We live in a society where no one accepts responsibility for their mistakes, no one is held accountable for their actions, and no one, EVER says they are sorry.
Let me you a small glimpse inside the day in the of un/underemployed where I spend day after day after may doing the same thing without any result: I can only offer you a glimpse into day in the life because there is no room left sit in my car, and I believe my apartment may actually be a fire hazard... This was my daily update posted at 7:30am:
I have done everything humanly possible to clean up the slack; however, I feel I have no other choice than to file a formal complaint so that my entire case is reviewed. The number of mistakes is so overwhelming that I simply don't have enough time to documents each and every one within their respective agencies.
I will try to be more specific later without going into too much detail, but unfortunately, that level of detail is required to file the necessary appeals. Ironic huh? This apartment is like my own little cage, and I am just pathetic enough to run around in circles, hoping to find the much like a hamster wheel, rodent chasing in circles hoping to found my way out my way out before I run out air. If only I had finished my damn PhD, I would do my own case study or reality show on how far we'll go to have nothing at all...
I have taken care of the subrogation claim, however, that does not minimize my level of frustration because I am DROWNING in paperwork. I have contacted several agencies for assistance such as the Disability Law and Advocacy Center; however, I do not have the resources necessary to provide them with a timely response and additional documentation they would lead to do a thorough investigation. There is a very small window of time permitted to file a Request Reconsideration, or file administrative appeal.
This is not new information to anyone who has been reading this message-- and if it is, then the agency involved is in much worse shape than I believed. I WANT A RESPONSE~ I WANT AN EXPLANATION- and oddly enough, I WANT AN APOLOGY!
The simple fact that the only time I received a response from MH was when the "fraud" was entered into the conversation. Yet I was not the one who introduced it into the dialogue. It is very unfortunate that my advocate from the DLAC retired just days before we were scheduled to review my case. That was three years ago, and not a single person who sat in on that meeting has acknowledged that it even took place. So here we are, three years later, and I am asking for the exact same things: assistance filing a social security appeal, vocational rehabilitation, and to be treated with a shred of common courtesy. I cannot believe I have to spell that out for you. For anyone. Professional or otherwise. Has no one read my file? Because anyone who has would understand why I find it to be beyond comprehension that trained mental health professionals would do this to any human being, obsessive compulsive or not. Since I first moved to Nashville, I worked very hard to improve community services and de-stigmatize mental illness, yet here I am having to say this AGAIN, OUTLOUD.
I guess none of remember that I same almost the same person I was when I first moved down here. Actually, that not true. I am FAR WORSE, and feel as though I have been stripped of my dignity, professionalism, and any hope I once had to go back to work and be integrated into the world of the living.
I do not even feel comfortable in attending the very came community activities that I used to helps plan. I am so completely baffled and just plain horrified that I actually have to say these things outloud.
There is local attorney I have known or many years. He recently made some very serious, very public and very embarrassing mistakes. Prior to that event, he worked on legislation capping damages in medical malpractice claims. He had an expression that he would use quite often and that was, "Sorry Works!" He was right. "Sorry" does work, yet still haven't heard it being said. Ultimately, those two little words became the driving force behind his political legacy and the force at the core of his being when he went in to recovery. The last interview he did on TV, he told the reporter that he does not wish to be remembered for the mistakes, but how went about correcting them. People, listen up, "SORRY WORKS!"
I also want to be clear that every time I have to call Social Security or DHS, it only compounds my cost of living expenses (40 cents per minute on the telephone -- a bill which is not even considered to be a justifiable expense) Most agencies do not include self-addressed stamped envelopes, and I cannot afford the postage required to mail out all of the requested documentation (e.g., utility bills, medical bills, pay stubs, etc.) So when one your employees tells me that he has removed himself from my case, I should not have to spend 29 minutes on old with the Social Security Administration just to learn that he was trying to intimidate me by threatening to have my funds frozen immediately. I think I should be reimbursed for that phone call. I think he should have to pay out out of his own pocket.
That statement was made not only to me, but also in front if other employees at your agency. It is not only irresponsible and unprofessional, but it also probably illegal, and justifies the complaint I will be filing against him in order to re-cap dome the damages. It is called breach of fiduciary duty, although I expect you probably already know that, but if you don't, you should look it up along with subrogation, since I'm pretty sure that one falls should the scope of services you were contracted to provide for at that time.
Fortunately, a number of agencies will take online complaints. Unfortunately, my internet was interrupted for non-payment for several weeks and there is no funding resource or community agency that provides subsidized Internet access or free printer ink. Transportation costs are ridiculous so going to the library is not an option. Neither is returning to work right now, since it would cost too much to get to the interview or provide official (expensive) copies of my graduate school transcripts necessary to update my teaching credentials, were oh, such a good investment!
Set aside, I am not the most user friendly person right about now, so I have found it difficult to put on a happy face so I can work at McDonald's which pays more than Metro anyway.
The subrogation claim has been resolved but I just learned that my breast biopsy was not pre-authorized and I was told by my INSURANCE CSR (the person who answers the phone!) that I should not have the surgery that has already been scheduled at the Women's Hospital for 8/21/2008. AmeriChoice (United HealthCare) did they did not authorize the biopsy last month, and have not, as of yet, received a request prior authorization for the surgery next week...
This was a lovely 54 minute conversation because he would not mail me copies of my EOBs or confirm that what, if any, requests have been submitted for payment since my last inquiry and change of address. He finally told me to call the state (Tennessee) which I have already done several times, and they told me to call Social Security but it was already past business hours and I am not authorized to make changes to my file anyway.
I'll be in touch when I can. Unfortunately, each agency has different deadlines, and it takes a lot of energy and time to scan in, copy, or respond to each inquiry in writing, so I find myself running out of time since I can't seem to get anything done unless I just do nothing at all.
And even though my life is a living hell, I have almost learned how to enjoy the sheer irony of it all... for someone with OCD and posttraumatic stress, this is truly a ridiculous little experiment.
I am becoming increasingly inspired to just burn every last document I own, throw away my keys and my cell phone and take Spotty some place where we can live off the land and ignore the fact that society has me chained to a computer screen that screen that does provide the basic necessities I need to live in this .
I have come this far, and I am becoming rather skilled and at expressing myself without needing an audience or the obsessive need to check every fact, throw, and typo for capitalization and perfection.
So for now... I write.
Maybe later, I'll read, but if there is any justice left in this world, someday, I'll actually live.
Good-bye for now. I need a break.
With love,
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Media Manipulation: Metro Nashville Public Schools
Educated Decision or Media Manipulation? (The Nashville City Paper, July 17, 2008)
If I didn't know better, I would think that the local media is supporting the ridiculous decision to transfer MNPS principals from one failing metro school to the next after reading "State reorganization moves on to school principal assignments," July 9, 2008.
I find it deeply disturbing that the media (and the community) have failed to recognize this for what it is: a desperate attempt to convince the community that we are actively working to improve the quality of education in our public schools.
This last minute attempt to restructure neighborhood schools will most likely do more harm than good to the community at large. The high rate of student mobility in Metro (approximately 40% per year) is compounded by the constant shifting of district-wide changes to school personnel by transferring teachers, administrators, and support staff on a regular basis.
Everything we know about the sociology of education in urban schools shows us that there is a strong correlation between parental involvement and student performance.
One thing that makes magnet, lottery, charter, parochial, and private schools so good is the fact that parents, teachers, students and administrators fight to get in, and fight to stay there.
Successful schools are an extension of the community at large, where everyone works together to create a common set of experiences; creating an environment that encourages parental involvement and community participation.
If Metro continues to alienate educators by disemboweling the organizational structure within public schools, we may just lose the few experienced and dedicated teachers we still have left to surrounding districts, cities, and states.
By failing to examine the issue in further detail, the press and our community leaders are failing in their mission to provide the community with the information they need to participate in the political process that is MNPS. The media have a responsibility to examine and provide the community with the information they need to make informed policy decisions.
Elyssa Durant, Ed.M.
Nashville, Tennessee
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Posted: Thursday, July 17, 2008 1:47 am
If I didn't know better, I would think that the local media is supporting the ridiculous decision to transfer MNPS principals from one failing metro school to the next after reading "State reorganization moves on to school principal assignments," July 9, 2008.
I find it deeply disturbing that the media (and the community) have failed to recognize this for what it is: a desperate attempt to convince the community that we are actively working to improve the quality of education in our public schools.
This last minute attempt to restructure neighborhood schools will most likely do more harm than good to the community at large. The high rate of student mobility in Metro (approximately 40% per year) is compounded by the constant shifting of district-wide changes to school personnel by transferring teachers, administrators, and support staff on a regular basis.
Everything we know about the sociology of education in urban schools shows us that there is a strong correlation between parental involvement and student performance.
One thing that makes magnet, lottery, charter, parochial, and private schools so good is the fact that parents, teachers, students and administrators fight to get in, and fight to stay there.
Successful schools are an extension of the community at large, where everyone works together to create a common set of experiences; creating an environment that encourages parental involvement and community participation.
If Metro continues to alienate educators by disemboweling the organizational structure within public schools, we may just lose the few experienced and dedicated teachers we still have left to surrounding districts, cities, and states.
By failing to examine the issue in further detail, the press and our community leaders are failing in their mission to provide the community with the information they need to participate in the political process that is MNPS. The media have a responsibility to examine and provide the community with the information they need to make informed policy decisions.
Elyssa Durant, Ed.M.
Nashville, Tennessee
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Posted: Thursday, July 17, 2008 1:47 am
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Tennesseean Releases Teacher Salaries for MNPS
The Tennessean released data on July 5, 2008 reporting disparities in teacher salaries for Metro employees. The article, “Poor kids' teachers earn less in Metro: Hiring bonuses, other incentives target inequities” raises questions about the hiring practices in Metro Nashville Public Schools, and reports that teachers earn less in schools that are not meeting the No Child Left Behind benchmarks. This article glossed over the magnitude of this desperate situation in Metro schools.
The basic fact that students are not making adequate progress is a reflection of the top-down policy failure by MNPS and the Board of Ed. Students are not making adequate progress, and teachers are being shuffled around in a desperate attempt to fix a problem that they do not fully understand. In order to fix our broken schools, we need to look at schools that work. There are in fact public schools in urban neighborhoods that are successfully educating the students despite limited budgets, supplies, and adequate funding. So what is it about these schools that allows them to successfully educate disadvantaged, at-risk students and how can we replicate their success?
Unfortunately, this article does not offer any new insights into the inner-workings of our neighborhood schools. MNPS does not have the answers, nor does our newly elected Mayor who recently launched an aggressive media campaign to recruit new teachers willing to work within the constraints our over-regulated, under-funded public schools. Teachers, administrators and the community are strangely unfamiliar with the political process, and teachers are expected to implement and carry out policies that were designed by academic professionals or educational consultants.
As an educator and a Metro employee, I earn $10.46 / hour (without benefits) teaching at-risk students, I am offended by the way teachers are treated in the schools, in the community, and by the press. The state Department of Education could not offer any realistic solution to the simple fact that I cannot afford to pay the fees associated with the application fees certification requirements. If the Mayor really needs applicants, perhaps the city should comp the application fees necessary to be considered for employment. I find it difficult to believe that a city so desperate for teachers is not willing to bend the rules just a little or waive the application fee for anyone who is willing to work in such a hostile environment.
My graduate degree in education is from the very same university that Mayor Dean attended in New York City. When I called HR and the “Certificated Office” to inquire about obtaining a provisional teaching license and alternative certification, I was simply told that I was not eligible for alternative certification and without additional coursework, and tuition and fees, I was not deemed qualified to teach in Metro.
I am not qualified to teach in Metro since, apparently, Metro “does not teach education.” What a joke! To make matters worse— I had to pay them to find out that I was not even qualified to work with Head Start. I went to Head Start! Shouldn't that be enough? If MNPS truly wants a better-qualified staff, then the Mayor, the Board of Education, and school administrators need to take a closer look at the methods used to recruit, retain, and reward qualified individuals willing to sacrifice their financial stability for a career in public service. Now that I realize my education was a complete waste of time and money, is it any wonder that I am ready to give up on teaching and maybe even ready to leave Nashville for good. The local hardware store has more to offer including benefits!
The high rate of student mobility is compounded by the constant shifting of school personnel. Many schools may just lose the few experienced, dedicated teachers they still have left to surrounding districts, cities, and states. Such instability in the system may even prompt the younger set to leave the profession all together and discourage future teachers from applying for jobs in Metro.
Everything we know about the positive outcomes in neighborhood schools is their strong reliance upon community buy-in and parental involvement. One thing that makes magnet, lottery, charter schools, parochial, and private schools so good is the fact that parents, teachers, students, and administrators fight to get in, and fight to stay there. The act of choosing, in effect, leads to an enhanced sense of community and builds a supportive, consistent, and structured environment. Calling this project “Fresh Start” is ridiculous-- it would be more accurate to call it a very bad ending!
The basic fact that students are not making adequate progress is a reflection of the top-down policy failure by MNPS and the Board of Ed. Students are not making adequate progress, and teachers are being shuffled around in a desperate attempt to fix a problem that they do not fully understand. In order to fix our broken schools, we need to look at schools that work. There are in fact public schools in urban neighborhoods that are successfully educating the students despite limited budgets, supplies, and adequate funding. So what is it about these schools that allows them to successfully educate disadvantaged, at-risk students and how can we replicate their success?
Unfortunately, this article does not offer any new insights into the inner-workings of our neighborhood schools. MNPS does not have the answers, nor does our newly elected Mayor who recently launched an aggressive media campaign to recruit new teachers willing to work within the constraints our over-regulated, under-funded public schools. Teachers, administrators and the community are strangely unfamiliar with the political process, and teachers are expected to implement and carry out policies that were designed by academic professionals or educational consultants.
As an educator and a Metro employee, I earn $10.46 / hour (without benefits) teaching at-risk students, I am offended by the way teachers are treated in the schools, in the community, and by the press. The state Department of Education could not offer any realistic solution to the simple fact that I cannot afford to pay the fees associated with the application fees certification requirements. If the Mayor really needs applicants, perhaps the city should comp the application fees necessary to be considered for employment. I find it difficult to believe that a city so desperate for teachers is not willing to bend the rules just a little or waive the application fee for anyone who is willing to work in such a hostile environment.
My graduate degree in education is from the very same university that Mayor Dean attended in New York City. When I called HR and the “Certificated Office” to inquire about obtaining a provisional teaching license and alternative certification, I was simply told that I was not eligible for alternative certification and without additional coursework, and tuition and fees, I was not deemed qualified to teach in Metro.
I am not qualified to teach in Metro since, apparently, Metro “does not teach education.” What a joke! To make matters worse— I had to pay them to find out that I was not even qualified to work with Head Start. I went to Head Start! Shouldn't that be enough? If MNPS truly wants a better-qualified staff, then the Mayor, the Board of Education, and school administrators need to take a closer look at the methods used to recruit, retain, and reward qualified individuals willing to sacrifice their financial stability for a career in public service. Now that I realize my education was a complete waste of time and money, is it any wonder that I am ready to give up on teaching and maybe even ready to leave Nashville for good. The local hardware store has more to offer including benefits!
The high rate of student mobility is compounded by the constant shifting of school personnel. Many schools may just lose the few experienced, dedicated teachers they still have left to surrounding districts, cities, and states. Such instability in the system may even prompt the younger set to leave the profession all together and discourage future teachers from applying for jobs in Metro.
Everything we know about the positive outcomes in neighborhood schools is their strong reliance upon community buy-in and parental involvement. One thing that makes magnet, lottery, charter schools, parochial, and private schools so good is the fact that parents, teachers, students, and administrators fight to get in, and fight to stay there. The act of choosing, in effect, leads to an enhanced sense of community and builds a supportive, consistent, and structured environment. Calling this project “Fresh Start” is ridiculous-- it would be more accurate to call it a very bad ending!
Sunday, July 6, 2008
No Teacher Left Behind
The City Paper featured a front-page story (“Metro School district begins revamp of failing elementary, middle school,” May 21, 2007) that completely sugarcoated the situation in two metro middle schools that have fired (via involuntary transfer) the entire staff and faculty as a result of their failure to meet NCLB benchmarks.
For the last two years, I have been working as a permanent substitute teacher at Jere Baxter Middle School in Nashville, Tennessee. The experience has shaken me to the core. Everything I used to believe about school finance reform has been turned upside down. Jere Baxter is a Title I school with access to numerous resources including a math specialist on site full time, district mentors to advise and assist new teachers. They have mental health specialists come into several classrooms on a weekly basis, and it is not uncommon to see caseworkers and prevention specialists from a variety of community agencies on campus.
However, despite the plethora of enhancement activities and access to resource materials, the majority of the 7th and 8th graders do not know simple math such as long division, subtraction (if they have to carry the one) or their times tables. You could throw a million dollars into this school, and it would not make a bit of difference!
For the first two weeks, I was assigned to a self-contained classroom. At one point, the Assistant Principal walked in, observed the children, and even acknowledged the small black and white television hidden in the teacher’s aide desk tuned in to the Young and the Restless. She smiled and walked out. Apparently, she did not have a problem with the children watching Tom & Jerry, Sponge Bob and BET music videos from 10 a.m. through dismissal. A few days later, I gave a make-up assignment during the students “free time,” (lunchtime through dismissal) and I was told that my expectations were simply too high. That class in particular lost 15 teachers this year alone—16 including myself.
The children are running the show at Baxter and they know it. The faculty receives little, if any, support from the administration. As a result, the majority of the teachers have simply given up. Dealing with disciplinary problems has become the primary focus in the classroom displacing teaching, learning, and cooperation.
The numerous behavioral disruptions that occur each and every day prompted the administrators to pull the most effective teachers out of the classroom to enforce (or re-enforce) school policy while their classrooms remained empty or were covered by floating substitute teachers.
The children are completely out of control and simply refuse to do any work. I was told not to give any student a grade below 75-- even the one who threw his crumpled up science assignment in my face and walked out of class shouting profanities. What the students have learned is that there will be no consequences for inappropriate behavior or actions. The administration treats teachers with complete disrespect: in front of students, teachers, and guests, completely undermining any sense of autonomy, authority, or cohesiveness. Even I was embarrassed for them, and I was only there for a few weeks!
This is a classic example of a top-down policy failure. As a policy analyst, I always advocated for equity in education, and believed on some level that throwing money into poor schools (poor performance & achievement records to disadvantaged students) might help level the playing field for disadvantaged schools, translating into better outcomes for students and the community.
The City Paper glossed over the magnitude of this desperate situation by calling it a “fresh start.” Students and administrators have treated these teachers poorly enough, and now we have a number of young professionals who are underpaid, uncertain, and unemployed. We all know that teacher pay is ridiculous to begin with, but coupled with the added stress of the re-application process, Metro may lose a large number of educated, motivated, displaced educators to surrounding districts, counties, and states. This is simply ridiculous. By cleaning house, Baxter will lose the few experienced, dedicated teachers they have, prompt the younger set to leave the profession all together, and discourage future teachers from applying for jobs in Metro.
Everything we know about the positive outcomes in neighborhood schools is their strong reliance upon community buy-in and parental involvement. One thing that makes magnet, lottery, charter schools, parochial, and private schools so good is the fact that parents, teachers, students, and administrators fight to get in, and fight to stay there. The act of choosing, in effect, leads to an enhanced sense of community and builds a supportive, consistent, and structured environment. Calling this decision a fresh start is ridiculous-- it would be more accurate to call it a very bad ending! In this case, No Child Left Behind is, in effect, leaving no teachers behind.
For the last two years, I have been working as a permanent substitute teacher at Jere Baxter Middle School in Nashville, Tennessee. The experience has shaken me to the core. Everything I used to believe about school finance reform has been turned upside down. Jere Baxter is a Title I school with access to numerous resources including a math specialist on site full time, district mentors to advise and assist new teachers. They have mental health specialists come into several classrooms on a weekly basis, and it is not uncommon to see caseworkers and prevention specialists from a variety of community agencies on campus.
However, despite the plethora of enhancement activities and access to resource materials, the majority of the 7th and 8th graders do not know simple math such as long division, subtraction (if they have to carry the one) or their times tables. You could throw a million dollars into this school, and it would not make a bit of difference!
For the first two weeks, I was assigned to a self-contained classroom. At one point, the Assistant Principal walked in, observed the children, and even acknowledged the small black and white television hidden in the teacher’s aide desk tuned in to the Young and the Restless. She smiled and walked out. Apparently, she did not have a problem with the children watching Tom & Jerry, Sponge Bob and BET music videos from 10 a.m. through dismissal. A few days later, I gave a make-up assignment during the students “free time,” (lunchtime through dismissal) and I was told that my expectations were simply too high. That class in particular lost 15 teachers this year alone—16 including myself.
The children are running the show at Baxter and they know it. The faculty receives little, if any, support from the administration. As a result, the majority of the teachers have simply given up. Dealing with disciplinary problems has become the primary focus in the classroom displacing teaching, learning, and cooperation.
The numerous behavioral disruptions that occur each and every day prompted the administrators to pull the most effective teachers out of the classroom to enforce (or re-enforce) school policy while their classrooms remained empty or were covered by floating substitute teachers.
The children are completely out of control and simply refuse to do any work. I was told not to give any student a grade below 75-- even the one who threw his crumpled up science assignment in my face and walked out of class shouting profanities. What the students have learned is that there will be no consequences for inappropriate behavior or actions. The administration treats teachers with complete disrespect: in front of students, teachers, and guests, completely undermining any sense of autonomy, authority, or cohesiveness. Even I was embarrassed for them, and I was only there for a few weeks!
This is a classic example of a top-down policy failure. As a policy analyst, I always advocated for equity in education, and believed on some level that throwing money into poor schools (poor performance & achievement records to disadvantaged students) might help level the playing field for disadvantaged schools, translating into better outcomes for students and the community.
The City Paper glossed over the magnitude of this desperate situation by calling it a “fresh start.” Students and administrators have treated these teachers poorly enough, and now we have a number of young professionals who are underpaid, uncertain, and unemployed. We all know that teacher pay is ridiculous to begin with, but coupled with the added stress of the re-application process, Metro may lose a large number of educated, motivated, displaced educators to surrounding districts, counties, and states. This is simply ridiculous. By cleaning house, Baxter will lose the few experienced, dedicated teachers they have, prompt the younger set to leave the profession all together, and discourage future teachers from applying for jobs in Metro.
Everything we know about the positive outcomes in neighborhood schools is their strong reliance upon community buy-in and parental involvement. One thing that makes magnet, lottery, charter schools, parochial, and private schools so good is the fact that parents, teachers, students, and administrators fight to get in, and fight to stay there. The act of choosing, in effect, leads to an enhanced sense of community and builds a supportive, consistent, and structured environment. Calling this decision a fresh start is ridiculous-- it would be more accurate to call it a very bad ending! In this case, No Child Left Behind is, in effect, leaving no teachers behind.
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