February 4, 2010

Approx. 57 CHS students, staff and parents in attendance.

Meeting convened at 6:00 p.m.

Community Leadership and Involvement

What is the first thing you would tell your Principal about his/her role in RC?

Parent

• Parent asked: What does a principal do? Maybe the kids might want to be one someday?

Student

• Keep the kids safe. There are fights everyday on campus.
• Find a way to calm the students, make them less agitated with each other.

Parent

• Foster communications with businesses on campus.
• Bring local businesses on campus.

Parent

• Work to install a sense of pride in community and campus.
• Make their community better.

Are there community issues that you would like your new Principal to address/champion?

Parent

• Community and the school staff doesn’t understand how diversified this campus is.
• Work to bring the students together no matter what their race.

Parent

• The new principal needs to do a better job of communicating with the city of RC.

What relationships should your new Principal foster within the community?

Staff

• Principal is the face of CHS.
• They need to have open lines of communication to staff/students.
• Need to go out and tell everyone about the great programs we have at CHS. Celebrate diversity on campus.

Parent Communication

How should your new principal communicate with you?

Parent

• Graffiti & violence happening on campus - parent wants communication from staff right when it happens to clear up rumors in a timely fashion.

Parent

• Make sure continued use of ConnectEd for announcements and reminders.
• Edjoin is delayed with attendance info (used an example of her student being late to class, but didn’t find out until a week later). Parents want to know sooner - there is too long of a delay.

Student

• Thinks the school should utilize text messaging when sending information out.

Student

• Thinks e-mail is best.

Parent

• Automated system message & e-mail.

How should your new Principal expect you to communicate with him/her?

Student

• Principal should be around campus, more visible and communicate with the students on campus.

Student

• Mr. Tapia & Mr. Burns are what they are looking for.
• Gentle but firm, fair, hands on, always around, in it 100%.

Parent

• Open door policy for example drop in hours M & F 10:00-12:00 when parents/students can drop in and talk to the principal.

Student

• A new principal needs to care about everything that goes on in the school (many chimed in that they agree – the Principal needs to show the students/staff they care).

Parent

• The new principal should communicate with e-mail, phone calls and we want to see them on campus everyday. Principal needs to be quick to reply on e-mail.

Student

• More activities on campus.

Student

• Be on  campus regularly -- get to know the students and talk to them

Academic Leadership

What do you expect from your new principal with regard to academics?

Parent

• Gave example of Jay Burns’ grade recovery process- constantly reminding staff in daily announcements to meet with students before school, after school, at lunch or breaks to give them extra help they need to be successful in classes.

Parent

• Teachers need to get competitive with test scores. Example given: think of Principal as CEO and create an accountability system for staff to get students up to grade level.

Staff/ CHS Parent

• Student is honors in all subjects- discussed having issues with a teacher parent went to principal and nothing was done to solve the problem. The student dropped the class because she felt nobody would listen or do anything about the issues she was having.
• New Principal should deal with staff issues and be willing to meet with students to mediate problems so they do not drop a class in a subject they enjoy.

Parent

• Principal must have management & HR skills.
• Embrace technology.
• Encourage teachers to be the best that they can be, so that students will excel.

Parent

• Create a grade recovery system - give students time to retake a test, to improve a grade and boost learning.

Parent

• The new Principal should focus on the big picture and encourage students to be responsible adults.

How should your new principal lead their teachers?

Parent

• Raise the expectations (academically) of students.

What can we do to increase test scores, ranking and graduation rates?

Parent

• Have counselors and teachers work together with the students.
• Principal should facilitate team teaching approach.
• Have the teachers and counselors work together to help the kids instead of their own separate agendas.

Discipline

What tone should your new principal set at CHS regarding respect and safety?

Parent

• Keep kids and teacher in check.

Parent

• Too much fighting and disrespectful students on campus.
• More adult supervision during passing and on campus in general.
• Not enough adults watching over the kids to keep them in line.

Parent

• Respect is the key; kids will rise to the level of expectations.
• Raise the expectations and demand more from students/teachers.

Parent

• Respect is earned when teachers are not friends with students.
• Teachers should have a dress code enforced (used an example of when a sub was dressed inappropriately on campus.)
• Suggested uniforms should be mandatory for students. Break diversity/economic differences by requiring uniforms. (Applause from parents at the suggestion of uniforms)

Student

• Teachers should be held on a higher level and expected more. Said he felt respected by some teachers not all.

Student

• Says she respects her teachers & feels respected by them.

Parent

• A principal should not come on campus with the attitude that these are snotty teenagers. These are students that have the world at their feet and have a bright future. They should treat them like the young adults they are.

Student

• Would like teachers to show the students care.
• If teachers don’t care why should I? Starts with teachers & principal’s first.

Parent

• Students need to respect the principal, feel the principal cares and know they expect good things for the future.

Parent

• Parents need to respect the teachers and keep the lines of communication open.

Student

• Students need to show teachers respect to get it back from them.

Parent

• Principal needs to create a balance dealing with discipline and students.

What are the top 3 discipline issues your new principal faces on his/her first day?

1. Fights and bullying
2. Vandalism
3. Disrespect towards staff and other students
4. Theft on campus
5. Dress code

School Culture

How should CHS embrace the many different cultures present on campus?

Parent

• Understanding the background of a culture creates respect for differences.
• Have Cultural Day for families at the school at night or on a Saturday.

Parent

• Cultural cooking can encourage the parents to attend a family Cultural Day. Getting the parents on campus to meet staff and friends from school.

Staff

• Thinks the new schedule next year will help student & staff relationships.
• She’s hoping on double period days where there will be time to meet other students. She would like to see a mix of all level of students helping each other.
• She thinks parents and staff members need to get together – she states this is the largest school in FCUSD – she is hoping for more meetings with parents on campus.
• She wants the kids to be at the school board meetings and be more involved.

Stephen asked if there are cultural separations on campus.

·         Almost every person in the room raised their hand to agree.

Staff

• On campus it’s not a culture thing- they are grouping according to their race. He states that sometimes its gang related.

Parent

• Is concerned – there are a lot of gang issues. Race issues & gang fights are happening on campus on a regular basis.
• More adults are needed to supervise between classes, during breaks and lunch.

Stephen asked, “What does the cultural experience look like everyday on campus?”

Student

• She thinks a cultural day with families is a great idea.
• Would like the new principal to get parents more involved.

Student

• States that people are speaking in a different language on campus and you feel like you can’t be part of the conversation. Language barriers need to be worked out. Encourage the students speak English on campus.

Student

• Says there are different race wars going on that affects the whole student body.

Student

• States that a club for each race separates them and encourages them to be separate. Doesn’t feel like groups want to talk to others outside of their culture.

What does it mean to be a Lancer?

Staff

• She’s been a teacher for 17 years at CHS, it used to be a community, student had pride, everyone wanted to be a Lancer and everyone participated in the rallies – even if they didn’t like them they participated.

Parent & 1981 CHS Graduate

• Feels the different cultural clubs are dividing the races. You felt safe back then, but now the students don’t feel safe.

Parent

• Says her son was afraid to come to CHS hazing is a problem for 9^th graders. When she was a freshman they had spirit week with track & field events. She would like to see more school spirit and unity of different races.

Student

• She used to go to private school at Capital Christian. She was scared to come here. Her brother went here when it was fun to be a Lancer. The RC Community use to be close and its not like that now.

Staff

• He came here in 1965; his kids attended CHS as well as his four grandkids. All kids wanted to be Lancers and the games were packed. Now no pride left in the school. What is a Lancer now? He doesn’t see the school spirit at all. Everyone does their own thing and no one goes to the games. Principal needs to rally the kids together and have a focus point. Lancer was the focus point - now were on the losing side and everyone goes away. New Principal needs to get the spirit back.

Parent

• Encourage school spirit and competition between grade levels at rallies. She would like to see a principal bring that back to CHS.

Student

• The alma mater is an important part to bring back pride with the school. It’s important he/she knows the history of the school.

Parent

• She was a Lancer - you lived for the dances and rallies. It started at home with her parents’ encouragement. We need to get the families evolved. Socialization of families is important. She hopes it will get better for her daughter.

Parent

• Families need to rally around something that brings them together. That will build the RC community and bring everyone together.

Parent

• He says teach the kids the history of the school and get them to strive to top the past.

Parent

• Find a way to get more parents involved in the PTA there were only 5 people at the last meeting she went to. She was the new person there and they were trying to create fund raisers. She went there to offer a fund raiser through her business but she felt the PTA brushed her off.

Stephen’s summary of her message: Everyone needs to work together. All students & staff need to work together to promote school pride & tradition. All agreed.

 Last comments:

Parent

• Edline should be updated by teachers daily; teachers need to notify parents of problems going on with kids before it’s too late to bring the grade up.

Parent

• Principal should be proud of our school- if we don’t respect it who will?

Parent

• Suggested the new principal use 360 evaluations - have teachers evaluated by Principal and students. Have teachers evaluate teachers to move up the bar.

Parent

• Principal needs to be a role model & leader. Have a good relationship with community & teachers. Lay the foundation for greatness. Make sure the teachers have the freedom to do their job. The teachers will give up they don’t have the support they need.

Parent

• If a student is failing don’t push them through.

Student

• CHS needs a principal that staff respects and will work with them and support them.

Student

• There are teachers that let students watch a movie all day in class. She doesn’t think student evaluations wouldn’t work very well.

Parent

• Parents should be able to evaluate the principal.

A parent asked: Do Principals have a probation period??

Parent

Concerned: Will the principal be just the principal for CHS? He thinks CHS needs a full time principal.

Parent

A new principal has to show interest in everything. Viability on campus and access to principal are important to students and parents.

Parent requested a map of CHS campus to be placed on the CHS website.

Staff

Spanish speaking students feel lost in class and many of them will cut class or drop out because they don’t understand what is going on in class. She translates for a student that came to our country her freshmen year and it wasn’t until her Jr. year that teachers realized she needed special ed classes. The student was embarrassed because her parents don’t speak English and the parents never understood what people were saying when they came on campus. She thinks that more translators for parents are needed and maybe even have Spanish only meetings so that the parents know what is being said in their language. There needs to be a smoother transition from middle school to high school for Spanish speaking students, Test them before they get to high school to make sure they aren’t in need of special programs and fall between the cracks.

Meeting Adjourned at 7:25 p.m.

RESULTS FROM PARENT NIGHT SURVEY AVAILABLE HERE