Most Oklahoma Public Schools began the 2019-2020 school year the week of August 13. Blanchard Public Schools began the first day for students on Thursday, August 16, and I still get excited anticipating that beginning. Whether it's seeing parents deliver their children to school, kids disembarking from buses, or seeing the jr. hi kids practicing football or participating in other activities that began before 8 AM - I still look forward to the first day.
I still look forward to the first day of school, even though this is my 52nd first day - 12 first days as a student in Lindsay and 40 first days as a teacher, coach, or administrator. My most memorable first day of school was in 1965 as a second grader in Lindsay. The day began with my mother, Mary, putting my younger sister Dana and me on the bus at around 7:30 AM. Our driver's name was Mr. Simkoff. School started at 9 AM, but the route took about an hour and a half to run because we lived 7 miles from town and it always took the long way. Mom told us she would meet us at the front doors of the school to escort us to our classroom upon arrival. We had no idea where our classrooms were as we had not visited earlier. It would be a new experience for Dana, since she had never even seen the building.
After a more than one hour bone jarring ride east along Rush Creek and north to school - we arrived. How exciting! Even more exciting was the fact that mom was nowhere in sight as we unloaded. We looked left and right, but mom WAS NOT THERE. I panicked, but Dana remained quite calm as I took her hand and said "I know where to go". (It was my same hand that Dana took a baseball bat to a couple years earlier for taking her toy.) We walked directly south down the elementary hallway to the principal's office (about half a mile), as I thought that someone there may be able to direct us. Somewhere along the way, mom caught up to us and took us to our respective classes. My teacher's name was Mrs. Walker and she made me feel right at home. While I'm still not sure why mom was late, my first day of my second grade year started off with a bang.
I've had many more memorable first days since that traumatic experience in second grade, but that one seems to be burned in my memory. The positive part is that it was good for me..
Sunday, August 18, 2019
Wednesday, August 14, 2019
OSSAA Indignation
The OSSAA Board gathered on August 14, 2019 for its regular meeting. Among the items discussed was the public/private competitive equity committee recommendations for re-considering the effectiveness of Rule 14 - in providing more equitable competition classifications. And guess what? It's almost perfect.. No major changes needed..
As a matter of fact, Rule 14 was judged effective for "leveling the playing field" in all sports, except for tennis and volleyball - I think.. because no one was provided a copy of the research data and analysis. I requested a copy of the report, but was told I'd have to wait until it's posted on the website. We will not be able to test for validity and reliability of the committee's analysis nor check for errors until the report is provided, but we can comment on some other research conducted to answer the same question. The documents may be studied here and here, and represent a valid and reliable analysis for two sports - football and baseball. It was conducted in consultation with some of the same researchers from the University of Oklahoma and elsewhere, who invalidated the school A-F grading scheme a few years back. The recommended methodology (correlation analysis) was utilized in running a quantitative study in judging the effectiveness of Rule 14 for providing competitive equity between schools which provide financial assistance to students and/or restrict enrollment and those which do not. There exists both private schools and public schools in both comparative groups. I sincerely hope that the OSSAA will consider valid and reliable research as well as the analysis provided by the Committee. When the OSSAA deems it appropriate to provide that research and analysis, we will forward that document to researchers at OU and OSU for closer study.
Back to the OSSAA meeting on August 14: At the conclusion of the committee's report, I stood to provide a copy of our own analysis of the effectiveness of Rule 14 for providing competitive equity for all schools. This analysis directly contradicted the committee's analysis for most sports. I was told that no public comment would be allowed concerning the committee report, but I was only providing our analysis to the executive director. I was then told to provide the report to the "minutes clerk", Amy Cassell, instead of the board or the executive director. I complied with the order.
Interestingly, the OSSAA bills itself as a private, non-profit organization. Examples of private non-profits would be the Walton Family Foundation, Gates Foundation, and others, which are really "profitable" non-profits. Since the OSSAA is a private organization, it has the ability to disallow public comments concerning agenda items, so the fact that it doesn't allow public input or even membership input on issues concerning it's public schools - is certainly justified. What is truly puzzling, however, is that most if not all of the superintendent directors on its board allow public comments at their own school board meetings. Even the State Board of Education usually has two "hearing of the public" items at its board meetings.
The OSSAA said it would be forwarding the committee report and recommendations to the regional meetings in October - for garnering support. Bear in mind that all we know right now about the report and recommendations is what flashed across the screen during the report. The regional meetings are scheduled at Woodward... Oct. 14, Elk City... Oct.15, Cache... Oct.16, Ponca City... Oct. 21, Adair... Oct. 22, Jenks... Oct. 23, Henryetta... Oct. 24, Ardmore... Oct. 28, Kiowa... Oct. 29, Antlers... Oct.30, Westmore... Oct. 31.
Update August 22, 2019: The research and related documents which indicate that only "country club" sports should be re-classified, has now been posted on the OSSAA website. The committee determined that Rule 14 has been effective for leveling the playing field in all other sports. We will be forwarding the committee's research and subsequent analysis to OU and/or OSU education researchers for review.
As a matter of fact, Rule 14 was judged effective for "leveling the playing field" in all sports, except for tennis and volleyball - I think.. because no one was provided a copy of the research data and analysis. I requested a copy of the report, but was told I'd have to wait until it's posted on the website. We will not be able to test for validity and reliability of the committee's analysis nor check for errors until the report is provided, but we can comment on some other research conducted to answer the same question. The documents may be studied here and here, and represent a valid and reliable analysis for two sports - football and baseball. It was conducted in consultation with some of the same researchers from the University of Oklahoma and elsewhere, who invalidated the school A-F grading scheme a few years back. The recommended methodology (correlation analysis) was utilized in running a quantitative study in judging the effectiveness of Rule 14 for providing competitive equity between schools which provide financial assistance to students and/or restrict enrollment and those which do not. There exists both private schools and public schools in both comparative groups. I sincerely hope that the OSSAA will consider valid and reliable research as well as the analysis provided by the Committee. When the OSSAA deems it appropriate to provide that research and analysis, we will forward that document to researchers at OU and OSU for closer study.
Back to the OSSAA meeting on August 14: At the conclusion of the committee's report, I stood to provide a copy of our own analysis of the effectiveness of Rule 14 for providing competitive equity for all schools. This analysis directly contradicted the committee's analysis for most sports. I was told that no public comment would be allowed concerning the committee report, but I was only providing our analysis to the executive director. I was then told to provide the report to the "minutes clerk", Amy Cassell, instead of the board or the executive director. I complied with the order.
Interestingly, the OSSAA bills itself as a private, non-profit organization. Examples of private non-profits would be the Walton Family Foundation, Gates Foundation, and others, which are really "profitable" non-profits. Since the OSSAA is a private organization, it has the ability to disallow public comments concerning agenda items, so the fact that it doesn't allow public input or even membership input on issues concerning it's public schools - is certainly justified. What is truly puzzling, however, is that most if not all of the superintendent directors on its board allow public comments at their own school board meetings. Even the State Board of Education usually has two "hearing of the public" items at its board meetings.
The OSSAA said it would be forwarding the committee report and recommendations to the regional meetings in October - for garnering support. Bear in mind that all we know right now about the report and recommendations is what flashed across the screen during the report. The regional meetings are scheduled at Woodward... Oct. 14, Elk City... Oct.15, Cache... Oct.16, Ponca City... Oct. 21, Adair... Oct. 22, Jenks... Oct. 23, Henryetta... Oct. 24, Ardmore... Oct. 28, Kiowa... Oct. 29, Antlers... Oct.30, Westmore... Oct. 31.
Update August 22, 2019: The research and related documents which indicate that only "country club" sports should be re-classified, has now been posted on the OSSAA website. The committee determined that Rule 14 has been effective for leveling the playing field in all other sports. We will be forwarding the committee's research and subsequent analysis to OU and/or OSU education researchers for review.
Sunday, August 4, 2019
Epic Pyramid Exposed
We first recognized the "Epic pyramid duck" in a column on July 7, 2018, and may be read here. Illegal pyramid schemes offer no products for sale, but rely on recruiting more and more investors to keep the pyramid going. The investors are Oklahoma tax payers, and the recruiters are teachers and enrolled students who are paid "bonuses" for recruiting more students. Each student enrolled is worth about $5,000 to Epic Virtual and Blended Charter Schools. If Epic enrolls about 22,000 students, it receives about $110 million in state aid, or profits. The pyramid scheme is simple, but ingenious - the base of the pyramid are the recruiters, teachers and students who receive bonuses for each new student recruited. Enrolled students receive $200 for each "referral" and teachers receive $400 for each student referral. When a new student enrolls in Epic, one question on the enrollment form is "Who referred you to Epic?". The new student simply names the teacher or student who referred him or her. A student gets $200 added to his or her "education fund", which is nothing more than a checking account, and a teacher gets a $400 bonus for each student.
The next level up on the pyramid would be the mid-level administrators, which include team leaders and principals. Advancing upward one more level include the upper level administrators, superintendent, assistant superintendents, lobbyists, and attorneys. Finally, at the peak of the pyramid sits the owners, Ben Harris and David Chaney. Also included, outside the pyramid, but very important to its structure are the enablers, elected officials - State Reps, Senators, State Superintendent of Schools, Governor, etc., who receive a "cut" for enabling legislation or willful blindness. A column describing "willful blindness" can be read here.
This last week, in addition to visiting with parents of Epic students, I discussed the "Epic Pyramid Duck" with a former Epic teacher. The teacher told me that he or she was just fired from Epic even before the first year of employment was complete. The teacher had received another job in a traditional public school, so felt free to speak. Teacher told me that he (or she) was on the "do not re-hire" list because of unspecified reasons. It's a fact that first year teachers are not afforded the same "due process" rights as veteran teachers, so no reason for being fired must be given. The belief is that he or she was fired because a large amount of bonus money was owed (80 students at $400 per student = $32,000), and Epic would not be forced pay it if the teacher was fired before the end of the year. The 80 students the teacher was responsible for recruiting and teaching, were simply reassigned to other teachers (who would not receive the bonus). The teacher should have received approximately $38,000 regular salary + $32,000 bonus = $70,000. The "bonus money" was simply bumped up the pyramid, probably to Harris and Chaney, after the teacher was fired. The teacher (bottom level of the pyramid) probably would have earned more than several mid-level administrators (next level up), and the pyramid tends to fall apart when that happens, hence the firing.
A typical $5,000 student is distributed on the pyramid with the teacher (first level) receiving about $800, the student (first level) receiving about $900 - $1,000, second level administrators receive about $1,000, third pyramid level administrators - $1,700, and the two peak owners receive about $500 per student, or $11 million total!
By firing the aforementioned teacher, the Epic owners payed themselves about $32,000 more... Think about that - if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it's a duck, or pyramid scheme in this case. Follow the money...
The next level up on the pyramid would be the mid-level administrators, which include team leaders and principals. Advancing upward one more level include the upper level administrators, superintendent, assistant superintendents, lobbyists, and attorneys. Finally, at the peak of the pyramid sits the owners, Ben Harris and David Chaney. Also included, outside the pyramid, but very important to its structure are the enablers, elected officials - State Reps, Senators, State Superintendent of Schools, Governor, etc., who receive a "cut" for enabling legislation or willful blindness. A column describing "willful blindness" can be read here.
This last week, in addition to visiting with parents of Epic students, I discussed the "Epic Pyramid Duck" with a former Epic teacher. The teacher told me that he or she was just fired from Epic even before the first year of employment was complete. The teacher had received another job in a traditional public school, so felt free to speak. Teacher told me that he (or she) was on the "do not re-hire" list because of unspecified reasons. It's a fact that first year teachers are not afforded the same "due process" rights as veteran teachers, so no reason for being fired must be given. The belief is that he or she was fired because a large amount of bonus money was owed (80 students at $400 per student = $32,000), and Epic would not be forced pay it if the teacher was fired before the end of the year. The 80 students the teacher was responsible for recruiting and teaching, were simply reassigned to other teachers (who would not receive the bonus). The teacher should have received approximately $38,000 regular salary + $32,000 bonus = $70,000. The "bonus money" was simply bumped up the pyramid, probably to Harris and Chaney, after the teacher was fired. The teacher (bottom level of the pyramid) probably would have earned more than several mid-level administrators (next level up), and the pyramid tends to fall apart when that happens, hence the firing.
A typical $5,000 student is distributed on the pyramid with the teacher (first level) receiving about $800, the student (first level) receiving about $900 - $1,000, second level administrators receive about $1,000, third pyramid level administrators - $1,700, and the two peak owners receive about $500 per student, or $11 million total!
By firing the aforementioned teacher, the Epic owners payed themselves about $32,000 more... Think about that - if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it's a duck, or pyramid scheme in this case. Follow the money...
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