7:19,
I was out of town and just arrived home. I am trying to be as informed as possible before I make any public statements. I have already read the report and I am picking up the full teacher interviews done by the assessment team tomorrow. I have had numerous conversations with the superintendent, the lead on the assessment team, teachers, parents, community members, and even an attorney engaged in the situation. I am concerned about MANY things I read in the report. Know that I am advocating for what I believe is right is behind the scenes. But this is a very delicate personnel matter where threats of law suits have been made.
Please realize that although everyone at Alafia has been immersed in this problem for over a year the first I heard of it was at the October 24th meeting. No one ever contacted me about the situation to intervene before this blew up into a public spectacle.
The superintendent has put processes in place and has requested that we give her time. I am reluctant, but I am willing to give her plan reasonable time to play out. Time lines have been given, and at the end of that time frame if Ms. Smith has not improved I will be the loudest board member calling for her removal. Something should have been done a long time ago and that is another issue that needs to be dealt with. But this is where we are now.
Understand that with the make-up of this school board timing is everything, so is being as informed as possible. I must have my ducks in a row. I hope you can respect that.
I pray that everyone involved does their part in helping heal this situation. Please hear me again…if Ms. Smith does not dramatically improve I will be the loudest board member publicly calling for her removal.
At your service, April Griffin
33 comments:
You are welcome to post this, or not, your choice. It seems to me that the Alafia/Pricipal issue is a case of parents gone bad and the power of the internet. I have been following this issue since the onset of internet coverage and it seems to me that the parents are arguing over how to "get" the Principal rather than how to fix the "perception" of a problem. Each leader of a school has different personality and it seems the operating speeds of the parents and Mrs. Smith are out of synch with each other. The parents, in an effort to "protect" their children, are blowing the issue way out of proportion and the "system" is hunkering down to "protect" an administrator. Most issues can be resolved by both sides sitting down and having a reasonable conversation, setting goals and a timetable. NOT by blowing things out of proportion on the internet or private conversations. I cannot believe that Mrs. Smith has had a sudden change of philosophy that warrants her being fired. While I understand the importance of the parents objections being listened to. However, this crap that is being tried on the internet just sounds like "ye doth protest too much."
10:26,
I will post your comment. As you can see I post all comments unless they are just completely unproductive and mean spirited with no goal of resolution.
You are entitled to your opinion and I will respect it.
April Griffin
Anonymous 10:26
This is not a sudden change of philosophy for Ellyn Smith. For those of us at Alafia who are living with this school it goes back a long way. It appears to have started many years before when she was an assitant principal.
If you have read the report from the site assessment team, you are aware that they found some serious problems so this is not a case of perception vs. reality.
When over 250 parents sign a petition to voice their lack of confidence in a Principal and are joined by an overwhelming majority of the teachers at the school the problem is real.
And yes it does appear that Ellyn is being protected given some of the things that have come to light recently. In business would a manager with 60% of their customers and employess having no confidence in them be retained? I don't think so.
You refer to the "crap being tried on the internet". You sound like all of the school district people who come in and try to deflect the blame. To those who like things the way they are, having a place for people to communicate and co-ordinate is inconvenient and annoying. To us it is our only hope.
I don't think Ellyn Smith ever was an assistant principal. Perhaps her deficits would have been noticed sooner had she taken the traditional path to principalship.
We either want active, involved parents or we don't. The middle ground is apathy and that's worse.
10:26AM, the internet has become the focal point for most discussion nowadays. Should we stop trying to bridge the "digital divide" simply because our beliefs get challenged?
You comments were a contribution that may not have made it in any other forum. Be glad. I am.
Anon 10:26—
"Thou dost protest too much" is a phrase that alludes to someone being guilty of something and attempting to throw pursuers off their trail. You reference the phrase to the parents of the Alafia scandal. What is it that the parents are "guilty" of and who are the pursuers they are attempting to distract?
You also show a bias towards supporting the administration. To wit: "I cannot believe that Mrs. Smith has had a sudden change of philosophy that warrants her being fired." Talk about blowing things out of proportion, what evidence can you cite to back up your monumental proclamation?
Why did you let Elia bash the parents so badly. The parents were duped out of their right to address the board by the PR Director only to have Elia tear them apart.
I told them all to go back to the next board meeting and give it right back to her. This isn't over yet.
Ms. Griffin, thanks for all you do.
In light of the recent developments, I just wanted to make sure you knew about this:
SPLCenter.org: Hillsborough County Special Education
While I realize that the local blogs are disconcerting to some within the administration, I would submit that it is just as disconcerting to the public when an administrator says that they were unaware of an issue when they should have been. If District administrators have to depend on the local media or blogs as their first point of information, there is obviously a problem.
That statement is not directed at you, and I can provide plenty of references to those it does apply to.
Again, thanks for making a difference to this system.
Richard L. Hancock
April,
I was very disappointed in the course of events that took place at the Board meeting. Mr. Hegarty spent an inordinate amount of time making phone calls and speaking to parents directly, trying to silence their voices. When that did not work, you approached the parents with a similar plea. April, we respected you and abided by your wishes. After hearing Mrs. Elia speak, I realized I was duped once again, and felt all the more violated because I had allowed myself to be manipulated by what I thought was the last untainted individual on the school board. I now realize that there is not one of you that can be trusted. You took an oppressed group and further victimized them by facilitating Mrs. Elia's ability to speak her untruthful words unanswered. Mrs. Elia admitted to Mrs. Smith's countless faults at the parent meeting. She could not come up with ONE SINGLE QUALITY that made Mrs. Smith an appropriate candidate to lead Alafia. Yet she was allowed to take the posture that Mrs. Smith had been treated unfairly without rebuke. I know that numerous parents would have liked to point out the falsehoods in her statement, but they were robbed of that opportunity. You played a major role in that travesty by exploiting the trust that parents had in you.
I hope that you will print this letter and explain your actions.
April, Did you know what Elia was going to say and how she was going to spin it? We all know that Smith did not volunteer to step down. Those of us who have been involved behind the scenes know that a few of the board members were putting pressure on Elia to change her mind and remove Smith. It is evident to everyone and anyone who watched Elia's speech that she was trying to make a point that parents will not have the power to remove a principal. No one may ever admit it, but I think the deal was cut with Elia to let her speak highly about Smith in a public forum in order to save face with the board, the public and Smith's attorney. Everyone knows that the Smith's threatened lawsuits from the beginning. I just hope for the non believers in the district, they have a first hand opportunity to work with Smith and see what it is like to have to deal with her on a daily basis. You may even get the opportunity to enjoy frequent visits from her husband who did more harm than good to Smith's cause.
10:01,
I knew what was going to happen before the meeting and I wanted Mr. Hagarty to call parents and let them know the decision that had been made to save anyone the trouble of driving all the way down town to speak. I thought there would not be any more need to play this out publicly as you had gotten what you have been fighting for. We could have been criticized for allowing everyone to drive down without calling them too. We were between a rock and a hard place no matter what we did.
I did not know what the superintendent was going to say. I had no idea she was going to go beyond saying Ms. Smith had decided to leave the school. This was naive on my part I admit. It was never my intention to dupe anyone.
My thought prior to hearing Ms. Elia's speech was that you the parents had gotten what you were fighting for and Ms. Smith had been called out publicly enough already. Anything more would be beating a dead horse. I said that to the parents last night. I felt a group of parents standing up and speaking publicly to the board would have only served to hurt Ms. Smith more and I don’t like seeing anyone hurt.
Even though I have a blog and allow people to post anonymously I don't like when personnel issues play out so publicly. Ms. Smith has had some horrible things said about her, whether true or not. I think it was more for her to handle than anyone realizes. I have said it before, the situation should not have been allowed to get to this point. That is another issue that needs to be dealt with.
I do understand why this situation evolved to the level that it did and do not blame the parents for creating the blog and using it to get their word out.
You won…and at this point though I hope that everyone involved can just let the past go and move forward with the best interest of the students, teachers, staff, and parents. This has not been easy for anyone.
I have to point out though, and I know this from much personal experience. If we are going to put ourselves out there and fight we can not be upset when others fight back.
I have to leave for a meeting. Feel free to copy this to the Alafia blog.
At your service, April Griffin
April,
Thank you for posting my letter and responding. I want you to know that there was no intention to “beat a dead horse” in the first place. I had planned to speak about the Action Plan. Had I not given up my right to speak, I would have certainly rebuffed Mrs. Elia’s statement since not one of you on the board had any interest in tempering her comments.
You by now must have a plethora of information about all that has transpired, so you know that implying that the complaints could be untrue is disingenuous. Furthermore, the blame for this being played out so publicly needs to be placed squarely at the feet of those administrators who should have taken action much sooner, up to and including Mrs. Elia.
You say we have won, and I feel uncomfortable with that statement. How does keeping the problems of our district in the shadows serve to enhance the educational system for our children?
You say we cannot be upset when others fight back, but I argue that the playing field was not level. The school board has resources and minions that we never could have, and you, April, have proven yourself to be one of those minions. The board is very adept at “spinning” a situation to its own end. Again, this does not serve the needs of our students. Transparency and accountability are the only things that will result in positive change.
Please tell me why I should still believe that you are an “outsider” that is not working to protect the status quo.
April,
While I have become a huge fan of yours, I am EXTREMELY disappointed that you lest Mrs Elia rip into the Alafia parents they way she did. You did nothing to stop her, nor did you repsond to anything she said.
What would have been an end to this issue, has now been extended another month. I am organizing more parents to come to the next meeting to respond to Elia's comments. To say that Smith was an asset to the school was absurd and to imply that the parents caused this incidnet is ridiculous.
You have not heard the last from the parents.
Anonymous 12/10 10:01 AM:
You have GOT to be kidding! What planet did you just arrive from. Victimized? Smith is gone because of April. If she wanted to "victimize" you she would have let Smith stay at Alafia.
It's people like you who have given Alafia a bad rap. Fortunately most Alafia parents are not like you.
I am so over the culture of victimization that sheep such as yourself wallow in.
April owes you an explanation? Please! You owe her a debt of gratitude. She already has given you more than you may realize.
Call the Wahmbulance the whining begins anew.
April, you truly saved our school by helping to rid it of a totally failed principal. You and Jennifer Faliero worked incredible behind-the-scenes miracles for us and we are sincerely grateful.
The problem is the jaded system itself. Both you and Jennifer see Smith's departure as the ultimate victory for us. Being entrenched in the system desensitizes you to the importance of "the rest of the story" to those involved. You did what it took to provide the end result we needed, and nothing else is important in your mind.
I truly believe that you did not know how vindictive Elia was going to be, but I also believe that you are so used to functioning in the District's machinery that it did not even occur to you that you should speak out in our defense after you knew we were silenced from doing so ourselves.
The parents of Alafia fought long and hard to rid our school of the cancer that is Ellyn Smith. We were rightfully proud of our success. To listen to Elia trash us while singing Smith's [untruthful] praises was demoralizing. Even in victory, the system failed us.
Regardless, I thank you for your support, and beg one more critical service from you. MaryEllen Elia is cut from the same cloth at Ellyn Smith. She is stubborn and vindictive, and I have no doubt that she is displeased with having her hand forced on this issue. She is quite clearly angry at the parents, and possibly the teachers, of Alafia. Please, please perform great due diligence when considering whoever she seeks to appoint as Alafia's next principal. We must have a team-building leader who is caring, compassionate, and empathetic. The teachers of Alafia cannot suffer through another Ellyn Smith - and they shouldn't have to. The parents now fully understand how this superintendent works, and we will never again trust her to do the right thing for our school. We need your continued oversight and protection.
4:56,
I was trying to move this situation forward with as much grace and dignity as possible. I did not know what the parents or the superintendent were going to say and I wanted a civil end to a very emotional situation. If my actions were taken as me being a minion I don’t know what to say to that other than I disagree and you are entitled to your opinion.
I know that this situation was as public as it was because of utter frustration at how long it was taking to resolve a very serious issue. I already stated in my original response to you that I understood why the parents created the blog and had to be so vocal and I did not point a finger of blame at anyone about the publicity this had received.
You say that transparency and accountability are the only things that will result in positive change. I agree and I am one of the most transparent elected officials in the area. However, there are some issues that should be dealt with privately, ie. Personnel issues. I have not ever condoned a principal or any manager calling employees out in front of other employees or parents and I intervene when that type of behavior is brought to my attention.
Whether or not I agree with what Ms. Elia said makes no difference. If I were to berate my employee at the dais it would only feed into the cycle we have been caught up in.
You did win. Your goal was to no longer have Ms. Smith as the principal of Alafia and that was accomplished. The rest of your concerns are up to me and the rest of the board to deal with.
There has to be a point where we are working towards a positive resolution and I believe that time is now. The parents should be proud of their tenacity and passion for their children’s safety and well being, as I know it was the driving force behind the effort put forth.
As for me trying to prove to you that I am still an outsider, all I can say is google me and watch my actions in the future.
At your service, April Griffin
April, As a parent that has done alot of the behind the scenes work, I can understand why the person who posted took offense to the "you won" statement. You are absolutely correct in stating that our goal was to have Ellyn Smith removed from the school but how much we had to endure along the way was equally if not more demeaning and demoralizing as what has been said about Mrs. Smith. All the parents wanted was that their children go to school in a safe environment where the teachers and parents were not ruled by a principal that practices and fosters intimidation and retaliation. Isn't that what anyone would expect? Wouldn't you expect that every school in Hillsborough County is run in a way that fosters the best environment for teachers, students and parents? I guess what I am trying to say is that we were not asking for anything special. To say that "we won" says that it was something that we achieved and not deserved. I would also like to add that there were many, many posts on newspaper blogs that have been very hateful to the parents who have been fighting this system. Along with Mrs. Smith, we too have had some nasty comments made about us. The only difference is there was not a 16 person assessment team that came out and validated every one of them. For me, I am happy to see that after 10 years of abuse, Mrs. Smith will be not be a principal anywhere. My only concern is where will she be promoted to and how much impact will she be able to have at other schools, including Alafia. After Mrs. Elia's public display of venom, it seems to me that she will find a place that she can still have a negative impact on our school.
"To say that "we won" says that it was something that we achieved and not deserved." (spits out coffee) huh?!?! Seriously?!? I mean are you REALLY serious?!?! If you are, spend some quality time with your dictionary.
Win - to succeed in reaching (a place, condition, etc.), esp. by great effort (Dictionary.com)
Until this latest embarassing display, I felt sympathy for the Alafia parents, now things start to make more sense. The problems at Alafia start to take on a new light. Talk about a bunch of ingrates. Perhaps the principal WASN'T the problem. I don't think that the Alafia parents are capable of being happy and they definitely have no loyalty or appreciation, displaying a true gusto for biting the hand that feeds them.
Stop overthinking and over-analyzing. Realize that something big just happened and you were part of it. So Mary Ellen took a parting shot. Big deal. Mature adults are taught to turn their cheek and be the bigger person. You Alafia parents have some serious control issues. Grow up.
April don't be discouraged. I would point out that these posters are violating one of your tenets: they are not being productive. They are just trying to get more, more, more. From here on, I suggest that you refuse to publish them... just my $0.02.
Sincerely,
Gobsmack Parent
Anon 8:46 - The single most productive thing you could do with your anger and your energy would be to show up at every School Board meeting, in force, and press the issue with Mary Ellen Elia and her BFFs on the board. Be polite, but be relentless. Don't ask why you weren't treated with respect; ask why it took so long to see what Ms Smith's problems were and why it wasn't handled sooner. Then ask repeatedly how they're going to stop it from happening again. If you need to, feel free to remind them that (a) they are paid with tax dollars and (b) the board members don't work for or report to the district administration - the district administration reports to the school board and the school board reports to the voters. Be nice, but make sure they understand that *you* understand who's in charge.
Anon 9:47
You didn't suffer through months of Smith's tyranical behavior. You didn't have the stress of having to deal with her. It's easy for somebody who didn't suffer through what we did to be lacks about this.
As far as Elia taking a prting shot, that my friend is not over. I will not "turn the other cheek" when it comes to her and I am already rounding up as many folks as I can to give it right back to her at the next meeting.
April,
You said "I have not ever condoned a principal or any manager calling employees out in front of other employees or parents and I intervene when that type of behavior is brought to my attention." Yet you let Mrs Elia call out the parents. How do you explain that?
Thanks.
Gobsmacked parent,
I am not discouraged and I appreciate your concern. However, I need to point out without going into too much detail that the parents of Alafia had every right to be concerned and are justified in their frustration. The administration did not handle this situation in a reasonable time frame and the only recourse the parents felt they had was taking their story to the press and the board in a public manner. I can not fault anyone for fighting in the public light.
I realize that these wounds are still fresh and I am not taking it personal. However, I am not responding to this string beyond tomorrow because I am starting to repeat myself and I don't see forward progress.
I hope people will read all of my posts and know that I am empathetic and sympathetic to their plight I want this everyone involved to be able to heal.
Mrs. Griffin, As a teacher who has worked in SDHC for over 20 years I have seen so much intimidation and retaliation when employees don't walk the company line. Administrators give extra preps, fill your class with all of the problem students, and/or give bad schedules. You have heard it all before I am sure. I have never been more encouraged by a school board member than I have by you. Please, please, please do not get discouraged by these parents who have just been introduced to you. Like me and many others they will eventually see your true grit and will understand that you are fighting an entrenched system by yourself. I expected you to be like all the other school board members and give in to the pressure that we all feel daily basis. I was wrong and never happier to be wrong in my life. You have more support than you can imagine.
April,
I am the Alafia parent who sent the original letter about Mrs. Elia's comments, and I just wanted to let you know that your replies helped to put most (but not all) of the situation into perspective. I believe you do see where the Alafia parents are coming from, but I think you give Mrs. Elia way too much credit. Many people's eyes have been opened as a result of the situation. We will be watching the board's oversight (or lack thereof) of the superintendent.
It was not my intention to create such an uproar here at your blog. I should have written to you directly, and will do so in the future.
Perhaps if letters to administrators and board members were acknowledged and acted on in the past, people wouldn't feel the need to announce their concerns in such a public forum.
I thank you for your thoughtful responses to everyone's concerns and I look forward to seeing you do good things in the future.
With a sincere apology for my repetitiveness, I reiterate below a portion of my earlier post, the importance of which may have been lost in the shuffle of everyone's intense reactions to the Alafia situation. I believe it's too criical an issue to not be fully noted:
... I thank you for your support, and beg one more critical service from you. MaryEllen Elia is cut from the same cloth as Ellyn Smith. She is stubborn and vindictive, and I have no doubt that she is displeased with having her hand forced on this issue. She is quite clearly angry at the parents, and possibly the teachers, of Alafia. Please, please perform great due diligence when considering whoever she seeks to appoint as Alafia's next principal. We must have a team-building leader who is caring, compassionate, and empathetic. The teachers of Alafia cannot suffer through another Ellyn Smith - and they shouldn't have to. The parents now fully understand how this superintendent works, and we will never again trust her to do the right thing for our school. We need your continued oversight and protection.
Thank you!
Ms Griffin
I admire you for standing tall and responding to those who felt you could have done more. They make good points, so do you.
This is about children but there is a political element to this as well. You have proven your willingness to take political risks but you need to maneuver carefully.
You said that going forward, the post Smith concerns are for you and the rest of the board to handle. Personally I feel you should be given the chance to do your job. I am very pleased with how this played out.
Ms Elia is human too. I realize you have to work with her and others on the board who do not share your views. You have to walk a fine line.
Let the temperature drop, let the hurt feelings heal and work to making sure this kind of thing is not repeated. I trust you.
For what its worth, you have my full unqualified support.
Thank you.
Thomas Vaughan
Thank you Mr. Vaughan. April
TO Mr. Vaughan,
Alafia thanks you for the time you took to blog about our school and add your perspective to our situation. Many of us that see the bigger picture read your blog daily (and will continue to read it) to get some insight from your experiences with the SDHC. I do agree with your post to Mrs. Griffin and believe that she will work hard to see that no other school has to go through what we have at Alafia. Thank you to both of you.
Good morning Thomas.
I didn't know you had a blog.
I must have missed something.
I too wanted to thank you for all you do.
:)
Richard
I've decided to take any thanks I get. I was figuring the poster read some of my comments on other blogs regarding the Alafia situation.
I need to contact you privately. How can I do that?
Anon 12-11 @ 8:57,
Your demands weren't lost. They came through clearly. Recognize that your attacks on the person who single-handedly helped you end the debacle at Alafia was the focal point of your posts and accordingly was what people focused on.
I found it personally distasteful to bear witness as people were so unabashedly unappreciative and entitlement minded as they turned on April like a pack of dogs.
I don't think that April knew any of you, but she gave YOU the benefit of the doubt and used her power to help you.
Anyone with a modicum of digntiy or class would show some respect and deference as a courtesy to someone who had come to their aid.
Anon 12-12 6:35:
I have posted exactly two messages on this board. And I don't feel like I attacked Ms. Griffin in either of them. I think you may be confusing me with another poster -- or at least I hope that's the case.
Additionally, I made no "demands" of any kind, but rather thanked Ms. Griffin and pleaded for her continued diligence with regard to whoever is appointed to replace Mrs. Smith. I hold Ms. Griffin in high regard and stressed my gratitude for her efforts on our behalf. My other comments were simply trying to explain why some Alafia parents felt like they did and how when you are on the inside and get used to how the district's machinery works, you can forget that others don't see things the same way, thus the parents' reaction.
In any event, I resent your attack on me, and would hope that you would temper future comments or, at a minimum, more carefully read the messages of those people you decide to pounce upon.
interestedinbestpractices@gmail.com
Richard L. Hancock
dba:
Concierge, Motel Special Ed
PRO on HPCS
Public Education - Politics, Business and Education
To Richard Hancock:
THANK YOU! Your continued coverage of the plight of Alafia's parents during our battle to remove our failed principal was nothing short of inspirational for us. It rejuvenated our sometimes sagging spirits to hear from you that we were succeeding where others had failed, especially when that acknowledgment came from someone who has fought similar battles.
I'm still not sure what our magic elixir was - other than unrelenting determination and an awareness that the fight had to be made bigger than our little corner of the world. You helped us immensely with the latter, and we are extaordinarily thankful.
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