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I must admit that the first emotion I felt upon reading the letter sent home just hours after the decision to convert my daughers school to a k-5, was anger.
I've been having enough trouble trying to insulate my children from these bullies on the school board, as well as the insensitive administration at her school. Then my 10 year old reads in this newsletter that she will be going to the high school (middle school) next year. She was terrified.
I can't believe that the adults that I've entrusted my children to can have such poor judgement.
I would fire a babysitter for less.
Anonymous 9:18 am:
Can you tell me when you used the word newsletter; was the letter from Ms. Beaumont actually placed in the elementary school's newsletter? Or did you use the word because the letter held notification that the school would be closing as a K-7 and becoming a K-5. Sad that some things are not well thought out. Sounds like consideration for the loss that will be experienced has been ignored.
It is on our School Letterhead, Newsletter #5. The front is our Calendar of Dates and signed by our Principal, the back is all about the K-5 transition, and signed by Cheryle Beaumont.
So I guess my answer was yes, it is actually part of our regular newsletter.
Consideration for the loss has been ignored by both our Principal and Ms. Beaumont in my opinion.
The administration of the Langley School district seems to this writer to be bullying and controlling in their tactics to satisfy the Ministry of Education in Victoria more so than consideration for our students' success. One wonders, is this perhaps to help advance some choice career opportunities with the ministry? Cramming schools to over capacity and then closing many elementary schools in the near future seems to be their goal. Why? So the ministry in Victoria can give a pat on the back and say,"Thanks for cutting costs,now we will give you funds to build some new schools"? All at the cost of our students educations today! Make sense? NOT. Nothing would surprise me now on whatever else they have up their sleeve for this Langley school district #35. This district is going down.Soon to be SUNK! The senior administration is accountable for these actions and impressions in my opinion. W.Minar
Edited By Siteowner
Wendy, the problem in Langley's School District and Langley Township are that the tail is clearly wagging the dog. Sadly the elected politicians in both cases regurgitate without question the senior administrator's and their administration's wishes and desires for both the school district and the township. The few outspoken politicians like Richter on Township council who are smart enough to see the issues and question them are not supported by their peers because their tails are wagged beyond reasonable belief by their own administration! It's much, much worse on Township council because you have a former bureaucrat who was even elected as mayor!
While I empathize with your anger, I don't know why anyone would be shocked that they chose this method to communicate the decision. Nothing shocks me any more. I truly expect the worst from senior management. They've been utterly insensitive and single-minded in this matter.
Something not mentioned so far is how it will affect teaching staff in Langley, overall.
The decisions made by the Superintendent and School Board could affect virtually every school in Langley. It's like the domino effect. Stafford becomes a Middle School and teachers are laid off there. Laid off Stafford teachers with seniority are posted to other schools in the district; then teachers with lower seniority at the other schools are laid off. Amalgamating part of Stafford and LSS means class sizes are increased. Fewer teachers are needed. More layoffs. Throughout the school district, teachers will be bumped from their jobs by other teachers with more seniority.
The point of all this grief? Money. Take a look at how many school properties are for sale in Langley, then take a look at some of the decisions made. LEC was sent to the LSS site when both staffs objected. It didn't matter. The decision was made, despite the fact that an empty school existed three blocks away from the LEC site. Parents, teachers and students have been upset about the reconfiguration of Stafford. That doesn't matter. Elementary schools in the Brookswood area are likely to close because enrollment will automatically go down when the new Middle School opens. That won't matter. The School Board will amalgamate the elementary schools. It will save money. The Stafford fiasco has never been about doing what is best for students. It has always been about saving money. What decisions have been made that haven't been about saving money?
What I wonder is what's next. Why would four trustees and a superintendent push an agenda that people clearly hate and are adamantly fighting? What would make those five people so rigid? They know there is no educational merit in creating a middle school. (If there was, why didn't the keep the Fundamental School as a middle school?) They have been shown study after study by people who have done the research. They haven't even attempted to justify their decision beyond cliches and little stories.
There has to be something that they aren't telling the public. Why would they put up with the public's outrage for a drastic change they can't justify or even properly discuss? They have to be the fall guys for something. We just don't know what it is. Yet.
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