A successful beginning, not an end
While the admins may have an opportunity to continue in the district, we still have a long road ahead of us.
WOW! I want to take a moment to say, its been awe inspiring to see the community come together so quickly around the school. I've been so pleased to work with all of you. Lets keep the momentum going!
A proud start
Board members open meeting. Photo By Kerry Hatcher - CC BY 4.0
At the Bibb County School Board meeting on March 20th, the board approved lateral transfers for both the Assistant Principal Meredith Byrd and Principal Angel Woodard. While it may not represent exactly what we wanted, we should be proud that our efforts ensured that these two great educators have an opportunity to have a bright future in their profession.
I wish I knew if this is even what they wanted or even if they will accept it. Frankly, as long as it’s their choice and not someone else, I’m satisfied. My worry for them was how this would affect their future prospects. After hearing from parents and students about last year, I’m confident they did everything that could be expected of them.
Various photos of board meetings - Photos By Kerry Hatcher - CC BY 4.0
Watch the teachers, parents, and community address the board:
Here is a message I received from a Bibb county resident:
I may have been the messenger but you all made it happen. THANK YOU!!
FOIA Updates
While at the BoE meeting I received back information from the BCSD outside counsel regarding 3 of our FOIA Open Records Requests (ORRs). I've already responded to one accepting the cost and asking them to move forward. The other two OORs costs are much higher than expected. I'll be following up with the district in an attempt to clarify what I'm asking for. I think they may not have fully understood what it is I'm seeking. A big thank you to those who have helped us with these requests!
United Way Emails - Working on a response to BCSD
PD Calls For Service - Working on a response to BCSD
1st Grade Disruptions Emails - Cost accepted, process started
What’s next?
Many of you asked me this after the board meeting. While we may no longer be fighting to keep our beloved admins at the school, we should not loose sight of why we started this, our children. The academic setbacks and trauma of the children currently in 2nd grade need to be addressed. We will continue to press for that. I'm working on bringing all the affected parents together so we can get the district to provide extra resources to help them. While the district may have failed them last year, we can work to ensure these setbacks do not cause the children to struggle for the rest of their lives.
We also need to ensure this doesn't happen again. This is a two fold effort. The first is to ensure we as parents and stakeholders are involved in the process for replacing our admins. Secondly, work with the district as a whole to ensure there are systems, processes, and polices in place to deal with these sort of situations. This is the primary goal of the FOIA requests. We will use the data we find to hold the district accountable, so that we can ensure the problems are solved, not just moved around.
Now is the time to hit the gas pedal, let’s not loose our momentum! Check back often and be sure to subscribe for update.
Kerry Hatcher