When "checking on a parishoner" goes wrong

A Texas pastor caught by police with a laptop and fur coats said she was protecting the valuables, not stealing them from the home of a parishioner.

Sandy McGriff, cofounder of the Church of the Living God, tells The Dallas Morning News that she used poor judgment when she entered a church member's home through a broken window and removed valuable property.

McGriff faces charges of burglary of habitation and resisting arrest. She posted a $26,000 bond and was released from the Dallas County Jail.

McGriff says she saw two men on the side of the home and decided to check it out. That's when she says she found the broken window.

A neighbor called police, who found McGriff carrying two fur coats out of the home. AP

A CrimeView look at District 150 high schools

In an earlier post, I touted the benefits of after school clubs and extra curriculars. Sharon Crews raised the very important issue of student safety after leaving school property. Peoria Story reports that during the public comments section of the December 13th meeting of the Board of Education, Terry Knapp raised the following issue

...students walking home in the dark to the former Woodruff High School area from Peoria Central because activity buses apparently are not running.

To which Superintendent Lathan responded...

...the buses are running and students may choose to walk home.

Today, in the comments Sharon Crews raised the issue again:

Of course, I have a complaint about the transplanted Woodruff students. At the last board meeting Dr. Lathan responded to Terry's complaint that there were no activity buses to take kids home to the Woodruff area. She disagreed--said that the buses were available. However, I know for sure that buses were not available for the members of the PHS boys' swim team (those who were former Woodruff students). I don't know if anything has changed.

Then she counters that, by admitting...

There are so many after-school activities and events to which buses just couldn't possibly be available with so many differing time schedules. Not all these kids have cars or families who have cars available for all this transporting. My guess is that many kids just plain cannot participate because of transportation. During vacation the PHS swim team practices twice a day--probably no buses at all.

...the overall number of students who participate in extra-curricular activities (even sports) is way, way down.

The general public seems to blame the schools for so much. The societal ills that we are facing are of such a magnitude that there is no way the schools alone can make all the difference. The schools can't control what is happening on the streets and in the lives of the children who live in Peoria. All they can do is the best they can with who shows up.

As illustrated by the Crime View Statistics below, our children are living in a war zone. While the schools could certainly do more to provide after school programs to reach a broader audience, they can only do so much to keep our children and families safe as they come and go.

The level of security our children and their parents feel may have an impact on the level of participation. The statistics below are from the CrimeView Community and for the time period of November 1, 2010 - December 26, 2010 (click image to enlarge):

Updated: HatTip Anonymous...

School clubs - a safe place to belong

The value of middle and high school children being able to participate in clubs and extra curriculars should not be taken for granted. As a student, the clubs I participated in were: gymnastics, tumbling, dance, cheerleading, pompoms, art, basketball, track, and volleyball. As a result, the years of attentive and continuous coaching through my formative years, have helped me become the disciplined individual I am today.

A high school student’s perspective on the value of clubs…
People, especially around adolescence, feel a strong sense of loneliness. When you're lonely, it's difficult for hope to grow. Some adolescents often believe that there is no reason to really try at anything because the end doesn't vary, regardless of how you got there.

They don't seem to realize that the road to the end is the best part, simply because they have no one close to point it out.

In order to increase the rate of high school graduates, schools should promotes clubs and other school communities. A byproduct of promoting school communities is the formation of bonds. Adolescents spend time with people who they share the same qualities, values, strengths, and weaknesses. People see how many people are like them. They gain friendship and companionship. These friends will provide an unspoken encouragement for success and ambition. They might even inspire competition, the drive for improvement. They will do many things for students, and won't stop at encouraging students, but will continue on to help students realize that the journey is meant to be enjoyed.

The best part about this plan is that it is budget friendly. Clubs can hold their own fundraisers if the need of funds should ever arise. Students can manage themselves; responsibility is another welcome side effect. The members of the club will learn to depend on others; a skill valuable if they should ever find themselves in a position where interactions are involved.

We're all lonely people. It'll do us all a great deal if we knew that sometimes life isn't as lonely as we make it out to be. Humans are social creatures. Would it be so wrong for me to infer that people would do much better if there's someone doing it with them, no matter what they want to accomplish? Source

Related: After school clubs for middle schoolers

Lady T - the Ivory Queen of Soul has passed

Teena Marie always wild is finally peaceful. Her music holds wonderful memories for me that I share with my children whenever I hear it. I have every album that I still cherish to this day. She is on my IPod; her lyricism is a part of my psyche. Rest in peace Lady T.

Marie Christine Brockert "Teena Marie", who made history as Motown's first white act but developed a lasting legacy with her silky soul pipes and with hits like "Lovergirl," ''Square Biz," and "Fire and Desire" with mentor Rick James, has died. She was 54.

Teena Marie, known as the "Ivory Queen of Soul," was certainly not the first white act to sing soul music, but she was arguably among the most gifted and respected, and was thoroughly embraced by the black audience.

She was first signed to the legendary Motown label back in 1979 at age 19, working with James, with whom she would have long, turbulent but musically magical relationship.

The cover of her album, "Wild and Peaceful," did not feature her image, with Motown apparently fearing backlash by audiences if they found out the songstress with the dynamic voice was white.

But Marie notched her first hit, "I'm A Sucker for Your Love," and was on her way to becoming one of R&B's most revered queens. During her tenure with Motown, the singer-songwriter and musician produced passionate love songs and funk jam songs like "Need Your Lovin'," ''Behind the Groove" and "Ooh La La La."

Marie had a daughter and had toured in recent years after overcoming an addiction to prescription drugs.

Merry Christmas!

Local newspaper finally gives the deets on Deadly December

Buried at the end of a STORY ABOUT ANOTHER SHOOTING IN THE STREETS OF PEORIA, the pjstar mentioned the "gunplay" that continues in the city streets...

The bloody holiday continued a roughly three-week spike in violence that has left three people dead and several injured from gunshot wounds.

The 21 homicides recorded with one week of the year remaining represent the highest such figure in more than 20 years - since a record 23 homicides were recorded in 1989. Source

SOS Peoria: Three (3) homicides in last nine (9) days

First in Print - Deadly December 2010

Today, citizens of Peoria are left to put together for themselves that with the homicide of December 21st, the City of Peoria has had four (4) homicides in little over one (1) month; and three (3) homicides within the last nine (9) days.

Victim of Tuesday beating is the city's 21st homicide - Dec 22, 2010
Peoria police are investigating the city’s 21st homicide of the year after the victim of a beating was pronounced brain dead Tuesday, December 21, 2010.

Todd Gunter, 29, of 1829 S. Stanley St. is being maintained on life support at OSF Saint Francis Medical Center pending preparation for organ donation. He was brought to the hospital after an incident at 12:21 p.m. Monday at Griswold Liquors, 1814 S. Griswold St. He was pronounced brain dead at 6 p.m. Tuesday.

Police were flagged down outside the liquor store Monday after Gunter was found lying unresponsive on the ground. He may have been struck in the head with a piece of asphalt. An autopsy will be performed to determine an official cause of death following organ donation, according to Peoria County Coroner Johnna Ingersoll. Source

North Peoria Shooting Leaves One Man Dead - Wed, Dec 15, 2010
A lunch-hour shooting in North Peoria claims the life of a Peoria man. Police say he was shot in the head while driving through a neighborhood.

Peoria man dies after being shot in the chest - Sun, Dec 12, 2010
A Peoria man was fatally shot in the 1500 block of South Stanley Street about 6:30 p.m. Sunday.

AND there was a homicide in November...

Man shot, killed in gas station fight - Nov 11, 2010
A man released from prison almost a year ago allegedly shot and killed a Peoria man during a Tuesday night fight at a Circle K gas station.

AND... There are still two (2) babies in our city recovering from bullet wounds. On October 14th, an early morning shooting resulted in the injury of a 4-year-old as someone fired shots into a home; on Dec 11th, a 3-year-old child was shot in the head on North North Street.

Illinois' upcoming Education Reform fight

Representative Jehan Gordon has earned a reputation for listening to her constituents. In April of 2009, Rep. Gordon invited several people (teachers, parents, etc...) who are involved in the Peoria educational community to become part of her Education Advisory Committee.

The group had an opportunity to meet with Rep. Gordon for an update on legislative developments in Springfield and share their thoughts about issues affecting the education community.

In the coming weeks, Rep. Gordon, who is a member of the Senate's Special Committee on Education Reform, will be taking part in hearings on the Peformance Counts Act.

The Performance Counts Act of 2010 (PCA) is a draft of proposed legislation, commissioned by Stand for Children Illinois (based in Oregon) and Advance Illinois. On December 16th and 17th, it was the central point of discussion at Education Reform Hearings at the Illinois Math and Science Academy in Aurora. The PCA appears to be extremely fast moving legislation that many believe will be voted on by the General Assembly in very early January 2011. It is a sweeping proposal addressing tenure, evaluations, dismissal, collective bargaining, and strikes.

Reportedly, Rep. Gordon received some campaign contributions from Stand for Children and on their website, she is vaguely referred to as one of nine "champions of education". Rep. Gordon, is in position to play an integral part in moving Stand for Children's agenda through the legislature.

Editorial: Illinois school reform proposals
The best way to improve education in Illinois dramatically is to attract and keep the best teachers in the classroom and more quickly and efficiently fire the worst.

That's the aim of a draft proposal — dubbed the Performance Counts Act — introduced to a special Illinois House committee last week.

The reforms would:
•Make teacher performance the main factor in layoff decisions. In many districts, teachers are laid off by seniority — last in, first out. That means good young teachers are fired instead of less effective teachers who are protected by seniority.

•Make it easier to fire ineffective teachers. Right now, the process to fire a teacher is so cumbersome that many principals don't try. This would streamline the process significantly and spare kids from the worst teachers.

•Ensure that only the best-performing teachers earn tenure. Instead of a virtually automatic tenure award after four years of service, teachers would be granted tenure only if they've been rated "proficient" or "excellent" in evaluations. That's a smart step. But it also depends on far more honest teacher evaluations, tied strongly to student performance and classroom observation.

The most controversial part of this package: curbing teachers' right to strike. The proposal would hand more power to school boards to resolve contract disputes.

Right now, teachers can strike after negotiations and mediation fail. This proposal would create a new step. If mediation fails, a three-member panel would be created — one member picked by the school board, one by the union and one by the other two members. The panel would hammer out a settlement. If either side rejected that settlement, the details of it would be made public.

But the final decision would rest with the school board. It could accept the panel's settlement or the union's offer, or impose its own settlement. The union could strike only if the school board failed to act.

That's a powerful proposal. It would invite public scrutiny of negotiations and protect teachers from dysfunctional school boards. But it would, essentially, end teacher strikes.

The House committee wrapped up hearings on these ideas last week. An Illinois Senate committee will consider them early next year. Read entire editorial here.

Can I get your opinion?

Are these photos too sexy? I can't tell the age of the girls (too much make-up). They appear to be about 7 or 8? My first inclination was that it was too sexy. Then I actually looked at the clothes and not the girls. The clothes and accessories are fabulous - I'd wear the stuff. Therein lies the problem, I'm a mature, sophisticated woman, these pieces are for somebody my age.

My little one thought the pictures were "really cute". She said it looks like they are playing dress up. She ought to know, I'm forever making her take my heels off. The photo shoot appears in the current issue of French Vogue.

Is this just another push to mainstream the sexualization of little girls, by making it couture and classy? What do you think? Too sexy, or innocents playing dress up?

Two file petitions for 2011 BOE vacancies

Pjstar first in print is reporting that General Parker, former candidate for Mayor, has filed his petition to be placed on the April 2011 ballot for BOE. Apparently, Parker has an outstanding civil fine, which was imposed by the State Board of Elections after he failed to file documents related to his run for Mayor. The $1,200 fine can be nullified after two years if not paid. But during that time, it could prevent Parker from appearing on the ballot.

The pjstar also took advantage of the opportunity to raise again the fact that Parker has some criminal infractions from his youth on his record. The pjstar writer speculates about the Illinois Election Code noting that any person convicted of an "infamous crime" shall be "prohibited from holding any office of honor, trust, or profit, unless such person is again restored to such rights by the terms of a pardon for the offense or otherwise according to the law."

The deadline to file petitions is December 20th. There are two vacancies coming open and so far only Parker and Mike Mitchell have filed petitions. Debbie Wolfmeyer, the current BOE President is still gathering signatures; and Jim Stowell has said that he does not plan on running.

School district eliminates honors English course

As we have heard, all District 150 programs are under review for the 2011-2012 school year. From what I understand, District 150's review is in an effort to open all programs up to more students. As a result, many in the Peoria community are highly concerned about the disposition (integrity) of honors courses.

As expected, dismantling institutionalized tracking comes with some push back to maintain the stauts quo. Despite opposition from hundreds of parents, the Evanston Township School Board is not deterred and is moving forward with their "detracking plan".
Evanston Township High School District 202 eliminates honors English course Board OKs 'detracking' plan after weeks of debate on academics, race, politics
After weeks of debate that touched on academics, race and politics, Evanston Township High School District 202 approved a dramatic plan Monday night that eliminates an honors English course for the highest-achieving incoming freshmen — usually white students.

The unanimous school board vote paves the way for freshmen of all races, socioeconomic and achievement backgrounds next fall to take the same freshman humanities course next fall. Proponents of the move see it as a way to diversify advanced courses and circumvent the traditional process of tracking students into courses by test scores that often places minorities in lower-level classes.

The board approved the plan despite opposition from hundreds of parents who signed a petition urging officials to at least delay the proposal while it can be studied further.

Among other concerns, parents felt top-performing students could be bored or held back in classes that cater to the abilities of a wide range of students. The class scheduled for elimination is designed for freshmen who outscore about 95 percent of peers nationally on eighth-grade tests.

Now, those students will be melded with all incoming freshmen able to read at the ninth-grade level, which the high school defines as scoring at or about the 40th percentile on the achievement test given to eighth-graders. All freshmen in the class will have the opportunity to earn honors credit, depending on their grades on assignments.

A small number of students below the 40th percentile will be in a different class, to get more help. Read entire article here.

Related article: Schools head denounces Rockford racism - Superintendent LaVonne Sheffield cited the community's racial divide as an obstacle to providing excellent public education for all children.

Shoot outs in Peoria neighborhoods continues

North Peoria Shooting Leaves One Man Dead
Wed, Dec 15, 2010

A lunch-hour shooting in North Peoria claims the life of a Peoria man. The Peoria County Coroner has not released the victim's identity.

Police say he was shot in the head while driving through a neighborhood.

Police say they were called to traffic accident in the 3700 block on Vinton Street, while en route they received calls of shots fired.

When they arrived they found a white sedan with the back window shot out, crashed into a parked car sitting in a front yard.

Captain Mike Scally says two cars were exchanging shots. The other car has not been located. There was a female passenger in the car that was transported to the hospital with minor injuries. Police are still investigating the shooting, but do not believe it is related to other recent shootings.

Pedestrian escapes shots that strike house

Tues Dec 14, 2010

One man barely escaped several bullets Tuesday night during a shooting that also left bullet holes near a child's bed in South Peoria. One bullet apparently passed over a child's bed and into the kitchen, where it hit a table and chair. Other bullets lodged in the interior wall of the bedroom and in an upstairs hallway. Other residents in the neighborhood told police the shooters were seen with an assult rifle.

Gunman opens fire at school board meeting

Apparently angry about his wife losing her job, a Florida man confronted school board members before turning his gun on himself. With so many angry people out there, perhaps it's time to consider installing metal detectors at school board meetings.

Fla. school board shooting captured on video
A school board chairman calmly told a gunman he was probably responsible for firing the man's wife and another board member tried to disarm him with her handbag before the man opened fire.

The gunman fired point-blank at school board members but missed. He was wounded by a security guard and then fatally shot himself.

The gunman had for much of the meeting sat with the rest of the audience, listening to routine business.

As the board was in the midst of a discussion Tuesday, Clay A. Duke walked to the front of the room, spray painted a red "V" with a circle around it on the white wall, then turned and waved a handgun.

Read entire article here.

Parents group challenges school flunking policy

Group says policy is hurting minority students, wants it eliminated.

The group, Parents United for Responsible Education, is asking the U.S. Education Department to stop the Chicago Public School's practice of holding back students who fail to meet the cutoff score on state standardized tests.

PURE says the score is arbitrary and has hurt African-American and Hispanic students the most. It argues the practice of ending social promotions has accelerated the downward spiral of many affected students and led to an increase in the dropout rate

The group says 100,000 CPS students have had to repeat a grade since 1996 at a cost of $100 million a year. PURE says that money could be used for more support and individual learning plans for students.

A CPS spokesperson says PURE's data may be outdated. The spokesperson says CPS has made progress in providing students the resources they need to succeed.

Michael Steel to seek second term as RNC Chair

Michael Steel took a look at unemployement rates for black professionals and decided he better try and stay where he is.

Michael Steele stuns by running for reelection
Despite facing intense criticism from within his own party, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele said Monday night he would mount a campaign for another two-year term atop the GOP.

Steele, breaking a monthlong silence about his intentions, acknowledged that he had “stumbled along the way” during the conference call with members of the RNC's 168-member governing board.

But in a defense of his tenure that stretched for 30 minutes before he announced his plans, Steele touted the party’s gains over the past two years in making a robust case for why he deserved to be elected to a second term when the party meets next month.

“[Critics] are talking a lot of trash about fundraising and talking a lot of smack about major donors,” Steele noted before pointing out that the committee had raised more this cycle than what the DNC did when they captured Congress in 2006.

He also sought to rebut those who’ve raised questions about transparency during his tenure, saying: “I’ve never tried to hide the ball from the members."

"I come to my bosses with a record that only you can judge, based upon directions you made clear to me from the very beginning,” Steele said in the message. “Yes, I have stumbled along the way, but have always accounted to you for such shortcomings. No excuses. No lies. No hidden agenda.”

Steele’s decision to go forward with a run comes after five Republicans have already declared their intention to take his job, two of whom worked with Steele at the committee.

Following his announcement Monday, some of his critics expressed exasperation at what will, at the very least, complicate the chairmanship race of a party that traditionally favors order and detests messy internal battles.

“Defying all logic, sensibility [and] political acuteness, Steele has decided to run!” wrote Massachusetts GOP committeeman Ron Kaufman in a blast e-mail. Source

At what point is it too late to teach parenting skills?

In Los Angeles County parents are being forced into parenting classes if their child is convicted of gang crime. Is it too late to teach parenting skills if the child is already in a gang?

Parents of gang members being sent to parenting class

Moms and dads in Los Angeles County are being sent to mandatory parenting classes after their children are convicted of gang crime.

The classes will eventually put in place across California under a new state law that came into effect this year.

Assemblyman Tony Mendoza, the lawmaker behind the Parent Accountability Act, says it is the first state law to give judges the power to order parents of gang members to school, though other court-mandated classes exist at the local level.

The law went into effect in January but budget cuts in Sacramento meant implementation of the classes was delayed and only in the past month or so have they been rolled out on a limited basis in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Read entire article here

Another homicide, as police layoffs are pending and gunplay continues in City streets

Peoria man dies after being shot in the chest
Sun, Dec 12, 2010

A Peoria man was fatally shot in the 1500 block of South Stanley Street about 6:30 p.m. Sunday. The death is Peoria's 19th homicide of the year.

Police found the man unresponsive with a gunshot wound to his chest when they arrived. Emergency personnel attempted to revive him but failed. The gunshot victim, a man in his 40s, lived at 1524 S. Stanley, Peoria County Coroner Johnna Ingersoll said. Source

Three men beat, rob and shoot at victim
Sat, Dec 11, 2010
A 58-year-old man was beaten, robbed and shot at by a group of men about 10:45 p.m. Saturday near the 1800 block of West Ann Street. Source

3-year-old shooting victim in critical but stable condition
Sun, Dec 12, 2010
The 3-year-old who was shot in the head Friday night remains at an area hospital in critical but stable condition, police said Sunday. Source

Another child hit by gunfire, as shooting up the streets of Peoria regardless of innocent people being in the vicinity continues

Shooting up the streets of Peoria regardless of innocents being in the vicinity continues. For the second time in the last two months another child has been hit by gunfire. You will recall that on October 14, 2010, an early morning shooting resulted in the injury of a 4-year-old as someone fired shots into a home on West Proctor Street around 4:30 in the morning.

I find it amazing how babies are the victims of shootings in Peoria and there is no sense of outrage from the community.

Another child hit by gunfire
Sat, Dec 11
A 3-year-old child was shot in the head Friday night on North North Street.

In what Peoria police Chief Steve Settingsgaard said “was probably a drive-by,” a child at 1311 N. North St. suffered a gunshot wound to the head.

The house was fired upon numerous times and a car parked on the street outside of it also was hit. A neighbor who would not give his name said it sounded like a machine gun was going off because of the number of shots fired. Source

Peoria man will face charges in shooting
Sat, Dec 11
PEORIA - A Central Peoria man was ordered held on $200,000 bond for allegedly shooting someone in the buttocks early Friday. Source

Man shot in the buttocks during robbery attempt
Sat, Dec 11
A man was shot in the buttocks after a gunman attempted to rob him Thursday night.
Source

Two survive separate, unrelated shootings
Mon, Dec 06, 2010
Two men survived being shot during separate and apparently unrelated incidents Sunday night. Source

Shots fired during South Peoria liquor store robbery
Tues, Nov 30, 2010
Three men robbed a South Peoria liquor store after firing shots into rows of bottles behind the cash register Monday evening. Source

Citizens won't be charged for running through the streets firing a weapon
Fri, Nov 26, 2010
Lyons sees both sides. "I won't be seeking criminal consequences for defensive gunfire erupting from this event." Source

The glamorization of teen pregnancy

Teen births are on the rise in Peoria County, especially in the black community. A lot of people are spending their time trying to figure out what the increase is attributable to and how to get a handle on it. Some are pointing to what is being called the glamorization of teen pregnancy by such programs as MTV's "Teen Mom" and "16 and Pregnant".

MTV is casting again for our thought-provoking series: "16 and Pregnant" which airs on Thursdays at 10pm. This documentary series focuses on young women during their pregnancy. We realize that this is a sensitive subject that many of our young women are experiencing, so our goal is to show what pregnant women, from varying backgrounds, are experiencing in their everyday lives.

From morning sickness to mood swings, and to even the day of the baby's arrival, we would like you to let us document this exciting, life changing event. This show will allow young women to share their story in their own voice.

The Teen Mom stars earn $60,000 to $65,000 per season," a series insider tells Life & Style. It's enough to provide on-again, off-again couple Amber Portwood and Gary Shirley with comfortable lives--but neither one seems to be a good saver. "Gary says he's broke," Gary's best friend, Jordan Sanchez, tells Life & Style. "The money is the only reason he's willing to do the show. You can't walk away from money like that."

It's true--in fact, Jordan tells Life & Style that Amber and Gary have already started filming the next season of Teen Mom in Tennessee. Lately, they've talked about moving to Florida, where Amber's uncle owns a business.

Now that ‘Teen Mom’ cast members like Amber Portwood are in their twenties, MTV is looking for a new crop of teenage girls to keep its monster hits ‘Teen Mom’ and ’16 and Pregnant’ alive, and [surprise!] industry insiders tell me young ladies are so eager to be on reality TV that they are actually getting pregnant just to score an audition. OK, not much of a surprise. Simply take a spin around the various Internet forums filled with young girls inquiring about what’s required to score a role.

“This is yet another example of the desperation of fame,” Matt Titus, a relationship expert from TheLoveConsultants.com, tells me. “The sad state of reality television has created a lowbrow vehicle for untainted train wreck personalities to display their private lives.”

Rabbi Shmuely Boteach, author of ‘Kosher Sex,’ agrees. “This is out of control celebrity culture. Reality TV first began by exploiting people’s problems, assuming they would do anything for fame. The idea of teenage girls getting pregnant to be on television shows that reality TV is going a step beyond exploiting problems. It is now creating the problems.”

Anyone who has had a child knows that it is the most serious commitment a person can make. When young girls begin making this ultimate decision in order find fame, it “shows the moral rot in American society.”

“These girls are ignoring the fact that this decision must be followed by a lifetime of responsibility,” he says.Source

The Head Start argument...

Has 'Head Start' helped advance black education?

Head Start. You can't talk about early childhood education without mentioning the iconic government program designed to give disadvantaged preschoolers, well, a head start. But for many of us, we never think about the program until Congress, or more specifically political conservatives, threaten to either cut or eliminate the program. But what exactly is Head Start? Who created it and has it been an effective early education program for African-Americans?

Head Start has its origins in the mid 1960s Great Society programs of the Lyndon Johnson administration. After declaring a War on Poverty, President Johnson created a series of domestic programs designed to eliminate systemic poverty in the United States. Out of these Great Society initiatives came Medicare, the Neighborhood Youth Corp, the Food Stamp program, and an early education program for economically disadvantaged five and 6-year-olds called Head Start.

Established under the 1965 Elementary and Secondary Education Act, Head Start was one of the first federally funded educational programs, as education funding had traditionally been the responsibility of state governments. With half of the nation's poor being children, Johnson's emphasis on education was meant to break the cycle of poverty guaranteeing a poor education.

To date, over 25 million children have participated in Head Start programs, with billions spent in over a thousand local cities and towns throughout the country. Usually the darling of liberal Democrats and education minded Republicans, Head Start is not without its critics.

Some critics of Head Start say that the program has been nothing more than a show pony program, contending that the educational gains that Head Start children receive, are temporary and ineffective. And with the proliferation of privately run pre-school programs, Head Start critics like the conservative Heritage Foundation argue that the Head Start program is "a sinkhole for taxpayer dollars and an ineffective education program for children".

Supporters counter that Head Start provides an invaluable education to children who would be otherwise either be not in school, or receiving an education with varying standards. And these supporters dispute that Head Start children don't retain their education by the third grade. So who is right?

The United States Health and Human Services released a January 2010 report, the Head Start Impact Study, which addressed both sides of the argument. And the results gave a little bit to both sides of the Head Start argument.

The Head Start Impact Study looked at children who attended Head Start program, and those who attended childcare services and non-Head Start pre school classes from 2002-03. The non-Head Start kids provided the control group for the study, and the results were conclusive. Children who attended Head Start outperformed their non-Head Start peers in cognitive and emotional impacts. By the time they left the problem, they were ready for elementary school.

"Providing access to Head Start has a positive impact on children's preschool experiences," says the study. "There are statistically significant differences between the Head Start group and the control group on every measure of children's preschool experiences measured in this study."

So that's the good news. The bad news is that the study also finds that much of those educational gains are gone by not the third grade, but by the first grade. That appears on the surface to strengthen the conservative argument that Head Start isn't really effective. I have a different take.

Even though Head Start is a federally funded program, it is administered locally, which means there are going to be variances in the quality of the programs. And as the study shows, most Head Start children enter schools more prepared than their peers. But what type of elementary schools are these young students entering? Based on what we know about inner city, impoverished schools in African-American community, they are typically without the resources to continue the momentum that Head Start provided. The achievement gap between black and white children can be mitigated by Head Start, but is only the beginning and not that end of solution. Source

Happy Birthday Mommy!

Surprise! We had to look in your little notebook with all your passwords in it, so we could post this (hope you don't mind).

WE LOVE YOU. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Your girls: Big One and Little One

(p.s. whenever she says "brother" substitute "sister")

School resegregation

I don't think it is a stretch to assume that the vast majority of parents feel that their children should be allowed to attend close, safe, healthy, successful, neighborhood schools. They don't think about any federally-imposed busing or desegregation orders.

Even if parents don't think about issues of desegregation, school districts must. In most cities, inner city growth patterns and NCLB are forcing school districts to take a careful look at what it will take to bring equality to education.

NAACP Says North Carolina School District Shows Return To Jim Crow
Post by Associated Press in Nation on Dec 3, 2010 at 5:58 pm
RALEIGH, N.C. – The country’s most prominent civil rights group has come to Raleigh to draw attention to what it calls a growing erosion of the gains made since a 1954 Supreme Court decision made segregated schools illegal.

Using Wake County’s ongoing debate over school diversity as a backdrop, the NAACP is holding a national conference on education in Raleigh to argue that schools around the country are, in essence, returning to Jim Crow-era patterns of segregation.

“Resegregation is on the rise,” said the Rev. William Barber, chairman of the state NAACP chapter. “The rates now are worse than in the 1970s.”

Wake County has been the scene of acrimonious dispute since the school board voted to scrap a decade-old policy that used busing to achieve socio-economic balance in public schools. The NAACP and other groups have staged protests and marches and filed a federal civil rights complaint. Barber is among several who have been arrested in demonstrations against the end of the policy.

“School boards across this country are rolling back the clock to the time before Brown vs. Board of Education,” NAACP national president Benjamin Todd Jealous said in a statement. Jealous was scheduled to address to the conference Friday.

But that sentiment is out of touch with both the reality of public education and recent Supreme Court rulings, according to Roger Clegg, president of the Falls Church, Va.-based Center for Equal Opportunity.

A 2007 decision by the court found that school districts can’t pursue integration policies by using students’ race as a basis, which Clegg argues is what busing for diversity amounts to.

“Even if you think there’s something desirable about having a politically correct racial and ethnic mix, it doesn’t justify the enormous costs of engaging in racial discrimination,” he said.

Clegg also challenges the claim that schools are becoming more segregated, arguing that falling percentages of white students matches the declining number of whites in the population overall.

The term “segregation” doesn’t refer to demographic change, but to legal policies explicitly designed to keep people of different races separated from each other, Clegg said.

“If you use that definition, not only is there no resegregation in the United States, there is not a single segregated school in the United States,” he said. Source

Related articles:
Racial Tensions Roil NC School Board; 19 Arrests
New School Board Has N.C. Worried About “Resegregation”

Jumping to conclusions: Where does it get you?

An anonymous commenter has posted a couple of times hinting at a situation over at PHS involving a teacher, Terry Knapp and Wisconsin Avenenue (knowing how intriguing such a tidbit would be). Let's try and put two and two together.

Anonymous said on Emerge Peoria...
"What's going on with the teacher @PHS that Terry is writing letters and delivering them to Wisc ave? Is he doing this because it's what's good for the students and district? Or is it about tenure? C'mon fess up. "

Sharon Crews said on Emerge Peoria...
"I am taking a wild guess that this particular Anonymous is someone who received a letter. Anyway Terry will be happy to explain it all to you--call him at 370-5523 (number given with Terry's permission). Terry doesn't blog. My two cents is that a system that is unfair to teachers will be unfair to students, also. It's all about doing what is right and in the right way.

By the way, Terry didn't write any letters, but he did take them to Wisconsin Avenue."

PHS Parent keeps dropping lugs like this over on Peoria Chronicle...
PHS parent December 3, 2010 at 9:14 pm
"Sharon – how can I FOIA info on a teacher and see if they are doing the job we pay them for? Why does my child have to suffer for bad teaching? How do I FOIA and deal with that?" "...Mr. Simmons is a great principal. He has some teachers who can’t teach. Why should my baby suffer? Just lookin for help and direction..."

I found this on Peoria Story...
"Activist Terry Knapp talked about bullying at all levels including administrators recently bullying three teachers trying to get them to resign. At least one of these teachers is highly experienced and has tenure, but was placed in a different school with an overcrowded classroom, Knapp has said.

The teachers union contract forbids outright firing and instead offers remediation.

"It's incredible," Knapp said. Bullying "should never occur administration to teacher.""

*****************************************************

Okay, let's jump to some conclusions from what we have above... Sounds like there is a teacher(s) at PHS that some seem to think is/are not up to par. That/those teacher(s) may have been asked to resign. One teacher apparently has tenure and has called in Terry Knapp for assistance because they are being bullied?

Hmmmmmm...so where does that leave us? The question shown above, which was asked by the first Anonymous poster on Emerge Peoria, appears to be a good one, yes? I guess that leaves us right back where we were when Anonymous left the first hint about a situation at PHS.

A freeze on District 150 Programs

A couple of people have left comments about programs being put on hold at District 150. Of course, the biggest concern for most who comment here appear to be the disposition of the Richwoods IB Program.

From what I have been able to find out, ALL PROGRAMS are under review for the 2011-2012 school year and all information going out (if any) regarding ALL PROGRAMS, will come from Administration.

Personally, I'm pleased that Dr. Lathan is reviewing ALL PROGRAMS. It's evident that ALL PROGRAMS as they currently stand DO NOT WORK FOR THE MAJORITY OF STUDENTS.

Additionally, I am pleased that Dr. Lathan's highly qualified team, who appear to be open to equality in education, are from outside of Peoria. We see where the teams from Peoria have left the students of the District.

Riddle me this... Exactly what is wrong with a new administration putting a moratorium on processes until they get a handle on things? Absolutely nothing, that's what. They would be remiss if they didn't. I'm comfortable with letting this group do their work and have no desire to try and get out in front of them with speculation about what they should do.

Pray with me...

Dear God: Please please promise that these people will not move to Peoria to join their other trouble making friends in shooting up our City streets and taking advantage of Peoria's young women, who are so desperate to find men. Amen.

Chicago Closes Down Infamous Cabrini-Green Housing Complex

CHICAGO — To some, Cabrini-Green’s infamous high-rises were a symbol of urban blight – towering testaments to the failure of Chicago public housing to safely give shelter to the poorest of the poor. But to the last residents being rousted from the last building, Cabrini-Green was simply home.

The closure of Cabrini’s high-rises this week marks the end of an ugly era in public housing. The 70-acre development was initially hailed as a salvation for the city’s poor that was emulated nationwide. But it quickly decayed into a virtual war-zone, the kind of place where little boys were gunned down on their way to school and little girls were sexually assaulted and left for dead in stairwells.

The Cabrini-Green development began on Chicago’s North Side in 1942 with row houses named for St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, the Roman Catholic patron saint of immigrants. A few years later, high-rises and mid-rises were added. Eventually Cabrini housed as many as 13,000 people.

The complex drew nationwide attention in 1981, after a gang war killed 11 residents in three months. Then-Mayor Jane Byrne and her husband moved into a Cabrini apartment for three weeks to publicize her efforts to clean up the area.

Remaining residents were being moved out this week, with the last high-rise slated for demolition in January or February. The Chicago Housing Authority originally gave them until January to move, but the date was shifted back as families moved and the building dropped below what officials consider to be a safe occupancy level.

The housing agency said in a statement late Tuesday that it was “continuing to work with the remaining families” at the last building, including those who have resisted the move.

Former Cabrini residents also have been offered vouchers for private apartments. And housing officials said they would be able to return to the Cabrini area once the new buildings are done.

Why don't you tell us what you REALLY think?

I remember reading an article in PRAVDA in 2008, by Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey; this guy slammed Condoleeza Rice like I had never heard before or since. After Condo, he did a little slam piece on Sarah Palin when she was running for Vice President. The first piece on Palin, was just the tip of the iceberg as to how little he thinks of the only true American with a clear understanding of our forefathers intentions. It is my pleasure to bring you...

Spankin' Sarah Palin: A clown short of a circus
I have already called Sarah Palin a pith-headed bimbo from the back of beyond, in this column. I shall now go one step further. By attacking the democratically elected President of the United States of America at a sensitive time in her country's history, she shows the tact of a boorish drunkard bawling obscenities at a funeral.

If Sarah Palin is not some kind of a massive political joke in the USA, wheeled out to liven up the political scene from time to time with nonsensical and pastiche (one hopes) displays of sheer and utter ignorance, then it is worrying. It is even more so if anyone other than a manic depressive suffering from a chronic lack of lithium takes this...female...seriously.

Hockey Mum Sarah ex-Governess of Alaska is famous for her shrill shrieking style, displaying a pitifully shallow persona which one hopes is stage-managed to give the rest of the world a good chuckle at the Americans' ability and unique quality to make fun of themselves, a real-life female version of Homer Simpson-cum-Belching Barney at Mo's, giving us ever-more hilarious soundbites as she sets herself up as the dumbest woman on Earth.

Just occasionally, one encounters a bar-room idiot whose party piece is belching loudly before falling backwards off his stool, bouncing off the floor on his backside with a background provided by guffaws of laughter, yet who winks knowingly as he is carried out with his feet scraping along the ground and says "Don't worry son, most of it is an act".

The act. It reminds one of Marilyn Monroe putting on the act of the dumb blonde. But an act it was, a character projected by a shrewd, intelligent and charismatic woman with the ability to invent a persona. Sarah Palin, however, is the real-life thing. And it is becoming patently obvious that it isn't an act.

Sarah Palin, the one famous for ludicrous statements such as "I want to help clean up the state that is so sorry today of journalism. And I have a communications degree"; she is after all someone who "must have lived such a doggoned sheltered life", Sarah "We're all Arizonans now" Palin, cracking down on immigrants when the US of A is after all a country formed by...whom?

And now she turns not only against the fibre and backbone of her country, but against its democratically-elected President, accusing him of being incompetent for not stopping Wikileaks. Where was she and where was her GOP before and during the 9/11 attacks? She accuses President Obama of not taking "steps" to assure the leaks were not published. What "steps"?

Sinister Sarah Palin then goes on to insinuate that she is an advocate of cyber terrorism, questioning "Did we use all the cyber tools at our disposal to dismantle WikiLeaks?" Surely a more sensible question would have been why the material for the leaks was provided in the first place...and this has nothing to do with President Obama, but indeed speaks volumes about the State apparatus itself which goes beyond party politics. Her question also speaks volumes about her own inability to perform logical and strategic thinking.

President Obama after all knows the difference between North and South Korea, he knows that Hawaii is the largest US island and not Kodiak and he does not use the expression "refudiate".

If anything is a threat to the national security of the United States of America, it is this screaming, unrefined oaf with as much class as a searing release of flatulence followed by hysterical giggling at a state banquet. Is this what the people of the USA deserve?

To attack the President of the country at a time when the USA needs to close ranks and stand together to consolidate the enormous strides his intelligent and respectful approach has achieved in building bridges, when her party's period in government bombed them, Spankin' Sarah Palin comes across as a pitifully inadequate anachronism from the times of the Far West.

The United States of America has evolved. She has not.

Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey

Pravda.Ru