Tell Me About It!!!!!

Teachers union cites counselor shortage in MPS suspension rate

By DANI MCCLAIN
dmcclain@journalsentinel.com

Posted: Aug. 11, 2008

They get students thinking about college and help kids manage their grief and anxiety. They solve problems so teachers can focus on classroom instruction.

But at nearly half of Milwaukee’s public elementary schools serving seventh- and eighth-graders, guidance counselors don’t exist, and teachers union officials argue this contributes to the district’s high suspension numbers.

“Our belief is that working with a counselor, you can remedy certain behavioral issues a student might have so they don’t appear in high school,” said Tom Morgan, director of the Milwaukee Teachers’ Education Association.

Of the district’s 55 K-8 schools, 25 didn’t have counselors this past school year, according to an analysis the association did late last year. Two of the 14 middle schools, which serve sixth- to eighth-grade students, lacked counselors, the analysis showed.

At a public hearing this summer, Morgan argued that the district should adhere to its own rule requiring counselors be staffed in middle schools and in the seventh and eighth grades in K-8 elementary schools at a counselor-student ratio of 1-to-500. The rule requires they be staffed in high schools at a ratio of 1-to-425.

Morgan said budget cuts and the district’s transition from traditional middle schools to K-8 programs in recent years have resulted in MPS falling out of compliance with its own policy. But union officials have been pushing the issue since late last year, when they met with a representative of the district’s Department of Administrative Accountability.

“Behavior and social issues that should be dealt with by a fully licensed counselor are not addressed,” Morgan wrote in a January follow-up letter to Superintendent William Andrekopoulos. “These issues escalate until they reach a level that requires suspending the student. . . . Classroom teachers cannot be expected to provide the services necessary to work with these students.”

Regardless of the policy, schools are responsible for making their own budget decisions about how they’ll stretch funds to keep counselors on staff, said Aquine Jackson, the MPS administrator who responded to Morgan’s charges at the June hearing.

Jackson said Friday that MPS isn’t out of compliance with state law, as the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction doesn’t mandate a counselor-student ratio.

DPI’s administrative code states that all districts “shall provide a program of guidance and counseling services for all pupils. . . . The program shall be developmentally based and available to every pupil in every grade of the school district.”

As Jackson sees it, MPS has three options.

“The schools can allocate their resources, the district can allocate additional resources, or we can void the board policy to avoid any mention of ratio,” Jackson said.

This fall, MPS enters the final year of a three-year, $1.2 million U.S. Department of Education grant that has kept counselors in Holmes, Hopkins and Sherman, three of the district’s K-8 schools.

The Safe Schools / Healthy Students and Futures First initiatives, two federal grant programs begun in the past year to address student behavior and school safety through prevention and early intervention, are part of the solution, district officials said Friday. A $4.8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor funds Futures First, which has placed additional guidance counselors in MPS high schools.

Last week, the Journal Sentinel reported that a national panel of experts convened by the Council of the Great City Schools determined that MPS might have the highest suspension rate of any urban district in the country and appears to have few strategies for dealing with students’ behavior problems other than suspending them.

Suspensions have been rising year by year, according to MPS data. In the 2007-’08 school year, more than a quarter of students were suspended at least once, many of them multiple times. The total number of suspensions last school year — 86,675 — was just short of the number of students in MPS.

Source: JSOnline

A Deal has been Reached!!!

Kenya's Rival Politicians Agree to Power-Sharing Deal

By Stephanie McCrummen and Howard Schneider
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, February 28, 2008; 11:07 AM

NAIROBI, Feb. 28 -- Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga agreed Thursday to a power-sharing arrangement meant to stabilize a country wracked by political violence since a disputed December election.

Brokered by former U.N. secretary general Kofi Annan, the deal was signed by the two political rivals at a ceremony here and witnessed by both Annan and Jakaya Kikwete, the current head of the African Union and president of Tanzania.

The deal will place Odinga in a newly-created prime minister's job, which will have "authority to coordinate and supervise the execution of the functions and affairs of the Government of Kenya," according to a text of the agreement. Significantly, power to choose and remove the prime minister will rest with the parliament -- a limit on presidential power that will give Odinga, head of the largest parliamentary bloc, an independent source of authority.

Cabinet posts and portfolios are to be divided between the rival parties based on their strength in the parliament.

"Given the current situation, neither side can realistically govern the country without the other. There must be real power-sharing to move the country forward and begin the healing and reconciliation process," the agreement stated, making reference to "deep-seated and long-standing divisions within Kenyan society" that the December election laid bare.

"Compromise was necessary for the survival of this country," Annan said at the signing ceremony. The two parties "kept the future of Kenya always in their sights and reached a common position for the good of the nation."

Kibaki was proclaimed the winner of the December presidential election, even though Odinga's Orange Democratic Movement garnered widespread support in voting for parliamentary seats. Odinga's supporters claimed that he had won the presidency.

The dispute touched off widespread violence -- often directed against members of Kibaki's Kikuyu tribe -- which claimed 1,000 lives and displaced an estimated 300,000 people from their homes. The violence decimated the Kenyan economy and marred the country's image as one of Africa's most politically stable.

Power-sharing deals had appeared close before during Annan's mediation, only to stall. A session Thursday marked the first time that Odinga and Kibaki attended talks together.

They signed the agreement in front of the presidential office in downtown Nairobi, with Odinga's supporters erupting in cheers when he approached a news conference podium after the signing. Odinga insisted on a signed and witnessed document because prior deals with Kibaki had been ignored.

"We have begun a journey," Odinga said. "I can see the light at the end of the tunnel."

Kibaki thanked his rival, whose party's off and on threats of street demonstrations had kept pressure on the government for an agreement.

"Kenya has room for all of us if we can enhance peace and tolerance," Kibaki said, adding that the country must address "national cohesion and unity" following the recent troubles.

Kibaki called parliament into session on March 6 to begin dealing with constitutional amendments and other changes required by the power-sharing arrangement.

Source: Washington Post

Volunteers remain safe and hope to return to Kenya soon

WASHINGTON, D.C., Feb. 5, 2008 - Peace Corps operations in Kenya will be temporarily suspended to ensure the safety of the 58 remaining Peace Corps Volunteers serving in Kenya. With growing instability in Kenya, and following the unrest associated with the recent elections on December 27, 2007, these Volunteers who remained working at their sites in the eastern, central and coastal regions of Kenya, will now be transitioning out of service.

Peace Corps Director Ron Tschetter said, "Our first priority is the safety and security of our Volunteers. Over 5,000 Peace Corps Volunteers have served in Kenya in the last 42 years, building deep friendships with the people there. The Peace Corps has become an integral and positive element of the U.S. partnership with Kenya and the Kenyan people."

The 58 Volunteers from the eastern region of Kenya will be granted close of service in good standing, or offered an opportunity to transfer to another Peace Corps country. The ultimate goal of Peace Corps/Kenya is to return Volunteers to their communities in Kenya when the security situation improves. The Peace Corps staff will remain in Kenya and maintain the program during the temporary suspension.

Peace Corps/Kenya had a total of 144 Volunteers serving at the time of the recent elections. During the initial post-election unrest, Volunteers were consolidated in a variety of safe locations. On January 4, Volunteers in the western region of Kenya were moved from their sites and began transitioning out of the country, due to the growing security concerns. Some of the western Kenya Peace Corps Volunteers were transferred to volunteer assignments in other Peace Corps countries; others ended their service in good standing and returned to the U.S.; and some have opted to temporarily suspend their service in hopes of returning to Kenya soon.

Since 1965, more than 5,000 Peace Corps Volunteers have served in Kenya. Volunteers work in the areas of education, small business development, and health and HIV/AIDS prevention. Volunteers in Kenya also served in a unique deaf education program which began in 1992 as a way to train educators on better teaching methods, and to broaden the production of learning materials and facilities for deaf and hard of hearing students. The program now includes computer training and health and HIV/AIDS education programs, as part of the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.

Peace Corps/Washington is in constant communication with staff in Kenya and the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi. The Peace Corps will continue to evaluate and monitor the situation.

Each Peace Corps program has an Emergency Action Plan (EAP) specific to that country and developed in cooperation with the U.S. Embassy and Peace Corps/ Washington. The plans are tested frequently and information is updated constantly. Volunteers are thoroughly trained in their role and responsibilities in the EAP. Posts are prepared for all emergencies.

The Peace Corps is celebrating a 46-year legacy of service at home and abroad, and a 37-year high for Volunteers in the field. Since 1961, more than 190,000 Volunteers have helped promote a better understanding between Americans and the people of the 139 countries where Volunteers have served, including Kenya. Peace Corps Volunteers must be U.S. citizens and at least 18 years of age. Peace Corps service is a 27-month commitment.

Source: US Peace Corps

Cookie's Crumbs - Europe Part I was sent out last night!

Let me know if you didn't get it!

Part II is coming on Sunday!!

Guess why I'm watching the Super Bowl?