The school board is apparently just as culpable in this as is Fred Clarke. This all seems like he was brought in to be the "fall guy" for outsourcing of other services, and then he gets to walk away with the board's thanks for taking the heat off of them over making an unpopular decision. Anyone who approved the contract that allows Fred Clarke to do this should be relieved of their position on the board as well.

Recall that the MEA-backed Rochester school board hiked Clarke's salary by $60K+ at the time he was hired.

Will Clarke's Rochester salary now generously feather his taxpayer paid pension in perpetuity (this is a young man with many years of publicly funded retirement benefits in his future)?

Makes you wonder what the Michigan Association of School Boards really values as "visionary leadership".

Here we have a classic example of the fruits of collective bargaining for public sector employees and their unions which elect the school boards and legislators to serve those who pay dues.

Remember this the next time these people tell you "it's for the kids".

Dorothy,

We probably agree on plenty more as the discussions continue. I have never met someone I completely agree with, it is the discussion that helps us understand each other’s perspective, not to change their opinion.

Many times a discussion ends with "we agree to disagree", that is a fine ending to a good discussion. It is about an open and honest debate that is respectful.

We certainly agreed on our work together with the unemployed a while back.

Thanks for the correction, but still a big number!

According to school officials, Dr. Zumsteg lives in Bradenton, Florida. She owns a residence in Rochester, but it is occupied. She will need to rent a place to live.

You might be surprised who is renting it...

A better question is why are they paying Zumstag at all? Gerry Moore is already o payroll and has been doing the Superintends job since Clarke announced his job search. Moore applied for the job when they hired Clarke, and she should get the job now. Thanks to this sleight, we'll probably lose a good employee and for what?

I agree. We'll probably lose her now that they've passed her twice. Once Clark's job and not for Zumtag. I can't believe they are wasting all of this money when Moore is there, competent and already performing the job.

I would say he was dishonest about wanting the job, certainly is incompetent when it comes to doing and being committed to the job, and has materially breached the terms and conditions of the agreement to fulfill the terms and conditions of the job - such as be there.

Tell that to the PTA and the MEA... they are the ones who elect these people.

Why on earth is Beth Talbert heading up the superintendent search to replace Clarke?
Wasn't she in charge of the committee that hired him?
What logic is in play here?
Beyond the leadership and financial mess the Clarke fiasco has created for the school district, how does putting two teacher union dues payers (Talbert and Piskulich) in charge of hiring the next superintendent benefit Rochester students?

Threaten to cut athletics... then you'll get a mob. It's the only way. Sadly, weak academics and/or school board malfeasance are not enough to rile the public spirit.

You are not wrong, mmh, and unless there is another school board out there as stupid as ours, what district would hire a person who is capable of such unethical career tactics. I would not doubt that Fred Clarke is laughing all the way to the bank.

You can elect a board of education that will prioritize student interests over those of adults.

Unfortunately, adult interests are aggresively organized and mobilized via the MEA and PTA and very few taxpayers realize they are manipulated into voting for the "right" candidate by these organizations.

I am curious too since I also thought she lived here but now understand her "residence" is in Florida and her condo is rented-but Mike made a very telling comment that we would be surprised who is renting it-so, I would like to ask straight up, who does rent it? Family member? We should not be paying $2,000.00 a month for her to rent. You can rent homes in our area for $1,200.00, and apartments for $550.00---another waste of taxpayers money. All of this money could have been used for what it was intended -education and not what appears to be grab and run or to take advantage of a situation. Jobs were out sourced and some employees were forced into lower wages and then we gave away for nothing a lot of hard earned tax dollars. We need a new school board with the mind set of the private sector.

Of course the kids' tests should be used as a method to rate the teachers. You could hire the smartest teachers in the world, but if they can't teach the students properly they should be replaced. My daughter had a teacher at Rochester Adams that was also a coach for one of their teams. He taught math for half of the class (often ten minutes late as he was talking with some of the team members in the hallway), then let the students have free time while he watched video replays of the team that he coached while eating yogurt from his classroom refrigerator! Obviously he's a disgrace to all of the good teachers, although when a buffon like him gets tenure there's no easy way to replace him.

Marcus - Do you pay a dentist based on how many cavities you do or don't get? He can't control how much candy you eat , how often you brush, and if you floss. Do you pay a doctor based on how healthy you are? He can't control how much you weigh, drink, smoke or sit on a couch. You don't pay a mechanic based on how good your car runs. He doesn't control how often you change your oil, etc. Paying a teacher on the grades a student gets is like the patient blaming the doctor and refusing to pay him/her because he/she is too fat and diabetic.

Teaching is a two way street. Teachers send, children receive - when they're paying attention and/or care. What kind of grades did you get when you were a kid? Have you seen the current curriculum? Parents need to be held accountable. They have a responsibility to see to it that their children bring their home work home every night, attend school ready to learn, and are available to help with homework when they come home from work at night. How many parents are too busy to be involved. This is not the teacher's fault. Teachers do need to be held accountable, but you have to base it on something that's real and within their control.

Dorothy, what methods do suggest to use to evaluate teachers? What is "real and within their control"?

My children are at school from 9:00 AM to 3:56 PM. That is 6 hours and 56 minutes. Take away about 1 1/2 hours for lunch, recess, specials, or other incidentals leaving about 5 1/2 hours that a teacher can educate them.

Before school is dedicated to getting ready. They get home about 4:15 and start getting ready for bed around 7:45, 3 1/2 hours later. In there, dinner lasts about one hour and another activity typically occupies one hour, leaving 1 1/2 hours. Teacher-assigned work uses up about a 1/2 hour of that. We now have 1 hour under our direction.

5 1/2 hours vs. 1 hour. Don't shift the blame onto parents when teachers are ineffective. Yes, there are ineffective parents who should be helping out more, but there are also ineffective teachers who need to be accountable. I've seen kids soar one year and crash the next, even though the support at home was still strong. Teachers matter significantly and that is why I want our schools to be filled with great ones.

If the parents are the greater factor for a child's education, perhaps our money is being misspent. Instead of paying more to get excellent teachers, we should pay less, get mediocre teachers, and spend the money to train parents instead.

I understand the economic and cultural impact on achievement, but I also know how important teachers are. And kids deserve to have good ones.

Very will said, Richard. My daughter continues to learn from her fellow students because she doesn't learn the material from her teachers.

Raymond - There are some bad teachers and worse principals in the District. I do not deny that. The fact that they are still there reflects poorly on the Superintendent and central office administrators. They can be fired, but it takes cause and due process. Something the Board is obviously unwillingly to do with Clark. Imagine paying him because he negotiated in bad faith and defaulted on his contract. I also agree that there are many good parents working hard to support their kids, and kids working hard to cope with arbitrary and ineffective teachers and administrators. The student code of conduct reads more like a penal code than a way to positively discipline and support our kids. It is reflection of the districts attitude towards our children. Evaluating teachers: I am not one. So the first thing I would do is ask them. There are many "excellent" teachers in the district that are just as frustrated with the bad teachers and principals as the parents, students and community. They would like to help problem solve instead of being treated like the enemy by admin and the community. Off the top of my head - innovation in the classroom, student/parent surveys scored over large periods of time so they can't be vengeful, # of parents asking for and clamoring to get into a particular teachers class, # of "extra hours" put in, amount of money spent out of their own pockets, do they have a functioning website, how helpful is it to parents and students,

Raymond cont: I think teachers wrongly grade children. Parents are entitled to a "clean" reading on academic achievement instead of a grade that incorporates student compliance with the teachers arbitrary rules. This is a state guideline. If the district can scoop in & cut pay, why can't they scoop in & regulate grading, websites, parent communication, etc. I agree kids get way too much homework. I'd love to see Khan Academy brought into the district, like they did in CA. It is free, unlike money grubbing charters, & it is a wonderful support for teachers & students. http://khanacademy.desk.com/ You & your kids can use it at home. It takes over the "rote" part of teaching allowing the teacher to become an academic coach for their classroom. To return to teacher input - confidentially survey the teachers & learning consultants (LC). LCs come out of the classroom & are quasi-administrators (more responsibility, more hours, for same pay). Get their recommendations & input on teachers, principals, district policy, etc. Ask them how to best evaluate teachers, students, principals, admin and the system. LCs are triage for the system, & it makes sense to talk to them about prevention - anonymously because they can't be candid if not protected.

JRaymond - Last but not least, the community & administrators need to quit attacking teachers & unions. They are not "the enemy". The utter disrespect for teachers is a direct result of the likes of Tom McMillin. In order to take our kid's money for their charter schools pals, they needed to demonize the public schools first. They couldn't go after the students & parents, they chose to ignore the administrators and principals that actually call the shots & have all the power, and they went after their favorite target - unions and the middle class - our teachers. Teachers are people, neighbors, partners, and mentors for our kids. Instead of Tea Party ideology, we need to support good teachers, weed out the bad at ALL LEVELS, and invest in our schools & our kids - not tear them down and apart. What kind of an example is that to set. My children are all grown, but I am more than willing to pay taxes so we can have good "public" schools, affordable university educations, clean air, clean food, and a future for our children, grandchildren and country. We should never have relinquished control of our school's funding to the state. Now these whiny free loaders want control from the grave with Proposal 5. Since when does 58 yeas and 42 noes mean you lose? Joanna VanRaaphorst is another solution to what ails our schools. http://www.joannaforrochester.com/ "You get what you pay for" is true everywhere - not just in the CEO boardroom. Sorry this was so long.

Unfortunately, MEA has a firm grip on MASB too.

Kristin:

Your sentiments and suggestions make sense.
However, this debacle calls for the Rochester community to carefully consider how and why the school district finds itself in the current mess.

A school board's primary responsibility is to hire a superintendent to effectively manage the community's schools in accordance with the laws, values and aspirations of its citizens on behalf of the students served.

The Clarke hire was an epic failure by the local school board.
It is essential to the public's interests to determine why and how this happened.

In order to move forward productively, backtracking and yes, even placing blame are sometimes essential so that the same mistakes aren't made.

Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.

We all due respect, I think as a community we have been far too tolerant of this sort of nonsense for far too long.

I get the whole, "let's just move on" approach, but wouldn't that normally come after some sort of admission by the board that they made a big mistake?  Should they at least express a little regret?

A little backlash against a series of bad decisions is a bit healthy.  Ignoring it makes us enablers, no?

There is a pattern here... whether it's budgets, or academics, or contracts... we repeatedly see questionable decisions that are, oddly, ALWAYS unanimous.  Yet we shrug, and apathetically move on.

The board's ONE SINGLE JOB is to hire the superintendent.  This board made a huge mistake in this hiring process.  It was debated on the comment sections of this website.  Even the most vocal of the district cheerleaders were left scratching their heads.

And it has cost our children.

No, the banter here is not vengeful... On the contrary, it's enlightening.  We need MORE discussion, not less.  We need to learn from our mistakes.

This board lives in a cozy, insulated world.  They are setup with six year terms, and the next election is over a year away.  If they aren't going to be held accountable, then they should at least face a little public scrutiny here?

This debacle will cost the district some $21K per month.  (the severance being paid to Clarke was basically his salary, and as such was already budgeted.  What was NOT budgeted was the $21K per month to the interim... $900 per day plus $2K housing and $1K air travel plus mileage)

That money could pay for some needed remediation in our "focus schools", but is now unavailable because of our school board.

This requires MORE discussion, not less.  This could very well be the catalyst that drives more people to pay attention to our schools, and could ultimately drive change.  No, it's not yet time to bury this matter.

Mike mentions expressions of regret, and I was reminded of a statement that School Board Member Beth Talbert made during the Sept. 10 meeting (the meeting in which Tresa Zumsteg was approved as interim superintendent). In hindsight, I should have included this statement in the original article. Talbert took responsibility for the situation the district is in. Here is her statement: "I take responsibility for being in the position we are in. Whenever you are a board member and you interview superintendent candidates, you give it great thought, and my intention was we would have someone who would be with the district for a considerable time. I take responsibility for the fact that that's not the case that we're in."

Was that September 10 meeting the same one where they "gave great thought" by interviewing one single candidate for just one hour, and then decided to offer a contract valued at $21k per month?

I would also say that Talbert's "regret", while mouthing the words, really doesn't say much.

She regrets that he is leaving early.

She doesn't address the concern that they chose poorly. They selected someone from a district that was completely dissimilar in size, culture, and demographics.

Albion has 600 students. It is in the bottom 5% based on state assessments. Clarke had to submit an improvement plan... which was rejected by the state.

He had never lead anything remotely close in size and scope to Rochester.

Furthermore, the board failed to set any meaningful performance objectives for their new superintendent.

And finally, according to a Detroit News article this morning, they approved an unprecedented four year agreement.

There is plenty to regret, and I would rank longevity far lower on the list.

A private corporation board would be having a rather frank discussion looking at these sorts of things, fearlessly and aggressively examining their own failures in order to do better next time. Who thinks that will happen here?

Ron, how can you say the unions turned a blind eye? Do you have proof of that allegation? Until you do, don’t spread angry assumptions.

Not all board members are MEA backed. In this last election you should know that only 1 MEA backed candidate won. they are far from hand picked. it is the public that votes on them after all!

bettylou, all three of the winning candidates in the last election were MEA backed, and said so themselves. It was a topic of discussion at the League of Women's voter forums.

Specifically, there is a legitimate concern about trustees who receive union backing, are elected, and must then move to the other side of the table and negotiate with the union that backed them, and ultimately vote on a contract. Conflict of Interest.

All three of the candidates who won were absolutely union backed, and were "offended" that anyone would suggest a conflict of interest. They saw no problem with it whatsoever. Two of the three that won, by the way, are themselves members of teacher unions at Oakland University.

It is very difficult to interview candidates who will not show up to be interviewed by the teachers and other staff members. Citizens have a right, as does the Chamber of Commerce and other business groups, to screen and recommend candidates for their colleagues, friends and family. Perhaps we should have less finger pointing and more dialogue about educational issues.

You give the board and Clarke too much credit.

School boards -- especially ours -- are not that strategic. They simply do not "plot" in that way. They are not big-picture thinkers. It takes them years to implement simple changes. They like phrases like "Go Slow to Go Fast". Not just this board... it's school boards in general.

And nobody -- including Fred Clarke -- would risk his career to come in as a "hatchet man". School CEO's are not judged the same was as corporate CEO's. School boards do not seek out short-term "terminators". As you can see here, it simply causes too much unrest.

Until this public spectacle dies down, Clarke is going to struggle to find a job, and the board is going to have a tough time attracting good talent. School folks don't like this sort of "messy" public image.

No, this was not some Machiavellian plan... it was just plain and simple malfeasance.

False.
The MEA is not required, and co-workers do not know if a fellow teacher belongs or not. The overwhelming majority of teachers WANT to protection that the MEA provides. The overwhelming majority of teachers are GOOD if not GREAT and rely on the MEA not to save them in case the get fired for being lazy (which has been implied so many times in these posts), but rather to protect their work conditions, and their ability to educate all of their students.
And furthermore, the MEA is made up of teachers; hard working teachers who aren’t trying to take advantage of you or your tax money, but who are trying to protect their families and their students.

We know we know. You support McMullen. You support charter schools; you support the destruction of public education. We get it. But why not just be honest, and stop trying to convince everyone here that you really do want what is best for the schools? You don’t. You want for profit companies that make a buck of off kids (not your kid though, let’s be clear) education.

bettylou... the MEA is most certainly required. That, or pay to the MEA some "agency fee", equivalent to the MEA dues. Paying it is not voluntary, and either way paying the MEA is a condition of employment.

I must say that this paranoia is acute beyond reason. The MEA protects a teacher's family and students? Or that any discussion about education means the destruction of public education?

This paranoia... the fundamental lack of self-confidence is sad. You seem to believe that if offered the chance, that people would leave your schools in droves. Why would you think that? You seem to feel that you, your family, your students will be "attacked!". The MEA has polluted your thinking on this.

People like and respect good teachers, and will always be fair. You have nothing to fear.

It's the MEA who is skewing your perspective on parents, and the MEA who is tarnishing people's perspective of teachers.

The MEA is not responsible for everything that happens in education... they're just responsible for the bad stuff. :-)

No, the MEA might not be DIRECTLY responsible for this mess, and nobody ever suggested that they were. However, they are very much responsible for electing the people that did cause the mess. At a minimum, their substantial influence makes their hands a little dirty.

Reno: I do agree with you that the ISD hire was ridiculous and another waste of money when Gerry Moore is doing the job now - for free. And why we are paying severance to someone who did not negotiate in good faith, I haven't a clue. I have never seen such unprofessional conduct by a Superintendent - ever. Having said that, I wasn't crazy about your contributions when you were on the board. You couldn't tell the difference between a governmental unit and a for-profit corporation. When all is said and done, you need to put your ideological politics aside and quit attacking our teachers and the MEA. You are absolutely inferring that that the teachers and union are responsible for what ended up being two bad decisions by the board. In fact, it appears from your comments that you blame them for the weather and roads as well.

I didn't say the ISD hire was a bad thing. In typical board fashion, it was rushed and not well thought out. But I think she will do well.

And a big problem with Public Ed is that there are people like you who think there are significant differences between a government board and a corporate board.

Boards should set and approve meaningful objectives, debate and discuss trends, and hold management accountable.

School boards do none of that.

They are full of nonsense rhetoric, and engage in groupthink.

I am not sure what you can offer that would substantiate any of your ideology argument. That is nothing but a weak straw man argument.

And finally... I respect teachers. It's the MEA That is the problem. Big difference.

Teachers and support staff are the MEA. The MEA leadership is elected by the members. Members screen and recommend candidates. Members set the agenda for the MEA leaders. It is a member driven organization. So, when you are bashing the MEA; you are bashing the teachers and support staff.

I've talked to too many teachers, and I just don't buy into that MEA=teachers line of thinking.

Certainly there are militant, ardent members.

But their are many who just roll their eyes at the MEA. These are professionals who want to be respected and paid according to their skills... rather than basing it on the number of days ey have showed up for work.

Of course, they must be MEA members as a condition of employment, and in order to avoid being a social pariah at work. But if you weren't holding them hostage... How many members do you think you'd have?

Whaddaya say? Should we give it a try?

No unsuspecting districts with all of this publicity. No school in their right mind is going to hire this lemon.

What on earth are you talking about?

The union backed all seven of the members who voted for Clarke.

But the point is more about the type of people they push into the chairs at that table... people with little or no hiring or management experience.

There you go again Mike Reno. You backed George W. Bush - guess the deficit he ran up is your fault. Political bias and ideology is why you were a lousy board member too.