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This Speakout has not been edited

By Stacey French

As a proud teacher for Denver Public Schools, who also teaches at Metro State College, I know I am excelling at my job. I see many of my students transition from attending my high school classes into taking my college courses.

I am dismayed by the current attack on my profession. I chose to work for Denver because I felt I could do the most good in an urban district. In addition to my teaching responsibilities, I also deal with many societal issues as well. Last week I had a student who was shot in the back in a gang related incident. Her mother will be going to jail in June for an accessory to murder charge and she will be left homeless because her father is also incarcerated. Another student was threatened with a gun on the way to school. J. came to me because his mother picks him up drunk and he doesn't know what to do as he doesn't want his mother to get in trouble. E. is a junior who is here illegally and doesn't see why he should finish school when his opportunities for college and a legitimate job are limited.

I am not complaining, I knew what I was getting into when I chose this school district. What I did not realize is how forcefully I would be attacked; by the media, superintendent, and city for doing my job to the best of my ability. I can only teach students who come ready to learn. This does not mean that they must have a perfect home life, but they need to have the built in resiliency to realize the importance of school. Try as I may to teach them, students cannot learn when they come to school stoned everyday, especially with parental support and supply. They cannot grasp subject material when they don't come to school on a regular basis because they are taking family trips, translating for family members at court hearings, or would rather hang out on the street. Students won't succeed on CSAP's when they see more profit in drug dealing than in an education and are only attending school to make connections to further their illegal careers. Students can learn when they come to school ready to accept my help in overcoming their difficulties and realizing the importance of their education.

The superintendent has said DPS teachers have received a 21% raise in the last couple of years. I guess I must be the exception but basic then I realized how statistics can be manipulated. The fact remains that with my graduate degree and seven years of service I would receive the following in other school districts compared to my salary in DPS.

DPS — $42,877

Cherry Creek — $48,905

Douglas County — $47,053

Aurora — $47,067

Jeffco — $46,449

Adams County 50 — $53,500

This does not include the fact that I would top out at a much higher salary. The district has offered the cost of living allowance but after paying my increase in health care costs, it leaves me with a 1.44% raise, This is 53.58 dollars per month which barely covers the gas increase and does not compare to salaries in other districts. I want to stay in Denver but when do I put my children's financial security first?

While ignoring the social and family contributions to a child's educational experience, Denver Public Schools is sculpting an environment where creative, affective teachers are going to other districts that appreciate their service and pay them accordingly. Unfortunately, the bad teachers will be left behind. I left a successful job in policing to help students rather than throw them in jail. I knew I would never become rich in this job, but I would like pay comparable to other districts.

READER COMMENTS

BB:
I am not clueless. Until the home environment is addressed and parents demand more from their children in terms of making education/school a priority, it really doesn't matter. Those failing schools aren't failing b/c the teachers are bad or don't care. They are failing in part b/c the PARENTS and STUDENTS don't care. How do you teach someone who just doesn't care or see the value in education? You cannot expect the school to do the job a parent/family should do.

Once again, people like you operate from a vouchers are a cure-all perspective. How about you actually go to a school and volunteer? How about you take the time to HELP rather than just point fingers? Even if vouchers were available, I would bet that majority of kids would stay right where they are...

Stella,
You are clueless, home environment, priorities? These would be moot points if the taxpaying parents had a choice of where to send their child. The only choicce most parents have now is to send their child to a failing school because it where they live. If they had a voucher they could send their child to a better performing school, thus forcing that poor performers to go out of business or get better - competition. Get it now? Probably not, you're probably just another union honk.

Blame Mayor J-Loop. In violation of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, he hijacked the DPS board and took "illegal" charge. This act nullified the votes of blacks akin to what criminal illegal Mexicans have done.

Fraud, waste, and abuse of federal funds, is his USAG Gonzo style hiring of his lackey, Michael Bennet (no BFOQ's) with an entry-level salary of $400K. J-Loop silenced the black lambs when he stole the DPS sup's job from a highly qualified black woman.

He stroked them by giving tired-assed Webb disciple, Allegra "Happy" Haynes, a $90K (no BFOQ's) truancy position. The DPS board didn't authorize any of these illegal appointments and the U.S. Dept. of Education mut have been trained by Gov. Ritter ($10 million missing) in fiscal oversight and stewardship.

>

If I'm not mistaken, the state of Colorado offers this option. No one is bound by school district and forced to attend their district schools.

I will agree that DPS is very top-heavy in administration. Bennet says he wants to give control to individual schools. When will that happen? Each school needs to be able to hire who they want (instead of a pre-selected group), fire who doesn't meet the school's objectives and given a pot of money that they control...not downtown.

However...arguing vouchers and school choice is still a moot point if the core problem of home environment and priorities isn't met.

Stacey,
Why don't you complain about the top heavy adminstration of these schools districts? How come you don't complain about your union dues or the unions tactics in general? Why don't you complain about the Colorado legislature not providing the requirement that YOUR students know english when they graduate? You are whining about how much you make, well, you chose your profession and you chose your school district. You don't even count your pension benefits which are far and away much better than somebody like myself. I don't get a neatly defined benefit plan when I retire? As always with those in the teachers union - it is about more money. Give me a break - I vote for school choice via choice, vouchers and competition - maybe then you could go make the money you are looking to make at a different more succesful school..

Hey Stella,
I can relate to your situation totally. DPS are in a downslide. They don't pay enough to any of their other staff members like office, administration, security, and I'm sure a whole lot of other positions. That's why I am not working for DPS. I came from LAUSD & LUSD in CA. Things are done very different then here.
I see alot of problems in the schools here where you have principals/teacher who don't have the experience to run a school properly. They don't know the first thing about security within their school and don't accept ideas from people like me who have dealt with all types of students and situations in my experience. For example, the principal at Montbello High School in Denver. He doesn't know the first thing about what he is doing, and coming from a place far worse than he could ever imagine, I tried to suggest ideas to him to no avail. So instead of letting my daughter continue to attend there where the principal doesn't take constructive criticism or ideas serious enough to try. I choose to remove her from a school where she really doesn't count as a student, but count in the financial dept. for the school to collect it's monthly dues. No teacher should be a teacher for the money, if they don't have that love to teach above and go beyond their regular duty, they don't need to be a teacher. I have over 15 years experience working in the school district in the office and in the attendance administration systems. And it's all the same, you just decide what works for your school and remove what doesn't.

And that, I think, is the elephant in the room...the viewpoint that no one talks about because it is politically incorrect: the family environment must be changed for success. The RMN is relentless in its attack on DPS. The A+ Foundation is planning to close scores of schools which, in my opinion, is a big mistake. Until Bennet and Aquino can address the environmental issues, there can be no effective reform no matter what the media or special focus groups say.

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