Sunday, December 13, 2015

What Happened To Chancellor Carmen Farina's Promise That Principals Needed Seven Years Of School Experience?



























Last year one of the very few positive changes the disappointing Chancellor, Carmen Farina, made was that graduates from the infamous "Leadership Academy" would have a minimum of seven years school pedagogical  experience before even being considered to be a Principal.  However, it appears that the Chancellor's directive is ether not being enforced or ignored by the DOE.  In today's New York Post we find an article about a newly minted Principal, Eujin Jaela Kim, age 33, who apparently has entered the New York City schools in the 2008-9 school year.  How did she circumvent the Chancellor's directive?  Well if you look at her Linked In page you see she was the Deputy Network Leader in 2011 and Director at DOE Central in 2012, before being handed the Principal's job at PS 169 (the Sunset Park School) in May of 2014. The answer to me is obvious.

According to my Math, no I don't need Common Core to figure out her actual teaching experience, she worked as a teacher for a total of 3 years and three months when she took the Deputy Network Leader position in December 2011 an administrative position. Obviously, the Bloomberg holdovers at the DOE have ignored the Chancellor's C-30 directive and allowed Eujin Jaela Kim to become Principal at the tender age of 32 years of age with less than four years of school experience either as a teacher or supervisor.  Obviously, she never was a school Assistant Principal, the logical step to become a Principal.  Was she even tenured?

With Ms. Kim's lack of actual teaching experience, she has made some very poor decisions as Principal  like banning Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the pledge of allegiance at her school and has brought national ridicule to her school and herself as well with her personal political correctness.  You can read about it in the New York Post article Here.  Is it any wonder that only 32% of the teachers trust Ms. Kim as Principal?  By the way the City average is 83%.

My question to Chancellor Carmen Farina is what good are your directives when your Bloomberg holdovers at the DOE ignores them and places a person who obviously needs more seasoning to be a Principal and does not have the support of 2 out of every 3 teachers at her school?  How can you allow these actions and that opens the school to the deserved ridicule it's now receiving?  Is this what you call a good leader and a role model for the students?  No wonder most of us believe you have been a bitter disappointment as Chancellor and your failure to clean house at Tweed is making you.look incompetent and indecisive.

28 comments:

Anonymous said...

Chaz...

After almost 20 yrs. of satisfactory observations, I was recently provided, by my ATR supervisor, a list of "Characteristics of Good Teaching", excerpted from "Teaching for the 21st. Century"......

Of these skills, only 8 of 29 are appropriate for rotating ATRs. You need to draw attention to this immediately!

No Name ATR

Anonymous said...

An administrator with minimal teaching experience will be unlikely to identify with his staff and will therefore be more compliant with anti-teacher directives.

Abigail Shure

Anonymous said...

Farina is Klein in a pants suit. She has done NOTHING to improve working conditions for anyone, except principals. Classes are bursting at the seams, no discipline, cell phones and now Mayor Putz wants metal detectors out.

Philip Nobile said...

Chaz,
Maybe Farina forgot her 7-year rule. Her memory is not what it used to be. When she retired from Tweed in 2006, the Times noted her "uncanny ability to recall students from decades ago.” (“Top School Aide Becomes the Latest to Step Down,” April 27, 2006)

But there is evidence that her memory decline was already present in 2004 when she was a Superintendent in Brooklyn and OSI hauled her in to ask why her office had covered up allegations of Regents cheating at my school, allegations admittedly known to her LIS. Suddenly, the memory savant went blank, saying she couldn't recall ANYTHING about the case. "I don't remember ... I don't remember ,,,I can't remember," she replied to three key questions about what she knew and when she knew it. Perfect. What Farina did not know, she could not be accused of covering up.

Anonymous said...

Is a bulletproof vest a possible teacher's choice purchase? If this ridiculous mayor takes out metal detectors, I'm buying one. Even Farina has to know that's crazy.

Anonymous said...

We have two new leadership academy admins at my school. One is sort of okay but clueless, while the other is raging tyrant (the AP). Teachers are so stressed out at my school. For debriefs on observations, she will talk at you for 30-50 minutes, going over every little band on the Danielson's nightmare, er, I mean rubric. This after a ten minute unannounced pop-in observation.

The only cool thing is that she is terrorizing several teachers who were last year's brown-nosers for the previous tyrants, both of whom are thankfully gone now.

The AP was absent for two days, and you could literally feel a cloud lift among the staff and students, if only temporarily.

Anonymous said...

What have NYC teachers gotten out of the cozy relationship between Mulgrew and DeBlasio/Farina? I know what they got - a 6 billion dollar surplus. But what have we gotten?

Anonymous said...

Chaz, is it that she needs to be a teacher for 7 years or in education for 7 years. I only ask because I know of a principal that was a teacher for 5 years and an ap for 4 years before becoming a newly minted principal. Thanks

Chaz said...

Anon 9:40

You ned seven years of school experience. That includes supervisory positions like an AP.

Anonymous said...

This is not all, last year the school's nearly 50% population wanted a boycott because of her, they said she infairly gave jobs to the asian people, said she cut lunch time so that students only get 5 minutes to actually eat, had students go to some park without parents permission and i believe 2 students ended up with broken arms, she refused to add spainish in school pamplets even after parents complained that nearly 50% of the school's parents speak spainish....she would only put pamplets in cantonesse and english....she was refusing to talk to anyone unlkess they agreed to what she says...if a parent disagreed with her then she would refuse anymore talks with the parent....look it up online and you will see that this was stuff from just last year...50% of the parents believe she was discriminating against their latino and spainish ancestry....they even said she was trying to segrate the asians from the latinos or something...

Anonymous said...

It is an open secret that teachers who do not meet with success in the classroom or find it especially difficult can find refuge in the administrative ranks. The financial benefits of remaining in the teachers retirement system are obvious. This also explains many of the odd (anti-pedagogical) policies and as well as the hypersensitive or resentful behaviors administrators exhibit towards teachers.

Anonymous said...

How is it that these immigrants from all around the world are coming here and setting up shop implementing non traditional US culture???? Why is this allowed to happen??? Forget political correctness but if you must then note that if ANY immigrant comes to this country to live then they should live by the culture set forth here in America!!! If you live and work in the US then stating the pledge of allegiance should not only be used but it should be mandatory!!!! Who gives a shit if you come from Uganda or China or the Dominican Republic, middle east muslim or not EVERYONE should abide by the American culture if you live here!!!! The politicians are destroying this country!!! Our douse bag politicians are such fagots that they are allowing these immigrants to not only enter our country but then change our culture???? The statement that "not all of our families celebrate our traditions" is a bunch of bull shit people. Bottom line, if you want to come to this country to live and work then you need to follow the AMERICAN way and not your dead end country you come from - or fled from. This story about this asian principal is so disturbing in so many ways. First of all, this woman is not even qualified to become principal with hardly no experience teaching and none as an assistant principal. Second, this immigrant principal comes into our schools and erases years and years of history by covering them with flat screens??? You have got to be kidding me politicians. Is it any wonder why Donald Trump is leading in the polls?? With the Trump wagon on the horizon the immigrants are shitting bricks and the illegal immigrants are packing the bags.

Anonymous said...

There is a story in the NY Times today that is about how the US MIlitary is allowing for the first time ever muslims to wear a turbin and not be required to shave off their beards.. So now we have soldiers wearing turbin head covers with beards whereas all other soldiers are required to shave their head and beards...Where is the Trumpster when we need him

Anonymous said...

The leadership principals are getting rid of all veteran teachers with 15 years or more.

Anonymous said...

9:57,
There is no culture in the Bronx. I'll take any third world immigrants culture over the entitled American ghetto trash I have to deal with daily. The Muslim kids are far, far superior human beings.

Anonymous said...

To anonymous 9:57, the jig is up. We had a good run in this nation, but the process whereby we are being replaced by foreigners with exotic customs and a tribal attitude are now fully entrenched. We lost. Civil War will happen in our lifetimes as the last real Americans desperately try to leave. Think it can't happen? This is the story of every nation that goes multi-cultural from ancient times until now. I wonder if I will still have a pension in my future when places like NYC are literally banana republics. The schools are already full of non-Americans. (Citizenship doesn't make a person 'American' anymore than if I get citizenship in China people will call me 'Chinese.')

Anonymous said...

To Anonymous 10:34

I have only ten years in and I and a few similarly situated fellow teachers have been feeling the heat for two years now. What do they want, all newbies, all the time?

Anonymous said...

anaon 10:34

yes they want to decimate tenure!

good luck!

Anonymous said...

NYC schools are becoming increasingly unsafe. Constant fights - no suspensions or arrests. No disciple, cell phones, threats and assaults are commonplace. Now no notification to police for vandalism, disorderly conduct, threats, harassment or bullying behavior. DeBlasio stupidity could end up being life threatening especially if he pulls out metal detectors. Article in today's Post 12/15/15 details the newest genius proposal.

Anonymous said...

DeBozo's going to a UFT holiday party tonight. It cost us 6 billion dollars. F--k Mulgrew.

Anonymous said...

anon 9 57
Your comments about the principal banning the pledge of allegiance and santa had positive impact. The anti american school policies have been squashed by the DOE!!!!! Yeah NYCDOE! You know we always comment about the DOE and their lack of but kudos DOE for ripping out the floor from under this ill fated immigrant principal who tried to take away our american culture. If she does not like it well then get the hell out of here...yeah yeah sanity prevails

Anonymous said...



Chaz...

This Fall semester, 2015, my ATR supervisor gave me an S on a full period observation, and a U on an informal. The other day he kindly provided a very involved "improvement plan", noting I may get a U at the end of the year. The improvement plan is ridiculous! Can he burden the rest of my career (two/three years)with such requirements after a twenty minute observation of students I knew for three days?

Gi

Gladys Sotomayor said...

They are not Muslims they are Sikhs a completely different religion from India. You calling on the Trumpster fans hate and bigotry. Completely unacceptable and un becoming of an educator.

Anonymous said...

Gladys, the NYT must be "behind the times". In this January 23, 2014 article from the Washington Times:

"...By Meredith Somers - The Washington Times - Thursday, January 23, 2014
The Pentagon has relaxed its uniform policy to allow service members to grow beards and wear coverings such as turbans, yarmulkes and head scarves as expressions of their faith.

The change was announced earlier this week, and largely affects practicing Muslims and Sikhs — religions that require a person’s head be covered and men to grow beards..."

Bronx ATR said...

It's the immigrants who are the scientists, teachers, business owners, and inventors. It's against the best of our American culture to be anti-immigrant. All of us came from immigrants. Trump's mother was an immigrant. Don't fall for all that bullshit. Immigrants are not our enemies. We should be teaching values and discipline to all students. I don't care if people wear beards, turbans, tattoos, purple hair or anything else. That's one of best things about our culture.

Anonymous said...

Ok so it would be all right according to bronx atr if we have people walking around with purple hair, tattoos, turbans with beards or anything else. Hmnn, this is what american is turning into. You see people, yes immigration can be a good thing but the immigrants of today come to america with their hands open waiting for the hand out - cross the border get a check joke - versus our ancestors who came to america to work hard and to make a life for themselves. Today, the immigrants come to america to see what they can get for free. And, as we have seen we have people like the immigrant asian principal in the news who refused to have her school recite the national athem!!! So, you see bronx atr, we don't need these type of immigrants coming to our country, sucking anything they can from it - and trying to change the culture.

Bronx ATR said...

9:32,
There are some that do that. I haven't seen many in the Bronx. The immigrants here aren't allowed in public housing, live 5 families to an apartment because of the high rents due to section 8 payouts (to landlords), work very hard and are often robbed on Friday night by some of the neighborhood Americans that do the things you are claiming immigrants do. What culture are you worried about them changing? Entitlement, laziness, and unaccountability? People are discriminating against teachers and especially ATRs. We are all human beings. Peace to you and have a good vacation.

Anonymous said...

Peace to you also bronx atr and have a good vacation. However, I was listening to the MIchael Savage radio program on wabc 77 am radio stated that the US should stop all immigration for 7 years so we can clean up the mess that currently our country is in. Mr. Savage stated that why do we need immigrants coming to this country right now?? We have so many problems as just this morning the homeland security admitted we have illegal immigrants who have committed crimes and were to have their visas revoked however we do not know where they are. A couple of thousand immigrant thugs roaming our streets because homeland security is not doing a very good job at tracking who is coming into the country. Don't fall for the politically correct obama crowd as this has destroyed this country. Teachers and public schools have been under attack all stemming from obama and arnie duncan raising hell on us. Now that obama is moving out notice how he gave back control to the local state governments.......and arnie duncan ran for the woods.......obama has allowed people from all over the world to just flow into our country and stay as long as they wish with no consequences for them and many for us.