because our facility needs were carefully prioritized through a data-driven process, we had an informed discussion about 2017-18 and 2018-19 Budget needs, prepared a necessary tax levy recommendation, and received Board approval for the projects to be bid at a time when the bids are most likely to be competitive. We will be able to complete some major building work that had been deferred and help protect the community’s investment in our schools, while maintaining a safe learning environment. This means that we may need to consider making reductions in other areas of the District budget, but it is critical that we invest in the long-term operation of our facilities."
Note the second and third sentences that we have bolded. While true that a Strategic Plan is always intended to "create opportunities for more efficient spending and better long-term capital planning," in our opinion, the D181 Strategic Plan did NOT lead to efficiencies in the Capital Projects planning. In truth, other than focusing on building a new HMS, the real capital needs at 8 of the districts 9 schools were not properly dealt with over the last four years. Not only has the new Chief Financial Officer explained to the BOE (as justification for going into deficit spending and maximizing the tax levy that was approved by them on Monday night) that the annual $500,000 budgeted for capital needs have been woefully insufficient to pay for the capital projects needed at all of the district's school buildings, it now appears that in order to properly address the capital needs, $2 million PER YEAR must be budgeted for the next 5 years. This will, of course, only GROW the deficit each year, unless the district continues to approve a maximum annual levy AS WELL AS make cuts in other areas.
NOWHERE in Dr. White's happy email does he inform the community of the actual deficit, or that it now stands at $1.36 million deficit or that it may continue to grow if capital improvements continue. NOWHERE in his email did he explain the cause of the deficit or the fact that during his tenure the administration failed to properly budget for the capital needs at 8 of the 9 schools. NOWHERE in his email did he candidly explain the ramifications of this poor administrative planning. For Dr. White to casually state at the end of the paragraph that the district "may need to consider making reductions in other areas of the District budget" without mentioning EVEN ONCE that for the first time in several years the BOE had to approve a maximum levy which means that ALL OF OUR TAXES will go UP next year, over and above the HMS referendum impact, AND that despite this maximization, there will still be a $1.36 million deficit, is in our opinion unconscionable and completely non-transparent.
The positive spin of Dr. White's words ignore his failure and that of his past administrators in charge of buildings and grounds to do the necessary work to identify and then properly budget for the capital needs at Elm, Oak, Monroe, Prospect, Walker, The Lane, Madison and CHMS.
To state simply that the district "may need to consider making reductions in other areas of the District budget" is absurd when anyone who has been listening to the growing concern expressed by board members over the last 2 months as the looming deficit was finally exposed knows that the district WILL NEED TO MAKE CUTS! If is not a matter of IF, rather it is a matter of of WHAT CUTS WILL BE PROPOSED to balance the budget, and keep it balanced over the next five years, as the capital work needed at all of the schools is completed.
Will there be a suggestion to cut programs? Will there be a suggestion to increase class sizes to reduce teachers? Will there be a suggestion to cut planned technology expansion? Will there be a suggestion to reduce or stream-line the top heavy administration or hire administrators at lower salaries? Dr. White's "holiday greeting email" didn't mention what might be proposed, but according to the Hinsdale Doings article reporting on the 12/18 BOE meeting at which the new tax levy was approved, the Chief Financial Officer stated:
"We have some ideas about ways to save money and will be talking in the next few months about some additional things that can be done. Ultimately, we will focus on things that have the least impact on the classroom." The article went on to state that: "Dada said he believes District 181 can save about $360,000 with more efficient use of school buses and an additional $211,000 with more efficient recruiting and hiring of new teachers." (Source: http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/burr-ridge/news/ct-dhd-d181-levy-tl-1221-20171219-story.html)
Looking closely at what Mr. Dada stated, alarm bells should be going off. If one of the proposals is to save $360,000 with more efficient use of buses, does this mean that this year's newly implemented school start times will revert back to the old start times? Let's not forget that as a result of changing the start times the bus costs went up. Parents and BOE members clamored for years for a change in start times, which were finally approved last year and implemented this school year. Had the administration properly budgeted for the needed capital improvements at ALL schools, perhaps this is one change and added cost that would NOT have been approved after all.
Similary, we believe that the statement that $211,000 can be saved with "more efficient recruiting and hiring of new teachers" can only mean one thing. No doubt, the proposal would be to hire cheaper, untested, unproven teachers with little to no experience to replace highly paid retiring teachers. We would urge the administration and BOE to exercise extreme caution in going that route, since cheaper is not always better, and inexperienced and new is definitely not as good as an experienced, tested and proven teacher who comes to the district from elsewhere. We have always stated that D181 is not a "starter district" and we hope that the quality of teachers is not negatively impacted as the district takes the difficult steps needed to eliminate the budget deficit.
Since at this point no cut list has been presented to the BOE, we want to suggest one way to trim the deficit. Cut the size of the administrative staff and replace overpaid, possibly unnecessary administrators with cheaper ones. Case in point -- the director of communications who earns over $110,000/year in salary and benefits. Does D181 really need to employ a director of communications who earns that much? We hope that the BOE takes the time to do an analysis of what other high achieving districts pay for such administrative positions BEFORE they consider replacing retiring teachers with cheaper inexperienced teachers. It seems to us if an inexperienced staff member is needed, it should be one who will not directly impact the classroom!
Finally, when will the administration actually prepare the proposed cut list and present it to the BOE for discussion? Will it be in the next 6 months on Dr. White's watch? Or will this be one of the "projects" that he will simply "transition smoothly over to the incoming Superintendent?"
We will be waiting and watching what Dr. White's next move will be, so stay tuned and as always, SOUND OFF!
Thursday, December 14, 2017
Breaking News: "Contract Term Posting" on Mokena District 159 Website Suggests that Dr. White to be Hired as Superintendent
Earlier this evening we received the following Anonymous Comment:
If you open the link, you will read a "Contract Term Posting" that states:
MOKENA SCHOOL DISTRICT 159 CONTRACT TERM POSTING: DR. DON WHITE
5 ILCS 120/7.3(b)
PROPOSED TERMS
Before publishing this news, we went to the Mokena District 159 website to confirm the veracity of the comment. We found the link to the Contract Term Posting on the D159 website under the tab for the Business Office -- Documents Upload. The posting does not indicate when the Board of Education will be approving his contract. It was not, however, approved at the last board meeting held on December 6. The next board meeting is scheduled for December 20. (Source: http://images.pcmac.org/Uploads/MokenaSchoolDistrict/MokenaSchoolDistrict/Divisions/DocumentsCategories/Documents/Board_meeting_dates.pdf)
The website also indicates that Mokena District 159 began their Superintendent search in September. The Superintendent Profile created for D159 is posted. (Source:
http://images.pcmac.org/Uploads/MokenaSchoolDistrict/MokenaSchoolDistrict/Sites/DocumentsCategories/Documents/Profile_Report_9.20.17.pdf). We leave it to our readers to form their own conclusions about this profile.
According to the Contract Term Posting, Dr. White will earn a base salary of $195,000.
Pursuant to Section 4 of Dr. White's Mutual Termination Agreement with the D181 BOE, if he earns less than a base salary of $246,000 in a new job as of September 1, 2018, he will receive a severance payment from D181 equal to the difference in base salary, up to $100,000 (minus state and federal tax deductions, etc.). (Source: https://www.boarddocs.com/il/hccsdil/Board.nsf/files/ASNPCK5AE47F/$file/2017_10_30_Settlement%20Agreement_White_BOE.pdf)
This means that D181 will pay Dr. White a $51,000 severance payment, assuming his base salary is $195,000 on September 1, 2018.
We are glad that Dr. White has landed a job so quickly and wish him well in his new endeavors.
Anonymous said...
"BREAKING??? DR. DON WHITE NAMED SUPERINTENDENT OF MOKENA SCHOOL DISTRICT 159. SEE HIS CONTRACT HERE:
December 14, 2017 at 6:52 PM
If you open the link, you will read a "Contract Term Posting" that states:
MOKENA SCHOOL DISTRICT 159 CONTRACT TERM POSTING: DR. DON WHITE
5 ILCS 120/7.3(b)
PROPOSED TERMS
- Salary: $195,000
- Health Insurance: Individual + Spouse $1,773.63 monthly
- Sick days: Annual allotment = same as teachers per MTA contract
- Vacation days: 20 days (Yr.1) 22 days (Yr.2) 24 days (Yr.3)
(Source: http://images.pcmac.org/Uploads/MokenaSchoolDistrict/MokenaSchoolDistrict/Departments/DocumentsCategories/Documents/OMA-Superintendent_Posting.pdf)
Before publishing this news, we went to the Mokena District 159 website to confirm the veracity of the comment. We found the link to the Contract Term Posting on the D159 website under the tab for the Business Office -- Documents Upload. The posting does not indicate when the Board of Education will be approving his contract. It was not, however, approved at the last board meeting held on December 6. The next board meeting is scheduled for December 20. (Source: http://images.pcmac.org/Uploads/MokenaSchoolDistrict/MokenaSchoolDistrict/Divisions/DocumentsCategories/Documents/Board_meeting_dates.pdf)
The website also indicates that Mokena District 159 began their Superintendent search in September. The Superintendent Profile created for D159 is posted. (Source:
http://images.pcmac.org/Uploads/MokenaSchoolDistrict/MokenaSchoolDistrict/Sites/DocumentsCategories/Documents/Profile_Report_9.20.17.pdf). We leave it to our readers to form their own conclusions about this profile.
According to the Contract Term Posting, Dr. White will earn a base salary of $195,000.
Pursuant to Section 4 of Dr. White's Mutual Termination Agreement with the D181 BOE, if he earns less than a base salary of $246,000 in a new job as of September 1, 2018, he will receive a severance payment from D181 equal to the difference in base salary, up to $100,000 (minus state and federal tax deductions, etc.). (Source: https://www.boarddocs.com/il/hccsdil/Board.nsf/files/ASNPCK5AE47F/$file/2017_10_30_Settlement%20Agreement_White_BOE.pdf)
This means that D181 will pay Dr. White a $51,000 severance payment, assuming his base salary is $195,000 on September 1, 2018.
We are glad that Dr. White has landed a job so quickly and wish him well in his new endeavors.
Friday, December 8, 2017
What is Wrong with Educational Leaders Today?
Today we read with dismay the following news article posted in the Chicago Tribune:
The CEO resigned and called his actions a "stupid mistake."
Interestingly, even the Mayor of Chicago came to the CEO's defense and said "he can walk out with his head held high" stating that "“An individual in time is judged by the entirety of their service. When you look at Forrest’s service … he has always gone to work with his sleeves rolled up, ready to get the job done.”
It boggles our minds how people want to ignore that WRONG IS WRONG IS WRONG.
Cover-ups are not "stupid mistakes" that should be overlooked. Seems to us that in the business of education, if we want to teach our kids right from wrong, lying and coverups cannot be ignored.
SOUND OFF!
It tells the tale of the CPS Chief Executive Officer who resigned today "after being accused of engaging in a “full-blown cover-up” during an ethics investigation by the district’s inspector general."
The CEO resigned and called his actions a "stupid mistake."
Interestingly, even the Mayor of Chicago came to the CEO's defense and said "he can walk out with his head held high" stating that "“An individual in time is judged by the entirety of their service. When you look at Forrest’s service … he has always gone to work with his sleeves rolled up, ready to get the job done.”
It boggles our minds how people want to ignore that WRONG IS WRONG IS WRONG.
Cover-ups are not "stupid mistakes" that should be overlooked. Seems to us that in the business of education, if we want to teach our kids right from wrong, lying and coverups cannot be ignored.
SOUND OFF!
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