Letters/Comment 1-10-14

 

“Locking Up” Re-Assigned Teachers Is Tantamount to Adult Bullying

  

I have been standing up at Rye City School Board of Education meetings religiously the past few months because I am deeply concerned about how our Board is handling the case of the re-assigned teachers in our District.

 

I feel compelled to keep speaking up, because of the incredible costs associated with this case, the complete lack of respect by the board for the teachers, the silent treatment our board is giving parents, and because I think the consequences the administration is imposing on the teachers far surpass what is reasonable based on the allegations.

 

We will be spending close to $400,000 this school year on replacement teachers alone. Where is this money coming from, and how is it going to affect our school budget for next year? In November – after six months – one of the teachers was charged. Is the Board actually willing to spend what will be at least $250,000 in legal fees on a case based on questionable obtained information through interviews with 9 and 10 year-olds?

 

The treatment our teachers are receiving can only be described as disrespectful. Mrs. Topol has been teaching at Osborn for 25 years and has an outstanding record according to the school and parents alike. The same applies to Mrs. Mehler, who has been teaching here for 13 years. Apart from keeping them reassigned without a mandate from the state, the Board is making the teachers report to a tiny room (10 x 9) on a daily basis. They have been assigned a task that is far from appropriate for such highly skilled teachers. Does this show any respect, care, or dignity? Is this how we wish to treat one another in Rye? ‘Locking up’ our teachers in a rubber room without any information or communication and without actively seeking a resolution is what I consider bullying for grown-ups.

 

Our administration is currently spreading a culture of fear, unease, and silence. This will have a negative impact on the education of our children. We want and need our teachers, administrators, and parents to remain critics of our own system to make sure our schools keep excelling.

 

It is good to know that our District takes testing irregularities very seriously. But why don’t they just stop the bleeding? Even though not formally, our teachers have been punished severely already. I strongly believe that the Board has the opportunity to use this case as a learning experience and turn it into something positive to make our schools and community even stronger.

 

All leaders make mistakes, but good leaders admit and correct them. As John Wooden once said: “If you are not making mistakes, you are not doing anything.”

 

Sincerely, 

 

Boukje van den Bosch-Smits

  

Part of SPI Plan Needs Reimagining

 

On December 11, I attended the presentation at the Rye Free Reading Room by Sustainable Playland (SPI) about the proposal to build a 95,000 square-foot commercial sports center on what is now the Playland parking lot. The room was so crowded that people were left standing in the hallway, straining to hear. Some folks were distressed to find they were attending a pitch rather than a community forum. A few people heckled the speakers and more walked out. I listened to the presentation and had three responses.

 

First, I understood the extraordinary amount of work the members of the SPI Board have volunteered towards this effort, and I appreciate it.

 

Second, I thought they addressed some of the community’s concerns satisfactorily, others poorly or not at all. On one hand, they said the sports complex, which includes fields covered with porous artificial turf, would provide better drainage than the current parking lot, and would not exacerbate flooding. On the other, they left unanswered some major questions: with most of the parking lot gone, where will people park? What would happen if the sports center were unprofitable?

 

Third, as I looked at the site plan of the field zone and rendering of the building (which looks like a strip mall shopping center with a few Art Deco-ish details), I didn’t like what I was seeing. This wasn’t just because of the burdens the field house might place on the surrounding neighborhood, serious though those may be. My deeper objection is that we are blessed with a one-of-a-kind historic park zoned for waterfront recreation, and it would be a shame to dilute its unique charm by making a big chunk of it as generic as a strip mall. I very much appreciate SPI’s efforts, but I believe this part of its plan is wrong for Playland, as well as Rye.

 

Sincerely,

 

Meg Cameron

 

See It to Believe It

 

At the foot of Central Avenue by Boston Post Road is a sign with a four-letter word, STOP – some drivers need their eyes examined, don’t know how to read, or don’t give a darn.

 

So far, the record is nine cars going right through without stopping at all, right past the crosswalk. Someone should have the word STOP painted in the road in front of the three crosswalks.

 

This would be an improvement, since there was a sign on a pole, recently removed, stating that New York State law requires vehicles to stop at crosswalks for pedestrians.

 

Courtesy is completely lacking. Last week, I saw a two-and-a-half-ton truck roll down Post Road doing at least 45-50 m.p.h. with nary a care in the world as it zipped through the crosswalks. If a police car was parked near the crossing, it might slow the crazies down.

 

One interesting event was a gal dining on her bowl of cereal on her lap while she steered with her knees. I’m not sure if anyone can top that, but this week a guy had his coffee mug in his right hand, while putting his left hand over to the right side of the steering wheel in order to make a right turn. Don’t try it.

 

The children on their way to school deserve to be safe. The school guards do their best; but when are the drivers going to wise up, slow down, and STOP?

 

Sincerely,

 

Francis Harrigan

 

Civil Debate Trumps Anonymous Bullying Every Time

 

A recent online posting on Rye Patch leveled a number of accusations against the principal of Rye High School, Mrs. Patricia Taylor. Many comments followed, some defending Mrs. Taylor and some joining in the attack. The author(s) of the initial attack were anonymous, and signed only “Concerned Community Members.” Most of the Comments that followed were also anonymous.

 

A serviceable definition of “cyber-bullying” might be, “saying nasty things (often anonymously) about someone on the Internet.” In the Comments, there was much interjection about the validity of the charges. I think the more important point is that there is a right way and a wrong way to express dissent, disagreement or concern with public officials and school administrators. 

 

We have always taught our children that the best way to handle a dispute is to go to the person you have a grievance with in private, expressing your concern and seeking reconciliation. This is the graceful way of handling disputes, and some version of this is codified in most religions. I don’t believe the Internet makes such decency obsolete.  

 

The first thing that struck me about the blog posting was how hurtful it would be to our community. If an individual or group had expressed their concerns at a school board meeting or other public forum (we did just endure an election!) it would have been much less injurious. That those who administer (one can’t really say ‘edit’) Rye Patch allowed such incendiary charges to be posted anonymously discredits them and diminishes their forum.  

 

Here’s something for my kids, and maybe all of ours, to consider. Would any of your heroes post anything negative anonymously? Consider the Declaration, our founding document. The signatories indeed risked their lives, fortunes and sacred honor. These were not mere rhetorical flourishes. They knew that if the Revolution failed they would probably face execution. This makes the iconic John Hancock signature all the more impressive. It is outlandishly large as if to say, “If we fail, hang me first!” Whoever the Concerned Community Members are, they seem to lack the courage that should be our common heritage.   

 

I’ve been careful neither to defend nor criticize Mrs. Taylor. But I will tip my hand. I consider my family privileged and blessed to live and learn and worship in this community. It’s sad that (presumed) adults engage in attacks that we would rebuke our children for. A good society, as the fine teachers at Rye have surely taught my kids, depends on a level of civility that an anonymous posting cannot approach. 

 

No school is perfect, and all of us can use some constructive criticism from time to time. If the channels for expressing such criticism don’t work well, let’s repair them. But let’s have civil, temperate debates, whose goal is to build up our community and seek its peace. 

 

Sincerely,

 

James Keller