Listen to the PSA

Special thanks to KBHR’s Angela Meyers, and especially Rick and Cathy Herrick for their ongoing support of our local schools. The transcript:

BVUSD Radio PSA – 12/9/11

Hi, I’m Randall Putz, President of the Bear Valley Unified School Board of Trustees. Three years ago when the Valley elected me to the School Board, I was charged with advocating for public education. And if there was ever a time our local schools needed advocacy, it is now. As you know, our state of California, is remarkable in many ways. But unfortunately one way California is remarkable is in its lack of support for funding public education. California ranks almost dead last – 49th out of 50 states – in how much it spends per student on education. And even then, the state doesn’t pay the full bill, withholding funds through differrals, and when the State finally does pay, it pays late, putting a severe cash squeeze on schools. When the voters demand the State make good on its education responsibilities through Proposition 98, even that gets ignored, to the point where several organizations are currently suing the State to force it to meet its education obligations. Its a tough time for education – the worst since the Great Depression.

And yet despite these challenges, our local schools in Big Bear, our teachers, administrators, and staff, they do an extraordinary job under challenging circumstances. We have wonderful teachers and distinguished schools. This year Big Bear High School was 1 of just 2 high schools in all of San Bernardino County to receive distinguished school status. We have remarkable students and graduates. Maybe you noticed one or two in the Olympics or on top of Mount Everest. Chances are you, your family, or someone you know have benefitted from our Schools. Bear Valley Unified School District is one of the Valley’s largest employers, and frankly an important part of what makes our Valley the very special place it is.

Every year we ask our teachers to do more, and lately with less. But they have to, WE have to, keep teaching. Because public education is important, critically important. Education provides opportunity to children who otherwise would go without. Education makes better informed citizens. Education reduces crime. Education helps make sure that the doctor who takes care of you, the policeman who protects you, and the fireman who saves you, are all competent and capable. Education is always in our best interest.

Which is why I hope you will Join me, my fellow board members Bev Grabe, Ken Turney, Al Waner, and Paul Zamoyta, and our Superintendent Kurt Madden, in supporting our schools and our students. Please, visit a school, volunteer in a classroom, come to a Board meeting, or come to a student play or an athletic event. Come help us help our students. Thanks for listening.

• Jamie Vollmer – I had the opportunity to hear him speak live to thousands of California School Board members in San Diego and found his message to be the most motivating to date. His list of  The Ever Increasing Burden on America’s Public Schools really drives the point home. Watch Jamie’s CSBA presentation here.
• To Those Who Would Lead – A manifesto of sorts that does a good job of summarizing and contextualizing education, technology, and the 21st Century.
• Saddleback iEngage – Fellow Board Member Paul Zamoyta arranged for a question and answer session with a couple of Saddleback teachers who were doing some impressive things with iPod carts in their classrooms, further underlining the huge opportunity before us. Also see a related article about how iPods help ESL students in Escondido.
• The Kahn Academy – Another innovation in education with great potential that demonstrates how technology can better serve our learning minds. I enjoyed  hearing Sal sharing his remarkable story live at the 2011 CSBA Conference.

Another heartfelt thank you goes to my fellow candidates who cared enough to run: Sharon Congdon, David Foltz, Jim McGowan, and Richard Weathersbee. The quality and quantity of candidates makes me proud of our Valley, and I hope each will still put their skills and experience to work for the benefit of our children. Congratulations are in order to Paul Zamoyta and Bev Grabe on their successful bids and with whom I look forward to serving along with continuing Board Members Ken Turney and Debra Sarkisian. Last but not least, I want to acknowledge the service of our departing School Board trustees, Phil Hamilton, Larry Poland, and Julann Warren. My own children’s extraordinary experience in our Schools is in no doubt due to the hard work of many caring individuals throughout our District, like them, who have come before me. As Superintendent Ferraud said, we have big shoes to fill. And I am grateful for that.

Please continue to let me know what about our schools is important to you.

1. I currently have children in our School District. My daughter and son started in Big Bear Elementary and now are at Big Bear High. As a parent, I have a current perspective and first-hand knowledge of the impact our schools make on children and their families.

2. I am not retired and I am not an ex-educator. All of the other candidates running are one or the other, and many are both. My background is in business, communications and technology, which gives me a breadth of real-world experience I think will be refreshing and helpful on a well-balanced School Board.

3. I am strong in technology. I’ve bought, taught, fixed, and made technology solutions for many different organizations for many years. I understand computers, and the important role they play in preparing our children for careers after graduation. My technology expertise will helpful to our District as we increase technology proficiency among our educators and students.

Easy – I have had an extraordinary experience in our School District with my children and I want to help make sure that same kind of inspiring experience continues to grow for other children and their families.

As a parent, it is quite something to pick up your teenage daughter after school and have her gush about what a great day she had, how much she loves her teachers, and how much she enjoys learning in school. And have that be a regular occurrence.

Or have your son, who flirted with Ds and Fs in Middle School, get inspired by a teacher who helps uncover a passion that propels him to As and Bs. And more importantly, have that inspiration change his focus from what trade he would consider after high school, to what college is best to pursue a career in astrophysics and a dream of traveling to Mars in 2030.

My family has been fortunate enough to have experienced these kind of life-altering experiences because of our Valley’s schools and teachers. I simply want to do my part to help make sure other families have the same or better experience. I appreciate your vote and support to help me do that.

I bet most Americans would echo the cheers of Obama’s crowd and be in favor of increased accountability for our educators. After all it is our money, a huge chunk of our money, that goes to education. Half of the California State Budget goes to education. Over $50 billion each year, that’s billion with a “B”, in a State that would be the 7th largest country in the world if it stood alone. Education is a huge business in California with many dollars at stake. So with numbers like that, why wouldn’t we as taxpayers want more accountability?

In my efforts to serve our children and community as a prospective School Board member, I have been talking to a lot of people, many of which are educators. And I’ve heard rumblings and grumblings over current accountability issues, with some going so far as to say that the “emphasis on accountability and testing has taken the joy out of teaching.” Is that true? Perhaps we should hang on just a second when suggesting increased accountability.

Briefly, and without going into too much history, here’s my understanding of the looming accountability crisis. Yes, crisis, because it’s that big a deal. Prior to 1998, teachers in California schools had, within reason, free reign to teach however they wanted. A school district would adopt certain curriculum via published text book materials and teachers would follow those materials as they saw fit. Other than some inconsistent school and district-level efforts, there wasn’t any state-wide testing coordinated with universal academic standards to insure consistent student proficiency.

In 1998 California started moving towards state-wide testing and measuring of academic performance. Then in 2002 came No Child Left Behind (NCLB), a Federal education initiative with bi-partisan support who’s goal was to provide education accountability and proficiency by tying performance standards to Federal funding. Individual states were free to adopt standards, even define these standards for their own schools. But they had to put in measured accountability if they wanted to continue to receive the significant Federal money. Like other states, California set their own standards and participated in NCLB, which included certain penalties if a school or District did not meet State standards of student proficiency.

Today, academic proficiency of California schools is measured two ways: the API (Academic Performance Index) is the state measure, and the AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress) is the Federal NCLB measure. Both rely on input from the California Standards Tests that our children take each year. Perhaps you have noticed increased emphasis on these annual tests, and for good reason. The AYP has significant consequences for failure to make established targets.

It is important to understand that the “corrective action” required for low-performing schools can have significant impact on that school’s students, educators, and District. Corrective action redirects funds and resources in an already strained District budget. In moderate cases, districts can be forced to pay for extra tutoring and to bus students to other schools. In extreme and extended cases, whole schools can be dismantled. I’ve heard from those who have been associated with a low-performing school on probation (termed “Program Improvement”) that “you don’t want to go there.”

It is also important to know that this required student proficiency level, as defined by the State of California, increases each year. By about 11%. And that’s where the crisis comes in. Right now for 2008, required proficiency levels are around 35%. That may sound low, but that figure is a complex issue in itself and includes English Language Learners and Special Ed students, which can have a significant impact on test scores. Many schools now struggle with proficiency, and even more will next year when the required level goes up to about 47%. By 2014, 100% of all students are expected to be proficient in Math and English no matter who they are, where they are, or where they came from.

It is interesting to note that while our Bear Valley Schools overall continue to perform very well based on our Valley’s demographics, the current method of measuring proficiency is catching up to us. Two of our District schools may have failed to reach the required proficiency growth targets this year. If they miss the same targets 2 years in a row, they will go into Program Improvement.

So what’s a District to do? In my opinion (and more importantly in the opinion of experts who’s careers center around this very issue) you do everything possible to stay off of probation and out of Program Improvement. You do that by insuring the necessary level of student learning that in turn produces the necessary test results. But you also rely on your skilled educators to creatively keep the joy in teaching and learning while moving students towards required proficiency. And you encourage those responsible for setting education policy at the State and Federal level to revamp the current system of accountability as soon as possible.

Increasing teacher accountability may sound good to Senator Obama on the campaign trail, but we already suffer from an unrealistic accountability system. Different accountability could be good, but I don’t think we need more of the same. Thoughts? Please let me know below.

1.) Get others talking. Engage friends, family, and co-workers in constructive conversation about education. Ask them what they think about OUR schools, what they would like to see. This dialogue is good for the Community and important to our democratic process. For me personally, these connections one makes when interacting with others are most valuable.

2.) Share your support. If you believe I will make a difference, tell others! Better yet, show others: Wear a Putz button. Put a Putz yard sign in front of your house or business. Give out Putz for School Board literature. Give your endorsement. Join like-minded people and volunteer to help the campaign.

3.) Vote. Again, I can’t make a difference if we don’t win the vote. Encourage others to vote. If they are not registered, help get them registered, so they can VOTE. Register to vote by mail or read about other ways to get registered. I have registration forms as well.

4.) Donate. Even a modest campaign for local elected office is surprisingly expensive. If I am willing to volunteer for 4 years of public service, perhaps you’d be willing to part with a few dollars so you don’t have to. Your contribution is a nice way to say, “Better you than me.” Your vote and your active endorsement are most valuable. But your financial support is extremely helpful and allows me to reach more people. Click here to donate now online using your credit card or check. You can also send checks to: Committee to Elect Randall Putz, PO Box 1625, Big Bear Lake, CA 92315.

Interested? Leave a private comment below, call me at 909-752-5342, or email me at randy ( a t ) randallputz.com.
- Randy

Kids need a command of basic computer technology, just as they need a command of basic math and english. Children who suffer through inadequate and outdated computer equipment and infrastructure might as well be without pencils and paper. It is that important, because the world’s increasing reliance on technology makes it that important. As a School District, we have an obligation to prepare our children with proper technology skills and support them with quality equipment and instruction. Anything less is a disservice.

I know Mike Chatham, with assistance from others in the District, is working on a comprehensive technology plan that he will soon present to the School Board. It is my expectation the plan, at a minimum, will address ever-evolving equipment needs, accommodate growing bandwidth requirements, and embrace both student and teacher proficiency standards. I also hope the current Board will demonstrate its commitment to technology by adopting and funding the plan.

As a prospective School Board member, I will look forward to paying especially close attention to the way our schools address technology education and will do my part to insure our children are well-equipped for a digital future.