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Sunday, July 02, 2006

District 15 Tidbits

A few little points that came up over the weekend in the continuing saga of District #15:

1. Superintendent John Fitzsimons published a letter in Lawrence Express. a monthly publication put out by the Lawrence Public schools. An excerpt:
Another pressing issue is the need to consolidate our schools. Our public school enrollment has declined, thus, a proactive plan to educate our students efficiently and more economically in less space seems warranted. However, the consolidation process is complicated, and once underway, permanent. So we must act wisely, with our students' educational, physical, and social needs, along with staff and faculty requirements, as priorities.
All quite reasonable. Of course, a while back, when I posted about the need to consolidate, I was met with comments that accused the private school community of having all sorts of ulterior motives beyond the obvious reality of dealing with schools that are operating at well below capacity. Maybe now that Dr. Fitzsimons has raised the issue in a reasonable and logical fashion, it can be discussed with some clarity and calmness, instead of the hysterical accusations that the private school community is looking to "take over" the public schools that have been the response to any airing of the issue in the past.

2. Outgoing Lawrence Teacher's Association president Stephen Clements just can't leave well enough alone, can he. I criticized him here after in a letter to the editor in the Nassau Herald, he essentially called the Lawrence High School Valedictorian Ilana Yurkiewicz a liar for speaking out against injustices she had witnessed in her schools. He was subsequently lambasted by several district residents in letters they wrote in response to his reprehensible statements. Well, this week he came back for more. He chose, apparently, to defend himself in the following letter:
To the Editor:

The letters written by Nathan Begelman, Michael Brenner and Abel Feldhammer in your June 15 edition are among the most distorted you have ever printed,. It is clear that their agenda is one of both personal and professional destruction, evidenced by what they purported that I wrote in my letter to the editor regarding Ilana Yurkeiwicz’s column. Their letters are a compilation of mistruths and distortions.

For example, Mr. Feldhammer charges that I "vilify" Ilana Yurkiewicz. This is what I wrote:

"Ilana Yurkiewicz is one of the finest students who has ever walked the halls of Lawrence high School. We are proud of her accomplishments and find joy in her success. However, even the best students sometimes make mistakes …"

For Feldhammer to use the word "vilifies" is outrageous. This is just one of the many examples of distortion that is written in the letters from these three men. I would urge your readers to re-read my letter regarding Ilana Yurkeiwicz’s column.

Frankly, it is ill advised that accusations of anti-Semitism are continually used in attempt to stifle legitimate debate in this community. The three men imply that the faculty of Lawrence is anti-Semitic and blind to the issues of race, religious, national origin and gender. That’s because they don’t know this outstanding faculty. And that’s because they don’t send their kids to the public schools. How can they make such outlandish charges against tan entire faculty based on the word of just one student? Parents who send their children to the public schools know that the entire public schools system has done a great deal to teach about diversity and tolerance.

Every time someone in this community disagrees with private school parents, some people such as these three men charge the rest of us with anti-Semitism. There is a real danger in that. It is like the "boy who cried wolf" because when anti-Semitism really does occur, people wont recognize it. And then, all of us, will be in trouble.

In the YMHA that I belong to in Commack, there is a sign that states that the word "community" ends with the word "unity." Perhaps these three men should examine the role they have played in creating division in this community which, when I started working here 33 years ago, was filled with peace, respect and harmony.

STEPHEN CLEMENTS

President

Lawrence Teachers Association

First of all, when he accuses three men that wrote letters against him of "crying wolf" on charges of anti-Semitism, he seems to forget that these men were not the originators of this charge. The charge came from a student, a remarkable student and person who he declined to treat as a reliable witness. He is so dismissive of her dependability that he says this:
How can they make such outlandish charges against an entire faculty based on the word of just one student?
The word of just one student? How many students' allegations does it take for Mr. Clements to pay attention? And this "just one student" is the selfsame student, mind you, that this month's issue of Lawrence Express lauds as being, in addition to Valedictorian:
One of twenty high school seniors nation-wide to join [the] All-Usa High School Academics First Team...a semifinalist in the Siemens Westinghouse Science competition and the Intel Science Search, along with the Yale Science and Engineering Award and a second place finish at both the New York State and Long Island Science and Engineering Fairs...a National Merit Finalist, Advanced Placement Scholar, and National Honor Society member...a cellist since age seven, a varsity gymnast, and a member and co-captain of the varsity badminton team.
Now, I don't personally think that a teacher ever has any right to publicly call a student a liar, but to dismiss the reports and allegations of this particularly stellar student is an especially galling action. And when he claims not to have "vilified" Ms. Yurkiewicz, it seems that he must not be fully apprised of the word's definition.

It is patently clear that though Mr. Clements is a teacher, he first and foremost views himself a union leader. That he prioritizes his union members before his students in every way is far too evident.

Good riddance to Mr. Clements. I couldn't be happier to see him go.

12 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Good post.

Clements really as some nerve. As a parent of 2 children in LPS, I certainly hope his successor charts a new course.

12:41 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

thw public school parents dont all like him either. he made big enemies by disparaging ilana.

9:41 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Clements was an ass and everyone can agree we're glad to see him leave (THAT'S finally something the public and nonpublic community are in agreement with). Of course, the die-hard union reps of the LTA are the ones that disagree and are fueling the fire in this blog, trying to make us view other residents as the source of our failures, ignoring that our teachers are NOT getting the test scores despite the lowest student-teacher ratios, endless supplies and support.

LTA never said in negotiations that they were missing textbooks or equipment. Their only concern was pay, class size and benefits. So the current board handed them all that on a silver platter....and we're all fools if we expect the teachers to somehow improve the results.

4:30 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

"LTA never said in negotiations that they were missing textbooks or equipment. Their only concern was pay, class size and benefits. So the current board handed them all that on a silver platter....and we're all fools if we expect the teachers to somehow improve the results."

Am I missing something ... were you a part of negotiations? I think if you look carefully at the contract . you would have to modify silver platter to lead plate .... or are you complaining about the contract because of the class size provision? All of educational research points to the importance of small class size in a child's education.

8:07 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

"Of course, there’s also the natural and predictable transition from Blog to “Real Life” that was all but inevitable.
I personally have felt the change in the attitude of some of our neighbors recently. I have lived here in Cedarhurst for three years (Yes, I am one of those "new immigrants”...from BROOKLYN) and in the last month I have been cursed out from moving cars on THREE occasions while walking home from Shul on Shabbos. Not once in 3 years and then 3 times in a month. Venomous HATEFUL slurs...one diver went so far as to stop, in middle of the street about 100 feet from me to repeat, after I ignored the initial verbal onslaught, "Do you HEAR ME?! I Said I HATE YOU!!"

so do I live here for almost four years ...and although not GOY but also driving on Shabbat (please note: NOT SHABBOS)...I believe that it it purely DANGEROUS, especially for those children in strollers, to be walking in the middle of the street and refusing to move to the side when the car passes by (not to mention that it is rude and disrespectful to others)...and I also must say that I never heard any of the unpleasant comments being made...by either side (although not all my NEIGHBORS will say hello to my family when they are passing by my house, especially on Shabbat)

9:09 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Am I missing something ... were you a part of negotiations? I think if you look carefully at the contract . you would have to modify silver platter to lead plate .... or are you complaining about the contract because of the class size provision? All of educational research points to the importance of small class size in a child's education.

Looks like the teachers are back. So what do the teachers think of Clements' behavior?

11:28 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

"Looks like the teachers are back. So what do the teachers think of Clements' behavior?"

Will not discuss behavior with you BECAUSE THERE IS NO BEHAVIOR TO DISCUSS. There is ONLY AN EFFORT ON THE PART OF SOME RESPONDANTS TO MISINTERPRET WHAT MR. CLEMENTS SAID. ONE MUST QUESTION WHY THEY (YOU) FEEL THE NEED TO DO THAT ... TO CREATE CONTROVERSY ... TO WIDEN A RIFT ... TO DRAW ATTENTION AWAY FROM OTHER ISSUES???
MR. CLEMENTS IS TO BE CONGRATULATED FOR HIS MANY ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND PRAISED FOR HIS EFFORTS ON BEHALF OF THE CHILDREN AND TEACHERS. AND YES WHEN YOU PROTECT THE RIGHTS OF THE TEACHERS YOU ARE PROTECTING THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILDREN.
LET'S SEE ... WHO WILL YOU BLAME NEXT YEAR FOR ALL THE ILLS OF THE DISTRICT????

8:40 AM  
Blogger orthomom said...


Will not discuss behavior with you BECAUSE THERE IS NO BEHAVIOR TO DISCUSS. There is ONLY AN EFFORT ON THE PART OF SOME RESPONDANTS TO MISINTERPRET WHAT MR. CLEMENTS SAID. ONE MUST QUESTION WHY THEY (YOU) FEEL THE NEED TO DO THAT ... TO CREATE CONTROVERSY ... TO WIDEN A RIFT ... TO DRAW ATTENTION AWAY FROM OTHER ISSUES???


Hard to misinterpret Mr. Clements words when he so kindly puts them in writing two times for us. It was so accommodating of him to discredit Ms. Yurkiewicz not once - but twice!

8:48 AM  
Blogger orthomom said...

MR. CLEMENTS IS TO BE CONGRATULATED FOR HIS MANY ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND PRAISED FOR HIS EFFORTS ON BEHALF OF THE CHILDREN AND TEACHERS. AND YES WHEN YOU PROTECT THE RIGHTS OF THE TEACHERS YOU ARE PROTECTING THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILDREN.

Well, no. It is absolutely possible to protect the rights of both - but Mr. Clements is not doing so. He is protecting the teachers by attempting to discredit a student. When he does that, he is no longer displaying dual loyalty, but putting the good of the teachers before the good of the students.

9:09 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

to PEACE...DUDE:

I appologize, but you did get me all wrong. I was not sarcastic and definately I did not try to be mean...

you are rigth about big groups of people, but what I am talking about are really moms with three kids (one in a stroller) trying to get to synagogue. It's good to know that even you notice the importance of sidewalk use...

And who do you mean by "YOU PEOPLE" because I am a little confused now...I am jewish but I am not part of "YOU PEOPLE"...where and how does one draw the line.

BTW: your comments are very negative. And I trully hope that you don't consider yourself a wacko. That would be very sad.

And it's OK to write that someone screamed at the walker in the middle of the street but it's not OK to present the other side of the picture??? It's not about being rigth.

12:08 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello, I have followed the drama of the "public versus private" community from its begining in the pages of the Five Towns Jewish Times, Jewish Star and Nassau Herald. I thought that mistakes were made in how the ongoing story was being reported by supporters and reporters for each "side." That was then. We have now a new era and the potential to make the school board act in the best interests of the students, teachers and the whole community. This what the last election gave us. One of the incumbent school board members has said that the public school community is "petrified" of what is going to happen now with private school control of the school board. Fear of the unknown. The Torah gives every Jew, regardless of their own personal belief, the directive to be a Kingdom of Priests and a light to the nations of the world (the Goyim).

Lawrence school district is now the first school district in the history of the USA to have a majority representing Orthodox Jews (I am not counting Monroe, NY.) I think it is inevitable that there be a discussion of what that could mean in both philosophical and practical terms in the relationship between "religious" and "not religious Jews, between " religious Jews and the Gentiles," and among Jews as a whole and the Gentiles--in the five towns--and beyond.

6:18 PM  
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7:24 PM  

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