Those two together are a deadly combination, and are the source of a vastly disproportionate amount of problems at my and most other schools.

Any school that requires a time or money commitment from parents (private, charter, competitive public, etc) is comparatively free from the problems caused by such children, because they do not exist. In such schools there’s something for the families to lose, and so there is in turn a greater commitment to the children’s education. This is not so at an inner city public school, which often becomes the dumping ground for the kids that no one else wants.

The question is do all children deserve an education (whether they want it or not) or simply the right to one? Is it fair to hold the children accountable for their (likely ill-informed) decisions concerning their education? How much in loco parentis do we want?

I’d argue that it’s the environment that needs to change. The parents of these kids want the best for their children (like all parents do) but they might be working 2 jobs, or have dropped out of school themselves at 8th grade and feel unqualified to help, or intimidated by the school environment. There needs to be another option available to these parents.

Here’s the pitch. Parents in difficult circumstances would trade face-time with their children in exchange for a top-notch education (free of charge, of course) getting them out of a rough neighborhood, and giving them an excellent chance of getting into college on a scholarship.

In the past many parents have been willing to PAY for such a trade-off, that’s what keeps places like Andover in business.

Here’s my idea. I’d like to take some of the kids that “no one wants” and set up a year-round boarding school out in the countryside somewhere. I’m sure some wealthy benefactor would be happy to pony up the endowment. (NOTE TO BENEFACTOR: if you’re reading this, drop me a comment) I’d start with a classical curriculum (you wouldn’t have to, I’m just partial) I’d hire humanities instructors from the vast pool of recent desperate English, History, and Classics PhD grads (after giving them a summer training course led by experienced inner-city educators).

They’d have the ability to keep publishing, and pay comparable to a prof’s salary. Then I could pick up math and science teachers from the tech-boom casualties. The structure of the school would be a cross between the conventional preppy boarding school model, and the top public magnet schools. Perhaps I’d rope in a martial element a la Josiah Bunting.

You’d get them at a young age, put them in a nurturing environment, and hold them to exceptionally high standards. It would WORK. …anybody want a school named after them? -D

My emotionally disturbed student got into a fist-fight with another one of my students during class on Thursday, and third student brought a knife to class.

The knife-bringer, let’s call him Mack, was one of my biggest behavior problems this year (not disrespectful, just a very short attention span and in need of constant supervision), and now it looks like he’s going to be expelled.

Funny thing is had this happened a week later, Mack would still be here, regardless of the knife. See, he’s got an IEP (individualized education plan), and Mack’s mother was refusing to sign it. Had his previous one expired, before the mother signed the new one, it would not have mattered if he’d brought an assault weapon into school, he could NOT have been expelled. It’s not the nature or gravity of the offense that matters, but rather whether the paperwork is in order. -D

If any readers have found some good Christmas MySpace layouts please comment below.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – A Louisville lawyer whose firm filed bankruptcy with $16.6 million in debt would pay most of his creditors less than 2 cents on the dollar, under a proposed settlement.

Federal regulators said in court records that the $394,583 settlement would allow Ron Sheffer to “purchase” a discharge.

People work hard only to be screwed over by low life’s that run up unbelievable debts like this and then only have to pay a pittance back. It’s not right!!

Sheffer, 67, has been blocked from discharging his debts because a federal bankruptcy judge ruled that he fraudulently diverted assets to his wife.

The b@#’~~d, owes millions, but tries to rip off his creditors. I hope they take this low life to the cleaners.

The U.S. Bankruptcy Trustee said allowing Sheffer to settle his case would violate public policy and bankruptcy law. Sheffer’s lawyer and the creditors who support the deal say it is the fairest and least expensive way to resolve the case.

My friend doesn’t think that, he’ll loose a lot of money!

They said that Sheffer could retire, leaving creditors with no wages to garnish if he is barred from discharging his debts through bankruptcy.

A hearing is scheduled for June 27 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Louisville.

Under the proposed agreement, Sheffer would pay $80,000 to Ohio Valley and $114,583 to Franklin Bank & Trust Co. of Simpson County. Sheffer’s wife, Anne, and his son, Tom, would pay $200,000 to the Chapter 7 trustee, who would divide it among other creditors.

In court papers, the U.S. Bankruptcy Trustee said that would be unfair because Ohio Valley would be paid 32 percent of the amount it is owed and Franklin 4 percent, while the other creditors, who are owed a combined $13.7 million, would get only 1.4 cents on the dollar.

Typical, the small guys get the crumbs. Everything about this just stinks and should not be happening.

My friend expects to do badly out of this one, bankruptcy shouldn’t be so easy.

Article source http://www.kentucky.com/mld/kentucky/news/14849396.htm

She was observing one of my emotionally disturbed students as he attempted to again run my class in circles.

The school has already attempted to expel him once, but because one of the necessary papers wasn’t signed, he’s back in school for another 60 days until another hearing can be convened. Problem is, the kid keeps skipping school, so he’s never IN school for 60 days. So it goes.

The poor kid can barely read, and is prone to violence, what he needs to have any chance of a normal life is for someone to work with him one-on-one. That’s the one thing that’s never going to happen.

The psychologist was detailing the extensive observations and paperwork that went into labelling a child emotionally disturbed. There are home visits, multiple interviews, etc.

After about 5 minutes of her explaining this I asked, “O.K., so after all of that work, what sort of changes in the child’s instruction does that ‘emotionally-disturbed’ label translate to?” “Oh, none really,” she replied. Ah.