When the school board evaluated their selection to replace Cindy Pickett early this month they made the p ...
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Commentary: The School Board Misread the Moment
Commentary: The School Board Misread the Moment
When the school board evaluated their selection to replace Cindy Pickett early this month they made the pick as though we were still playing under 2018 rules—quite literally—as in they selected the sa ...
| by David Greenwald -
Commentary: The School Board Has Made a Huge Mistake
Commentary: The School Board Has Made a Huge Mistake
In a lot of ways this is going to be an unfair indictment of the majority on the school board. They ende ...
In a lot of ways this is going to be an unfair indictment of the majority on the school board. They ended up making a decision on May 21, four days before a revolution started. It was a financial de ...
| by David Greenwald -
City Hires Barbara Archer as New Communications Director
City Hires Barbara Archer as New Communications Director
The City of Davis announced today that it hired Barbara Archer as a new communications and customer servi ...
The City of Davis announced today that it hired Barbara Archer as a new communications and customer service manager. Archer brings over 25 years of experience to the position. Most recently, she worke ...
| by David Greenwald -
Monday Morning Thoughts: What the School Board Race Looks Like after the Archer Surprise
Monday Morning Thoughts: What the School Board Race Looks Like after the Archer Surprise
Many were surprised to learn that Barbara Archer has decided not to seek reelection for the school board ...
Many were surprised to learn that Barbara Archer has decided not to seek reelection for the school board seat she first won in 2014. In an interview with the local paper, she did not offer much in th ...
| by David Greenwald -
Three School Board Candidates File for November Election; Barbara Archer Does Not File
Three School Board Candidates File for November Election; Barbara Archer Does Not File
The biggest surprise on Friday was that Barbara Archer, who was elected to the school board in 2014, did ...
The biggest surprise on Friday was that Barbara Archer, who was elected to the school board in 2014, did not file papers for re-election by the 5 pm deadline on Friday. That means there are two open ...
| by David Greenwald -
Monday Morning Thoughts: Give the Voters a Clean Choice for School Board
Monday Morning Thoughts: Give the Voters a Clean Choice for School Board
A comment by School Board Member Bob Poppenga has triggered some conversation. On Thursday, as the board ...
A comment by School Board Member Bob Poppenga has triggered some conversation. On Thursday, as the board was deciding on a process to select a replacement trustee for Madhavi Sunder, Mr. Poppenga sta ...
| by David Greenwald -
School Board to Accept Applications for Replacement to Sunder
School Board to Accept Applications for Replacement to Sunder
On Thursday, the school board met for a total of 25 minutes, half of which was to figure out how to fill ...
On Thursday, the school board met for a total of 25 minutes, half of which was to figure out how to fill a vacancy. Given the timing of Madhavi Sunder’s resignation, the board could not by law leave ...
| by David Greenwald -
Commentary: Big Question for the School Board is What They Will Do About Vacant Seat
Commentary: Big Question for the School Board is What They Will Do About Vacant Seat
A school board seat has become vacant as the result of Madhavi Sunder departing for a position at Georget ...
A school board seat has become vacant as the result of Madhavi Sunder departing for a position at Georgetown Law School and forgoing the final five or six months of her four-year term. The seat is sc ...
| by David Greenwald -
School Board Re-Evaluates Discipline Policy in Wake of Student Walk Out and Pending Actions Scheduled for the 20th
School Board Re-Evaluates Discipline Policy in Wake of Student Walk Out and Pending Actions Scheduled for the 20th
Sunder Questions Whether District May Not Be Consistent with Case Law for Student Protests While the dist ...
Sunder Questions Whether District May Not Be Consistent with Case Law for Student Protests While the district passed a couple of motions to educate the students and the community on the types of actio ...
| by David Greenwald -
Threat to Harper Turns Out to Be a Hoax
Threat to Harper Turns Out to Be a Hoax
On Friday, DJUSD sent out a notice to parents of Harper Junior High students that there was a threat rece ...
On Friday, DJUSD sent out a notice to parents of Harper Junior High students that there was a threat received via the STOPit app. The threat claimed that there would be a school shooting at Harper Ju ...
| by David Greenwald -
School Board Sees Disproportionality in Montgomery Program
School Board Sees Disproportionality in Montgomery Program
“This is about race, this is about opting out of a school, and this is about segregation.” The DJUSD Scho ...
“This is about race, this is about opting out of a school, and this is about segregation.” The DJUSD School Board on Thursday heard a presentation that highlighted the disproportionality in the Englis ...
| by David Greenwald -
Vanguard Analysis: Rules Regarding Agendizing Items for School Board Meetings
Vanguard Analysis: Rules Regarding Agendizing Items for School Board Meetings
Last Thursday, newly-elected school Boardmember Bob Poppenga asked for “some clarification” on the issue ...
Last Thursday, newly-elected school Boardmember Bob Poppenga asked for “some clarification” on the issue of “proposing an agenda item.” He said, “In looking at the bylaws the process seems to me to b ...
| by David Greenwald -
Dispute Arises Over School Board Agendizing Policies
Dispute Arises Over School Board Agendizing Policies
Back in early February, Board Member Madhavi Sunder had requested a February hearing for the AIM program, ...
Back in early February, Board Member Madhavi Sunder had requested a February hearing for the AIM program, but was overruled on a 3-2 vote by her colleagues, with Bob Poppenga joining her on the short ...
| by David Greenwald -
Commentary: The Problem of Self-Fulfilling Prophecies with AIM
Commentary: The Problem of Self-Fulfilling Prophecies with AIM
Beginning in the spring of 2015 and ending in the fall, AIM became one of the most contentious issues in ...
Beginning in the spring of 2015 and ending in the fall, AIM became one of the most contentious issues in the school district, and for good reason. While it seems most people supported the end of priv ...
| by David Greenwald -
Commentary: Can We Bridge the AIM Divide?
Commentary: Can We Bridge the AIM Divide?
One of the reasons the Vanguard spent three articles in an attempt to unpack the AIM meeting is because, ...
One of the reasons the Vanguard spent three articles in an attempt to unpack the AIM meeting is because, if you simply look at the end results – the motions that were passed and the votes – you essent ...
| by David Greenwald -
Board Passes a Series of Motions on AIM
Board Passes a Series of Motions on AIM
This is the third part of our coverage of Thursday evening’s school board discussion on AIM. School Supe ...
This is the third part of our coverage of Thursday evening’s school board discussion on AIM. School Superintendent John Bowes made a lengthy presentation (captured here) laying out his analysis of AI ...
| by David Greenwald -
Sunday Commentary: School Board Shows No Urgency to Fix AIM Shortcoming
Sunday Commentary: School Board Shows No Urgency to Fix AIM Shortcoming
A year ago, when the first round of AIM (Alternative Instructional Model) testing results came out, they ...
A year ago, when the first round of AIM (Alternative Instructional Model) testing results came out, they showed that very few black and Hispanic students had qualified for the AIM program. Madhavi Su ...
| by David Greenwald -
District Has Spent Over $17 Thousand on Response to Office for Civil Rights Investigation
District Has Spent Over $17 Thousand on Response to Office for Civil Rights Investigation
The Vanguard has learned that the Davis Joint Unified School District has $17,363.07 in legal fees pertai ...
The Vanguard has learned that the Davis Joint Unified School District has $17,363.07 in legal fees pertaining to the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) of the U.S. Department of Education investigation reg ...
| by David Greenwald -
Sunday Commentary: The Narrative is Part of the Problem with AIM
Sunday Commentary: The Narrative is Part of the Problem with AIM
The Vanguard reported on Friday and Saturday that the OCR (Office for Civil Rights) was looking into alle ...
The Vanguard reported on Friday and Saturday that the OCR (Office for Civil Rights) was looking into allegations that the school district is “discriminating against students on the basis of race /nati ...
| by David Greenwald -
Office For Civil Rights Opens Investigation into Whether AIM Program is Discriminatory
Office For Civil Rights Opens Investigation into Whether AIM Program is Discriminatory
One of the biggest complaints about the changes to the AIM program was the drastic reduction in the parti ...
One of the biggest complaints about the changes to the AIM program was the drastic reduction in the participation, particularly by black and Hispanic students, in the new program compared to the old p ...
| by David Greenwald