I would never hire a superintendent who wasn't willing to move to the district and let his own children be educated there. I also wouldn't vote for a board member who didn't have at least one child being educated in the district. If their ox isn't being gored, they just don't care.
Get real. Insulting the Mt. Diablo Superintendant has nothing to do with improving education. It's about the Teachers Union's wishlist. As a major teachers union head (Albert Shanker) said years ago:
"When school children start paying union dues, that 's when I'll start representing the interests of school children.â€
Mr. McHenry's biggest vice? He balanced the budget based on the money available. It is not his job to create a parcel tax as some districts have. Money wasn't enough for the teachers union to get the board they wanted in the last election in order to fire the Superintendant and rubber stamp their wishes. So now they try to mau-mau the ladies of the District.
If Mt Diablo is in "crisis"...Where are Oakland schools, San Francisco schools, and West Contra Costa schools? Those districts are near hopeless and totally union controlled. Mt. Diablo is far superior to all three but is only ~85% teachers union controlled. But it's not enough? Give me a break.
The statewide education doldrums are hardly the fault of this Superintendent.. who has always been forthright and (something the unions might not recognize)...HONEST.
Morale is low for many districts and its hardly Mr. McHenrys fault. Listening to the teachers Union's 'Chicken Little' on the Board broadcast last night continue his longstanding personal attacks was revolting. It was clear that District morale would improve 50% if only...he wouldleave . Didn't the teachers union pass up a deal a year ago that looks pretty good today. Yet another goof on their part . Why did Board members re-up Mr. McHenry after years of good work...just a few months back? Who is competent & responsible...indeed?
My kids are out of Mt. Diablo now and in college but If the teachers Union gets full control of this District, you younger parents had better start planning for private education.
Great! You blame our union and refer to union problems in Oakland as being the reason the state to take over that district. Check out where Gary McHenry met up with two of his cabinet members. Check out where he met up with our failed Chief Financial Officer. Don't be surprised if you hear the word Oakland. Question why he's sending lay off notices to all of the district administrators with the exception of his cabinet and himself. In fact, this is the second time he's done this. Why can we seldom find him at school sites?
Now, check out salary schedules and discover the fact that we are the lowest compensated teachers in the county. Want more? The little they pay us is usually inaccurate. I've taught over 35 years in this district and I've never seen our district run so poorly as it's being opearted now.
Do your research. It's your district along with the students and you need to know how rotten things really are. Yes, we had six distinguished schools last year. Note, I did not say school district. I was in one of those schools and I saw no help from any district official with the exception of one school board member.
Help us get a district back where the district office helps the schools, not hinders the schools. Those students, parents and teachers that are speaking up want change for the better. We want a district back that gives our students the best education possible. Our students now and in the future deserve nothing less. And about our "teacher's union," we are the Mt. Diablo Education Association and we will not stop until our distict is properly operating.
I agree that the Superintendent isn't totally to blame. The majority of the blame goes to the School Board for hiring him without knowing or caring about his past record. He did not do well in his previous Districts, and yet, they hired him for ours and allowed him to pull us into the myre McHenry has become so familiar with! And if that weren't bad enough, he has hired many principals and administrators who he knew from his previous failing Districts with Board approval. One in particular was booted out of that district and then hired into ours!!! Thankfully, we have 2 Board Members who had the courage to speak their mind after seeing what is happening here. When will people begin to understand how important School Board members are to a District and we need to stop voting for people with no background in education. We also need people who actually listen to those in the trenches who see what's going on in the classroom everyday. They have a responsibilty to do more than wander around a school once a year and think that constitutes "interaction." Shame on both McHenry and the Board members who can't see the forest for the trees!
Thank you, you said what I have been thinking as a parent, volunteer and former MDUSD employee (I had to leave due to a health condition).
I personally have witnessed the MDEA President and he comes across as one who thrives on confrontation and tactics that are not beneficial to the students or teachers of this district. I agree his personal attacks are revolting and morale would improve if this individual would resign ASAP.
I support our teacher's and would like to see the return of their medical benefits and raising salaries to a competitive level. I have attended budget meetings and know that this can not be acheived without major budget cuts or a parcel tax. I support the parcel tax as we can not depend on our state or federal government. Special Education is an absolute necessity but is a huge drain on MDUSD's budget. With the current state of the budget the district could possibly face additional revenue loss for Special Education from the Federal Government . We must go to our State Legislatures and let them know that we do NOT support cutting funds for Education.
I support and believe in Mr. McHenry and we all need to work together to support our district and our children. Our children deserve this from all of us.
The MDUSD is in bad shape. Our 2 children have had wonderful teachers, we have a daughter graduating this year from CPHS (a California Distinguished School - It's not only Northgate that has that honor!!) (And we live in Walnut Creek.) Anyway, I would like to see our school district have a GOOD plan in place FIRST before askingGary McHenry to leave. Don't completely cave in to the mob mentality of get him out without a way to fix the situation. Who out there is capable of leading the district; leading it through the teacher contract situation and the financial crisis? Let the public know how this will be handled before firing or asking for a resignation.
I am concerned that teachers in our district still are experiencing pay issues. The Board also knows that one of the more knowledgeable people with the finance program is retiring and they are thinking about not replacing this person right away. This concerns me.I also have noticed that on-site administrators are less and less responsive to parental concerns since Superintendent McHenry took over the reins. Another trend I have noticed within our district is how a law suit seems to be the only tool taken seriously when a group has to bring their unmet needs to the attention of the administrators. This has happened most often in the arena of special education. I know money is tight, and the special education is not fully funded federally or by the state, but it bothers me that it takes very expensive lawyers to get the district to do the right thing. These are all areas in which I believe the Superintendent holds responsibility, thus I voted Yes, but only if it does not cost the district additional funds.
The time has come for change.The first step is to replace Gary McHenry as soon as possible, before the damage to the district is irreversible.Since Mr. McHenry has come to the district, there are more Assistant Superintendents and an Associate Superintendent, a CFO (used to be a Director) than before he was hired.In his personal office, there are two fulltime employees, there use to be only one administrative assistant (are one of these jobs a proposed budget cut?). There is such unrest with all of the district’s unions.The MDUSD School Board must work to bring back trust and unity between the MDUSD, our community and employee unions before there are more schools wanting to leave the district. The first step is to hire a new Superintendent to start fresh. The district is full of nepotism - has anyone demanded an explanation on why there are so many friends and relatives being hired?The District may have to pay a fine of 1.3 million dollars (a lot of money for books and programs for kids) for errors in processing teachers’ paperwork with the state.The buck stops with the Superintendent – he and the school board must be held accountable. Let's do what is best for kids. The time is now!
Posted on Thu, 01/24/2008 - 01:15 — by CCTModerator
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 1
I would never hire a superintendent who wasn't willing to move to the district and let his own children be educated there. I also wouldn't vote for a board member who didn't have at least one child being educated in the district. If their ox isn't being gored, they just don't care.
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 291
Get real. Insulting the Mt. Diablo Superintendant has nothing to do with improving education. It's about the Teachers Union's wishlist. As a major teachers union head (Albert Shanker) said years ago:
"When school children start paying union dues, that 's when I'll start representing the interests of school children.â€
If Mt Diablo is in "crisis"...Where are Oakland schools, San Francisco schools, and West Contra Costa schools? Those districts are near hopeless and totally union controlled. Mt. Diablo is far superior to all three but is only ~85% teachers union controlled. But it's not enough? Give me a break.
The statewide education doldrums are hardly the fault of this Superintendent.. who has always been forthright and (something the unions might not recognize)...HONEST.
Morale is low for many districts and its hardly Mr. McHenrys fault. Listening to the teachers Union's 'Chicken Little' on the Board broadcast last night continue his longstanding personal attacks was revolting. It was clear that District morale would improve 50% if only...he would leave . Didn't the teachers union pass up a deal a year ago that looks pretty good today. Yet another goof on their part . Why did Board members re-up Mr. McHenry after years of good work...just a few months back? Who is competent & responsible...indeed?
My kids are out of Mt. Diablo now and in college but If the teachers Union gets full control of this District, you younger parents had better start planning for private education.
Edited 1/24/2008 1:58 pm ET by backrow
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 1
Great! You blame our union and refer to union problems in Oakland as being the reason the state to take over that district. Check out where Gary McHenry met up with two of his cabinet members. Check out where he met up with our failed Chief Financial Officer. Don't be surprised if you hear the word Oakland. Question why he's sending lay off notices to all of the district administrators with the exception of his cabinet and himself. In fact, this is the second time he's done this. Why can we seldom find him at school sites?
Now, check out salary schedules and discover the fact that we are the lowest compensated teachers in the county. Want more? The little they pay us is usually inaccurate. I've taught over 35 years in this district and I've never seen our district run so poorly as it's being opearted now.
Do your research. It's your district along with the students and you need to know how rotten things really are. Yes, we had six distinguished schools last year. Note, I did not say school district. I was in one of those schools and I saw no help from any district official with the exception of one school board member.
Help us get a district back where the district office helps the schools, not hinders the schools. Those students, parents and teachers that are speaking up want change for the better. We want a district back that gives our students the best education possible. Our students now and in the future deserve nothing less. And about our "teacher's union," we are the Mt. Diablo Education Association and we will not stop until our distict is properly operating.
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 1
I agree that the Superintendent isn't totally to blame. The majority of the blame goes to the School Board for hiring him without knowing or caring about his past record. He did not do well in his previous Districts, and yet, they hired him for ours and allowed him to pull us into the myre McHenry has become so familiar with! And if that weren't bad enough, he has hired many principals and administrators who he knew from his previous failing Districts with Board approval. One in particular was booted out of that district and then hired into ours!!! Thankfully, we have 2 Board Members who had the courage to speak their mind after seeing what is happening here. When will people begin to understand how important School Board members are to a District and we need to stop voting for people with no background in education. We also need people who actually listen to those in the trenches who see what's going on in the classroom everyday. They have a responsibilty to do more than wander around a school once a year and think that constitutes "interaction." Shame on both McHenry and the Board members who can't see the forest for the trees!
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 1
Thank you, you said what I have been thinking as a parent, volunteer and former MDUSD employee (I had to leave due to a health condition).
I personally have witnessed the MDEA President and he comes across as one who thrives on confrontation and tactics that are not beneficial to the students or teachers of this district. I agree his personal attacks are revolting and morale would improve if this individual would resign ASAP.
I support our teacher's and would like to see the return of their medical benefits and raising salaries to a competitive level. I have attended budget meetings and know that this can not be acheived without major budget cuts or a parcel tax. I support the parcel tax as we can not depend on our state or federal government. Special Education is an absolute necessity but is a huge drain on MDUSD's budget. With the current state of the budget the district could possibly face additional revenue loss for Special Education from the Federal Government . We must go to our State Legislatures and let them know that we do NOT support cutting funds for Education.
I support and believe in Mr. McHenry and we all need to work together to support our district and our children. Our children deserve this from all of us.
Edited 1/25/2008 6:06 pm ET by DandJ
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 1
The MDUSD is in bad shape. Our 2 children have had wonderful teachers, we have a daughter graduating this year from CPHS (a California Distinguished School - It's not only Northgate that has that honor!!) (And we live in Walnut Creek.) Anyway, I would like to see our school district have a GOOD plan in place FIRST before askingGary McHenry to leave. Don't completely cave in to the mob mentality of get him out without a way to fix the situation. Who out there is capable of leading the district; leading it through the teacher contract situation and the financial crisis? Let the public know how this will be handled before firing or asking for a resignation.
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 3
I am concerned that teachers in our district still are experiencing pay issues. The Board also knows that one of the more knowledgeable people with the finance program is retiring and they are thinking about not replacing this person right away. This concerns me.I also have noticed that on-site administrators are less and less responsive to parental concerns since Superintendent McHenry took over the reins. Another trend I have noticed within our district is how a law suit seems to be the only tool taken seriously when a group has to bring their unmet needs to the attention of the administrators. This has happened most often in the arena of special education. I know money is tight, and the special education is not fully funded federally or by the state, but it bothers me that it takes very expensive lawyers to get the district to do the right thing. These are all areas in which I believe the Superintendent holds responsibility, thus I voted Yes, but only if it does not cost the district additional funds.
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 1
The time has come for change. The first step is to replace Gary McHenry as soon as possible, before the damage to the district is irreversible. Since Mr. McHenry has come to the district, there are more Assistant Superintendents and an Associate Superintendent, a CFO (used to be a Director) than before he was hired. In his personal office, there are two fulltime employees, there use to be only one administrative assistant (are one of these jobs a proposed budget cut?). There is such unrest with all of the district’s unions. The MDUSD School Board must work to bring back trust and unity between the MDUSD, our community and employee unions before there are more schools wanting to leave the district. The first step is to hire a new Superintendent to start fresh. The district is full of nepotism - has anyone demanded an explanation on why there are so many friends and relatives being hired? The District may have to pay a fine of 1.3 million dollars (a lot of money for books and programs for kids) for errors in processing teachers’ paperwork with the state. The buck stops with the Superintendent – he and the school board must be held accountable. Let's do what is best for kids. The time is now!
Edited 1/28/2008 4:35 pm ET by Changepls