Skip to content

Random Connections

A collection of photography and exploration focusing on Upstate South Carolina and beyond.

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Photos
  • Resources
  • Other Voices
  • Post Archives
  • Home
  • Rants
  • Jumping through Hoops

Jumping through Hoops

Posted on April 30, 2008 By Tom No Comments on Jumping through Hoops
Rants

This week our district played host to the SACS-CASI Quality Assurance Review Team. I have been through several SACS accreditation visits, both at the local school level and at the district level, and this is something that is always a pain in the posterior. It’s never fun.

First, there’s the paperwork – mountains of it. Then there are all of the meetings required to generate all that paperwork. Most of this takes the form of vision statements, beliefs, and goals spun out in various dialects of Educationese which probably will sound like “duh” statements to the general public. Example…

Mission – The mission of District Five Schools of Spartanburg County is to ensure that all students succeed in life choices and function as productive citizens by providing quality educational experiences in a safe, caring, and nurturing environment.

Vision – In order to improve the quality of life for the students and community in our school district, we will provide superior educational opportunities by maintaining a multidimensional curriculum and state-of-the-art facilities.

I call these “duh” statements because I figure that the public will read them (if they read them at all) and think, “Isn’t that what you’re SUPPOSED to be doing??” I guess sometimes it is important to state the obvious.

After we generate our mountain of paperwork, the Quality Assurance Review Team (QART) breezes into town and attempts to make an assessment of our district. Fortunately, it’s a short visit. But I still wonder if they can get a true feel for what we do with only a few hours on-campus. I guess I should be careful with what I wish for – staying longer could mean finding more to correct.

Today we had the wrap-up, and the QART will recommend to the AdvancED Accreditation Commission that our district be awarded District Accreditation as a quality school system. We can breathe easier now…

…or at least some of us.

I have now become a catch-phrase. During my interview with the QART yesterday I was asked about my goals for the district. I said that overall my responsibility was to provide information technology resources to students and teachers when and where they need them. More specifically, in the short-term I would be working to get our new schools open with the proper infrastructure, etc. I would also be working to address issues relating to technology equity so that we don’t leave behind our existing schools. I also cited several examples of how we are already working toward that end. These include providing video on demand and IP television to all classrooms, and making sure that we have a robust infrastructure that will support future growth. We have these in place now for every school in our district.

So, imagine my surprise when this was one of the “challenges” listed in the wrap-up report today…

Equity of technology in all schools: Although everyone wants “more”, a comprehensive analysis of the district’s infrastructure, hardware needs in relation to how those purchases will be incorporated into classroom instruction to increase student achievement, and necessary staff training to ensure the effective use of district technology by staff and students.

Apart from it being an incomplete sentence, I wasn’t expecting my comments to be turned into the largest bulleted point in the entire presentation. When I uttered the phrase “technology equity” yesterday I saw the committee members writing furiously. I didn’t know they would latch onto that phrase in such a way.

However, this could be a good thing. If I need more money from the board for a project, all I need to do is point to that bulleted point. I even mentioned this to a couple of our board members and our superintendent. My boss even said that he was going to start calling me “Captain Equity.”

Regardless, I’m just glad the process is over. I do plan to use this “challenge” to my advantage, rather than take it as an indictment of some failure. In the short term, however, my goal is to relax and try to get over this tremendous headache. I think that’s a goal anyone, inside or out of education, can understand.

Post navigation

❮ Previous Post: Hey! What’s That?
Next Post: A Day with Ron Rash ❯

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Categories

  • EdTech (200)
  • Entertainment (202)
  • Family (121)
  • Gear (115)
  • General Technology (99)
  • Geocaching and Maps (208)
  • History and Genealogy (266)
  • Internet (144)
  • Local (451)
  • Miscellaneous (550)
  • Music (196)
  • Paddling (248)
  • Photography (779)
  • Podcast (6)
  • Rambling (227)
  • Rants (161)
  • Recipes (34)
  • Religion (48)
  • Restaurants (165)
  • Science (48)
  • Things Overheard (29)
  • Travel (411)
  • Uncategorized (129)
  • Washington Sabbatical (113)
  • Weirdness (60)

Recent Posts

  • In Search of the Road Builder
  • The Phoenix Riots and Dr. Benjamin Mays – An MLK Day Ramble
  • An Obsession with Steak Knives
  • An Epiphany on Patriotism
  • Kayaking Bates Old River and Running Creek

Recent Comments

  • Walter Kokoszka on Mysterious Mayucha and The Wolf Pit
  • Elizabeth on The Temple of Health: Ground-Truthing in Antreville
  • The Bay Area Basketball Fan’s Guide to March Madness on FU All the Time!
  • Why You Should Root For This March Madness Underdog on FU All the Time!
  • Gregory Davis on Ghost Towns of the Pee Dee – Part 2, Centenary

Tags

blogging cemetery Christmas Columbia Edisto River edtech Entertainment family Flickr Florida Furman Furman University gear Georgia geotagging Ghost Town Ghost Towns Google Earth Google Maps GPS Greenville Greenville Chorale history Instructional Technology kayaking Lake Jocassee LCU Lowcountry Unfiltered maps Music North Carolina Paddling Photography rambling restaurant Restaurants review singing social networking South Carolina time-lapse Travel video Washington Washington State
March 2023
S M T W T F S
 1234
567891011
12131415161718
19202122232425
262728293031  
« Jan    

Copyright © 2023 Random Connections.

Theme: Oceanly by ScriptsTown