Here is an email I received from a constituent yesterday evening, supporting Newpoint schools. My response to this email is below.
>>> XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX 05/09/15 4:32 PM >>>
XXXXXX XXXXX XXXXXXX,
I am writing in response to the press release out today by
Rick Outzen in
regards to the Newpoint Schools. It was stated that the
agenda for the next
school board meeting will include a recommendation to close
all three
Newpoint Schools.
XXXXXXXXXXXX attend Five Flags Academy, after having
to leave XXXXXX
XXXXXXXX school over terrible conditions. This is the
flagship year at
Five Flags and all of the teachers have been wonderful and
show nothing but
a love for their jobs and our children. From even the little
information
that was issued to the public by Rick Outzen, the grade
tampering issue is
being investigated on a high school level and the
individuals responsible
are no longer employed by Newpoint Education.
XXXXXXXXXXXXX thriving in the environment they are in and
my husband and
I do not feel that they should be punished for the actions
of individuals
that are no longer employed.
No information had been issued
to the public
by Malcolm Thomas or anyone on the board when the
allegations were brought
to light in 2014, which could have made a difference for
parents who chose
Five Flags Elementary for their children. At this point in
time, school
choice is closed and students in Five Flags are not being
served by their
district schools. Private schools are not an option for all
parents in the
area, obviously.
We realize that there are political
motivations to the
press release, with Mr. Outzen wanting Mr. Thomas out of
office; also
calling for an elected superintendent, and we question the
timing of the
release of the Newpoint information. That said, it feels
like the
recommendation to close the schools is a response to the
political attacks.
The education of our children is not a political matter in
this already
failing school district. All viable educational options
should be utilized
and explored for our children.
At this point, we are asking for time, much like was given
for LuTimothy
May when he ran Dixon as a charter school. Although the
school was failing,
he was given additional time to make improvements with
additional school
board and community oversight. The Newpoint Schools are not
failing
schools. Five Flags school is in it's infancy. Please do not
let politics
motivate any hasty decisions and instead follow normal
district procedure
(i.e Dixon),and let the investigation take it's course.
Thank you for your time,
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Super Voter, XXXXXXXXXXXX
My response:
XXXXXXXX,
Not by choice, mind you, but I was put into the middle of
all of this when whistle-blowers contacted me with incredible, outrageous
allegations about Newpoint and a lack of any district response/investigation.
Remember, for reasons I still fail to apprehend, the
Escambia County School Board was not made aware of the most egregious
allegations against Newpoint, we were totally left in the dark until
whistle-blowers contacted me. That is
when this whole thing broke open.
And regardless of what anybody says, I do not believe that
any significant investigation of the allegations of May 2014 would have
happened had I not aggressively followed up on the whistle-blower's complaints;
had I remained silent this would not all be happening. But I will never ignore issues that threaten
student safety. Never.
This said, I remain open-minded on all allegations until I
see all evidence. You can take that to
the bank.
And I remain strongly supportive of expanded school choice
and charter schools in particular.
In short, I'm not convinced we, as a district, are blameless
in all of this. I think we made
significant mistakes in the way we monitored Newpoint, and the way in which we
responded (or did not respond) when we learned about problems there.
When a traditional district school struggles and has big
problems, like Warrington Middle school has for years, the hue and cry is
"We need more time, more resources!"
personnel, particularly if they've done wrong, are removed/replaced.
Sometimes not in a fast manner. The
school does not pay the price for the misdeeds of the personnel running the
schools. That is how we treat OUR
schools.
With charters in general, there appears to be a zero-defect,
hair-trigger mentality when there are problems.
"Close them down NOW" becomes the chant loudly and often
repeated.
If these allegations surrounding Newpoint are true and all
of these contract violations are legitimate, I will listen to what Newpoint has
to say about a plan of attack to address all the issues. Make no mistake, if crimes were committed by
anybody involved in this mess--Newpoint or District Personnel, I'm convinced
those responsible will be held to account.
But My vote on whether or not to terminate Newpoint will be
the vote that least impacts students and parents, and will be cast in an
unbiased, open-minded manner as I have typically cast my votes throughout my
time on the board.
I'm not out for blood, I just want people to do their jobs
and not waste taxpayer resources. I want
people that did wrong to be held accountable.
Sincerely,
Jeff Bergosh
Jeff Bergosh
Escambia County School Board
District 1 Board Representative
850-469-6147
www.jeffbergoshblog.blogspot.com
jbergosh@escambia.k12.fl.us
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