Peoria Rocks Hero of the Year-to-date!

The winner is... Kirk Wessler, sports writer for the Peoria Journal Star. This guy hit a home run with this article. It is so on-point and comprehensive I can't think of a single comment to improve upon it.

By KIRK WESSLER
of the Journal Star
Posted Jun 18, 2009 @ 10:30 PM
Last update Jun 19, 2009 @ 01:45 PM

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PEORIA — When the District 150 school board finally votes on which of its four high schools to close, the choice should be a no-brainer.

Say good-bye to Manual.

It won’t be that easy, of course. For some reason, Manual seems to be surrounded by a magic force field that has made the school untouchable in this debate. That needs to change. Right now.

Much as I hate to see any school close, I believe it’s a financial necessity. Reasonable people disagree and present compelling data about the “right size” for urban high schools, to support keeping all schools open. If they can find a way to do that without drowning us in debt, more power to them.

The board, however, voted in April to close a high school but deferred specifics. The vote on which school to close will come whenever it shows up on the agenda. Could be any week now.

Closing Richwoods, the only city high school north of War Memorial Drive, is out of the question. All the talk to date has focused on Peoria High, a.k.a. Central, and Woodruff.

But why has Manual been off the table? I know one board member who wonders the same thing, and I suspect there are others. It’s way past time for them to open their mouths in public and in a loud, clear voice demand rational, substantive answers before they endorse one more lame proposal from an administration that has zero credibility with the taxpaying public.

Manual’s location alone should make it the No. 1 candidate for closure. The campus is pinned into the far-southwest corner of the city, a mere three blocks from the Limestone Community school district. The growth potential is non-existent. Residents of West Peoria and the Peoria West Bluff, a sizable slice of which falls within Manual’s attendance boundaries, abandoned the school years ago.

Manual’s future as a viable high school is a lost cause.

That’s painful to say, because the negative perception of the neighborhood is overblown and unfair. I’ll grant it can be a rough area, but not once have I ever felt unsafe there. I attend church on the South Side, three blocks south of the school. I visit Manual. I’m in the neighborhood several times a week, day and night. I’m watchful, but never worried.

Perceptions are real, though, even if they’re wrong. So, parents of kids in suburban schools don’t want to schedule sports contests at Manual, and city dwellers don’t want to attend events there. Almost nobody with a choice wants their kids to go to school there. So they don’t do any of those things.

Those are facts. Here are more.

Other than basketball, Manual’s programs have become perennial failures. We’re not talking about dismal won-lost records, which have led to ownership of last place in the conference all-sports standings for most of this decade. After all, extracurricular activities are about more than winning percentages. No, Manual’s problem is that most of its sports programs lack the participation necessary to offer reasonable opportunity to compete.

It’s one thing to play and get beat. It’s quite another to have to forfeit, or to concede victory before the starter’s gun fires, or to reschedule — over and over — because there aren’t enough kids to field a varsity team, let alone freshman or sophomore development squads.

Peoria High and Woodruff fight some of the same battles, but not nearly to the degree Manual does. They remain salvageable.

First, the boundaries for Central and Woodruff still encompass thriving residential neighborhoods that have not given up on themselves, or on their high schools.

Plus, there are other factors in play.

Closing Peoria High as an institution would be crazy. It was founded in 1856 and remains the oldest continuing high school west of the Allegheny Mountains; 17th oldest in the entire country, according to the school Web site.

My best friend, a former Richwoods basketball player, is a high school administrator in Michigan now. He was back for a visit last weekend and wanted to know more about what he’d been reading in regard to Peoria school closures.

“You know,” he said, “I never had any use at all for Central. But closing that school would be nuts. You just don’t throw away history like that.”

When the Peoria Diocese merged Academy of Our Lady/Spalding Institute with Bergan to form Peoria Notre Dame in 1988, the Catholic community here lost a lot more than two old school buildings. A part of its soul was needlessly, stupidly ripped out and flushed away, never to be recovered.

If you don’t believe me, ask an old Spalding or Academy alum.

Another thing about Peoria High, the building. Opened in 1916, it’s the oldest in the district. It’s also the largest. And it’s a fortress. What sense does it make to increase enrollment — and crowding — at the remaining schools and shut down the biggest one?

As for Woodruff, I’ve seen more overall improvement there over the past decade than at any of the other high schools, Richwoods included. The community spirit, in an area of the city that’s too easily written off, is palpable. What Tim Thornton and his staff have done to restore the football program — on the field and in the classroom — borders on miraculous. Wrestling remains strong and won the conference championship last winter. Its teams are not all doormats.

Closing Manual would be sad. From a sports standpoint, closing it barely a decade after the Rams won a record four consecutive boys basketball state titles also would be stunning.

But closing Central or Woodruff would be wrong.

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Full disclosure here. Four generations of my family attended Peoria High. My wife works there, and I’m a member of the school’s alumni board. Also, my brother, who is a Manual graduate, teaches at Woodruff. And I still live on the West Bluff.

Take that however you wish.

KIRK WESSLER is Journal Star executive sports editor/columnist. He can be reached at kwessler@pjstar.com, or 686-3216.

Top school reformer Paul Vallas addresses Peoria education leaders

UPDATE - Please see this excellent article by Dave Haney in the PJStar for some points that he grasped that I did not.

Paul Vallas drove through the night from New Orleans to Peoria as he rushed to keep a commitment made to his friend, Peoria Mayor Jim Ardis. The two friends greeted each other warmly as he breathlessly arrived at Weaver Ridge country club to address local education leaders about school reform.

Mr. Vallas has a diverse and proven career reforming troubled school districts around the nation. Currently he is the Superintendent of the Louisiana Recovery School district which includes schools in New Orleans rebuilding from the devastating consequences of Katrina. He has also successfully reformed, among others, Chicago Public Schools and Philadelphia Public Schools - districts that have demographics, poverty rates and academic challenges similar to Peoria. In short, it seems that Vallas has never met a district that he couldn't improve, and he is widely accepted as the "go to guy" for all the tough cases.

Mr. Vallas shared his insights with an audience of approximately 50 people including leaders, legislators, Board of education members and administrators. I was most likely invited as the token complainer, haha.

Vallas is very familiar with Peoria. He has often wondered why when wealthier suburban school districts perform well, nobody seems to notice. But when poorer, inner city school districts do well people are incredulous. "Poor school districts suffer from a racism of lower expectations", Vallas said. In other words, a community develops a complacent attitude towards poorer children and begins to believe and accept that poor children can't learn.

Mr. Vallas very much disagrees with that assessment, and has dedicated his career to demonstrating otherwise. "Sometimes you have to deconstruct before you can reconstruct", Vallas said. "Sometimes the reforms needed are so drastic that the only way to succeed is to dismantle, and then start from the ground up."

He feels that a big part of the systemic problem in the declining effectiveness of public education is the security blanket that surrounds public schools in the form of government funding. "A privately owned business that is failing must respond and change or go out of business". Public Schools on the other hand continue to be funded no matter what. There is no urgent need to change. "When you have repeated failures you must re-think your strategy."

Vallas attributes a large degree of his success in New Orleans to the fact that he was able to start "from scratch". "I had some buildings, the kids, the teachers, and the money that followed the kids, and that was it". I was able to leave behind the bureaucracy, the contracts and the establishment. Many of his early efforts in New Orleans simply focused on figuring out where he would put everyone. To his critics who have suggested that Mr. Vallas' success was due largely to an influx of federal disaster funds into the district he simply states that a majority of his funding went towards capital improvements. He feels that the dollar amount of educational funding available for each child is not the driving force behind the child's prognosis for academic success.

Mr. Vallas recommended six reforms that could be implemented immediately by any school district that would virtually guarantee positive results. They are:

1. Establish a superior comprehensive data driven curriculum that aligns with the next grade level. Provide a continuum of instruction from Kindergarten through 12th grade.

2. We must extend the school day and the school year. "The U.S. competitive advantage is deteriorating and we are getting our butts kicked abroad. We must restructure and lengthen our school day and school year to mirror the schedule of working men and women."

3. Parents must be given school choices. Poor families don't have the choices that affluent families have, and wealthier parents tend to vote with their feet. All parents should have acceptable choices so that they remain in their homes and keep their neighborhoods stable. School choice also creates competition and an entrepreneurial environment. School choice empowers parents, promotes innovation and naturally allows the school to attract a larger pool of talent.

4. Allow choice for schools. Allowing some schools to pick the best and the brightest students creates an environment of high expectations for everyone.

5. Every school must have a human resources strategy. The biggest struggle for public education is attracting the best and the brightest educators. The community should not fear alternative certified teachers. Many have extraordinary talent. They work like there is no tomorrow because they are used to a regular work day and work year. Many have unlimited energy, optimism and high expectations. Non certified teachers expand the talent pool and can be your top performing teachers. Put your best and brightest in superior instructional systems - just like the military. The better you perform, the more you get paid. He recommends Teacher Alternative Preparation Programs, or TAPP. The top performers also become your leadership team. HELLO SANITY!! According to Vallas, first teachers resist and fear these changes. They soon learn to welcome and embrace them as they see the benefits they deliver to students, the district, and consequently themselves!

6. Classroom modernization - In addition to reasonable class sizes, every classroom should be equipped with the latest in technology. At the very least the classroom of the inner city school should be equivalent to the classroom of the school in the suburbs. Smart boards, laptops - whatever it takes. I asked a question during the Q and A portion of the lecture about air conditioning in classrooms. Mr. Vallas feels that central air in our classrooms is indeed a necessity to expect peak performance from students.

If you think that these changes will cost exorbitant amounts of money, think again. Mr. Vallas says that it is entirely possible to implement reforms and cut spending at the same time. He said that as school choice emerges through the development of charter and choice schools, the schools become highly autonomous and the need for a central administration and the obstructions associated with it decrease. The central administration becomes lithe and effective, whose only purpose is to support the charter schools. No more micromanagement! He has seen districts that have central offices that are only 2% of their overall operating costs. Many districts could easily achieve a 60% reduction in their Administrative costs.

Finally, Mr Vallas noted that all of his recommendations were in line with the new directives of the Obama Administration. All of the reforms he noted would put the district in an ideal situation to qualify for the new stimulus funds. "I don't like to leave any federal money on the table when it comes to public education", Vallas said.

A lengthy Q&A session followed which was almost more revealing than the lecture itself. In addition, Mr. Vallas lingered behind after the program and addressed individual concerns. I was amazed at not only the depth of his knowlege, but also how willing he was to openly share his expertise. He told Board member Racheal Parker after the event that if the district needed anything or had any questions they should feel free to call him. What an amazing resource available to our community.

The only thing that bothers me about the whole thing is he makes it appear so easy. He speaks with such ease and confidance - oozing the common sense we have all dreamt about. Much of what he says falls into the "no-brainer" category. My neck hurts from my head bobbing up and down like a bobble head. As we look back over the past few years though, my heart sinks. How do you get this administration and this board of education to even begin making these changes? Personally, I vote for the do-over.

A new relationship...

I'm in a new relationship. It is still relatively early, so I'm not sure that I can or will commit fully, but all indications are that this will be a lasting and worthwhile relationship.

Last Saturday for example, I greeted the day with great anticipation. We were going on our first road trip together. It was a little nervewracking given that the relationship was still new and somewhat tentative, but in my heart of hearts, I felt it would go well. I yielded to the excitement, threw caution to the wind and away we went!

At some point during the day we had our first moment of reckoning. We started turning down a frontage road, and off the familiar beaten path. I hesitated, and then decided that if were ever going to make it to the "next step", I would have to impart some blind trust. Without protest I acquiesed, and felt pure elation upon noticing some familiar landmarks close to our destination. Not only had our relationship advanced to a deeper, more trusting level, but I now knew a more meandering, scenic route to some of my favorite destinations.

Like old sneakers, it's hard to let go of established relationships. Yahoo! Maps has served me well. But the paper and printing had become cumbersome... and it was so unyielding if I changed plans. My new Garmin Nuvi GPS is fresh and exciting, has all the bells and whistles and I can mold it to what I want it to be. His name is Andrew. If he gets on my nerves I can turn him into a woman. He is very patient most of the time, but does get a little short if I pull rank on him and ignore his directions. Sometimes just for fun I try extra hard to rattle him. RECALCULATING! RECALCULATING, he shouts. It's kind of sinister to intentionally challenge him for my own amusement but what the heck. He never seems to hold a grudge.

The beauty of this relationship is that Andrew has an "off" switch. What a dream date. I love the new millenium!

Civility - 1, Thug Punks - 0

That's the score so far for the Summer '09 Event Season.

Yesterday's PJStar reported that Holy Family Heritage Days was held without incident following the execution of a collaborative community effort to reduce teen violence. Last year unexpected random teen violence caused the same event to end sooner than planned. It's a great article and is some welcome good news for the city of Peoria.

PEORIA — If you plan to attend summer festivals this year, expect to be greeted with a list of rules: No baggy pants, no plain T-shirts, and no cursing.

Because of fights breaking out among crowds of teenagers during 2008 summer festivals, more than two dozen certified volunteers through Carl Cannon's ELITE Youth program are being called to action.

Their first stop was Holy Family Church's Heritage Days during the last weekend in May.

"We went incident free, knock on wood," Cannon said. "We raised the bar and put it on the youth to live up to the standards that we expect."

No arrests were made at the event, according to Capt. Lisa Snow of the Peoria Police Department.

Before entrance to the event, youths had to agree with a code of conduct and dress code, which were posted on signs at the entrance.

We are all quick to criticise our city leaders for their perceived shortcomings, but we tend to fall short when it comes to offering the appropriate accolades for a job well done. According to the article, the services and counsel of Carl Cannon will continue to be retained throughout the summer at Riverfront and city sponsored events. Thank you to the Peoria Police Department, Mayor Ardis and the City of Peoria, and particularly Carl Cannon and his Elite Youth Program and volunteers for their collaborative efforts, their innovative problem solving, and a willingness to continue to serve our community.

I found this point in the PJStar article to be the most revealing:

While some thought event attendance may be lowered because of these stricter guidelines, the last two days of Heritage Days saw an increase in attendance, according to Sollberger.

If people feel safe, attendance and participation will be enhanced - basic common sense we can apply to all city and school district business. The efforts undertaken to stop teen violence sends a strong message that we will not surrender our community or our schools to thugs!

Lindbergh Teachers Sound Off about Principal Firing

Nearly a dozen Lindbergh Middle School Faculty and Staffers met privately with me as a group to set the record straight on some of the on-going turmoil within LMS following the unexplained firing of their new principal, Julie McArdle. A half dozen more have spoken with me on the telephone. This group considers themselves the silent majority, very concerned about possible ramifications for speaking out against D150 Administration, but also appalled at the unjust firing of McArdle who they feel has been a source of hope and strength in improving a toxic and divisive environment at LMS.

It should be noted that at NO time prior to her firing had any board member or Central Admin member contacted McArdle to intervene in any real or perceived conflict between McArdle and staff or parents. This same group who spoke to me reached out to both Hinton and the Board of Education through letters, unsigned at the time, but accompanied with a cover letter stating they would be willing to disclose their identities in a personal meeting, which could be arranged through school staff. They wanted the Administration to understand that the story they were getting from a select few was highly subjective and one-sided. No one responded.

The case against McArdle was shrouded in secrecy due to the confidential nature of personnel matters, but many teachers on the inside are calling FOUL and speaking out. Their stories and concerns all share a common theme.

According to them, the conflicts revolve around a core group of 4 teachers, a staff member, and a few easily influenced "fence sitters". They are friends and operatives of Mary Davis, the former Lindbergh principal who sits at the right hand of the Superintendent, Ken Hinton. Amazingly, McArdle ended up reporting to Davis, a situation that anyone with average sense could have predicted as trouble.

The rest of the story is oddly reminiscent of a popular 2004 movie . Sadly though, in this case, we are dealing with adult, not teenage behavior, and instead of being comedic, it is a real life situation with real life consequences.

According to the teachers, shortly after Julie McArdle arrived at the beginning of the '08/'09school year, the "Fab 5" as they had been dubbed let her know in short shrift who was in charge. All attempts by McArdle to shore up notoriously loose interpretations of State, Federal and district rules were met with a full court press by these gals who considered Julie an opponent to the leadership of Davis as opposed to a successor to.

McArdle is well known by her peers in the industry as a very competent, extremely knowledgeable "by the book and stickler for rules" principal with an impeccable record including a Central Illinois "Principal of the Year Award". The vast majority of teachers and parents felt McArdle was doing a very good job. The Fab 5, however, felt differently. According to sources, they worked double time to undermine her and complained constantly to Davis of McArdle's attempts to "even the playing field" by treating all students, parents, teachers and staff equally. Davis, instead of discouraging this challenge to McArdles leadership, seemingly encouraged and welcomed it.

Several teachers told me that as early as January, the Fab 5 would frequently roll their eyes at the directives of McArdle and mouth "She's gone" to those around her.

Mary Davis, as principal of LMS, was thought to pander to a chosen few. According to some teachers and parents, appearances and image were everything to her. She was partial to the admittance of students with high GPA's over the more academically challenged students, and would bypass the "boundary waiver" requirement by telling parents they could use the home address of one of her Fab 5 on their student admission form.

Many of Davis' actions were considered manipulative by some of the faculty. She was lavish with gifts, signature apparel and catered parties. The teachers were told that she paid for these perks with her own money. Now that the whistle blowing allegations of misuse of funds has surfaced, many teachers are beginning to worry that this lavish treatment came at the expense of the generous contributions from parents and students via their activity fund.

Other questions have arisen. One example is the annual school field trip to Springfield, Illinois. Parents have traditionally been charged $25. per student to cover the "expenses" relating to this trip. Where are the financial records for payments made for this trip? How was the $25 figure calculated? Many of the payments from parents were made in cash.

Another example: Under the Davis Administration, a Herculean effort was underway every week to sell food items such as ice-cream, nachos, pop and crazy bread from outside vendors to students at a profit. This practice was in direct violation of the contract the District had with the food service vendor. For instance, Little Caesars Crazy Bread could be purchased for .50 per serving but was sold to the students for $1.00. Likewise with soda-pop. The Kids loved this practice and it endeared them to Mary Davis. If the food vendor was scheduled to appear on the premises during lunch time the kids were told "Don't ask for crazy bread - we aren't selling crazy bread today!". The "store" (the student council storage room) would be locked up and all were under strict orders to keep it secret. Again, it was a largely cash business. Where are the records of receipts and disbursements?

According to teachers, Davis systematically bent the rules to gain and maintain popularity. One teacher described how Davis would submit a plan to Admin for how the teachers would utilize their teacher institute days, only to have it discarded and the teachers told to go home and "stay off the golf course".

She would utilize the PA system throughout the day with frequent blasts of psychological propaganda such as "We are number 1!" Many teachers found this very disruptive and intrusive.

Teachers that have declared their unquestioned loyalty to Davis by all appearances are forgiven their sins, and some of those "sins" are serious.

According to these teachers, one of the Fab 5 continues to scream and berate her students on a daily basis. "SHUT UP!" is constantly emanating from her classroom. The behavior is upsetting and shocking to the other teachers and they frequently have to close their doors. Teachers and parents have complained continuously about this teacher. At one point a parent filed a complaint with the state. This teacher, however, despite her horrid offensive behavior towards her students continues to be employed and continues to receive satisfactory reviews.

To add to the intrigue, activity fund records have been reported to the police as "missing". Credit card records filed in the Julie McArdle vs. Mary Davis court case clearly demonstrate a payment from the student activity fund to pay a credit card balance on a credit card that Mary Davis denied existed. Many of the charges on this credit card appeared to be of a personal nature. There were also several "cash advances", and the activity fund does not reflect any credit for rewards cash earned from the credit card.

According to this group, the Fab 5 along with Mary Davis regularly demonstrated extremely unprofessional and sophomoric behavior. They would regularly hang out after hours in the office, outside the gym and at extra-curricular events. They would frequently have their heads together, giggle, snicker and laugh. This behavior was very unsettling to the teachers, and the group that spoke to me said it made them feel belittled, excluded and intimidated.

A parent that I spoke to reported similar feelings. She told me she would shake when she went to pick up her child's report card, because she would see it passed among them, then handed to her, and they would burst out in laughter as she walked away.

One person told me that Mary Davis referred to a student as "dumber than a box of rocks" in front of staff.

Another teacher once said she had to unwillingly and uncomfortably sit in on a conversation where the Fab 5 discussed how awful it would be to have sex with some of the male teachers.

Many of the teachers I spoke with would describe incidents where Davis would scream at students. According to them, she was very short-tempered and would get within inches of a students face and scream so hard "she would spit". "You could see the veins pop out on her neck!" A parent that I spoke with witnessed one such incident with her child unbeknownst to Davis at the time. She described the situation as "horrifying". That same parent reported however, that under Julie's leadership, her child has had their "best year ever".

The teachers that spoke to me felt that if they exhibited independence and an unwillingness to bow to Davis, they were shunned and ignored. If they directly challenged her they would get the worst scheduling, the most difficult students, a cubby hole instead of an office - and worse, be the subject of ridicule and gossip at the hands of the Fab 5.

One teacher said she felt so stripped of her self esteem that "When Davis would leave the building, I felt like a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders".

I asked the group if this affected their ability to teach. The group was quiet for a moment and lowered their gaze. It was a reflective sad moment. Then quietly someone offered "We had to continually tell ourselves that we were OK - that we were worthwhile. So much effort was put into tearing us down, we had to constantly try to build ourselves up." Emotionally, it was very challenging and demoralizing for them. The commonality of this group however, was that they had families, enriching personal lives and a relationship with God. This is how they coped.

As I looked at them, I was struck by how much they DID not fit the profile of an "outcast". They were all very well dressed, attractive, intelligent and well spoken. Truth be told, I felt a little dowdy in their company. It was obvious from the sincerity with which they spoke that they were truly devoted to their students and in their job for the "right" reasons. Could those be the very reasons they were ostracized? This writer thinks so.

This group feels that the only people that have been heard is the Fab 5 and a few easily influenced "fence sitters". Davis obviously has cultivated herself some power in Central Admin and the "how" and "why" is a burning question on more than one mind.

Appalled yet somewhat amazed at what I was hearing I asked a few probing questions. First, did any of these teachers field complaints from parents regarding McArdle? They all shook their heads. "No." However, they do think that some of the parents who had benefited from Davis' willingness to disregard rules and laws may have objected to McArdle putting a stop to it.

So how have things changed at LMS under the McArdle principal-ship? The teachers that I talked to feel very supported by her. "I saw support for my program that I have never seen before." "She sits in on every Special Ed IEP meeting", one teacher said. "We started feeling like we could be part of the leadership team." Other comments: "Julie gave us hope and courage." "My kids have really progressed this year." "Julie often comes in and sits in our classes. It makes the kids feel so proud!" "If there is a problem she talks it through with us." "Her knowledge of curriculum is amazing." "She never belittles or berates us - she is firm, but fair." "Never once have I ever seen her raise her voice to a student."

I wondered however, if the sentiments expressed were unique to the teachers before me - and I inquired as such. One teacher said that she had begun asking around, to gain some perspective other than her own. She said that she has heard from Speech, Occupational, Physical therapists, cafeteria, custodial, Social Workers, nurses, aides and support staff. They all had little to no complaints about McArdles knowlege or performance. She feels strongly that the tide against McArdle was orchestrated and embellished by the Fab 5 and the fence sitters eager to please, along with the assistance of Mary Davis.

Many feel that these individuals exploited long-lasting personal relationships they enjoyed with staff members and parents to pursue their own agenda against McArdle.

So why have these teachers come forward now? For one, they are extremely concerned that the new principal will be another Davis minion hand-picked by Mary Davis herself. One that will maintain or intensify the incredibly demoralizing and disfunctional status-quo. Secondly, their sense of honor and integrity compels them to take a stand against a situation that they know is fundamentally wrong and unfair. "If it could happen to Julie, it could happen to any of us", they said.

"Why did you not complain sooner?", I asked. They responded that they were very proud of their school and the reputation it enjoyed as District 150's finest. They did not want to air their "dirty laundrty" in public and felt they would tolerate it as best as they could for the sake of the community and their students. They also said that sometimes when you are in a disfunctional environment, you lose perspective and it becomes the new norm. At this point however, it has become just too weird to overlook, and they feel the time is appropriate to lay the cards on the table.

Work has not been easy for Julie since her contract termination. Many students thought that it was in fact her who was the subject of allegations of misuse of funds. Some students picked up on the cue's of the teachers and parents against McArdle and felt that it was OK to mirror that behavior and show disrespect.

The Fab 5 continues to challenge McArdle's authority. The students insult her audibly. I was told of a situation that occurred recently, after her termination. During a mandatory "Code Red" Safety drill, one of the Fab 5 refused to participate. That teacher is still working, under the assumed protection of Mary Davis.

A bright spot in all of this has been Asst. Superintendent Herschel Hannah, who has replaced Mary Davis as McArdle's Supervisor. Hannah has been very kind and supportive to Julie and has helped smooth over some of the difficulties and discomfort of the circumstances. Many feel that had she reported to Hannah from the beginning, much of this could have been averted.

The reader may wonder what this all has to do with the bigger picture that is D150. How can a situation like this be allowed to fester and thrive? In any properly functioning working environment nonsense of this nature would be nipped in the bud. To me, it is a perfect microcosm of all the problems we see in District 150. We have finally seen the demise of normalcy and common sense.

So many questions remain. Why would Superintendent Hinton NOT have intervened prior to the Mcardle firing? Why wouldn't they have replaced Davis as McArdle's supervisor at the first sign of trouble? Why did not a single Board of Education member do their due diligence and investigate the other side of the story (there always is one, isn't there?) prior to their vote to terminate the McArdle contract- particularly when they were warned that a major whistle blowing lawsuit was in the works? How could the District 150 legal council NOT have anticipated this? Or did they and were ignored? Did anyone in D150 leadership ever consider the legal costs to the district at a time that we are virtually bankrupt? Why is Mary Davis not on administrative leave following such serious and well documented allegations? McArdle's lawyer must be dancing a jig at the end of every single day she remains at her desk.

Julie McArdle recalled one moment when she asked Human Resources director Tom Broderick why she was being fired. Broderick's response: "Your just not a good fit."
Damn. I'll say!

Baby Eyebrows greets the world with a dazzling smile!

OK, the smiling part I made up but Laura Petelle, aka Eyebrows McGee and hubby Garth are now the proud parents of a bouncing baby boy! Count on the Generation x-ers to tweet within hours of their child's birth! Here is Laura's Twitter page with the happy news! I love the second to the last tweet "Having baby - be right back". Ha ha! Congrats Garth and Laura! Hmmm, I wonder if he has thick eyebrows.

Reverse Psychology

Here is some advice. If your kids know something that you don't want your husband/wife to know about, tell them to MAKE SURE they tell their father/mother. Then they will forget and not tell.

Never, I'm tellin ya NEVER, request that they NOT tell them. That's my advice. Take it or leave it.

As usual, all advice lavishly doled out on this site is provided free of charge.