Wake Up Call for Wednesday: Government Shut Down Edition with Rick Outzen

That's Right.............Back to the basics!

Today on the wake-up call live on WPNN 103.7 ---we welcomed Rick Outzen to the program.  Rick joins us live on the show every Wednesday to discuss local issues in depth.  Rick is the owner and publisher of InWeekly, Rick’s Blog, and the (We Don’t) Color on the Dog Podcast. After the interview with Outzen-- we went through a host of local, national and international stories of interest- discussing multiple issues from around the country that traditional media outlets just won’t cover---because we will always cover interesting, important stories that are not politically correct and won’t otherwise be reported.  That’s what we do on the Wake Up Call!  😊

We are live each weekday morning from 6:00AM-8:00AM on WPNN-Pensacola's Information Station, where local, conservative morning-drive talk radio is ALIVE and Well and where we give you the most powerful 2 hour(s) in local morning drive talk radio.

Pensacola's only conservative, local morning drive talk show giving you information, weather, traffic, humor, and educated, intelligent discourse with no PC filters....The Wakeup Call with Jeff Bergosh on WPNN FM 103.7: Radio UNRESTRAINED!

- you can listen to this morning’s show here

 

How Ideologically Driven Social Engineering Usurps Local Control and Damages Public Schools Part II.....

Beginning at minute 43:32 of this video (Items II, Part II of II & IV) and continuing through minute 47:00 I relay a concern that I have regarding the dis aggregation of discipline statistics based upon race, with goals set that specifically target reduction in discipline incidents by races for certain students.

This, I believe, is a stark example of ideologically driven social engineering that has been creeping into public education with a growing velocity lately, hastening the demise of the public schools.  It is a real problem.

I have always disagreed with this approach because I feel that all students should be treated equally, and if we start dis aggregating behavior incidents by race in order to achieve goals by race then we will invariably lower the discipline bar to achieve these goals to the detriment of good and well-behaved students (of all races) and good teachers.  It will become a self-fulfilling prophecy in many respects.

If we want to truly start treating all students of all races equally, then why are we measuring their behaviors and setting goals for different students based solely upon their race?  I disagree with this approach.

My biggest concern, which I voiced here, is that having such goals will lead to manipulation of the data and numbers at best, and a lowering of behavior standards to meet the goal, at worst. The schools will look at the goal and try to meet it--like the GEICO commercial states, "everybody knows this!".

I consistently hear from multiple sources within the schools that classroom behaviors at some schools are unacceptable, yet the teachers are being prevented from writing referrals until they go through a series of steps that serve to limit referrals. (special area teachers and other school employees and guidance counselors, librarians, etc. do not have to go through the step process, though, and this is infuriating to classroom teachers I have spoken with.  It is an unfair double-standard)

This all concerns me because behaviors that were once absolutely unacceptable in a classroom are now tolerated in order to stem the numbers of referrals generally, and for certain races specifically.

As an example, a teacher at One Middle School in my district told me that students cuss at him and he cannot write a referral;  he must put a "step" on a behavior incident form, and an individual student must receive several such "steps" within a certain time-frame before a referral can be written which would result in such a student being sent to the office or to a counselor.  This is destroying teacher morale, and resulting in stressed out teachers and heavy churn at many of our schools.

Think back to when you went to school:  Can you ever imagine saying to a teacher F%&# this! and then subsequently wadding up an assignment and throwing it across the room and not being sent to the office immediately?  Well, if you answered no, then you would be surprised to know that this sort

Political Correctness Strikes Again!

Although Christmas is a Federally recognized holiday--more and more school districts in America are genuflecting before anti-religious, anti Christian vocal minorities, and taking Christmas off of their district calendars.  My second year on our board, some folks thought that would be a good idea here in Escambia County.  I was proud to lead the charge in shutting that idea down!

The latest districts to not shut down the vocal minority and instead bow down, genuflect  and acquiesce to these ridiculous political correctness demands are in Maryland and Massachusetts.  From the Christian Science Monitor:

A Massachusetts school system voted Monday to adopt the name "holiday break" for its vacation that includes Christmas Day, a move that exposed tension between those who want to maintain tradition and those who want to emphasize inclusiveness.By a 3-to-2 vote, the Marshfield School Committee upheld a September decision to make the name change for the vacation that this year begins Dec. 24 and lasts until after New Year's Day. However, the word "Christmas" will remain on the official school calendar for Dec. 25...A "pro-Noel" petition, supporting the Christmas label, collected more than 4,245 signatures prior to the school committee's meeting.Committee chair Marti Morrison, who spearheaded the name change, said she still "loves Christmas" but wants to ensure that students are aware of differences...'Supposedly our whole country is based on religious freedom," Ms. Morrison said, according to the Boston Herald. "I certainly appreciate when people feel very strongly about their religious background, but as a school committee member, my job is to make decisions I believe are in the best interest of our town.' 

What are the Implications of the Minority Race in a School Site Locally Being Insulted, Being Called Racial Slurs?--And no Consequences for the Student Using the Slurs!

I have had significant interest expressed in the post I made about one day in a local school- A day when a student verbally berated multiple adults and teachers, calling at least one adult a despicable racial slur.  From what I have learned, more than one student at this school has taken to using this slur and directing it toward the minority race individuals at that site.  And nobody, apparently, is curbing this ridiculousness.

Although this behavior is clearly a violation of the Board's Student Rights and Responsibility Guide, so far as I understand this situation, the student(s) who have hurled that racial slur at adults faced no punishment.

So why would a leader at that school not discipline or stop this behavior that is hateful?

Why would anyone who is a so-called school site leader permit this, meekly stating "My hands are tied, there is nothing I can do about it--sorry?"

I'm going to dig into this like a pit bull.  It is coming to the next board workshop.  In the era where we are constantly forced to walk on egg-shells around some issues, why the hell is this issue ignored,

Trying to Improve an Organization Doesn't Equal Not Supporting the Organization

Radical, out of control political correctness exacerbates discipline issues, maintains the status-quo, and hampers district growth.

How can you tell that people are wary of your local schools?  Where is the proof?  That’s a question that someone asked at a recent workshop.   So, let’s see-here goes.  In my last three campaigns I have literally walked and knocked on Thousands of doors each time.  And along with my campaign spiel -I always asked about how we’re doing as a district.  Worry over discipline was a top area of concern. Do I have that fact scientifically synthesized into an action research study?  No. But other evidence is all over the place; apparently it must be hiding in plain sight if people can’t see it… 

Teachers and other district staff send their own children to private schools in large numbers --that is a reality not captured in the latest climate survey.  New neighborhoods that are flourishing have lots of SUVs with “EDS”  “PCA” “CLA” St. Johns Christian School, and East Hill Christian Bumper Stickers on them.  Large PCA busses full of students run through our neighborhoods, up and down Navy Blvd. and Blue Angel Pkwy., and I see them on the way to NAS Pensacola on my morning commutes.  

People contact me about bullying, discipline issues in classrooms.  Students I know personally tell me they can’t learn due to out of control discipline issues in their classrooms and schools.  Many go dual enrolled to PSC just to escape the problems.  Parents pull their kids out of our schools to home-school them. Teachers burn out due to out of control discipline issues anda lack of administrator support. Some schools have astonishing levels of turnover over periods as short as just a few years. Some schools cannot get subs-some subs are highly selective.  Employee morale is low. 

Conversations are had with top level administrators at large growing firms and it is stated that many new transplanted workers to the area are choosing to live in Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, and/or Baldwin County.  Anecdotal evidence is all over—yet some people don’t want to acknowledge the uncomfortable reasons why, but here it is.  We have a classroom and school level discipline issue in many of our schools and the word is out. Normal, rational citizens expect us to do better, but it seems we are acquiescing to political correctness instead.  Rather than utilizing firm but fair discipline, we

Political Correctness Overrides Common Sense and Prudent Planning....Why Not Deploy the Resources We Have?

The regular workshop from Friday, Oct. 17^th  was deflating for a number of reasons.  And I’m not talking about what’s going on with the world economy, that’s a different sort of deflation, a different concern altogether… 

First of all we finally as a board were able to discuss, one month removed from last month’sregular meeting, the reasons why a special board meeting was necessary.  A month removed from a meeting that went sideways badly resulted in a situation where some board members felt that things were fine and nothing further was needed.  As I discussed the issue of the special meeting that wasn’t, I asked my fellow board members if they, like me, felt that it would have been productive to have a special meeting to discuss what went wrong at the September regular meeting.  One board member said he was opposed.  Two others indicated that “yes” they thought the special meeting would have been prudent.  The chairman stated at the workshop that she called the special sept. 30^th meeting, the meeting that wasn’t, out of deference to another board member who requested it.

So when the time came to finally discuss the issues and resolutions I had intended to bring to the Sept. 30^th special meeting, the board’s appetite for supporting these initiatives waned significantly.

Regarding physical security-me and one other board member felt that the issue was valid and that the issues that led to the meeting breakdown on Sept. 16^th should be addressed.  Two board members and the superintendent felt that the “meeting became emotional, and yes, it was messy, but that overall they did not feel unsafe.”  Two of my counterparts stated that “Timing would look bad if we [the board] enhanced security and brought out the metal detectors for board meetings now, as this might send the wrong message to the folks who came to the meeting last month.  They might feel that we were enhancing security because of them” The chairman of the board stated that “she never felt threatened or in fear” I stated at the meeting that I am aware that there were death threats made. Is there an investigation of the death threat being conducted by the Sheriff's office?  Yes.  Was a police report filed?  Yes. Was there a weapon in the room?  We don't know.  Did someone rush the stage and require restraint?  Yes.  Were staff members scared?  Yes? So at the workshop I wanted to talk security.

But when I asked if the district owns a walk through metal detector, the superintendent refused to directly answer that question, which I found to be odd.  The funny thing about that response is that I am aware that we do as a district have one, a portable, moveable walk through metal detector.  My predecessor on the board related a story about how the district, after 9-11, purchased a portable unit.  So why not answer the