PPP HISTORY & PAST CONTRIBUTIONS
(Documented by previous board members: Stephanie Metz and Jaime Koo)
I want to give a big thank-you to everyone who helped orchestrate this turn of events. Last year we learned of the plan to terminate the program with last year's Kindergarten as the last class to start PPP. With the help of our PPP community we convinced the Superintendent to allow one more year to buy us some time to figure out how PPP will grow and change to better serve the interests of even more families in our community.
After the announcement in mid-January that the Noble PPP program would be terminated with the 2015-16 Kindergarten as the last group to start, PPP parents and Board Members worked together to petition the Superintendent to extend the program for one more year and use that time to reshape the future of PPP. Happily, we have met with success on that front! You can read the history of the process below. Next will come planning for the future. Please stay tuned for announcements of meeting dates to start contributing input. Think about how you and your family want our school to be going forward, and what role you can take in making that happen.
January 29, 2016: Today letters from the Superintendent went home with each PPP student detailing the plan for the near future of PPP. In summary, the PPP program will continue unchanged for one more year-- next year's Kindergarten class (2016-2017) will be the last to start their four-year journey in the Parent Participation Program in its classic form. In the meantime the district, Principal, teachers, and parents have been invited to contribute input and planning to determine how the program will change in the future to serve the entire Noble community. We can consider this a victory-- thanks to the diplomacy and professionalism of our parents and teachers, we now have the time to work on PPP to keep our momentum going, rather than a sudden dissolution among bad feelings. THANK YOU to everyone for your help. This is a great community, and we will keep it going. You can view the letter here.
January 26, 2016: Superintendent Ector promises PPP Executive Director Stephanie Metz a written announcement of his decision for next year on this coming Friday, January 29th. No further news expected until then.
January 25, 2016: Board President Cohen is set to meet with Superintendent Ector today to discuss PPP. I'll post more news when it becomes available.
January 22, 2016: PPP Board of Directors and teachers met after school to discuss action plan, awaiting any news from district. Teachers are set to meet the Superintendent on Monday, January 25th. Communication has been continuing offline between the members of the PPP Board and the District Administration. PPP members who spoke at Tuesday's Board Meeting have been continuing to petition the Board Members to keep the PPP at Noble. There is still no resolution whether the PPP will continue, but the fact that talks continue is a good sign. Let's stay positive!
January 21, 2016: Several parents email the Superintendent, Principal Ortiz, and Board President David Cohen to thank them for their time and to request prompt action on meeting with PPP teachers to come to some decision for next year. David Cohen emails that he will discuss the PPP with Superintendent Ector on Monday, January 25th.
January 20, 2016: Follow-up messages sent to the Board Members; and Stephanie sends a letter to Principal Ortiz, cc'd to Superintendent Ector and Board President Cohen, requesting one more year of PPP as it is currently run along with a plan to work together with the district, principal, and teachers to make PPP more relevant to a greater slice of our Noble Population. A STRONG sense of urgency in deciding the matter is emphasized, because now is the time that parents are planning for next year.
In a meeting later that afternoon with Principal Ortiz she declared that her hands are tied in this matter until the district makes a decision; she was at the District Office when she received the email, and she went right to the Superintendent to bring it to his attention and its urgent nature. He said he needed to meet with teachers and gather more information.
January 19, 2016 Board Meeting: Thank you to all those of you who came to the BUSD Board Meeting to show your support; all sixty chairs were filled and there was an overflow of people all around the room, and it seemed to make an impression. Our speakers did a great job presenting our program, and the Board noticed-- there is talk of putting this on a future agenda. But it is an unsatisfying forum: we were only able to present our view, without anything actionable that could come of it immediately. Some parents stayed until 11:00 to hear the comments to our comments at the end of the meeting; President of the Board David Cohen gave a message of support, but none of the Board Members specifically requested that an agenda item be created. The PPP parents who stayed spoke with the individual Board Members to forward our case. Of note was the big concern over declining attendance numbers. One angle to focus on is the district's need to attract and retain families/customers.
Stephanie here. It is clear to me, with all the information I've been taking in over the last week from many different agendas and points of view, that one thing is clear: the PPP cannot and will not continue as we know it now. What it will look like in the future is a topic we all need to think about and address. My first priority is to buy us some time, and stop any changes from taking place for this next school year (have one more kindergarten next year with no changes) so that we can work with the principal and the district to see how PPP can continue in a way that serves more of our school population. I am not the final authority on all of this, but I am trying to serve as our collective voice, and as far as I can see that compromise is the only way forward.
January 19, 2016 Superintendent Meeting: PPP parents Stephanie Metz, Peimin Chi (K & 2nd), Jaime Koo, and Guy Bittar meet with Superintendent Ector at the District Office. Thank you, parents, for taking the time out of your day to do this!
Will Ector spent a considerable amount of time explaining how the PPP came to be monitored in recent years, especially with the legal ramifications of AB 1575 which states that schools could not require contributions in time or money. A closer look at the PPP by-laws also showed that they are outdated, and may even be in conflict with current BUSD adopted policies.
Nonetheless, Will Ector also shared with us that he is an advocate of parent participation in the schools and cited such achievements at his former schools, both nationally recognized Blue Ribbon Schools. He mentioned that rather than limiting it to one class per grade K-3rd, why not have parent participation school-wide at Noble?
He left us with some assurances:
1. He wants to have open communication with all parties and apologized for the way information was rolled out. He wants to talk with the teachers and have input from parents as well.
2. He is willing to work with all interested parties to see that the tradition of parent participation continues at Noble and benefits all students, whether or not it is called PPP.
3. He wants to keep families together. Those who are already enrolled at Noble will continue to have younger siblings attend Noble.
January 16-18, 2016: PPP Parents Dharti and Gorav Arora (K), Jaime Koo (1st & 3rd), Sonia Vu (K & 2nd), Mina Tai and Timothy So (K), Guy Bittar (K), Deborah Anderson (K & 2nd), Renee Jankowski (3rd), and Stephanie Metz (K & 3rd) prepare speeches to bring before the Board of Trustees, with the purpose of informing them about the program, showing how PPP aligns with the Strategic Plan put forth by the district, how programs and involved parents like ours are making choices as consumers to pick Noble PPP instead of the competition-- private schools, charter schools, home schooling-- to point out our value to the district. The approach is to be positive and show how we can collaborate going forward-- but asking for at the very least, one more year of the program and the time to figure out how to transition PPP into something that can serve more families.
Superintendent Ector replies to Stephanie's email with apologies for a full out-of-town schedule; he confirms the appointment for 1/19.
January 15, 2016: With no official answers provided and no time to lose before the three-day-weekend and then the Board Meeting on the next Tuesday, Stephanie tells Mrs. Ortiz she needs to share the information with the PPP families. Stephanie writes an email to parents with all the news so far and a request for attendance at the Board Meeting, sent through the teachers, hands out printed versions after school, and tells parents all that is known so far. PPP Board and teachers meet informally after school for a planning session to fight the proposed decision.
January 14, 2016: Stephanie emails Superintendent Will Ector and Board of Trustees to express disappointment with announcement and requesting more information. Board President David Cohen (a past PPP parent) calls Stephanie to assure her that there was no official Board action taken; that our group could address the Board at the meeting to be held the following Tuesday, and how that process works (6 speakers per topic, 20 minutes total, only a chance to present, not a question-and-answer format). Cohen also talked a little about how the district has been talking about dissolving PPP for years; reasons cited include unhappiness with having so many active parents clustered at only one school; visual disparities between what PPP classes have and do versus other classes; and discomfort with the format of PPP ever since law AB 1575 came into effect two years ago, forbidding schools from asking for extra funds or volunteers in exchange for programming at public schools.
Stephanie also makes appointment with Superintendent Ector for Tuesday 1/19.
January 13, 2016: Stephanie requests in writing from Principal why/when/how; response reiterates only that she knows the phase-out as initially described, and is awaiting official word from district administration.
January 12, 2016: PPP Executive Director Stephanie Metz informed by Principal Ortiz that Superintendent and Board of District have decided to cancel PPP, with a phase-out such that this year's Kindergarten will be the last to start the program, and each current class will go through 3rd grade in the program. Stephanie is asked to refrain from sharing the news to all until written information from the district comes out.
(Documented by previous board members: Stephanie Metz and Jaime Koo)
I want to give a big thank-you to everyone who helped orchestrate this turn of events. Last year we learned of the plan to terminate the program with last year's Kindergarten as the last class to start PPP. With the help of our PPP community we convinced the Superintendent to allow one more year to buy us some time to figure out how PPP will grow and change to better serve the interests of even more families in our community.
After the announcement in mid-January that the Noble PPP program would be terminated with the 2015-16 Kindergarten as the last group to start, PPP parents and Board Members worked together to petition the Superintendent to extend the program for one more year and use that time to reshape the future of PPP. Happily, we have met with success on that front! You can read the history of the process below. Next will come planning for the future. Please stay tuned for announcements of meeting dates to start contributing input. Think about how you and your family want our school to be going forward, and what role you can take in making that happen.
January 29, 2016: Today letters from the Superintendent went home with each PPP student detailing the plan for the near future of PPP. In summary, the PPP program will continue unchanged for one more year-- next year's Kindergarten class (2016-2017) will be the last to start their four-year journey in the Parent Participation Program in its classic form. In the meantime the district, Principal, teachers, and parents have been invited to contribute input and planning to determine how the program will change in the future to serve the entire Noble community. We can consider this a victory-- thanks to the diplomacy and professionalism of our parents and teachers, we now have the time to work on PPP to keep our momentum going, rather than a sudden dissolution among bad feelings. THANK YOU to everyone for your help. This is a great community, and we will keep it going. You can view the letter here.
January 26, 2016: Superintendent Ector promises PPP Executive Director Stephanie Metz a written announcement of his decision for next year on this coming Friday, January 29th. No further news expected until then.
January 25, 2016: Board President Cohen is set to meet with Superintendent Ector today to discuss PPP. I'll post more news when it becomes available.
January 22, 2016: PPP Board of Directors and teachers met after school to discuss action plan, awaiting any news from district. Teachers are set to meet the Superintendent on Monday, January 25th. Communication has been continuing offline between the members of the PPP Board and the District Administration. PPP members who spoke at Tuesday's Board Meeting have been continuing to petition the Board Members to keep the PPP at Noble. There is still no resolution whether the PPP will continue, but the fact that talks continue is a good sign. Let's stay positive!
January 21, 2016: Several parents email the Superintendent, Principal Ortiz, and Board President David Cohen to thank them for their time and to request prompt action on meeting with PPP teachers to come to some decision for next year. David Cohen emails that he will discuss the PPP with Superintendent Ector on Monday, January 25th.
January 20, 2016: Follow-up messages sent to the Board Members; and Stephanie sends a letter to Principal Ortiz, cc'd to Superintendent Ector and Board President Cohen, requesting one more year of PPP as it is currently run along with a plan to work together with the district, principal, and teachers to make PPP more relevant to a greater slice of our Noble Population. A STRONG sense of urgency in deciding the matter is emphasized, because now is the time that parents are planning for next year.
In a meeting later that afternoon with Principal Ortiz she declared that her hands are tied in this matter until the district makes a decision; she was at the District Office when she received the email, and she went right to the Superintendent to bring it to his attention and its urgent nature. He said he needed to meet with teachers and gather more information.
January 19, 2016 Board Meeting: Thank you to all those of you who came to the BUSD Board Meeting to show your support; all sixty chairs were filled and there was an overflow of people all around the room, and it seemed to make an impression. Our speakers did a great job presenting our program, and the Board noticed-- there is talk of putting this on a future agenda. But it is an unsatisfying forum: we were only able to present our view, without anything actionable that could come of it immediately. Some parents stayed until 11:00 to hear the comments to our comments at the end of the meeting; President of the Board David Cohen gave a message of support, but none of the Board Members specifically requested that an agenda item be created. The PPP parents who stayed spoke with the individual Board Members to forward our case. Of note was the big concern over declining attendance numbers. One angle to focus on is the district's need to attract and retain families/customers.
Stephanie here. It is clear to me, with all the information I've been taking in over the last week from many different agendas and points of view, that one thing is clear: the PPP cannot and will not continue as we know it now. What it will look like in the future is a topic we all need to think about and address. My first priority is to buy us some time, and stop any changes from taking place for this next school year (have one more kindergarten next year with no changes) so that we can work with the principal and the district to see how PPP can continue in a way that serves more of our school population. I am not the final authority on all of this, but I am trying to serve as our collective voice, and as far as I can see that compromise is the only way forward.
January 19, 2016 Superintendent Meeting: PPP parents Stephanie Metz, Peimin Chi (K & 2nd), Jaime Koo, and Guy Bittar meet with Superintendent Ector at the District Office. Thank you, parents, for taking the time out of your day to do this!
Will Ector spent a considerable amount of time explaining how the PPP came to be monitored in recent years, especially with the legal ramifications of AB 1575 which states that schools could not require contributions in time or money. A closer look at the PPP by-laws also showed that they are outdated, and may even be in conflict with current BUSD adopted policies.
Nonetheless, Will Ector also shared with us that he is an advocate of parent participation in the schools and cited such achievements at his former schools, both nationally recognized Blue Ribbon Schools. He mentioned that rather than limiting it to one class per grade K-3rd, why not have parent participation school-wide at Noble?
He left us with some assurances:
1. He wants to have open communication with all parties and apologized for the way information was rolled out. He wants to talk with the teachers and have input from parents as well.
2. He is willing to work with all interested parties to see that the tradition of parent participation continues at Noble and benefits all students, whether or not it is called PPP.
3. He wants to keep families together. Those who are already enrolled at Noble will continue to have younger siblings attend Noble.
January 16-18, 2016: PPP Parents Dharti and Gorav Arora (K), Jaime Koo (1st & 3rd), Sonia Vu (K & 2nd), Mina Tai and Timothy So (K), Guy Bittar (K), Deborah Anderson (K & 2nd), Renee Jankowski (3rd), and Stephanie Metz (K & 3rd) prepare speeches to bring before the Board of Trustees, with the purpose of informing them about the program, showing how PPP aligns with the Strategic Plan put forth by the district, how programs and involved parents like ours are making choices as consumers to pick Noble PPP instead of the competition-- private schools, charter schools, home schooling-- to point out our value to the district. The approach is to be positive and show how we can collaborate going forward-- but asking for at the very least, one more year of the program and the time to figure out how to transition PPP into something that can serve more families.
Superintendent Ector replies to Stephanie's email with apologies for a full out-of-town schedule; he confirms the appointment for 1/19.
January 15, 2016: With no official answers provided and no time to lose before the three-day-weekend and then the Board Meeting on the next Tuesday, Stephanie tells Mrs. Ortiz she needs to share the information with the PPP families. Stephanie writes an email to parents with all the news so far and a request for attendance at the Board Meeting, sent through the teachers, hands out printed versions after school, and tells parents all that is known so far. PPP Board and teachers meet informally after school for a planning session to fight the proposed decision.
January 14, 2016: Stephanie emails Superintendent Will Ector and Board of Trustees to express disappointment with announcement and requesting more information. Board President David Cohen (a past PPP parent) calls Stephanie to assure her that there was no official Board action taken; that our group could address the Board at the meeting to be held the following Tuesday, and how that process works (6 speakers per topic, 20 minutes total, only a chance to present, not a question-and-answer format). Cohen also talked a little about how the district has been talking about dissolving PPP for years; reasons cited include unhappiness with having so many active parents clustered at only one school; visual disparities between what PPP classes have and do versus other classes; and discomfort with the format of PPP ever since law AB 1575 came into effect two years ago, forbidding schools from asking for extra funds or volunteers in exchange for programming at public schools.
Stephanie also makes appointment with Superintendent Ector for Tuesday 1/19.
January 13, 2016: Stephanie requests in writing from Principal why/when/how; response reiterates only that she knows the phase-out as initially described, and is awaiting official word from district administration.
January 12, 2016: PPP Executive Director Stephanie Metz informed by Principal Ortiz that Superintendent and Board of District have decided to cancel PPP, with a phase-out such that this year's Kindergarten will be the last to start the program, and each current class will go through 3rd grade in the program. Stephanie is asked to refrain from sharing the news to all until written information from the district comes out.
