Northwest Indiana Discussion

That was also explained in the news paper a few weeks ago. A few months ago some parents came to the school board and complained that the standard was to high in D157 since the State requirement was C average. The new proposal did not lower the current requirement but it does allow some flexibility for a student/athlete who is struggling to maintain a B average and for some reason, their grade slipped for one week for whatever reason. It could be the child missed school and struggled with some homework or a test because they missed the interaction within a classroom. If the principal decides the student is making a valiant effort to get their grade up, the principal can give the student the benefit of the doubt and allow that student to participate in the extracurricular event. I think a student that is maintaining a B average for the most part should not be penalized from participating in the extracurricular event and I think letting the principal the flexibility to scrutinize is a good idea. We are not talking about the difference between a C and a D, we are talking about average to above average grades. Yes, this year’s team won a State Championship with the current policy, but we are not just talking about basketball when it comes to this policy.

As you become to get older you realize that everybody is looking for a loophole (look at our current mayor) in life and I really don't think its necessary in our education system...."..flexibility to scrutinize " sure sounds like one

I’m not that young, upper 50’s. I’ve seen how people and politicians use the system, how greed has taken over good judgment by many. My 401K has taken a big hit to remind me!! Perhaps one thing you might not realize, the student/athletes grades, including discipline, are checked on a weekly basis, therefore, it’s not just their report card grades that needs to keep a B average. As I explained before, any person, including a child, can have a bad day or week where their performance is affected. This is the reason why the Principal should, and now has the authority to scrutinize the child’s progress. I think we all have bigger things to worry about other than whether or not a Principal is using the system when they are scrutinizing if a student if maintaining a B average and it It’s slipping for the week they are checking.

Then what you are saying is that it is alright to reward a C average for students, the same as it is alright to reward a teacher for performing below average. Now I am beginning to see what you are getting at.

How do you see that as rewarding a C? The grade of C is AVERAGE, not below average and it is the State School Code that says that a child has to have a C in order to participate in extracurricular activities? That was D157's policy until it was changed a few weeks ago stating that a child has to have a B and occassionally an exception. NO child will be allowed to participate if they have a grade of a D or F, both of which are BELOW average.

How do you say that the teachers are performing below average when they are teaching students that come in 2 and 3 grade levels below and they bring those children up and at least 70% of the students are meeting or exceeding standards, which is what is required to meet NCLB. ALL unions negotiates a contract and the employees get a certain percentage per year raise. It is not just teachers, it is auto workers, plumbers, electricians, teachers, paraprofessionals, secretaries, general office staff, etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. You are downing the district for giving the teachers a raise, but no matter what business it is, if there is a union, there is a contract that is negotiated between the union and management. It seems to me that you just don't understand unions at all and the binding contracts that they have with the administration. Just try not following the contract and see what happens. I believe 2 years ago all kinds of grievances were being filed by the teachers because Rosemary Hendricks didn't follow the contract. Do you want all of that chaos again in our district? I certainly don't!!!!

Lois Lane, why is it that you feel no one should get a raise? I think it would be discriminatory to give all of the union employees a raise, and not give one to the non union employees. Do you work a job and never get a raise? I don't. I get a raise in pay, so why shouldn't the people at the school get a raise? This has NOTHING to do with Obama. People work at a job every day, except for holidays and vacations, and most people get raises yearly.

What does stores closing in RO mall have to do with income for the school district. The schools do not benefit from sales tax, they get income from property tax which remains the same whether or not the mall has occupants or not. Your knowledge of school finance makes your comments questionable. D157 is working in the red, has been for decades. You cannot maintain a working force if you don’t give people fair annual raises saying we think our income is going to be lower in the years to come because Lois Lane say so. Is it wise to plan for the future, but when there is a steady income and only speculation that the income from property tax will drop, that will not fly. If you look at the financial history of D157, I don’t think you would ever see a decrease in the schools income based on property tax revenues dropping and property tax income represents the greatest revenue for D157. In regards to a bonus paid to an administrator, this more than likely was written into their employment contract and I believe the administrator in question was hired by the board that was forced out 2 years ago in the 2007 election. If you recall, that old board did a lot of crazy things with contracts. Even if the current board or Superintendent did not like the idea of issuing a bonus payment, their hands would be tied by the contract. A little history as to how crazy this old board was. The administrator who received this bonus was re-hired after they forced out Dr. Molin and the Assistant Principal that took her place. This person was released when the new Hoover school was built removing the need for 2 principals. This released administrator sued D157 and they still hired this person years later. Makes no sense to me.

Lois Lane, were you at the meeting where the Business Manager of D157 gave the budget report? District 157 is working in the BLACK, not RED. I'm sure funnyman made a typo. As far as the taxes for River Oaks, it's the BUILDING that they get the property taxes from. If I move out of my house and it is empty, I still have to pay my property taxes. The same holds true for River Oaks. I guess you also don't realize that there are other businesses that have opened up in CC in new strip malls, so there is more property tax money. I hate to say it Lois, but you have NO idea how school finances work at all.

Opps.... I did make a mistake, I did mean working in the "Black". As a matter of fact, D157 has been one of the most financially sound school districts in the south suburbs for years and are today. I have attended board meetings over the years when then budget report is presented. So I guess I didn't answer your question then Lois, perhaps you answered yours since you seemed to have thought the district was working in the "Red".

Now having made all my comments, D157 should not be so comfort and they should always look ahead to see if there are revenue concerns in the future if that can be predicted and if there are viable signs of concerns, then they need to be more frugal financially. But considering history of D157 and their financial soundness, I’m not concerned about providing employees with annual raises, 3% to 4% is reasonable and typical compared to other school districts.