Every week until the election, we will have a question for the DJUSD School Board Candidates. We have a word limit of roughly 350.
Please also see the Vanguard Candidate’s forum from Sunday, September 18.
Question 1: What do you consider the most serious or most pressing challenge faced by the school district and, if elected, how will you approach it?
Susan Lovenburg:
The Davis Joint Unified School District, like all school districts in the state and the nation, is affected by the limited availability of teachers to fill open positions. This is driven by the retirement of the Baby Boom generation, and exacerbated by lay-offs during the Great Recession which discouraged new teachers from entering the profession.
We have put in place several strategies to keep the district competitive and able to attract and retain high quality educators. We have:
- Provided salary increases to all employees for the past two years, as funds became available. This was critical following long years of salary stagnation during the recession.
- Revised salary schedules to improve entry level compensation and added steps and columns for advancement by current employees.
- Initiated a partnership with the nonprofit California Education Coalition for Health Care Reform to work with our employee associations and administration to improve access and lower costs to high quality health care.
- Created a new action team within the strategic planning process to further study the issue and provide additional recommendations. A call for volunteers will be announced soon.
We’ll continue to explore creative ways to improve learning environments, so that DJUSD remains an exciting place to advance a teaching career. In particular, the district is focused on expanding differentiated instruction supported by new technologies and enhancing a culture of collaborative learning among educators.
Personally, I’d also like to explore the possibility of split positions which allow a teacher to teach in the classroom part of the day and serve as a teacher mentor/coach for the remainder. This approach is proven to provide senior teachers with the opportunity to master their craft and share their experience and wisdom with young teachers to accelerate their own development as educators. It’s a win-win for students and teachers.
Bob Poppenga
The first challenge is the ability of the District to recruit and retain quality teachers and staff. This is particularly true for STEA2M (STEM + Arts and Agriculture as our local community expands on the STEM concept) subjects due to a nationwide shortage of trained STEM teachers. Take home pay lags many surrounding Districts due to lower salaries and higher health care costs. In addition, as I wrote in the Vanguard in 2014, the high cost of housing in Davis precludes many teachers from living in the community. The competitiveness problem is recognized by the District and is a priority area moving forward. Unfortunately, there is no influx of new monies on the horizon to increase salaries significantly. Although the District has provided modest salary increases over the last several years, other Districts have provided even greater increases. The State of California mandates health care plans for teachers so options for lower cost plans are limited. I would favor looking at the possibility of providing a modest year-end bonus if surpluses resulted due to conservative budgeting by the District.
School districts in areas with high housing and rental costs have explored ways in which more affordable housing can be made available to teachers and staff. We should do the same. I would also encourage the District to consider creative ways (e.g., day care on District property) that might help mitigate day care costs for teachers with young children. Although several PTAs provide money to teachers for classroom supplies, some teachers still cover some classroom expenses out of their own pockets. In my view, this is unacceptable.
In the longer term, California needs to increase its support of public education so that we can move from near the bottom of the 50 states in per pupil funding of K-12 to at least the median.
Another significant challenge is the ongoing effort to close the achievement (opportunity) gap. This was a question that was raised during the 2014 race and my response to the question then focused on early intervention as one of the most effective strategies (https://davisvanguard.org/2014/09/expanded-thoughts-on-narrowing-the-achievement-gap/). Helping parents learn how to provide a positive home learning environment for their pre-school children would pay dividends, along with access to quality preschool options, expanded after school learning opportunities, and summer enrichment programs.
Finally, we need to focus attention on what programs and facilities are needed now in order to prepare our students for the jobs of the future. We need to make sure that all students have access to critical math and science skills and we absolutely need to do a better job of providing career and technical education (CTE) programs for students not interested in pursuing a 4 year college degree. Many of our schools are poorly equipped to support cutting edge STEA2M programs. Recently, I was dismayed that a junior high school teacher was asking parents to provide distilled water for science classes at a junior high back-to-school night.
Alan Fernandes
The most pressing challenge facing our district is the fact that Davis receives less state funding compared to surrounding school districts as a result of recent changes in law. Because DJUSD funding will not keep pace with surrounding districts, retaining our qualified teachers and recruiting new teachers will be increasingly difficult. Investing in our teachers and school employees promises an enormous return for our children. We must acknowledge that our resources are limited and not shy away from the hard work of determining our priorities for the future.
If reelected, I would approach this challenge by prioritizing the development of a plan focused on recruiting; supporting, evaluating, retaining, and advancing a team of highly qualified diverse and dedicated staff. This approach was specifically called for in the District’s strategic plan, a process that I have actively participated in since 2013. There are many components to successfully developing this plan. Teacher compensation is simply one area that needs improvement, in addition to up to date professional development, and continued efforts to reduce class sizes. Accomplishing these objectives takes a collaborative community. I am committed to engaging parents, teachers, and students in this effort.
Jose Granda
I believe the AIM issue is one that the district needs to pay attention to and deal with as soon as possible. There is a complaint with the Office of Civil Rights regarding the method of admission into the program and that points to a major issue.
Those of us that have lived in Davis over 35 years would recall the Bake case regarding the admission to UC Davis Medical School. It became national news. Most certainly I would not want to see the Davis Joint Unified School District be known for discriminatory policies. The present attitude of the other candidates worries me. Let Susan Lovenburg and Alan Fernandes that were involved in the decision to decide on a 98 percentile of a test administered to the students defend their decision. I do not hear any different direction from Bob Poppenga but a minor adjustment.
I am running on a platform of Elect a Different Candidate and I am different on this. I believe that all programs should be offered and available to all students. The current policy needs to be done away with. I would like to see it replaced with a system where the parents are the ones who make the main decision for their children to be placed in this program, in consultation with the teachers. Students go through a systematic process of discovery of their abilities once they are provided an opportunity to try it. Let students try it over a period of time, let’s say six or nine months and see how they do. Those that show ability to stay the course and are happy in it can continue.
If elected I would advocate for policies that provide opportunities to anyone. Even taking a step like this may not be enough with unrepresented and disadvantaged or disabled students. It may be necessary to have a policy that invites students to be in a high achieving program. The parents working together with the teachers are the ones who can motivate and guide students to apply and to stay in such program. I believe in inclusiveness rather than dividing the students and polarizing the parents.
Is Granda still participating?
I’m sure I’ll get it from him at some point today
He was at the farmer’s market Wednesday with an impressive booth. Any of the three is better than Lovenburg
I thought that Lovenburg’s performance at the forum was the strongest overall.
Granda is a mess. He’s for everything that’s great in education but won’t explain how he would pay for it if he gets his way on Measure H.
“I thought that Lovenburg’s performance at the forum was the strongest overall.”
Don;t agree with that. She had a very condescending tone and her answer to most quests was “read the website”
“Granda is a mess.” +1 on that but he would still be better than Lovenburg.
quielo: Don;t agree with that. She had a very condescending tone and her answer to most quests was “read the website”
I think “read the website” was how she accommodated the 1-2 minute restrictions on answers, which she otherwise filled with further explanation. She was also one of the main people who initiated the District Dollars website to try to explain school finances to the public.
I get that she may not be as smooth a public speaker as some, but my assessment was based on the content and relevance of the answers. But education is political, in that there isn’t exactly one true philosophy, and there will be disagreement over policy preference, which I’m sure we must have at some level.
Beyond the “condescending” issue (which I read as confidence), I would be interested to know where you might disagree on the policy/content that was discussed.
” I would be interested to know where you might disagree on the policy/content that was discussed.”
This is a very good question and sometimes difficult to answer. All candidates will say things like “We want the best education for every student” which then compels the listener to guess or “read the teas leaves” to guess what that means with limited resources.
I find her answers to AIM to be disingenuous and it appears to me that her goal is to eliminate AIM though it’s hard to be sure. My kids are bright and eager learners so I look at comments and actions that have implications for that group. I know it’s popular here on the DV to discuss the “achievement gap” however as far as I can tell nobody has proven an ability to close it and the spending of resources in the attempt is unlikely to benefit my kids.
Susan also casts her work with state government as a positive. I see it as more likely to be a negative as it puts her in the position of wants to please Sacramento during the day and advocating for us at night. I believe there will be a conflict between districts like Davis and Sacramento in the near future so her loyalties to the political leadership have to be a negative. If she had said “I am close to Sacramento and here are the benefits I have brought from that” then I might have a different idea but there seems to have been no upside and she is just a tool to oppress our local schools for the benefit of Democratic leadership.
Bob in particular raised some ideas for generating more revenue and Susan seemed overly dismissive. I agreed with most of her points about where grants are likely to go but it seemed like she had given up looking and was overly defeatist.
Maybe not a satisfying answer but from her actions and the subtext it seemed like she was not supportive of my kids.
quielo: I find her answers to AIM to be disingenuous and it appears to me that her goal is to eliminate AIM though it’s hard to be sure.
I don’t think her goal is to eliminate AIM, which I think you mean to be the “self-contained” program. I appreciate that she is attempting to open up differentiated instruction as a standard in the district. What I would like to see is both a self-contained program and differentiated instruction.
What concerned me some about Poppenga’s response on this issue is better clarity on where he stands on differentiated instruction. He seemed questioning and skeptical of it in a manner that seemed similar to Sunder’s at times. My concern is over whether there is an unspoken agenda to eliminate differentiated instruction.
I think he was correct to note that more teacher training/professional development is needed (only 66% were documented to have received it, if I recall correctly). Lovenburg did very well in describing what differentiated instruction looks like. I think a successful candidate and trustee will have to establish their interest in having both programs. Otherwise this issue definitely will not resolve anytime soon.
I appreciated that Poppenga distinguished between “giftedness” in the traditional sense of “thinking and processing differently” from a conventional way and “high achieving.” I perceive that there is a difference, and that is where I think there is massive conflation in the discussion, which has led to more acrimony than necessary.
I am skeptical of using standardized test scores to give solid identification for traditional giftedness. I think there are many qualitative characteristics that will never be testable in that way, but those will be ignored, because of suspicions of being too subjective.
quielo: I know it’s popular here on the DV to discuss the “achievement gap” however as far as I can tell nobody has proven an ability to close it and the spending of resources in the attempt is unlikely to benefit my kids.
And as long as the discussion is confined to standardized test scores and only in English and math, and only for race/ethnicity and income level, then I think we won’t get anywhere. As a candidate in the 2014 race, Poppenga was the first (at least as far as I can remember) to refer specifically to an ‘opportunity gap,’ and he would sometimes riff on issues that moved a little beyond standardized test scores.
I insist that a better measure for the achievement/opportunity gap in Davis is parent education level. Students whose parents have less than college education end up with fewer opportunities for the full spectrum of programs that DJUSD offers, and that includes AIM. About 2% of AIM students last year had parents with less than college education. On the other hand about 81% of AIM students have parents who have a graduate degree. In DJUSD those numbers have been reported to be 8% and 57%, respectively. That tells me that there is probably substantial skewing in the AIM program toward high achieving students. Also that the diversity that has been touted in the AIM program (race/ethnicity & income level) is probably due in large part to the diversity that UC Davis has brought to our community through hiring and through student admissions. Low income level among DJUSD students in part includes UCD students with kids, more common among grad students than undergrads.
Lovenburg seems to have some awareness of this issue, as she was touting Robert Putnam’s book, Our Kids, which addresses various issues of under-privilege in American society today, including the propagating effects of education or lack of it in families.
In Davis I don’t find it common for college educated adults to socialize that much with lesser educated adults. It might seem trivial, but I think this is a window into how one responds on this issue.
Alan Fernandes Says that we don;t have enough money so we need pay more compensation and pay for professional development, etc. Perhaps I missed it but where does he expect that money to come from?
Why not get together with similar districts and sue Sacramento for discriminating against our students?
I thought that Granda’s performance at the forum was the strongest overall.
Lovenburgis a mess. She’s for everything that’s great in education but won’t explain how she would pay for it if she gets her way on Measure H.
Do we currently have a teacher shortage at DJUSD? Are there children who are unable to attend class due to unavailability of teaching staff?
It seems that the district is able to staff its needs, but apparently the applicant pools aren’t very big. This is what the Davis Enterprise said about the issue, 24 August 2016:
Teachers are in high demand, but Davis salaries continue to lag
So we are able to hire enough teachers. Are you saying we that we are hiring unqualified teachers? Are they somehow inadequate? Shouldn’t possession of a teaching credential ensure that a teacher is both qualified and adequate? No evidence has been presented that shows more money will produce a better outcome for our students. All that has been shown is that a Davis grad chose to work in Elk Grove for more money. I think our district is showing fiduciary responsibility to the taxpayer and other districts should follow suit or be sued for malfeasance.
Woody: Are you saying we that we are hiring unqualified teachers? Are they somehow inadequate? Shouldn’t possession of a teaching credential ensure that a teacher is both qualified and adequate?
I think you might agree that if you had 20 interested and qualified applicants for a position, you would probably find a candidate who is a better fit than having 3 applicants for a position, and maybe 2 of those applicants really have in mind working elsewhere. I am not privy to the hiring that’s going on in the district, but I infer that we are probably closer to the latter situation rather than the former.
Teachers may have a credential, but nevertheless have different individual styles, backgrounds, and approaches that can be a better fit in one situation over another.
Woody: No evidence has been presented that shows more money will produce a better outcome for our students.
That depends on how you define “better outcome for our students.” Some outcomes are quantifiable, many are not. Personally I think that more experienced teachers are likelier to offer more positive things for students than less experienced teachers, but more experienced teachers will cost more.
Woody: I think our district is showing fiduciary responsibility to the taxpayer…
That is a positive way to look at the situation through a budgetary lens.
If we do have less qualified teachers, and raise salaries to attract more qualified ones, guess what? The existing less qualified ones will get the rises locked in, and the newer, more qualified ones will be the first to be laid off in a downturn… I consider the existing system to be problematic…
hpierce: And what do you recommend as an alternative?
Outlaw unionized public sector labor. Implement a pay for performance bonus program.
Convert all public sector employee retirement benefits from pensions to 401ks.
Frankly: Implement a pay for performance bonus program.
Based on what?
I noticed that you seemed to acknowledge Edwards Demming‘s approach to management as a positive for Japanese industry. From what I’ve read, I think that approach might be more in line with teaching than other approaches that you have suggested. But it looks like he would have shunned individual performance pay.
Performance pay has been implemented before in teaching. I haven’t seen any evidence that it succeeded in producing intended results.
Outlaw unionized public sector labor.
Unions are constitutional.
Frankly has the correct solution. I work at a Fortune 500 company which has implemented all the latest in vogue strategies for hiring “A team” employees. Surprisingly (or not), this has not improved the quality of our new hires. Only paying for performance (monetary or otherwise) after hiring has improved our ability to retain the best employees.
Public unions should be abolished as they hinder the ability to remove bad teachers.
Defined contribution retirement would make it easier for teachers who aren’t a good fit to move on to other professions or the private sector. If they insist on keeping their defined benefits program then any shortfall in benefits should be made up by cuts or solely by those within the defined benefit program just like Social Security.
With the city owned affordable housing vacant has anyone investigated using that as a draw for new teachers? With the program at Sac State and a discount apartment…
Woody: Frankly has the correct solution. I work at a Fortune 500 company which has implemented all the latest in vogue strategies for hiring “A team” employees. etc.
K-12 education is a need that all children require in our society, and the needs are different depending on the child. Usually children from families with fewer resources have higher needs. That situation does not lend itself to a conventional model of running a business.
Sorry wdf1, but what you write is BS after the point “is a need”.
Every customer is unique and has unique needs. Those organizations that thrive are the ones that figure out how to best satisfy those unique needs. The K-12 education system does a lousy job at this in general. The system and its employees gravitate towards standards that promote fairness (and frankly to make the job of teaching easier) with too low granularity of choice and options. They categorize the kids into a shrinking inventory of learning-style boxes.
I had a technical issue I was working on today. The technician tried all that she knew how to do, and then told me the problem was on my end. After I told her that she was a failure and that I was going to contact her company to let them know how she wasn’t preforming well enough, she escalated me to a more senior technician that asked me more detailed questions and then correctly diagnosed and fixed the problem (on HIS end).
This encounter reminded me of the education system except there is nobody for a customer to complain to that would take action. And the employees all know that there is nobody a customer can complain to that could take action and so they are quick to say “the problem is all at your end.”
Frankly: The system and its employees gravitate towards standards that promote fairness (and frankly to make the job of teaching easier) with too low granularity of choice and options. They categorize the kids into a shrinking inventory of learning-style boxes.
Thanks to the ongoing prevalence of standardized testing, which you embrace. Standardized tests typically focus on variants math and English Language Arts. If that’s what you test for, then that’s what you’ll get. It is a very much in the Chinese model of the civil service test, which goes back centuries and continues in contemporary form to the present day. And it’s not a good thing. Again, I invite you to read Yong Zhao’s book, Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Dragon?: Why China Has the Best (and Worst) Education System in the World. See also comment threads here.
Frankly: Every customer is unique and has unique needs. Those organizations that thrive are the ones that figure out how to best satisfy those unique needs.
Due to federal and state ed policy, public schools aren’t incentivized to look at much else apart from English and math. And maybe science in 5th & 8th grade, when they get tested for it. College-educated parents are likelier able to make sure that their kids’ educational experience is supplemented with most of the rest of the experiences that will lead to better future outcomes.
For the past four years Davis High has had between 1 to 2 math teacher openings that the district was not able to fill. Depending on the year, in order to make sure enough classes could be offered between 5 to 10 teachers were needed to teach at 120% ( 6 instead of 5 classes). Last year there were 9 math teachers and 5 taught 6 classes. This year there are again 9 teachers, only one is teaching at 120% but 7 teachers have class averages exceeding 32 per class. So, yes there is a teacher shortage at Davis High. And even though students are able to attend class, the vast majority of math classes are severely overcrowded.
Maybe they should go to a different model of instruction – lecture / lab sections. Large lectures and multiple smaller lab/discussion sections – like Universities and Colleges do.
Why were they not able to fill the position? Was it because we didn’t offer enough money? Are these only the higher level math classes like Calculus? As ryankelly suggests, we should go to a lecture/discussion scenario which students should be able to handle by high school.
As a side note, sorry for hijacking this discussion. My original point was that the establishment candidates cite a hiring problem that largely does not exist so they can payoff the unions without rocking the boat. I realize that status quo helps some of the candidates (and other posters) advance their careers in Sacramento as well as run for higher office. I would rather we have new thinking such as ryankelly’s suggestion.
The district advertised for months and only received a handful of applications of which only one was qualified and was hired. It would stand to reason Davis’ poor salary schedule was the reason for so few applicants.
I respectively disagree with your assessment that high school students can handle “large lectures.” Also it needs to be noted a full time teaching position at the college level is three classes not five as in high school. And, the small class discussion labs are most often led by graduate assistants.
kronning: Also it needs to be noted a full time teaching position at the college level is three classes not five as in high school.
At a community college a full time teaching load is also five classes.
A majority of mathematics teachers in the public school system were not mathematics majors as undergraduates. For mathematics undergraduates that pursue public school teaching, there is a high turnover rate given the lack of respect for the teaching profession and other opportunities available for technically capable individuals. Without passion and enthusiasm for the subject matter, it would be difficult for a teacher to convey the magic of mathematics.
If advanced math high school students can’t handle lectures/discussions how are they able to handle them one year later in college? Perhaps we would not need as many full time teachers (5 hours x 180 days) with this format. Surely we can find people who are as capable as a grad student to lead discussions or are these in short supply as well?
In any case, all I am hearing from district insiders is we have no interest in actual solutions and just want more taxpayer money to advance our own position.
Woody: Also it needs to be noted a full time teaching position at the college level is three classes not five as in high school.
I understand that if you want secure employment as a teacher in K-12, or even at the college level, pursue math. They are usually in shorter supply much of the time.
I am very interested in both the quantity and quality of math instruction. US/CSU requires 3 years of math. I am under the impression that by junior year, a large number of students have met their math graduation requirement and stop taking math. Does anyone know the actual numbers? How many DJUSD students take 3 years of high school math? 4 years? Does anyone know if a student takes algebra in 7th grade, is that a good predictor that the student will be taking math as a high school senior?
Actually, if a student took algebra in 7th grade, s/he could complete the 3 years of high school math by sophomore year. How many students stop taking math after their sophomore year?
People with STEM degrees have a lot of options upon graduation. If they choose another field before finding or being called to teaching, they still have to start at the bottom of the salary schedule.
Speaking for myself, at 22 years old, you could not have paid me $1,000,000 to enter the doors of a high school again. By 30 years old, I was interested in work that would let me give back. At that point, I had a mortgage; that was the point where the salary was too low.
It is right to keep the drum beating about money. However, it is so out of control of any district. I would like to know, what our leaders would do, that is in their control. Rising health care costs are impacting everyone. Could they, for example, provide the leadership and vision for all Yolo County school districts to start negotiating for health care policies together?
Should you really be posting Granda’s answer when it’s well past the deadline?
I appreciate being able to read Dr. Granda’s input even if it’s late.
My opinion is that “Yes, he should.” The lateness of the submission becomes part of its content. The voters deserve the opportunity to see/hear all of Dr. Granda’s content. Some they will agree with. Some they will disagree with. The only reason a person would have not to publish his answer is if that person is trying to bias the playing field against Granda’s candidacy.