I would agree that the "middle school" break is not helpful. During this time, kids are transitioning into adults physically and mentally. Consequently, adjusting to a new school adds another variable to an already messy situation. I would favor merging with the elementary level as it allows the kids to keep a known, outside world as their inside world goes wild. I have heard that economic studies show the economies of scale for a school do not plateau until a school has about 300-400 students as I recall. 200 is not enough to support all of the activities in terms of money per pupil and pupils to participate. You also need to avoid the Big Fish in Small Bowl effect that is often broken when the graduated student enters the rest of the world.
Thanks to school board member Ann Carroll. She noted that my previous post was unclear. I shared research below about the value of small grades 7-12 schools, and to suggest St Paul should phase out unpopular, and for many students, ineffective, grades 7-8 schools. Joe Nathan Highland Park
A Univ of Missouri researcher has found that the lowest graduation rates are found in small, grades 7-12 schools (please see below). For years, St. Paul Public Schools has had grades 7-8, 9-12 schools. Many families are choosing smaller charter public schools in St. Paul - with small high schools (like St Paul Conservatory of Performing Arts, with about 420 students) or Great River Charter - grades 7-12, about 220 students). Charter public school enrollment is continuing to grow in St. Paul. St Paul Public Schools, with a goal of increasing graduation rates and reducing achievement gaps, should consider phasing out its grade 7-12 schools. Joe Nathan Highland Park St. Paul atmizzou.missouri.edu/jul03/SchoolSize.htm Lowering Dropout Rates By Jeff Neu Some researchers say dropout rates and student achievement are directly related to school location, whether in urban or rural settings. However, several studies by a researcher at the University of Missouri-Columbia determined that school size and district structure are directly linked to high school dropouts and achievement losses. “The best set-up for a student is K-6 and 7-12,” said John Alspaugh, education professor emeritus at MU. “The lowest dropout rates tend to occur in small high schools with limited course offerings and a high percentage of their budgets devoted to extracurricular activities. The long grade spans allow students the opportunity to establish long-term relationships, which may tend to keep them in school. The expansion of course offerings, which might initially appear to be a good idea for increasing student retention, may in reality fracture the school social structure by breaking down relationships among students.” Alspaugh analyzed data from each school district in Missouri. He divided the school districts into three groups. The first group had a K-8, 9-12 grade-level organization, with only one elementary school and one high school. The second group of districts contained one elementary school, one middle school, and one high school with a linear transition arrangement. The third group of districts had two or three elementary schools, middle school, and one high school, with a pyramid transition arrangement of students from multiple elementary schools into a single middle school. PHOTO Lee’s Summit School District has 15 elementary schools, three junior high schools and three high schools. It is one of Missouri’s larger school districts. Alspaugh found the students in a pyramid transition experienced a greater achievement loss than the students in a linear transition. The students attending a middle school experienced a greater achievement loss in the transition to high school than students making the transition to high school from a K-8 elementary school. Alspaugh also found students attending larger schools tended to experience more transitions than the students in smaller schools. He believes students placed in relatively small cohort groups for long spans of time tend to experience more desirable educational outcomes. In another study, Alspaugh examined the high school dropout rates in Missouri. The lowest dropout rates occurred in grade-level organizations of K-6, 7-12, while the highest rates were found with grade 10-12 high schools. Grade 11 experiences the highest number of dropouts, which Alspaugh believes is related to the student’s new ability to drive, skip class and lose interest in school. The percentage of its budget a school spends on extracurricular activities also is related to dropout rates. “Participation in athletics and fine arts — highly visible and prestigious activities — is related to student retention,” Alspaugh said. “For example, when the number of players on an athletic team is fixed, the probability an individual student will have an opportunity to participate decreases as the school enrollment increases. Thus, as the high school size increases, there tends to be a decrease in student participation in student activities, which leads more students to drop out.”
Wells Fargo Band, (Building), a St. Paul branch (?) which interestingly changed the name of the St. Paul building from 'World Trade' to Wells Fargo building offered $7.00 over City Bank's offer of $1.00 and schuttled the feds intervention by making real market offer failing a (W) bank. This hits home and St. Paul Main Street but in a free market way. I'm for regulation but for the life of me can not figure City Bank 'whinning' why don't they offer $8.00 a share ...let the bidding begin! This appears to udercut bail out reasoning and promote a no vote from House. The house contact for Re. Betty McCullum, (Ramsey Cty Which includes St. Paul), has a note that says they canot recieve constituents mail and they are trying to fix it so pardon me I had to get this out there I'm just livid watching this financail Drama /E r/ fear political season wind down ..... Live from St. Paul MN's Eastside
Geez, Neal, what took you so long - I almost lost the bet on that one. And I am pleased to see a glimmer of humor – there may be hope yet. I think you have suggested some excellent topics for further discussion, I hope to learn much more as these reviews go forward.
Jim Marcotte wrote: > We cannot ignore the numerous reports of properties ransacked, Search warrant issued upon probable cause. BTW, how's the repairs going? > of people detained, searched and then released without cause or arrest, Stop and frisk under reasonable suspicion. > the casual demands for ID on the street, Common law right of inquiry, reasonable suspicion stop. > the backpacks and bags searched at will, Reasonable suspicion stop, probable cause. > and of course excessive use of force. Prove your assertion. Oh, forget it. Just joking. > Outrage is understandable and perhaps even appropriate but we should > not let the rhetoric get in the way of persistent inquiry. Absolutely, Mr. Marcotte. What was that about interfering with the political rights of Republicans by anarchists and leftists? > It is then the government’s obligation to provide its citizens with > proof that these actions were necessary and legal. They already have. I doubt you'd accept any explanation. Neal Krasnoff Minneapolis, MN
Mr. McLean, I believe that the RNC went and announced that Saint Paul was the site before they'd worked out a deal with the City, so the City was wisely able to extract a few promises from them. The purchase of this policy by the RNC (with them picking up the tab for the premium) was among them, so hats off to whoever had this forethought at the City. I think it shows that the City was looking out for the taxpayers. There was a story in the Star-Tribune about this in early September, but it's no longer on line. It mentioned who the underwriter was, but not who the local broker/procurer might have been. I hope $10 million is enough coverage. I hope the terms of this unique insurance product are favorable toward more coverage rather than less. I hope someone bought the terrorism rider. Diane Gerth West End and Downtown
At the height of the recent real estate bubble, condos along the proposed light-rail line shot up like mushrooms. The first spores sold, and a second wave of condo construction began. Unfortunately, the market for these investment “vehicles” has dried up. http://www.mndaily.com/2008/09/30/m-flats-struggles-fill-units According to realtor Bill Frothinger, the primary buyers of these U of M area condos are the parents of college students. The investment scheme goes like this: 1) Rather than paying the kid’s rent, the parents make payments on the kid’s condo. 2) 5 or 6 years later, when the kid has graduated from college and the shiny new light-rail is in place, the parents sell the kid’s condo and hopefully make a healthy profit or at least recoup the money invested. This may not be a bad investment strategy, but should it be subsidized with public transit funds? How many regular riders of the most frequent, most heavily-used, most cost-effective line that Metro transit operates, the 16A, are buying quarter-million dollar college crash pads for their kids?
We have now entered into the fourth week of this self-flagellation festival and I for one, hope it ends soon. This will be my final tome on this subject. My curiosity is not bold like Einstein's, who wanted "to know God's thoughts." I have much simpler desires: I would love to have a couple of hours to pour over the workpapers of the actuary(s), who rated the City's $10,000,000 RNC liability insurance policy. It would be nice to know who first thought of purchasing the policy. What was the premium? Who issued the policy? And, What misdeeds and costs did the policy cover? First, in one of those heading them off at the pass comments, I am not critical of the City's leaders for purchasing this insurance policy. Considering recent convention histories, it was an eminently prudent purchase. Then, lest someone respond with a pea brained comment like, 'if there had not been a liability policy, the police may have behaved better,' save your ink. That argument can be made about any form of insurance. How about national political party convention liability insurance? I went to the Giaco web page and tried to get a quote from several different insurance companies. No hits. This is a policy that did not come out of a can - it was a very special underwriting. A lot of heavy though had to have been put into categorizing all of the risks. Before you follow this with another parry of pro and con, cop and protester bashing posts, I invite you to spend just a few minutes thinking about this insurance policy. This exercise is not going to give you any insight into God's mind, but does it tell you anything about what the City's administration was thinking before the RNC?
Facts and fiction from old flatulent St. Paul senior
9/1/08
Pardon me Wall Street buddy buddies and gentile 4th district congressional
folks! Ok Now! I needed a roof it was leaking mold growing on my interior
walls, I needed a new furnace cause asbestos riddled and my lungs suffering
spasms, I have to keep at least one functional dependable car to get to my job
20 miles off in the suburbs from cozy urban home. Local jobs are not even
living wage jobs, living month to month on two incomes, retired now working PT,
how the hell do you think I got the roof, the furnace, and replaced the Junker
car? Now no cost of living no merit increases, no bailout from the government,
can’t keep up with inflation… plus it is eating away at what I have to
cover monthly expenses.
So now I have more mortgage debt then ever but the property is maintained
and the value of the house, that was never supposed to go down, did go down,
gas went up heat gas went up, electric went up sewer tax added on to water bill
that went up, taxes went up cause value went up, cause I fixed the dam shack,
medical went up food went up. I'm not on welfare I worked all my life had to
cash in 10K 401 k at big discount, during tough times a decade and a half or so
ago because of d i v o r c e and ex wife declaring bankruptcy after the fact,
and a no good credit rating resulting, got demoted due to government over site
so my point is; easy equity helped to keep up the property and what I get is a
bigger mortgage, higher ins. rate due to value increase, all with easy credit I
got it, but and I'm paying dearly for it and no bail in sight so explain to
me, as I am sure some will, how I have been irresponsible or negligent. I
paid these banks and investors 3x what I bought the home for so that’s four
times over.
Repeat: I paid for the 1920 AD shack, built with virgin Minnesota Pine,
four time already and my debt interest payment is now bigger then ever and I
kept my property up while these guys lived of the interest so why should I bail
out these guys when they have had no compassion for a working J e r k Like me?
I’m telling the truth why can’t my government my elected representatives my
pastor, my party and my fellow citizens understand this stuff? I’m a life
long Democrat the fanatics right and left and squeamish fence sitters in the
middle in congress do not have to impress me just vote no bail outs! And no
bail either they are a run risk! Let the market place do to them what it did
to me… survive!!!!
Oh and need I mention when both our aged old papas died they left thousand
which eased the pain at each point along the way but I have nothing but my good
name and debt to leave my children and any one that tarnishes my good name is
just describing the water we’re drowning in out here. So ‘congressmen
please heed the call’ vote no and vote on the bailout without porkpie pie add
on to sucker in special interest congressmen and senators. You can sort out the
paragraphs here cause its all one ball of ‘none of your (BANKS) bee’s
wax’ to me cause you’re holding the paper on the bee hive!!!!!!
There are more solutions then the ones mentioned above, but the Supreme
Court won’t let me raise my voice in this theatre of the absurd out here in
urban America. Tomorrows headline could read like this from an old traditional
blues tune… “Throw your trunk out the window let the shack burn down”
or “Worker bees hold on to your
Honey the owners are going to smoke the hive.
All Kidding aside… I love my city and my home in St. Paul! “ Wait!
What’s that smell! Winds from the south east! Multiple weathermen don’t
even know which way the wind blows when you turn on news we got weather people
all over the place in this town, talking heads, but real news reporters noooooo
their in jail right here in River City. Folks here is a real solution now….
we need is a boys and girls band, keep em out of the pool halls, from smoking
big cigars, and swimming in the congressional (cess) pools, and gamboling with
other people money.
Might as well let the Crumblies ride for free, at least off-peak. This perk is offered to my aged father where he lives, and being a tightwad, he's all over it like pigeon poop on a skyway. The free rides keep him off the roads, which is a good thing, believe me. His carbon footprint is much smaller than it would be if he were puttering around in front of us at 23 mph, and the amount of airborne abrasive dust he has not generated by sending numerous cars to the body shoppe is not insignificant. He also has a book of bus schedules that includes all the local routes, so he can plan and execute rather complicated journeys. Although he owns and can use a (primitive) computer, it's the book he turns to for route planning. It's about the size of the Highland Park phone book all of us get and never use. But having said that, when I'm 80, will I ever be inspired to go out to Woodbury or Eden Prairie on a free day trip? Are there suburban Wrinklies who regularly come into Saint Paul now? For what? Colonoscopies? Now these suburbs are building their own hospitals and have their own proctologists. Hell, the Prom Center is even in Jokedale now, so we've also lost the Lawrence Welk and Les Brown dancing crowds. First- and second-ring elders may come in to the Ordway, but most of them are so bejeweled they'd never get on a bus. Where is a poor, old person to go for gits and shiggles these days? Where am I going to party 30 years from now?! Oh my God! Failing to prepare is preparing to fail - can we get a disco built downtown soon, on the #54/74 route?! What was the question? Current Metro Transit fares can be found here: http://www.metrotransit.org/buyPass/transitFares.asp Andrew M. Hine 3M IATD Industrial Adhesives & Tapes Division 3M Center 230-1F-35 St. Paul MN 55144-1000 USA <email obscured> Tel: (651) 733-1070 Fax: (651) 737-2003 Alan Uhl <<email obscured>> 10/01/2008 02:30 PM To <<email obscured>> <<email obscured>> cc Subject Re: [SPIF] : News Release: Sen. Marty proposes rollback of transit fares
joey lundquist has an email address: <email obscured> steve scholl <email obscured> 651-699-1203 h 651-341-0597 c 651-259-7371 o > From: <email obscured>> To: <email obscured>> Subject: Re: [SPIF] Lafayette Bridge> Date: Wed, 1 Oct 2008 15:36:53 -0500> > Inconvenience wins out, I am afraid. The MNDOT comment card is just that. > You have to down load it, fill it out and snail mail it.> > I have no clue why they did not make this more user friendly. Survey Monkey > anyone?> > It is what it is.> > Jeanne Weigum> In Merriam Park feeling like a technogeek > > > Jeanne Weigum> Merriam Park, Saint Paul> Info about Jeanne Weigum: http://forums.e-democracy.org/p/jeanneweigum> > This topic's messages may be viewed at: http://forums.e-democracy.org/r/topic/6zrIUoKeVNHQ8v8u4jjhC1>
Inconvenience wins out, I am afraid. The MNDOT comment card is just that. You have to down load it, fill it out and snail mail it. I have no clue why they did not make this more user friendly. Survey Monkey anyone? It is what it is. Jeanne Weigum In Merriam Park feeling like a technogeek
Now there's an idea and a senator truly worth supporting. Al Uhl > State Sen. John Marty, DFL-Roseville, announced his intent to push a proposal
Premieres tonight at 9:00 pm on Animal Planet (repeat at 11:00 pm) "K-9 Cops" is a 15 episode series starting tonight and all episodes will feature the St. Paul Police Department's K-9 Unit. If you have never seen them do exhibitions at the Fair and other places, you've really missed something - these dogs are fantastic!!! Here's info from the AP: "Animal Planet executive producer Erin Wanner says it's clear the St. Paul K-9 unit is one of the most elite in the country. Wanner says if the show does well, more episodes might follow, and the show could branch off to other cities. Three camera and audio crews started shooting in May, and they'll be in town through at least November. Wednesday's episode includes vehicle chases and fleeing suspects, a drug search and a report of a suicidal teen with a gun. Some footage shows the officers and K-9s at home." Gloria Bogen West Side = Best Side
Last night MNDOT held a public viewing and opportunity to comment on the design of the new Lafayette Bridge. The bridge is coming, make no mistake. There is a question about whether or not there will be a bike lane on this massive structure. There is NO bike lane currently shown on any of the three possible designs although the photos do not make that clear. It is same-old same-old when it comes to transportation. Funding for automobiles comes first, then, if there is public support (translate, pressure) bike transportation may follow. Given that we have had several recent bike fatalities, it seems essential that safety be built into structures rather than the two wheelers being left to fend for themselves or left out completely. I have attached a link to the MNDOT website and their comment card. You have a chance to comment on the bridge design, and I would encourage you to add the comment that bikes, an alternate form of transportation, should be included in the design. Jeanne Weigum In Merriam Park wearing my Obama button on my More Trees Less Bush T shirt
This Times article makes it clear that public financing is in trouble, along with every other form of credit. My question is what impact does this have on the central corridor project and do we need to face the reality now and shelve this baby until it can actually be completed. Is anyone having this conversation at the met council??? caty royce ex selby south minneapolis http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/01/business/01muni.html p.s. i accidentally posted this in the announcements, sorry it belongs here.
Oh and for the person forwarding my previous educationaly abstracted post
note the following reference and the year it was published 1975
-searched the following-
Police Power:
Sovereignty's Sledgehammer
by
Ridgway K. Foley Jr.
Mr. Foley, was a partner in Souther, Spaulding, Kinsey, Williamson & Schwabe,
and practiced law in Portland, Oregon. Published November, 1975
Constructional issues:
a.) Moreover, no government, no state possesses any "rights," including the
right to
Self-preservation.
b.) Further…. only individuals possess those rights; any belief that a state
owns
rights involves a much too organic view of government.
c.) The state exists not to perpetuate itself in power but to secure
the inalienable
rights of Individuals residing in that territory …… life,
liberty and property."
The State as preservers of their own institutional integrity plus
reasonable means to ensure these said institution’s welfare, by taxes, over
the wishes and welfare of the
Individual is wanton disregard of the rights of the people and their
wishes, which is why we have elections and reporters and free press and the
right to be informed.
The family, the town, the city, the county, and the state in a
constitutional union
With the federal government in that order is based on perceived needs of
the greater
Good as each democratically decided through elected representation to arm
itself
Protect life, limb, and property.
The suppression of indigenous peoples, of the poor and subsequent
‘crime’, labor,
anti-slavery factions, like it or not is the legacy of our ‘policing’
in America.
Professional nature of policing, today, has made these instructions
insulated, by law,
from restraint and review, and the will and the freedom and liberty of the
people they
serve.
This is why the peoples elected representatives must investigate the special
national security event now for future restraint and accountability other wise
how can I vote intelligently on whether elected servants are for or against my
individual rights. The stonewalling of this review of RNC in St. Paul is
starting as another constructional issue arises out of economic misconduct on a
higher plain then Kellog Blvd. in St. Paul Mn.
Police instutions welfare/maintainance over the welfare of of the individuals
rights is a police state and you can play the respect game all day long but
either People come first instutions second or not!