An Update From Those Fun-Loving Charter School Folks.

Dear Board Members:


I am a member of the citizen group that is drafting an MG charter middle school planning grant application for submission to DPI. It has been suggested that we provide the Board with brief updates on our activities. Hence, this email. If any of you do not wish to receive this email, let me know, and I will not bother you further.

The Monona Grove School for Health and Environmental Sciences (MG Science for short) will be a public charter school located in vacant space within an MG building. Although the location is ultimately the Board’s decision, our group does have a preference for the Winnequah building. That preference is based on (1) availability of space, (2) no need for renovation, and (3) proximity to outdoor environmental studies locations. However, if the Board decides that some other building makes more sense in the grand scheme of things, we will work with what is available.

MG Science can be attended by any middle school student in our district. It is our belief that the school will neither increase nor decrease total state student aid paid within the district; the school receives the state aid amount per capital for each child who enrolls in the school. The school will provide hands-on science instruction in a small school setting. Science programming can be performed with more flexibility (e.g., a 4-hour lab on a specific day) than is available in the necessarily more regimented big school program at Glacial Drumlin.

The group is currently drafting a planning grant application that must be submitted to DPI. If the grant application is approved, grant funds can be used to, among other things, reimburse a teacher(s) for drafting a detailed curriculum for the school. Drafting leader assignments for portions for the lengthy application are as follows:

BUDGETING/FUNDRAISING: Harvey Potter/Stephanie Ramer, CURRICULUM: Larry Miller/Patti McGinnis, GOVERNANCE/LEGAL: Nancy Gagnon, OUTREACH; Kathy Thomas/Heidi Sigmund, PLANNING: Stephanie Ramer/Mike Meulemans. The draft sections will be done by January, and a submission of the entire draft will be made to the MG School Board in February, 2010.

Of particular interest this week: Nancy Gagnon and Patti McGinnis are meeting with a UW Medical School grant coordinator to discuss possible grant money to supplement the school’s operating budget. UW Medical School has an interest in promoting more in-depth health education. This meeting was arranged by Dr. Jim Shropshire, for which we are grateful.
Regards,
Nancy Gagnon

Hear What? See What? Say What?

Last night I had the great pleasure to attend the 2010 Monona Grove Alternative High School graduation ceremony at the Monona Community Center. It is an event that I love to attend and last night was no exception. The seven graduates' heartfelt speeches and gracious thank-yous to friends, family and teachers alike left me a little misty-eyed in the audience. In fact, it also made me want to go back to high school so I could have FB and McD as teachers. While I did have plenty of excellent and influential teachers throughout my secondary education, I don't remember anyone of them hitting hook-shots with a huge 'fro. Every time I'm with the Alt School staff, I feel like I've fallen into a Welcome Back Kotter episode and I have no desire to return to reality. Is that weird?

This year's graduation ceremony marks an end to the MGAS charter school and ushers in the new Monona Grove Liberal Arts Charter School for the 21st Century or “MG21". As you may remember, MGAS teachers Rebecca Fox-Blair and Bill McDonald recently discovered they needed to bring the charter for the school into compliance with federal statutes and guidelines, by listing MGSD policies from which MGAS is exempt and by creating a governance board. This restructuring also provided the welcome opportunity to bring $350,000 into the district by creating a new charter. Bill McDonald told us last night that they hope to hear more about the status of their grant application by the end of July or early August. Good luck MG21 and best wishes for the future to all MGAS graduates!

In other School Board news, the Board unanimously approved contracting with the Chartwells School Dining Services at a special meeting on Wednesday night. We listened to a presentation led by Barb Waara, Director of Food Services and members of her committee about the proposal. This contract will be a year long, giving the district ample opportunity to reevaluate it's merits. I was particularly happy to see that with the exception of Barb Waara, who will become an employee of Chartwells, all of our current district food service workers will remain district employees. I think it's helpful to look at the contract as a change in food providers, as opposed to outsourcing our employees, who will remain under their current contract. Thoughts on the topic from Board President Susan Fox's Board update:

After review and evaluation, including interviews with representatives of the companies and reference checks with other client school districts, the committee recommended that Monona Grove enter into a professional service contract with Chartwells School Dining Service for the management and operation of our food service program for 2010-11. Committee members believe that this arrangement will provide financial stability and even profitability, capture the benefits of pricing through a large company, build upon and provide education for students with regard to nutrition and healthy eating habits, address changes in eating preferences for students while providing more fresh fruits and vegetables, increase participation, and provide on-going staff professional development training for all food service employees, among other benefits. The Board voted to accept the recommendation of the committee and approved contracting with Chartwells for 2010-11. You can find more information on Chartwells at http://www.eatlearnlive.com/.

Board member Peter Sobol also has an interesting and informative thread on the Chartwells contract on his blog: http://www.petersobol.blogspot.com/.

I got a little smack-down of sunshine in last week's Herald Independent for a blogpost I wrote about the legality of talking about closed session topics in public. Ironically, I believe this may have been the only time that I have ever capitalized comments, but too late. Especially because I realized I was WRONG, as Sunny would have discovered had she gone back and read my follow-up post the next day. After hearing the thoughts of several sources including Superintendent Gerlach, Board President Fox, previous Board member Phil McDade, WASB attorney Barry Forbes and district attorney Mike Julka, it is my understanding that expectations about public disclosure about negotiation details are established as ground rules by both parties at the beginning of negotiations. We have none in place, other than the contractual language quoted below. Julka spoke with the Board before our June 2nd special meeting and advised the Board that we should not disclose any details of negotiations, outside of explaining the process that we are involved in. According to our current contract, page 6:

Section 4: Initial Open Meetings

6/4/1 In accordance with Section 111.70(4)(cm)(2) of the Wisconsin Statutes, the initial meeting or meetings held to present initial bargaining proposals and supporting rationale shall be open to the public. The first open meeting shall be for the purpose of exchanging written proposals, informing the other party of the rationale for each of said written proposals, and the exchanging of press releases.

Section 5: Closed Negotiations

6/5/1 Thereafter negotiating sessions between the Board and the Association shall be closed to the press and public unless the parties mutually agree that such continuing negotiating sessions shall be open to the press and the public.

Section 6: Press Releases

6/6/1 Press releases concerning negotiations shall be mutually approved by the Board and the Association until impasse is reached. This is not to preclude keeping the Association membership and Board members informed as to the progress of negotiations.

As Sunny writes "I think the board members’ reticence on the contract is born of ignorance. They won’t talk about it because they don’t know about it and they don’t want to know, either. They take no role in the nasty business of negotiations, assigning that task to Gerlach and the soon-to-be-departed Business Director Mary Ellen Van Valin. For all I know, the school board members are sitting there like a bunch of monkeys: See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil."

Of course, there are those people who continue to keep talking (and talking) even after they realize they might not actually be correct in their assertions, but I'm not one of them. I'll see you one ignorant monkey and I raise you one unicorn who flew out of my butt. The district continues to wait for word from the MGEA.

Monona Grove High School graduation will take place on Sunday, June 6th at 1pm in the high school gymnasium.

Congratulations To All Of Our 2010 Monona Grove Graduates!

And finally, a couple of updates:



A documentary about charter schools: "The Lottery": ONE NIGHT ONLY AT EASTGATE CINEMAS, TUESDAY, JUNE 8 AT 7:30PM.

A new education movie, The Lottery, will open at select theaters around the country on Tuesday, June 8.

"The Lottery is a feature-length documentary that explores the struggles and dreams of four families from Harlem and the Bronx in the months leading up to the lottery for Harlem Success Academy, one of the most successful charter schools in New York. The four families cast their lots in a high-stakes draw, where only a small
majority of children emerge with a chance at a better future. The vast majority of hopefuls will be turned away. By interlacing the families' stories with the emotional and highly politicized battle over the future of American education, The Lottery is a call to action to avert a catastrophe in the education of American children. With heart, humor and hope, The Lottery makes the case that any child, given the right educational circumstances, can succeed."

Tickets may be purchased online.

From MGSC Registrar, Sue Carr:

Hello all!
I am trying to get the word out that registration for the next year of soccer (Fall 10, and Spring 11) is happening now- The Deadline is June 14. I volunteer as the registrar for the U6-U!0 groups in Monona. That is kiddos going into kindergarten up to kids going into 4th grade. Kids who are K, 1, 2 do not need a uniform. Kids going into Third grade also need a uniform form and a separate check for the uniform. See attachments for the information form, and the uniform form. The actual registration form can be found here.

http://www.maysa.org/documents/09PlayerRegFormFill.pdf

I am trying to get the word out as I have not gotten a lot of re-registration forms and do not want folks to have to pay the late fee. If you all could forward to any other kids you know who play soccer, who want to play soccer, and especially incoming kindergartners who may want to start this year. Remember that you register now, it is for both the fall and spring season. Same team, etc. I am available by email or cell phone- 347-7832 with any questions. You can also contact the head Monona Coordinator, Keene Kohrt, at the address above.

From an email:

Kids want to be in the triathlon but have not signed up yet??The Sawyer Crossen
Memorial Triathlon is Saturday Morning THIS WEEK but you can still sign up day
of event or even better tonight- FRIDAY at the community center between
6-7:30. We stuffed goody bags tonight and met with all the volunteers- it will
be a great event. The excitement is building..... So.... think about getting any of those kids ages 4-17 on board.

Charter School Plans Detailed in the Herald Independent

Managing Editor Adam Mella just posted this on-line article about Mayor Kahl's plans for a district charter school:

The Herald-Independent - Cottage Grove and Monona, Wisconsin: "Proposed charter school possible through Aldo Leopold Nature Center partnership
Meeting of city, school district, state, ALNC and other interested parties will be held April 6 to determine a realistic timeline for the proposal."

Read the article directly here: http://herald-independent.com/main.asp?SectionID=2&SubSectionID=50&ArticleID=1649

Mayor Kahl Presents His Ideas For Creating A Charter School In Our District.

This is the correspondence that Monona Mayor Robb Kahl presented last night at our March 24 Board of Education meeting:

Dear Monona Grove School Board Members and Superintendent Gerlach:

In cooperation with the City of Monona's Sustainability Committee, I am currently investigating the process of creating a charter school for middle school children (grades 6-8) at Winnequah School. While other charter school program options will also be evaluated for Winnequah, the current intent of this potential charter school is to create a program which focuses on Environmental Studies, with an emphasis on Science and Math (Renewable Energy, Energy Efficiency/Conservation, and Sustainability) while also incorporating concepts of leadership and social responsibility.
This would mean not just classroom work but working "in the field," a hands-on experience to learning. Specifically, besides utilizing the natural surroundings found in Winnequah Park, we are in the process of reaching out to several city partners: Aldo Leopold Nature Center to utilize their existing and proposed new facilities; the Natural Step to incorporate their process into our classrooms; Veridian Homes to learn about sustainable/energy-efficient building; and Rutabaga to help our students broaden their education by working not only in the field but also on the water. Through this program, the students could also focus on an environmental area or project in need of assistance each term, semester or year to study and help improve through organizing community efforts. Dean Bowles has offered to serve on the board of directors, and we are in the process of requesting letters of support from the aforementioned organizations along with others in order to make this a successful program.
As you know, President Obama has made charter schools a centerpiece of his massive educational reform plan because of the educational value they can bring to a community. State Superintendent Tony Evers calls publicly funded charter schools a "shining example" of Wisconsin's tradition of educational innovation. I support our educational programs in our district. I would hope to build on what we have in order to provide an even better experience for our students. Please feel free to contact me with any questions.
Sincerely, Robb Kahl, Mayor

Pretty exciting stuff. This is what I was talking about when I was advocating for the development of a district charter school. We need to showcase the inventiveness of this district and our commitment to innovative academic achievement. Say what you will about Mayor Kahl's approach, and I know much has been said, I appreciate the work he has done to create one solution to our budget crisis. Sure is a lot more helpful than sitting around bemoaning the numbers and shooting off anonymous barbs. I would love to see more creative ideas like this one.