Ken Nelson

She looks unhappy 

In the Washington, D.C. area parents aren’t settling for griping at teacher-parent night or at the local PTA meeting. They are organizing and up against school board authority using e-mail, Facebook, websites and knowledge of their schools poor performance:

In recent weeks, parent-led campaigns helped bring down a long-established grading policy in Fairfax County and scale back the unpopular practice of charging fees for courses in Montgomery County. They have also stoked debates over math education in Frederick and Prince William counties.

What binds them is impatience with the school establishment and an aptitude for harnessing the power of the Internet to push for change

I wish parents in St. George would act more about the stupid stuff our school system does.  They did get up in arms about a change from Apple’ student information system PowerSchool to a Utah state developed system (that sucked). 

But the forced switch of an entire elementary school to Spanish speaking went largely unchallenged. Shocking. I was glad my kids were in private school.

But the private ( and expensive) solution ends next year when my boy becomes too old for his current school. He enters public school for the first time in 7th grade.  I’m trying to prepare him – how to deal with bully’s (walk away but if they won’t let you  then kick their ass) and what to do as a new kid (I was the new kid in school about 13 times).

But I think he will do fine with our without my expert tutelage….

Who I’m worried about is me. I HATE stupidity and I think I’m about to get  a bunch dumped on me from the Washington County School District.  From homework policy to requiring kids to be in school so schools can get attendance dollars, I know I’m going to butt heads with well meaning but “in it for the bureaucracy” fools.

It could get ugly!  Wish me luck. I’m sure they will win, but I’m not going down without a fight, and I do reserve the right to home school.

Or my fears could be unfounded. But if they will let an entire school speak Spanish, I doubt there are limits to their stupidity.

In any event, I think I better get fightwashingtoncountryschools.com just in case I need to get busy…