There’s more news about the Palmyra-Eagle School District since a state advisory board voted (6-1) against the dissolution of that district. The policy lessons are valuable to many places, including Whitewater. (Earlier posts opposing dissolution appear at the end of this post.) Motions Before the School District Boundary Appeal Board on 1.9.20. Motion 1 (Motion…
School District
City, Education, School District
On the Dissolution of the Palmyra-Eagle School District, Reason Carries the Day
by JOHN ADAMS •
Earlier today, a School District Boundary Appeal Board (Wis. Stat. §15.375) voted by a margin of 6-1 against the dissolution of the Palmyra-Eagle School District. The possible dissolution of that school district loomed for many months. Dissolving that district would have led to a significant reallocation of students, faculty, resources, and obligations to Whitewater or…
City, Education, School District
Whitewater Schools’ State Report Cards
by JOHN ADAMS •
Wisconsin’s Department of Public Instruction annually issues report cards measuring schools’ performance across several major categories. Whitewater’s detailed report card results appear below, first for the district, and then for each of her five schools (one high school, one middle school, and three elementary schools). These documents are available here for download – in full…
Education, School District, Wisconsin
Dissolving a School District
by JOHN ADAMS •
In an advisory referendum held yesterday, a majority of residents in the Palmyra-Eagle School District voted in favor of dissolving their school system: Of the 2,298 votes cast in the Nov. 5 advisory referendum, 1,218 (53%) voted in favor of dissolution; 1,080 voted against it, according to unofficial results released Tuesday night by the school…
City, Education, School District
Whitewater Schools’ Presentation of Goals
by JOHN ADAMS •
This morning, I posted about the 10.28.19 Whitewater Unified School District board meeting. See School Board, 10.28.19: 3 Points. That post, I mentioned that I would request copies of the goals presentations from Monday night that were not included in the agenda packet. Today, before submitting my request, I received a note from the district…
City, Education, School District
School Board, 10.28.19: 3 Points
by JOHN ADAMS •
The Whitewater Unified School District Board met Monday night. I’ll update this post with the meeting video as soon as the school district posts the video online (as its own policy requires). For now, three points stand out from the agenda items for the meeting. 1. Academic Presentations. There were three presentations on academic plans…
City, Education, Language, Newspapers, School District, University, Writing
The Janesville Gazette‘s Sketchy Reporting on Major Topics
by JOHN ADAMS •
The nearby Janesville Gazette, a newspaper that insists ‘local matters,’ too often reports on Whitewater’s local matters in a careless way, ignoring key information. Whether that paper’s omissions are through negligence or by design, reporting like this ill-serves Whitewater. (In fairness, the Gazette long ago ran itself into the ground, and sold out this summer…
Education, School District
Whitewater Schools: The Search for a New District Administrator
by JOHN ADAMS •
? The Whitewater Unified School District now finds itself in need of a new district administrator. To that end, the district released a brief statement two days after current administrator Dr. Mark Elworthy submitted his resignation: On Tuesday, October 8, Dr. Mark Elworthy notified the Whitewater Unified School District that he plans to resign as…
Newspapers, School District
Gazette Story on Whitewater’s District Administrator: Omission & Innuendo
by JOHN ADAMS •
Yesterday morning, I posted on Whitewater School District administrator Dr. Mark Elworthy’s decision to take a position with the St. Francis School District. See On Changes at the Whitewater Unified School District. Last night, the Janesville Gazette published a story on the topic. See Whitewater’s Elworthy named interim superintendent for St. Francis School District. The Gazette’s story…
Culture, Education, Local Government, School District
On Changes at the Whitewater Unified School District
by JOHN ADAMS •
One reads this morning that the Whitewater Unified School District’s administrator, Dr. Mark Elworthy, has taken a position with the St. Francis School District, and will be leaving shortly. One wishes him, and his family, truly the best in his new role. It would be tragic for this district – and a call to action…
Education, School District
School Board, 9.23.19: Educational Goals
by JOHN ADAMS •
Whitewater has a public school district, and so she has public schools, and those public schools have goals for the students under their care. On September 23rd, eight days ago, some of the district’s principals (and two administrators) presented the goals for their students. (Other presentations will follow, presumably in October.) These goals are at…
City, Local Government, School District
9.19.19: State of City & State of District Presentations
by JOHN ADAMS •
League of Women Voters: States of the City & the Schools 09/19/19 from Whitewater Community TV on Vimeo. Whitewater’s city manager, Cameron Clapper, and the Whitewater Unified School District administrator, Dr. Mark Elworthy, presented on the states of the city and school district, respectively. Embedded above is a full video of their presentations. The municipal…
Education, Law, Open Government, Public Records, School District, Wisconsin
School Board Applicants’ Letters of Interest
by JOHN ADAMS •
Last week, I posted on the applicant interviews with the Whitewater Unified School Board for a vacancy (following the resignation of board member Jean Linos). See School Board, 9.16.19: Applicant Interviews and Reporting. Seeing that the agenda for the meeting lacked key information, and a local newspaper’s reporting (Gazette; Beleckis) was deficient, I submitted a…
Newspapers, Open Government, Public Records, School District
School Board, 9.16.19: Applicant Interviews and Reporting
by JOHN ADAMS •
On Monday night, the Whitewater Unified School District’s board met to interview four applicants for a vacancy on the board (following the resignation of board member Jean Linos). The agenda for the meeting, although posted online, listed none of the applicants: not by total number, let alone by name or with their accompanying letters of…
