REPOSTED POLL....

Is It Fair To Only Close Schools On Cleveland's Predominantly Black East Side, Are Slated Teachers Layoffs Unfair?

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they are all watching us adults...

Kathy--the saddest part of the equation--we have allowed fithy, rich (mostly "white") old money (mostly men) to turn the CMSD into a prison system. 

The sickest part of this whole charade.  Rich folks will get their spawn schooled at the expense of the poor folks, who live in the City of Cleveland!  It's happening now at the special academies.  Your child does not even have to live in Cleveland to attend the "special" schools. 

BECAUSE, there will be, as planned, a few "Schools of Excellence" (like the new K-8 International Boarding School at CSU).

Sure, beats tuition for Laurel, Hawken or the University School. And, who needs an Ivy League degree these days?  But, if you still want your child to attend Harvard, the admission boards are suckers for the hard-knock story of the "urban" child who DEFIES the ODDS to succeed.  Afterall, America loves adults, who harbor bad childhood stories, and we manufacture more of them EVERYDAY-regardless of skin tone!

Meanwhile, the Plain Dealer administration knew the whole time that they were bringing in con-man, charlatan Eugene Saunders from Toledo, where he filled a similar role.  The Plain Dealer KNEW that Mr. Saunders failed to pay his income tax on earnings BEFORE he came here and they BURIED that story.

It's all just a REAL ESTATE game.

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Campus International School at Cleveland State University 3/30/2011

from the CSU Perspective
Written by Barbara Chudzik, Senior Communications Representative
Cleveland State University

Two large stuffed giraffes are positioned just inside the front door. There are no desks for students or teachers. And Mandarin Chinese is on the daily lesson plan.

The newly launched Campus International School (CIS) is a far cry from a traditional neighborhood school. A collaboration between Cleveland State and the Cleveland Metropolitan School District, CIS has already been recognized by the New York Times as an innovative model for urban education.

Housed in leased space at the former First United Methodist Church at East 30th Street and Euclid Avenue, just blocks from the CSU campus, CIS was championed by President Ronald Berkman and won enthusiastic support from Cleveland schools former CEO Eugene Sanders and Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson.

The school opened this fall with 112 youngsters in kindergarten through second grade. Third grade classes will be added in fall 2011; eventually the school will offer classes through grade 12.

Campus International will incorporate programs from the International Baccalaureate – a Swiss-based education program renowned for its academic rigor, international curriculum and high standards. IB schools develop intellectual, personal, emotional and social skills for students to live, learn and work in a rapidly globalizing world.

At CIS, the entire third floor is the classroom for first and second graders while the second floor is the kindergarten classroom. Individual rooms are learning centers named for local landmarks like the Great Lakes Science Center and West Side Market and for CSU’s Colleges. It’s one way of introducing students to what’s around them and helping them become global citizens.

With just 20 students per class, youngsters move from room to room and floor to floor, learning Chinese, literacy, math, social studies, science, music, media, art and physical education. They sit at round tables or on the carpeted floor in rooms painted bright orange, green and blue. Hallways and stairwells are adorned with student artwork.

Some 70 percent of students are from Cleveland; the remainder live in suburbs from Solon to Westlake to Wickliffe. Some 70 percent are African American, with other ethnicities represented as well. The boy/girl split is about 50/50. With open enrollment, the student body represents a wide range of academic ability. The curriculum is customized to meet individual needs.

CIS has seven full-time teachers for its six classes and physical education. There also are part-time teachers for art, media and music. All came from the Cleveland schools. But they don’t sit in one room, at a desk, in front of 20 students.

“Everything is shared –- space, resources, teachers. Every student has every teacher and our teachers know the strengths and weaknesses of each student,” notes Ronald Abate, CSU associate professor of teacher education who is on sabbatical this year to serve as the liaison between CSI and CSU.

“In traditional schools, teachers can get isolated. Here, teachers collaborate. Every subject is taught in every learning center. Students explore and interact as they learn. It’s a dynamic environment.”

In keeping with the international curriculum, every CIS student has passport that looks like the real thing. As a country or culture is studied, the passport is stamped. And students actually travel – with weekly trips to the CSU campus for recreational or educational experiences.

CIS provides a unique learning environment not just for its young students, it also provides access to a teaching environment for CSU education students. Similar to a teaching hospital, CSU students are using the campus school as a hands-on training facility to enhance their classroom experience.

“The entire University community has been extremely supportive of the school,” says Dr. Abate. “From computer and technology assistance to speech and hearing students testing our kindergarten students to the Confucius Institute providing funding for our Mandarin teacher, the support and interest from CSU have been outstanding.” Parental support and involvement have been exemplary as well.

“Campus International affords parents a fabulous educational choice for their children. It’s a viable alternative for those who might otherwise choose a private school or leave the city rather than send their children to a public school,” says principal Julie Beers. In fact, some parents are signing up their unborn children.

Other schools in the Cleveland district will benefit from CIS as well, through the sharing of best practices developed in the innovative environment. “This school will set a new urban standard in education,” says President Berkman. “CIS provides the city with a unique, high-end education at no additional cost to parents. It also provides the University with a venue to produce new, best-in-class teachers of the future.”
For Mayor Jackson, CIS is a step toward reversing the flow of urban sprawl and drawing new families back into the city.

“This school represents a viable new option for younger families who want to live downtown,” Jackson says. “The first step of redeveloping any urban core begins with education, and this project sends a clear message that we are committed to bettering the community with students who will compete globally.”

For information, contact the Campus International School at 216.431.2225.

when the statistics show that "Some 70 percent are African American," at the some of the best equipped public schools locally? 

Thanks, Laura for sharing info about this school... too bad all the schools are not so well equipped and it'll be another generation before many have "learned enough best practices to actually incorporate them into the scheme of things!" Looks like parents will travel "Far" and "still participate" when they truly want better for their children....

My child attended a CMSD school that I highly admired and had researched for their test scores BEFORE I enrolled her....they out-performed several "SUBURB" schools... I called the principal and "interviewed" her months before I registered my child. Then, I worked tirelessly to travel back and forth to the school and get involved and make arrangements for my child to get additional support as needed in collaboration with a wonderful staff. By first grade, I was actively engaged in the School Parent Organization and loving every day at the school and enjoying volunteering almost daily at the school in any way I could. Moreover, the relationships with other peer parents was exciting and I enjoyed before and after school interactions with enumerable parents regarding our children and even outside of school plans and events. It was a wonderful environment for a big moment... I was honored to attend CMSD SPO training, HumanWare meetings, participate in the Communications Advisory Board, and sit on several "Task Force" meetings...

Yet, while in limbo to get posession of my home back-the gas prices were killing me and I had the opportunity to put my child in a parochial school for a year that was just down the street from our temporary housing. I chose to do that with the help of several outside people... I had anticipated good results with the idealism of being in a religious community, getting my child acquainted with the teachings of the catholic church, and planning for her first communion and baptism in that year.... The first week of school began and life was refreshing....

Then, 7 days later; my child's father was found dead in his living room... Talk about life turning upside down.... The rest of that school year seems a busy blur of challenges that can only be known by a parent who has shared this type of loss with a child who was so close to their other parent. In the left hand, I chose to stay at the parochial but in the right hand; it was not the same as the CMSD school we had left and my child yearned regularly to return to her old school. So, when the time came to move back and reenroll her in the public school; I gave it alot of consideration and thought that she would enjoy being around the public school that really made her "happy".... and where she excelled in learning...

This school year is almost over... it's been a challenge too...and I have not gotten too active with the SPO this year...but I am amazed by the academic levels she's at....and I love knowing that her principal says the Pledge of Allegiance daily and that the school attitude in general is so positive... We've been through a ton; but the Family Liaison has also been a dynamic person from the school who stays abreast of changes & challenges. The teachers are expectorant and are tough cookies....and I respect them for that (even when my child complains about things as our kids will do!) 

The tension about SB 5 has permeated the schools and tensions are being experienced by the kids through the stresses on the teachers. The Ohio Achievement Tests are a very significant measure of each school. Our school communicates the significance throughout the year while teachers work to teach info that is on the tests and prepare our children for doing well. The kids have been pushed to achieve all year and I don't really have a problem with that in this global world.

Ultimately, parenthood is a challenge no matter who you are....but try giving the best available to your kid after losing a parent... While standards, achievement, excellence, and academics are an integral part of their futures....being a "kid" is also significant.  Sometimes, my friends will call with events to attend...I am so tired and exhausted that I don't want to go anywhere.... but I know that my child deserved to go... she earned it in more ways than one...

So, at this stage while I balance "parenthood at large"....I continue to enforce the prayers at dinner, the nightly reading requirements, and now I will allow my child to use the internet strictly to work on her "FIRST IN MATH" requirements.... but after it's all said and done--she wants to be tickled, hugged, cuddled, and loved beyond words and more than that-she wants to play, ride her bike, and go here and there...and I do my best to make time for it all.... I know our blessings and I thank God daily for them more than anyone of any means could ever outline to me.... While they may get oversighted here and there in our busy world, I do know them to the depths of my soul.

My child is compassionate, considerate, loving, energetic, healthy and socially aware of little things that matter. My best goal as a parent beyond the basics is "TEACH HER THE POWER OF MAKING GOOD DECISIONS"....and help her to make those decisions in a positive way. (and be there when she makes mistakes to help her learn and grow from those mistakes...but also to let her learn,  test her boundaries, and get accustomed to her ever growing independence from mommy in a safe environment) and   I cannot make them for her when she grows up and I cannot protect her from the world of evil that is out there forever.... But I can prayerfully teach her as much as I have within me about the little things that matter and along the way she teaches me too.... which is the ultimate highlight of parenthood.... but again-education for life starts at home with parents and I am doing my best to provide what I have to my child despite all adversity and challenges!!! 

Always Appreciative, "ANGELnWard14"