Search Results for 'scottie griffin'

In yesterday’s closed session of the Charlottesville School Board, it was decided to survey the staff to determine what they think of the administration, James Fernald reports in today’s Progress. It looks like the survey is intended to assess the staff’s take on beleaguered Superintendent Scottie Griffin, despite the official stance that it’s about the administration on the whole.

Two board members — Dede Smith and Muriel Wiggins — were opposed to the idea, saying that the questions used on the survey don’t actually help to figure out what staff thinks about the administration. There are a few more closed school board meetings coming up in the next week, but it’s not publicly known if they have anything to do with Griffin.

There’s been a lot of talk in the past few years about the achievement gap in Charlottesville — that is, that black students tend to score lower on standardized tests than do white students. With the racial concerns stirred up around Superintedent Scottie Griffin, the issue has gotten quite a bit more attention recently. What’s not clear, though, is whether the problem is an economic one that tends to manifest itself along racial lines, or whether it’s a problem with race at its roots. In the African-American Reflector, Corey Carter has an article addressing that question:

It is true that poor children be they black or white have achievement problems, generally speaking, because of their home environment. However, it is reckless to assign poverty as the primary cause for the achievement gap in a feeble attempt to deracialize institutional racism. Whether a black child lives on Hardy Drive, or in Greenbrier, or in Farmington, they will be subjected to institutional racism and have less opportunities to be successful in school.

I don’t know if the root cause is racism or class-based disadvantage, but I’m glad we’re talking about it.

At the first of a series of four forums being held about the school budget, Superintendent Scottie Griffin’s budget proposal resulted in hisses of derision last night. She proposes cutting five positions and adding four new administrators, using the bit left over to raise teacher salaries somewhat. The five positions cut would be three P.E. teachers and two guidance councilors, all at the elementary school level. Critics, including City Councilor Kevin Lynch, object to swapping out student-contact staff with a “top heavy” administration. Some proposals were met well, though, including a 5% increase in the starting salary, a new ESL teacher, and making some coordinator positions full-time, including fine arts, P.E., and health & family life. James Fernald has the story in today’s Progress.